"Congratulations, host! Qi Observation Technique (Mastery) obtained!"
The moment the system notification ended, Lin Chen felt something explode in his mind.
It wasn't a literal "explosion" of sound, but a sensation of consciousness being filled. Countless pieces of information surged in like a tide from some invisible source—how to observe someone's complexion, how to examine their breath, how to discern the strength or weakness of someone's qi flow, how to determine the deficiency or excess of internal organs, how to spot hidden ailments from one's expression and gait... In that instant, all these techniques fused with his memory. He "saw" countless faces: some were healthy people with ruddy complexions and smooth qi flow; some were patients with sallow, emaciated faces and barely perceptible breathing; some were critically ill people with dark foreheads and scattered spiritual light. Next to each face was text explaining where to look, what to pay attention to, and what conclusions to draw. This knowledge wasn't memorized rules but rather a set of innate instincts—whenever he thought of it, he could immediately retrieve and use it.
After the dizziness passed, Lin Chen grabbed the desk corner, gasped a few times, and slowly opened his eyes. His temples were still throbbing like someone was prying them with a needle. But that bloated feeling in his brain had vanished, replaced by an strange clarity—as if something had been "installed" and was ready to be called upon at any time. He tried to "think" about the Qi Observation Technique in his mind, and immediately countless images and text welled up: how to observe complexion, how to discern breath, how to determine disease location... everything was clear, as if etched into his bones. He took a deep breath, steadied himself on the desk edge, and waited for his heartbeat to calm.
The world was still the same world, but his way of "seeing" had changed. He instinctively glanced outside—the courtyard had an old jujube tree, beneath which a yellow dog was crouching and gnawing on a bone. If it were before, he would have thought it was just an ordinary scene; but now, he could actually faintly "see" some kind of flowing, weak aura around that yellow dog. The dog was healthy, its qi steady; if it were sick, that aura would become sluggish, chaotic, or weak. He withdrew his gaze and looked at his own hands. His palms open, fingers distinct, glowing with a faint pink hue in the morning light. He focused carefully, and could also vaguely sense the flow of qi within his own body—though not yet skilled, that intuition of "being able to see" had been planted.
Qi Observation Technique.
Lin Chen retrieved that newly acquired knowledge in his mind and carefully organized it. The concept of observing qi has existed since ancient times. The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon contains the saying "One who knows through observation is called a divine physician," and later generations of medical practitioners expanded on this. But those who could truly "observe qi" were extremely rare. Qi has no form or substance; ordinary people cannot see or touch it, can only infer through external manifestations like complexion, expression, and breathing. However, the Qi Observation Technique seemed to install a special "filter" in his consciousness—when he concentrated and applied it, he could actually faintly perceive the faint qi flow on the surface of the human body, and even follow the direction of that qi to infer the condition of internal organs and the location of diseases. This went beyond ordinary TCM diagnosis, approaching the mystical.
but through the system's infusion, Lin Chen skipped directly past the beginner and proficient stages, reaching the level of "mastery."
Lin Chen sat on the bed for a while, waiting for his heartbeat to calm, then stood up and pushed the door open.
His grandmother's room was opposite, the door slightly ajar. He walked over quietly and through the gap saw his grandmother lying on her side on the bed, a thin blanket pulled to her chest, her breathing rising and falling, very light and shallow. He pushed the door in, sat on the low stool beside the bed, and didn't immediately wake her. Instead, he first held his breath and focused, following the Qi Observation Technique methods in his mind, concentrating his attention on his grandmother.
