Filling the Gaps

Ah~

"It hurts even more than last time!"

"They actually attacked this spot three times! I hate the Naggus people! Those opportunistic lackeys, they actually tried to kill me right in the heart!"

"Omega, Shelton, Angus, Arnold—from now on, I'll beat them all up whenever I see them. Break the legs of any man, and smash the breasts of any woman!"

Even while undergoing treatment, Zhou Rihui remained terrified of sharp objects piercing his body, which caused him to rant and rave.

Although it was very painful, Zhou Rihui persevered and endured it this time.

He was previously afraid of being stabbed in a vital part of his body and was unable to cooperate, which resulted in two days of treatment. The days that followed were extremely difficult, and Zhou Rihui never wanted to go through it again.

He wanted immediate medical attention, even if it meant he would faint from fear.

"Hey, wake up!"

Zhou Rihui felt as if he had experienced a period of blackout, but he didn't really feel anything.

He only came to his senses after Zhang Xuezhou called out to him repeatedly.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Rihui asked.

"You've already gone through three periods of unconsciousness and wakefulness; please don't let yourself pass out again this time," Zhang Xuezhou said. "I've exhausted all my divine grace; this is the best I can do to heal you for now!"

"Falling into unconsciousness three times? Nonsense! How could I possibly fall into unconsciousness three times? It was already dark!"

Zhou Rihui forced a defense, but when his gaze fell upon the darkness outside the research institute, he had to admit that his medical visit had taken a very long time.

He kept cursing and swearing, and it didn't seem like much time had passed. Now that I think about it, it was because he had fallen into a coma that he lost his sense of time.

"I must have cooperated while I was unconscious, right?" Zhou Rihui asked in a low voice.

"You cooperated fairly well!"

Zhang Xuezhou wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and then untied the cowhide rope binding Zhou Rihui's limbs.

Just like his numerous passive abilities, Zhou Rihui, even when unconscious, still exhibited self-protective behaviors, much like the severed heads of snakes that would retaliate upon being touched.

Zhou Rihui wasn't among the strongest people Zhang Xuezhou had ever seen, but he was definitely one of the people with the best motor reflexes.

"Don't come to me for treatment next time. I'm not strong enough, and you could easily kill me," Zhang Xuezhou said.

"No, please! I'm a man who gets hurt easily. You can't abandon me!"

Modern medical technology can't even match the miraculous healing techniques of Zhang Xuezhou and others, and Zhou Rihui felt that he would be living off the wealthy from now on.

With this logistical capability, he will not only be more ferocious in combat, but also more willing to take risks.

He untied the cowhide rope, stood up, and tugged at Zhang Xuezhou a few times.

When Zhang Manqian showed him several photos of medical records, and seeing Zhang Xuezhou, who had been knocked to the ground by his own reflexes, he could only reply sullenly.

"Can I pay more?" Zhou Rihui asked, quickly getting dressed.

A single medical trip to X446 costs eight million. Even after two or three treatments on Sunday, Zhou Hui can only heal part of his injuries. Old injuries and accumulated residual injuries have not been fully healed.

He did a quick calculation and felt that getting treatment from Zhang Xuezhou was very cost-effective.

In terms of actual costs, the blood culture medium they paid only cost a little over two million yuan.

Even if the other party accepts eight hundred or even a thousand portions of culture medium, Zhou Rihui simply smiles and feels he has made a huge profit.

Moreover, he doesn't care about price increases; he only wants long-term and stable medical support.

He took a deep breath, and a muffled boom, like a thunderclap, emanated from Zhou Rihui's body.

As the old wounds healed, a sense of tightness and refinement welled up in his body, instantly elevating him to a state of coordinated attack involving muscles, bones, skin, and flesh. Zhou Rihui felt an urge to scream at the ceiling.

The medical effect was within his estimated range, but it fell within the upper limit of Zhou Rihui's range.

If it weren't for Zhang Xuezhou's treatment, he wouldn't have known that he had so many ailments in his body, and it was these seemingly insignificant illnesses that had been constantly hindering and limiting his individual abilities.

"My divine grace is limited," Zhang Xuezhou said. "Your strength will only increase in the future, and I definitely won't be able to keep up with you, much less heal your injuries!"

"Will this treatment require Divine Grace indefinitely?" Zhou Rihui asked incredulously, "But we just used Divine Grace's Danhuang!"

