"Lin Fan, hold him down, I'm about to administer the final needle."
Old Zhang held a silver needle, gesturing over the patient's body. Although he hadn't inserted the needle yet, a flick of his wrist gave off an air of profound skill.
Wu Sheng's gaze followed the silver needle in Old Zhang's hand, his attention rapt, not daring to be careless. He knew this was the final needle; whether the clan elder could be saved depended on this moment.
"Okay."
Lin Fan held down the squirming clan elder, giving Old Zhang space to work.
"I've got him, come quickly."
Even if the clan elder was thrashing about like he was on a dance floor, in Lin Fan's hands, he had to lie still and behave.
"I'm coming."
Old Zhang growled, the silver needle in his hand transforming into a flash of silver light as it landed on the clan elder's body.
There was no 'slap' sound, just a sort of sound effect, indicating the seriousness of the situation and the need for careful attention.
The thirteenth needle was placed.
"Whew!"
Old Zhang breathed a sigh of relief. He had performed his most powerful acupuncture technique. What the final outcome would be was hard to say, but based on his understanding, everything had gone smoothly without any problems.
The patient would live.
Wu Sheng stared intently at the clan elder. Suddenly, he noticed the elder's eyelids twitch slightly.
"The clan elder just moved his eyelids."
Hearing this, everyone gathered around, surrounding the wooden bed so tightly that not even a fly could escape.
The scene was a bit bizarre, like a group of obsessed men surrounding a young woman. The clan elder lying on the bed was their target. The image was somewhat chilling.
Sure enough, the clan elder's eyelids twitched again.
Although the clan elder was quite old, as he was about to awaken, his long eyelashes trembled slightly, like a sleeping beauty receiving a prince's kiss, about to wake up and… well, you get the idea.
"Where am I…"
The clan elder slowly opened his eyes. The heads surrounding him startled him. He was clearly confused and couldn't understand what they were doing.
"Clan Elder, are you alright?" Wu Sheng inquired.
He was amazed. A master was indeed a master. The effect was immediate; the elder woke up right after the needles were placed. This speed couldn't be achieved even by swallowing some miraculous life-saving pill.
"Wu Sheng…"
The clan elder recognized Wu Sheng and relaxed, but his mind was in turmoil. What he had encountered in the ancient ruins had deeply affected him. He had even thought he was going to die there.
"Clan Elder, I'm here. You were severely injured in the ruins. Fortunately, I had the honor of meeting two friends, and they saved you," Wu Sheng said.
With the master's abilities, if the various races of the starry sky knew, they would definitely fight over him, making him a guest of honor. Many would also go crazy trying to become his apprentice and learn this miraculous acupuncture technique.
The clan elder said weakly, "I didn't expect such a terrifying mysterious power to be hidden within the ruins."
Suddenly, he realized something was wrong.
His voice sounded different.
Not only did he notice it, but Wu Sheng and the others also felt something was off. The clan elder's voice had been low and hoarse, but now it was soft and delicate, almost feminine.
Wu Sheng looked questioningly at the master, as if asking what was going on.
However… Old Zhang and Lin Fan exchanged smiles, oblivious to Wu Sheng's gaze.
"Old Zhang, you succeeded." Lin Fan said.
Old Zhang said happily, "I knew I could do it, because this was a collaboration between you and me."
Then, they high-fived each other, looking very pleased. For Old Zhang, just like Lin Fan, he liked helping others and felt particularly happy seeing someone recover.
Then, a cry of surprise rang out.
"How could this be?"
The clan elder touched his throat. Due to old age and a thin frame, his Adam's apple had been prominent, but now it was gone. His voice had become feminine. Perhaps thinking of something terrifying, the clan elder touched his groin, his previously ruddy face turning deathly pale.
Wu Sheng was stunned by the clan elder's actions, or rather, he hadn't expected this.
The clan elder stared at Wu Sheng and asked, "What happened?"
Wu Sheng didn't know how to answer. How could he know this would happen? After all, he hadn't done it himself. He could only look at Lin Fan and Old Zhang, hoping they could explain.
"Clan Elder, this master is the one who saved you," Wu Sheng introduced.
Despite his current situation, the clan elder didn't fly into a rage at his saviors. Instead, he said gently, "Thank you for saving my life. However, my current situation seems a bit… off. Master, could you please explain this to me?"
Lin Fan and Old Zhang, who were chatting, heard his words and looked curious. They didn't quite understand what he meant.
"Is there anything we can help you with?" Lin Fan asked.
