The Obligations of the Elderly - Chapter 29

With a start, Gong Si sat up, not caring about the cold sweat soaking his body. He hurriedly reached to hold Ah Ji beside him. But as he gathered Ah Ji into his arms, he realized that something was clearly wrong with his two younger brothers as well.

Dong Chun was writhing in pain, drenched in sweat as if it were raining, soaking not only his own clothes but Gong Si’s as well. The cold sweat Gong Si had woken up with was probably from Dong Chun.

Qiu Xia’s condition seemed a bit better than Dong Chun’s, but on closer inspection, not by much. Though he wasn’t twisting in pain, his brows were tightly furrowed, and his forehead was covered in sweat.

What’s going on? What happened?

Gong Si was the only one unaffected. Instinctively, he glanced out the window and noticed that there were suddenly many more lights outside.

Directly ahead of them, a cluster of lights had gathered in the distance, like a bustling marketplace.

Gong Si checked the time: 4:32 a.m.

Frowning, he instinctively knew that something must have happened there.

Not knowing what he could do, he could only wring out a wet towel and wipe his brothers’ sweat over and over, until Qiu Xia finally woke up. Qiu Xia’s dark eyes stared heavily toward the window, and in a hoarse voice, he said, “There’s a powerful User over there.”

“The total amount of his Energy is enormous-it’s black, almost indistinguishable from the night itself.”

“What a terrifyingly powerful guy…” The last sentence was spoken so softly it was almost inaudible.

That terrifying Energy “burned” for more than two hours. Ah Ji cried for over two hours, and Dong Chun remained unconscious the entire time. It wasn’t until after six in the morning that the Energy suddenly vanished without warning.

With his eyes narrowed and tears still clinging to his lashes, Ah Ji finally stopped crying.

Staring across the way, he eventually buried his face in Gong Si’s arms.

The cold sweat that couldn’t be wiped dry from Dong Chun finally ceased as well.

“That guy… could he be dead?” Gong Si speculated.

“I don’t know. Maybe he’s dead, or maybe he pulled through again.” Having only become a User for half a year, even with his remarkable talent, Qiu Xia still couldn’t accurately gauge others’ Energy levels.

It wasn’t a matter of learning ability, but rather experience-something he sorely lacked.

“Either dead or alive. I always feel… being half-dead is the worst,” Gong Si concluded. “It’s like jumping off a building-either you miraculously survive by landing on something, or you die instantly. But the worst is when you hit things all the way down, your body’s a wreck, but you’re still alive. That’s real suffering~”

“Mm.” Qiu Xia agreed wholeheartedly.

At that very moment, in the house hidden deep among the trees directly across from the Gong Brothers’ window, everyone was silent, not daring to make a sound, their faces solemn.

If Gong Si knew what was happening here, he would probably be stunned.

Because he might really have just unlocked the “Jinx” skill.

“How is it? What’s Master’s current condition? Why did he suddenly wake up? And why did his Energy level suddenly return to normal?” The Elder who had previously escorted the Gong Brothers back had red-rimmed eyes and asked anxiously.

Standing before him were three people: a middle-aged man, a middle-aged woman, and a much younger man.

Though they weren’t wearing white coats, everything about them screamed “doctor.”

“Because this time, the treatment was performed by the three of us working together,” replied the middle-aged man, frowning, his face deathly pale, looking utterly exhausted as if he had just endured a grueling ordeal.

“The three of us have different Vessel attributes. Although we managed to suppress Master’s Energy by working together, it was still three different types of Energy. Plus, Master’s Energy is extremely consuming, so our suppression was broken by him…”

As he spoke, the man looked somewhat ashamed.

“We have to admit, our abilities are far inferior to our teacher’s. Even with the three of us combined, we’re still lacking by a wide margin. We simply can’t fully suppress Master’s condition.”

“Then… didn’t your teacher leave any other treatment methods?” As students, perhaps the greatest shame is failing to surpass your teacher. Seeing the simultaneous look of shame on all three faces, the Elder grew even more anxious.

“Regrettably, no,” the middle-aged man replied again.

“Our teacher took on Master’s case when he was young and has been treating him all these years, always searching for another way.”

“But there isn’t one.”

