The Envoy of Abundance from Onphalus

"We follow Mr. Huaixiu's principles in our medical practice: to heal suffering, not to prolong life. I apologize."

Upon hearing this, the old Yun cavalryman was not discouraged at all. Instead, he laughed heartily, his voice full of vigor: "Five years? Haha! I've lived for many years, I've already had my fill!"

“A few days ago, my old injury flared up, and the pain was so bad that I couldn’t straighten my back. The doctors all shook their heads and said that I probably wouldn’t make it through the winter. They even told me to prepare for my funeral.”

He patted his muscular chest vigorously. "Thanks to you, not only is the pain gone, but I'm also getting five years of extra life for free! This deal is a huge windfall for this old man! I'm overjoyed!"

Bai Li looked at his cheerful smile and a hint of warmth appeared on his tense face. He wiped the fine sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and said, "I am relieved that you think this way."

“Remember, you must take this medicine once a month without fail.” His tone became extremely serious. “As long as you take the medicine on time, five years from now, when you pass away… you will pass away peacefully, without pain.”

"I know, I know!" Old Yun cavalryman nodded repeatedly, like an obedient child. He suddenly remembered something and reached into the shiny leather pouch at his waist.

He pulled out dozens of gleaming gold arrows and, without saying a word, tried to stuff them into Bai Li's medicine pouch: "Doctor Bai, you've used so many good medicines on me these past few days, it must have cost you a lot, right? You must accept this small token of my appreciation!"

Bai Li hurriedly raised his hand to block, his fox ears perking up slightly in his anxiety: "Old man! You mustn't! Absolutely not! The costs of our medical practice and medicine are all covered and reimbursed by the Luofu Immortal Boat. If we take Luofu's subsidies and then charge patients, that's breaking the rules!"

"Oh? Is that so!" The old Yun cavalryman suddenly realized, then stubbornly frowned again. "General Jingyuan is indeed very thoughtful! It was this old man who was confused. But..."

He changed his tone abruptly, his eyes unusually stubborn: "You still have to take this money!" Relying on his strength honed through years of martial arts training, he took advantage of Bai Li's momentary lapse in attention and forcefully stuffed the dozen or so warm patrol arrows into the interlayer of the medicine pouch.

"I receive a monthly pension from the Cloud Cavalry, which is more than enough to cover my food, clothing, and other expenses! Leaving this money with an old man like me who's about to die is just a pile of dead stuff!"

He pressed down on Bai Li's hand, which was trying to refuse, and said in an unquestionable tone, "Take it! When you have the chance to leave Luofu in the future, use this money to buy more medicine and save more people! Consider it my last contribution to these suffering people. If the merit I accumulate from this allows me to live for a couple more years, then I'll have gotten a great deal! Haha!"

Seeing the pure enthusiasm and unwavering insistence in the old man's eyes, Bai Li's refusal stuck in her throat.

He finally sighed helplessly, a bitter smile of emotion tugging at the corner of his mouth, and bowed deeply to the old Yunqi: "Old man, your sincerity is beyond my comprehension. I, Bai Li, hereby swear that I will not fail your trust and will use these patrol arrows to do my best to save more people."

"Good! Good! That's more like it!" The old Yun cavalryman stroked his beard with satisfaction and laughed heartily.

In this tender moment, a piercing, painful scream shattered the brief tranquility of the square like a thunderclap!

"Uhhhhhh-!"

The sound came from a stretcher not far behind Bai Li! A young Yunqi soldier who had been lying down suddenly sat up, his body convulsing and twisting violently, and the gray-green patterns under his skin spread and bulged wildly as if they were alive.

His eyes instantly lost all their light, leaving only a murky madness. Accompanied by a teeth-grinding "crack," his arms, before everyone's eyes, mutated and stretched out, instantly transforming into two enormous, gleaming blades as sharp as withered branches—his demonic body had fully erupted!

The mutated monster let out inhuman roars from its throat, its bloodshot, murky eyes frantically scanning the terrified crowd around it.

Finally, the focus was fixed on a little boy who was frozen in place, clutching a toy cloth tiger in his hand!

"Child! Run!" Bai Li's pupils contracted sharply as he shouted a warning. At the same time, he flipped his wrist, and several thin needles with a dark blue luster were already between his fingers!

However, there is someone faster than him!

