novelraw Chapter 91
Chapter 91
Splash!
Su Wangchuan hauled himself out of the pond, his face ashen. He pressed a hand to his chest. It felt stifling and unbearably tight, and even his breathing turned rapid and unsteady. Nausea surged up, leaving him on the verge of retching. He forced his eyes wide, struggling to calm the turbulence in his blood and Qi and to breathe at a steady pace.
Hoo…
Hoo…
Chen Ergou panicked.
"Physician Liao, please help! Take a look at him—Is the Helm Leader all right?"
Physician Liao stepped forward with practiced ease, took his pulse, then felt along his arm and the front of his chest. After a few light presses, he said, "He is fine."
"His muscles and bones are intact."
"There is likely a small amount of internal bruising."
"I will massage him to promote circulation and disperse the stasis, then prescribe some medicine. After resting for a night, he should be fine."This time, Su Wangchuan stopped pretending to be tough.
It was miserable.
He had lost 20 health points. His whole body felt wrong. All that suffering for only 1 point of experience, and he still had to rest an entire night to recover.
[Fish Scale Technique] truly was not something a normal person could train.
No wonder so many people gave up halfway.
If he wanted to raise [Fish Scale Technique] to [Practice Makes Perfect] in a short time, that was nothing but a fool’s daydream. Even reaching [Minor Mastery] would take three months…
"Come."
"Lie flat."
"I will help you massage and clear things out."
At Physician Liao’s instruction, Su Wangchuan did not dare to force it. He lay down right where he was.
Physician Liao looked old and frail, but the strength in his hands was astonishing. It felt as if his force could knead straight into flesh and meridians.
After a round of kneading and firm patting, the suffocating pressure in Su Wangchuan’s chest eased quickly. He gradually became far more comfortable.
"Thank you, Physician Liao."
At the same time, he discovered something shocking. After the massage, his health actually rose by 7 points, reaching 97/110.
Su Wangchuan was stunned.
Physician Liao, however, was drenched in sweat. He sat down beside him, panting heavily, and said, "Your constitution is quite good. In the past, people who trained [Fish Scale Technique] and took a full impact from the [Copper-Plated Wooden Stake] would suffer blocked blood and Qi at best, and broken ribs at worst. Their injuries were far worse than yours. I usually had to massage them several rounds before they improved."
As he spoke, he patted Su Wangchuan’s shoulder.
"Being young is truly an advantage. Your body is sturdy, and you recover quickly."
Su Wangchuan froze.
So he was considered lucky?
"Physician Liao, do you mean I am more suited to training [Fish Scale Technique]?"
The instant he said it, Physician Liao rolled his eyes.
"Nonsense."
His face was full of disbelief, as if he could not understand how Su Wangchuan had reached that conclusion. He stood and walked back toward the clinic.
Su Wangchuan remained lying there to rest.
Not long after, Physician Liao returned with a porcelain bottle.
"Take this."
"One pill per dose. It will speed up your recovery."
Su Wangchuan accepted it.
[Blood-Activating Pill] (Consumable)
After use: restores 10 health points (Cooldown: one hour)
This was not something he could treat like food.
Su Wangchuan’s eyes lit up. Before he could ask anything, Physician Liao explained on his own.
"This is a [Blood-Activating Pill]. It promotes circulation and heals injuries. In the past, those who trained [Fish Scale Technique] liked using it. But it is not cheap. One pill costs 50 copper pieces. A bottle of ten pills costs five qian of silver."
Su Wangchuan poured out one pill and swallowed it.
As expected.
The moment it melted in his mouth, a warm current surged through his entire body. The internal discomfort faded rapidly, and the weakness and breathing difficulty eased by more than half.
His health rose to 107/110.
"Good stuff!"
He sprang up and asked, "Physician Liao, how many [Blood-Activating Pills] does the clinic have?"
"It is a commonly used medicine. The clinic usually keeps stock—twenty or thirty bottles," Physician Liao replied. Then he added, "Do not overthink it. This medicine is not suitable to take in excess. In a short time, your body will develop resistance. Do not think you can rely on it for training. That will not work."
