Chapter 279: Huoxia

"Huo La, Huo La, you're awake!" Xiao Zhao's voice, tinged with surprise, rang in his ear, full of sincere concern, and his fingertips lightly brushed his arm.

Huo La slowly opened his eyes, his vision initially blurry, his throat dry and painful, and he weakly murmured, "Where… am I… again?"

"Huo La, you're in my Stage Battlefield." A slightly weary female voice answered, a bit hoarse.

Huo La struggled to raise his hand and rub his eyes; his sight cleared, revealing a woman with neat short red hair, fatigue evident in her brows.

"Huoxia sis." He recognized her—it was the barber who often appeared in Zhujing Village and also the manager of the Stage Battlefield.

Huoxia gave a soft "mm," walked to the bedside, one hand propping the headboard, the other massaging her swollen temples, looking utterly weary.

"You finally woke up."

"Huoxia sis, how did I end up here?" Huo La tried to sit up, feeling his whole body still a bit sore and soft, but the usual needle‑like lingering pain after absorbing energy was gone.

"After you fell into a random Ruins coma, Xi Pu and Zhu Bei contacted me, so I had someone bring you over." Huoxia's voice carried unmistakable fatigue, clearly she hadn't rested all day.

Huo La turned his head toward Xiao Zhao, who immediately nodded vigorously, confirming Huoxia's words.

He gave a slight nod and asked, "How long was I in a coma?"

"Counting today, exactly one and a half days!" Xiao Zhao replied quickly, eyes fixed on Huo La, fearing another incident.

"One and a half days…" Huo La lowered his gaze, pondering, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing his palm.

The conversation with Dai Oqi Xisi in the Master Ball space, that transaction, every detail was etched clearly in his mind, far from a dream.

But he suddenly recalled—Dai Oqi Xisi only mentioned the trade terms, never said how to suppress the Abnormal Energy inside his body.

At that moment, Dai Oqi Xisi's cold voice rang directly in his Heart Lake, with a hint of impatient indifference: "I've already acted. Otherwise, given your body being eroded by Interdimensional Energy, do you think you could wake up so quickly and stay so stable?"

He paused, then added, "By the way, after you dealt with the Moon Bear King last time, you were only unconscious for a day before waking; that was also me suppressing the energy."

"Hm?" Huo La was suddenly startled, his eyes darted around, scanning Xiao Zhao and Huoxia, finally landing on his own chest, as if Dai Oqi Xisi's voice had never been there.

"Huo La, Huo La, what's wrong? Your complexion looks so pale." Xiao Zhao, seeing his odd expression, grew more worried, reaching out to feel his forehead.

Huo La quickly shook his head, suppressing the turmoil inside, forcing calm: "I'm fine, just a bit dazed from just waking. By the way, where's Ming Yao?"

"Ming Yao is cooperating with Gangshi, jointly suppressing Miss Skirt King." Huoxia's voice sounded again, fatigue now mixed with seriousness, "The situation isn't good."

"Miss Skirt King!" Huo La clenched his fist, heart tightening, instantly sat upright, most of the sleepiness and fatigue vanished.

"Mm, it's the Pokémon King of the Stage Battlefield." Huoxia said with concern, turning toward the door, eyes burning with anxiety, "Its Abnormal Energy Outburst is extremely violent; its state is exactly like the previously rampaging Axe Mantis King, highly aggressive, we can't get close."

"It's already that serious?" Huo La's face filled with surprise, instinctively bracing the headboard to stand, his body still a bit light but steadier than expected.

Huoxia nodded heavily, the motion of massaging her temples grew stronger, her tone full of helplessness: "Mm, it's trickier than we anticipated."

"Didn't you try putting her into a coma first, to stabilize her?" Huo La furrowed his brows, asking, this being the most direct safe method, avoiding harm from Miss Skirt King while buying time.

"We certainly thought of that." Huoxia sighed, her voice laced with deep resignation, "We even obtained the Strong Hypnotic Agent formula from Dr. Laben, the concoction three times stronger than ordinary medicine. But Miss Skirt herself is a dual‑type Pokémon of Grass and Fighting‑type; Grass‑type naturally resists such mental‑suppressing drugs, and her Fighting‑type robust constitution makes her immunity far exceed that of ordinary Pokémon."

She paused, adding, "At first, it could keep her asleep for a whole day; later, even increasing the dosage only puts her to sleep for a few hours, and when she wakes the energy goes even more berserk, making her more aggressive."

Xiao Zhao also nodded anxiously, "Yes, Huo La, Mr. Gangshi and Ming Yao are almost at their limit; they can only barely suppress with Pokémon, daring not to confront directly."

Huo La's heart sank, without hesitation, he braced the headboard with both hands and forced himself to lift the blanket and get out of bed.

As his foot touched the floor, a slight dizziness hit; he instinctively steadied himself on the bed rail, steps still a bit light, but his eyes now lit with resolve: "Take me there. If we keep dragging this out, Miss Skirt King will be in mortal danger."

"You…" Huoxia looked at his pale face and unsteady gait, the refusal at the tip of her tongue swallowed back.

She had wanted to tell Huo La to rest a few more days, but the image of Miss Skirt King thrashing in loss of control flashed in her mind, and she finally gritted her teeth, nodded, and said, "Fine!"

After speaking, she still couldn't help stepping forward, her tone full of concern and admonition: "But you promised me, if your body truly can't bear it, don't push yourself. We can think of other ways; you don't have to risk your own body."

Huo La reached for the neatly stacked clothes beside him, his movements slightly sluggish yet orderly as he donned them; his fingers turning the buttons turned pale, but he spoke firmly, "If I can't hold on, I still must. If I retreat or give up, Miss Skirt King's life could be lost."

Huoxia was startled by his words, then fell silent—what Huo La said was exactly her deepest concern.

She didn't say it outright, but everyone understood: if they never solved Miss Skirt King's problem, the final measure would be to kill her.

And Gangshi and Ming Yao were now exhausting all effort to restrain and endure, holding onto the last sliver of hope.

Xiao Zhao hurried forward to support Huo La's other arm, softly saying, "Huo La, I'll help you; we'll go slowly."

Huo La gave a slight nod, leaning on Xiao Zhao's support, stepping toward the door step by step.