Chapter 97 - 96: An Antidote Potion Actually Fell from the Sky and Hit This Unlucky Guy!

Even though the Head of the Stone Family insisted that Rose’s meridian repair relied mostly on the girl’s own efforts, Sev Steele knew the truth. Without his guidance, a four-year-old child like Rose could never have found a way to heal herself. Ultimately, Sev owed him a massive favor.

As an ordinary Scavenger, she knew she lacked special skills; any hopes of repaying him seemed like a distant dream.

"Mr. Stone, didn’t you want to see where I found the necklace? I can take you there right now," she offered. It was the only thing she could do for him at the moment.

"There’s no rush," Brandon Stone replied. "I’ve heard that Mutated Seven-Star Grass grows deep within The Murkwood. Since we’re already here, we might as well go take a look."

"Deep within The Murkwood?" Sev quickly said. "But I’ve heard there’s a Sixth Tier Mutated Two-headed Lizard there. If Doctor Jenkins and I tag along... wouldn’t we just drag you down?"

Although she couldn’t remember exactly where the formidable cannon fodder, Rick Kaye, had died in the original novel, she connected the dots: he had conveniently appeared near District Nine and neutralized the massive Mutant Rat swarm along the way. She figured his original destination must have been near The Murkwood. After all, the deepest parts of The Murkwood were the most likely areas around District Nine to spawn High Tier Mutated plants.

Even a powerhouse with a Seventh Tier Thunder Ability could lose their life in a place like that. Even if the Head of the Stone Family had formidable experts by his side, they would prioritize his safety the moment an accident occurred. She and Doctor Jenkins would almost certainly become expendable pawns. She had finally cured her precious Rose; she refused to let herself and her daughter die pointlessly in that forest.

Doctor Jenkins couldn’t help but feel suspicious upon hearing her words. An ordinary Scavenger’s knowledge of the deep Murkwood usually stopped at the fact that High Tier Mutant Beasts lived there. Specific species and Levels were well beyond their purview. Furthermore, even he had only learned about the existence of the Sixth Tier Mutated Two-headed Lizard from Rick Kaye recently. Doctor Jenkins distinctly remembered setting up a soundproof barrier during that conversation. It was utterly impossible for an ordinary person like Sev to have overheard them.

"Where on earth did she find out about the Sixth Tier Mutated Two-headed Lizard?" he wondered. Though brimming with doubt, Doctor Jenkins kept his composure and continued listening to the exchange between Sev and the Head of the Stone Family.

Brandon Stone, on the other hand, didn’t suspect Sev at all. Since she and Jared Jenkins appeared to be closely acquainted, he assumed she had heard about the lizard from him.

Upon hearing about the Sixth Tier Two-headed Lizard, Butler Stone perked up with excitement. "Is this information reliable? If it’s true, then coming here was absolutely the right move!"

"Indeed, Family Head," spoke a girl who had been standing like an invisible shadow behind Brandon. "Why don’t you let Mr. Roger and me make the trip? I promise to bring back the Crystal Core of the Sixth Tier Two-headed Lizard for you!"

The girl appeared to be only seventeen or eighteen. She wore a loose gray cloak over a matching tight-fitting combat suit. Her slightly wavy, grayish-blue hair was neatly cropped, framing chiseled, striking facial features.

Sev realized she had completely overlooked the girl until now, suddenly seeing her in a whole new light.

She seemed like the type of person who deliberately minimized her own presence. When motionless, she blended in like a shadow in the mist; when she moved, she was like a drawn blade, ready to pierce a hostile heart with lethal precision. Recalling Doctor Jenkins’s earlier introduction, Sev guessed this must be Crystal Stone—one of the two strongest fighters by the Family Head’s side.

Hearing both of his subordinates volunteer, Brandon calmly replied:

"You’re underestimating the Two-headed Lizard’s capabilities.

"As far as I know, they possess innate Ice and Fire Dual Attributes. While these two elements naturally counter each other, they coexist flawlessly within the beast’s body. The fundamental reason for this is that their Crystal Core possesses a Special Ability to seamlessly switch between Ability attributes at will.

"One second, it might breathe fire; the next, it could freeze you into an Ice Sculpture. If these two conflicting abilities invade your body simultaneously, they’ll turn your insides into a battlefield, rendering you completely defenseless.