Just as the demonic soldier turned into a blur and his bone blade was about to pierce the little boy's heart, a burly figure suddenly appeared like a rock, using his broad back to firmly protect the completely terrified child!

Pfft——!

The chilling sound of a sharp blade tearing through flesh rang out.

It was that old Yun cavalryman who had just been chatting and laughing, full of energy.

His faded old uniform was instantly torn open on the back by two huge, grotesque, intersecting wounds.

Blood gushed out like a fountain, splattering onto the cold ground and the panicked people around. The horrific wounds were so deep that bone was visible, and one could even vaguely see the writhing organs inside.

He was cut in two.

For an elderly fox-man who was not a long-lived species and whose body had long been eroded by the years and old wounds, this was undoubtedly an instant fatal injury!

"Ugh...!" The old Yun cavalryman let out a short and heavy groan. The huge impact made him stagger forward while holding the child in his arms, but his arms, which were like iron clamps, still protected the child tightly, preventing him from being hurt in the slightest.

Crash—clang—!

The old pouch at his waist, instantly soaked with blood, suddenly shattered, and the dozen or so patrol arrows that had not yet been delivered, mixed with a few blood-stained shards of porcelain, rolled to the ground.

A piercing, chilling crack echoed in the suddenly deathly silent square. The golden light, reflected against the thick blood, appeared both blinding and desolate.

That was the final swan song of an old Yun cavalryman, his last act of protection.

.........

The second 2K7, still 27 cards short. Sad.

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Golden Branches Through the Ages: Chapter 154 Chaos at Changletian Square

Bai Li suddenly ripped off his blindfold, and with a flick of his wrist, several beams of cold light shot out.

The silver needle pierced precisely into the vital organs of the Cloud Cavalry soldier, who was twisting and had become a demonic monster.

The deadly poison attached to the needle tip erupted instantly, not only sealing off the remaining life force within the monstrous creature, but also completely crushing and annihilating its restless and violent abundant power.

The toxin spread rapidly, and the leaves on the soldier's body lost their luster at a visible speed, turning withered, yellow, and brittle. In the end, his entire body, like the embers of a burnt-out fire, turned into ashes and dissipated into the air.

However, this brief victory was like a stone thrown into stagnant water.

Immediately afterwards, screams of pain echoed throughout the square! More Cloud Knights convulsed violently, as if something alive was writhing beneath their skin, and golden ginkgo leaves pierced through their flesh and grew wildly, instantly covering their entire bodies.

In a very short time, their eyes went from pain to utter chaos, reason was completely erased, leaving only a beastly ferocity and a pure desire to kill.

They skipped over the last vestige of clarity that might remain in the early stages of their demonic incarnation, and directly transformed into roaring monsters that knew only destruction!

"Beware! It's a powerful demonic spirit!" a physician from the immortal ship cried out in alarm.

The abundant power emanating from them was no longer a gentle breath of life, but rather exuded a plague-like savagery and the smell of death.

This is precisely the nightmare that has recently ravaged the Immortal Ship Luofu—the fall of an ordinary demonic body is a long and arduous torment, and the patient can often maintain their sanity for a period of time.

But this fierce demonic body is like the most vicious curse, silently eroding the host. Once it erupts, it will drag the host into a deep abyss of utter madness like a thunderbolt.

Many physicians from the Immortal Ship were caught off guard and died under the claws of these suddenly appearing monsters while trying to treat patients in the early stages of a coma.

The situation was only forcibly brought under control when the compassionate physicians arrived—a group of warriors who believed in the ways of the dead and walked on the edge of medicine and warfare.

They believe in a more direct and brutal approach to treatment: for these utterly out-of-control, destructive monsters, the greatest act of compassion for the world is to completely eradicate them.

Bai Li's pointed ears perked up warily. Almost simultaneously, the compassionate physicians around him leaped out like cheetahs, the cold glint of their unsheathed weapons slicing through the chaos. Heavy battle axes, sharp chainsaws, poisoned needles…

All sorts of strange weapons instantly transformed into the scythe of death. The physicians of the immortal ship, knowing they were not good at fighting, immediately and tacitly dispersed, shouting to evacuate the panicked civilians and carry away those who could not be moved, keeping these non-combatants as far away as possible from this bloody slaughterhouse.

The Compassionate Physician's fighting style is completely different from the gentle approach of the Immortal Boat Physician. Their weapons are all stained with the filthy blood of evil spirits, and their movements are ruthless and efficient.

