Everyone was stunned for a moment.
The couple, even more bewildered, looked up towards the source of the voice.
It was none other than the young man they had seen at the entrance before.
Ying Chen!
Ying Chen had somehow appeared in front of them, staring coldly.
"Please... let us pass!"
The husband glanced at Ying Chen, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, then gritted his teeth and said.
He understood that Ying Chen meant well for them, but did they have any other choice?
To save their daughter, this was the only path they could take!
Ying Chen remained motionless, showing no intention of moving aside.
Seeing this, a sense of impatience and anger gradually rose in the husband's eyes: "I'll say it again—please let us pass!"
But Ying Chen acted as if he hadn't heard the husband, remaining unconcerned.
Just as the husband's patience wore thin and he prepared to forcibly push Ying Chen aside, he heard Ying Chen's leisurely question: "What illness does your daughter have? Perhaps I can help you."
"You?" The husband looked at Ying Chen suspiciously.
It wasn't that he didn't believe Ying Chen; it was just that Ying Chen was too young!
Young and inexperienced.
Nowadays, people seeking treatment even for a headache would look for old doctors with white hair, or at the very least, middle-aged doctors with half-bald heads.
If you were a young doctor with a full head of hair, sorry, you'd be immediately categorized as "untrustworthy."
This led to young doctors having to intentionally shave their heads or neglect shaving for a few days to appear more weathered and gain patient trust.
And here was Ying Chen, a young man devoid of any "trustworthy" characteristics, suddenly claiming he could cure a terminal illness that had stumped major hospitals in the Dragon Kingdom. How could the husband believe him?
If they weren't at the Shennong Sect, the husband might have told Ying Chen to get lost!
The husband hesitated to answer. However, the wife, clinging to a sliver of hope, replied: "My daughter has a condition called pediatric amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. We discovered it shortly after her birth, and despite all our efforts, we couldn't stop the condition from worsening. ALS typically leads to death within two to five years, and my daughter's fifth birthday is just around the corner. The doctors believe she has a very slim chance of surviving until then..."
At this point, the wife couldn't help but sob.
"If you truly have a way, please have mercy and save this poor child! No matter how much money you want, or what conditions you set, we will agree!"
However, to everyone's surprise, Ying Chen, who had been so confident moments before, asked a question that dumbfounded everyone: "What is ALS?"
"..." The entire hall was in an uproar.
The wife, who had held onto hope, her eyes dulled with powerlessness.
The husband, on the other hand, glared at him with the eyes of a swindler, and repeated, "Please let us pass!"
"ALS is a motor neuron disease that causes paralysis of all motor nerves and muscles in the body, leading to an inability to speak, swallow food, and eventually breathe."
At this moment, Professor Li interjected with an explanation.
"In ancient times, this illness was rarely recorded. It seems only Ji Xiaolan documented one instance, where a servant in the Ji family died of this disease. Doctors diagnosed his pulse as calm and found no apparent symptoms. Many renowned physicians in the capital were helpless. It was ultimately attributed to 'karma' or 'retribution'."
"Karma?" Ying Chen's eyes flickered upon hearing this, and he let out a scoff. "Quacks harming people! I understand what this illness is now, it's just 'Gu Wei' (bone debility)!"
"The kidneys are the water organs. If water cannot overcome fire, then bones will wither and marrow will deplete, leading to weakness in the legs and inability to bear the body, manifesting as bone debility."
"The treatment is also very simple: tonify the kidneys, fill the essence, and stimulate blood and qi. Of course, with this child's symptoms, the medicinal ingredients required might be a bit precious, but it is by no means an incurable disease."
"If you trust me, after I'm done with my matters today, I will give you a prescription. Take the prescription, procure the herbs, and decoct them. Ten days of continuous use will undoubtedly alleviate the symptoms. However, you will need to continue taking medication until adulthood when blood and qi become abundant enough to spontaneously generate marrow qi, at which point she can be truly cured."
Ying Chen said calmly, looking at the couple.
Of course, the "slightly precious" medicinal ingredients Ying Chen mentioned might be astronomically expensive in this era, or even impossible to obtain.
Ying Chen had considered this, which was why he said he would prescribe after he dealt with his current affairs.
By then, the Shennong Sect would undoubtedly have all sorts of rare and valuable medicinal herbs, and he could give some to the couple!
"Really?" The wife's eyes rekindled with hope upon hearing this.
But the next second, her husband pulled her arm: "Don't listen to him! Don't you understand? He's a charlatan! We've crawled through the dog hole and given the gifts; we're only one step away from saving our daughter. Why abandon this final step to trust a completely untrustworthy swindler?"
After speaking, the husband prostrated himself on the ground with a thud.
He was stubbornly insistent on kowtowing and striking the Mingxue Bell!
"Stop wasting your effort. You can barely save yourself, and you have time to help others? You should be thinking about how to face our Sect Leader's furious wrath when you see him!" Tang Yi, who had been watching with her arms crossed, said coldly.
The other people seeking medicine also chimed in with condemnation: "If you don't want to kneel, fine, but don't stop others from kneeling! People like you are the most detestable, pretending to save others while actually harming them! Hurry up and move aside, are you responsible if you delay this child's treatment?"
Facing the sneers and taunts of the crowd, Ying Chen's expression was indifferent.
The next second, Ying Chen suddenly stomped his foot on the ground!
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
A series of sounds rang out as the path the couple was using for their kowtows was directly shattered by Ying Chen!
Each bluestone slab crumbled into a spiderweb of gravel, scattering everywhere.
Ying Chen's voice was as sharp as a knife: "I said, no kneeling!"
The next second, Ying Chen's figure suddenly vanished from his spot.
Only a sound of wind and thunder could be heard in the air, as if some celestial being was summoning lightning and riding the wind.
When the sound stopped, everyone's eyes blurred, and they found Ying Chen reappeared in his previous position.
However, he now held something in his hand.
A giant bronze bell, more than two meters tall!
The bell was covered in bloodstains, forming a strange and chilling blood-tinged hue.
This was the Mingxue Bell that the couple had intended to strike!
"You... what do you want?"
Seeing the Mingxue Bell in Ying Chen's hand, Tang Yi felt a sudden sense of foreboding.
Ying Chen gave her a cold glance and suddenly tossed the Mingxue Bell high into the air.
"Don't you want to strike this bell?"
"Then, as you wish!"
*Dong!*
A clear and far-reaching bell sound rang out.
However, after just one chime, it abruptly stopped, replaced by a piercing shattering sound!
The Mingxue Bell had been shattered by Ying Chen using some unknown technique!