Chapter 282

Remember, this is oral medicine, take three times a day after meals; this is an external ointment, change and apply evenly every three days.

Tomorrow? Tomorrow I have something to do at the church, so AdaiEr should still see patients; her medical skills are also excellent.

Mm, just remember to take your medicine on time, goodbye.

Despite making every excuse to avoid it, Ji Ming, who was nearly overwhelmed by patients, still ended up working overtime, only announcing closing time at eight in the evening.

However, this long-absent workday was not meaningless; he discovered that the overlap between bodily alchemy and medicine was indeed substantial, and it was very possible they shared the same origin, such as the ancient witch-doctors.

Thus, after filling in much theoretical knowledge, many things he previously only knew the 'what' but not the 'why' were now understood; seeing patients became effortless, and he gained considerable confidence.

The two formed a complementary knowledge; before long he would likely possess 【Basic Alchemy】 and formally transition into an alchemist.

Whistling, he swept the operating room clean; finally able to relax, he took out the takeout sent from the kitty-corner tavern, summoned the system to check what AdaiEr was doing, and had a meal meanwhile.

Uh……

Although as a combat-trained doctor who has practiced on patients' bodies he's seen all sorts of bizarre things and grown numb to them, AdaiEr's mosaic-covered, ultra-violent image that no one from nine to ninety-nine should see is still utterly insane.

At this moment she was draped in an exoskeletal battle armor whose original color was indiscernible, swinging it as blood and flesh chunks smeared across it, left and right; whenever she spotted goblin respawns in the arena, she immediately raised the staff in her hands that resembled two huge hammers and brought it down.

If she were an ordinary person, even with magi-tech armor assisting, under such massive mana consumption she should have long since needed to rest; but who made her, under Ji Ming's influence, also awaken a hoarding habit, possessing a large stock of Spring Rebirth IV?

Now she is simply slaughtering goblins; with the mana regeneration boost from the Spring Rebirth fluid, it can fully keep up with the mana drain from charging in and swinging a hammer.

Thus, lucky goblins can still see the falling shadow before death and let out a scream, while unlucky ones haven't even clearly seen this beautiful world before turning into goblin paste.

Only a goblin respawning at a relatively distant point was somewhat fortunate, squealing wildly as it ran a distance; unfortunately this is a one-sided arena, so it still got swept up by the bloody meat grinder, while keeping one hand back it kicked out a leg.

Watching the goblin's limp limbs fall helplessly to the ground, Ji Ming called up AdaiEr's current status panel and saw that under such brutality her leveling speed was indeed astonishingly high—she had gained several levels in just a few short hours, and was about to break through the level twenty threshold to become a full-fledged professional.

This is too fast, huh? Wait a minute, could it be…

Ji Ming then pulled up the opening log of the combat training camp and discovered that AdaiEr had actually started from the bottom‑right arena, methodically entering each one to slaughter until the experience gain for that species hit its cap, then she seamlessly moved on to the next to keep grinding.

As for why no players screamed in terror upon seeing such a slaughter deity, it's because before heading out she removes her blood‑soaked armor, walks clean and unbothered into the second room to put it on again— the whole process is as routine as her going out shopping, discovering the first shop's price unsuitable and decisively moving to the next.

Truly horrifying……

Although grinding nonstop is good, when she returns exhausted we still need to remind her not to get so carried away with killing that she burns her own brain into madness.

Mm, we also need to add another lock on the door, so she won't habitually push open the next room after a night's sleep.

Saying done, done, Ji Ming took a dwarf lock from Weilmo and directly installed it on the door.

The master said, this thing is high‑tech the dwarves are proud of; now we shouldn't have to worry about anyone prying it open.

After finishing all that, Ji Ming planned to rest a bit; seeing AdaiEr read manga that morning had made him itch inside, and he wanted to reread it.

But just as he opened the first page, before he could savor how lovely Miss Timan looked— like a sculpted marble skin drum— he suddenly felt he had forgotten something.

"Boss, do you remember what I forgot?"

Yang Yue: Family, who understands? I summoned a savior and then he……

【Savior, for our great undertaking, you planned this morning to make the first black silk of another world】

"Oh, right."

