"I think the sword that was used to stab you was poisoned," Alex said. "Although you once had a young and powerful body, you're now older, and your body doesn't heal as well as it used to. And I'm guessing you didn't seek proper medical treatment at the time." He raised an eyebrow. "I'm betting you just rested and relied on your own powers to force the poison out. And then, instead of dealing with it, you allowed it to heal on its own."
He shook his head. "You're an important man in the Demon sect, and you should have been treated by the best doctors. But I assume the situation was critical, and you were in a rush to chase down and kill your enemies. Unfortunately, your haste has left some of the poison behind. Now that you're a master, you don't care about the wound because you feel fine, don't you? And as a warrior, you're probably proud of your wounds."
Cam looked at him indifferently.
"But if you don't cure the root cause, you won't make it to next year," Alex said seriously.
Cam didn't care. It was an old injury from over twenty years ago, and he felt fine. He had always looked youthful, and he was in peak condition, so he didn't believe he would die next year.
He had gotten tests done in the hospital at the time, and the results had all shown that he was in perfect health, so he didn't believe that any of Alex's claims could be true.
But he didn't realize that Alex's diagnosis should not be taken lightly. Just from feeling his pulse, Alex could see Cam's problem, and his analysis was right.
Still, Cam felt a little uneasy. His injury was a secret, even within the Demon Sect, and those who had known had died long ago. So it should have been impossible for Alex to know what had happened.
His scar had never given him any trouble, and the injury had occurred so long ago, so he didn't understand why it should be a problem now. He didn't know if Alex was telling the truth, but he was beginning to worry that he may be right.
He narrowed his eyes and said, "Your power is extraordinary if you can know all of that just by feeling my pulse. I believe you, but your words are hard to accept. I expected to live to be a hundred years old, and by practicing martial arts the way we do, that shouldn't have been difficult to achieve. So how can I be dying?"
He thought for a moment and then sneered. "Maybe you're just trying to intimidate me. If I'm in the hospital, then I'll be out of your way, right?"
His eyes were fixed on Alex, trying to read him and waiting to see if he would give anything away.
But Alex remained expressionless as he said, "The winter before last, your wound gave you trouble again, and your health deteriorated, but you ignored it. Now it's about to happen again, only worse."
He picked up a piece of paper and tore it into small pieces, and then dropped them, allowing the pieces to be strewn across the table in front of him.
"Next year, your wound will tear open and then close, open and close, until it ends up like this. Do you see?"
He had nothing more to say, and Cam didn't reply, so he asked him to leave.
But Cam didn't get up. He had been trying to process what Alex had said. "You mean to tell me that my wound will be like this piece of paper?" he asked, frowning.
He didn't want to believe it, because his body seemed to be in good shape, but Alex's medical skills were second to none, so it wouldn't be wise to ignore him.
"If you don't get treatment soon, then yes, that's what will happen," Alex said. "If you doubt my medical skills or my character, then please feel free to go." He threw the bits of paper into the trash.
Cam fell into deep thought for a moment, and then said, "Don't be angry, Alex. I don't doubt you. It's just hard to believe all that you said when I feel fine."
"Maybe you still don't believe me, but you're worried," Alex pointed out. "I can see your illness, and I can cure it. Trust me."
He poured a glass of water for Cam, showing him kindness. He could see that he was finally lowering his guard.
"So, what should I do?" Cam asked humbly.
Alex met his gaze. "We're going to need to open the wound, remove the toxins inside, repair the muscles and surrounding tissue, and then apply some medicine."