Chapter 508 - 318: Retaliating Against Baili Xueyuan, Part 2

’It’s all Asian-made. Mostly A-Class, but they’re all flagship models. I bet there’s even an Immortal Prosthetic Body in there. This guy shouldn’t be short on Credit Points.’

Usually, people with this kind of prosthetic setup aren’t limited by Credit Points, but by their own prosthetic capacity.

Dr. Lin nodded. "When it comes to purchasing them, there’s a world of difference, of course. But in terms of the difficulty of the implantation surgery, A-Class isn’t that much easier than S-Class."

This explanation from Dr. Lin instantly gave Master Ma a headache.

With a troubled expression, he asked, "You can’t even knock off ten thousand?"

When Dr. Lin saw Master Ma’s expression, he didn’t feel contempt. Instead, his mind started churning.

’He’s clearly not short on Credit Points, so why is he so stingy?’

’But he probably has just as many prosthetic parts as the woman next to him. With that kind of volume, giving a small discount isn’t out of the question.’

Dr. Lin gave a new price: "I can take ten thousand off."

Hearing this, Master Ma breathed a sigh of relief.

’Saving ten thousand is still something!’

’With more than ten A-Class Prosthetic Bodies and the fee multiplied by five, a ten-thousand discount per piece would save me almost a million.’

’But the problem is, even with such a big discount, I can’t cough up that many Credit Points right now.’

’Should I contact Baili Xueyuan now and borrow Credit Points?’

Master Ma’s expression remained pained.

Fortunately, King Arthur, who was standing to the side, noticed the change in Master Ma’s expression and spoke up, "Just put it all on my tab, Doctor. We’re both in a hurry, so please arrange for the surgery now."

When Dr. Lin heard King Arthur say this, his heart sank.

’I lost out!’

’If I’d known, I would’ve stuck to my guns and not lowered the price!’

’This European-looking, blonde loli has plenty of Credit Points anyway!’

Though he was internally reeling, Dr. Lin showed no sign of it on the surface. "Which of you two will go first?" he asked.

King Arthur glanced at Master Ma and was about to speak, but Master Ma beat her to it. "Dr. Lin, you can operate on her. But we’re both in a hurry with urgent matters. Do you have any other Prosthetic Doctors in the clinic? It’s fine if their skills are a bit worse. I’d just like my surgery done as soon as possible, and for a cheaper price."

Master Ma was taking the opportunity to haggle again. As long as it was before the surgery, the price was negotiable. This wasn’t considered breaking the rules of underground dealings.

Dr. Lin did the math. Between the two of them, it was an average of ten million each. Coincidentally, that little bastard Lin Qi had taken ten million from the clinic just a couple of days ago.

’He’s not doing anything anyway, might as well put that little bastard to work!’

Dr. Lin answered decisively, "Of course, we do. My son is also an excellent Prosthetic Doctor, with skills no worse than mine. I’ll call him downstairs right now!"

Dr. Lin didn’t mention the price at all.

’Haggle?’

’Impossible!’

’He could tell these two were in a huge hurry. Trying to haggle when you’re in this much of a rush?’

’Dream on!’

Dr. Lin used the Intelligent Brain to call Lin Qi directly.

...

On the second floor, Lin Qi, who had been "watching" the events downstairs, felt a bit helpless. After picking up the call and giving Dr. Lin a couple of curt replies, he got up from his bed.

’I never thought I’d get the chance to service Master Ma’s prosthetics.’

’It’s a good thing my real identity hasn’t been exposed. Otherwise, meeting like this would be really awkward.’

Lin Qi composed himself; he had no desire to reveal his identity in such a strange way.

For now, Lin Qi’s identity was the son of a Prosthetic Doctor—an excellent Prosthetic Doctor in his own right!

’It’s just one prosthetic surgery!’

’Who would ever guess that the mysterious No. 5, the "Wizard" from the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps, was an excellent Prosthetic Doctor in his daily life?’

’Wizard and Prosthetic Body—the two terms couldn’t be more unrelated!’

Lin Qi came downstairs. This was the first time he had appeared before King Arthur and Master Ma with his real face, completely without a disguise.

When King Arthur saw Lin Qi’s face, she suddenly froze for a moment.

Lin Qi naturally noticed King Arthur’s strange reaction and grew alert. ’She couldn’t have figured something out, could she?’

’That shouldn’t be possible. I’ve never slipped up in front of King Arthur.’

"As expected of the Freeloader King from the news. He’s actually pretty good-looking."

King Arthur gave her heartfelt assessment.

Clearly, what surprised King Arthur wasn’t Lin Qi’s identity, but his looks.

Lin Qi was suddenly speechless. He never imagined that in their first real meeting, this would be the first thing she said...

Lin Qi didn’t respond to her, instead saying to Dr. Lin, "Old man, which one is my client?"