"You know, divine grace is like medicine; it runs out after a while, and you can't keep taking it forever," Zhang Xuezhou shrugged.

"What do we need?" Zhou Rihui asked curiously.

"The best quality of the exotic heron or heron blood serum is the highest!"

Can blood potions be considered divine grace?

"The requirements are different each time, but this is generally simpler than you going to get the cinnabar!"

"That's true!"

Zhang Xuezhou shrugged, as usual pushing his own needs onto the shield of Tuer Shen'en.

"If you want me to help you again next time, you must also help me improve my level of divine grace. Otherwise, I won't be able to keep up with you, and I will certainly find it difficult to heal the increasingly complex injuries in your bodies!"

Zhang Xuezhou pointed to himself, then to Zhang Manqian standing beside him.

He helps Zhou Rihui, and Zhou Rihui helps them; this is essentially a form of alliance and resource exchange.

Such exchanges are mutually beneficial, and the value generated is not measured by market prices.

Having demonstrated their abilities and also gotten Zhou Rihui to ask for something in return, this was the source of Zhang Xuezhou and his group's confidence in seeking an alliance.

The Zhou Household's Western Mountain inevitably leads to radicalism and risk-taking. Zhou Yueyan might even personally travel to Qinmeng, which would inevitably create a medical need for them.

"Become!"

On Sunday, Hui scratched his head and agreed.

"If you don't have egret blood serum where you are, you can use your connections to help me buy some. Money is no object," Zhang Xuezhou said. "My sister's needs are more general; she also has some need for high-end blood serums from tigers, leopards, and cranes!"

"I want to explore the path beyond the Third Sequence," Zhang Manqian said earnestly. "I've discovered that no matter how diligently I study and practice, whether it's the Tiger and Crane Dual Forms or the Tiger-Leopard Thunder Sound Fighting Technique, the power of these Gene Fighting Technique is limited after reaching higher levels, far from enough to establish a foothold above the Fourth Sequence."

"The heron-like beasts required by the Divine Grace are quite difficult to obtain, and this blood serum is rather unconventional, but Manqian, your situation is relatively easier to resolve," Zhou Rihui said. "Most people stop at the Third Sequence. The Gene Fighting Technique from the Sequencing Grand Meeting can only guarantee you to reach the Third Sequence. The Fourth Sequence and above require tailor-made techniques based on individual characteristics. In the past, you haven't reached the tailor-made stage, so even if you obtained the complete Gene Fighting Technique, you would still need to modify and refine them to gain stronger abilities!"

"This seems different from deterrent combat techniques," Zhang Xuezhou wondered.

"Same," Zhou Rihui shook his head and said, "The reason you feel it's different is because Professor Ren Yisheng paved the way, making you appear to be similar. In reality, every high- Sequence Holder has a supporting team or internal alliance, and they need to be lifted up step by step to keep moving forward."

"Does my sister need to form a team to pursue the sequence, or is there already a team paving the way?" Zhang Xuezhou asked.

"You should know that in the past, we always chose to develop single genes," Zhou Rihui said. "If we were to seek tiger-type Gene Fighting Technique, the Changkong Household has branches for developing Divine Might Tiger Fist, Palm, Sword, and Knife. If we were to seek leopard-type gene fighting techniques, the Song Household, which caused a lot of trouble, has sequences of fighting techniques such as Cat Step, Leopard Step, and Leopard Flash. Crane-type techniques are difficult to develop, with only the Zuo Household's Eagle Claw Skill and Crane Claw techniques being worth mentioning. However, in the modern era, mixed abilities are constantly filling the gaps, and we no longer rely entirely on inheriting from the older generation."

"Fill a vacancy?"

"That's right. Apart from our kind, where the whole body can be attacked, or fighting styles that rely on intimidation and other forceful approaches, other Lineage are promoting comprehensive development and engaging in exchanges and collaborations to try and compensate for the limited adaptability of their Gene Fighting Technique!"

"In other words, continuous progress requires the development of various abilities, rather than seeking to reach a single limit?"

That's true for most people!

Zhou Rihui nodded.

If you want to find a ready-made path, you need to persuade three powerful Lineage to obtain what you need.

This was a difficult matter for Zhang Xuezhou, but much simpler for the Zhou Household.

This is also why the problem mentioned by Zhou Rihui was relatively easy to solve.