Arknights: Studying medicine can't save Terra

Almost everyone carried a small booklet with them, and would study it like crazy whenever they had free time, afraid of forgetting any knowledge points and getting a beating if Qi Yan found out.

"Stay away from Originium, take your medicine on time, and Oripathy won't be able to take hold. Dr. Anto, here's your bread."

"Um, thank you."

Anto took the bread and put it in the basket, his expression incredibly strange.

She turned to leave the supply station.

She had barely taken a step when she heard the infected person in charge of distributing the food shout:

"You have Oripathy, but it's not contagious. Take care, Dr. Anto."

Anto nodded repeatedly, then ran away as if fleeing.

Anto dashed back to his little hut, slammed the door shut, and angrily shouted at Qi Yan, who was dozing inside:

"Look at what you've done! You've made them almost stupid these past few days. They can't even speak without spouting some famous quotes!"

Qi Yan was startled awake from his sleep, and said groggily:

"That's great. Knowledge is power, and they have now grasped the power to change things."

"Change my ass, you've driven people crazy."

Anto placed the bread basket he had received on the table and unscrewed a bottle of water, gulping it down to his heart's content.

Then she slowly said:

"Leaving aside the mess you've made, there's another problem we're facing now."

After the natural disaster, although most of the active source stones were gathered in that great rift valley, some were also growing from within the town.

New clusters of Originium are now growing everywhere on the streets, and the infected are afraid to even leave their homes.

"What does it have to do with me?" Qi Yan said dismissively. "The more Originium I have, the more excited I get."

Anto picked up a piece of bread and threw it at Qi Yan's face.

Qi Yan looked up, opened his mouth, and grabbed the bread, chewing as he muttered:

"I know what you mean, you want me to help clean the streets with my blood, but I won't help."

This is their street; they'll have to clean it themselves. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

"But bread can fall!"

Anto was a little angry and threw another piece of bread at the dog.

This time, Qi Yan didn't take it with his mouth. Instead, he reached out and grabbed the bread, chuckling softly:

“I remember that Severin sent a batch of protective suits a few days ago. As long as you wear the protective suits, handle the Originium Cluster according to the regulations, wash your body carefully afterward, and take your medicine on time, the infected person is fully capable of maintaining the neighborhood environment on their own.”

"That's what they say, but everyone knows that if something goes wrong, the infection could worsen or even lead to death."

Anto's face tightened, and she said solemnly, "Most of those infected are ordinary residents, unlike the people of Rhodes Island who have received systematic training, they..."

Qi Yan interrupted Anto directly:

“The people from Rhodes Island have received systematic training, but accidents can still happen. Why should we be the ones protecting them while they reap the benefits?”

Anto never expected Qi Yan to say such a thing; her face was filled with disbelief.

“Protecting those infected is our core principle, didn’t you do the same before…”

Qi Yan interrupted Anto again, his expression becoming somewhat solemn:

“You’re wrong, Anto. It’s because you have this kind of thinking that you’ve hurt yourself… that you’ve always taken risks.”

Rhodes Island fights for the Infected, but owes them nothing. Rhodes Island merely provides assistance; ultimately, only the Infected's own efforts can make their ideals a reality.

After saying that, Qi Yan stood up, stretched, and said decisively:

"Go and move all the protective suits that Severin distributed to the fountain on the street. I'm going to gather the infected people together."

Anto blinked, then turned and walked toward the door, seemingly lost in thought.

Qi Yan suddenly called out to her.

Anto turned around and saw two loaves of bread being thrown at him. He quickly reached out and caught them.

"Food is indeed becoming increasingly scarce, but we can't stop eating. If you keep drinking water like this, you'll end up spending a fortune on it, silly girl."

Anto: "..."

She pursed her lips, didn't argue with Qi Yan, took the bread, pushed open the door, and went out.

After Anto left, Qi Yan didn't stay idle either. He strolled out onto the street and casually stopped an infected person.

"Transmission routes of Ore-borne disease... Hmm!"

The infected person almost reflexively began reciting the knowledge points, but was interrupted by Qi Yan slapping him on the head.

Qi Yan said irritably:

"Go and call all the infected people in the neighborhood to the fountain. I need to have a meeting."

The infected person didn't dare ask any questions, and hurriedly nodded and ran off to inform Qi Yan of his orders.

Within half an hour, all the infected people in the neighborhood obediently came to the fountain to wait.

Qi Yan sat on the edge of the fountain, which had long since stopped working, silently gazing at the gloomy sky, lost in thought.

The infected people didn't dare to ask any questions and all waited quietly in place.

More than ten minutes later, Anto and the Sarkaz of the Mudrock Squad finally arrived at the fountain, pushing several carts.

Looking at the protective suits, the infected people suddenly had a bad feeling.

Qi Yan remained silent, waving his hand to signal Anto to take charge of the speech.

Anto coughed lightly, steeled himself, walked to a stone pier, and called out loudly:

"Fellow infected compatriots, due to the recent natural disaster, a large number of Originium clusters have begun to grow in our neighborhood, causing great inconvenience to everyone's lives."

After discussing it with Qi Yan, we decided that everyone should wear protective suits and independently clear the Originium clusters to create a safe living environment.

After finishing speaking, Anto didn't wait for the infected people to react and hurriedly explained all the precautions one by one.

