Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 10
byChapter 10 The Spiritual Body (I)
“Director Lu, a pleasure.” At four in the afternoon, He Siyuan finally stepped into the special ward area of the Medical Academy and met Lu Changqing.
Lu Changqing had just walked out of a special ward. The heavy door opened for only an instant before closing again. Although He Siyuan stood ten meters away, he still felt an intense discomfort in that moment: anger, fear, confusion, scattered thoughts…
The person inside must have suffered a severe outburst, He Siyuan thought.
A spiritual power outburst could “contaminate” those nearby. This was through a heavily protected ward; if it were direct contact…
He Siyuan watched Lu Changqing walk toward him, biting his tongue to stop himself from retreating.
Lu Changqing carried something that made him extremely uncomfortable.
But in the few steps Lu Changqing took toward him, that feeling faded from intense to faint, and then completely disappeared.
“A pleasure,” Lu Changqing said flatly.
He Siyuan met his deep, dark eyes. For some reason, he suddenly averted his gaze, and a childhood memory of ghost stories surfaced in his mind: the stories said that the High Priests of antiquity possessed heavenly sight, able to instantly see through a person to their very bones.
“Sit,” Lu Changqing invited He Siyuan into the treatment room. His expression was as calm as a lake. “What is the issue, Young Master He?”
“The problem isn’t serious, but it hasn’t improved. I had intended to schedule an examination with Director Lu before, but due to various circumstances, I was never able to,” He Siyuan said vaguely and politely.
“Time is limited. Shall we start directly?” Lu Changqing glanced at him, flatly interrupting his pleasantries.
That glance was profound and sharp. He Siyuan nodded, feeling a flicker of displeasure, but quickly suppressed it.
Even without the High Priest’s sight, a Therapist should at least be able to perceive others’ emotions. He Siyuan didn’t want Lu Changqing to detect his annoyance.
He Siyuan was a young master from an influential family, but the Lu family was an ancient lineage of “Priests” with transcendent status. Moreover, Lu Changqing’s true power far exceeded his background; even the two Imperial Princes treated him with utmost respect.
It was genuinely difficult for He Siyuan to secure this treatment session, requiring the influence of an elder. And his ailment could probably only be treated by this man.
If he could treat it, he was useful. And useful people could be allowed to be arrogant. He Siyuan forcefully convinced himself deep down. His expression became humble, and he sat on the treatment chair as guided by the assistant.
After the assistant helped connect the specialized neural signal transmission and protection circuits, He Siyuan looked at Lu Changqing, who was sitting far away in another chair, in surprise: “Director Lu… you don’t need to touch me?”
Any spiritual power treatment required the Therapist to have physical contact with the patient, usually by holding the wrist. This facilitated connecting with the patient and entering their spiritual domain, and also created an anchor point for returning from the spiritual domain to the real world.
But Lu Changqing was far from He Siyuan, showing no intention of approaching. His hand merely rested on a button at the end of the neural transmission cable bundle: “I don’t need those for my treatments.”
With that, Lu Changqing pressed the button and looked at He Siyuan.
A soul-piercing cold startled He Siyuan for an instant. The next second, he felt a vortex-like suction pulling him into a deep world. He involuntarily closed his eyes and fell into an abyss of unconsciousness.
After an unknown period, He Siyuan woke up with a start.
He was still sitting in the same spot. Everything in the room was exactly as it was before he lost consciousness, as if he had only blinked.
However, the time displayed on the terminal clearly indicated that fifteen minutes had passed.
“Director Lu is indeed Director Lu. I have never heard of this method of treatment,” He Siyuan said, his pupils slightly contracted. He looked up at Lu Changqing, a hint of apprehension hidden in his eyes: with such methods, wouldn’t taking his life be as easy as flipping a hand?
“It’s not treatment, merely understanding the situation. I cannot solve Young Master He’s problem,” Lu Changqing said, ignoring He Siyuan’s thoughts, speaking with cold directness.
“How can that be?” He Siyuan’s voice rose for a moment, then quickly lowered. He spoke politely, “How can there be a spiritual power problem in the world that Director Lu cannot solve? Furthermore, my issue is not serious, merely—”
He Siyuan stopped abruptly here.
