Chapter 177: Alive again

The Demon race's Saint Physician, Master Bai Li, had seen countless patients in his life, but he had always known that physical ailments were easy to treat, while heart ailments were hard to cure.

This was because one's state of mind always had a subtle, pervasive influence on the body. This influence might be negligible when the body was healthy, but it was most pronounced when life was hanging by a thread.

Just a moment ago, on that carriage piled high with broken swords, he had used his talent for observing Qi to see through the Human race individual's tear-stained face and perceive the deep-seated lack of will to live within.

As for the reason, he did not know, but when it came to diagnosis, he was a professional.

Hearing this, Yan Chuan's expression became extremely solemn.

He felt that his own future could still be salvaged, so he hoped he could try again.

After all, Ji You could be considered a member of the Human delegation. To the Demon race, as long as they had not yet made the decision to fight the Human race for the world, they had to treat them as honored guests.

Thus, the Human delegation was invited into the Jade Garden outside the Imperial Palace. Afterward, Ji You was carried into a room and placed upon the bed.

Physician Master Bai Li took out silver needles, intending to first help him stimulate the medicinal potency within his body.

The Pill Sect's alchemy was inherited from the Heavenly Dao and belonged to the same lineage as the Immortal Dao. Its medicinal potency was formidable, but Ji You's internal injuries were severe, making it extremely difficult for him to absorb the medicine once it was released.

Therefore, he intended to use silver needles to stimulate it, which would have a better therapeutic effect on Ji You's internal injuries.

However, as he applied force, the silver needle failed to pierce the skin; instead, it bent as his hand continuously approached Ji You's body.

Seeing this, the Demon Saint Physician's brow furrowed slightly, and his expression gradually became solemn.

Consequently, everyone around them furrowed their brows as well, an ominous premonition inevitably surfacing in their hearts. After all, this expression on a physician's face was far too frightening.

"Look, it's hardened."

"?!"

Gongshu Chou shouted angrily at the quack: "This is the hardness brought about by his hard-body training; ordinary silver needles might not be able to pierce his acupoints."

Physician Master Bai Li's brow furrowed slightly: "Oh?"

Jiang Yan and Yan Qiubai also couldn't help but speak up: "His physical body is very strong. We have clashed with the Barbarians several times on this journey, and he has basically been fighting them hand-to-hand, fist to flesh."

Hearing this, Ye Han and that Princess Fengyang felt a flash of surprise in their eyes.

They knew about the battle at Hailongcheng, because that was already Demon territory, and they had city officials stationed there.

But they were unaware that Ji You had fought the Barbarians hand-to-hand.

"The bare-handed kind?"

Yan Qiubai nodded: "The Barbarians who passed through his hands were basically all punched through the chest."

Ye Han raised an eyebrow slightly and couldn't help but exchange a glance with the two clan leaders, Mo Rong and Huang Long, behind him, seeing that their eyes were also full of astonishment.

Because just a short while ago, the Barbarian delegation's guards had had a contest with their Demon race warriors.

Although both races had bodies much tougher than the Human race, the Demon race had still fallen short of the Barbarians.

So they hadn't expected that a Human could actually beat a Barbarian soldier to death with their bare hands; this was something even their Demon warriors couldn't do.

At this moment, Physician Master Bai Li selected a sturdier needle from his needle pouch and channeled his Qi into the tip, his fingertips beginning to twist it lightly. After a long time, he finally inserted the silver needle into Ji You's body.

Ji You remained expressionless, not even a detail of a furrowed brow, while Physician Master Bai Li's forehead was already covered in fine beads of sweat.

It was too hard to pierce; what kind of broken body was this?

And once the silver needles were all in place, Physician Master Bai Li closed his eyes slightly and began to channel his Qi into Ji You's body once more, in order to stimulate the medicine throughout his limbs and bones.

From this, it could be seen that this Physician Master Bai Li, honored as a Saint Physician, truly had some skill.

Although he could not stimulate medicinal potency at high speed with pill light like a Human alchemist, he could use silver needles to achieve the same effect.

"He still lacks some medicinal catalysts. Did he have anything he couldn't let go of before he died, or something he loved dearly? We can try using that to wake him up."

Yan Chuan thought with a dark face, *Don't, don't say 'before he died'; he isn't dead yet. *

*You keep going on about 'before he died'; if he hears you later, he'll really think he's kicked the bucket! *

*You think the one who died is just a person, but there's still this old man's hundred-year path of cultivation! *

Meanwhile, the others turned to look at Gongshu Chou, Shi Junhao, Xiao Hanyan, and Elder Ge, because among their group, they were perhaps the four who understood Ji You the best.

