Ren Suo's House, living room.

Gu Yueyan and Ren Suo were both carried to the couch. Throughout the process, even as their bodies were moved, their breathing remained perfectly regular; they slept as soundly as children exhausted from a full day of play.

Dong Chengling, Qiao Muyi, Ren Xingmei, and Lin Xianyu stood to one side. Dong Chengling had already sent Little Jiu home to sleep.

"Sudden comas, aside from pathological causes, generally fall into three types of Transcendent comas," Qiao Muyi began, her eyes slightly red, though her expression was calm. "First, experiencing an initial Awakening or a reawakening. Second, suffering a mental Attack. Third, being affected by an unknown influence."

She continued, "Based on what I observed, Xiao Suo is definitely not undergoing an initial Awakening or reawakening. And it's not just him; even Yueyan has fallen into an unwakeable sleep. This suggests it could be due to a mental Attack or an unknown influence."

Ren Xingmei sat beside Ren Suo, looking at her brother. He should have been staying up all night playing games with her, but now he was asleep prematurely. And it was very likely something serious had happened. Her heart filled with both worry and resentment, so much so that she couldn't stop herself from wondering, Why is my brother in trouble, but you're fine?

But she ultimately swallowed those words. She couldn't blame Qiao Muyi. With Ren Suo falling into an unending sleep while in Qiao Muyi's company, Qiao Muyi was undoubtedly the most distressed. Even though Ren Suo was merely in a deep sleep with all vital signs normal, from Ren Xingmei's perspective, the usually fearless Qiao Muyi still had to retreat to the washroom for a considerable time to compose herself, emerging with reddened eyes.

Moreover, Ren Xingmei was entirely different from Gu Yueyan; she disliked blaming others, even if that 'other' was someone she cherished deeply. Blaming others was pointless; it wouldn't change reality. Blaming was merely an excuse for avoidance, a sign of weakness.

If the other person was intelligent, they wouldn't need her reproach; if they were a fool, she would choose to distance herself and never interact with them again—Ren Suo being the sole exception.

Lin Xianyu gazed at the sleeping class president with concern. "If it's just prolonged, deep sleep, we could treat them as comatose patients and maintain their lives in a hospital. But if it's due to some other influence, what if they suddenly suffer brain death while asleep? We'd be helpless to assist..."

Lin Xianyu's sudden seriousness surprised even Qiao Muyi. She had actually thought this girl might ask something like, 'How should we handle their bodily functions?' or some other such question.

"Without identifying the cause, we truly can't do anything," Qiao Muyi sighed softly.

Dong Chengling, who had been quietly observing them both, asked, "Then, shall we send them to the Third Hospital for treatment?"

This prudent suggestion, however, did not meet with Qiao Muyi's approval. She frowned slightly, and after a moment's thought, shook her head. "Let's wait one day."

"Wait?" Dong Chengling was somewhat puzzled.

"Wait," Qiao Muyi affirmed. "Although Xiao Suo hasn't told me, and we haven't discussed it... you've probably all vaguely guessed that he's hiding some secrets."

Although Ren Suo would make excuses to hide things, they weren't fools. Even Lin Xianyu sensed that Big Brother Ren definitely possessed a 'special Ability that could make food so delicious it made people want to strip, but which had an incredibly long cooldown time.' The others, naturally, suspected even more.

Especially Dong Chengling. Ren Suo could generate his own body heat and would rush over to her in the dead of night for physique Strengthening. She certainly didn't believe these were the effects of Ren Suo's awakened spells—and even if they were, they were definitely not the awakened Healing Magic listed in Ren Suo's file.

Ren Suo didn't use those excuses expecting them to believe him—A Bond is a Bond; it doesn't mean you lose your wits.

But the significance of their Bond lay in their willingness to trust Ren Suo, the person.

