Max Level Return—I'll Protect That Fragile One

In the era of Ancient Xia Country, the monarch of the Divine Hidden Dynasty would also lead the courtiers to participate in the sacrificial festival every autumn harvest season.

The Huo Family, descendants of the Divine Hidden Clan, had long forgotten many folk customs from the era of Ancient Xia Country after two thousand years of change, but they had not forgotten the sacrificial festival.

The Huo Clan Sacrificial Festival is the most grand annual event, even grander than the New Year. Huo Wen’an, wearing the Huo Clan Leader’s robe, will lead the Huo Clan members to dance the Blessing Dance and recite prayers on the altar.

To put it plainly, it’s quite similar to a shamanic dance.

The Huo Family Sacrificial Festival is set for the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month each year, and after the wedding, Huo Wen’an must prepare for the festival.

As the hostess of Divine Concealment Island, Xu Xingguang should personally handle the sacrificial festival, but with the Ying Family’s Hundred Medicines Conference opening after the New Year, she must prepare thoroughly to stand out in the conference.

Ying Ziyao, being one of the top three in the Hundred Medicines Conference, is familiar with its format and has experience. Therefore, the day after the wedding, Xu Xingguang took Ye Mingluo and left Divine Concealment Island to learn from Ying Ziyao in the Capital City of Xia Country.

Meanwhile, Huo Wen’an has also become busy recently. As the Huo Family Leader, he bears not only the future of the Huo Family but also that of Xia Country.

The existence of the Divine Martial Realm poses a crisis to the entire Mortal World, and Huo Wen’an cannot stand by idly. Therefore, after the wedding, Huo Wen’an also took Song Chi and began flying around the world, attending various international conferences.

Gradually, everyone knew that the young man beside Captain Huo was his nephew.

At critical moments, he will take over managing the Huo Family for Huo Wen’an.

If Huo Wen’an is the leader of the Huo Family, then Song Chi is the deputy personally chosen by Huo Wen’an.

*

Snow had started to fall in the capital, the climate turned cold, the cold wind howling like the wailing of a stray cat, making people want to burrow into their beds and hide away.

Two lamps were lit in the dormitory on the top floor of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hall, which was the room of Deputy Director Ying Ziyao.

Ying Ziyao’s dormitory was a suite, integrating a reception room, study, and bedroom. Though small, it had everything. Wrapped in a cotton coat, he sat in front of an electric fireplace, holding a mug with steam wafting from it.

At first glance, he looked like a proper and upright old cadre.

Huo Xin and Xu Xingguang each sat on a stool, listening to Ying Ziyao’s detailed explanation of the rules of the Hundred Medicines Conference.

"The Hundred Medicines Conference lasts three days, comprising three stages: questioning, smelling, and diagnosing."

"The so-called questioning refers to a written exam with 70 questions: 50 multiple-choice questions, a mix of single-choice, and multiple-choice without any hints in the question stem. The remaining ten questions are theoretical and ten are practical."

"Generally, skilled participants can complete the paper within two hours. As for those who are not skilled... well, that depends on their abilities."

Nodding, Huo Xin said, "This stage is a very common written test."

Xu Xingguang also nodded.

Ying Ziyao did not refute, and then said, "The second stage, smelling, requires you to identify the types of medicinal materials through their scent and write down the characteristics, effects, and contraindications of each under them."

Huo Xin said, "This tests our ability to discern medicinal materials."

Seeing Ying Ziyao holding the mug, his gaze indifferent like the water in an abandoned old well in a deep mansion, Xu Xingguang’s heart jolted, and she couldn’t help asking, "Uncle Master, it’s not as simple as you say, is it?"

Huo Xin was slightly stunned.

She looked at Xu Xingguang, then at Ying Ziyao.

Having been by Ying Ziyao’s side for so many years, Huo Xin couldn’t see through what her teacher was thinking, so how did Xu Xingguang draw this conclusion?

Ying Ziyao looked at Xu Xingguang somewhat unexpectedly and cast a disdainful glance at Huo Xin, "How can the Hundred Medicines Conference be that simple? Your brain structure is simple; compared to Xu Xingguang, you’re far behind."

"Pay more attention."

Chastised, Huo Xin remained very calm.

To her, if her teacher scolded a disciple, it meant he had not given up on that disciple.

Ying Ziyao drooped his eyelids, gazing at the sinking tea leaves in the water, and explained in a deep voice, "This is the Hundred Medicines Conference, the world’s toughest medical examination, of course, it wouldn’t be that simple."

"So, how exactly is it conducted?" Xu Xingguang’s curiosity was piqued.

Ying Ziyao didn’t keep it a secret, directly saying, "Participants in the second stage are uniformly arranged in a large canteen. The meal bowls will be filled with smell test papers. Generally, the smell test papers in the same bowl have similar fragrances."

