As soon as Lin Yu finished speaking, the eerie crying sound echoed through the clinic again.

  Jiang Yan and the young couple panicked. The child, who had just calmed down, suddenly began wailing violently, her face twisted in distress as she clawed at her mother.

  "Dr. Jiang, please, what's happening?" the young mother pleaded, struggling to restrain her daughter's flailing hands.

  Jiang Yan's face paled. She patted the child's back, trying to soothe her, but her mind was in chaos. *She was fine just a moment ago—why is this happening again?*

  Then, abruptly, the child stopped crying. Her body convulsed violently, her eyes rolling back as foam bubbled from her mouth. Her chest heaved erratically—she was clearly suffocating.

  Jiang Yan’s expression darkened further. She quickly laid the child on the bed and began performing CPR, pressing down on her tiny chest with both hands.

  The bespectacled doctor nearby was too terrified to even breathe. This was a life-or-death situation—and if the child died, he’d be implicated too.

  "Dr. Jiang, please, save my daughter!" The young mother collapsed to the floor, sobbing as her daughter’s face turned ghostly pale.

  "You quack! Do you even know how to treat patients?!" The young man, previously calm, suddenly erupted in fury. "If anything happens to my daughter, I’ll make sure you pay with your life!"

  Sweat beaded on Jiang Yan’s forehead as she continued chest compressions and rescue breaths. But nothing worked. The child’s eyes remained shut, her lips turning blue, her body eerily still—her life slipping away.

  Jiang Yan’s hands trembled uncontrollably. In all her years as a doctor, she’d never encountered anything like this.

  "I’ll kill you!"

  Watching his daughter’s breathing grow weaker, the young man snapped. He lunged at Jiang Yan, ready to strike.

  The bespectacled doctor mustered his courage to intervene but was promptly kicked into a corner. The young man raised his hand, aiming a slap at Jiang Yan’s head.

  Jiang Yan flinched, bracing herself—but the blow never landed.

  She looked up to see the man’s wrist caught in a firm grip.

  Lin Yu had stepped in front of her.

  "Violence solves nothing," Lin Yu said coolly, shoving the man’s hand away.

  "That quack killed my daughter!" the man roared, eyes bloodshot like a rabid beast.

  "With me here, your daughter won’t die," Lin Yu stated firmly.

  For a moment, Jiang Yan was stunned by his unwavering confidence. A strange feeling flickered in her chest—*safety?*

  *No way. How could this useless waste make me feel safe?*

  "Fine, then *you* treat her! If she dies, I’ll kill all of you!" the man screamed hysterically.

  Ignoring him, Lin Yu turned and checked the girl’s pulse.

  "What are you doing? You don’t know medicine!" Jiang Yan grabbed his arm, hissing under her breath.

  "I never told you—I’ve read some of your medical books. I know a little," Lin Yu lied smoothly.

  "Nonsense! You can’t learn medicine just by reading!" Jiang Yan pulled out her phone to call an ambulance, though she knew it would likely arrive too late.

  Before she could dial, Lin Yu lifted the child by her feet, holding her upside down. He formed a hollow shape with his right hand—fingers together, thumb tucked—and lightly patted her back twice.

  "What the hell are you doing?!" the young father bellowed.

  Before his words faded, the unconscious child suddenly coughed, expelling a thick, dark glob of phlegm. Then she began crying again—weakly, her voice hoarse from oxygen deprivation, but alive.

  Lin Yu turned her upright and pressed his thumb against a point on her neck. Instantly, her breathing stabilized.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Yet the child continued to thrash, scratching at Lin Yu with a hatred that didn’t belong to a little girl.

  Lin Yu didn’t flinch. His gaze locked onto hers, his eyes burning with an intense, almost supernatural light—a technique from his family’s ancient mystical arts, the *Soul-Shattering Stare*. At higher levels, a single glance could annihilate low-level wandering spirits.

  Right now, Lin Yu was certain: this child was possessed. And unlike him, this spirit was *malicious*.

  Though his cultivation was still shallow, the moment the child met his gaze, her tantrum ceased. Fear flashed in her eyes.

  She struggled violently, breaking free from Lin Yu’s hold and darting to her mother, wrapping her arms around her neck.

  "Mommy, I’m okay now. Let’s go home," she said sweetly.

  Overjoyed, the young couple hugged their daughter, tears streaming down their faces.

  Jiang Yan exhaled in relief, chastising herself for not realizing the child had been choking on phlegm.

  Then she glared at Lin Yu. *This idiot has no medical training! He got lucky—pure dumb luck! If the girl had died, he’d be just as responsible!*

  Still, she felt a flicker of gratitude. In the past, this coward would’ve hidden behind her. Today, he’d stood up for her. *Maybe that head injury really did change him.*

  "Your daughter is stable for now, but this was only a temporary fix. To cure her completely, she’ll need acupuncture," Lin Yu said, watching the girl closely.

  "No! Mommy, I don’t want needles! I’m better now!" The child shrank back, eyeing Lin Yu with fear.

