With the death of the mother tree and Jorah's group heal, the terrifying high heat in the forest's core finally dissipated completely.
The ground, once a "sea of magma," rapidly cooled and solidified after losing its energy source, eventually turning into a cracked, scorched wasteland. In the sky, the water vapor that had been steamed up by the high heat gradually dispersed, and a new round of heavy snow began to fall, soon draping the scarred land in a fresh, white, peaceful coat.
Against this silver-clad backdrop, the mutated briar roses that Jorah had last cultivated, full of life, continued to bloom tenaciously and brilliantly, forming a rose garden in the snow, like something out of a fairytale, breathtakingly beautiful.
Looking at this fantastical and beautiful scene, Elara couldn't help but take out her phone and snap a few pictures of the rose garden. She thought, when she got back, she would definitely have to show them to Vespera; the little girl would surely love it.
Nearby, Alan had long since entered "mad scientist" mode. Armed with various test tubes and sampling tools, he was carefully collecting samples of petals, leaves, and vines from the mutated briar roses, muttering incomprehensible technical terms to himself.
The group settled the wounded, hoisted up the still-unconscious Jorah, and prepared to head back the way they came to rendezvous with Vespera and the others.
However, before they had even left the rose garden, they saw a small figure at the entrance of the forest, running quickly towards them.
And behind that small figure followed a massive, overwhelming… army of zombies!
The sight made the hearts of Elara's group, who had just survived a fierce battle, leap into their throats, and they instinctively tightened their grip on their weapons.
"Don't worry! They're with us!"
Fortunately, at the head of the "zombie army," the military doctor was also running towards them, out of breath, yelling as he ran.
Only then did Elara see clearly that the one running at the very front was Vespera! And the terrifying-looking undead behind her, though their movements were still stiff, showed no aggression whatsoever, merely following their "queen" silently, like a troop of loyal guards.
Seeing Vespera safe and sound, the heart that had just been in Elara's throat finally settled, and her expression relaxed.
Like a baby swallow returning to its nest, Vespera rushed into Elara's arms and hugged her tightly.
Elara hugged the small, yet immensely powerful, body back just as tightly, gently stroking her back and soothing her in an incredibly gentle voice, "It's okay, Vespera, it's all over. We won. Now, we can go home."
Just then, something that astonished everyone happened.
Vespera, who had always been only able to communicate through typing on a phone or using sign language, upon hearing Elara's words, suddenly looked up, opened her mouth, and from her small throat, emitted some slurred, babble-like "murmurs"!
The sound was very muffled and faint, but it was truly, genuinely, her own voice!
If Amily were here, she would be in utter disbelief!
"This… this is a miracle!" the accompanying military doctor was equally stunned by the scene.
He hurried forward and, after a brief examination and a few questions, explained with sudden understanding, "I get it! It must have been the ability of that young man, Jorah! The area of effect of his final group heal was extremely wide. As we were preparing to evacuate, those green specks of light, filled with life energy, also drifted over to us!"
"That energy not only healed some of our minor injuries but also had a miraculous effect on Vespera's body! It not only stabilized her body, which had become unstable due to her ability's advancement, but it even… repaired her damaged vocal cord tissues!"
The more the doctor spoke, the more excited he became. He looked at Vespera as if he were witnessing a miracle in medical history.
"Which means… after a period of recovery and speech therapy, she… she'll be able to speak, just like a normal child!"
Hearing the doctor's explanation and learning that Vespera had a chance to speak again, genuine, immense happiness appeared on everyone's faces.
This was undoubtedly the best news after today's brutal battle.
However, amidst the joyful atmosphere, Elara's brow slowly, almost imperceptibly, furrowed.
Jorah's ability…
From the initial passive protection, to the active plunder when forced into a corner, and finally to the almost miraculous group heal… the potential and power his ability displayed were simply astonishing.
But at the same time, this ability was also… far too uncontrollable.
Whether it was his ridiculously low floor—without strong stimulation, he was virtually a powerless civilian—or his terrifyingly high ceiling—when he erupted, he could even change the course of an entire battle… This extreme instability, for a team, could be either a trump card or… a ticking time bomb.
Moreover, his ability to "plunder" life force, if used improperly or exploited by someone with ulterior motives, would have unimaginable consequences.
Cassian, at her side, seemed to sense Elara's concerns. He stepped forward, gave her a reassuring look as if to tell her not to worry too much, and at the same time, reached out and gently patted her shoulder. The silent gesture seemed to say, "I've got this."
Elara pressed her lips together lightly, temporarily suppressing the worries in her heart. It was too early to think about these things now. She nodded and, together with Cassian, carefully lifted the still-unconscious "great hero," Jorah, into the back seat of the SUV.
In the vehicle, the military doctor was busy injecting Jorah and the other still-unconscious female soldier, Aurelia, with high-concentration nutrient solutions to maintain their basic vital signs.
After performing a preliminary examination on Aurelia, the doctor couldn't help but exclaim, "She's really lucky. Judging from her various physical indicators, before we rescued her, her body's life energy was already nearing the point of complete exhaustion."
He pointed to Aurelia's long golden hair. Near the roots, at her scalp, a small section of newly grown hair was clearly visible, but its texture was dry and brittle, like a clump of dead grass. "Look here, this is a typical sign of severe life force depletion, where the body can't supply enough nutrients. If we had been half a day later, I'm afraid… there would have been no saving her."
Looking at the wounded and unconscious people lying scattered in the vehicle, and then at the large group of people standing outside, a very real problem presented itself to Elara.
With so many people, not even one SUV, even with the addition of the truck, would be enough. More importantly, with the sudden increase in mouths to feed, their previously stockpiled rations were now starting to look stretched thin.
After returning to the villa, Elara gathered all the conscious people together, including the newly rescued and still-weak soldiers and researchers.
"We now face two problems," Elara said, getting straight to the point, her tone serious. "First, is the issue of accommodation. My villa clearly cannot house all of us anymore. Second, and more critically, is the issue of food and supplies."
She looked around at everyone and continued, "So, I need to hear everyone's opinions. What should we do next? Should we split up, or… is there a better place to go?"
Hearing this, everyone fell silent. For a moment, the only sound in the living room was the crackling of firewood in the fireplace.
Just then, the man who had been riding the wind in the forest and had rescued Aurelia, spoke slowly. His name was Caine, he had neat black hair and a stern face. Since being rescued, he had been sitting silently in a corner, just quietly cleaning his weapons.
He didn't give a long-winded opinion. He simply took out a military-grade communicator, similar to the one Zephyr had, from his tactical vest and placed it on the table.
Then, in a concise, emotionless tone, he uttered two words:
"Temporary base."