The Martial Doctor

"Thank you, young master." Although Scorpion still didn’t know Lin Miao’s exact identity, he could command Helian Wanwan, so his status in the Snow Mountain Sect must not be low.

Such a person he really dared not easily offend.

Everyone got off the carriage, including Xiaobai, who was napping on the roof. She was an ice beast, preferring to freeze outside rather than stay inside the carriage.

Of course, if she were alone with her brother Ah Huo, that would be another matter.

The Scorpion gang opened each carriage and looked inside. With limited space, it would be obvious at a glance if someone were hiding.

As for beneath the carriage and on top, they also checked.

Then, there were the boxes they carried. Large boxes contained clothing, so someone could hide there.

Lin Miao also instructed Lianxin to open them one by one, but he did not allow the Scorpion gang to touch them. Lianxin, Liansuo, and Ling Yu’er handled the revealing of the contents.

They had gone this far, so Scorpion naturally had nothing to say.

"I apologize, Old Scorpion acted rashly. If there’s a chance, I shall certainly visit the Snow Mountain Sect to apologize to Mr. Helian!" Scorpion bowed immediately, knowing he had found nothing and offended the Snow Mountain Sect. A poor attitude would make it hard to survive in the martial world.

"Can we leave now?" Lin Miao asked coldly.

"Forgive me, young master. Could you tell me your name? Old Scorpion will definitely visit to apologize personally in the future!"

"No need." Lin Miao replied indifferently, "I am not of the martial world and do not meddle in their affairs."

Scorpion was stunned. He hadn’t expected Lin Miao not to be of the martial world, yet he had such a close relationship with the Snow Mountain Sect?

But since he was unwilling to say more, Scorpion couldn’t force him, lest it seem like he was picking a fight.

Even though they had numbers on their side, a real fight wouldn’t necessarily end well for them. Not finding Dongguo Sun, it was best to withdraw.

"Young master, Mr. Helian, safe travels!" Scorpion said respectfully with a fist salute.

After Lin Miao and the others boarded the carriage, they continued onward.

Only after Scorpion and his men saw Lin Miao’s group leaving did they mount their horses and head in the opposite direction.

It was certain Dongguo Sun was injured. No matter how fast he fled, two legs couldn’t match four; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been caught halfway.

...

Inside the carriage, Lin Miao wasn’t affected at all by the Scorpion gang’s roadblock. He had anticipated all this.

Didn’t they notice the fire qilin wasn’t in the carriage?

It was clear it had gone to rescue someone but hadn’t immediately reunited with them afterward; it was following behind.

With the fire qilin’s ability, it would be a wonder for the Scorpion gang to discover it.

If the Scorpion gang kept following, there was a risk of exposure, but once their suspicions were entirely dispelled, they could naturally reunite.

Nonetheless, it would take some distance to be safe.

...

"Lianxin, let’s take a rest ahead." After about an hour, Lin Miao gave the order.

"Understood, young master."

After alighting from the carriage, they set up a small temporary tent by the roadside, and the fire qilin appeared carrying the wounded Dongguo Sun.

Helian Wanwan was wise enough. The absence of the fire qilin from the carriage told her what happened, so she didn’t stop Scorpion’s people from searching the carriage.

This fire lion followed Lin Miao’s words so obediently, showing it had high intelligence. She wondered how this disciple’s husband managed to tame such an exotic beast. In her many years, she had never seen anyone like him.

If she had been born decades later, she might not have been able to resist...

Good men are rare and can’t be forced upon. If you don’t fight, they were never meant to be yours.

She hadn’t thought of it, but her two disciples managed to capture him. Helian Wanwan touched the box containing the Celestial Essence Fruit in her arms, praising her wise decision back then. Otherwise, how would they have obtained the fruit that increases the success rate of advancing to the Celestial level?

"Nephew, sorry for the trouble..." Dongguo Sun, upon seeing Lin Miao, felt a sweetness in his throat and spat out another mouthful of black blood.

"Why are you so severely injured?" Lin Miao frowned, extending his hand to check Dongguo Sun’s pulse.

"I haven’t fought for years and got rusty..." Dongguo Sun wiped the blood from his mouth and smiled bitterly, "It’s nothing, I won’t die. Old Scorpion gave me an antidote pill; it won’t completely detoxify but can suppress it for a while. You know, his Five Poison Palm is indeed formidable. Had I not been carrying the Celestial Fire Furnace, he wouldn’t have injured me."

"Take it off."

"Take what off?"

"Your clothes, so I can heal you," Lin Miao said glaring at him, indicating the injury wouldn’t be fatal yet but needed treatment; otherwise, it could harm his foundation. Even if cured later, he might not progress further, might even regress in martial rank.

"Here?"

"Where else do you want?" Lin Miao rolled his eyes.

"At least in the carriage, there are so many people watching..." Dongguo Sun shyly hesitated.

"The carriage is full of women, it’s not appropriate." Lin Miao said casually.

"Alright, how are you going to treat my injury?"

"Stop talking nonsense, I’ll treat it how I see fit." Lin Miao ordered, "Senior sister, prepare the silver needles for disinfection."

"Okay." Sun Youwei agreed.

Soon, Dongguo Sun was bare-chested, with a clear palm print on his back. The edges of the palm print were still distinct, as he hadn’t been injured for long and his profound cultivation had prevented the spread of the Five Poison Palm’s venom, which would be troublesome if it spread.

