Xinglin Institute·Medical Bureau.

"Mr. Sang, if this ’Medical Three Character Classics’ is reported, it would be a major achievement for our Dongshan Prefecture Medical Bureau. Although the author isn’t you, under your leadership, talents like Mr. Lin emerged, indicating you are quite capable as the head officer of Dongshan Prefecture Medical Bureau..."

Upon receiving the ’Medical Three Character Classics’ transcribed by his daughter Xia Zhu, Xia Yuan couldn’t put it down, reading it several times a day.

The more he read, the more impressed he was. Even when diagnosing patients, he unconsciously applied the principles from the ’Three Character Classics’.

This was far superior to the awkward and difficult knowledge he used to learn, and if children at a suitable age used this as an introduction to medicine, it would be incredibly efficient!

In Xia Yuan’s view, the value of the ’Medical Three Character Classics’ is comparable to the medical classics left by the Three Sages.

Moreover, the value and influence of the ’Medical Three Character Classics’ in medical dissemination and inheritance may far surpass those texts.

It is truly a treasure that every medical student must memorize!

"I admit he wrote it well, but it’s still overrated. Using ’Classics’ to name it—how presumptuous..." Mr. Sang indeed desired political achievements but also craved stability. Ye Shengyuan clearly targeted Lin Miao relentlessly, and Sang didn’t want to involve himself in their rivalry. Pushing Lin Miao would mean choosing sides.

It’s too risky; he is timid.

"Why can’t it be called a ’Classics’? Isn’t what’s written here the essential wisdom of medicine we have been memorizing from a young age? Lin Miao summarized them so brilliantly—easy to understand and catchy. Even ordinary people can comprehend it; classic works are meant to be understood at first glance or reading. If it’s written obscurely and esoterically that only professionals can understand, what’s the point?" Xia Yuan retorted.

"Alright, Xia, stop fussing. It’s just a medical booklet; no need to elevate it to such a high level." Mr. Sang retorted; he was already at an age where after this term as the head officer of the Medical Bureau, he might retire. Later, he might sit for a diagnosis or write something if there’s time—living peacefully, no more political achievements. He wasn’t interested anymore.

Just wanted to transition smoothly without causing a stir.

The Imperial Pharmacy was recently turbulent internally, due to fierce competition this year among the three candidates for the "Sanctification Trial".

The Medicine King’s Grandson from the Medicine King Sect and Xumitra from Reclining Buddha Temple were competing aggressively, each wanting to complete the trial faster than the other.

Within a short month, both already have medical case collections made, and both the Medicine King Sect and Reclining Buddha Temple went all out to build momentum for them.

However, our accompanying candidate, Mr. Lin, though outstanding, had a steadily growing number of consultations, yet remained far behind the former two.

Despite Xia Yuan’s earnest efforts to recommend Lin Miao, even setting aside his pride to plead for himself, using the ’Medical Three Character Classics’ for beginners to enhance his reputation?

It was laughable. Previously, he had a decent impression of Lin Miao, but now felt that the young man became cocky with a bit of skill, indulging in sensational acts.

Seeing Mr. Sang’s indifference, Xia Yuan was helpless, saying, "Alright, if you don’t report it to the court for commendation, at least agree to place Mr. Lin’s ’Medical Three Character Classics’ in the Scripture Pavilion at Xinglin Institute in Dongshan City. Can you agree to that?"

"Xia, it’s just a medical introduction book. Aren’t there enough books like that in the Scripture Pavilion? If you want to place it inside, fine, we’ll decide during the meeting before the next medical examination at the end of the year with a vote!" Mr. Sang didn’t want to cause trouble for himself.

"Do you mean, yet another two-year wait?"

"If it’s really as good as you say, what’s wrong with waiting another two years to enter?" Mr. Sang replied impatiently, "Alright, Xia, you’ve been obsessed lately. Tian told me, you haven’t even met the minimum consultation quota during examination, if you continue like this, he will really cut your benefits!"

"Fine, Mr. Sang, you’ll regret it!" Xia Yuan was quite angry.

Regret, in another two years, he would retire. It wouldn’t matter to him who wins or loses. As for Lin Miao, he still had more doubts.

Throughout history, how many prodigy youths have met premature ends?

...

As soon as Lin Miao emerged from the secret passage, a figure dove into his embrace like a swan.

This enchantress was becoming increasingly alluring.

Especially after being nurtured, she exuded that unique beauty of a mature woman, and at this age, she was indeed in her prime.

Mature, alluring, yet full of vitality.

"Mr. Lin, you finally came. Miaoxue has been restless and has lost her appetite these days..." Si Miaoxue practically hung on him, her eyes full of love and tenderness.

"Are the herbs ready?" Lin Miao wasn’t here for tender moments. He came tonight to prepare a Blood Fusion Realm medicinal bath for Si Miaoxue!

"All prepared, three doses in total." Si Miaoxue immediately jumped off Lin Miao. This was business.

"Then let’s start."

The composition of the medicinal bath is quite meticulous, even more so than decocting medicines. Although it’s not consumed by drinking, it’s similar.

The effect of the medicinal bath is absorbed through the skin, a special way for martial artists to absorb medicinal power.

Skin has pores, breathes, and can be considered a two-way channel connecting with the external environment.

Ordinary medicinal baths result in passive absorption of medicinal power, wasting almost seventy to eighty percent of the efficacy, hence medicinal baths can be reused.

Martial artists, however, can actively absorb it, but this depends on one’s talent and cultivation level.

The effects of medicinal baths vary across different stages—the bath for Muscle Strengthening focuses mainly on muscles and skin, Bone Forging primarily on bones, and at Blood Fusion Realm, it penetrates deep into the bone marrow.

