Many children, many blessings; leading female trainees in wilderness survival.

Before he could think, the text on the panel began to jump wildly, and the golden light almost overflowed the screen.

[In-depth exchange rewards are being settled...]

[Detected communication partner (Liu Yun). Rewards: Skill Book x1, Supply Pack x1.]

[10,000x return triggered!]

[Refund calculation in progress...]

[Skill Book Return: 1 x 5 = 5 skill books (automatically added to inventory, quality random)]

[Return of Supplies]

[Mineral water: 1 x 10000 = 10000 bottles (already automatically added to backpack)]

[Bread: 1 x 1000 = 1000 pieces (already automatically stored in backpack)]

Ye Xiao's eyes widened.

Ten thousand bottles of water!

A thousand loaves of bread!!

Five skill books!!!

Liu Yun noticed his unusual behavior and turned to look at him: "What's wrong?"

Before Ye Xiao could answer—

"ah--!"

Outside the car, Qin Wan's scream pierced the twilight.

Ye Xiao's expression changed instantly.

He pushed open the car door and jumped out.

Liu Yun jumped out of the car behind him, flames already shooting out from her palms.

Outside the car, dusk was falling.

Qin Wan collapsed to the ground, her face as white as paper, her lips trembling violently, and her pupils dilated with fear.

In front of her was a giant cockroach.

It's not an ordinary cockroach—it's a mutated monster.

Its grayish-brown carapace gleamed oilily in the twilight. It was nearly a meter long, with six long, spiky legs that moved rapidly and alternately on the ground, and its tentacles waving wildly in the air.

What's most chilling is its pair of compound eyes, with countless tiny eye spots converging into two eerie green spots, staring intently at Qin Wan, who is slumped on the ground.

Qin Wan is afraid of cockroaches.

She's afraid of even ordinary cockroaches.

Every time she sees one at home, she screams and jumps onto the sofa, waiting for Lin Chen to come home from school to deal with it.

She tried to stand up, but her legs wouldn't obey her at all, and her knees buckled, causing her to fall back down.

"No...don't come any closer..."

……

"Aunt Qin!"

Ye Xiao walked over to Qin Wan's side in a few steps.

The cockroach moved.

It pounced on Qin Wan, using all six legs to propel itself at an astonishing speed.

It opened its jaws, revealing a fine, tooth-like structure inside, and bit down on Qin Wan's calf.

"boom--!"

A ball of orange-red flame struck its head precisely.

Flames exploded, and the carapace crackled and popped under the high temperature.

The creature's charge was interrupted, its body suddenly tilted to the side, rolled twice on the ground, and its head was still on fire.

Liu Yun stood a few meters away, her right hand outstretched, the flame in her palm still burning.

Her expression was cold, her eyes fixed on the writhing cockroach, ready to fire a second shot at any moment.

Ye Xiao squatted down in front of Qin Wan, placing his hands on either side of her, enveloping her entirely in his shadow.

"Aunt Qin, it's alright now." His voice was low, with a reassuring calmness. "I'm here."

Qin Wan looked up at him, her eyes blurred with tears.

The cockroach extinguished the flames on its head; a large part of its carapace was charred, revealing the dark red muscle tissue underneath.

Enraged, it flapped its antennae wildly, its compound eyes fixed on Ye Xiao and Liu Yun, and hissed.

It hesitated for a moment.

The threat of the flames remains.

But hunger drove it to attack again.

This time it charged towards Ye Xiao.

Ye Xiao did not move.

Qin Wan was behind him; he couldn't hide.

"Liu Yun," he called out.

"Know."

A second ball of fire came from the side and hit the thing's head precisely.

This time, Liu Yun didn't stop. She unleashed the third and fourth bursts of fire in quick succession, and flames exploded on the creature, engulfing it completely.

Its carapace shattered under the intense heat, its bodily fluids evaporated as it boiled, and the thing let out a final hiss. Its six legs thrashed wildly on the ground, and after struggling for a few seconds, it went completely still.

The air was filled with the smell of burning.

……

"Aunt Qin, can you stand up?"

Qin Wan shook her head, tears still streaming down her face.

Her legs were still shaking, and she couldn't muster any strength at all.

Ye Xiao bent down, put one hand under Qin Wan's armpit, and hooked the other hand around her knee, lifting her up in his arms.

Qin Wan's body stiffened abruptly.

She hadn't been hugged by a man in a very, very long time.

It's been more than ten years.

Lin Chen's father passed away in an accident not long after he was born.

She was young then, and many people advised her to find someone else, but she refused.

She raised Lin Chen all by herself, and for so many years, her life has revolved solely around her son.

A man's hands, a man's chest, a man's scent...

These things had been gone from her life for so long that she thought she no longer needed them.

But at this moment, Ye Xiao's embrace was real.

His arms were strong and powerful; he could support her body steadily with just one hand.

Her back was pressed against his chest, and through the thin lace top, she could feel his body temperature.

It was very hot, like a warm fire.

Her head rested on his shoulder, her nose almost touching his neck.

She could smell his scent, the scent of a young man.

Her face immediately turned red.

It feels so good to be protected, supported, and treated with such care.

"Aunt Qin, don't be afraid," Ye Xiao whispered reassuringly. "That thing is already dead."

Qin Wan remained silent.

She lowered her head even further, almost touching his chest.

She could hear his heartbeat.

Bang, bang, bang—

Calm and composed, yet powerful.

She wasn't so nervous anymore.

Ye Xiao carried her toward the car.

Qin Wan's body was very light.

Her waist was very slender under the black lace top, and her thighs were pressed against his arm under the leather skirt. He could feel the warmth of her skin through the stockings.

He tried his best to keep his gaze from falling downwards.

But his heart still skipped a beat.

He remembered that summer afternoon, at the bathroom door, she stood in front of him in a thin silk nightgown, her face even redder than it was now.

That image lingered in his mind for a long time.

It was at that time that he came to understand the allure of women.

He was eighteen years old then, brimming with restless energy and curiosity.

His understanding of women was limited to magazines he secretly circulated in class and pictures on his phone that he dared not let anyone see.

But that afternoon, the moment Qin Wan stood before him in her pajamas, all the pictures and magazines lost their meaning.

A real body, a living woman.

Her shoulders were rounded, her collarbones were delicate, and her skin glowed softly under the warm yellow light.

The fabric of the pajamas was so thin it was almost transparent, faintly revealing the outline underneath.

She stood there, doing nothing, just blushing like a startled deer.

But in that instant, Ye Xiao felt himself transform from a boy into a man.

From that day on, when he looked at Qin Wan, he no longer saw her as just "a classmate's mother."

……

Ye Xiao couldn't help but sigh, "Fate is cruel."

People who would otherwise have had no chance to get close to him became as docile as kittens in his arms because of this survival game.

He quickened his pace and walked to the car.

He opened the passenger door, bent down, and carefully placed Qin Wan on the seat.