Chapter 30: Spirit Power Over Internal Force

When Hua Changxi carried the battered Yu Gui back to the storeroom, everyone inside was startled.

"What happened to Brother Yu?"

Yu Gui's two close aides, Wan Xiaozhou and Li Meng, rushed over and took him from her.

Hua Changxi said, "I don't know. When I returned to the Medicine Department, I saw Brother Yu collapsed and unconscious at the back gate. He's badly injured. You should take him to a doctor right away."

Wan Xiaozhou immediately said, "Li Meng, get a cart. Also, grab a blanket from the dormitory. The nearest clinic is several li away from here."

Hua Changxi was about to leave, but upon hearing this, she stopped and asked, "There are so many clinics in the Medicine Department, why do you need to go outside to see a doctor?"

Wan Xiaozhou gave a bitter smile. "Sister Changxi, those clinics in the Medicine Department aren't places we can afford to enter."

Hua Changxi frowned. "What, do the clinics in the Medicine Department look down on laborers?"

Wan Xiaozhou said, "It's not that they look down on us—the fees are too high. We simply can't afford the consultation cost."

Hua Changxi said, "You've been working in the Medicine Department for quite a while now. You must have some savings. Surely you can pay for a single consultation?"

Li Meng replied with a grimace, "Both Xiaozhou and I have families to support. We send our monthly wages home. Brother Yu also has people to take care of..."

Hua Changxi interrupted him, "Isn't Brother Yu an orphan?"

Wan Xiaozhou said, "Brother Yu is an orphan, but he also has friends he grew up with, and an old beggar who looked after him when he was little. Those people can barely survive. Brother Yu can't just abandon them. He spends most of his monthly wages on them."

Hua Changxi hadn't expected Yu Gui to be so loyal and compassionate. If that were the case, why was he so stingy with her? She had just asked for some withered herbs, and he had ignored her afterward.

She glanced at Yu Gui's injuries, thought for a moment, and said, "Moving Brother Yu around like this will only worsen his condition."

Wan Xiaozhou replied helplessly, "There's no other way."

Hua Changxi was silent for a moment, then looked at Wan Xiaozhou and Li Meng. "I know some medicine. Did you know that?"

Wan Xiaozhou let out an "Ah."

Hua Changxi continued, "If you trust me, I can treat Brother Yu. But you'll need to provide some medicinal herbs."

Wan Xiaozhou hesitated.

If he agreed—Changxi was only thirteen; even if she knew medicine, it was probably just the basics.

But if he didn't agree—neither he nor Li Meng had much silver, and he had no idea how much a doctor would charge.

Also, after the Hai hour (9:00 PM), all the gates in the Medicine Department would be locked. It was already dark. If they took Brother Yu out to see a doctor, they'd probably have to spend the night on the streets.

Li Meng was more decisive and immediately asked, "What herbs do you need?"

"But let me make it clear—we guard the herb storeroom, but every herb taken in or out is recorded. If you need too many herbs or ones that are too valuable, we won't be able to get them."

Hua Changxi said, "Don't worry. Just some common herbs." Then she listed over a dozen herb names.

After hearing that, Wan Xiaozhou and Li Meng relaxed. They were indeed ordinary medicines used by martial artists.

The two first carried Yu Gui into the dormitory. Then Li Meng went to fetch the herbs, while Wan Xiaozhou went to find the medicine pot and mortar that Hua Changxi needed.

Before long, Wan Xiaozhou returned with the items. He looked at Hua Changxi with some concern. "Sister Changxi, can you really treat Brother Yu?"

Hua Changxi was carefully examining Yu Gui's injuries. Without looking up, she replied, "Don't you know the saying: 'When you employ someone, don't doubt them; when you doubt someone, don't employ them'?"

Wan Xiaozhou had no confidence in Hua Changxi's medical skills. He wanted to ask more, but Hua Changxi completely ignored him.

Soon, Li Meng also returned with the herbs.

Hua Changxi told the two to fetch water and clean Yu Gui's wounds. She then began processing the herbs. Part of them she decocted into a medicinal soup, and part she ground into a paste for external application.

