Chapter 88: True Coincidence

The "Miracle Doctor" immediately caught the attention of everyone passing by. His flag, clearly made from a tattered piece of cloth found God knows where, swayed precariously, assaulting the eyes of countless onlookers. The sixteen crooked characters scrawled on it conveyed a profound sense of lunacy, yet remarkably, they were quite rhyming!

"Where did this guy come from? He looks decent enough, but he's already out here scamming people this early in the morning."

"Sigh, these days, there are more and more con artists out there. And 'self-castration,' tsk-tsk... Does he even have a penis to begin with?"

"A 'Peerless Miracle Doctor,' my foot! Only a fool would believe that!"

The middle-aged "Miracle Doctor" had neither a shop nor even a chair. He simply held his flag and walked from the front street to the back, and then back again, completing three full rounds. Not a single patient approached him for a consultation. Most passersby eyed him as if he were insane. Occasionally, young women would walk by, subtly spit in disdain, and blush as they hurried away.

"What exactly does 'self-castration' mean?"

This was the eighth time Jasmine had asked him.

"It really doesn't mean anything! It's just for the sake of a simple rhyme!" Yun Che explained patiently, his expression serious.

"This princess doesn't believe you!"

"What else could it mean? Just say it aloud: 'Peerless doctor, heals all ailments; if I can't heal, I'll self-castrate!' Doesn't it roll off the tongue? If you change it to 'cut off my wrist,' 'cut my throat,' 'sever my meridians,' or 'commit suicide to apologize,' it would sound awful, and the poetic imagery would be miles off! As for 'JJ,' it's truly not a specific thing; it's purely for the rhyme, for the rhyme!" Yun Che explained earnestly, while secretly wiping cold sweat from his forehead.

Jasmine was always as strong and forceful as a little demon in front of him, making Yun Che sometimes subconsciously overlook her age. This little Jasmine, who usually acted like she knew everything, simply couldn't grasp the concept of "self-castration." Ever since he wrote those four characters on the tattered flag, she had been questioning him relentlessly, like a curious child.

After Yun Che answered her for the eighth time, she finally seemed to believe him and stopped asking.

"Sigh, being a quack doctor is really tough these days. Not a single person has come to ask for my services. I can't just rent a medical shop, can I? Not only would it cost a lot of time and money, but it might also expose my true intentions." After walking back and forth five times, Yun Che began to groan internally with vexation.

Just then, at the east end of the street, two men walked over, looking around anxiously. Their steps were hurried, their faces grim, as if they had just suffered a great misfortune.

"We've basically called on every reputable doctor in the city. We've even invited the chief physicians and pharmacists from all the major sects, but they were all helpless. Where else can we possibly look?" one man grumbled, his face bitter.

"Sigh, we're in pairs, and we can't go back until we find a doctor. I guess we won't be going home today," the other man said, equally dejected.

"Several groups of our brothers have already decided to search outside the city. How about we try looking outside as well? It's far, but it's better than returning empty-handed and facing punishment."

As the two men were talking, they suddenly looked up and saw the tattered cloth banner swaying less than ten paces in front of them.

"Holy moly! A 'Peerless Miracle Doctor'?" Both men's eyes lit up instantly.

"Come on, he's clearly a fraud. A quack doctor daring to call himself a 'Peerless Miracle Doctor'."

"Who cares! The orders were to find a doctor, and here he is! Who cares if he's genuine or not! If he's a fraud, someone will deal with him eventually; we just need to report back. Besides, maybe he does have some medical skills."

"You're right! Let's go!"

Having made up their minds, the two men quickened their pace and rushed up to the "Miracle Doctor." "Esteemed Doctor," one said, "Our Young Sect Master suffered severe injuries yesterday and urgently needs a miracle doctor. Since you claim to be a doctor who can heal all ailments, our Young Sect Master's injuries must be no challenge for you. Please come back to our sect with us immediately."

The two men positioned themselves, one in front and one behind, sandwiching the "Miracle Doctor" in between, their posture half invitation, half coercion. The "Miracle Doctor" glanced at them, muttering to himself, "Young Sect Master? Severe injuries... Could it be such a coincidence?"

The "Miracle Doctor" stroked his long beard and calmly asked, "Healing and saving lives is a doctor's duty. I will accompany you back. May I ask... which sect are you from?"

"Our sect's name would scare you to death," the two men said, their nostrils flaring with a majestic air. "It's the foremost sect in New Moon City, the Xiao Sect! If you can heal our Young Sect Master's injuries, our sect will certainly reward you generously, granting you many treasures and helping you achieve great fame in New Moon City. But if you can't, hmph hmph..."

The Xiao Sect...

Holy cow!

Yun Che's meticulously styled eyebrows twitched. He groaned inwardly, "What the hell... This is too much of a coincidence! I had originally planned to showcase my medical skills, become famous in New Moon City within three days, have the news reach the Xiao Sect, and then have them send people to invite me over... everything was supposed to be logical! But now, before I even got a single patient, the Xiao Sect themselves showed up at my doorstep!"

Immediately, he put on an arrogant expression, assuming the air of a master, and chuckled, "A doctor practices medicine regardless of family background or wealth. I have practiced for many years, and there has never been an injury or illness I couldn't treat. Let's go, take me to your sect."

