After setting up the TV, Elizabeth walked over to her bed and comfortably laid down while embracing her most treasured pillo… Demonic Beast Egg. In a move very unbecoming of what one would expect, instead of looking for a show to pa.s.sively entertain herself, Elizabeth went straight to the nation-wide news channels.To others, it might be strange how a gamer could find entertainment from watching the news, but when considering that Elizabeth entertained herself primarily through video games, it wasn"t so much that the news was appreciated for entertainment, so much as it was a different kind of pa.s.sive enjoyment she could experience.
Still… in the current day and age, the different news outlets had essentially turned into hyperbolic tribalistic groups that tried to shame sides instead of report straight up facts. To most, this would defeat the purpose of watching the news, but it was precisely because of this reason that Elizabeth loved to idle away her downtime on the various news channels; the neverending conflicted were what fueled most, if not all, the entertainment value TV had to offer her.
Elizabeth went on to channel 51, WOLF News, and the comedy began… For about half an hour straight, Elizabeth could be heard chuckling with the most joyful face she had shown since the transformation.
"...In other news, self-proclaimed liberal-marxist Zakrevsky Onufri Dmitrievich or ZOD as others call him, announces the magnum opus of his career thus far; the Pastures Revitalization Act. The former bouncer turned political juggernaut plans to campaign for the rather absurd and quite frankly impossible Act, which seeks to financially bankrupt both the government and the citizens of America. Honestly folks, the deal sounds very nice to the tune of most uneducated Americans, I mean who wouldn"t want to see our great nation become the utopia ZOD campaigns for? It"s just that, reality isn"t without its hardships and the changes the Pastures Revitalization Act requires to progress on time are virtually impossible to achieve..."
Elizabeth was in tears as she was dying laughing as she listened through the contents of the Pastures Revitalization Act as depicted by WOLF News. That ZOD guy was quite the character, actually proposing to completely eliminate all carbon emissions in the country within the span of a single year…
Elizabeth quickly changed the channel lest she pee herself laughing at the merciless way those brutal hosts of WOLF News roasted the other party for actually supporting such a ludicrous deal. She changed the channel to CMNM the other mainstream to the United State"s divided up political factions. Unfortunately, while there were several agendas that Elizabeth adopted from both CMNM"s liberal standing and WOLF"s opposite conservative stance, at the moment, CMNM were pushing just a bit too much bulls.h.i.t for her to not continue laughing at their political party.
As Elizabeth continued to shake with schadenfreude whilst holding her egg, a knock from her door took her out of that magical place the news had put her in. She wiped the leftover tears still present in her eyes with a smile that seemed to visibly brighten up the room, before proceeding to walk over to answer the door.
After opening the door, Elizabeth found Atid, Jane, and Sun all staring back at her and while she managed to close her mouth to hide away her teeth. The smile with her lips sealed still drew a holistic arc on her face, nonetheless. Elizabeth coughed a half laugh and said, "Please, come in..." It was totally obvious that she was in a good mood.
However, as she invited them in and her eyes landed on the magical items strewn about all around her room, that initially jubilant mood devolved into a series of internal and incoherent curses. This was the karma coming back to bit her in the a.s.s, as she never really took time out to tidy up her living s.p.a.ce.
Thankfully however, it seemed like no one really cared about the various "highly unorthodox" items. At least, Jane and Sun didn"t seem to bother about them… Atid however, had a certain glint of wonder cross his eyes. But before Elizabeth could notice, he hid away the questions the glint would have revealed.
While Sun still a bit timid from the previous encounter he had with Elizabeth in the bathhouse and Atid was caught in his thoughts about what exactly Elizabeth"s deal was, Jane was the only one unfazed and thus the person who began talking as the group of four moved to sit by the table.
Jane said, "So… you watch CMNM on your free time? Seems like the kind of action befitting an old man. I mean, you know there"re plenty of better outlets on the internet right?" Jane spoke with came to her mind before thinking things through and as a result, she now thought her actions to be extremely careless and stupid. What would she do if Elizabeth turned out triggered?