Lin Qi had already slipped into the role of a Prosthetic Doctor, pushing all thoughts related to the Highest-Level Mercenary Corps from his mind.

’The only way to avoid slipping up is to act as naturally as possible!’

Dr. Lin didn’t overstep his bounds, instead looking toward King Arthur and Master Ma.

’Let the clients choose. What if this rich European lady thinks Lin Qi is handsome and is willing to pay extra to have him operate?’

Unfortunately, after assessing Lin Qi’s features, King Arthur’s gaze gradually grew disdainful. "I’ll stick with the old doctor," she said. "I believe the amount of hair one has is inversely proportional to their skill at prosthetic implantation."

King Arthur resolutely chose Dr. Lin, leaving Master Ma to Lin Qi.

Lin Qi put on a polite smile, no longer looking at King Arthur. He turned to his client, Master Ma, and said, "This way... sir. Follow me to the operating room."

As he spoke, Lin Qi led the way to the basement.

It had been a long time since Lin Qi had performed a prosthetic implantation surgery for someone else in his own workshop. He wondered if his skills had gotten rusty.

Master Ma, on the other hand, showed no disdain. He was actually hoping Lin Qi would make a small mistake during the implantation, which would give him a reason to haggle over the price afterward.

’In any case, the goal of this surgery is just to restore some of my combat effectiveness. It doesn’t need to be absolutely perfect.’

After Lin Qi led Master Ma into the operating room, Dr. Lin also departed with King Arthur. The two surgeries would be performed simultaneously.

...

Inside the operating room, after Master Ma lay down, he said, "Doctor, no need for anesthetic. You can just start."

Master Ma couldn’t trust an unfamiliar Prosthetic Doctor. He needed to stay conscious at all times, in case he encountered the type of scum who would kill a patient to steal their prosthetics.

This phenomenon was common in underground clinics. Practically any clinic that served Mercenaries had encountered this situation.

Lin Qi didn’t ask why, simply nodding and saying, "Alright."

After agreeing to Master Ma’s request, Lin Qi began preparing the surgical instruments. About ten minutes later, the surgery officially began.

The process of surgery without anesthesia was agonizing. Since this wasn’t a combat situation, Master Ma chose to use conversation to distract himself.

"You’re quite skilled, Doctor."

"But of course. Our No. 1 Prosthetic Clinic is the most famous prosthetic clinic in Red Fruit City."

...

"You’re working pretty fast, Doctor."

"But of course. I’m not just a Prosthetic Doctor, I’m also an A-Class researcher in Prosthetic Engineering!"

"An A-Class Researcher? And so young. Doctor, you’re truly a genius."

"Well, of course."

"By the way, Doctor, my Talent for prosthetics is pretty average. Do you have any suggestions for how I can maximize my prosthetic capacity?"

After chatting for a while, Master Ma felt that this young man’s level of Prosthetic Engineering was even more outstanding than the other Prosthetic Doctors he had dealt with in the past. He suddenly felt the urge to have a real discussion, which was also another way to distract himself from the pain.

At this point, Lin Qi’s interest was piqued. He began his recommendation: "I think you, sir, should consider installing a Divine Iron Bull."

Master Ma was puzzled. "A Divine Iron Bull? Isn’t that a recreational function prosthetic? Wouldn’t that be a waste of my prosthetic capacity?"

Lin Qi immediately launched into an explanation for Master Ma. "Sir, you must be familiar with the prosthetic capacity formula, right? Y = X(Mm + Bb + E), the famous Jingang Formula."

As a Tier Four Extraordinary—and one who was constrained by his prosthetic capacity—Master Ma naturally knew of it.

Master Ma said, "Of course I’ve heard of it."

A vague idea began to form in Lin Qi’s mind—an idea for getting revenge on Baili Xueyuan.

He immediately continued along this train of thought. "In Y = X(Mm + Bb + E), m and b are the Talent coefficients, which we can’t manually change. Generally speaking, the best way to increase prosthetic capacity is to raise M and B, which are Spiritual Power and Physical Strength."

"Most people ignore a key value, which is E. E has many names. Some call it the Humanity Value, others call it the Emotion Value, but I prefer to call it the Emotional Influence Factor."

"I believe that emotion is a unique kind of power—one that is invisible and intangible, but can still influence reality."

"Installing a Divine Iron Bull doesn’t take up too much prosthetic capacity, but based on my research and a great deal of data comparison, it is an extremely effective way to raise your E-value, thereby increasing your total prosthetic capacity!"

"Furthermore, I can provide custom modification services to give it more... special effects when it’s in operation. For example, applying an instantaneous voltage of 1440V. Special stimuli are often more effective at raising the E-value, which ultimately leads to an increase in the Y-value..."

And so, Lin Qi’s pitch began.

’This was a sales pitch, but more importantly... it was revenge!’

’1440V! Fry her!’