The Domineering Cultivator Farmer

Chapter 27: Passing on Medical Skills

Upon seeing the group arrive, Old Li led Fang Yun forward to introduce him: “Welcome, distinguished leaders of the TCM community. This is Fang Yun, the person you’ve come to exchange knowledge with.” “Welcome, esteemed seniors, to Qiaotou Village,” Fang Yun hurriedly greeted them. One of the visitors, an elderly man in his fifties, snorted coldly upon seeing how young Fang Yun was. “Hmph. I thought the higher-ups had made such a big deal out of sending us here for this so-called ‘learning and exchange’ because some great figure had emerged. Turns out it’s just a greenhorn. What qualifications does this person have that warrant such a massive mobilization? Isn’t this a complete waste of our time? It’s utterly ridiculous.” This man had studied traditional Chinese medicine with his family since childhood and had been practicing for over thirty years; he was somewhat well-known in the TCM community. He was usually very full of himself and looked down on many of his senior colleagues in traditional Chinese medicine. Being sent on this study tour by the higher-ups left him deeply resentful; he believed very few people were qualified to teach him. However, assuming it was some reclusive elder living in the mountains, he had kept his complaints to himself—only to arrive here and discover that the person they were supposed to learn from was actually a young man in his twenties. He immediately lost his temper. Fang Yun’s gaze turned cold. Although he respected these senior TCM practitioners who saved lives and healed the sick, that didn’t mean he would tolerate anyone mocking him simply because of their age. “I may be a mere youth, but I believe I’m still qualified to exchange a few ideas with you all. If any senior in the TCM community looks down on my meager skills, feel free to leave.” “You…” The old man’s eyes widened in anger, but Old Li immediately stepped forward. “Who do you think you are? I swallowed my pride to beg Fang Yun to agree to exchange experiences with you lot—to put it bluntly, to give you some guidance on your medical skills. If you’re so capable, go ahead and cure a late-stage cancer patient for me and show me what you’ve got. You’ve got little skill but a big temper. Get the hell out of here right now.” Academician Meng, the team leader, frequently conducted physical examinations for national leaders, so he knew Old Li. Aware of the man’s fiery temper, he hurriedly stepped in to mediate: “Old Li, don’t get angry. I’ll apologize on his behalf.” Turning to Fang Yun standing nearby, he said, “Brother Fang, he may have a sharp tongue, but his medical skills and ethics are quite good. Don’t take it to heart. We’re all here to revitalize traditional Chinese medicine—the more people we have, the stronger our efforts will be. Just do this old man a favor, will you?” With Academician Meng saying that, Fang Yun felt he couldn’t say anything more. Seeing the elderly man looking ashamed and uneasy, Fang Yun gestured with his hand and said, “Old man, you’re too kind. Let’s all go inside for a drink of water first.” Hearing Fang Yun’s words, Academician Meng realized that Fang Yun was letting the earlier incident go, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit more favorably toward him. “Then we’ll take you up on your offer.” With expressions of anticipation and excitement on their faces, the entire group followed Academician Meng into the house—even the elderly man who had just spoken up to criticize Fang Yun was no exception. Everyone had recognized Old Li’s status. Since it was this elderly gentleman who had recommended Fang Yun, it meant that Fang Yun’s claim of curing a patient with late-stage cancer was true—his medical skills were truly exceptional. This visit for exchange and learning would undoubtedly be of great benefit to their own medical practices. No sooner had the group entered the room, taken their seats, and had a sip of water than the eager Academician Meng asked Fang Yun, “Brother Fang, when might you begin to instruct us?” Fang Yun quickly waved his hand. “I wouldn’t dare call it ‘instruction’—let’s just learn from one another. However, before we begin, I have a few words to share with everyone.” Fang Yun believed there were several reasons for the decline of traditional Chinese medicine. First, the various wars throughout Chinese history had destroyed many medical achievements. Second, it was caused by the Chinese people’s bad habit of hoarding their knowledge for themselves. Everyone kept their unique skills tightly under wraps, generally passing them down only to their most outstanding successors. Moreover, due to the saying that “teaching a disciple means the master will starve,” many preferred to hold