By the time one reaches the Meridian Passage Realm, only elixirs are effective, externally applied medicines basically have minimal impact. (Alchemy is a profound study, primarily involving metaphysics)

Therefore, if a medicinal bath in the Muscle Strengthening stage costs ten taels of silver, then Bone Forging would require a hundred taels, and Blood Fusion a thousand taels.

Without ample resources, practicing martial arts is indeed quite challenging; those who can progress smoothly without external aids are truly chosen ones.

Most people must rely on acquired resources.

In the prescription, there are some herbs that even Lin Miao hasn’t seen before, touching upon his knowledge blind spots. There are things in this world he hasn’t yet grasped.

After all, these are two different worlds; some differences are to be expected. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

He must remain humble and cautious, and not become careless.

The herbs have been studied, and after special processing, their properties are now generally understood. So, the next step is preparing and cooking the medicine, which is quite an undertaking.

For this reason, Si Miaoxue specially built a medicinal bath room.

As the herbs were added one by one, using the best smokeless charcoal for heating, the medicine in the large pot instantly turned pitch black.

Fierce heat was applied for half an hour until the medicine inside started to boil and froth, and then simmered gently for another hour and a half until the medicine was reduced by half.

Almost ready.

This medicinal liquid is concentrated and naturally cannot be used all at once; it should be divided into three portions. The herbal residue is filtered out, with two portions stored in freshly made glass bottles, leaving one for immediate use.

This medicinal liquid also needs to be diluted with water to allow the human body to soak in it; otherwise, one might not withstand the pain.

Practicing martial arts is inherently a challenging task; if one cannot endure the hardship and pain, then it’s best to remain an ordinary person.

For a medicinal bath, the body must maximize contact with the medicinal liquid, so in most cases, direct contact is required.

Encouraged by Lin Miao, Si Miaoxue removed all coverings from her body and stepped into the bath barrel.

"Don’t think too much, close your eyes, calm your mind and spirit. Just do as you usually practice," Lin Miao advised.

In martial arts theory, he surpassed Si Miaoxue considerably; Si Miaoxue herself acknowledged this. Her swift progress was greatly due to Lin Miao’s guidance, and their complementary strengths also played a significant role.

Focus on the unity of spirit, concentrate on the Dantian.

Si Miaoxue quickly gathered her mind, entered meditation, and started her cultivation practice.

Soaking in the medicinal bath for cultivation can be passive or active. Passive cultivation is very wasteful of medicinal power; absorbing even a tenth is already considered extraordinary aptitude. Active absorption, however, allows the opening of pores throughout the body, letting the medicinal power penetrate into muscles, fascia, and even bones, layer by layer, enhancing the body’s aptitude.

The medicinal bath enhances the maximum aptitude and addresses hidden injuries within the body, improving various physical indicators. However, cultivation still requires diligent practice.

It’s unrealistic to assume that soaking in a medicinal bath alone can turn someone into a Blood Fusion Realm expert.

The body is a container—when it grows larger and tougher, it can hold more energy. It’s a mutually reinforcing process.

After about a quarter of an hour.

Lin Miao noticed a hint of pain appearing on Si Miaoxue’s face, her body lightly trembling, while beads of sweat started to continuously seep from her forehead.

This medicinal bath is certainly not an easy undertaking; this process uses internal energy to drive medicinal power to strengthen and transform the body.

This likely involves changes at the cellular level; as to whether it alters genes, Lin Miao doesn’t know. The mysteries of the human body remain largely unexplored despite lifelong pursuits.

The more intense the pain, the better the effect—everyone understands this principle.

This indicates that the improved medicinal liquid has a significant effect on Si Miaoxue, who is already in the Blood Fusion Realm; otherwise, she wouldn’t show such painful expressions.

"Mr. Lin, I can’t hold on anymore. Come help me..." Suddenly, Si Miaoxue spoke, a wisp of black blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

"Don’t worry, I’ll use silver needles to guide your energy circulation, follow my instructions!" Lin Miao was already prepared with silver needles in case of emergency.

A needle was inserted into Si Miaoxue’s Baihui Acupoint at the top of her head, her body lightly quivered, a trace of pain flashed across her face, but she quickly regained her composure.

Subsequently, Lin Miao continuously used silver needles to pierce several key acupoints in the Ren and Du meridians at the front and back of the body, channeling internal energy into the silver needles to assist its circulation within the body.

This was to help Si Miaoxue unblock her Ren and Du meridians.

The Ren and Du meridians are the central control centers of the entire body; once unblocked, it establishes an internal cycle, bringing about a dramatic transformation in one’s realm.

The ultimate form of the Meridian Passage Realm is unblocking the Ren and Du meridians; once these are unblocked, one directly ascends to the peak of the Meridian Passage Realm.

Meridian Passage involves unblocking all fourteen meridians in the body, only by achieving this can one finally break through and ascend to the Transcendence stage.

But this secret is something Transcendence stage experts generally wouldn’t easily disclose to outsiders, and even if told, one might not be able to achieve it.

Lin Miao didn’t know about this since he himself hadn’t reached that realm. The martial arts secrets of this world consist of only two books; one is the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Strength, which includes the lightweight skill "Goose Flight." Everything he has learned and practiced stems from the "Traditional Martial Arts" remembered from his previous life.

Although they share similarities, the systems inevitably still have some differences.

Traditional Martial Arts have Mingjing, Anjing, and Huajing; Mingjing corresponds to the Muscle Strengthening Realm and lower Bone Forging grades, Anjing corresponds to Bone Forging Realm and Blood Fusion Realm, while Huajing should be the Meridian Passage Realm...