“Merely the gradual degeneration of your spiritual power,” Lu Changqing finished flatly. “You must have repeatedly overused drugs or minerals that stimulate spiritual power growth to force advancement. Now you are suffering the backlash.”
It was backlash, indeed. He Siyuan was not surprised. He had heard other Therapists hesitantly express this conjecture, but none had stated it as directly and definitively as Lu Changqing.
He Siyuan clenched his palm in embarrassment. He unlinked the cables from his body and stood up, giving Lu Changqing a solemn bow: “Director Lu is correct. I was ignorant as a child, and now I regret it deeply. I implore Director Lu to use his marvelous skills and compassionate heart to help me.”
“Director Lu can even save those who are in violent disarray. My small problem should be manageable.”
“A rot at the root is different from an outburst that collapses the surface,” Lu Changqing said, seemingly oblivious to the change in He Siyuan’s expression.
“I hope Director Lu will take the time to consider a solution for me,” He Siyuan pleaded sincerely, placing a black card on the tray next to the treatment chair.
But Lu Changqing didn’t even glance at the card.
He naturally wouldn’t lack such things… He Siyuan concealed the anxiety in his eyes and added, “Director Lu, please consider that I am Leyan’s paternal uncle—”
This statement, unexpectedly, seemed to move Lu Changqing. Lu Changqing looked at him, his eyes deep as the sea: “There is indeed a method, but Young Master He may not be willing to try it.”
“Director Lu, please don’t worry. A method is better than none. Please speak frankly.”
Lu Changqing spoke frankly: “A weak root system cannot support a tree. To save the root, the only way is to cut down the tree and allow it to recuperate.”
He Siyuan’s face changed: “You mean—”
“I mean, the degeneration of your spiritual power is a good thing. Young Master He should not stop it, but rather accelerate it,” Lu Changqing replied flatly.
“This—”
“This is a serious matter. Young Master He should consider it carefully and consult other Therapists. I have other duties, so I won’t see you out.”
“…Alright.” He Siyuan knew Lu Changqing was busy and he shouldn’t be tactless. He turned around, dropping his smile, and walked out with a gloomy expression.
“Young Master He,” Lu Changqing called out from behind him, speaking unhurriedly, “You left your companion behind.”
What? He Siyuan followed his gaze, and his handsome face twisted slightly. “My apologies.”
He quickly recalled the Spiritual Companion Beast that had somehow escaped his spiritual domain.
It was a scabby monkey whose eyes, for some reason, looked timid and fearful.
*
“Little Young Master, this is my Spiritual Body. Don’t mind that it’s ugly; it’s actually very well-behaved.” In the spacious, bright mess hall of the Han River Base, Deng Tie, the logistics officer responsible for looking after He Leyan, chuckled as he summoned his unremarkable crow Spiritual Body and held it in his palm for He Leyan to see.
He Leyan tilted his head to look at the crow. The crow, whether intentionally or not, tilted its head at the exact same angle. When He Leyan straightened his head, it immediately straightened its head too. Its nimble little eyes looked at He Leyan with kindness and curiosity.
He Leyan unconsciously relaxed a little. Daddy said that every person and every Spiritual Body is a bundle of signals and energy. If you feel carefully, you can sense their likes, dislikes, and strength. He couldn’t do exactly what Daddy described, but Spiritual Bodies were simpler than people. If he calmed down, he could sense things.
Although the little crow was black, the energy it emitted was warm.
Clenching his small hands, He Leyan finally moved, tentatively reaching out. The crow was indeed very obedient, actively moving closer and extending its head under He Leyan’s palm.
He Leyan hesitated for a moment, then his tender little finger tapped the black crow head in a comforting gesture.
“Caw!” The crow grew excited, spreading its wings and letting out a loud cry.
He Leyan was startled and pulled his hand back, but the next moment, the crow flapped its wings and nudged his leg with its head, “Caw,” then nudged his waist, “Caw”… The crow hopped and squawked around He Leyan, making a lot of noise, but all of it was friendly. He Leyan dodged while laughing at its comical appearance.
