Chapter 189: Serious Review

“Daoist Yun, what should we do now? If this continues, the black energy will reach his sea of consciousness,” Chang Yang said anxiously, glancing at the patient lying on the board. “But I can’t use my needles to form the array. If—”

“Who said you can’t use needles?” Yun Jiao turned and gave him a look.

“Huh?” Chang Yang froze. “But I followed the medical text—combined it with the patient’s meridian flow to form a purification array. Yet it didn’t just fail—it couldn’t even activate! Could it be… my needle technique?”

Yun Jiao’s gaze swept over the silver needles still sticking out of the patient’s body. Her brow creased slightly before she replied calmly, “Your needling is fine. The array is the problem.”

No wonder he was still the class dunce—no progress whatsoever.

“What?” Chang Yang blinked, completely at a loss.

“Normally, acupuncture arrays rely on the patient’s meridian flow to guide the energy circulation. But this man’s meridians are filled with black energy. If you follow the normal flow, the array can’t take shape. In this situation, you need to adjust the formation—draw in the external Five Elements spiritual energy to activate it.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the formation between the needles suddenly lit up. A faint white diagram appeared on the patient’s chest. When the glow spread outward, the black energy that had crept through his meridians seemed to be pulled by some invisible force—pouring back out of his wounds and gathering toward the center of the array.

“It’s… coming out!” Chang Yang’s eyes widened in disbelief. He leaned closer to study the needles, trying to memorize the pattern—but the formation was completely unfamiliar to him. “This formation is—?”

“It’s still a purification array,” Yun Jiao replied offhandedly, “I just changed the energy input method.” Then she added casually, “Wasn’t that the first question on the final exam? Didn’t you review it?”

Chang Yang stiffened. “……”

Please, don’t bring that up, Master Yun. Your disciple’s pride is already in critical condition.

○|￣|_

The black energy continued to pour out, slowly condensing at the array’s center into a pea-sized black bead—similar to what Yun Jiao had seen before when treating the little fox and Ji Chen, though this one was smaller.

She instinctively wrapped it in a piece of cloth and leaned closer for a better look.

But before she could, Ye Yuan—who had been standing silently to the side, seemingly treating this whole trip as sightseeing—suddenly grabbed her wrist. “Don’t touch it.”

“Huh?” Yun Jiao blinked in surprise. Before she could react, he raised his hand, and the black bead instantly dispersed into nothingness.

She stared, wanting to ask him what that thing really was, but considering the number of people around, she held her tongue.

Chang Yang, noticing the tension, forced a smile. “Heh… Daoist Yun, you’ve had a long journey. Why don’t we move to the front hall for some tea?” Clearly, he was trying to steer the conversation away—and out of sight of his disciples. “I think the patient is stable now.”

“Alright. Thank you.” Yun Jiao gave the patient one last glance—his black aura was indeed gone—then followed Chang Yang out. Just before stepping into the front hall, she added, “By the way, I’ll send you some more formation manuals next time.”

If she was ever going to see him open a medical academy, his formation theory would need serious work.

Chang Yang: “……”

You promised not to mention that!

(_ )

———

“It’s quite a coincidence,” Chang Yang said after sipping his tea. “I found that patient while treating people in Lijiao Village.”

He described everything in detail. The strange affliction was rare—he’d never encountered anything like it in all his years of healing. “There was an issue with the herb fields nearby. I went to handle it and happened to come across him. The facilities there were too poor, so I brought him back.”

He’d tried various prescriptions but none had any effect on the black energy. All he could do was keep it from invading the man’s consciousness. Later, remembering the exorcising-formation technique from Yun Jiao’s medical notes, he wanted to attempt it—but hadn’t dared to act rashly without her. Only when the patient’s condition worsened had he made a desperate attempt.

The result? He gained a stack of new formation books.

o(╯□╰)o

Chang Yang glanced at the tea table, where seven or eight thick manuals now sat. He felt like crying. The worst part was Yun Jiao’s casual explanation—“I was in a hurry, only brought these few. I’ll send more later.”

He nearly spat his tea all over her face, but could only bite the bullet, hand over ten taels of silver, and accept them with tears in his eyes.

“You said this illness was contagious?” Yun Jiao asked. “So is he the only one affected?”

“That’s the other reason I needed your help,” Chang Yang replied gravely. “Aside from this man, a few other herb farmers in Lijiao Village have shown similar symptoms—though milder. They’ve fallen into comas. I only had time to bring one patient back. I’d like you to accompany me there tomorrow to investigate the cause.”

“Alright,” Yun Jiao nodded. She still wasn’t certain whether the black energy was demonic in nature—but if it wasn’t, that was good. And if it was… well, that would be far worse.

“Many thanks, Daoist Yun,” Chang Yang said with relief, his confidence restored. “Please rest early—we’ll set out at dawn.” He called toward the door, “Chang Ping, show Master Yun and our honored guest to their quarters.”

“Yes, Master.” Chang Ping hurried in to lead the way. “This way, please.”

Yun Jiao stood, ready to follow, when a thought struck her. “By the way—what exactly happened to your herb fields? Hall Master Xu mentioned you’d taken leave for that.”

Chang Yang frowned, sighing heavily. “Ah, yes. Lijiao Village’s fields are where we cultivate spiritual herbs. The area’s spiritual energy was abundant—next year we were expecting a fine harvest. But just days ago, something happened. We don’t know how—it all withered overnight. Completely destroyed. I rushed there with my disciples, hoping to salvage whatever we could.”

His expression grew pained as he spoke. Those herbs had been cultivated for decades—some for generations. They could have saved countless cultivators. Yet in a single night, everything was gone. Not just him—all of Medical Valley had been heartbroken. The herb farmers who had tended the fields for years were devastated.

They’d managed to rescue a few remaining plants, which now needed to be processed overnight before they spoiled—that was why they’d delayed their next trip until morning.

“I see.” Yun Jiao nodded, understanding, and didn’t press further. She turned and left the hall.

(End of Chapter)