Chapter 2736: with translation of chapter title

2638.2537 Undergo tribulation, please Zheng Lao Ban protect the Dharma.

Two days later, Zheng Ren went to the ICU and took Xiao Shitou out.

The benefits of exceeding 100% surgical completion were fully manifested; Xiao Shitou's postoperative recovery was very fast, even surpassing Zheng Ren's expectations.

"Brother, I can speak much better now." Although Xiao Shitou had been intubated for several days, after extubation his vocal cords were fine; he spoke clearly, without the previous hoarseness.

Without tumor compression, the symptoms have improved somewhat.

"Certainly, I am the best surgeon in the world; you need to have confidence." Zheng Ren said with a smile.

"Hmm, I will rest well; what should I do next?" Xiao Shitou asked.

"Wait until you recover before we talk; don't overthink it for now. You are the patient, you need to focus on recovery and cooperate with my treatment. As for me, I will work hard on the plan; we each do our part. Let's work together for the best outcome." Zheng Ren said with a smile.

Didn't tell Xiao Shitou what to do, lest the child overthink.

Wen Xiaonuan held Xiao Shitou's hand all the way, feeling somewhat choked up, but her face showed more of a joyful smile.

Being able to leave the ICU alive means the surgery was successful; Xiao Shitou can live at least another two to three months.

What else is there to be dissatisfied about?

Back in the ward, Zheng Ren and Xiao Shitou exchanged a few words when the phone rang.

He took out his phone, and his brows furrowed suddenly.

"I'll head back first." Zheng Ren said.

"Brother, come see me when you have time." Xiao Shitou lay on the bed, already somewhat tired.

Zheng Ren nodded, took his phone, and walked out.

Su Yun saw her own Boss's expression was a bit strange, and curiously craned her neck to look at the incoming call display.

"Master Yan, hello." Zheng Ren stepped out of the ward and answered the phone.

"Uh... could you say that again?"

Immediately, Zheng Ren fell into a long silence.

From the other end of the line came a faint sound; Su Yun pricked up her ears like a rabbit, but still couldn't make out what Master Yan was saying to her own Boss.

"No." Zheng Ren paused for several seconds, then firmly said: "I'm just a doctor; what you're asking goes beyond my worldview, sorry."

"I still have things to do on my end; let's talk another day."

Having said that, Zheng Ren hung up without hesitation.

"Boss, what's the matter? You refused so bluntly." Su Yun asked curiously.

Zheng Ren said nothing, his brows tightly knit, head slightly lowered as he strode out of the special care ward.

"Master Yan's son is going to arrange a technique for us lately; if we can avoid offending him, we should, otherwise our wallets will suffer." Su Yun continued.

"Not the same." Zheng Ren said, "Master Yan said…"

Su Yun gave Zheng Ren a disdainful look and scoffed: "You've learned to keep secrets now; what exactly did Master Yan say?"

"Master Yan said, one of his junior fellow disciples… wants me to act as Dharma protector."

"What?"

"Acting as Dharma protector, he said it's for undergoing tribulation."

"Holy shit! Boss, that's awesome!"

……

……

Master Yan sat before an Eight Immortals table, on which lay a yellowed paper inscribed with vigorous, flourishing characters.

The paper had several pages; on the page before him was written: 'Heaven and earth can endure long because they do not live for themselves, thus they attain longevity. Therefore the sage puts his person last, yet it is first; treats it as external, yet it is preserved.'

The calligraphy was ancient and elegant, but slightly disordered.

This is a passage from the Dao De Jing; Master Yan stared blankly, his mind wandering.

"Master, what are you looking at?" the boy beside Master Yan, seeing him hang up the phone and remain silent for a long time, asked.

"Huh?"

"What are you thinking about?" the boy's words varied slightly, but the meaning was the same.

"Your little uncle says he's going to undergo tribulation. I'm wondering whether to just flip the switch; he might have encountered a heart demon, and I'm pondering this secret method." Master Yan's eyes flickered with a vague seven-colored light as he spoke softly.

"It's really tribulation! I thought you and Zheng Lao Ban were just joking." The boy instantly became excited.

"I think it's impossible; even with my talent I can't reach the threshold of tribulation, so your little uncle definitely won't." Master Yan shook his head repeatedly.

"Why not?"

"He is just an ordinary person; his father and your grandmaster were fellow disciples of the same sect, and after he died in… well, anyway, your grandmaster took him into the sect to fulfill the bond between fellow disciples."

"When he entered the sect he had no talent; he seemed completely ordinary, unable even to learn the basic fists and kicks." Master Yan sighed, "He doesn't seem to think so; he tries harder than anyone, yet still fails. To put it this way, when he closed off to cultivate, his realm was not even as good as yours."

"Originally I wanted him to follow your senior brother's path, for he had talent, but after graduating as a Cambridge Doctor he insisted on returning to the mountain to cultivate. Ah, that's fate."

The boy clicked his tongue.

"What cultivation method does your uncle practice?"

"Here." Master Yan lowered his gaze onto the paper before him and said: "The Way of the sage is to put the self last yet be first, to regard the self as external yet be preserved."

……

"In short, it's the Way of Refinement." Master Yan said, "If you say your little uncle has no talent, he progresses quickly in the Way of Refinement; but if you say he has talent… well, I can't figure it out."

As he spoke, Master Yan shook his head, staring at the letter as his mind began to wander again.

"Master, how does one refine? Refine what?"

"Um… when he was young he practiced fists and kicks, over‑training his body to the point of fracture. Nineteen… twenty… that was twenty‑one years ago. As an ordinary person with no foundation, the potent mountain tiger‑wolf medicines simply couldn't be used, so I carried him to the hospital."

"The hospital, Master, you also went to the hospital?"

"Go with the flow, don't be biased—you don't even understand this?"

"Mm-hmm, Master, please continue." The youth was curious.

"The doctor performed Shou Bing on your little uncle; after the Shou Bing, your little uncle seemed to have grasped something, he began to flip through Gu records, studying the refining technique."

"Five years later, he said his refinement had achieved minor success, reaching the realm of external embodiment. I divined a hexagram and saw no unusual signs on him."

"At that time, your little uncle took me to the Hospital for a follow-up; that was his last visit to the Hospital. They took an X-ray and found the nail was still there, but the steel pin connecting the bone inside was gone."

"Gone?!" the youth exclaimed in surprise.

"Hmm, indeed it's gone; the doctor was also surprised. They were supposed to remove the internal fixation, but since the steel pin was gone, they didn't perform Shou Bing. At that time, your little uncle told me, the steel pin had been refined by him."

"……"

The youth was speechless.

"Later I went back to ask the doctor; that person told me he also didn't know where the steel pin went. I came back and looked through the ancient texts, and indeed there is a method for refining external objects from inside out." Master Yan said softly, "But your little uncle's talent... that's impossible."

"Master, why not ask Master Song to do a divination?" The youth's eyes flashed, he was furious, capable of refining all things from inside out—wouldn't he first refine himself away?

"Master Song, Master Song." Master Yan hesitated a bit.