A faint smile tugged at Su Wangchuan’s mouth.
The cooldown was one hour.
Then he could train once every hour.
It would still be slow, but at least it was far faster than gaining 1 experience point and spending a full day lying in bed.
If he could reach [Minor Mastery] in a little over ten days, he could accept that.
With that thought, he immediately paid. He tossed out a five-tael silver ingot and ordered ten bottles of [Blood-Activating Pills] on the spot.
Physician Liao understood at once. Su Wangchuan, like the others who trained [Fish Scale Technique], intended to rely on pills for progress. He sighed helplessly, shook his head, went back inside, and returned with four more bottles, handing them over.
At the same time, he cautioned him.
"Helm Leader, training [Fish Scale Technique] requires endurance. You must not be greedy for speed. If you become impatient and rush your training, you may injure yourself. If you harm your foundation, the loss will outweigh the gain."
"Thank you for the reminder, Physician Liao. I will remember it."
After speaking, Su Wangchuan did not hesitate. He assigned all 4 of his free attribute points to his [Stamina] attribute.
His [Stamina] immediately surged from 11 to 15.
At that moment, a subtle change swept through his body.
It felt as though a force deep within him was reshaping him from the inside out, altering his bones and flesh.
In an instant, his body felt stronger. His physique became denser and sturdier, and even his breathing grew longer and steadier.
He also discovered that his health had changed from 107/110 to 147/150.
The lingering discomfort inside his body became even more subdued.
His physique had strengthened.
His injuries became lighter.
After stowing away the [Blood-Activating Pills], he slid back into the pond and said to Chen Ergou, "I already feel much better. Again!"
Chen Ergou stared in disbelief.
He did not understand why, but the Helm Leader’s voice had clearly become deeper and more resonant. Not only was the previous weakness gone, he seemed stronger than ever.
Physician Liao also heard it. Surprise flickered in his eyes as he stroked his beard and looked Su Wangchuan up and down, but he did not stop him.
Su Wangchuan planted himself in a horse stance in the pond and circulated [Fish Scale Technique], gaining 1 point of [Defense].
Chen Ergou stepped on the mechanism.
Under the water, the [Copper-Plated Wooden Stake] shot out in an instant, slicing through the waves as it slammed toward Su Wangchuan.
Su Wangchuan crossed his arms over his chest and was driven backward, drifting with the force of the impact.
Health -1
This time, however, the discomfort was noticeably lighter.
Delight flashed in Su Wangchuan’s eyes.
With increased [Stamina] and a stronger physique, the injuries he suffered had clearly diminished.
"Again!"
He returned to position and was knocked back again.
Over and over.
His health fell slowly.
The accumulated injuries gradually drained the color from his face.
But when the twentieth strike ended—
The experience for [Fish Scale Technique] jumped again, reaching 2/100.
Su Wangchuan steadied himself in the water, then climbed out of the pond.
The second training session was nowhere near as miserable as the first. His chest was still tight, but it was not to the point of impaired breathing. The discomfort felt far more muted.
His face was pale, yet the moment he stepped onto land, he eased quickly.
Physician Liao came over and took his pulse again. After checking him, the astonishment on his face deepened.
"Strange."
"Your physique suddenly strengthened by a great deal, and your heartbeat is powerful…"
"I gave you a [Blood-Activating Pill], not a priceless treasure. How could this happen?"
He could not make sense of it.
Naturally, he had no idea that Su Wangchuan had just raised his [Stamina] attribute and improved his physical constitution.
Su Wangchuan requested, "Physician Liao, please use the same method as before to promote circulation and disperse the stasis for me again."
"All right."
Physician Liao was exhausted, but he also wanted to understand what had changed, so he said, "Lie down."
Then he began the kneading and patting again.
After the treatment, Su Wangchuan saw that his health rose from 127 to 134.
Physician Liao’s technique was astonishingly effective. He felt much better. At this point, even if he returned to the pond and trained again, it seemed he could handle it.
Unfortunately, the [Blood-Activating Pill] still had a cooldown of one hour.
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