No choice, he reluctantly put the manga away, went up to the first floor and entered the decoction room, preparing to bring this great invention to the people of Yang Yue.

Although players haven't yet rushed into developing goat farming, his warehouse has already reclaimed a fair amount of parchment.

From it he selected a fine piece, spread it out, inspected this beautiful thing as thin as a cicada's wing, confirmed it had no holes, then reached toward the box beside it.

Take…… ah, I haven't taken it yet.

Ji Ming constantly felt that from this morning onward some unseen force had been working against him, trying to stop the black silk—or rather, the birth of the black sigil socks.

So he kept a straight face, hovered his hand over the box for a while, and when that unknown thing wasn't paying attention he snatched up the needle and thread.

Skillfully he sewed part of the parchment into the shape of a chocolate ice cream, then Ji Ming again ran into difficulty regarding the tube's length.

Should it end below the knees to emphasize purity, or go above the knees to highlight allure?

This is a world‑class dilemma, after all there are still people who don't even want ice cream and just like to stomp on socks.

No choice, Ji Ming decided to summon some friends and family for support.

"Boss, do you think black silk is better long or short?"

Yang Yue: Family, who understands? I summoned a savior and then he……

【Savior, this item should be what your friend wants; you can refer more to her preferences】

"Oh, that makes sense!"

Ji Ming hastily pulled up his chat log with Aurora, finding that she lived up to her surname—much of what she sent was white silk, and it might be life experiences, plus she favors medical themes.

For example, squeezing…… ah, I won't elaborate here.

But just as he decided to discard the client's demands and satisfy his own preferences, outside suddenly erupted a chaotic, rather violent knocking—though not urgent.

……

"Tsk, absolute."

No choice, he could only put the needle and thread down again, and when leaving he happened to close the door of the decoction room.

But as he quietly stepped toward the shop door to look outside, it was pitch black out there, as if nothing existed.

But this is the Inner City commercial district; at night it shouldn't be as dark as the Outer City, so the only possible cause of this situation is……

Cautious, yet still violent knocking sounded again, accompanied by a thunder‑like rumble from above.

"Divine Chosen, are you there?"

Holy shit, Ke Li Si Ting!

She came to the clinic in the middle of the night to…… do…… well, whatever, what the heck!?

If it were the former Ji Ming, the instant he saw an adult mare he would enter a 'returning south' state, then, aiming at some unspeakable act that would kill Shen He if she saw it, he would launch a series of actions.

But when they first met, Ke Li Si Ting pinched him in her hand as a 1:6 scale movable, explosive‑armor‑with‑hidden‑functions cloth doll action figure to play with, after which he developed a slight 'Lord Ye's love of dragons'‑style apprehension toward it,

Even last night, when he returned home to sleep, he unintentionally saw the centaur figurine he usually liked most on the cabinet, which gave him a feeling of being haunted by nightmares; he took it back to its box, then pressed a Guan Yu‑themed mechanized girl on top, only then could he sleep peacefully.

But the clinic is my home turf; I'm no longer that timid, petty little doctor I once was, now I……

He flung open the shop door, about to give a confident greeting not inferior to anyone's, when he saw a face almost as big as his own drop down from midair.

Ke Li Si Ting's face bore a hint of what Ji Ming perceived as hungry shyness, and she slightly opened her blood-basin mouth.

"God's Chosen, I have something very important to tell you. Do you have time?"

... still so weak.

Ji Ming hid his fear behind a calm smile, thinking, If I say I have no time, can you stop tearing down my house?

"I think... I can make some, but not much."

"Enough!"

Ke Li Si Ting fixed Ji Ming with a plate-sized stare, her words solemn.

"God's Chosen, you should know what I mean by this—I've already begun pursuing you. Will you become my partner?"

"Damn, what does this confession mean, sounding like an adventurer recruiting companions?"

"I..."

Ji Ming wasn't the type who liked keeping fish, and just as he was about to clearly refuse, Ke Li Si Ting blurted out another line.

"Don't speak first—listen to me!"

"Although you're a God's Chosen, your profession as a basically combat‑incapable apothecary means you can only serve a supportive role even with divine aid—aside from the uncanny, you have no other way to deal with threats, making it hard to stand in noble circles."