First, disinfect his back with high-proof alcohol. In such cold weather, the feel of alcohol rubbing on the skin was so invigorating that even Dongguo Sun with his Great Perfection of Meridian Realm couldn’t help but curse.

Lin Miao ordered some firewood to be burned to at least provide some warmth.

One needle pierced, lifted gently and twisted slowly...

One needle after another, controlling the inner breath coiling around the silver needles, penetrated Dongguo Sun’s body. Such a good guinea pig, how could he let it go?

To his surprise, at first, it felt like a "ding" on the back, like a mosquito bite, followed by a numb sensation, and after the numbness, he felt whole-body comfort.

However, by this time, Lin Miao’s forehead was already covered in fine sweat, and Sun Youwei quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat.

Trickles of black blood oozed from the needle marks left by the silver needles, and the palm print on Dongguo Sun’s back faded visibly.

This effect was truly instantaneous.

Although Dongguo Sun couldn’t see it, as a master of Great Perfection of Meridian Realm and a physician himself, how could he not know the state of his body?

How impressive this young nephew’s medical skills were, it seems the junior brother had taken on a genius disciple. But how did he learn this medical skill?

The junior brother seemed not to use this "needle stabbing" method to treat injuries.

"Alright, for now, and later tonight, I’ll perform a cupping therapy to detoxify you. A few more times like this, and the poison in your body should be cleared." Lin Miao disinfected the silver needles one by one, then put them away.

Just in time, a pot of hot water boiled, and they brewed tea.

Dongguo Sun felt his body relax, and he barely felt the abnormality on his back, immediately putting on his clothes and asking Lin Miao for a cup of hot tea, which he drank in one gulp.

"Comfortable, Sanshui nephew, how about in the future, your uncle will hang around with you?" Dongguo Sun said directly.

"Hanging out with me, just a small physician, no money and no status, can’t afford to support you." Lin Miao chuckled, not wanting to get involved with Huichun Valley.

"So many years have passed, some things should be let go, what’s the use of clinging to those old traditions?"

"I’m easy to support, just need three meals a day, as long as there’s meat and wine with every meal." Dongguo Sun said.

"Aren’t you rich? With assets worth millions, what’s this little expense?"

"I can’t just sit and deplete my wealth, besides, that money is for rebuilding Huichun Valley, can’t squander it." Dongguo Sun said, "Sanshui nephew, if you help me rebuild Huichun Valley, I’ll make you the Valley Master, how about that?"

"No interest." Lin Miao replied calmly.

"You know the Celestial Fire Furnace, the treasure of our Huichun Valley, used for refining herbs and alchemy, it can maximize the medicinal properties of heavenly materials and earthly treasures, creating pills of higher quality than ordinary furnaces, it’s now in my possession..."

"Someone throws a bait, and you swallow it right up?" Lin Miao glanced at him, "Your matter, don’t involve me."

"Then why did you save me?"

"Saving you is out of consideration for your connection with my master, both my senior sister and I have never heard of you, why should we follow you to rebuild some Huichun Valley?" Lin Miao explained.

"Rebuilding Huichun Valley is indeed difficult, but Sanshui nephew, one cannot forget his roots, right? After all, my junior brother raised you since you were little, and even promised his beloved daughter to you. Can’t you do something for the sake of Huichun Valley’s reconstruction?" Dongguo Sun argued.

"Are you telling me, is someone after you?"

"Sort of." Dongguo Sun admitted, "The remaining members of the Elixir Alliance from back then, they still dream of restoring the glory of the Elixir Alliance..."

"Rebuild the Elixir Alliance, why are they looking for you?"

"Our Huichun Valley belongs to the lineage of the Elixir Saint, and we hold the tradition of the Elixir Saint Elder. Our ancestor Ding Yi from Huichun Valley was given the Celestial Fire Furnace by the Elixir Saint. Ye Chen wanted to seize the Celestial Fire Furnace back then, but the Elixir Saint’s grand ancestor was present, so he didn’t have the chance. Later, Huichun Valley was annihilated, the Celestial Fire Furnace lost, and the members of Huichun Valley kept searching for it. It appeared a few times, but mysteriously disappeared again, until it showed up at the auction at the end of the year at Heaven-Dominating Tower." Dongguo Sun explained.

"So how do you know the Celestial Fire Furnace would appear at the Heaven-Dominating Tower auction? You were obviously prepared that day." Lin Miao asked.

"It was Jin Jiu from Jinshi Hall who told me."

"Are you two very close?"

"When I first arrived in Li Hen City, he caused me some trouble. We crossed paths; we were evenly matched. Seeing that I posed no threat, we occasionally had drinks together." Dongguo Sun said.

"Why would he tell you about the Celestial Fire Furnace then?" Lin Miao, as an outsider, was more able to look at the issue objectively.

Dongguo Sun was taken aback. He had never revealed his identity to Jin Jiu nor shown any interest in the Celestial Fire Furnace. Jin Jiu shouldn’t know his background either.

Moreover, his interaction with Jin Jiu wasn’t particularly close...

Yet, Jin Jiu told him about the Celestial Fire Furnace. The Furnace is a treasure; if he knew about it, why would he tell me?

If it was only told to me, that’s a big problem. But if the same information was spread to many others, it would be another matter altogether.

Who exactly is this Jin Jiu?