"What participants have to do is receive 10 smell test papers from the staff, and then, amidst the aroma of food in the canteen, identify the medicinal materials’ scent on the smell test papers."

Huo Xin’s head hurt; she said, "How is this different from finding a bride while wearing a veil? The key is, this bride isn’t even a person, they’re all wholesale mannequin models."

There’s a difference, but very little difference.

And this is just the second stage.

Ying Ziyao said, "Successfully distinguishing six types of medicinal herbs counts as passing the challenge. In our round, there were eight thousand participants, and after the second round, only eight remained."

"You should have an idea of the difficulty of the second round."

Huo Xin indeed had an idea.

She felt there was a high chance she would not smoothly pass the second round.

After speaking, Ying Ziyao glanced subtly at Xu Xingguang, noticing his calm demeanor without a hint of anxiety. For a moment, he couldn’t tell if she was truly confident, or had completely given up.

Without waiting for Xu Xingguang to comment, Ying Ziyao continued, "The third round is naturally diagnosing a patient."

"Could you be more specific?" Huo Xin learned her lesson and decided to get to the bottom of things.

Ying Ziyao smiled slightly, his gaze falling on Xu Xingguang, and asked her, "Guess."

Xu Xingguang boldly hypothesized, "Suspended silk diagnosis?"

Ying Ziyao shook his head, saying, "Reportedly, the third round of each Hundred Medicines Conference varies, and I am not aware of your round’s topic. It’s like opening a blind box. People say it’s about luck, but it actually tests skill."

"I remember when we were in the third round, only one of the eight passed. The others failed, and ultimately, the second and third were chosen based on their comprehensive performance in the first two rounds."

Huo Xin couldn’t help but ask, "Teacher, what rank were you in?"

"I was first."

"As expected of the teacher."

Huo Xin further asked, "Teacher, what was the content of the third round in your session?"

Xu Xingguang also silently watched Ying Ziyao.

Ying Ziyao took a sip of warm tea, stretched his legs out by the electric fireplace, and explained, "In our session, we used suspended silk pulse diagnosis. We eight were seated in sealed rooms, required to accurately state the patient’s condition using suspended silk diagnosis."

"It doesn’t sound particularly difficult." Huo Xin found it odd, "That shouldn’t be hard, why did only you pass?"

"Because the patient indeed had no pulse."

Upon hearing this, Huo Xin and Xu Xingguang both subtly changed expressions.

Suspended silk pulse diagnosis already challenges the physician’s skills, and only among seasoned medical practitioners can a few be adept at it.

Even more so when the patient lacks a pulse.

With a chuckle, Ying Ziyao said, "The other participants didn’t dare write down the answer, but I wrote a sentence: The patient is deceased. And so, I passed."

Huo Xin frowned, unable to immediately understand why Ying Ziyao succeeded.

Xu Xingguang then realized, "I understand, the final round tests not our medical skills, but our moral courage. Many guessed the patient was deceased, but feared hidden traps in the competition, feared failing, feared deception, resulting in reluctance to write what’s truly believed. This precisely became their crux of failure."

"As a physician, having the courage to speak the truth is also a conscience."

Upon hearing Xu Xingguang’s answer, Ying Ziyao finally smiled and said, "My mentor told me on my first day of learning medicine, as a doctor, one must dare to speak the truth, acknowledge shortcomings."

"Huo Xin." A glance at Xu Xingguang, Ying Ziyao advised them both, "Becoming a physician should be without guilt in heart."

"We understand."

...

In the following period, Xu Xingguang and Huo Xin stayed by Ying Ziyao’s side for intensive training.

Traditional Chinese medicine is a vast ocean.

Huo Xin only touched a corner of this ocean. She had been led to the door by Ying Ziyao, but couldn’t yet achieve expertise. The training was somewhat arduous for her, sniffing those smell test papers all day left her sense of smell somewhat numb.

In contrast, Xu Xingguang appeared to handle things effortlessly. She occasionally made mistakes but reached perfect scores when retaking the tests after a couple of days.

Ying Ziyao was very busy, unable to personally test them.

A week later, Ying Ziyao requested their answer record books from an assistant.

Seeing Huo Xin’s appalling error rate, Ying Ziyao was unsurprised, knowing exactly his student’s level.

However, upon reaching Xu Xingguang’s record, he remained silent for a long time.

Removes his glasses worn for work, Ying Ziyao rubbed his slightly reddened eyes.

With his hands supporting his chin, gazing at the shadows of trees outside the window, he suddenly sighed softly, "Master, Xingguang is not inferior to those arrogant ones from the Ying family. I couldn’t clear your name in the Ying family, but Xingguang definitely can."

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