After Anto finished explaining the precautions in one breath, the infected people all looked somewhat dazed.

After a long while, one of the infected individuals finally mustered the courage to object:

"But we're all infected, we'll die if we touch Originium again. Let's go to the council hall to protest and get the military police to come and clean it up."

The mortality rate for ordinary people infected with the virus is not high; they have a second chance.

As soon as these words were spoken, a large number of voices echoed in agreement.

However, they only dared to say a few words, and finally looked at Qi Yan, waiting for the statement of the number one bully in the infected neighborhood.

Qi Yan stood up, scanned the group of infected people, and suddenly burst into a tirade:

"Are you all handless and footless? What can you do besides protest when something happens? Are you maggots? All you do is eat what others throw away to you?"

Those military police don't even care about the Originium Forest in non-infected neighborhoods, so why do you think they'll come to your aid?

So what if you're infected? Do infected people have an extra head or a missing leg?

"Can't you live without those people?"

Chapter 358 Opposing Kal'tsit, Understanding Kal'tsit, Super...cough cough

Qi Yan launched into a tirade of abuse, leaving the infected individuals blushing with rage.

Only Qi Yan's incessant cursing echoed in front of the fountain, making even Anto and the Sarkaz beside him feel a chill run down their spines.

After venting his anger, Qi Yan finally caught his breath and asked:

"I only have one order: put on your protective suits and go clear the Originium cluster. Who agrees? Who disagrees?"

The infected people looked at each other, each with resentment and dissatisfaction on their faces, but none of them dared to stand up and voice their opposition.

Seeing this, Qi Yan was not happy, but rather even more dissatisfied:

"A bunch of spineless wimps. The men only have two legs and the women only have one mouth. If you're not happy, just say it. Don't keep it to yourself and then try to cheat when you're working."

The infected people were mocked by Qi Yan, and their faces showed visible anger.

Many people even managed to muster the courage to glare angrily at Qi Yan, looking like they might explode at any moment.

Seeing this, Anto and the Sarkaz felt a chill run down their spines and prepared to intervene and break up the fight.

But Qi Yan suddenly turned around and walked to a building on the side of the road.

"Is anyone living in this house, including the ones behind it?" Qi Yan suddenly asked.

Anto looked around twice, then shook his head and said:

“These houses are structurally damaged and are dangerous buildings.”

Qi Yan nodded, then suddenly clenched his fist and slammed it into the building.

The air twisted and deformed under Qi Yan's fist, producing a deafening sonic boom, followed by the roar of houses collapsing in large numbers.

The ground along the entire block was shaking, as if another aftershock of a natural disaster had struck.

The infected looked at the swirling dust and smoke of the ruins in front of Qi Yan, and their anger vanished just like the buildings themselves.

Qi Yan dusted off non-existent dust from his hands and swayed back to the infected:

"I'll say it again: who agrees and who disagrees?"

"If you're not happy, speak up. If I see anyone slacking off, I'll hang them on the Originium Forest to reflect on their actions."

The infected people's mouths twitched.

They now fully understand one thing: Qi Yan had no intention of listening to their opinions at all; he was issuing orders in a forceful manner throughout.

Those who oppose should take a punch first; whether they survive or not is another matter.

Those who cheat and shirk their responsibilities will be hung on the Originium Forest. They can only think about and reflect on their actions after they survive.

"Well, it's passed unanimously."

Qi Yan spread his hands and said, "It seems our democratic meeting went very smoothly, so let's get started."

The infected people looked dejected, almost as if they were going to their deaths, as they stepped forward to receive the protective suits.

Anto let the Sarkaz distribute the goods while she continued to explain the precautions.

This time, the infected listened extremely attentively, afraid of missing any detail.

After the explanation, Anto put on protective clothing and began to demonstrate himself.

With her guidance, the infected people, though still somewhat reluctant, all obediently participated in the cleanup work.

Qi Yan sat on the edge of the fountain, resting his chin on his hand and silently watching the busy crowds on the street. His face was expressionless, and no one could tell what he was thinking.

The Sarkaz members of the Mudrock Squad huddled together and whispered for a moment. Suddenly, they ran to find Anto, asked him what was going on, and after receiving a positive reply, they also put on protective suits and volunteered to participate in the cleanup work.

Qi Yan couldn't help but chuckle as he watched the Sarkaz's actions.

"You must be very tired."

The Witch King's voice suddenly came from behind Qi Yan, but only his voice was heard; his iconic red phantom was nowhere to be seen.

Qi Yan didn't deny anything, and nodded, saying:

"A bit. It's been almost a month since the natural disaster, and this is the first time I've maintained the golden eye state for such a long time. Although there's been no fighting, this body is still starting to feel the strain."

I've been having near-death experiences every now and then these past few days, it's been really tough on me.

The Witch King: "..."

He felt a bit strained himself.

This Lupo is constantly redefining his understanding.

The Witch King ultimately chose to ignore Qi Yan's illogical statement and instead asked curiously:

"Why would you do these things? I thought you were the kind of sophisticated egoist who would actually team up with the White Queen to try something that was destined to fail."

"This attempt actually benefited me."

Qi Yan pictured a little girl in his mind: "Amiya will inevitably face these things in the future. I'm just making some predictions in advance. Whether Wolumonde succeeds or fails, it will be an important record."