At first he was still somewhat at a loss, not knowing how to "see." He stared at his grandmother's face, trying hard to focus, but before his eyes was only waxy-yellow skin, deeply sunken eye sockets, cracked lips—he couldn't see anything else. He closed his eyes, recalling that "instinct" about the Qi Observation Technique in his mind—to relax, to focus, to enter a state of "observation" rather than "thinking." He tried adjusting his breathing, in and out, gradually pushing aside distracting thoughts. When he opened his eyes again, the scene before him gradually changed. In his eyes, his grandmother's complexion was no longer just "waxy yellow"—he could "see" the faint grayish pallor beneath that yellow layer, could "see" the stagnation of qi between her eyebrows and bridge of her nose, could "see" the weakness and discontinuity of that breath in her chest when she breathed. That feeling was hard to describe, as if he had gained an "inner eye," able to see through the flesh to deeper layers. His gaze seemed to penetrate the flesh to even deeper places: between the organs were several gloomy shadows, like blocked river channels; the flow of qi and blood was slow and powerless, like a stream about to dry up. Those shadows and blockages, according to the explanations in the knowledge given to him by the system—some were hidden injuries from early years of overwork, some were illnesses from accumulated wind-cold-dampness over time, some were the decline of organ function in old age, unable to promote the circulation of qi and blood. These factors tangled together, day after day consuming what little vitality the elderly woman had left.
Lin Chen's face gradually paled.
The longer he "looked," the more his heart grew cold. His grandmother's surrounding qi had become as weak as a candle in the wind; if left untreated, based on the rate of decline... he silently calculated in his mind. With his limited medical knowledge and the feedback from the Qi Observation Technique just now, the old woman probably had only a few months left. A few months. Maybe less. He clenched his teeth, nails digging into his palm, barely keeping himself from crying out. He was afraid of waking his grandmother, more afraid that the moment he opened his mouth, he would lose the strength he was barely holding together.
He gently stood up, stepped out the door, closed it behind him, and slid down slowly with his back against the mottled earthen wall. His legs were a bit weak, as if he had just finished a long run. He raised his hand to wipe his face, only to find his palms were soaked with sweat. A few months. He repeated those three words in his mind. In a few months, he would have to start from scratch—accumulate reputation, accumulate funds, treat patients, trigger tasks, exchange for better medicine... Could he make it in time? Could his grandmother wait that long? He didn't dare think further, could only force himself to focus on the "next step." What was the next step? Check-in. Get the herbs. Brew the medicine. Then... then wait for people to come to him for treatment. If no one comes? He would take the initiative to ask. In the village, when people had headaches or fevers, they usually went to the town health clinic or just toughed it out, but there were also many who trusted folk remedies and familiar faces. As long as he spoke up, someone would be willing to try.
Morning light slanted down from the corner of the eaves, casting a bright spot on the ground. Lin Chen stared at that spot, his mind a chaotic mess. A few months. He only had a few months. Before, he had no skills, could only watch his grandmother grow weaker day by day, barely keeping her alive with folk remedies; but now it was different. He had the system, had the Qi Observation Technique, and had just seen on the interface the check-in, tasks, and store. Those medicinal herbs and formulas in the store—if he could get them, perhaps they could truly reverse his grandmother's condition. But the problem was, right now his funds were zero, reputation also zero, he couldn't buy anything. To earn money and earn reputation, he had to save people, accept patients, get people to recognize his medical skills. And to save people, besides the Qi Observation Technique, he also needed medicine—ordinary medicine could be obtained in town, but if he encountered serious cases, or wanted to use better formulas for his grandmother, he would have to exchange them from the system, or at least use the approach provided by the system to prepare the medicine. This was like a cycle: to save his grandmother, he needed resources first; to have resources, he needed to save people and earn reputation first. And could his grandmother wait?
Lin Chen buried his face in his palms and took a few deep breaths.
Couldn't panic. Panic wouldn't help. He raised his head, looking at the gray sky, telling himself over and over: Since the system chose him, it wouldn't just give him the Qi Observation Technique and leave it at that. Check-in was every day, tasks would trigger—as long as he was willing to do, willing to treat, willing to accumulate, there would always be opportunities to get better rewards. His grandmother could still hold on for a few months; during those months, he couldn't waste a single day. Starting from today: check-in, see what he gets; then based on the Qi Observation Technique's judgment, use the available herbs in town to prepare a conditioning formula for his grandmother, stabilize her for one day is one day. At the same time, as long as someone came to him for treatment, he would accept it. Cure someone, get word to spread, perhaps that would trigger tasks and get more reputation and funds. Step by step, don't fall into chaos.
