In a frigid apocalypse, I went on a shopping spree with the reborn.

After the initial surprise, Jiang Qingyue hurriedly asked, "Xiao Yi, Xiao Yi, wasn't it said that this plant doctor can condense nine drops of essence? Where is it? I can't find it."

[Reporting to Master, the plant doctor has just been planted and needs 24 hours to condense nine drops of essence. The location is on the lowest branch of the main stem.]

Jiang Qingyue took a look and sure enough, there was a sharp branch protruding from the thick trunk. It was very thin, much thinner than the others, and not long, unlike the other branches that looked like ivy.

This branch is only arm-length, and it has nine transparent, thin as cicada wings of ice crystals growing on it.

"Is that so?" Jiang Qingyue patted Long Jiuxing's shoulder upon hearing this. "Wait a little longer."

Long Jiuxing suppressed her excitement: "Sister Xiaoyue, it's okay. Don't mention twenty-four hours, I can wait even twenty-four years."

What she feared was not time, but the absence of hope.

The next twenty-four hours felt exceptionally long for Jiang Qingyue and her companions.

Even the usually gluttonous little white snake used its tail to drag its small bowl to the planting room, eating while looking at the small branch, as if looking at it more would make it produce nine drops of essence faster.

Long Jiuxing was absent-minded while holding her phone. Although she tried her best to pretend that she was not in a hurry, the way she kept glancing at the planting room could not lie.

Jiang Qingyue did the same. She would go over to check on the branches after cooking, and then go over to check on them again after eating... but every time she went over, there was no movement on the branches.

Eight hours later, the little white snake quickly crawled over, wrapped its tail around the wheelchair leg, and led Long Jiuxing to the planting room.

Upon seeing the commotion, Jiang Qingyue and Jiang Qingyan quickly arrived at the planting room.

"It's bearing fruit, no, it's producing essence!" Jiang Qingyue exclaimed with immense joy.

On the small branches, beneath each leaf, there were round, translucent beads the size of soybeans, hanging there like raindrops; one might mistake them for dewdrops.

"Hiss!!!!!" The little white snake flicked its tongue.

Long Jiuxing clenched his fists on his lap.

This is the essence condensed by the plant doctor. Even though it hasn't been used yet, Sister Xiaoyue's supercomputer said that, according to the identification results, this essence can cure all diseases of plants and animals.

All illnesses—everyone knows what that means: it's like having countless lives, and as long as there's still a breath left, you can be saved.

"Wait a little longer." Jiang Qingyue took Long Jiuxing's hand, gently pried open her clenched fist, and rubbed the crescent-shaped lines on her palm. "Xiaoyi said it takes 24 hours, which proves that the essence is condensing, just like fruiting. It's probably not ripe yet."

Long Jiuxing nodded: "I know, I'm not in a hurry."

Jiang Qingyue patted her head tenderly, how could she not be anxious?

During this time, she discovered that Long Jiuxing actually had her own pride. She would never trouble others, including the little white snake, with anything she could do herself.

However, her legs and congenital heart disease meant that she was destined to be unable to take care of herself.

Before meeting the little white snake, she had suffered countless grievances, such as crawling on the ground with her hands supporting her and dragging her two numb legs.

I've experienced this kind of undignified thing countless times.

It was dark, but no one was asleep.

The room was warm, so the two of them, along with the little white snake and Jiang Qingyan, stayed in the planting room, chatting occasionally, their four eyes fixed on the nine drops of essence that looked like they might fall at any moment.

Jiang Qingyan is usually a heavy sleeper, but this night she stayed up all night. When her eyelids drooped, she rubbed them with her little paws and continued to stare with her eyes wide open, as if her essence would disappear in the blink of an eye.

The next morning at daybreak, Jiang Qingyue unusually did not go to work. Even when it was lunchtime, she did not cook, knowing that no one would have an appetite if she did.

And judging by the time, the 24 hours Xiaoyi mentioned are almost up.

The closer it gets to 24 hours, the more nervous everyone becomes.

Finally, the twig swayed gently, and the nine drops of essence collided together, making a crisp, tinkling sound.

"It's ripe."

Jiang Qingyue quickly stepped forward, and even though she was 100% sure, she couldn't help but ask Xiao Yi again, "Xiao Yi, Xiao Yi, are they ripe? How do we pick them? Do we just tear them off like fruit?"

[Yes, dear owner, the essence of the Plant Doctor is not fragile and does not require special care.]

Before Xiao Yi finished speaking, Jiang Qingyue had already taken the small bowl that had been prepared in advance.

He reached out and touched it lightly, then froze: "Hard?" He suddenly realized: "Look how excited I was! When these things collided, they made a crisp ringing sound, so they must be hard."

It's not her fault; the appearance of this essence is too deceptive. It looks like a few drops of water about to fall, and visually, it should be soft.