The clan elder said, "Thank you both for saving my life, but my Adam's apple is gone, and so is… the symbol of manhood. This is unacceptable."
He spoke euphemistically.
The symbol of manhood.
Lin Fan and Old Zhang looked at each other, both bewildered.
They didn't understand what he meant, so they whispered to each other.
"What is he talking about?" Lin Fan asked.
"I don't know." Old Zhang was also baffled. What was this 'symbol of manhood' thing?
Although they had stayed at Qing Shan Mental Hospital for a long time, they watched the news every day and knew a lot of things, but they genuinely didn't understand what the elder was referring to.
"Could you be more specific?" Lin Fan asked.
Old Zhang nodded. "Yes, please be clearer. We really don't understand."
The clan elder was stunned. He had already been so direct, why didn't they understand?
This bothered him.
He had been too shocked earlier to pay attention to his surroundings, but now he couldn't act like he had before. His clansmen were all here, and he was afraid of becoming a laughingstock.
He thought carefully, hoping to find the right words to explain, but after a long time, he couldn't think of any suitable terms.
He really wanted to ask… Kid, are you doing this on purpose?
Any man would understand.
Wu Sheng, standing by the side, felt it was time for him to step in.
"Lin Fan, Master, our clan elder means… he was originally a man, so why has he become a woman? Are the aftereffects of this acupuncture technique really so terrifying?" Wu Sheng asked.
Old Zhang and Lin Fan exchanged another glance.
A never-before-seen symptom.
In Old Zhang's many years of acupuncture practice, he had never encountered such a situation.
"Let's take a look," Old Zhang said, curious. He felt that his acupuncture shouldn't have such an effect, but since the patient had said so, it meant there was a slight problem.
Lin Fan said, "We need to see it with our own eyes to understand what's going on."
When they said this, the room fell silent.
The clan elder stared at them, speechless. For some reason, he felt a deep sense of malice from these two.
"Clan Elder, these two are friends I met here. They are incredibly capable. Your recovery is entirely thanks to them. You were critically injured in the ruins, on the verge of death. If it weren't for the medicine keeping you alive, you might not have made it here." Wu Sheng explained in a low voice.
"They mean no harm. Perhaps there really is a problem."
He said this hoping the clan elder would understand. Their words weren't meant to be teasing; some aftereffects were normal in these situations.
The clan elder knew Wu Sheng was right, but this was… unacceptable.
Wu Sheng raised his hand and ordered, "All of you, out."
He began clearing the room.
There was no other way.
The clan elder had to endure the humiliation of taking off his pants so the master and Lin Fan could examine him.
The clansmen present were reluctant to leave. They all wanted to see what the clan elder's… situation… looked like.
Disappeared?
Impossible.
With their limited imaginations, they couldn't fathom what it might look like.
But their young master had told them to leave, so they had to obey.
Reluctantly, they left the room.
Wu Sheng said, "Clan Elder, there's no one else in the room now. Why don't you take them off and let us see?"
The clan elder sighed. He had much to say, but in the end, all he could do was sigh. What else could he say? This was humiliating.
Rustle!
The sound of clothes being removed.
Lin Fan and Old Zhang slowly bent down, staring curiously. Wu Sheng, because the person before him was the clan elder, couldn't be too presumptuous, but his curiosity got the better of him, and his gaze drifted downwards.
One look, and he gasped.
Horrifying!
The clan elder looked up and closed his eyes in despair. If he had known this would happen, he should have just died.
Lin Fan and Old Zhang looked at each other.
Normally, Old Zhang would have shown a surprised expression. After all, he had never seen such a situation before. He found it truly amazing, and if possible, he really wanted to study it carefully.
But he, like Lin Fan, noticed the elder's emotional distress, his inability to accept this situation.
Realizing this, he knew what to do.
Comfort, he had to comfort the elder's troubled heart.
"It's alright, this is normal," Old Zhang said.
The clan elder pointed at his groin in disbelief. "This is normal?"
He couldn't believe these words came from the person who saved him.
Lin Fan said, "Yes, it's indeed normal."
Old Zhang continued, "Trust me, I'm not wrong. It will be fine after a while."
Honestly, Wu Sheng didn't believe what Master and Lin Fan were saying, but there was no other choice. He could only force himself to say, "Clan Elder, I think it's probably normal. Your condition was very dangerous back then. Being able to survive definitely required extraordinary measures. It's normal to have some aftereffects."
"The master said it will be fine after a while, so it will definitely be fine."
The clan elder looked at Lin Fan and Old Zhang, then at Wu Sheng, and finally silently put his clothes back on.
"I hope so!"