"But I... I'm not merely a half‑horse; my veins carry the blood of the Golden Sky‑Horse People. If I can acquire enough resources, I can awaken it, and in my lifetime I could become a being of seventy or even eighty."

"So we complement each other! As long as we're together, you trade your God's Chosen resources for my Golden‑blood martial might, giving us spear and shield and making us the strongest team—you just lie around at home, and I'll handle everything else!"

Ji Ming was dumbfounded—though genuine feelings really do need mutual need... but are you doing business here?

"I..."

"Don't speak, I haven't finished yet!"

After interrupting Ji Ming's words a second time, Ke Li Si Ting exhaled a great breath that could have given him carbon dioxide poisoning, her tone softening slightly.

"God's Chosen, your looks need no explanation—everyone in Sunshine City who likes men has surely dreamed of you, including me; back then I..."

But Ke Li Si Ting isn't truly stupid; she caught herself here and switched topics.

"And I, I admit, I'm a rough warrior, but my handsome muscles are the best calling card of a centaur—my face would still be considered handsome among humans."

"In short, Ji Ming, emotionally and rationally, you and I are the most suitable partners."

Ji Ming: "No, don't bring this up first, you sister‑like to me—what exactly did you do to me in my dream?"

Seeing no reaction, Ke Li Si Ting gritted her teeth slightly and decided to pull out the Frost, the killer's whip she had in mind.

Thus she hesitated a bit, turned her body, lowered her four hooves to kneel on the ground, flushed her increasingly red face, and finally could speak softly without quotation marks.

"Ji Ming, are you willing to spend your life scrubbing my horse's back?"

"That really would take a lifetime to wash—such a huge piece of hide, you'd probably finish one section only to find the previous one dusty again..."

"No, why am I even thinking about this!"

Afraid of being provoked into anger and taken as a princess, Ji Ming decided to be emotionally intelligent about it.

"Miss Ke Li Si Ting, I acknowledge your excellence and sincerity, but we have no emotional foundation—don't you think talking about a lifetime together now is too hasty?"

Who knew the other side would slightly widen their eyes.

"But my mother was together with my father just like that, and she said feelings can be cultivated later."

"No, you really are abducting me! Is this still a family tradition?"

Ji Ming silently stepped back half a step.

"This... feelings can't be forced, or rather... doing it this way won't win you love."

"Love?"

But Ke Li Si Ting stood up, and from her lowered mouth came a cold snort.

"God's Chosen, aren't you curious? Why do almost all nobles have one, or even several, lovers?"

She raised her eyebrows, her voice gradually rising.

"Because among nobles there is actually no love! Only family honor and needs are the first and sole purpose when they choose a marriage partner!"

"If the official partner isn't like that, they naturally seek it elsewhere, so being able to have a partner you like is enviable to others—that's why I want you!"

Having finished her theory as a matter of course, Ke Li Si Ting shifted her tone.

"Of course, since I mainly need you, I can add a condition: I will guarantee my loyalty—but you must not..."

"Smack!"

Just then, a sound of something breaking came from somewhere unknown.

"Who's there?"

The wary Ke Li Si Ting looked around, saw no source of the sound, but noticed that the road's exit now had stationed nearby Guardian Knights.

"Tsk, looks like we can't use force after all..."

She spat in disgust, then turned her head impatiently.

"Ji Ming, that's all I wanted to say—how about it, will you agree? If you do, I'll have Frost arrange the meal, we'll hold the feast tomorrow, and tonight..."

"I won't agree!"

Ji Ming's face flushed with anger; he rejected it outright, for he knew this theory all too well—his parents had explained it to him exactly like that!

"Ke Li Si Ting, what are you treating love as—starting a partnership? Are you next going to raise funds and issue stock?"

This blunt hit left Ke Li Si Ting somewhat dazed.

"I..."

"I reject your confession—no, I directly reject your pursuit!"

Having said that, Ji Ming directly shut the Clinic's door, leaving only the final line.

"Find someone else—I am absolutely not a suitable partner for you."

I was just rejected like that?

Ke Li Si Ting's face first showed anger, then turned to regret, and finally returned to calm.

"Ji Ming, I will make you agree to me, just after tonight."

She turned and left the business street, her clenched fist carrying a certain resolve.