  "Stop talking nonsense!" Jiang Yan hissed, yanking him aside. *Know when to quit! You’re not a doctor!*

  The young man shot Lin Yu a venomous look, devoid of gratitude. "Let you treat her again? I’d rather slit my own throat."

  "If anything happens after you leave, don’t say I didn’t warn you."

  Lin Yu frowned, irritated. He’d just saved their daughter’s life, and this was the thanks he got?

  "Who the hell are you cursing?!" The man sprang up, fists clenched. His wife hastily pulled him back.

  With a final glare, the man scooped up his daughter and stormed out, snarling over his shoulder, "My brother-in-law is the deputy director of the Health Bureau. Your clinic is *finished*."

  The woman glanced apologetically at Jiang Yan but said nothing before following.

  Jiang Yan’s heart ached. These were patients who’d once showered her with gratitude. Now, over one mishap, they’d turned on her.

  "People’s hearts change like the weather. Don’t take it to heart," Lin Yu said softly, reading her thoughts.

  "Next time, keep your mouth shut about things you don’t understand!"

  Jiang Yan brushed him off coldly and returned to her work.

  "Lucky bastard," muttered the bespectacled doctor, now dusting himself off. He shot Lin Yu a disdainful look.

  *What kind of people work here? I just saved their skins!*

  Lin Yu sighed, suddenly wishing he could die again—maybe his next reincarnation would be less pathetic.

  ---

  The young couple sped home with their daughter. The man, Wu Jianguo, ranted nonstop, vowing revenge. His wife, Sun Min, urged him to let it go—Dr. Jiang had helped them before.

  "Bullshit! I told you we should’ve gone to the People’s Hospital! You almost got Xinxin killed!" Wu Jianguo spat. "And that moron husband of hers—how *dare* he curse our daughter? If he hadn’t gotten lucky, I’d have beaten him senseless!"

  He then called his brother-in-law, the deputy director of the Health Bureau, and exaggerated the incident.

  Sun Min stayed silent. She hadn’t expected a simple cold to escalate like this.

  The Wu family was wealthy and influential—Wu Jianguo’s father, Wu Jinyuan, had been director of the Qinghai Health Bureau before retiring. Thanks to him, Wu Jianguo’s brother-in-law now held a high position. One call was all it’d take to shut down Hua’an Clinic.

  At home, Wu Jinyuan and his wife were frantic. Their granddaughter was their world.

  When the family returned, the elderly couple rushed to hug the child, relieved to find her temperature normal.

  But their relief was short-lived.

  Suddenly, the girl’s eyes rolled back. Her body convulsed violently, her chest heaving as she struggled to breathe.

  Terrified, the family raced to Qinghai People’s Hospital.

  In the ER, Wu Jianguo raged, blaming Jiang Yan for his daughter’s condition.

  Wu Jinyuan stood rigid, eyes fixed on the ER doors. He trusted the doctor inside—Li Haoming, the hospital’s deputy director and a nationally renowned internist. Few in Qinghai could secure his personal attention.

  Yet within a minute, Li Haoming burst out, drenched in sweat.

  "Director Wu, I’ve never seen anything like this. The child... I’m afraid she won’t make it."

  Sun Min and her mother-in-law collapsed onto a bench, wailing.

  "Impossible!" Wu Jianguo grabbed Li Haoming’s collar. "If my daughter dies, you’re fired!"

  "Jianguo!" Wu Jinyuan barked. Suppressing his grief, he asked, "Is there *any* hope?"

  Li Haoming shook his head grimly. "At best, we can keep her alive for another hour."

  His meaning was clear: even if they flew her to Beijing now, it’d be too late.

  Wu Jinyuan knew the truth—if Li Haoming couldn’t save her, no one could.

  "Dad, I know how to cure Xinxin!"

  Wu Jianguo, heartbroken, described how Lin Yu had treated his daughter at the clinic.

  Li Haoming immediately tried the method—holding the child upside down and patting her back—but it failed.

  "That’s impossible!" Wu Jianguo’s face drained of color, sweat pouring down his forehead.

  Sun Min remembered Lin Yu’s warning. "He said it wasn’t a permanent cure!" she blurted.

  "Director Wu, we should bring that young man here. He might have a solution," Li Haoming suggested.

  Sun Min hesitated, then revealed Wu Jianguo’s confrontation with Lin Yu.

  "Fool! I taught you better than this!"

  Wu Jinyuan kicked his son hard. "We’re going to apologize—*now*!"

  Abandoning all dignity, the former bureau chief sprinted out, his son scrambling after him.

  ---

  Back at the clinic, Jiang Yan was busy with patients while Lin Yu idly flipped through a magazine. Nurses and doctors shot him scornful looks.

  *What kind of man lazes around while his wife works herself to death?*

  Then a white van screeched to a halt outside. "Health Inspection" was printed on its side.

  Several men in Health Bureau uniforms stepped out, led by Wu Jianguo’s brother-in-law, Deng Chengbin.

  "Search it," Deng ordered coldly. "Thoroughly."