"Most importantly, its defense is incredibly formidable—it is practically invincible among beasts of the same Level. If just the two of you encounter it, your chances of winning are less than fifty percent. That’s why I must personally accompany you on this trip."

"I apologize, Family Head. We underestimated the enemy," Crystal Stone said, her face flushing slightly. She lowered her head and retreated back into the shadows behind Brandon.

Brandon shifted his gaze back toward Sev, but this time, he locked eyes with Jared Jenkins.

"Young man of The Jenkins Family, I met your mother once and owe her a favor," he began. "It’s quite a coincidence, but Arvin’s Space Button happens to contain an Antidote Potion he formulated specifically for the Mutated White Poison Mushroom. However, it’s been over five years. I don’t know if the Antidote Potion has lost its efficacy. Are you willing to give it a try?"

Brandon’s words made Doctor Jenkins feel as if he had just been struck by a gold nugget falling from the sky. After being poisoned, he had sought out several Master Level Pharmacists to formulate an antidote, but they all told him he lacked a core ingredient: the Mutated Butterfly Shadow Orchid.

The Butterfly Shadow Orchid had reportedly been notoriously difficult to cultivate even before the Great War. He had gone to extraordinary lengths just to obtain a single seed. He had tried to ask familiar Wood Ability Users to help cultivate it, but no one dared to take on the job. If the cultivation failed, it would destroy his only chance at a cure.

He never expected a ready-made Antidote Potion to simply drop from the heavens and land in the lap of an unlucky fool like him!

As for the Head of the Stone Family’s warning that the antidote might be expired, he completely tuned it out. This was a Space Button crafted by Master Gavin Jarvis himself. Items stored inside wouldn’t degrade even if left for ten or twenty years.

"Sir, thank you so much! I am absolutely willing!" Doctor Jenkins said, his voice trembling with excitement.

"There’s no need to thank me," Brandon replied with a faint smile. "If you hadn’t brought me news of Arvin, I wouldn’t have had the chance to retrieve his Space Button, and you wouldn’t have gotten this Antidote Potion."

Watching all of this unfold, Sev couldn’t help but marvel. "Karma really is a cycle!" she thought.

At the same time, she wondered what would have happened to Doctor Jenkins if she hadn’t crossed over into this world. Her tiny butterfly wings had flapped, triggering a ripple effect that had completely rewritten the fates of the book’s doomed characters. She thought back to the original text and realized that Doctor Jenkins didn’t even exist in the story. He wasn’t even mentioned as a background casualty!

"Did he actually die from the poison?" she wondered.

The very thought sent a shiver down her spine. The living, breathing Doctor Jenkins—the man who had helped her time and time again—would he truly have died without the chain reaction she had set off?

And what about her four children? How had they survived the massive Mutant Rat swarm in the original plot?

Sev’s head throbbed as she tried to recall the details. Suddenly, fragments of scenes flashed through her mind—amongst ruined walls and debris, Hayden Hanson and Seth Jennings stood drenched in blood. The ground around them was littered with the severed heads and frozen corpses of countless Mutant Rats.

However, as the ice slowly melted into water, an endless tide of Mutant Rats surged forward from behind, their blood-red eyes fixed on their prey as they closed in. In the corner behind the boys, her predecessor and the four children cowered and trembled in terror.

Hayden wore a look of absolute resolve. His aura suddenly flared, and dozens of crackling, deep-blue bolts of Thunder Element lightning erupted from his fingertips. The encroaching Mutant Rats convulsed violently as they collapsed to the ground. The devastating strike terrified the remaining swarm, forcing the advancing beasts to retreat in fear.

Seth’s eyes were fierce and ruthless, but as he glanced at Hayden, his eyes rimmed red with unshed tears.

Watching this memory unfold like a helpless spectator, Sev felt her heart leap into her throat. "Didn’t Hanson suffer a genetic collapse? Wasn’t he completely unable to use his Ability?" she wondered in shock.

The vision seemed to pause. A few seconds later, Hayden’s body swayed before crashing heavily to the ground!

Rusty and Firestone were the first to rush over. They fell to their knees beside him, sobbing uncontrollably. Zephyr and Rose quickly followed, joining in the bitter weeping. Finally, her predecessor walked over to Hayden’s side, muttering over and over:

"I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! It’s all our fault for dragging you down!"

The vision ended abruptly. It was as if a thick black cloth had been thrown over Sev’s eyes, plunging her back into darkness.