Chapter 1061: Masterful Skill

Liu Bei had several Inner Qi Leaving the Body-level experts under his command, and Hua Tuo enjoyed extremely high status within Liu Bei’s ranks. However, asking top-tier generals like Guan Yu or Zhao Yun to cooperate in medical experiments was impossible. Not only did they not have the time, but Hua Tuo wouldn’t dare make such a bold request either!

Occasionally, Hua Tuo might be able to draw a sample of blood for study, but this held little value for his overall research. Other than discovering through a microscope that Inner Qi Leaving the Body-level cells had incredibly high tolerance and vitality, no significant progress had been made. As for Hua Tuo's intense interest in the accelerated recovery abilities of these individuals, he still had no practical results to show.

To Hua Tuo, this research had the potential to revolutionize the entire field of medicine. Compared to unifying the empire or establishing a great dynasty, Hua Tuo was certain that if he could crack this project, it would fundamentally transform the era, sparing countless people from the pain of disease.

Unlike those obsessed with wealth and power, Hua Tuo had long since transcended such desires. Coming from the Hua family of Peiguo, a lineage with a long though somewhat mediocre history, his reputation as a miracle doctor gave the family immense prestige. As long as he remained alive, even the most powerful clans would not dare dismiss them.

After all, everyone was susceptible to illness. Plagues like typhoid fever showed no regard for social status, and Hua Tuo had eradicated this disease. This alone earned him the respect of the world.

When someone reaches the pinnacle of their field, their vision extends far beyond what most can imagine. For Hua Tuo, the challenge was no longer about treating illness but about preventing it altogether. He had already drawn blood from figures like Zhao Yun and Xu Chu multiple times. After a year of research, he discovered a substance within their blood that could counteract most diseases.

After obtaining some fragmentary knowledge from Chen Xi about later medical principles, Hua Tuo pushed his expertise to the limits. He knew that Inner Qi Leaving the Body practitioners had immense research value.

At the very least, Hua Tuo had identified a substance from their blood that could counter most illnesses and neutralize various poisons. This alone had the potential to revolutionize the era’s understanding of medicine.

However, it wasn’t enough. Hua Tuo wanted mass production and a universal remedy—something like how Qinghao herb cured typhoid fever, easily accessible anywhere. But he didn’t have a living Inner Qi Leaving the Body subject for study!

That’s why Hua Tuo became so excited when he saw Zhou Tai—here was a living, manipulable Inner Qi Leaving the Body subject. From just a few moments of interaction, he could already tell that despite Zhou Tai’s depleted Inner Qi, his body was far more resilient than any of Liu Bei's other Inner Qi experts.

This was prime research material, and Hua Tuo was determined to keep him. Such an opportunity might never come again. In all his years of practice, Hua Tuo had never encountered an Inner Qi Leaving the Body expert in this condition.

As for Zhou Tai's loss of Inner Qi, it didn’t matter to Hua Tuo. His primary focus was on the physical body. Even after brief contact, Hua Tuo could assert that apart from Dian Wei, who had carried Xi Zhicai for treatment, he had never seen a more suitable body for research.

Of course, if Hua Tuo could get his hands on Dian Wei, whom he considered the epitome of perfect physical strength and vitality, that would be even better. However, after studying Dian Wei's blood, Hua Tuo gave up. Even after adding some substances to the sample, Dian Wei's blood had retained its vitality for an extraordinary length of time!

"So, you can treat him?" Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were overjoyed. Their greatest fear was that Hua Tuo would give the same prognosis as Zhang Zhongjing and declare that Zhou Tai was beyond saving.

"I can treat him, but I can’t guarantee a full recovery," Hua Tuo said, placing his hand on Zhou Tai’s forehead. He activated his medical talent, reversing Zhou Tai’s injuries to an earlier state, as stored in the memory of his cells.

In the next moment, Zhou Tai’s eyes snapped open, and Hua Tuo swiftly retrieved several silver needles from alcohol, flicking off the liquid before inserting them into Zhou Tai’s head.

"..." Zhou Tai opened his mouth, struggling to say something, but Hua Tuo pulled out the needles, causing him to lose consciousness again.

Hua Tuo had already formed his diagnosis. This man was basically beyond saving. His medical ability could reverse Zhou Tai’s cellular memory to an earlier stage, but even then, Zhou Tai’s condition remained critical. If Hua Tuo couldn’t treat him instantly, Zhou Tai was effectively lost. In simple terms, he couldn’t save him.

Hua Tuo knew that his medical talent was already an extraordinary skill. He had even experimented with reviving recently deceased individuals...

His talent worked by reversing a living organism’s cells to an earlier state in their biological memory. While outwardly claiming it merely suppressed injuries to a previous stage, in reality, he was delving into forbidden areas. Unfortunately, no doctor can heal themselves!

Hua Tuo had brought people back from the dead within minutes after their demise, as long as their cells hadn’t fully deteriorated. As for explaining the miraculous recovery? He would just call it "false death." After all, who would argue with him? Who could claim their judgment was more accurate than Hua Tuo’s?

With such a skill, even a doctor like Zhang Zhongjing might begin to doubt whether a person was truly dead if Hua Tuo revived them a few times. Who would guess that Hua Tuo had actually brought a dead person back to life?

But no one questioned it much. Hua Tuo was already revered as a divine healer, even worshipped in temples. If a man he saved lived when others couldn’t, it was seen as normal. And who could define the exact moment of death anyway? If Hua Tuo said they weren’t dead, then they weren’t dead. Would anyone challenge him?

Since gaining access to a crystal-clear microscope, Hua Tuo's earlier doubts about his own abilities had vanished. If cells weren’t entirely dead, how could anyone be considered truly dead? In the past, people died because medical knowledge was insufficient. But now, with improved medical techniques, survival rates increased.

When Hua Tuo revived Zhou Tai in three moves, both Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were overjoyed. They finally understood why this man was called a divine doctor—his skill was truly extraordinary.

"Doctor Hua, how is he? He looks better, right?" Lu Xun, seeing Zhou Tai briefly regain consciousness only to be knocked out again, asked anxiously. He had always believed in Hua Tuo’s expertise. Luckily, Zhou Yu and Sun Ce were too caught up in their excitement to notice Lu Xun’s own enthusiasm.

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