Faced with these monsters that disrupted the rescue efforts and took the lives of their comrades, their anger transformed into a cold, murderous will.

"Those who disturb my medical practice shall die!" roared a burly and compassionate physician, swinging his giant axe in a wide arc, cleaving a charging demonic monster in two.

Another doctor, like a ghost, whirred chainsaws and precisely severed the monster's joints, causing it to collapse to the ground. He then stomped on its skull to prevent it from regenerating.

Even more extreme, some men, wearing iron gloves covered in spikes, grabbed the arms of a demon soldier and tore him in two with a tooth-grinding tearing sound.

This bloody and violent scene turned the faces of the physicians from the distant evacuation ships pale; the fighting spirit of these compassionate physicians was truly terrifying and chilling.

Bai Li's figure weaved through the chaos, his heterochromatic pupils seemingly able to pierce through illusions and precisely capture the core nodes of the flow of evil power.

The silver needles in his hands were no longer tools for saving lives, but deadly thorns of judgment. With each flick, they precisely pierced the energy nodes or fatal weaknesses of the evil creatures.

A flash of silver light, and a roaring monster suddenly froze, then followed in its footsteps and turned to ashes.

"Ouch!" A crisp exclamation rang out. The small figure—Bai Lu, the Dragon Lord of the Wisdom Clan—also joined the battle, wielding her enormous medicine gourd.

Her tail slammed into the side of a demonic figure with a whistling sound, knocking him back several steps. Although her movements had a touch of childishness, they were exceptionally agile.

"Bang!" An arrow formed of ice crystals flew past Bai Lu's head and accurately pierced the eye socket of the demonic entity she had repelled, freezing and shattering its skull.

On March 7th, he put away his recurve bow and rushed in from the edge of the square with Xing.

“You were right this time,” Xing said, dodging a monster’s pounce while adding her own comment, “Running into Sambo is never a good thing! Look at this mess!”

"What are you doing, still being so sarcastic?!" March 7th shouted, nocking her bow again. "Get your weapons and help! Don't just stand there watching!" Ice arrows rained down, blasting frost-covered areas through the monster horde.

"Here it comes!" Xing grinned, and the unassuming baseball bat instantly appeared in his hand, sweeping out with tremendous force. "Go for it!"

A demonic figure, growling, was struck as if by a battering ram, screaming as it flew backward and crashed into a small stall at the edge of the square.

Xing's current thought is: Who should the stall owner seek compensation from? She can't very well go after her, can she?

The composed Walter Young adjusted his glasses, and an invisible force field emanated from him. It was not used for attack, but rather to subtly guide the chaotic fleeing crowd, forming relatively safe evacuation routes and preventing greater stampede casualties.

"This way! Don't crowd!"

Thanks to the efficient slaughter by Physician Cihui, the interference of Bailu, and the timely support of the three members of the Starry Sky Train crew, this sudden bloody riot was finally forcibly suppressed.

The square was filled with the heavy smell of ashes.

Apart from the Cloud Knights who unfortunately transformed into demonic beings, and an old Cloud Knight who bled to death after being cut in half by a monster in the early stages of the chaos, there were no other casualties.

This is a stroke of luck amidst the chaos and misfortune.

March 7th and Xing were panting, their gazes falling on the gray-haired fox-man doctor with a unique air not far away.

Bai Li was squatting on the ground, silently and even somewhat anxiously picking up the patrol arrows scattered in the pool of blood and ashes one by one.

He wiped away the stains and carefully put it away. His heterochromatic eyes were lowered, and his face showed undisguised heaviness and sorrow, as if the blood-stained metal carried an unspeakable burden.

March 7 and Xing exchanged a glance, both seeing the same thought in each other's eyes: now is not the time to disturb him.

"Thank you all for your help," Bai Lu's voice was tinged with weariness and a heaviness beyond her years. She shook her medicine gourd and looked at the ashes remaining on the ground.

"Alas... These Cloud Cavalry soldiers didn't die on the battlefield against the abundant monsters, but were taken by this damned, fierce demonic body. It's really... such a waste."

Xing looked at the little dragon girl who was only up to his waist and couldn't help but say, "Little sister, it's too dangerous here. Getting medical treatment is no joke. Go home and find your parents."

"I don't have a father!" Bai Lu immediately puffed out her little chest, her tone unusually firm, and looked straight at Xing. "I don't have a mother either!"