It feels hard to the touch, with a texture like crystal.

She quickly picked all nine. The mature seeds were a little larger than when they were just growing, and each one was exactly the same, about the size of a broad bean.

"Xiaoyi, how are you going to eat it? Are you going to swallow it raw?"

"Yes, Master. When you are injured, you can swallow it quickly or hold it in your mouth slowly."

As soon as Xiao Yi finished speaking, Jiang Qingyue popped a pill into Long Jiuxing's mouth and then stared at her without moving.

"It's sweet." Long Jiuxing tried to swallow, but found that the essence was a bit too much and not easy to swallow, so he simply let it melt slowly in his mouth like candy.

"How are you feeling?" Jiang Qingyue asked eagerly. "Do you feel anything special, like a warm current flowing through your body, repairing your injuries?"

Long Jiuxing, with the essence still in his mouth, shook his head slightly.

Jiang Qingyue frowned: "Does that mean I have to swallow the whole thing for it to take effect?"

Long Jiuxing didn't know either.

Jiang Qingyue then woke Xiao Yi again: "Xiao Yi, Xiao Yi, can we chew this thing up and swallow it?"

Xiao Yi seemed to pause for a moment, then replied: [That works too, as long as it's ingested, it will have a healing effect.]

Before Xiao Yi could finish speaking, Long Jiuxing snapped the essence in half with a snap.

I felt that the particles were small enough to be swallowed easily, so I couldn't wait to swallow them.

Jiang Qingyue, Jiang Qingyan, and the little white snake stared intently at Long Jiuxing's legs.

The moment the essence was swallowed, Long Jiuxing's atrophied muscles expanded at a visible speed, becoming fuller, like a compressed sponge meeting water.

"How amazing!"

Even having experienced the apocalypse and seen all sorts of special items, Jiang Qingyue and the others were still dumbfounded at this moment.

Jiang Qingyue reached out and pinched Long Jiuxing's leg, from his ankle to his calf and then to his knee, not missing an inch of skin.

The little white snake beside it also anxiously wrapped its tail around its owner's leg, probing inch by inch.

"Okay, it's exactly the same as a normal person's."

Suddenly, a hot tear fell onto the back of Jiang Qingyue's hand.

Looking up, sure enough, Long Jiuxing's face was covered in tears.

She comforted him, "Cry, cry it out, it'll make you feel better. Your leg will be better, your body will be better, and we'll have more and more laughter in the future, no more tears."

Wow~

Long Jiuxing reached out and wrapped his arms around her waist, buried his head in her stomach, and burst into tears.

When its owner cried, the little white snake also shed tears.

Jiang Qingyan thought for a moment, then jumped over and hugged the little white snake. However, this time, it deliberately avoided the little white snake's three-inch and seven-inch points.

Only after the two of them had cried enough and were exhausted did Jiang Qingyue wipe away Long Jiuxing's tears and support her hand, saying, "Get up and try walking a few steps."

Long Jiuxing nodded eagerly.

She has been like this since birth, and has never known what it feels like to stand and walk. She thought she would only be able to crawl on the ground like a maggot for the rest of her life, but she never expected that she could stand up now.

The moment his feet gently touched the ground as he stepped off the wheelchair, the real feeling of his feet hitting the ground left Long Jiuxing stunned for a long time, as if in a dream.

Jiang Qingyue held her hand and did not urge her.

After a long while, Long Jiuxing took a small step forward, then two steps...

From tentatively walking, to walking briskly, and finally running.

She ran from the planter to the entrance of the shelter, and then rushed back to the planter like a gust of wind.

He then wrapped his arms around Jiang Qingyue's waist and lifted her up.

"Oh my god!" Jiang Qingyue was startled. Being held and spun around like this felt so strange. "Put me down!"

Long Jiuxing, unusually, disobeyed: "Sister Xiaoyue, I'm all better! I can walk on the ground now! My legs are all better! Hahahaha... I can walk..."

Seeing how happy she was, Jiang Qingyue gave up struggling. Let her spin around if she wants; after all, this girl is strong and won't get tired.

Only when Jiang Qingyue was spinning around until she was dizzy did Long Jiuxing gently put her down on the ground, supporting her with one hand to prevent her from losing her balance, and resting his head on her shoulder, gently rubbing against her.

"Sister Xiaoyue, I love you so much."

"Okay, okay, I love you too."

"Sister Xiaoyue, you smell so good."

Jiang Qingyue said helplessly, "Honey, we use the same shampoo."

"I don't care, you just smell so good." Long Jiuxing said, taking a deep breath with a look of ecstasy.

Jiang Qingyue: "..."

Only Long Jiuxing had clear eyes and a cute, obedient appearance. If any other burly man had made that expression, she would have already kicked him with her Jiang-style Shadowless Kick.

