"Old Song, are there any special guests today?"
The moment he stepped into the clinic, he caught a faint fishy smell in the air. Lin Yue frowned slightly. For some reason, the atmosphere in the clinic felt especially grave today.
It was supposed to be an ordinary day of working part-time at the clinic, yet the instant he entered, he found the entire place empty. Only a man in a black robe sat weakly to one side with a deathly pale woman beside him.
Seeing that the little fellow had finally returned to the clinic, Song Bo'an let out a long breath.
"Little Lin, two special patients came today. It seems they came specifically to find you."
"Specifically to find me?"
Lin Yue's heart jolted. Feeling several traces of unease, he remained by the door instead of approaching, repeatedly examining the only two guests in the clinic.
The clinic, which had originally carried a faint medicinal fragrance, was now clearly filled with an intermittent foul stench. It was not the briny smell of Whale Rubber, but the stench of a reptile—something akin to poison.
"I'll head out first. You entertain the two guests."
Sensing the powerful aura emanating from the pair, Old Song maintained a cautious and humble expression out of respect for patient privacy. He took two steps back and voluntarily gave them space, ensuring that no one would disturb them in the clinic.
Seeing this, Lin Yue could only grit his teeth and step forward.
"Are you two poisoned?"
Sensing the dense smell of snake venom seemingly coming from beneath the black robe, Lin Yue furrowed his brow, his heart filled with uncertainty.
Clearly, anyone who could withstand such poison could not be an ordinary person. Just sitting there, the two of them gave off an aura strong enough to frighten away other patients. They were likely Soul Masters.
And their ranks were not low, either.
"Yes. I heard from Fatty Ning of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Merchant Association that you're quite skilled at detoxification."
A hoarse, pained voice came from beneath the black robe, causing Lin Yue to quietly clench his fists.
Fatty Ning? Oh, that was the merchant who had given him 1,000 Gold Soul Coins last time.
Tch, damn it. He knew treating these rich and powerful people would bring him no good.
All it took was a casual bit of promotion from the other party for word of his deeds to spread everywhere. Sure enough, it had attracted more Soul Masters. He had no idea how many times this had happened over the past month.
However, this married couple seeking treatment this time seemed unfathomably powerful. They were probably at least level forty, Soul Ancestors. They were already the strongest patients Lin Yue had ever received!
Facing experts of this caliber, he could not fool them the way he did ordinary Soul Masters. If he provoked their anger, forget the money—he would be lucky not to get beaten up.
"Since you two were willing to honor me with your visit, I assume you've heard of my potions. They are only effective on ordinary people and have negligible effects on Soul Masters."
He spoke carefully, terrified of angering them, then immediately added, "Of course, if you still insist, I can treat you both. It's just that... I can't guarantee the results."
"It's fine. We were merely traveling and stopped by on the way. There is no need for you to be nervous, little doctor."
To think that the person who had cured Mandala Snake Venom was such a young boy. It was truly remarkable. Heroes emerged in their youth.
Bai Ling watched the little fellow return to the table with what seemed like mild helplessness and begin mixing medicine, and she could not help but sigh inwardly.
In truth, she and her husband had long since given up all hope of detoxification. They no longer held even the slightest attachment to it.
Rather than coming to seek medicine, they had come out of curiosity, wanting to see what sort of person this little fellow who could cure Mandala Snake Venom truly was.
Before the two Soul Masters, Lin Yue wore a miserable expression as he obediently searched for suitable antidotal herbs and did his best to compound them according to the medicinal properties recorded in the pharmacopeia and alchemy texts.
As his practiced movements entered their eyes, a trace of hope actually emerged in the two patients' gazes.
[ Ding, commission from Dugu Xin: The Final Debt ]
[ Mission Objective: Cure his wife, Bai Ling ]
[ Mission Reward: 3,000 points ]
Huh? What?
In the midst of his torment, Lin Yue, whose senses were sharp, heard the voice in his mind. His hand grinding the herbs suddenly trembled.
Dugu Xin? Why did that name sound familiar?
Wait, wasn't this Dugu Bo's precious son? He wasn't dead yet?!!
Wait, what point in time was this?
How old was Tang San when she met Dugu Bo? Fourteen? And how old was Dugu Bo then? Seventy-eight.
Dugu Bo said he became a Titled Douluo at seventy, and his son died that same year. Damn, it really seemed like his son had died when Tang San was six.
But wasn't that setting from the manhua side story? It was never mentioned in the novel. Which version of the Douluo world was this?
His brows nearly twisted into a knot, but as soon as this thought occurred to him, Lin Yue abruptly slapped his forehead.
Damn, no. Xiao San had become a girl, and he was still worrying about this?
"Little doctor, is there a problem?"
Dugu Xin had been somewhat surprised to see the young boy fetch herbs and grind medicine so proficiently, seemingly quite knowledgeable about medicinal theory. But when he suddenly stopped and slapped his head in frustration, a sense of foreboding immediately rose in Dugu Xin's heart.
"No... no, it's just that your poison, um..."
A conflicted look appeared on Lin Yue's face. For a moment, he did not know how to begin.
The poison in Dugu Xin's body and the poison in his wife's body both came from the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor.
For Dugu Yan to have been born such a gifted little genius, it was clear that both Dugu Bo's son and daughter-in-law should have been powerful Soul Masters. That also matched the fundamental rules of Soul Master families choosing excellent partners for marriage and childbirth.
But that was not the issue. The issue was that Lin Yue could not say it outright.
He could not just open his mouth and say, "I can tell your Martial Spirit is the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor. You've been deeply poisoned by Martial Spirit Backlash, and I can cure you." Wouldn't that be courting death?
How could a little kid like him possibly recognize the Jade Phosphorous Serpent Emperor? If he aroused this couple's suspicions, how was he supposed to treat them?
He needed another way to put it. He had to gain their complete trust while ensuring his own safety.
After weighing his words for several seconds, Lin Yue finally raised his head, lowered his voice, and said cautiously, "The poison in your bodies is not ordinary snake venom, is it?"
!!!
The moment the boy spoke, the clinic fell into an eerie silence.
"I don't know exactly what kind of poison you two have, but I can be certain that it is far more troublesome than the Centurial Mandala Snake's venom from before."
Lin Yue's voice broke the silence, drawing a quiet question from Bai Ling.
"Then, little doctor, do you have a solution?"
Watching a six-year-old child pace back and forth before her, his brow furrowed in concentration, Bai Ling felt an intense sense of unreality.
She was a poison-attribute Strength Attack Type Soul Ancestor, yet she had to ask such a young child for a method to detoxify herself.
However, the fact that this boy could tell at a glance that the poison in both her and her husband's bodies was extraordinary was enough to prove how superb his medical skill was.
"Actually, I do have a potion that can suppress all poisons. Perhaps it can also help you two resist some of the poison's corrosion..."
"What?! All poisons?"
At those words, both husband and wife's expressions changed. A few traces of sickly flush surged onto their already weak faces!
Could it be that they truly had a chance to extend their lives? That they could continue to stay by Yan'er's side?!