From a refugee to a martial artist

Chapter 348 Doctor
As Shui Xiangsheng spoke, his eyes were fixed on Meng Yuan, while the two middle-aged men behind him were extremely respectful.

Dugu Kang also looked at Meng Yuan with great anticipation, his gaze filled with the scrutiny and assessment of an old friend, yet also tinged with a hint of loneliness.

The library tower was silent, and the neat bookshelves were spotless.

Mingyue, who had been guarding the entrance, had already heard the commotion inside the library tower. She was already seething with anger, and now that she saw Shui Xiangsheng, who had clearly harmed people first, shamelessly begging for help, she angrily went into the library tower.

Sword in hand, the bright moon surveys the surroundings.

The library tower was dimly lit, but the moon's gaze was sharp as a sword, and its aura instantly enveloped everyone in the room.

The divine power was like a prison, and Shui Xiangsheng's body trembled slightly. The two middle-aged men behind him were already unsteady on their feet.

"You want to borrow someone else's sharp knife, but I don't know what your abilities are?" Mingyue gripped the hilt of her sword tightly and looked at Shui Xiangsheng.

The high priest Shui Xiangsheng paused for a moment, then said, "I know what young friend Meng is seeking."

Upon hearing this, Mingyue stopped bothering Shui Xiangsheng and looked at Dugu Kang.

Their eyes were filled with contempt, as if they were looking at a dead body.

Dugu Kang originally had the demeanor of a high monk, with a serene smile on his face, but when he met Mingyue's eyes, he became increasingly unable to hold on, and his back slowly bent down.

"How dare you plot against me in secret?" Mingyue gripped her sword and stepped forward.

"I'm doing this for your own good..." Dugu Kang said stubbornly, forgetting to refer to himself as a humble monk. He stared at Mingyue for only a few breaths before retreating in fright, saying, "I'm doing this for Meng Feiyuan's own good, to rid him of his lustful desires. I'm doing this for your own good, hoping you can get rid of your demonic obsession soon."

"Should I thank you?" Mingyue immediately drew her sword.

“We share the same surname and origin, so there’s no need for thanks.” Dugu Kang was even more frightened, having long forgotten the rule that monks have no relatives, and instead started arguing with Mingyue about their kinship.

Seeing the intense anger in Mingyue's eyes, he knew that this girl was always very capable. Although she had some skills, she was not good at fighting. If they were to fight, she would definitely suffer a great loss.

Without daring to think further, Dugu Kang immediately hid behind Meng Yuan, crying out, "Brother-in-law, save me!"

"Dugu Kang!" Mingyue was furious at Dugu Kang's shamelessness. "You and your son are truly both scoundrels!"

Su Xin helped Su Wen in. She saw Dugu Kang's bald head and felt a sense of familiarity, but she had obviously overheard the conversation in the library tower, so she said, "What trial or not? Even if they are very much in love, they don't need you to match them up. Now look what you've done, you've offended someone!"

Dugu Kang bowed to Su Xin and wiped the sweat from his face.

"Dugu Kang, where did you go after Qing Guangzi took you away?" Seeing that Dugu Kang was too scared to move, Mingyue did not have the heart to kill her relatives, so she put her sword back in its sheath, but the fire in her eyes did not dissipate.

"I don't know either, but it was an extremely bright and grand place, shrouded in Buddha's light all day long, without a trace of darkness or filth." Dugu Kang was very devout.

"Just because you light a lamp in a ditch doesn't mean it's no longer a stinking ditch!" Mingyue sneered, then asked, "So what did Qingguangzi teach you?"

"My guru taught me to have a compassionate heart, to do good deeds, and to help others." Seeing that Mingyue had no kind words for Qingguangzi, Dugu Kang did not argue, but said, "He also said that when he attains Buddhahood in the future, he will guide me to become the future Buddha."

Before Mingyue could say anything, Suxin smiled.

"Our Buddhist reputation has been ruined by you bald monks who only know how to talk big!" Su Xin said irritably, supporting Su Wen. "You slaughtered a city one minute and then preached goodness the next!"

"Amitabha." Dugu Kang sighed, without refuting.

"Dugu Kang, so you're actually being controlled by Qing Guangzi, just like Jie Kaiping?" Mingyue asked.

“Great masters and virtuous teachers influence their followers silently, without needing to use methods of cultivating thoughts to govern their subordinates.” Dugu Kang took this for granted.

Mingyue scoffed.

"Then why did you come here?" Meng Yuan asked.

Dugu Kang looked distressed and said, "I've come to find Dugu Sheng."

"Is Dugu Sheng here?" Mingyue asked immediately.

Dugu Kang remained silent, instead looking at Shui Xiangsheng.

"While you two young friends were making a name for yourselves here, we were already searching for him outside. But Fellow Daoist Dugu's method of concealment is peculiar; he doesn't want to see anyone, so we really can't find him at all." Shui Xiangsheng's words had a rather sarcastic tone.

