Chapter 291: Xia Tian Was Struck

The anecdote of "the old iron tree blooming" rippled through the New Era like a breeze over a lake, stirring faint ripples but failing to disturb the deep currents beneath. Xia Wan devoted herself to recovery and practice in the Medical Center, while Qin Feng focused on deciphering the mysterious coordinates left by Yun Ge, searching for clues to Jing Yi.

Yet beneath this surface of relative calm, a sudden accident struck like a boulder thrown into water, shattering the peace of Xia Tian's family in an instant.

The incident occurred at the Deep Space Mothership Construction Base.

Xia Tian, as a core engineer, was responsible for calibrating the most critical Propulsion Matrix of the Mother Ship's power system—a task demanding extreme precision and near-zero tolerance for error, determining whether the future Mother Ship could navigate stably through the vast Star Sea.

For days, the project had entered its critical phase; Xia Tian barely left the site, eating and sleeping there as he led his team through repeated adjustments and verifications. The intense workload and mental strain left his eyes bloodshot, yet he never uttered a single complaint—instead, he was filled with vigor, proud to be part of such a grand endeavor.

That afternoon, during a limit-load test of a set of Superconducting Coils, the accident happened.

Due to an extremely subtle, nearly unpredictable internal flaw in the material, one critical coil suddenly overloaded and collapsed under the impact of ultra-high energy flow. The unleashed violent energy, like a runaway steed, destroyed the expensive testing equipment and triggered localized energy leakage and a violent electromagnetic pulse.

At the time, Xia Tian was with two young assistants, closely monitoring data from the Kongzhi Shi closest to the test platform. The sudden energy burst and electromagnetic surge instantly breached the Temporary Energy Shield of the Kongzhi Shi.

"Watch out!"

Xia Tian reacted instantly, instinctively shoving the two stunned assistants away with all his strength!

He himself was struck by the edge of the escaping energy, thrown backward like a hammer blow, crashing heavily against the solid Alloy Wall.

"Xia Gong!"

"Quick! Cut the power! Rescue him!"

Chaos erupted on the scene.

Alarms blared shrilly; the Emergency Team arrived swiftly, cut off the power, extinguished scattered fires caused by energy short circuits, and urgently transported the unconscious Xia Tian to the Base Medical Center.

The news spread like wings.

When Xia Madam received the call from Lei Dong himself, she was preparing dinner at home. Upon hearing her husband had suffered severe injuries and fallen into a coma at the worksite, the spatula slipped from her hand with a clang, her face turned ashen, and she nearly collapsed.

"Nannan… Nannan is still at kindergarten…" she stammered, terror gripping her heart.

"Sister-in-law, don't panic! I've already sent someone to pick up Nannan! You must come to the Base Medical Center right now—Xia Gong is in emergency surgery!" Lei Dong urged urgently over the phone.

Xia Madam nearly crawled out the door, flagged down an Internal Commute Vehicle, and raced toward the construction base like a woman possessed.

When she staggered into the corridor outside the Rescue Room, Lei Dong and several senior Project Team members were already waiting, their faces grim.

"Sister-in-law…" Lei Dong stepped forward, reaching to steady her trembling form.

"Old Xia… how is he?!" Xia Madam grabbed Lei Dong's arm, her voice trembling with tears, her nails digging into his flesh.

"Still in surgery," Lei Dong said heavily, "The energy surge damaged his internal organs and nervous system. The situation… is not optimistic. We've deployed the best medical resources and equipment."

Not optimistic…

Those four words pierced her heart like ice picks. Her vision darkened; she nearly fainted, barely staying upright only because Lei Dong held her.

"How could this happen… he was fine this morning…" she whispered, tears falling like broken beads. Xia Tian was the pillar of their home, the sole support for her and their two daughters. If anything happened to him…

At that moment, the Rescue Room door opened, and the Chief Engineer stepped out, clad in sterile garb, his expression grim.