Hearing him speak with such confidence, it seemed as if he really did possess some skill. However, the two men didn't care about that; they just needed to get him into the sect. One led the way, and the other followed behind, as if afraid the "Miracle Doctor" might flee, preventing them from completing their task.

Upon first entering the Xiao Sect's branch, Yun Che's immediate impression was its sheer size! It was incredibly vast!

The entire sect sprawled for several miles at the foot of Moon South Mountain, yet this was merely its outer perimeter. The sect's core was situated higher up on Moon South Mountain, with the entire mountain serving as sect territory. As Yun Che walked along the mountain path, he sighed with emotion... The Xiao Clan of Flowing Cloud City, where he was born, was considered the largest sect in Flowing Cloud City, but compared to this branch of the Xiao Sect, it was minuscule, hardly even worth looking at. If one were to truly compare them, the Xiao Clan was likely less than one percent the size of this Xiao Sect branch.

If a small branch sect was this grand, one could well imagine the colossal scale of the main Xiao Sect.

Along the way, Yun Che diligently tried to memorize the route, but after numerous twists and turns, ups and downs, even with his exceptional memory, his mind became a tangled mess. He reluctantly concluded that it would be virtually impossible not to get lost inside, unless he lived there for at least a month or so.

If that were the case, escaping after getting what he wanted would be a huge problem... Never mind, he decided to take it one step at a time.

After walking for a long time and passing through at least a dozen profound energy scans, he was led to the Pill Hall, located near the summit of the branch sect.

Xiao Tiannan hadn't closed his eyes all night.

After returning from causing a ruckus at New Moon Profound Palace, he had remained in the Pill Hall, never leaving. Watching Xiao Luocheng in his half-dead state, Xiao Tiannan felt his heart twisted with pain and his mind in utter disarray. However, the sect's doctors in the Pill Hall were completely helpless regarding Xiao Luocheng's injuries... More accurately, they simply dared not attempt to treat them.

His left arm was fractured into twelve segments, all the meridians in his upper body were severed, and his profound veins were completely shattered... For any of these injuries, the only way to fully recover was through regeneration using the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal. The Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal contained a faint power of the Heavenly Dao, making perfect recovery possible for any human body part that was damaged. Possessing enough Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal was equivalent to having an extra life. However, the prerequisite was to have a high-level doctor capable of wielding such a rare and extraordinary treasure.

The Xiao Sect indeed possessed a small, palm-sized piece of Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal, arguably the most valuable item in the entire branch sect. For Xiao Luocheng's sake, the branch sect had brought it out, yet no one within the Xiao Clan or New Moon City knew how to use it. Even a piece the size of a fingernail was priceless; let alone handling it, very few had even seen it, much less used it. While some medical texts documented it and some doctors had memorized the theories, not a single one dared to attempt its use... Because any slight mistake would waste the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal without even healing Xiao Luocheng, and the consequences would be unimaginable... A quick death would be a mild outcome.

Ordinarily, no matter how high a person's talent or how great the hopes placed upon them, once they were crippled, they became useless, and no further resources would be spent on them, as it would be a pure waste. But Xiao Luocheng was different; he held the status of a prospective grandson-in-law to an elder of the main Xiao Sect. The entire New Moon City branch sect was counting on Xiao Luocheng's status to achieve a major turnaround. A significant reason Xiao Wuji agreed to betroth his granddaughter to Xiao Luocheng was his considerable talent; even within the main sect, he would have been considered upper-middle tier. Now, however, he was in this state, and a highly probable outcome was that Xiao Wuji would break off the engagement.

Earlier, when Xiao Tiannan had arrogantly declared at the entrance of New Moon Profound Palace that Xiao Luocheng was still the prospective grandson-in-law of a main sect elder, intimidating the entire New Moon Profound Palace, he was inwardly more anxious than anyone. If the people sent by Xiao Wuji saw Xiao Luocheng's injuries and simply turned around and left, Xiao Tiannan would be left to weep bitterly. It would be an entirely normal outcome for them not to bother with a crippled person.

Therefore, Xiao Tiannan was determined to restore Xiao Luocheng's injuries as much as possible before the main sect's people arrived, even going so far as to bring out the precious Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal. His profound energy couldn't be recovered, but if his meridians and profound veins could be restored with the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal, effectively restoring his original aptitude, then even without profound energy, he wouldn't be considered crippled; at worst, he'd just have to start over. This would significantly reduce the likelihood of Xiao Wuji breaking off the engagement.

Throughout the entire night, Xiao Tiannan had people search almost every doctor in New Moon City, inviting physicians and pharmacists from all sects, yet no one dared to touch the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal, nor did anyone have other healing methods. With each day Xiao Luocheng's injuries lingered, the hope of recovery grew dimmer. Xiao Tiannan worried so much that several strands of his hair turned white, and he loathed Yun Che to the bone.

"Sect Master Xiao, this old man is truly powerless. I am ashamed."

"The Young Sect Master's injuries are simply too severe. This old man is incapable; I can only prescribe some medicine to temporarily stabilize his condition. As for a cure... sigh."

"Perhaps only the Purple Vein Heavenly Crystal can heal the Young Sect Master's injuries. But this old man is seeing such a divine artifact for the first time in his life; I am truly unable to control it."

"Quacks! You're all a bunch of useless quacks, you trash!" Xiao Tiannan cursed loudly and undignifiedly, trembling all over.