Chapter 145: His leg might not be saved

Song Zhi returned, holding some saline solution, feeling a bit embarrassed as he walked up to Ye Heng and probed:

Ye Heng brother, I don't know if this can be drunk?

Ye Heng was taken aback; this question really left him at a loss.

He quickly went to find Lin Meng for help.

Lin Meng had been waiting to see how Zhang Chaoran's condition would develop; if the wound worsened, she would ultimately have to give him a Return Spring Pill.

Hearing Ye Heng's question, Lin Meng couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Don't you even have basic knowledge about saline solution? I'll get you a few books on medical common sense later.

Saline solution can be drunk, but if you're not dehydrated and your body has lost a lot of salt, it's not advisable to drink too much to avoid excessive salt intake.

How about this: I'll order a functional drink and have it delivered to you.

Lin Meng said, then exited the space, immediately pulled out her phone to place a food delivery order.

Ye Heng wanted to politely decline, but he could no longer get a response from Lin Meng.

He then relayed Lin Meng's words to Song Zhi, whose eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but praise Ye Heng.

You really know a lot, Ye Heng brother; from now on we should support each other more, look out for one another, and tell me if you need anything.

Song Zhi left, and Zhang Chaoran also woke up; Ye Heng and the two others immediately gathered around him.

How do you feel?

Ye Heng greatly admired Zhang Chaoran; he was young, yet steady in his conduct, and had saved Ye Heng's life during this expedition.

If something happened to him, Ye Heng would feel guilty for the rest of his life.

Zhang Chaoran's pallid face had no color, looking very weak, but at least he was conscious and the bleeding had stopped.

He looked at Ye Heng, somewhat bewildered.

Captain, am I not dead?

He glanced at his leg, then at his companions' concerned gazes, and only then realized he was alive, having survived the fierce battle just now!

But before he could feel happy for a few seconds, he suddenly discovered that his injured leg seemed to have completely lost sensation.

He felt no pain and could not exert any strength.

His eyes sank, and he tremblingly reached out to pinch his leg.

Seeing that something was wrong, Ye Heng's heart skipped a beat.

Chaoran, what's wrong? Where do you feel uncomfortable?

Zhang Chaoran mustered all his strength to pinch himself, his face turned even paler, and he couldn't hold back his tears.

Captain, my leg, my leg feels like it's ruined.

Zhang Chaoran trembled uncontrollably; just thinking that he, so young, had become a cripple made him feel terrible.

What made him even more desperate was that this happened during the mission, and a disabled person would only drag the team down.

Rationally, he knew he should voluntarily give up and fend for himself.

But at this moment, people naturally want to survive; it's human nature.

Zhang Chaoran's words were like a bomb, instantly exploding in the hearts of Ye Heng and the two others, and their faces turned deathly pale.

Ye Heng tremblingly reached out to touch Zhang Chaoran's leg; the icy touch and the obviously abnormal complexion made his heart sink halfway.

The two teammates also exchanged glances, unable to believe it.

Captain, Zhang Chaoran's leg might still be savable; we just don't know medicine, so we need to hurry back and get him treatment.

Maybe it's just excessive blood loss; a little rest might fix it?

Zhang Chaoran's heart was as dead ashes; he knew his own body, and this leg was probably ruined.

During the melee, he was solely focused on saving the captain, not expecting the mutant beast's claws to be so hard; this leg might have injured the bone inside.

In this era of scarce medical supplies, doctors are also a rare profession, medical conditions are primitive, and many injuries requiring surgery can only be endured.

Furthermore, their shelter only has a half‑trained doctor with superficial knowledge, the treatment environment is also primitive, and injuries like this severe tendon‑bone damage from a mutant beast are hard to heal.

Ye Heng gritted his teeth, got up, and went to find Song Zhi, who, as a Special Zone citizen, might have a solution.

Song Zhi quickly followed Ye Heng over; although he lacked medical knowledge, his years of injury experience still counted for something.

He carefully examined Zhang Chaoran's leg wound; the bone was deep‑visible, a shocking sight.

For a moment, Song Zhi's face darkened, he shook his head and sighed.

The bleeding has stopped, which is already a miracle, but the injury has reached his leg bone and possibly affected the nerves; even if we set off now for the nearest Special Zone treatment, it's already too late, and moreover...

Song Zhi wanted to say more but stopped.

Ye Heng said: "Captain Song, just speak plainly if you have something to say."

Song Zhi glanced at Zhang Chaoran, sighed, and said:

Young brother, you're still young, so we should definitely try to save this leg, but our Special Zone's top‑tier medical facilities are off‑limits even to us, let alone you.

However, maybe we could go to the underground black market; some places have prosthetic resources, and fitting a mechanical leg would let you walk and jump just the same.

This would have Zhang Chaoran directly abandon his original leg and settle for a prosthetic instead.

But Ye Heng knew deep down that if you lack connections, that underground black market is nothing but a wolf's den.

Moreover, it's said that those who go there for treatment run an extremely high risk of contracting strange diseases, and the medical facilities and environment are terribly poor.

Zhang Chaoran forced a smile and then comforted Ye Heng and the teammates.

I'm fine; it's just a leg—if it's gone, it's gone, it's not like a person died, right, Captain?

Ye Heng turned away, wiped the tear from the corner of his eye, then turned back and smiled at Zhang Chaoran.

You're right; there's still hope—let's not lose heart ourselves first.

Song Zhi watched this, shaking his head.

He was used to such things; life and death before him no longer stirred up big waves.

Nowadays, human life is as cheap as grass; a mere leg, and nobody cares.

Put nicely, their expedition teammates are the daring pioneers among the Special Zone's upper citizens; put bluntly, they are poor souls who risk their lives to scavenge survival supplies.

If they ever lost an arm or a leg, they could only remain in the Special Zone, honestly just scraping by.

Compared to the outsiders beyond, they merely have a roof over their heads and some low-grade food to fill their stomachs; life holds little promise.

The supposed superiority of those so-called upper citizens mostly comes from the elite among them, and it has nothing to do with them……

The other two teammates were comforting Zhang Chaoran, keeping him company in conversation, trying to distract his attention.

Ye Heng refused to give up, shook his head, and decided to seek Lin Meng's help.

Just then, the takeout Lin Meng had ordered arrived, and the butler of the island villa personally delivered it to the door.

This was also the first time the butler in charge of Lin Meng's household had seen Lin Meng.

"Miss Lin, your takeout has arrived; would you like me to bring it inside?"

The cart held several boxes of functional drinks, plus a few large bags of self-heating hot pot rice and pre-made dishes, and so on.

Although the butler Bai Liu was puzzled, he didn't ask further; after getting Lin Meng's assent, he immediately moved the items inside one by one.

Bai Liu furtively gave Lin Meng a few careful glances, feeling that this new resident was unlike anyone else—she showed little arrogance or aristocratic air, and was very down-to-earth.

Lin Meng didn't notice Bai Liu; after the items were moved, she politely said:

"Thanks for the trouble; I'll handle the rest myself."

After the butler left, Lin Meng locked the door and at once stored all the supplies in her space; just as she was about to look for Ye Heng, she heard his anxious voice.

"Lin Meng, Zhang Chaoran's leg might not be savable."