"Nannan, go to the dispensary and weigh out three taels of Evergreen Caterpillar Grass, five taels of Red Maple Leaves, and four taels of Earth Dragon Fruit."
Huo Yuhao spoke while dealing with a customer seeking medicine, sending Jiang Nannan to fetch several yang herbs that replenished blood essence according to the client's needs.
It had already been half a month since her mother's illness had been successfully cured.
When her mother was discharged, she had nearly dragged Jiang Nannan to kneel before him, tearfully saying that she had never known life could feel so effortless.
Which made sense.
Living with a defective heart like that—how could life ever have been easy?
As usual, Huo Yuhao charged three silver soul coins for the surgery and one gold soul coin for medicinal ingredients.
Jiang Nannan, however, felt that he had charged far too little and insisted on handing over all her savings to him.
Huo Yuhao refused. On one hand, he had already obtained a massive amount of genetic information from the two of them; on the other, even combined, their total assets probably didn't amount to fifty gold soul coins.
Taking it wouldn't have been of much use anyway.
But Jiang Nannan was determined to repay this debt of gratitude.
With no other choice, and after giving it some thought, Huo Yuhao realized that the clinic's reputation had been growing rapidly, and managing everything alone was becoming overwhelming.
So he simply had her come help out at the clinic. When he treated patients, she would assist him as an aide.
When particularly tricky situations arose, she could even serve as a "Spirit-Power power bank."
And at times, they could chat casually, making the otherwise monotonous life of the clinic less dull. From time to time, he would listen to her talk about what she had learned at Shrek Academy, enriching his understanding of this world.
Sometimes, as Huo Yuhao looked at the bustling crowds outside and the busy girl beside him, he would feel that this kind of life in another world wasn't so bad after all.
After Jiang Nannan brought over the medicinal ingredients, Huo Yuhao mixed them together and ground them into a fine powder, handing it to the waiting customer.
"When you brew tea or soup each day, add a little of this powder. It will effectively replenish yang energy."
"Don't take more than one tael per day, or you'll get nosebleeds."
After seeing the customer off, the clinic returned once more to its quiet state, with only the gentle breeze plucking at the door curtain like a leisurely tune.
At moments like these, Huo Yuhao would brew a pot of tea, sip it slowly, and flip through medical texts from this world or the Encyclopedia of Spirit Beasts and Spirit Abilities.
These unfamiliar yet fascinating pieces of knowledge not only deepened his understanding of the world, but also gradually increased his control over the [Understanding] Authority.
He had a premonition that when the [Understanding] Authority reached 5%, it would grant him new abilities.
Just as Huo Yuhao was leisurely reading, Jiang Nannan walked over holding a medical book.
During her time at the clinic, she had begun studying medicine under Huo Yuhao.
She seemed to have developed a liking for the profession of a doctor, which genuinely surprised him.
He couldn't help but sigh at how this "foreign butterfly" of his had truly stirred up a different kind of wind on this continent.
Huo Yuhao was happy to see such changes. He had always believed that the development of the world could never be rigidly dictated by fate.
As long as different choices were made, different outcomes would inevitably follow.
This world was chaotic and filled with randomness; the future was always unknown.
Anyone who sought to plan destiny and control the future—even a lofty God King—would inevitably suffer fate's backlash.
Thus, whenever Jiang Nannan asked him about medical knowledge, Huo Yuhao always did his utmost to break it down and feed it to her bit by bit.
He wanted to see whether Jiang Nannan would truly step onto the path of saving lives because of him.
Looking at Jiang Nannan buried in her medical book, Huo Yuhao asked:
"Nannan, when does Shrek Academy start its term?"
Jiang Nannan tilted her head, her delicate face showing a hint of confusion.
"There are still forty days left. At the latest, I can't be late by more than one week."
"Does Brother Huo have a relative who's going to Shrek?"
Huo Yuhao nodded thoughtfully and replied:
"There is indeed someone I know who will be going to Shrek."
"If, in the future at Shrek Academy, you happen to meet a girl named Xiao Xiao, please help look after her for me."
"Of course—only if it's within your ability."
Jiang Nannan silently repeated the name Xiao Xiao in her heart, committed it firmly to memory, and nodded to Huo Yuhao.
"Mm, if there's a chance, I'll definitely help look after her."
Huo Yuhao glanced outside. The sun's last trace of afterglow had been completely swallowed by darkness. He said to Jiang Nannan:
"There's nothing going on today."
"It's getting late. You can clock out and go home to take care of your mother."
Jiang Nannan hesitated for a moment, then said:
"Then… Brother Huo, I'll head back first."
"Oh, right—can I borrow this medical book to read at home?"
"I promise I won't lose it!"
Huo Yuhao waved his hand lightly and said:
"Take it. It's not some rare medical book—just something worth ten silver soul coins. Take your time reading it at home."
Jiang Nannan left the clinic happily, clutching the medical book as she walked along the main road toward the western district.
Watching Jiang Nannan depart, Huo Yuhao murmured to himself:
"Forty days…"
"In one month, whether I break through to Rank 10 or not, I must head to the Star Dou Forest."
"My two biggest 'cheats' still haven't arrived yet."
Huo Yuhao got up, went to the door, glanced at the bright moonlight, then closed the clinic and began his evening meditation in the second-floor bedroom.
...
The clear moonlight pierced the darkness of night like silver-white blades, its cold glow lending the mortal world a touch of silence and desolation.
Jiang Nannan walked home along the roads of the western district. The roads there were convoluted, and the buildings had no planning at all, resulting in countless narrow alleys.
Perhaps the west district's lack of economic development had something to do with this unplanned construction.
At night, there were usually very few people walking the streets of the western district. Deep alleys were always breeding grounds for unsavory dealings.
That said, Jiang Nannan's strength meant she wasn't afraid of such things.
After all, with strength close to a Spirit Ancestor and her background at Shrek Academy, she counted as a powerful figure in Xuanfeng City.
Just as Jiang Nannan passed by a small alley, a man's voice suddenly sounded from within.
"Miss Jiang Nannan, I'd like to make a deal with you."
Jiang Nannan stopped in her tracks, her gaze alert, her Spirit Abilities ready to activate. She knew all too well what kinds of people lurked in western district alleys at night.
"Come out and speak. I don't make deals with people who hide in the shadows."
The man chuckled softly and slowly stepped out of the darkness, silver moonlight spilling across his face.
It was none other than Chen Wen—the man who had previously overheard the conversation between Jiang Nannan and Xu Wei.
Looking at Jiang Nannan with confidence, he said:
"This is a deal you absolutely won't refuse."
"I heard that your mother has a heart condition that no one can cure, and that she needs the Xuanwu Divine Pill."
"And I just happen to have a Xuanwu Divine Pill."
"But you'll need to agree to do one thing for me."
Jiang Nannan looked at the confident man with a strange expression and said:
"My mother's health problem has already been resolved by someone else. I no longer need the Xuanwu Divine Pill."
"Goodbye!"
With that, Jiang Nannan didn't even spare him a glance and left directly. She felt that this man was definitely not someone trustworthy.
And whatever "deal" he was proposing was certainly suspicious.