Chapter 141 — Drugging the Imperial Physician Hall

When the stone furnace had cooled, Shen Mu's vital qi suddenly transformed into Black Tortoise vital qi; his palms grew colder and colder, more and more icy, and pressed against the stone furnace, a layer of frost swiftly formed upon its walls. After another while, Shen Mu had the physicians and Snow Fox step back together, then held his breath and carefully opened the stone furnace.

At the bottom lay a thin layer of pink mist. With one hand Shen Mu evolved Black Tortoise vital qi to cool the mist; with the other he took up a small jade bottle, and his vital qi became a drawing art within the bottle, pulling the mist from the furnace bottom and gathering it into the bottle. He hastily screwed the cap tight, and still uneasy, turned Black Tortoise vital qi into a mass of dark ice sealing the bottle's mouth.

Only then did he let out a breath. "The medicine I need is refined. " Shen Mu thanked the physicians and smiled.

"Masters, I have business still, so I will intrude no further. The afternoon lecture.

. . " Physician You smiled.

"Just go about your business. From now on, when you have matters to attend to, there is no need to come to the lectures. If you have time, come often and give us old bones a few lectures, refine a few pills—that will be enough.

" Shen Mu took his leave. The moment his heels cleared the door, the old physicians hurriedly gathered together.

Physician You, beaming with delight, said, "Gentlemen, did you note down all the ingredients?

" Physician Yu said in a trembling voice, "Could that escape us? I need only smell these ingredients to know which ones they are; not a mace nor a hair would escape my nose!

" "And the order of sovereign, minister, assistant, envoy—of the eight trigrams and the five elements? " Physician Qu smiled. "Rest easy, I noted it all!

" "And the hand techniques?

" The old men laughed in unison. "Each of us remembered half; put them together and we can reconstruct his techniques!

" Physician Qu hesitated. "But when he gathered the medicine just now he had us stand far off, so I did not note the gathering technique.

And we do not know what medicine he refined; if we rashly attempt it.

.

.

" "Gathering the medicine is a minor art, it will not be much trouble. As for what medicine it is—smell it once it is refined and we will know!

What the Little Divine Physician refines must be out of the ordinary! " The old physicians were all enthusiasm. Physician Yu went at once to the storehouse for the ingredients, while the remaining old men washed the stone furnace; when Physician Yu returned, they immediately laid the ingredients in order into the eight-trigram and five-element compartments, one after another.

The old physicians worked in concert, drawing up the earth-fire, each performing one or several techniques, refining the medicine around the stone furnace. Before long many scholars came to the Imperial Physician Hall for the lecture, but the old physicians were at the critical stage and had no time to attend to them.

These past days the Imperial Academy had first been blockaded at its gates by the Daoist heir, and then by the Buddha's Son of Great Thunderclap Monastery, and many had been wounded—which made the Academy's scholars realize the importance of the Imperial Physician Hall. Now that the Hall was holding lessons, naturally they came to listen. All the scholars saw was that these physicians' techniques were unfathomable and transcendent, and they praised without end, admiration filling their hearts.

Physician Yu and the others moved their feet ceaselessly around the stone furnace, their forms crossing and weaving like a few old butterflies fluttering about a fire—truly of Daoist bone and immortal air, at a glance masters who had attained the Way. Suddenly the old men halted, each withdrawing his hands, adjusting his breath, waiting for the stone furnace to cool.

At this step the old physicians all hesitated. Physician Qu laid his hand on the stone furnace. "It seems it was this technique—his hand just pressed like this. . .

" Physician Yu smiled. "So what if it fails? At worst we refine another furnace. Open it!

" Physician You stepped up and lifted the lid; at once a fragrance struck his nose, and he laughed aloud: "How fra—huh—ng—grant—ah—ah—ah.

. .

" Thud.

Physician You hit the ground, a strange smile still hanging on his face—a smile like a flower half-bloomed, one that had only managed to laugh halfway. Thud, thud, thud.

Physician Yu, Physician You, and the rest also fell on their backs, smiles on their faces.

The many scholars watching nearby cried out in alarm; some moved to rescue them, some to flee—and suddenly all the scholars felt as if their limbs had vanished, and one after another they toppled with a thud, thud. Not only did they feel their limbs had flown away—even their eyes, noses, ears, and their very heads had "vanished without a trace"!

Even their spirit embryos were suddenly numbed, unable to move, and their vital qi frozen stiff!