"If we send him to the hospital now without his permission, he'll inevitably undergo a comprehensive examination, which might lead to consequences he's unwilling to face. If we trust him... however, qualities like being silly, slow-witted, and kind-hearted don't conflict with the fact of possessing great Force."

Qiao Muyi empathized with this the most, and she was also the most suspicious that Ren Suo, like her, was a Demon King. The Lazy Demon King? The Time Demon King? The Reborn Demon King?

Xiao Suo's Secret Diary was the best evidence. The diary seemed to be a condensed record of Ren Suo's thousands of attempts to save her across endless time and space. Even though he ultimately lost his memory to invert the world, his memories, guided by his longing, still found their way into her hands.

Nevertheless, one thing was certain: Ren Suo possessed some kind of immense Ability, powerful enough to warp causality to such an extent that even he himself was affected by it.

Qiao Muyi dared not allow Ren Suo to go to the hospital for an examination. She would rather go to the hospital to learn how to perform medical examinations herself, then find a way to procure the necessary equipment to conduct a private examination for Ren Suo.

Whether for better or worse, the moment Ren Suo's power was discovered, his ordinary life would be over.

Fear, covetousness, exploitation, ambition... The essence of a person is the sum of all their social relations. As soon as Ren Suo revealed his value, he would inevitably be swept into a vortex.

Heaven's will is like a knife, and people's hearts are unpredictable.

Qiao Muyi trusted no one but herself and Ren Suo. She wouldn't let Ren Suo face the slightest risk, nor was she interested in him getting caught up in treacherous schemes. Besides, the fact that Ren Suo, possessing such power, had always remained quietly at Heavenly Lotus Academy already demonstrated his inclinations.

She had already tasted a love that burned fiercely. Now, she only wanted to live a safe and secure life, defeat that little minx Dong Chengling, travel the world, and enjoy a peaceful existence of sleeping, eating, and playing with Ren Suo.

She spoke with great rationality and Calmness, "Let's wait a day. I think it's highly unlikely to be a psychic Attack; if it were, I would have noticed. I'm more inclined to believe it's an unknown influence. If that's the case, Xiao Suo and Yueyan likely aren't the only ones affected... I'll return to the Bureau tomorrow to investigate. With luck, we might find some relevant information."

"Until we know whether this sleep is beneficial or detrimental, or what other effects it might have, we'll take care of them both for now. As Cultivators, their bodies are resilient. Being in a low-consumption state of deep sleep, they should be fine for a day or two."

The others nodded in agreement. Dong Chengling said, "Then I'll take care of Suo and Yueyan."

Although she wanted to take Ren Suo home and play with him like a collectible figurine, Qiao Muyi had to admit she currently lacked the time to care for him. Dong Chengling, on the other hand, being a teacher and capable of Spatial Movement, was perfectly suited for this responsibility.

Ren Xingmei and Lin Xianyu, being students, had no say in the matter.

Suddenly, Lin Xianyu asked, "Should we inform their families?"

Ren Xingmei immediately replied, "There's no need for my brother; my knowing is enough. As for our parents... my brother told me before that unless he's well and truly dead, we shouldn't tell our parents anything else, to spare them the worry."

"What about the class president then?"

Qiao Muyi pondered for a moment. "I'll notify her family, but I won't explain the full situation, nor will I mention that Xiao Suo has fallen into a similar state of sleep. I'll have her family come in person. If they insist on hospitalizing her, we'll comply with their wishes."

Gu Yueyan's situation was different from Ren Suo's; she didn't have as many secrets, so hospital treatment shouldn't lead to any unexpected complications.

Having made her decision, Qiao Muyi walked to the balcony and dialed Gu Wenyi's mobile phone.

"Let me do it," Dong Chengling said, approaching her. "Yueyan is my student and like a sister to me. Both sentiment and logic dictate that I should be the one to inform her parents."

Qiao Muyi shook her head. "There's no need. Don't get involved; let me handle this. They won't resent me, but they might resent you."

