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Chapter 1062: Acquiring a Divine Test Subject!
🕑 Added 2024-11-16 11:00:35 +0000 UTC"It's troublesome," Hua Tuo said, stroking his beard with a frown. "The injury is not in his body but in his brain. There are two treatment methods—one conservative, the other more aggressive. As his friends who brought him here, you'll need to choose."
"But he already woke up earlier, didn’t he?" Sun Ce was shocked. In his understanding, once an Inner Qi Leaving the Body cultivator regained consciousness, everything should be fine.
Hua Tuo gave Sun Ce a sideways glance. "Just because he woke up, does that mean he's cured?"
That one sentence left Sun Ce speechless, though he couldn’t refute it. Zhou Tai waking up was undoubtedly a good sign, and Hua Tuo had mentioned that it could be treated.
"May I ask, Divine Doctor, what are these two treatment methods?" Zhou Yu remained calm. From his perspective, if Hua Tuo could revive Zhou Tai so quickly, healing him shouldn't be too difficult.
"One method involves opening his skull, allowing me to personally treat him," Hua Tuo said, sizing up Zhou Yu before proposing a solution that Zhou Yu found absolutely unacceptable.
Lu Yu, already frightened, took two steps back. Qu Qi’s face darkened as if he had been smeared with ash, while Lu Xun felt his facial muscles start to twitch. Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were left with their mouths agape, unsure of what to say.
I knew this guy was crazy! Lu Yu screamed internally, his whole body frozen to the spot. Though he wanted to turn and leave, it was as if his feet were rooted to the ground. He really wanted to see how this would unfold.
"Could you repeat that? My ears might have malfunctioned; I didn’t hear you clearly," Zhou Yu asked, wiping the sweat from his forehead, stammering slightly.
"I said, I'll open his skull and perform direct treatment. He should recover," Hua Tuo replied, fixing Zhou Yu with a steady gaze.
"That’s murder!" Sun Ce finally came to his senses and shouted furiously.
The sound of Sun Ce’s voice reverberated through Hua Tuo’s inner chamber, shaking loose a bit of dust. His volume could almost rival Zhang Fei’s at this point.
"Hey, old man, are you sure about this? What if you open up his head and fail to save him?" Qu Qi asked, his mouth twitching.
"You graft plants all the time without killing them, right? And sometimes you even end up with stronger plants," Hua Tuo responded, growing more confident now that he had voiced his plan. He had considered this method before, and while he hadn’t yet tested it, he was confident he wouldn’t kill Zhou Tai.
"That’s completely different!" Qu Qi’s eye twitched. He could admit Hua Tuo’s medical skills were impressive, but this was life and death they were dealing with.
"Have you forgotten how many times I’ve cut open people’s stomachs to save them?" Hua Tuo replied nonchalantly.
"That’s the stomach, not the brain!" Qu Qi had no words left. He was starting to feel that Hua Tuo had gone insane.
"How about you explain the second option?" Zhou Yu asked with a bitter smile. If Hua Tuo could guarantee success, Zhou Yu might have found someone else for Hua Tuo to test the method on before letting Zhou Tai undergo it. But Hua Tuo had only said, 'should recover.'
To be honest, Hua Tuo only dared propose the skull surgery because Zhou Tai was an Inner Qi Leaving the Body cultivator. If it were a normal person, Hua Tuo knew they would likely die even with his medical skills. Only someone with the resilience of Inner Qi Leaving the Body could survive such an ordeal.
"I personally recommend the first method—let me study him for a month, and then I’ll perform the surgery. He could be fully recovered by the end of next month," Hua Tuo said, still pushing for the skull-opening surgery. "I can guarantee his life won’t be in danger."
"..." Zhou Yu rolled his eyes. Even if Zhou Tai’s life was guaranteed, was it worth putting him through such torment?
"Fine. The second method involves the process you saw earlier—acupuncture, herbal baths, and a slow recovery. It will take a very long time," Hua Tuo said reluctantly. "The recovery process is painfully slow with this method."
Though Hua Tuo appeared frustrated at the lost opportunity for brain surgery, he was still quite pleased. Zhou Tai would be a perfect long-term research subject.
"How long will it take for him to recover using the second method?" Zhou Yu asked, nodding in approval of the conservative option.
"It could take three to five years, possibly longer," Hua Tuo admitted. "Since the injury is in his brain and I can’t examine it directly, this slow treatment is the only option. However, if the surgical option fails, we can still switch to the conservative method afterward."
Hua Tuo continued pushing the skull surgery. He really wanted to attempt it—such a rare opportunity for experimentation was not to be missed.
Zhou Yu felt his face twitch, but he maintained his composure as befits a person of his rank and intelligence. Suppressing his anger, he coughed twice to calm himself.
"We’ll go with the second option. If you try the first method behind our backs, I don’t care if you’re a divine doctor—we will make you pay," Zhou Yu said coldly, his commanding tone sending a chilling aura that all present could sense.
"Don't worry, I have my medical ethics," Hua Tuo reassured him, waving a hand. "But with the conservative treatment, I’ll need to administer regular treatments over a long period. The cost is manageable, but..."
Zhou Yu exchanged a glance with Sun Ce, and they understood each other’s intentions instantly.
"We'll purchase a residence in Taishan and settle him there," Zhou Yu decided. He had already anticipated such a scenario and was prepared. A month ago, they had even held a mock funeral for Zhou Tai, and his child had been taken in by Sun Ce’s household, seemingly perfect.
Since Zhou Tai had only traces of Inner Qi left in his body, only another Inner Qi Leaving the Body cultivator would notice his true condition. No one else would suspect that this comatose man was Zhou Tai. Thus, they could safely leave him in Taishan for treatment.
Once Zhou Tai recovered, it would be easy for an unmonitored Inner Qi Leaving the Body expert to escape, no matter where they were.
"In that case, why not purchase my family’s secondary residence? We’re moving to Ye city soon, leaving only a few servants behind to maintain it. If you plan to have Zhou Tai treated here, we can help you with that," Lu Xun offered, exchanging a glance with Lu Yu, who quickly understood.
"That works," Zhou Yu agreed. He understood that being connected to Lu Yu meant being connected to Liu Bei, making it far less likely for anyone to suspect their plan.
As Hua Tuo squeezed and prodded Zhou Tai’s body, he realized its exceptional condition. His mind buzzed with ideas on how to experiment on this perfect specimen. Zhou Tai’s body held immense research value—just unraveling its immunity to toxins and diseases could herald a new era of medical breakthroughs!
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