Rumors

Lu Yuan thought for a moment, then gestured for Thomas to lie on the small bed near the door. He drew the curtain between them and sat on the stool beside the bed to examine the wound.

The moment Thomas's wound came into view, his vision flickered slightly.

[Basic Medical: +0.5 (observing the injury)/20]

[You have discovered an atypical external injury, suspected to be a crushing wound caused by some kind of marine creature.]

Seeing the prompt appear before his eyes, Lu Yuan smiled. Sure enough, the experience bar could be applied to treating patients.

Lu Yuan put on gloves and gently pressed the edge of the wound with his fingers.

The bluish-purple area was extremely stiff, completely unlike normal human tissue.

It was more like frozen meat.

"Does it hurt here?" Lu Yuan asked.

"It doesn't hurt... It's just numb, like a swarm of things is drilling into my bones." Thomas was drenched in cold sweat. "Doctor, can my leg still be cured?"

Lu Yuan did not answer immediately.

At that moment, a line of grayish-white data was rapidly being analyzed in his vision:

[Contact with abnormal tissue, Basic Medical experience +1]

[Analysis result: Deep Sea mollusk toxin residue (minor), accompanied by tissue necrosis. Recommended treatment: bloodletting, detoxification, hot compress.]

"It can be cured."

Lu Yuan turned and took out the Red Grass Ointment he had refined the night before, along with a sterilized small knife.

"Bear with it."

Before he finished speaking, the tip of the blade precisely pierced the centers of those marks resembling suction cups.

Sizzle—

A stream of foul-smelling black blood instantly gushed out. When it landed in the tray, it made a sound like strong acid corroding metal.

Thomas screamed and nearly sprang off the bed.

"Don't move." Lu Yuan pinned down his leg with one hand while swiftly packing the reddish-brown ointment into the wounds with the other.

The instant the ointment came into contact with flesh and blood, the teeth-grating corrosive sound stopped, replaced by a faint scent of pine.

Thomas's ragged breathing gradually calmed. He stared at the black blood in the tray in horror. "Th-then what the hell is that?"

"Congested blood." Lu Yuan casually made it up while bandaging his wound. "Don't you know where your injury came from?"

Though Lu Yuan sounded casual, he became more vigilant inwardly.

This toxin clearly was not something ordinary sea fish possessed, and the medicine distributed by the church had actually been able to suppress its spread.

Otherwise, Thomas should have died from the poison long ago.

"Looks like I need to take a look myself."

Thomas, however, seemed unwilling to explain the source of his injury after hearing that.

He merely smiled helplessly.

Lu Yuan did not care and asked another seemingly casual question.

"The docks haven't been peaceful lately?"

"Things have been a little strange." Perhaps to change the subject, Thomas suddenly became much more talkative. "Didn't the Iron Whale return recently? But the people on board were really weird... I heard they were taken away by the Night Watchers overnight as soon as they docked. They didn't even go home."

"And ever since then, the docks have often been bringing up strange things in the catch. This injury of mine..."

Thomas realized he had let something slip and gave an embarrassed smile.

Lu Yuan's movements paused slightly.

The Iron Whale again.

"All done." Lu Yuan tied a neat knot and straightened up. "Four Silver Shields. No credit."

Thomas cautiously moved his leg and was delighted to discover that the piercing numbness and itch had truly disappeared.

Only then did he readily count out four silver coins onto the table, thank Lu Yuan profusely, and leave.

The price Lu Yuan named was neither high nor low, and he had roughly based it on the figures in the notebook.

Of course, it was not particularly cheap for an ordinary dockworker, but it was not so expensive that a few days of medicine would leave the whole family starving either.

As Thomas left, a line of text appeared.

[Completed first consultation. Basic Medical: 2.5/20]

[Intelligence unlocked: Grim Port Status: 6/50]

Lu Yuan pinched the warm silver coins and lightly rubbed them between his fingertips.

"They were all taken away by the Night Watchers?... Looks like what was written in the diary was true after all."

After Thomas left, not a second patient came to the Clinic.

Naturally, Lu Yuan had expected this.

After all, he had forgotten to advertise. Business was unlikely to improve anytime soon.

Unless Thomas's leg was cured by him.

"Take it slow."

Lu Yuan returned to his chair and continued reading.

Time passed quickly. Over the whole morning, Lu Yuan did nothing but read.

There was not a single patient either.

Instead, his Pharmacognosy increased by another point.

[Basic Herbology: 8.5/20]

[Imperial Language—Reading: 6/1000]

At this rate, Basic Herbology would level up in three days at most. He had no idea what effect that would bring.

Lu Yuan was not prepared to keep waiting, because he was hungry.

And aside from a few cans of unknown age, there was nothing in the Clinic.

With no other choice, Lu Yuan took a few Silver Shields and went out to see what prices were like in this world, while also getting a practical sense of the cost of living.

At the same time, Lu Yuan planned to gather more information about this world to confirm some of his suspicions.

After putting on his suit and hat, Lu Yuan headed out with ten Silver Shields in his pocket.

Beneath the overcast sky, the streets were narrow and damp, lined with towering, oppressive Gothic buildings.

The poor weather did not affect the residents here.

Even in the relatively remote area where Lu Yuan lived, there were still plenty of people coming and going.

After walking a short distance along the cobblestone street and turning a corner,

the street instantly became lively.

Several children who looked quite young were constantly moving about among the roadside stalls.

Whenever they saw a well-dressed man passing by, they stepped forward to promote their shoe-shining services.

After being turned down, they would even pull out a newspaper from their clothes and eagerly try to sell it.

A newspaper was exactly what Lu Yuan needed.

But before Lu Yuan could approach, a scrawny child came up to him.

"Sir! Would you like your shoes shined? Of course, I'm not saying you need it now, but if you go to the docks, your shoes will most likely get dirty."

"I'm very good at shining shoes, and my prices are fair. It's only two Copper Shields, but if you decide now, I'll only charge you one Copper Shield when you come back."

Lu Yuan stopped and looked at the overly clever little brat before him.

"Very smart." As Lu Yuan spoke, he took out a Silver Shield from his pocket and spun it around his fingertips. Its gleaming shine instantly captured the boy's attention.

"No need to shine my shoes. But I have better business for you." Lu Yuan bent down and stared into the boy's eyes.

"I want you to keep an eye on the docks for me. And... deliver the latest newspaper to the Clinic up there every day. This Silver Shield is the deposit."

The boy swallowed hard and nodded vigorously. "No problem, sir! My name is Brent. There's nothing in this neighborhood that I don't know!"

"Very good, Brent." Lu Yuan flicked the coin to him. "Now tell me, what's the latest news from the docks? I don't want the things written in the newspapers."