On March 7th, a look of immense sympathy instantly appeared on his face, and he imagined a tragic drama unfolding before his eyes.

Bai Lu saw right through their thoughts and interrupted them impatiently: "Stop! I can tell what you're thinking just by looking at your faces! Don't assume I'm a kid who snuck out to play just because I'm small!"

She stood with her hands on her hips, exuding the pride unique to the Vidyadhara tribe: "This is the Celestial Ship. We are guests from the short-lived race who have come from elsewhere. The Vidyadhara tribe is self-sufficient in the cycle of reincarnation, so we don't need the concept of father or mother."

"Ever since I took human form, I have been studying medicine at the Pill Refining Division. I am a legitimate, licensed physician. The Medicine-Carrying Dragon Girl Bai Lu is none other than me!"

"Wow," March 7th blinked and exclaimed to Xing, "The children of the Fairy Boat are so mature for their age! The children in the lower districts of Belleburg are still playing hide-and-seek, but look at them, they're already proper doctors at such a young age!"

"Hey—!" Bai Lu's little face puffed up like a bun in anger, and her tail stood up straight. "Didn't you guys even listen to what I just said?!"

"Alright, alright, Miss Bai Lu, calm down." A gentle voice rang out, and Bai Li had walked over at some point. The bloodstains on his hands had been carefully wiped clean. He nodded slightly to the three members of the Starry Sky Train crew. "These friends meant well, and they really helped a lot." He extended his clean hand, his attitude friendly yet distant.

"Hmph, Dr. Bai Li is right." Bai Lu made a face at San Yueqi and Xing, but still took the opportunity to back down.

"Well then, if any of you brothers and sisters ever have headaches, fevers, or other ailments on the Immortal Ship, feel free to come to the Pill Cauldron Department to find me! Mention my name, Bai Lu, and I'll give you a 20% discount on your consultation fee!" She shook her medicine gourd, and her little face regained some of its spirit.

"Uh, I'll talk about that later," she said, turning her gaze to the area on the other side of the square where the wounded were temporarily housed, where more injured Cloud Cavalry soldiers were groaning in pain. "The other Cloud Cavalry brothers aren't doing too well either; I have to go check on them. See you later!"

After saying that, she hugged the medicine gourd that was almost as tall as her and hurriedly ran away with her short legs.

Although she was temporarily helpless against the potent demonic energy, she could still alleviate the pain and prevent the condition of other soldiers from worsening.

Bai Li's gaze shifted from Bai Lu's small figure to March 7, Xing, and Walter, who arrived shortly after.

His heterochromatic pupils were calm and unwavering, and his voice was clear and steady: "Nice to meet you all. I am Bai Li, Physician Ci Huai. I follow Huai Xiu's teachings to heal the world's suffering and to have compassion for all living beings. It is a pleasure... to meet you all at this moment."

That clean hand was still outstretched in the air, waiting for a response.

Xing chose to firmly grasp that hand and replied, "Hello, I'm Galaxy Baseball Man, nice to meet you."

.........

The first 3K of the day, more to come.

Golden Branches Through the Ages: Chapter 155 The Journey of the Ten Kings

"That's a cool name, it suits you perfectly, Miss... brave and handsome." Bai Li's smile was so warm it could dispel any gloom.

It was as if the sorrow he felt moments before was merely an illusion. He was completely different from the man who had just been picking up the blood-stained arrowhead.

"Hey, Mr. Bai Li, you... didn't seem to be feeling well just now?" March 7 leaned forward, her eyes filled with genuine concern as she stared intently at the gentle-looking doctor.

"Thank you for your concern, Miss." Bai Li shook her head gently, her smile tinged with a hint of helplessness.

"Separation from life and death is commonplace for doctors. If there were no illness in the world, we compassionate pharmacists would have nowhere to go."

He sighed deeply: "This is our fate. I'm sorry, we should have talked a little longer, but right now..."

His gaze swept over the makeshift ward, where groans and suppressed coughs could be faintly heard. "The situation is really difficult."

"Mr. Bai Li, could you elaborate?" Walter pushed up his glasses and cut to the chase.

“As you can see,” Bai Li said solemnly, “since we arrived in Luofu, an extremely dangerous ‘Virulent Demonic Yin Body’ has spread like a plague. It… is completely different from the Demonic Yin Body we are familiar with.”