Chapter 00009: Refining Essence into Qi
# Refining Essence into Qi
Chapter 9
Novel: Abandon The Universe
Chapter 9: Refining Essence into Qi
The woman called Sister Shu was momentarily taken aback, her mouth murmuring something incomprehensible. After a full two to three minutes had passed, she finally lifted her head and began searching around. When her gaze fell upon Lan Xiaobu, it was as if she had grasped a lifeline, and she hurriedly ran towards him.
"Sister Shu, he is an intern doctor..." The nurse, noticing the intern's white coat on Lan Xiaobu, quickly called out from behind.
However, at that moment, Sister Shu could not care less about whether he was an intern or not; anyone in a white coat was the doctor who could save her daughter.
Although Lan Xiaobu's attention was on the girl named Xiaoman, his thoughts had already transcended time and space. The image of Su Cen leaving flashed before his eyes. It was so helpless, so sorrowful.
Unfortunately, although he was Su Cen's husband, he could neither accompany her to share her heart nor resolve the deep-seated troubles that had burdened her soul, nor could he save her life. The only thing he could do was to practice medicine frantically, earning money to buy the exorbitantly priced life-saving medicine.
Initially, when his medical skills were mediocre, he earned very little. Once his skills improved, the prices of life-saving medicines skyrocketed. After the nuclear war, facing the astronomical prices of these medicines, even with his frenzied surgeries, he still could barely manage.
"Doctor, doctor..." Sister Shu's calls pulled Lan Xiaobu back from his memories. "Please, help me find Director Xing and ask him to take another look at Xiaoman; perhaps they didn't see it clearly."
Lan Xiaobu's gaze returned from the girl on the hospital bed to Sister Shu. He tried to soften his tone as he said, "What Director Xing said is likely the truth; he cannot save your daughter, Xiaoman..."
Sister Shu's hand trembled. She knew Lan Xiaobu was not lying, yet she still did not know what to do next.
Suddenly, Lan Xiaobu spoke again, "Sister Shu, if you trust me, I can take a look at Xiaoman."
"Ah..." Sister Shu did not react immediately, but soon she realized what Lan Xiaobu meant. She eagerly grabbed his arm and exclaimed, "I believe you! Please help my Xiaoman; I beg you..."
Lan Xiaobu patted Sister Shu's hand, signaling her to let go before he approached Xiaoman. He lifted the blanket and pinched a few times on Xiaoman's already purplish legs.
After merely pinching a few times, Lan Xiaobu withdrew his hand; it was indeed Frozen Silkworm Disease. Sister Shu looked at him anxiously, yearning for him to utter the words that could save her daughter.
Lan Xiaobu remained silent and stepped aside. Seeing this, Sister Shu hurriedly followed him. When Sister Shu approached, Lan Xiaobu finally spoke, "Sister Shu, Xiaoman's illness can be treated. However, my medical skills are inherited, and many methods are not recognized, so I cannot practice in the hospital. I will give you an address along with the medicines and instruments you need to buy. If you want me to treat Xiaoman, you must go to this address and gather everything I need. Remember, do not let anyone know. If others find out, I cannot save your daughter, Xiaoman."
After saying this, Lan Xiaobu quickly took out a pen from his white coat and wrote down on a blank prescription the items needed, including a scalpel, acupuncture needles, scissors, tweezers, various disinfectants, injections, and medicinal materials. He then stuffed the prescription into Sister Shu's hand and swiftly turned to leave.
His residence did not have a sterile operating room, but he had treated Frozen Silkworm Disease many times; to him, it was not a difficult matter, and his methods were different from ordinary surgeries.
It was only after Lan Xiaobu disappeared that Sister Shu came to her senses. She looked at the prescription in her hand, feeling somewhat lost and confused. As someone who had studied medicine, she sensed that the items on the list suggested Lan Xiaobu's medical skills were quite ordinary. Whether it was the scalpel, tweezers, or acupuncture needles, none had specified models or types. It was known that even a single type of tweezers could have dozens of variations, yet Lan Xiaobu had only written "medical tweezers."
What made Sister Shu even more uneasy was that, besides a bunch of injection medicines, there was also a pile of traditional Chinese medicinal materials. Was this for performing surgery on Xiaoman, or was it to give her traditional medicine?
The prescription did have an address, but could she really take her daughter out of the hospital to this unfamiliar place for treatment? Looking again at the list Lan Xiaobu provided, it seemed like a scam. However, the other party clearly had no intention of explaining much.
"Sister Shu, let's take Xiaoman to the ward first. Director Xing will surely think of a way," the nurse said, knowing full well that Director Xing had no solutions, yet still trying to comfort Sister Shu.
