Divine Level Witch Doctor

Hearing the crowd’s gasps of amazement, a smug smile crept onto Zhao Chengliang’s lips.

When submitting his prescription earlier, he hadn’t even bothered to look at Zhao Yuan’s. He was convinced that no matter what formula Zhao Yuan presented, it couldn’t possibly beat his own—couldn’t beat the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction, the crowning achievement of the Earth Replenishing Sect’s founding patriarch!

In Zhao Chengliang’s mind, the crowd’s current exclamations were all for him, for his Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction.

Pleased with himself, Zhao Chengliang couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. ’Li Heping, Qiao Zhixue, and the others truly deserve their reputations as renowned Traditional Chinese Medicine masters. Their eyes are sharp indeed, recognizing the extraordinariness of my Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction at a glance! I’m letting you all off easy today. If it weren’t for the need to defeat this kid and defend the honor of my Jinling Zhao Family, I’d never have been willing to reveal this legendary heirloom prescription!’

At this thought, Zhao Chengliang felt a pang of regret.

He had moved heaven and earth to obtain this Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction, and he wouldn’t even let his own clansmen see it. Although he had used this prescription before, he never wrote it down for the patient. Instead, he would personally prepare and decoct the herbs, giving only the finished medicinal soup to the patient, all to prevent its composition from being stolen.

Zhao Chengliang had originally planned to pass this prescription down, along with several others, as a family heirloom for his descendants. He never imagined he would be forced to reveal it to the public today.

It was obvious that with the skills of Li Heping, Qiao Zhixue, and the others, they would memorize the prescription immediately after seeing it. From this day forward, the prescription would no longer be a secret. It would become as well-known to the public as formulas like Ephedra Decoction or Four Gentlemen Soup!

Although this would make the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction famous and benefit many patients, in Zhao Chengliang’s eyes, it was a losing trade that harmed himself to help others.

He shot Zhao Yuan a vicious glare.

’If this guy hadn’t shown up to challenge the Jinling Zhao Family, why would I have had to pull out my ace in the hole?’

The more he thought about it, the angrier Zhao Chengliang became. He completely forgot the cautionary tale of Zhao Yangqiu and began to taunt, ”Did you hear that, kid? Everyone is marveling at the prescription I presented. If I were you, I’d give up and admit defeat right now! Oh, that’s right, I remember you saying earlier that the words ’give up’ aren’t in your vocabulary? Then just wait for your utter humiliation...”

Before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted.

A renowned Traditional Chinese Medicine master who was on good terms with him tugged his sleeve and whispered, ”Old Zhao, stop talking. You should take a look at student Zhao Yuan’s prescription first!”

Zhao Chengliang sneered, ”He probably hasn’t even fully learned the common formulas from the Prescription Science textbooks. What kind of decent prescription could he possibly write?” Then he urged, ”I said, you’ve all seen the prescriptions. Hurry up and announce the result of this round!”

Li Heping looked up and said, ”The main herbs in these two prescriptions are largely the same, but they differ in a few of the assistant and courier herbs. We need to discuss which one is better before we can reach a conclusion. Dr. Zhao, please be patient and wait quietly on the side for the result.”

Zhao Chengliang was stunned for a moment, then furious. ”What? You still need to hold a meeting to discuss which prescription is better? Are you kidding me? My prescription is the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction, passed down from Li Dongyuan himself! What kind of formula could that kid write that could possibly compare to mine? Wait, what did you just say? The main herbs in both prescriptions are the same? How is that possible?”

He spun around, snatched Zhao Yuan’s prescription from the hands of a TCM master, and his eyes went wide as copper bells as he saw the composition. He stood as if petrified. After a long moment, he finally came to his senses and shrieked, ”What is going on? How do you also know the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction?”

The first thought that flashed through Zhao Chengliang’s mind was plagiarism.

But he quickly dismissed the idea.

During the Prescription Medicine competition, their seats were at least forty or fifty meters apart. How could anyone plagiarize from that distance? Even if Zhao Yuan had farsighted vision, it couldn’t possibly be *that* good, right?

The only other possibility was that Zhao Yuan had also learned the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction!

’But isn’t this prescription the secret, unshared treasure of the Changshan Li Family? Could Zhao Yuan have done the same thing I did—bribed the children of an old TCM doctor from the Li family to sneak it out and copy it?’

’No, that’s not right! Zhao Yuan’s prescription has a few more herbs than the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction I obtained!’

Zhao Chengliang’s first reaction was that Zhao Yuan had just randomly added herbs.

But after studying the medicinal properties and their combination, he was astonished to discover that these few herbs integrated perfectly with the entire formula, creating a seamless whole. It didn’t look like they were randomly added at all; rather, it was as if they were meant to be in the original prescription all along!

’Could this be... the complete formula for the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction?!’

While Zhao Chengliang stood there, dumbstruck, Li Heping, Qiao Zhixue, Professor Tu, and the other TCM masters were already engaged in a heated discussion about the two prescriptions.

After carefully comparing the two formulas, Li Heping gave his opinion: ”I believe student Zhao Yuan’s prescription is superior! The main herbs are largely identical, but student Zhao Yuan’s formula includes several more Yin-nourishing herbs. It is precisely these herbs that allow the entire formula to replenish Yang Qi without excessively damaging Yin!”

Qiao Zhixue nodded. ”I agree with Elder Li, and I’d like to add something. Based on my analysis, the function of these Yin-nourishing herbs isn’t merely to prevent damage to the Yin. While nourishing Yin, they also help generate Yang Qi, perfectly corresponding to the theory from the Su Wen that ’Yang is born from Yin’! Although these Yin-nourishing herbs are only assistants and couriers, their importance is no less than that of the monarch and minister herbs. It’s a stroke of genius!”

”I think so as well.”

Professor Tu said, ”Although there is only this slight difference between the two prescriptions, it’s this very difference that creates a world of distinction in their effects! Furthermore, you shouldn’t ignore the patient’s condition. This is a seventy-year-old man whose bodily functions have declined. The prescription given by Zhao Chengliang, lacking these few Yin-nourishing herbs, is too potent and aggressive. While it might cure the man’s illness, it would also bring about side effects. In contrast, student Zhao Yuan’s prescription, with the presence of the Yin-nourishing herbs, allows the medicinal effect to progress gradually and better harmonizes Yin and Yang. Not only will it have no side effects, but it will actually improve the old man’s overall physical condition. It’s truly a magnificent prescription!”

It wasn’t just these three titans of the field; everyone else also felt that Zhao Yuan’s prescription was superior!

This heated discussion was less a debate and more an appreciation session.

A group of giants from the medical world were analyzing and admiring the prescription Zhao Yuan had written.

The more intensely they discussed it, the more awkward Zhao Chengliang, standing at the side, became.

In truth, even without listening to them, a practitioner of Zhao Chengliang’s level could see that the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction Zhao Yuan had written was far superior to his own!

Over the past three years, Zhao Chengliang had tried more than once to perfect the Digestive Qi Tonic Decoction. But he never, ever imagined that the key to completing it lay not in pacifying the liver and regulating the spleen, nor in augmenting the warming of Yang and replenishing of Qi, but in adding a few Yin-nourishing herbs!

Recalling his earlier smugness and his sneering taunts at Zhao Yuan, Zhao Chengliang felt as if he were being slapped across the face again and again.

The pain was searing!