Faced with those incomplete figures, the bloodstains on the ground, and the doctor in his arms, Zhong Mu's heart never calmed down for a moment.
He would instinctively swing his axe in retaliation if provoked even for a moment.
This way, he won't get hurt, and the doctor won't continue to be hurt.
To survive in such a city, he had to be crazier than the people here.
Those who were itching to follow him were frightened by his terrifying expression, took a step back timidly, and gave up on following him completely.
Zhong Mu immediately turned around and ran away from the busiest street. He kept his head down, carrying an axe, and covered in blood as he hid in the dark alley.
He had blood on him from the attack he had just committed, as well as blood from the doctor.
Drip, drip, drip, the stench of blood lingered in the dark alley, and the incomplete figures kept haunting Zhong Mu's mind.
Only after the distant voices completely disappeared did Zhong Mu find a corner to stop and slowly put the wooden bundle on his body onto the ground.
His long, silvery-white hair, stained with glaring blood, fell to the ground. His already frail body became even more fragile after losing a part of it. Zhong Mu became cautious in every move, helping him to lean slowly against the wall.
"Doctor... your blood... is still flowing..."
Zhong Mu lowered her eyes and looked helplessly at the severed part of Mu He's arm. She then quickly turned her head away, feeling like she was about to faint.
"It's alright... I won't die from this, I'm a monster." Mu He said slowly, reaching out to grab Zhong Mu's incredibly cold wrist. "But are you alright? Your breathing is heavy, and your pulse is too high. Are you scared?"
Zhong Mu belatedly realized that his emotions could be transmitted through his heart, and that the doctor knew about his emotions.
But at the same time, I felt even more depressed.
"Why are the doctors... so emotionless... Aren't you angry at being treated like this?" He muttered with his head down, his hand gripping the axe still trembling uncontrollably. Zhong Mu could no longer distinguish whether it was fear or anger, or both.
Now, he trembles all over whenever he looks up and sees the person in front of him.
"I'm not angry," Mu He replied softly, her voice, made light by weakness, sounding particularly feeble in the quiet alley. "I'm used to this. To me, this place is no different from a dungeon; it's just others trying to extract value from me."
"I don't care, so you shouldn't care too much either."
He gently patted Zhong Mu's tense, trembling, and cold hand, probably trying to comfort her.
"And this time, I knew you would come looking for me, so I wasn't afraid."
Zhong Mu pursed his lips and remained silent. The doctor wasn't angry, but he was so angry that his head felt like it was going to explode, and his ears were ringing.
His greatest fear—human mutilation—and his greatest dread—involved the simultaneous appearance of injured people; at that moment, his blood truly seemed to freeze.
Mu He's attempts to calm him down were ineffective; Zhong Mu's hands remained tense, and he did not let go of the axe.
"I don't like doctors like this…" he murmured, his voice weak and feeble. "Limbs are an important part of the human body. Limb loss is a fatal blow to a person. A person should be born whole and die whole, without losing anything."
"Even if a doctor is a monster, he still has to take his own body seriously. His eyes, heart, legs, and hands are all his own. Why should others take them away?"
Mu He slowly raised her hand, her fingers gently smoothing down Zhong Mu's furrowed brows. "I guess I'm just used to being asked for things. When the weak, the sick, or those in need ask me for help, I find it hard to refuse..."
"And this time it really was my fault. I didn't expect the people in this city to be so extreme in their demands for physical contact."
Zhong Mu's voice remained somber, "A doctor should learn to take care of himself before helping others."
Mu He felt helpless, unsure how to comfort the person in front of her. "Before, I didn't feel the need to take care of myself. Whatever I lost or got hurt, I could bear the consequences myself, so I didn't have this habit."
His light-hearted words silently carried the weight of his life in the dungeon over the years. He himself was completely unaware of how pitiful it sounded, but as soon as Zhong Mu pursed his lips, tears began to fall.
He grabbed Mu He's finger that was resting between his eyebrows and muttered, "We have it now, and we must have it in the future."
"The doctor is one of the few kind people I've met. A doctor's kindness shouldn't be used as a weapon to hurt you. Promise me you won't make promises to others so easily in the future."
Hot tears fell onto the back of Mu He's hand, the human warmth causing his cold hand to tremble slightly.
Mu He couldn't see Zhong Mu's expression, but the sadness in his voice was palpable.
Even though his hands were so cold from fright that they were trembling, he held Mu He's hand tightly.
The heat from each of the pellets that fell onto Mu He's hand traveled down his arm, burning like fire.
Mu He had lost all emotion over the years, and his heart was always calm, even when his limbs were cut off by Mingyun City.
This wasn't the first time he'd been hurt while offering help to others; it was just another instance of him experiencing it again. All he could think about was how to get his limbs back.
But no one expected that someone would be shedding tears because of his injury.
Mu He helplessly opened her palm and caught the tears that dripped onto it. "Being too empathetic isn't a good thing, especially for someone like me."
With red eyes, Zhong Mu stubbornly insisted, "The doctor hasn't agreed yet."
"Okay...okay...I promise you." Mu He responded as if in resignation, a helpless smile curving her lips. "I promise you, I won't make promises to others lightly anymore, and I'll take good care of myself."
"My body and my heart are my own, and I will not let anyone take them away."
A helpless smile appeared on his pale face, and his voice was weak. His already sickly face was even more shocking after being stained with blood.
Zhong Mu sniffed and wiped away her tears.
"No."
He pulled Mu He into his arms, his brows furrowed. "The doctor's body and heart are mine. I will protect the doctor from now on. I will learn to protect others so that I will never see this scene again, never see this happen again."
He seemed to have made up his mind, and the hand holding the axe slowly stopped trembling, as all the fear and tinnitus were gradually suppressed.
Sometimes, people really do grow up in the blink of an eye.
At that moment, he went from being the one being protected to becoming the protector.