"How about we try money?"

"How can money be used as medicine? I have practiced medicine for many years and have never heard of such a thing; it's simply nonsense..."

"Eh, his fingers seem to have moved."

"..."

"A strange illness indeed. Bring some gold over, increase the dosage!"

Seeing this, the others couldn't help but open their mouths wide, feeling that the scene before them was hard to comment on.

Ji You woke up at noon the next day, lying on the bed, his face still pale, and he had no strength to speak.

He wasn't dead.

All the swords he had hoarded were shattered, the priceless heart-protecting mirror was gone, and his arms were useless, yet he was still alive.

*Heh, this dog life is just too tenacious... *

At this moment, he lifted his face to see a large lump of gold hanging from the ceiling, suspended right before his eyes.

He really hadn't expected that he would be fished back to life by gold.

*Damn it, who came up with this trick? *

But at this moment, looking at the gold nugget in front of him, he had the will but no arms to reach it.

【Forty-Nine Mountains】 had slashed the Barbarian King, and he had also suffered from the Qi penetrating his body. The most severely injured parts were his two arms; even without moving, he could feel a piercing pain.

He didn't know if his hands were crippled; otherwise, with such a large piece of gold in front of him, his hands shouldn't be unable to lift.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside Ji You's door, and then the sound of conversation drifted in through the door crack.

"Has Young Master Ji not woken up yet?"

"I came to check early this morning; he hasn't woken up."

Ji You recognized the voices of these two; one was Gongshu Chou, and the other was Yan Qiubai.

However, through the window screen, he could see the silhouettes of three people. They must have arrived separately and then bumped into each other at the door.

At this moment, Gongshu Chou's voice sounded again: "I heard Physician Master Bai Li say that if yellow and white objects can be used as a catalyst to hook the thread of life in his heart, it means it's effective. If he still doesn't wake up, perhaps we can carry him into the Demon Emperor's treasury to see if it can wake him."

"?"

Hearing this, Ji You pondered for a long time, then slowly closed his eyes...

But soon he heard the third person's voice, coming from Jiang Yan: "The Demon Emperor's treasury belongs to the Demon Emperor and is never opened to outsiders at will, especially when the other party is Human. Physician Master Bai Li was just making a joke; how could they really let Ji You in?"

"That's right, those Demon ministers don't believe in such a catalyst at all and even suspect our Human race of harboring evil intentions."

"The Demon race is too uncouth; it's not like we're short of that little bit of money."

Hearing this, Ji You opened his eyes again.

Just then, Gongshu Chou reached out and pushed open the door, but the moment he looked into the room, he was instantly stunned: "Brother Ji, you're awake?"

Yan Qiubai and Jiang Yan also stepped in, looking somewhat surprised.

At this moment, Ji You felt somewhat listless, as if he had lost a gold mountain, and spoke in a hoarse voice: "Where is this? Have we already arrived at the Demon race?"

Jiang Yan spoke upon hearing this: "This is the Demon Emperor City; we are currently in the Jade Garden outside the Imperial Palace."

"Has the delegation gone to see the Demon Emperor?"

"Not yet; the Demon Emperor will only receive us tomorrow, and we will all go together."

"Who treated my injuries?"

"It was Physician Master Bai Li who treated you, but the one who truly saved your life was this gold nugget. If it weren't for it, you probably wouldn't have wanted to live."

Ji You glanced at the gold nugget: "Just this? This isn't even enough for me to buy one heart-protecting mirror, let alone my forty-nine spirit swords..."

Gongshu Chou spoke upon hearing this: "It's forty-one."

"?"

"Eight swords were of excellent quality and weren't shattered; I helped you fish them back."

Ji You was silent for a moment: "Those were given by her, but that's still not enough; I've lost so much..."

Gongshu Chou couldn't help but glance at the hanging gold: "You misunderstood; we didn't bring any yellow and white objects on this trip. This piece was borrowed from the Demon race, and we have to return it to them later."

"Who told you to save me? You might as well have killed me!"

"?"

Gongshu Chou looked at him with a strange expression: "You're not going to live just because of this?"

Ji You gritted his teeth: "The most painful thing in life is when a person dies and the money isn't spent, but the most painful thing is when a person is alive and the money is gone."

Gongshu Chou grinned, thinking, *No wonder Physician Master Bai Li said your heart was cowardly and your will to live wasn't strong. *

Ji You furrowed his brow slightly at this moment: "My arms hurt..."