Yu Gui's most severe injury was the palm strike from a Fourth-Grade martial artist, which carried the martial artist's inner force. That force needed to be dissolved with medicine.

After half an hour of work, the medicinal soup was ready. Hua Changxi had Wan Xiaozhou pour it down Yu Gui's throat, and had Li Meng apply the ground herbal paste to Yu Gui's wounds.

After Yu Gui drank the medicine and his breathing gradually steadied, Hua Changxi said, "He needs to keep drinking the medicinal soup, three times a day. You already know which herbs to use. If anything is unclear, you can ask me tomorrow when I come to collect the herbs."

"Alright, I'm going back now."

Watching Hua Changxi leave, Wan Xiaozhou and Li Meng exchanged uneasy glances.

"Can Sister Changxi really cure Brother Yu?"

"Remember when Sister Changxi was bullied and Brother Yu didn't get involved? Do you think she might use this chance to get back at him?"

"Can't be."

When Hua Changxi returned to the dormitory, her roommates had already finished their duties and come back to rest, even Shi Sao, who had been on leave, had returned.

Shi Sao's expression was somewhat awkward, still regretting that she hadn't been able to swap shifts with Hua Changxi: "Changxi, why are you back so late? We thought you wouldn't be back until tomorrow."

Hua Changxi smiled and replied, "I just didn't want to delay my duties." After saying that, she took her basin and went to wash up.

After washing up, Hua Changxi climbed into bed. This time, she didn't immediately fall asleep but instead started reading "Lingbo Weibu."

She knew very little about cultivation and had no access to cultivation techniques, so she could only start with the martial arts techniques from her family.

"Lingbo Weibu" came with clear practice diagrams, making it easy to get started by following them.

However, how much power could be unleashed depended on the practitioner's depth of internal energy.

The others were a bit unused to Hua Changxi not going straight to sleep, but since they were all busy every day, the dormitory residents didn't have much energy to bother about others' business.

Before long, everyone went to sleep.

Hua Changxi found that her memory had improved greatly; after reading "Lingbo Weibu" three times, she had memorized the footwork patterns inside.

Then, lying in bed with her eyes closed, Hua Changxi repeatedly simulated the footwork of "Lingbo Weibu." After the hour of Zi (23:00) passed and the entire Sixth Bureau fell quiet, she quietly climbed down from her bed.

"Shwooo~"

Under the moonlight, a figure flashed rapidly across both sides of the ditch in the front courtyard of the Sixth Bureau.

The running figure was none other than Hua Changxi.

After running ten laps around the ditch, Hua Changxi finally calmed down her inner excitement.

Activating the spiritual energy in her body truly could unleash the power of "Lingbo Weibu"!

Moreover, the spiritual energy consumed was very little—ten laps only used one spiritual energy point.

Almost all the children of the Hua family practiced Lingbo Weibu, with Hua Minghe and Hua Dalang being the best at it. Hua Changxi had seen them execute the technique and knew that performing Lingbo Weibu consumed a lot of internal energy for them.

From the amount of spiritual energy she consumed, it seemed that internal energy and spiritual energy were not on the same level; spiritual energy was far more profound than internal energy.

So now, she possessed combat power no less than that of martial artists.

She just didn't know how many rank martial artists she could face at her current level of cultivation.

Having learned a footwork technique, Hua Changxi happily returned to the dormitory, climbed into bed, and began to immerse herself in cultivation.

"Water..."

Just at the break of dawn, Wan Xiaozhou, who had been watching over Yu Gui all night, was about to go open the warehouse door when he heard Yu Gui's faint voice.

"Brother Yu, you're awake?"

Seeing Wan Xiaozhou and glancing around the room, realizing he was in the warehouse's bedroom, Yu Gui's tightly furrowed brow relaxed a little.

Wan Xiaozhou went over to help him sit up and poured him a glass of water: "Brother Yu, who beat you like this?"

Yu Gui didn't answer, instead asking, "Did you save me?"

Wan Xiaozhou shook his head: "It was Sister Changxi who saved you." Then he recounted how Hua Changxi had carried him back and treated his injuries.

Yu Gui's expression paused: "It was Sister Changxi who saved me."