back some of their knowledge. This led to each generation being inferior to the last, and whenever a disaster struck, a unique skill would be lost forever. If everyone had widely shared their unique skills so that the world could know them, even in the face of the greatest disasters or wars, the traditions could have been passed down continuously. Third, the impact of Western medicine on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), coupled with the general public’s lack of understanding, the Chinese people’s lack of重视, and the inaction of practitioners themselves, has caused TCM to begin a decline. The most significant factor, however, is that as the number of martial arts practitioners in the general population has dwindled, those studying TCM have also ceased to practice martial arts. Yet, in TCM, internal qi possesses miraculous effects in examining the body’s meridians and treating diseases; many specialized techniques require the use of qi—for example, acupuncture only achieves remarkable results when combined with qi. The reason ancient TCM was so miraculous was largely due to qi. After sharing his views on the reasons for the decline of traditional Chinese medicine, Fang Yun addressed the group: “The reason I’m telling you all this is to encourage you to set aside your sectarian biases, engage in mutual exchange, and collectively improve your medical skills. Furthermore, I hope you will pass on everything you’ve learned to your students without reservation, so that we can cultivate more and better talent for traditional Chinese medicine. Here, I am willing to lead by example and pass on my method of cultivating true qi to all of you.” The practice Fang Yun intended to teach was a method for circulating True Qi described in the medical section of his own secret manual—a form of ancient martial arts that was entirely suitable for everyone to cultivate. “What? Really? That’s wonderful!” Upon hearing Fang Yun’s words, the assembly of medical masters immediately cheered. They were no strangers to internal true qi;as many precious medical texts and treatises on extraordinary techniques state that true qi must be employed in conjunction with these techniques to achieve therapeutic results. Yet in this day and age, who would ever share a secret manual on cultivating true qi for others to study? Consequently, everyone had been struggling to find a way in. They never imagined that Fang Yun would be willing to teach them the very true qi cultivation method they had longed for—how could the group not be overjoyed? “Younger Brother Fang, you’ve so selflessly imparted these precious true qi cultivation manuals to us—I’m truly ashamed of myself. I promise you that I will pass on all my medical knowledge to as many people as possible, without holding anything back.” Academician Meng stood up excitedly and was the first to speak up. “Exactly, exactly! Academician Meng is right. We all promise you that we will pass on everything we’ve learned to as many people as possible without holding anything back,” the others chimed in one after another. “Then I thank you all,” Fang Yun said, clasping his hands in a bow of gratitude. Everyone immediately chimed in, “No, we’re the ones who should be thanking you—thank you for making such a great sacrifice for traditional Chinese medicine.” “Then let’s not thank each other. Let’s head to the summit of the mountain behind us right now—it’s quiet there. I’ll do my best to help everyone cultivate true qi as soon as possible.” With that, Fang Yun led the excited group toward the main peak of Sanfeng Village. Upon reaching the main peak, Fang Yun chose a secluded room at the very back, free from disturbances, and began instructing the group in their cultivation. First, he had everyone memorize the cultivation mantras. Then, using his Yuan Qi, he demonstrated the cultivation path for each person and left a trace of Yuan Qi as a “seed” to accelerate their progress. That night, Fang Yun sat alone in the courtyard, frowning as he gazed into the depths of the mountains. After a day of cultivation, he discovered that these people’s meridians had already begun to age, making their cultivation efforts twice the work for half the result. It seemed that without external assistance, it would be difficult for them to achieve anything. The best external aid would be rare medicinal herbs. Although Fang Yun had some in his ring, it would be difficult to explain their origin. It seemed he would have to venture into the mountains himself; that way, when he took the herbs out of his ring and others asked, he could say he’d dug them up in the mountains. Although it meant giving away the herbs from his ring for free, Fang Yun felt it was worth it for the sake of reviving traditional Chinese medicine.