Gongshu Chou turned to look at him: "Physician Master Bai Li said that pain means the meridians are open. If they weren't, they would truly be crippled. So this is a good thing; just nurse them slowly, and they will eventually recover."

Yan Qiubai and Jiang Yan exchanged a glance: "It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone; this can't be rushed."

"I'm in a hurry for this gold; whoever can help me take it down and hold it in my arms, perhaps I can get better faster."

"Better to keep it hanging; this can also stimulate Young Master Ji's desire to exercise his arms. One day, you will be able to touch it."

"Are you... the Living Yama?"

Ji You looked at them in disbelief, thinking, *What kind of crime have I committed to deserve this kind of torture? *

Subsequently, the news of Ji You's awakening spread, to the point that many people gathered in his room—prodigies, envoys, and the Deputy Inspector of the Immortal Inspection Bureau.

Seeing Ji You's pale complexion and his arms that still couldn't move, everyone had different thoughts.

For example, the three from the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan—Elder Ge, Xiao Hanyan, and Shi Junhao—felt mostly embarrassment.

Because Ji You, as a disciple of the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan, was not close to them, and that sword that soared into the sky had come from Spirit Sword Mountain.

Yan Chuan, on the other hand, was somewhat overjoyed, feeling that his future was infinitely bright, though he did not show it on his face, maintaining the appearance of an otherworldly expert who was indifferent to favor or humiliation.

He had indeed been a bit anxious some time ago, and the concern he showed had been somewhat excessive, even arousing suspicion in others.

Some suspected that this Ji You was his illegitimate son, and some even suspected that he himself was his illegitimate son...

Now that Ji You's life was back, he wasn't so anxious, but he remembered the warning from the Inspector not to let others know, so his performance today was extremely cold.

And seeing him wake up, the most excited were the officials in the delegation.

After all, Ji You's 【Forty-Nine Mountains】 had saved their lives, and the fact that he had nearly lost his own life for it was a great kindness to them.

Wang Mingchang looked at Ji You at this moment: "Is Young Master Ji alright now?"

"Passable, but don't forget what you promised me."

"This old man will certainly not fail the commission; I will give my all until my heart stops beating."

Ji You nodded: "Thank you for your hard work."

After the visit ended, the envoys left Ji You's room. At this time, Peng Dongyang couldn't help but look at Wang Mingchang: "What did you promise him?"

At this moment, those Immortal Sect prodigies also couldn't help but turn to look.

Wang Mingchang spoke upon hearing this: "We promised Young Master Ji that we would persuade the Demon Emperor, even at the cost of our lives."

Peng Dongyang looked at him and then added: "I never saw you interact; when did you promise him this?"

"After Young Master Ji was knocked away by a punch, he climbed onto our carriage and asked if we could do it. We promised to prove our resolve with our lives, and then he stood up and drew his sword."

"So that's how he drew his sword to protect you."

Wang Mingchang was silent for a long time before speaking: "Us? No, his sword protected Fengzhou, and the common people of the world."

As the crowd left one after another, only Yan Qiubai and Jiang Yan remained in the room.

Gongshu Chou stood up and left the room, heading toward the Imperial Palace to invite the Saint Physician Master Bai Li.

Yan Qiubai watched Gongshu Chou leave, then turned to look at him and spoke: "After you fell into a coma, it was always Brother Gongshu and I who kept you company, while those fellow disciples of yours only came once and didn't stay long before leaving."

Ji You watched Gongshu Chou's retreating back, thinking, *I still can't understand why he loves me so much. *

Yan Qiubai spoke again at this moment: "I feel that Young Master Ji is so astonishingly talented; if the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan has no vision, it would be better to join my Spirit Sword Mountain. Anyway, you have already learned the sword path of my Spirit Sword Mountain."

"Unfortunately, Spirit Sword Mountain is in the far south and cannot protect Fengzhou."

Ji You moved the various parts of his body slightly and felt that the problem wasn't too big, so he let out a long sigh of relief.

He had survived by accident, so he would have to continue to hold his head high and move forward on the road ahead.

Especially at this critical juncture.

If the Demon Emperor was not persuaded and really intended to start a war, he would still need to get more money to buy swords.

Yan Qiubai couldn't help but look at Ji You again, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly: "Actually, you don't have to leave the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan; forming a marriage alliance is also possible. With your body in the Heavenly Tian Shuyuan but your heart in the sword, what would be wrong with that?"