“Master’s illness… isn’t really an illness. It’s just that he’s too powerful and can’t find a suitable Vessel. By temporarily suspending life activities, his surrounding Energy can be temporarily reduced. Rather than a treatment, it’s more like buying time.”

“Putting him into a state of ‘Slumber’ tricks his Energy into lowering itself, and he enters a state of suspended animation. If a suitable Vessel is found during this period, Master can be awakened.”
“In fact, this is already the method that causes the least damage to your Master’s body. However-”

The middle-aged man couldn’t continue.

In the end, it was his junior sister who finished for him: “However, this method can no longer be continued. The three of us are not capable enough. Either you can immediately find a physician of our Master’s level, or you must find a Vessel for him.”

“To be frank, I don’t think you’ll find a physician better than our Master, so basically, there’s only one path left for you: find him a Vessel.”

“It must be a Form Contract Vessel, not just a group of Vessels to share his Energy.”

“In this situation, even if the Vessel’s own abilities are lacking, by using the power of the contract, your Master’s body will still have some hope.”

“This Vessel should preferably be young, have strong vitality, be capable of growth, ideally Water Type, and have potential rated S-Class or above. As everyone knows, Water Type has the most obvious and gentle healing effects.”

“But you don’t have much time left. It’s best to resolve the Form Contract within half a month. Honestly, finding such a Vessel is about as difficult as finding a physician of our Master’s level. You…”

Looking at the Elder before her, the woman’s eyes showed a hint of sympathy.

Though she had given two options, in reality, there was only one-and even that was almost impossible.

To put it plainly, she was just tactfully delivering a critical condition notice.

She couldn’t just say, “Your Master is beyond saving, just wait for death,” could she?

The Elder before her would kill them!

Though he looked old and frail, this Elder was one of the most powerful Users in the world-purely in terms of ‘martial strength’!

Not someone to provoke~

Even so, she still subconsciously took a step back, afraid the Elder might do something to them in anger.

However-

Because the distance was so close, and she had been carefully watching the Elder’s reaction, she noticed the change in his expression immediately.

She thought he would be furious after hearing her words, but he wasn’t.

In fact, after she finished speaking, she was surprised to see the Elder’s expression actually become calm.

From anxious at first, he became calm, and finally returned to his usual composed demeanor.

“I understand,” she heard him say.

“Although you can’t treat the Master, you’re still better than other doctors at ordinary physical care, aren’t you?” He looked at them sternly.

“Of course…” He was so imposing that their response was involuntarily quick and meek.

“Then I’ll leave the Master in your hands.” After speaking, the Elder bowed deeply to them. They wanted to refuse, but his aura left them no room to object. By the time they came to their senses, all they could do was watch the Elder’s back as he left.

“In any case, the Master’s Form Contract must be carried out.” At the head of the long conference table, the Elder sat with his hands clasped, his expression grave.

On either side of the table below him sat one, two… five Elders-three men and two women, all advanced in age. There were also some empty chairs.

“To be found by you, A Xie, at such a critical moment, maybe this child really is destined for the Master.” An old lady spoke slowly.

“We can only hope so.” Another male Elder, looking listless and somewhat dispirited, said, “Didn’t those useless students from Lingxi say we have half a month? Who knows if their words are reliable. We’d better prepare as if we only have ten days.”

“True. I heard it’s still a child, and since the Master needs physical care now, it’s really inconvenient for them to meet. We’ll have to use ‘that method’ to establish the connection.”

“Yes, ‘that method’…” Another old lady raised her eyebrows. “Although Mr. Lingxi didn’t leave any disciples who surpassed him, he did leave behind this good method for establishing a connection. Many physicians don’t even know about it~”

“Sigh… That Lingxi fellow… His medical skills are beyond reproach. For all his years of dedication to the Master, A Xie, don’t scare his students too much.” This was said by a kindly looking old man.

While they spoke, the Elder at the head of the table remained silent. Only when the others had finished and assigned their tasks did he lower his hands: “Since everyone knows what they need to do, let’s begin.”

With that, he stood up, signaling the end of the meeting.

The other Elders were clearly used to his style. Some stood quickly, others slowly, and they left the room through various doors.

Then, half an hour after the meeting ended, Gong Si received-from one of the attendants-

“A sock?” Gong Si held up the small piece of cloth, raised his eyebrows, and asked in disbelief.