He pushed against the wall to stand up, his legs somewhat numb. He rotated his ankle, turned back to his own room, and opened the system interface in his mind again. Besides the Qi Observation Technique, the newcomer gift pack had already been fully distributed; the check-in button was lit, meaning he could still check in today. He stared at that button, didn't immediately click it. He wanted to organize his thoughts first: After checking in, no matter what he gets, he would use it on his grandmother first; then find opportunities to treat people, even if it's just minor illnesses, he would take them seriously. The Qi Observation Technique gave him a pair of "eyes," but treating illness required more than just eyes—he also needed medicine, formulas, and methods. Those would all have to be earned from the system bit by bit.
Lin Chen sat at the desk, his gaze falling outside. His grandmother's door was still closed, no sound coming from inside. He silently said in his mind: Grandma, wait a bit longer. I have a way now. This time, I definitely won't let you go like this.
He clenched his fist, his consciousness sinking into the system, preparing to check in for the first time today. But before that, he needed to do one more thing—use the Qi Observation Technique to write a detailed "diagnosis" for his grandmother. Even if he didn't have precious medicinal herbs for now, he would based on this diagnosis, prepare the most suitable formula he could obtain at the moment. The Qi Observation Technique had already told him where the illness was, where the qi was blocked, where was deficient and where was excess; the rest was using medicine to unblock and tonify. He spread out an old newspaper, picked up a ballpoint pen, and began writing down, item by item, what he had just observed. As he wrote, his hand steadied, and his heart steadied as well. After writing half a newspaper, he stopped and looked: lumbar stagnation, shoulder-back cold-dampness, heart-spleen deficiency, kidney qi deficiency... Under each item he noted the corresponding treatment principle and optional medicines. For lumbar stagnation, should promote blood circulation and remove stasis, relax tendons and unblock collaterals—can use cinnamon twig, chuanxiong, dong quai; for shoulder-back cold-dampness, should warm meridians and disperse cold, dispel dampness and remove bi—can use notopterygium, duhuo, clematis; for heart-spleen deficiency, should tonify qi and nourish blood, strengthen spleen and calm the spirit—can use Four Gentlemen Decoction plus astragalus and sour jujube seed; for kidney qi deficiency, should warm kidney and assist yang, consolidate foundation and nurture origin—can use small amounts of aconite and cinnamon bark, but the elderly are physically weak, must not use too much... As he wrote, he cross-referenced with his knowledge of formulas—which medicines could be found in town, which medicinal properties were too strong and needed caution, which could be substituted. Although he could only use ordinary medicinal herbs for now, at least the direction was correct. Later, when he had better medicines and more appropriate formulas, he could replace and strengthen them step by step. As if that path was already being laid out bit by bit beneath his feet.
Outside, the neighbor's door opened, someone was calling a child to eat. Lin Chen folded the newspaper and put it away, glancing at the check-in button on the system interface. After checking in, he would go to town to get the herbs; after getting the herbs, he would come back and decoct medicine for grandmother. Not one day could be wasted.
He recalled what he learned in college, TCM Diagnostics, where the teacher talked about observation, listening, inquiry, and palpation. Observation was ranked first, but the observation in the textbooks was nothing more than complexion, tongue presentation, mental state—observing external manifestations, then inferring internal pathogenesis based on experience. How could it be like the Qi Observation Technique, which could directly "see" qi flow, organs, and stasis? If this skill was real, then he essentially had an extra pair of X-ray eyes, how many detours could he save when diagnosing illnesses? Back in school, the teachers always said TCM emphasized "holistic concept" and "pattern differentiation," requiring the four diagnostic methods to be combined for comprehensive judgment. But what the Qi Observation Technique gave him seemed to be a more direct, more essential "seeing." He took a deep breath, pushed aside stray thoughts, and sank his consciousness into the system. The check-in button glowed slightly in his mind, as if waiting for him to touch. He stared at that button for a moment, didn't immediately click. After checking in, he would also go to town to get herbs, come back and decoct medicine for grandmother. Before that, he had to first write the diagnosis clearly and finalize the formula. What the check-in could yield, no one knew; but no matter what it yielded, he would use it where it mattered most. He withdrew his consciousness, refocusing on that old newspaper covered in writing. The formula was already drafted; next was execution. Step by step, no rush.