Chapter 132: Shen Yijue, You Must Live

Mo Qi had curled up in Shen Yijue’s arms and, overcome by exhaustion, drifted off to sleep without even realizing it.

When she woke again, the campfire in the stone hut had burned out, and Shen Yijue was no longer by her side. Mo Qi rubbed her eyes, climbed up, and stepped outside. The light rain had ceased, and the mountain air, fragrant with the scent of rain-washed grass, was incredibly refreshing.

"Heavenly King Shen?" Mo Qi stretched, calling out as she walked down the steps of the stone hut.

There was no answer; Shen Yijue was nowhere to be found. Mo Qi frowned slightly, circling the hut, but he remained unseen.

"Where did he go so early in the morning?" Mo Qi pulled her phone from her pocket and turned it on, finding that she actually had two bars of signal here. She dialed his number, and it took a while for the ringtone to start.

The sound seemed to be right nearby. Mo Qi followed it and realized the ringing was coming from behind a thicket of weeds. "Heavenly King Shen?" She picked up a wooden stick from beside the hut and pushed through the brush to investigate. The phone kept ringing, but there was no answer.

A jolt of alarm went through her, and she quickened her pace. "Heavenly King Shen?"

Shen Yijue lay in the weeds, his eyes open but vacant, clearly drained of all strength.

"What happened?" Mo Qi hurried over and saw that his complexion had turned ghastly pale.

"Snake," Shen Yijue whispered, his voice as thin as a thread. It was no wonder he hadn’t been able to respond when she called.

"A snake?!" Shocked, Mo Qi pulled up his dress pants. Just above his ankle were two puncture wounds, the blood around them already starting to discolor.

Forcing herself to stay calm, she bit off a sleeve of Shen Yijue’s shirt and tied it tightly above the wound to restrict blood flow and prevent the venom from spreading.

"Bear with me," she said, and without a second thought, she bent down to suck the venom from the wound.

Shen Yijue tried to stop her, but his body was so weak he couldn't even move a finger. Mo Qi sucked out the venom and spat it out, repeating the process until the blood began to return to its normal color.

"Shen Yijue? Shen Yijue?" Mo Qi looked up, only to find he had lost consciousness.

Wiping the blood from the corner of her mouth, she immediately called Tang Bin. He picked up after two rings.

"Mo Qi, where did you go? We’re getting ready to leave!"

"I’m by the abandoned stone hut near the creek. He’s been bitten by a snake—bring people over, fast!" She hung up before he could respond.

Tang Bin had mentioned that he’d had the terrain scouted beforehand to ensure they wouldn't get lost or run into danger during the shoot. Mo Qi pocketed her phone and leaned over to pat Shen Yijue’s cheek. "Shen Yijue! Wake up, don't you dare fall asleep! Shen Yijue!"

He remained unconscious, and his breathing began to grow shallow and labored. Mo Qi recalled the briefing documents Tang Bin had provided, which listed the venomous snakes found in the forest, including neurotoxic ones. Bites from such snakes often led to respiratory distress and loss of consciousness.

"Hold on," she said. She rinsed her mouth twice with water from a nearby puddle, took a deep breath, and began performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. She alternated between rescue breaths and chest compressions until Tang Bin arrived with his team.

Upon seeing Shen Yijue on the ground, Tang Bin cast a side-glance at the cold-faced Mo Qi before signaling his staff. "Hurry, get him down the mountain. There’s an emergency clinic at the trailhead."

As it was a national forest park, there were forest rangers and support staff, and a small medical station had been set up at the base for emergencies.

"Oh? Right!" The staff members were stunned to see the unconscious star but quickly moved to lift him and head down the mountain. Mo Qi followed closely, never leaving his side.

Tang Bin caught up with her, studied her somber expression, and let out a laugh. "I really didn't expect him to chase after you so quickly."

Mo Qi ignored him as if she hadn't heard. Tang Bin didn't mind, continuing to talk to himself. "I didn't think we’d barely met twice and you’d already understand me so well."

Mo Qi finally slowed her pace and glanced at him.

Tang Bin shrugged innocently. "If I had known it was Shen Yijue who got bitten, I definitely wouldn't have come to help—at least, not this fast." He made no effort to hide his disdain for the man.

Precisely because she had anticipated this, Mo Qi had told him that *she* was the one who had been bitten.

Mo Qi looked at him in silence for a moment before saying, "Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Good deeds always bring good rewards."

"Is that so?" Tang Bin shrugged noncommittally. "I don't know if good people always get rewarded, but I do know I really didn't want to save Shen Yijue. But since you want to save him, I’ll do you this favor." He leaned in, giving her a suggestive smile. "Remember, you owe me one."

Mo Qi frowned, wanting nothing more than to ignore him, and quickened her pace to catch up with the staff.

"Looks like he braved the rain all night just to catch up to you. Tsk, tsk, look at him covered in mud. I never thought I’d see Shen Yijue in such a sorry state. I always thought he’d stay that untouchable, arrogant figure in the spotlight forever."

Mo Qi finally snapped. "Can you shut the hell up!"

"Aren't you trying to hide from him? Why are you so heartbroken now that you see him like this?" Tang Bin remained completely unfazed by her anger.

Mo Qi couldn't be bothered to respond. Tang Bin made a few more sarcastic remarks, but when they were met with silence, he eventually lost interest.

The staff Tang Bin brought were the ones who had scouted the terrain, so they took the fastest, most convenient route. Before long, the group reached the emergency clinic at the foot of the mountain.

Shen Yijue was rushed into the emergency room, and the others were left waiting outside.

Seeing that Mo Qi was covered in mud and looking pale, a staff member comforted her, "Mo Qi, don't worry too much. A Heavenly King like him is blessed; he’ll be fine."

The others nodded in agreement. "Exactly. And you treated the wound so quickly; he’ll definitely be okay. Don't worry."

"Thank you," Mo Qi said with a forced smile. Her mind was entirely in the emergency room; she had no energy for small talk.

Tang Bin strolled in, holding a carton of milk and some bread, and handed them to her. "You sucked out the venom, right? You should get checked out too. You don't want to be the one collapsing before he’s even saved."

Mo Qi took the food and drink, looked at him, and said, "I shouldn't have snapped at you earlier. I'm sorry."

"Everything I said was the honest truth, so what do you have to apologize for?" Tang Bin said, shoving his hands into his pockets and sitting down on a bench nearby.

*Nothing good ever comes out of a dog's mouth,* Mo Qi thought, rolling her eyes.

They waited outside the emergency room for a long time before the doors finally opened, and a doctor walked out.

Mo Qi rushed forward. "Doctor, how is he?"