Ji You turned to look at her, a trace of confusion appearing in his eyes, thinking, *Why can she see through the illicit affair between me and the Little Inspector of Spirit Sword Mountain in one word? *

Jiang Yan couldn't help but glance at Yan Qiubai, then turned to Ji You and said: "It's not just Spirit Sword Mountain that can accommodate Young Master Ji; actually, my Asking Dao Sect can do the same."

"I have a private feud with the Asking Dao Sect."

"?"

Just then, the room where Ji You was staying was pushed open from the outside. Gongshu Chou entered first, followed by the Saint Physician Master Bai Li and the indifferent-looking Princess Fengyang.

This Demon Princess was currently learning medicine from Physician Master Bai Li and had previously been nearby providing free clinics for the Demon people.

Hearing from the Saint Physician Master Bai Li that the Human had woken up, she had followed along, seemingly very interested in the case of silver being able to hook a life.

Demon medicine was the same as Human medicine; both were empirical disciplines. Advancing medical skills required a large amount of theoretical verification, and any rare case would naturally be enough to make one excited.

At this moment, Physician Master Bai Li came to the room and sat down beside him.

"Awake?"

"Mm."

Ji You answered the Saint Physician Master Bai Li, but his eyes had already drifted to Princess Fengyang, then steadily locked onto her buttocks.

Very perky, round and plump, it was just that there was no tail.

He had been thinking about the matter of round buttocks and tails throughout this journey, and at this moment, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

One couldn't even believe half a punctuation mark of what the Management Tian Shuyuan said.

And that Princess Fengyang was also sizing him up; it was her first time seeing a Human, and she was full of curiosity.

The Saint Physician Master Bai Li had already examined him at this moment and nodded slightly: "Recovering quite well; the internal injuries have stabilized, and the Qi and blood are still considered smooth. Can you move your arms?"

"Doctor, you joke. If I could move my arms, would this gold still be hanging here?"

"A strange illness indeed."

The Saint Physician Master Bai Li looked at him: "Is there anywhere else that is uncomfortable?"

Ji You shook his head after feeling for a moment: "My body is still numb; I don't have much feeling."

"Your Human medicinal pills are indeed excellent; they have an excellent effect on healing internal injuries. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have been able to save you."

Ji You remembered that medicine box: "Fortunately, I am good-looking..."

The Saint Physician Master Bai Li withdrew his hand at this moment: "Rest more in the next few days; do not exert force on your arms for the time being."

Ji You came back to his senses and looked at him: "It's just that staying in the room is too stuffy; I always want to go out for a walk. I suppose I've been in a coma for too long."

"Going out for a walk is fine, but the Human body is weak, and my Demon Emperor City is bone-chillingly cold, so you must be careful not to catch a cold."

"Thank you, Doctor."

The Saint Physician Master Bai Li finished speaking and then looked at him again: "Your will to live seems to have grown much stronger."

*Will to live? *

*Why did he suddenly bring this up? It's quite sudden. *

Ji You looked at his crotch somewhat inexplicably: "Physician Master Bai Li can even see this?"

The Saint Physician Master Bai Li nodded: "Indeed, my lineage can see the Qi that others cannot see. It's just that I don't know why you went from not wanting to live to wanting to live."

"So that's the will to live..."

Ji You smiled: "I heard the Demon Emperor has a treasury."

Physician Master Bai Li: "?"

Upon learning that his injuries were not a problem, Ji You immediately began to try to get out of bed.

The injured arms would cause excruciating pain if he tried to move them, but fortunately, the injuries in other places were lighter; for example, his legs were still very obedient.

And it was also his first time seeing the Demon Emperor City, so he couldn't help but call Gongshu Chou to push him out for a walk.

He still didn't understand why Gongshu Chou loved him so much, but he had already determined that he had no bad intentions.

However, Gongshu Chou did not agree to push him to the Demon Emperor's treasury; even when he offered a seven-three split, he still wouldn't agree, which angered Ji You into asking if he wanted a six-four split.

But Ji You had no arms to use now, so he could only give up for the time being.

At this moment, looking at the countless Demon women coming and going in the freezing snow city, he couldn't help but sigh: "Demon women really don't have tails, or they are used to hiding them in their skirts."

"Brother Ji has just woken up from a serious injury, and this is what you are thinking about?"

"I am looking on behalf of a friend."

Ji You let his two arms hang down, thinking of the Immortal Emperor Long Yin: "I am really good to my friends."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 178 =====