"It's right for them to blame me. I was less than ten meters away from them, yet…"

"They shouldn't. You still need to help me take care of Xiao Suo."

Dong Chengling smiled faintly. "This isn't just helping you."

Gu Wenyi's phone didn't connect. He probably turns his phone off when he sleeps. So, Qiao Muyi opted to call Gu Yuexuan instead.

"Say whatever you want."

"Xiao Qiao, I'm not blaming you."

Qiao Muyi looked at Dong Chengling, who said calmly, "Even though you pulled Suo into his room and turned off the lights; even though I was less than ten meters away in the kitchen, preparing your late-night snack; even though you could have used your hand to cover his mouth, but chose to use your lips instead… I trust that you did your best, Xiao Qiao. Suo's deep sleep was force majeure."

Qiao Muyi looked at Dong Chengling with a complex expression, feeling that if Ren Suo hadn't suddenly fallen asleep, they might have settled who held the title of 'Lian River's Strongest' tonight. Of course, she had never been afraid.

"Thank you," Qiao Muyi nodded.

"So…" Dong Chengling leaned close to Qiao Muyi's ear and whispered, "next time I want to do something, don't interfere, okay?"

"...He hasn't woken up yet," Qiao Muyi demurred, quickly changing the subject.

"He will wake up," Dong Chengling said lightly. "I can't help but worry about him, but I've always believed he'll return safely."

"Is that wishful thinking?"

"It's experience."

The call connected. Gu Yuexuan seemed to be awake. "Hello? Who is this?"

"This is Qiao Muyi, Deputy Director of the Lian River Countermeasure Bureau," Qiao Muyi said directly. "Your sister is experiencing an abnormal condition. You and Instructor Gu Wenyi should come to Lian River as quickly as possible."

"What happened?" Gu Yuexuan's tone immediately grew tense.

"She appears to be in a deep, unwakeable sleep. The cause is unknown. It was very sudden, and I believe it's due to some unknown influence," Qiao Muyi stated. "Our plan is to monitor her here for two days while we wait for you. If she still hasn't woken up after three days, we'll take her to the hospital for treatment."

"Thank you. Let's proceed with your plan. My dad and I will get there as soon as we can," Gu Yuexuan said gratefully, then asked, "May I ask why you're the one calling me, Director Qiao…?"

"Because Yueyan suddenly fell unconscious while she was with me and the others at a Christmas gathering."

"Then, Ren... Um, thank you. I truly appreciate you looking after my sister."

「On the other side, a thousand miles away in Sky Capital.」

Gu Yuexuan hung up the phone, sighed, and stood up to put on his coat.

"Captain, what happened?" Wen Junjie, a member of the scouting team, asked.

"My sister might be in trouble," Gu Yuexuan said. "I need to hurry back and inform my father."

The scouting team members, who had been celebrating Gu Yuexuan's return with a late-night meal, promptly stood up. "Captain, do you need our help?"

"No need." Gu Yuexuan waved his hand and shook his head. "What help can we offer from all the way in Sky Capital? It's that guy…"

"That guy? Captain, are you talking about your sister's boyfriend?"

"What was that guy thinking? How could he fail to protect his own girlfriend?"

"Captain, why don't we go back with you and give that guy a beating? If you can't handle him alone, we'll all jump him! Between all of us, we could take him down with a single fart each! Didn't you say you wanted to take us to scare that punk? Now's the perfect chance!"

Gu Yuexuan wanted to retort, Actually, I could take him, but with his sister potentially in trouble, he wasn't in the mood for anything else and just waved his hand. "Some other time."

It wasn't that he wouldn't fight, just that he'd wait for better weather.

With the guest of honor gone, the other scouting team members had to disperse. Arm in arm, they staggered down the street, roaring, "Avenge the captain!" and "Down with the pretty boy!" Then they all went home and crashed, probably dreaming of pummeling that pretty boy.