He laughed, he actually laughed… All the soldiers present breathed a sigh of relief, especially Deng Tie.
He quietly stopped the movement he was preparing to recall his Spiritual Body with, and said happily, “Little Young Master, Ah Gua likes you.”
This wasn’t faked, and Spiritual Bodies couldn’t fake it—Deng Tie realized his Spiritual Body was genuinely excited and truly enjoyed being close to He Leyan.
It was said that the higher the Therapist’s talent level, the better their affinity with Spiritual Bodies. It seemed this wasn’t false.
“Young Master, it’s my turn now,” said a soldier standing behind Deng Tie, rubbing his hands eagerly.
There were two rows of about twenty people in the mess hall. They were all responsible for caring for and protecting He Leyan, or for guarding the dormitory area, and often had to interact with him. He Chen had requested them to release their Spiritual Bodies so He Leyan could get used to them, lest a sudden encounter startle the child one day.
—Clearly, there was a precedent for this.
“Young Master, my Spiritual Body is a bit big, don’t be scared,” the soldier said, giving He Leyan a heads-up when the boy looked his way. He then glanced at Ning Tian, the captain guarding the little young master, and only released his Spiritual Body after receiving permission.
It was indeed a bit large—a strong, calf-sized dog.
“Doggy!” He Leyan wasn’t scared; instead, he was a little excited, and he became familiar with the large dog even faster than he had with the crow.
Seeing the little young master playing happily with his Spiritual Body, the soldier grinned widely.
As he was smiling, he noticed a gaze sweeping over him. The soldier looked up and met the eyes of the Commander sitting at a dining table in the corner—whose expression was quite unfriendly.
“Ahem,” the soldier lowered his head and nudged his comrade next to him, “It’s your turn.”
The two rows of soldiers and officers released their Spiritual Bodies for He Leyan one by one.
The last person released a chameleon, which garnered He Leyan’s unprecedented curiosity and attention.
“What happened to its foot?” He Leyan noticed that one of the chameleon’s front paws wasn’t changing color like the rest of its body, and asked curiously.
“It got a little injured during a mission,” explained the soldier, who served as a scout in the fleet. “It’s nothing, Young Master, just a small injury. It can play with you anytime once it’s healed.”
As the soldier spoke, he was about to recall the somewhat listless Spiritual Body, but He Leyan squatted down and reached his small hand toward the chameleon’s front paw: “Does it hurt?”
The child’s voice was innocent and tender. The soldier felt a warmth in his heart: “Young Master, it—”
The words caught in his throat. The soldier suddenly froze: Warriors and their Spiritual Bodies share perception. He suddenly felt a comfortable warm current from his Spiritual Body, rising from its foot and spreading throughout its body.
The soldier was stunned and looked at He Leyan’s small hand resting on the chameleon’s front paw.
“Young Master, you—you,” he stammered excitedly, “Are you giving it treatment?”
As he spoke, he saw his comrades looking at him, and he explained haltingly, “I felt it! Emerald, Emerald’s injury is getting better!”
Everyone widened their eyes and looked at He Leyan. He Leyan withdrew his small hand, trying hard to look serious, but was still a little shy under everyone’s gaze: “I only know a little bit.”
[A little bit is enough, my goodness!]
[You’re only three years old, three years old, Leyan!]
[What is a genius? This is a genius!]
In the live stream, which had been turned on at some point, a torrent of bullet comments scrolled by.
The people present also recovered from their shock and praised him: “Young Master is amazing!” “So powerful!”
Amidst the chorus of compliments, one voice was quite discordant: “You are still young, don’t overexert yourself.”
[He is indeed still small, don’t let him suffer backlash.]
[Oh, don’t discourage the cub’s enthusiasm! I told you these big soldiers don’t know how to parent!]
The audience debated various things, watching as a person wearing white gloves parted the soldiers, bent down to wipe sweat from the cub’s forehead, then stood up straight, and cleared his throat in a pretentious manner: “Well, you haven’t seen my Spiritual Body yet.”
He paused. The audience grew impatient waiting, but he didn’t release his Spiritual Body. Instead, they heard a baffling statement: “Actually, wolves and dogs are all one family.”