Once Long Jiuxing had calmed down, Jiang Qingyue asked, "Besides your leg, are the other ailments cured?"

"I'm all better now," Long Jiuxing said. "Before, when I got excited, or even just happy, I would have trouble breathing and feel a dull ache in my heart. But now I'm perfectly fine."

"My spine is completely healed too, Sister Xiaoyue, you're so lucky! This plant doctor is much better than any space backpack or diamond ball."

Jiang Qingyue smiled and said, "It should be related to the fact that I used a Lucky Star. The one I used was of the best quality and increased my luck by nine points."

"By the way." Seeing how well Long Jiuxing's treatment had worked, Jiang Qingyue looked at the remaining eight drops of essence as if countless treasures were beckoning to her.

She hadn't forgotten that this essence could be used not only to heal animals but also to treat plants.

"Xiao Yi, Xiao Yi, how do you use it when the plant is sick? You can't just let the plant chew it up and swallow it, can you?"

[Reply to the owner: Place the essence at the base of the plant before watering; the plant's roots will absorb it on their own. Alternatively, you can dissolve the essence in water and water the plant before it gets sick; this will ensure the plant never gets sick.]

Jiang Qingyue gasped slightly.

This means she can confidently expand the scale of her planting.

Previously, besides worrying about seeds and fertilizer, her biggest concern was that the plants would get sick.

Based on her limited planting experience, she had consulted some materials and found that planting in poorly ventilated underground spaces greatly increases the probability of plants contracting gray mold and downy mildew.

Finding the right medication for prevention or treatment is extremely difficult.

Now this problem has been completely solved.

Moreover, Dr. Plant produces nine essences every day, so there's no worry about the quantity.

In her small vegetable garden, she only needs one essence to protect each batch of crops until harvest, and the remaining essence can be stored away.

"So it seems I can sell all those vitamins I stored up and exchange them for currency."

"We have fresh vegetables and the essence of plant doctors, so we don't have to worry about getting sick from vitamin deficiency. Why not exchange them for trading currency?"

Although Wang Dawei had already taken the lead, Jiang Qingyue was still full of anticipation for upgrading the optical computer to level two.

"By the way, now that you're fully recovered, your combat strength should have increased, right?"

Upon hearing this, Long Jiuxing quickly turned on his personal computer and opened the individual combat power ranking.

Individual combat power rankings:

First place: Long Jiuxing, female, 18 years old, combat power 3002

Second place: Wang Dawei, male, 46 years old, combat power value 2111

Third place: Liu Yuyao, female, 45 years old, combat power 1103

Fourth place: Jiang Qingyue, female, 27 years old, combat power 908

"Three thousand..." Jiang Qingyue's eyes almost popped out of their sockets; this surprise far exceeded her expectations.

Wang Dawei had previously completed hidden missions and upgraded his optical brain, which together brought him to a total of over two thousand.

Long Jiuxing has not received any external assistance recently; he has only healed his old injuries, and his combat power has directly exceeded three thousand.

Wang Dawei didn't stay in first place for long before he was pushed down.

Although his combat strength is over two thousand, which is not low, it gives people the impression that he wasted his time.

"What's wrong with you?" Jiang Qingyue asked curiously, then added, "Of course, I'm just curious. You don't have to tell me; after all, everyone has their own secrets."

"I have no secrets," Long Jiuxing said firmly. "I can be completely open with Sister Xiaoyue."

Long Jiuxing pursed his lips: "Before the apocalypse, in order to be able to stand up, I participated in an experiment."

"experiment?"

"Yes, Sister Xiaoyue, you can think of it as drug testing. They did all sorts of experiments on me, injecting all kinds of drugs into my body."

"At the time, all I wanted was for them to provide food and lodging. If the experiment was successful, my leg might be cured. Even if it failed, I would just die. At that time, I had no money to continue treatment and was desperate."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingyue hugged her tenderly.

The little white snake beside it was also hearing about its master's past for the first time. It was so heartbroken that it shed tears, wetting the fur of Jiang Qingyan, who was holding it.

Long Jiuxing: "At that time, I only felt that I had become much stronger, my eyesight had improved significantly, my reaction speed was faster, and I could even hear the buzzing of mosquitoes very clearly. My hearing should have improved as well."

"But my heart still hurts, and I still have no feeling in my legs. In fact, they are getting worse every day, so I never thought those experiments were useful."

"Until the apocalypse arrived, my initial combat strength reached over 800, which was completely different from others. Only then did I guess that although the experiment failed to cure my leg, it fundamentally changed my physique."

"My heart disease and disabled legs greatly suppressed my combat power. Now that my injuries and ailments are gone, this is my true level of combat power."

Jiang Qingyue understood: "No wonder Wang Dawei went to great lengths to get rid of you. It turns out you're so strong now that you've regained your strength."