Chapter 149: Chapter 135: Treatment
In Shuofang Province, powerful winds blew ceaselessly all year round. In Wind Ruins City, the average wind force reached an astonishing Level 9, making the area uninhabitable for ordinary people.
The Tianchen Third Military Hospital was established in Wind Ruins City. The region was vast and sparsely populated, with most of its inhabitants being Martial Artists—predominantly those at or above the Inner Qi Realm.
This wasn’t due to any strange preference on their part. Rather, the concentration of worldly energy in Wind Ruins City was generally higher than in other places. Official measurements rated the city’s average worldly energy concentration at Level 6, which was considered quite excellent. For comparison, Yu Fei’s hometown county barely registered as Level 1.
Martial Artists at the fourth realm and above had high demands for worldly energy during their cultivation. For hundreds of years, the assessment of worldly energy concentration followed an ancient, simple method, roughly classifying it into four categories: low, medium, high, and supreme. Later, with advancements in martial science, research institutes developed a detailed classification system for energy levels, ranging from Level 1 to 18.
Places with higher energy levels often featured extreme weather and landforms, and they were also more suitable for nurturing rare and precious materials.
The wind howled relentlessly. The ground was covered in low-growing, grayish-green plants. Their scientific name was Snake Thorn Grass. They had extensive root systems, but each plant had only a single, vine-like stalk covered in barbs. These barbs were mildly toxic. In the wind, the Snake Thorn Grass writhed like dancing snakes, and getting pricked by one would cause a sharp pain akin to a snakebite—hence the name.
Snake Thorn Grass grew in the crevices between giant rocks. The surface of Wind Ruins City had no soil or sand, only endless, enormous boulders.
The view here was incredibly open. As far as the eye could see, there were no obstructions—only a field of Snake Thorn Grass swaying in the wind like a siren’s hair.
In ancient times, Wind Ruins City was considered a forbidden zone. It was only in the last two hundred years, with the further liberation of societal productivity, that its development became possible.
A specialized combat vehicle raced down a road paved with a special green rubber-like material. The vehicle had a unique design, with an extremely low center of gravity and a flat, streamlined shape. It pulled a massive, bullet-shaped cargo trailer.
Wind Ruins City produced almost no daily necessities; everything had to be brought in from the outside.
"Hey, old man, Tianchen Hospital, right? We’ll be there this afternoon, maybe another six hours. We agreed on a fare of eight thousand. How about you pay up now?"
Yan Sea silently took out his phone and transferred the eight thousand.
Originally, after getting off the commercial flight, he had planned to fly there directly himself. However, halfway through, he encountered a strange thunderstorm. Fearing an accident that would cause delays, he had hailed a ride on the road.
The fare was exorbitant. He recalled that while transportation in Wind Ruins City was expensive, it wasn’t as ridiculous as eight thousand. Two thousand at most. But it had been ten years, and prices had likely changed significantly, so he didn’t haggle.
Most of the buildings he saw along the way were very low to the ground. They had curved, sloping exteriors and were built with an embedded design, lacking any overhanging eaves. The construction materials were extremely sturdy.
"We’re here. Watch your step..."
Yan Sea, carrying his bag, slowly got out of the vehicle. He stood before a low-slung building, in front of a massive stone entrance hall no more than three meters high and ten meters wide. To the side, the words "Tianchen Third Military Hospital" were simply carved.
The roar of the transport vehicle’s engine sounded from behind him. A Grandmaster’s keen senses allowed him to pick out a sentence from within the rumbling noise.
’Damn, what a country bumpkin. I just made a killing—a whole seven thousand! La-di-da...’
Even with a Grandmaster’s composure, Yan Sea nearly lost his cool and wanted to go back to argue.
After all, in all his years as a martial arts teacher, his monthly salary was just a little over ten thousand. This bastard had just scammed him out of more than half a month’s pay in one go.
Still, Yan Sea managed to swallow his anger. He scanned his face at the entrance checkpoint, confirmed his fingerprint and iris scan, and then entered.
He followed the stone staircase down from the hall, spiraling continuously. Ten meters underground, the space suddenly opened up, bustling with the clamor of voices.
"Make way, emergency!"
Yan Sea stepped slightly to the side just as a group of doctors rushed past at sixty miles per hour, pushing a gurney with a wailing patient.
The Tianchen Third Military Hospital was built underground. In fact, the vast majority of buildings in Wind Ruins City were hidden underground. The year-round hurricanes drove the cost of surface-level construction to an absurd degree, and such structures would also require annual repairs.
In a special ward on floor B26, Yu Fei was submerged in a huge tank. Various tubes were inserted into his body, and he wore an oxygen mask. Bored out of his mind, he was currently busy blowing bubbles. Su Yue sat guard nearby, scrolling through videos and laughing out loud.
There was clearly a TV in the room, but Su Yue refused to turn it on. Yu Fei was about to die of boredom.
"6,798... 6,799..."
Suddenly, the door to the ward opened. In his excitement, Yu Fei let out a stream of bubbles.
’Damn, lost count again.’
An older, distinguished-looking doctor entered the room. Through the glass of the tank, Yu Fei could see Su Yue’s obvious respect for the man.
Yu Fei waved excitedly from inside, looking like a molting bullfrog. Unfortunately, other than producing a string of bubbles, he couldn’t make a sound.
Chen Yu also smiled and waved at Yu Fei in the tank. He then turned to Su Yue and said, "The little guy is still full of energy. Looks like he’s recovering well. But I remember us having Holographic Mirror Helmets, don’t we? Why haven’t you set one up for him? It would let him communicate with the outside world and keep him from getting too bored."
Su Yue smiled faintly. "Mr. Chen, that was my idea. You don’t know the half of it. This kid just entered the second realm, yet he dared to go sword-to-sword with a fourth-realm heretic. That’s why he’s so badly injured. If he doesn’t learn his lesson now, he might be bold enough to challenge a Grandmaster when he reaches the Inner Qi Realm. We can’t encourage that kind of reckless behavior."