Sister Shu quickly tucked the prescription away and nodded. What could a scammer possibly take from her? Besides, the other party was clearly a doctor from Kunhu Hospital; an intern was still a doctor. That doctor had also claimed to possess ancestral medical skills, stating he could not practice here because many of his methods were unrecognized. With this thought, Sister Shu made up her mind; no matter what, she would gather all the necessary items today and take Xiaoman to see Lan Xiaobu tomorrow.
She was already out of options. If no one saved Xiaoman, she would undoubtedly die. Her daughter had already resigned herself to death; how could she not understand?
...
At Jin City University of Technology, Cheng Jianjie looked at Shang Wei standing before him, realizing he had been thoroughly played. The Shang Wei in front of him was clearly not the person he was looking for; that student had deceived him. A flicker of malice crossed Cheng Jianjie's eyes as he clenched his fists, waves of murderous intent surging within him. If he caught that kid who had tricked him, he would make him regret ever coming into this world.
Moreover, he had to catch that kid; the wooden box belonged to him, and no one else could take it away.
Shang Wei, standing in front of Cheng Jianjie, felt a chill run down his spine. He instinctively shivered. Who was this person? Why was he so terrifying? It seemed he did not recognize him.
Cheng Jianjie took out a hand-drawn portrait from his pocket; this portrait resembled Lan Xiaobu by about seventy percent. He had already investigated the station where Lan Xiaobu boarded; as long as he found the station, he could locate Lan Xiaobu's photograph and discover his true background.
"Do you recognize this person?" Cheng Jianjie's tone was somewhat cold.
Although Shang Wei felt uncomfortable, he was also somewhat afraid of Cheng Jianjie. His gaze lingered on the portrait of Lan Xiaobu for a while before he shook his head, "I don't know him."
Shang Wei's words disappointed Cheng Jianjie. He put away the portrait and nodded at Shang Wei, "You can leave now, but you must not disclose a word of what I just asked you. Otherwise, you will not be able to bear the consequences."
Watching Cheng Jianjie's retreating figure, Shang Wei remained perplexed. A mysterious person, a mysterious affair.
Cheng Jianjie's phone vibrated, and a message appeared on the screen: "This train ticket belongs to Lan Xiaobu, departing from Haiyang City, destination Tingjiang."
...
In addition to practicing the Muscle-Tendon Altering Sutra, Lan Xiaobu also began training in the Bright Fist. It was said to be a martial art from Wudang, belonging to the internal martial arts. If one did not cultivate Inner Qi, practicing the Bright Fist would be a joke. Now that Lan Xiaobu had a certain foundation in Inner Qi cultivation, it was the perfect time to practice the Bright Fist.
In his previous life, Lan Xiaobu had never practiced martial arts, but he had heard that before the Spiritual Qi explosion on Earth, martial artists who could cultivate Inner Qi were the strongest. Those who cultivated Inner Qi were also known as Inner Strength Martial Artists. Besides Inner Strength Martial Artists, others were merely referred to as "having practiced" or "a bit skilled."
In fact, before the Spiritual Qi explosion on Earth, Inner Strength Martial Artists were rare, often regarded as legendary figures that ordinary people could not encounter.
After the Spiritual Qi explosion, martial arts became more detailed. As long as one cultivated Inner Qi, they could be called at the Refinement Stage, followed by the Bone Refinement Stage, and then the Meridian Opening Stage. Surviving the Meridian Opening Stage would lead to the Innate Realm.
It was rumored that Shang Wei had entered the Innate Realm, which allowed him to wander safely in the depths of Kunlun Mountain.
However, Lan Xiaobu had also heard of another realm, which was that all realms below the Innate Realm belonged to the Refining Essence into Qi stage. Moreover, the Innate Realm could also be referred to as Foundation Establishment. This was something an elderly man named Elder Huang had told him after the nuclear war when Lan Xiaobu had treated him. Unfortunately, he had not been able to save that elderly man.
Lan Xiaobu estimated that he had now cultivated Inner Qi and was barely stepping into the Refining Essence into Qi's Refinement Stage.
Although Lan Xiaobu was unsure of his martial arts aptitude, he had felt Inner Qi on the first day of practicing the Muscle-Tendon Altering Sutra, suggesting that his aptitude should not be too poor; in fact, it could be considered quite good. If things continued this way, he should be able to step into the Innate Realm within two years.
Of course, he could not wait two years. As soon as his cultivation reached a certain level, he would enter Kunlun Mountain; he must not wait until Kunlun Mountain closed its gates.
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(End of Chapter)