"Mu-xiaoge, do you know what the most important thing is in studying medicine?"
Amid the wind and snow, Old Li slowly spoke. His voice was calm, yet through the howling cold wind, it entered Chu Mu's ears with perfect clarity.
"To know people, and know medicine."
Chu Mu pondered for a moment, then uttered those four words with great certainty.
"Mu-xiaoge, you truly are naturally gifted and clever. You have studied medicine for barely a month, yet you have grasped its essence."
Praise showed on Old Li's face. "This principle is the supreme truth of the Medical Dao!"
"To know people is to understand what people need. To know medicine is to understand pharmacology. Only then can you treat the illness according to its symptoms, and understand what is required."
"Mu-xiaoge, you are a man who pursues martial prowess. You followed this old man to study medicine, I imagine, for the needs of martial practice. In that case, you must remember this principle all the more. Only by knowing people and knowing medicine can you know what your own body requires."
Seeing that Old Li had laid the matter bare, quite a few of Chu Mu's reservations also faded. He voiced the question he had always wanted to ask, yet had never known whom to ask.
"May I ask, Old Li, is qi-and-blood cultivation all just painstaking work done day after day?"
"Painstaking work done day after day..."
Old Li was slightly startled, as though it had stirred his thoughts, and he gave a soft sigh. "For ordinary people like us, naturally, it is painstaking work done day after day."
"A person's life is so terribly brief."
"Qi-and-blood cultivation alone can vainly consume half a lifetime!"
"Alas... alas..."
Chu Mu's eyes shifted faintly, as if he had fallen into thought.