Her worries were unfounded as Elizabeth didn"t bat an eye to what most would consider a divisive question. Elizabeth said, "Well, I don"t have a computer with me, and even if I did, watching news live is much more entertaining than the polished and squeaky-clean videos published on the internet."
"Entertaining?" Jane though, a bit unsettled to find her acquaintance taking an interest in watching the news out of entertainment rather than to be informed. But, considering the current climate, she would be lying if she didn"t find what was considered to be newsworthy to be at times, "entertaining."
"Anyway, why"d you guys come here?" Elizabeth asked, a bit curious as to what kind of events were to unfold.
"Right… so first and foremost I came to thank you for previously healing Sun and myself. I know this might encroach on your trust in me, but..." Atid, who had started speaking temporarily stopped before he took a knee and actually put himself in a subservient position. His actions came off as utterly shocking to both Sun and Jane. To Sun the shock originated in how humiliating of a position Atid adopted; actually choosing bow down and essentially beg to someone many stages below himself in martial cultivation. To Jane, this was also the first time she had seen Atid commit such an unthinkable act, but to a certain degree, she was confused as this was her first time hearing that Elizabeth healed both Atid and Sun.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, was just straight up confused as she neither understood what Atid"s actions represented nor why he"d gotten all serious out of the blue. Still, as someone now experienced in the harshness of the cultivating lifestyle, Elizabeth understood that for someone as strong as Atid to be asking her for help, it must mean a large price had dues to be paid…
Atid continued speaking, his voice now lacked any of the usual robust and confident charm it usually possessed. He said, "I had a talk with Sun and pretty much confirmed that it was you who restored him, back to "fighting form" if you will. Now, it might be extremely shameless on my part to request this, but could you do the same for Jane?"
"Huh?" Elizabeth couldn"t help but voice her confusion as she looked at Jane. Atid"s word were roundabout, but in essence, he was asking her to restore Jane"s Dantian. Only… Jane didn"t have a crippled Dantian. If she did, it would be impossible for her to wield Martial Qi, never mind the Ice-type Qi she"d shown off time and time again.
Elizabeth got up from her chair and walked over to Jane, before she asked, "Can I check something in your body real quick?"
With Elizabeth now in front of her, Jane had a bewildered expression consuming just about everything her body could use to convey intent. Her face frozen in confusion, almost as if stuck with absurdities playing in her mind, as her body"s posture and language expressed a questioning stance as she had arms outstretched and palms opened, as if to ask for answers.
Atid also got up as he began walking out of the room, whilst dragging Sun with him. As he motioned to leave, Atid said, "Jane, just let her do her thing. Trust me, you"ll be thankful when it"s all over..."
"..." Jane still utterly confused watched as Atid shut the doors. She stood static for a long minute before Elizabeth"s tall standing figure brought her out of daydream land. Jane said, "What exactly are you going to do?"
"Worst case scenario, I pierce your body with all my needles. But for right now, I just need you to lie down on my bed so I can check your health." Not one to mince her words, Elizabeth spoke without considering how brutal her description turned out to be.
"..."Jane looked at Elizabeth with a squint in her eyes. But in the end, she followed through with Atid"s suggestion. After all, she could easily overpower Elizabeth if she tried to do anything funny, but deep down in her subconscious, she wished for nothing to go awry.
Elizabeth followed Jane to her bed and after Jane laid down like a patient at the doctor"s office, Elizabeth said, "Now don"t freak out, I need to unb.u.t.ton your shirt..."
"Wha..." before Jane could finish her though, Elizabeth began to strip her… To the recipient of this "treatment", this was very, unusual? At least it was until Jane watched Elizabeth for a bit longer. There were no games played, no funny quips or questionable moves. Each and every action Elizabeth performed sought efficiency and a.n.a.lysis.
In fact, the moment, Jane"s b.u.t.toned-up shirt was disrobed, Elizabeth didn"t even keep her eyes open as she used what she knew from the [Introduction To The Path Of Medicine] to thoroughly check Jane"s health. What she found was unsettling to say the least.