"Then why did Dugu Sheng come here?" Su Xin had already figured out Dugu Kang's identity by now, and she asked out of curiosity.

"I don't know. Perhaps it was to avoid disaster, or to seek the Dao, or to ask for medical help." Shui Xiangsheng smiled. "However, I do know who took him in."

Shui Xiangsheng had extremely long hair and beard. He had been sitting cross-legged, but now he shakily raised his hand and said, "Take a seat."

The two middle-aged men behind him immediately brought out a wide wooden chair and placed it about two zhang away from him, and then respectfully served him hot tea.

The tea was a vibrant green, with wispy green leaves emanating from it, releasing a faint steam that rose slowly, resembling the shapes of dragons and elephants, or flying cranes and celestial birds.

Meng Yuan and Mingyue did not come to drink. Su Xin sniffed the aroma, while Dugu Kang slurped it down with a cheerful laugh.

"This all began with the origins of our Xiangji Kingdom." When the high priest Shui Xiangsheng saw everyone looking at him, a glimmer of light appeared in his cloudy eyes. He slightly raised his head and looked at the void in front of him, as if recalling the past.

His voice was weak, yet inexplicably powerful.

“More than two thousand years ago, the Pure Land of Bliss nurtured a second-grade Bodhisattva.” Shui Xiangsheng said expressionlessly, “But before the Pure Land of Bliss was destroyed, this second-grade Bodhisattva felt that the Pure Land of Bliss should not exist in the world, so he did not take action. Instead, he led many disciples away and came to this place.”

"What do you mean you didn't make a move?" Dugu Kang chuckled and said, "At that time, a martial artist killed two Arhats from the Blissful Buddha Kingdom and attained the third rank of Dao. The Medicine King Bodhisattva was afraid of his sharpness and clearly did not dare to compete, which is why he fled far away."

"A martial artist actually killed two third-grade Arhats, a feat beyond his own level?" Su Xin's eyes widened in disbelief.

"This is what the master said, and I'm not entirely sure myself." Dugu Kang was, after all, an honest man.

"Perhaps there is such a thing." Shui Xiangsheng did not refute it, but continued, "That second-rank Bodhisattva is called the Medicine King Bodhisattva, also known as the Medicine Buddha."

Shui Xiangsheng barely raised his withered left hand, pointed outside, and said, "The Medicine King Bodhisattva once received the medical tradition. After arriving here, he saw that this place was blessed with spiritual energy and various precious herbs and medicines, so he settled here as a place of practice." "Then why didn't the Medicine King Bodhisattva propagate Buddhism here?" Su Xin asked curiously, then suddenly realized, "If everyone believed in Buddhism, then everyone would be extinct!"

“That makes sense, but it’s not all true.” Dugu Kang smiled and said, “When the Medicine King Bodhisattva left, he promised not to pass on the Buddhist doctrines outside the sect.”

Dugu Kang became serious and said, "Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are most likely to produce masters, but martial artists are least afraid of masters."

Na Shui Xiangsheng never interrupts when others are speaking; he simply waits quietly.

After no one spoke, Shui Xiangsheng continued, "It's just that the medical lineage is incomplete, so I don't know how to reach the higher levels."

"The Second-Rank Medicine King Bodhisattva opened up this place, so why is it that now, not only is there no one practicing Buddhism, but there are also no martial artists, and very few have inherited the medical tradition? On the contrary, whether nobles or slaves, they are all weak and frail?" Su Xin asked.

“Originally, there was a martial arts lineage.” Shui Xiangsheng sighed. “However, this place is safe and prosperous, so the path of a martial artist can’t go far. Moreover, there was an old story of a martial artist conspiring with slaves to overthrow the Xiangji Kingdom. After the rebellion was quelled, the Xiangji Kingdom burned all its martial arts books and no longer allowed outsiders to enter the library tower.”

Dugu Kang smiled upon hearing this, "You don't even recognize the characters anymore. You so-called nobles, you just keep sucking blood from others until you forget where you came from. It's truly laughable even to me."

"Are the two upper surnames and the eleventh disciple all disciples of the Medicine King Bodhisattva?" Meng Yuan asked.

Shui Xiangsheng nodded and said, "According to the records, after the Medicine King Bodhisattva came to this place, he meditated facing a wall. His disciples then built this place and each took on disciples. However, the Medicine King Bodhisattva forbade the propagation of Buddhism, so he passed down the path of medical advancement. In the end, two disciples with the best aptitude served the Medicine King Bodhisattva, and there were also seventeen external disciples who received the medical inheritance. But after that, the Medicine King Bodhisattva ascended to heaven and disappeared without a trace, never to be seen again."

"Then why don't the nobles of today follow the medical tradition? And why is the hierarchy so strict?" Mingyue asked.

“The years have been too long, and the path of a physician is not easy. This is because the method of cultivation relies on consuming medicinal herbs and practicing medicine to advance step by step.” Shui Xiangsheng’s eyes were cloudy, like a deep pool that had been churned up. “Generation after generation, although the Xiangji Kingdom has many herbs, it is difficult to supply so many people with the path to becoming physicians. In order to maintain their status, the structure of the two upper families and the eleven apprentice families was formed. Over the years, it has become like this.”