"Doctor! How is my husband?!" Xia Madam seized him like a lifeline, rushing forward desperately.

The doctor removed his mask and sighed: "Engineer Xia's vital signs are temporarily stable, but the energy surge caused irreversible damage to his nervous system. He… is unlikely to regain consciousness. Even if a miracle occurs and he awakens, he will almost certainly suffer severe aftereffects—paralysis, or cognitive impairment…"

Vegetative state? Paralysis?

Xia Madam was struck as if by lightning, frozen in place, her mind blank, as if the entire world had collapsed and drifted away from her.

The surrounding noise, Lei Dong's reassurances, the doctor's explanations—all grew hazy and distant.

She felt only boundless darkness and cold, swallowing her whole.

The news that Xia Tian had been struck down—along with the nightmare that he might become a vegetative patient or permanently disabled—spread like a heavy cloud, engulfing the Xia family and leaving all who knew this diligent, capable engineer filled with regret and sorrow.

Meanwhile, Xia Wan, who was undergoing routine training in the Medical Center, received the devastating news delivered personally by Su Wenqian.

Upon hearing her father had suffered severe injuries and might never awaken, Xia Wan dropped her Training Equipment with a sharp crack.

Her face drained of color; she swayed, barely able to stand.

Father…

The father who was always quiet, yet held up the entire family with his broad shoulders…

The father who, before she left for Kunlun Mountain, awkwardly told her, "Be careful…"

The father she had always, deep in her heart, regarded as her most solid harbor…

How could this…

Grief and terror surged over her like a tsunami.

Without time to think, she turned and bolted outward, desperate to reach her father at once!

"Xia Wan!" Su Wenqian grabbed her, "Calm down first! The Base Medical Center is doing everything they can! Right now, going there won't…"

"Let go of me! I'm going to see my father!" Xia Wan wrenched free of Su Wenqian's grip, her voice sharp with raw emotion, eyes bloodshot, her usual composure gone—replaced by the wild, helpless despair of a daughter facing the loss of her parent.

Her Bloodline Power, stirred by her emotional turmoil, began to surge uncontrollably, emitting unstable energy fluctuations around her.

Su Wenqian was thrown back half a step by the sudden surge of power, her heart sinking. Xia Wan was out of control—her power unstable. Rushing forward now would help nothing and risk harming herself or disrupting the rescue.

Just as Xia Wan was about to charge out the door—

A calm, unshaken voice rang out like a divine anchor at the threshold:

"Stop."

Xia Wan snapped her head up and saw Qin Feng standing at the entrance of the Training Room, as if he had been there all along.

His expression remained unchanged, but his deep eyes carried a force that pierced through all chaos, landing directly on her face—painted with grief and madness.

"Master…" Xia Wan saw Qin Feng as her last hope, tears flooding out. She dropped to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably, "Please… save my father! Please!"

Qin Feng watched her collapse, the chaotic energy swirling around her, and his brow twitched almost imperceptibly.

He did not immediately promise, nor did he offer comfort.

He simply said, softly:

"If you want to save someone, first control yourself."

"How can you save your father if you cannot even master your own power?"

Those words, like ice water, poured over Xia Wan's scorching heart.

She snapped her head up, staring at Qin Feng's calm yet unyielding gaze.

Control… myself?

Yes…

What else can I do, other than cause chaos?

She bit down hard on her lower lip, nearly drawing blood, summoning every ounce of strength to suppress the wild Bloodline Power within her, to quell the Pain threatening to shatter her sanity.

Seeing her struggle in agony, Qin Feng said no more and turned to walk away.

Only one clear sentence echoed through the Training Room:

"Follow."

Xia Wan jolted violently, hardly believing her own ears!

Master… has he agreed to act?!

A surge of hope instantly scattered part of her despair; she frantically wiped the tears from her face, forcibly suppressing the churning Qi and Blood and power, staggered to her feet, and hurried after Qin Feng's retreating figure.

Father…

Wait for me!