"So much so that now only people with the surnames Gan and Shui can be ranked among the medical professions?" Su Xin asked.

Shui Xiangsheng nodded slightly and said, "Sometimes we also select some exceptionally talented individuals from among those with different surnames."

"Then who are my junior sister's parents?" Su Xin asked.

"For a physician, taking medicine to advance in rank is like taking poison. Giving birth to offspring is also a way to expel the poison. Therefore, offspring are born with rank, but very few can survive." Shui Xiangsheng looked at Suwen in Suxin's arms and said, "I was just about to talk about this girl's parents."

For a moment, everyone listened intently and quietly.

Shui Xiangsheng spoke slowly, then started talking again.

It turns out that after the Xiangji Kingdom's structure stabilized, the upgraded medicinal herbs could not be supplied to everyone, so they could only be cultivated by the two most powerful families, Gan and Shui.

This is also the reason why the two families take turns serving as the high priests of the Xiangji Kingdom.

For the sake of the Xiangji Kingdom, the high priest usually takes on many disciples, who are taught by his side from a young age.

After learning about various medicinal herbs, the two most outstanding individuals were selected and taken as personal disciples to be taught the medical methods.

However, if a medical practitioner wants to go far, they need to practice medicine and treat diseases. The land of Xiangji is blessed with beautiful scenery and has a large population. However, the people here take spices and herbs all year round, so their bodies are a bit weak, but they rarely suffer from any serious illnesses.

Therefore, after entering the medical path and reaching the sixth rank, they will be sent out to gain experience and see the world.

"The outside world is full of temptations, aren't you afraid that once you let it out, you won't be able to bring it back?" Su Xin asked blankly.

Dugu Kang smiled, touched his bald head, and pointed at Meng Yuan.

"Controlling people with poison?" Su Xin wasn't stupid after all, and she immediately understood.

Shui Xiangsheng did not respond, but simply said, "The previous high priest came from the Gan clan and was my master."

“The previous high priest must have had two disciples, besides you, the other one…” Su Xin finally understood, and she looked at Su Wen in her arms.

"My name is Shui Xiangsheng, and my junior brother's name is Gan Wulin." The turbidity in Shui Xiangsheng's eyes cleared up a bit, and he said, "After we received our master's inheritance, we left the Xiangji Kingdom together. I went north to the capital of the Qing Kingdom, while he went to the Demon Kingdom. Later, I heard that he went to the Buddhist Kingdom, and finally we met in the capital."

As Shui Xiangsheng spoke, his eyes lit up, and he clenched his fist, which looked like a chicken claw, and said, "The two of us traveled to all corners of the world again, and finally returned to the Kingdom of Xiangji."

Everyone listened attentively, knowing that they had reached a crucial point.

"Junior Brother is exceptionally talented, already at the fifth rank at only twenty years old. He possesses medicinal energy, his eyes can observe changes in the heavens, earth, and people, and he is intimately familiar with mountains and rivers. As long as a person is not dead, he can save them." Shui Xiangsheng's tone was filled with grief and indignation, yet also with envy. "What Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, or martial arts? As long as they have a breath left, Junior Brother can extend their life!"

At this point, Shui Xiangsheng chuckled and continued, "When Master saw us return, he asked us if we had gained anything. I've been away for over ten years and I'm still only at the sixth rank, but my junior brother is already unfathomable. He received secret instructions from Master, but I don't know them."

Shui Xiangsheng recalled the past and sighed, "He had great ambitions. After seeing the outside world, he said that the distinction between noble and lowly in my Xiangji Kingdom was too great, and he was determined to eliminate the thirteen surnames."

"It seems it didn't work out," Su Xin said.

“That’s right.” Shui Xiangsheng nodded slightly. “He was a fifth-rank physician who healed countless people, but he never harmed a single one. It was because he was too compassionate and could not bear to see blood that he died with resentment and could not close his eyes in peace.”

"So you and your junior brother parted ways?" Su Xin asked.

"It's not that we've parted ways. We've both carried on our master's legacy." Shui Xiangsheng smiled sadly. "My junior brother disdained the position of high priest and handed it over to me instead. He's been busy traveling around."

"Isn't this a good thing?" Su Xin asked curiously.

"Is this a good thing?" Shui Xiangsheng sneered. "My junior brother has fallen into demonic possession. He said that the people of Xiangji Kingdom are no longer easy to save, so he simply abandoned his identity as a physician and will never practice medicine again."

"..." Su Xin remained silent.

"Can studying medicine save the Kingdom of Xiangji?" Meng Yuan couldn't help but laugh.

“That’s right.” Shui Xiangsheng nodded. “He’s gone astray.”

"What kind of evil path?" Mingyue couldn't help but ask.

“He wants to find an emperor to rule this place,” Shui Xiangsheng said.

(End of this chapter)