Chapter 351: Chapter 315: Bell Doctor Removes Gu

“Seal off the surroundings. Water Gu are extremely tiny insects, and there are many people afflicted here. I’m afraid some might be missed, and if one escapes, a group will quickly fall.”

Sang Que nodded, spreading the Ghost Realm, and the outside of the house instantly plunged into darkness. The red threads within the Ghost Realm crisscrossed, sealing all gaps in doors and windows.

Seeing this, Qiao Ling nodded and found an empty spot in the center of the room to start her preparations.

Qiao Ling retrieved a red earthenware sea bowl from the lower layer of the medicine chest, which was painted with white hieroglyphs.

She rolled a stack of white paper into a fan shape, placed it at the bottom of the sea bowl, then covered it with three handfuls of rice, and finally took a slightly larger gourd medicine bottle from the upper layer of the medicine chest.

Qiao Ling muttered some ancient and bizarre tune under her breath, which reminded Sang Que of the records of the Zhu You Technique she had read about in modern times.

The Zhu You Technique is a branch of ancient witchcraft, mostly used for healing.

After reciting the chant, Qiao Ling opened the gourd medicine bottle, lifted the mask to reveal her mouth, and drained its contents in one gulp, holding it in her mouth before spraying it onto the sea bowl.

A strong aroma of alcohol immediately filled the room, and a restless air pervaded as the spider patterns on everyone’s stomachs seemed to come to life, turning fiery red.

The white paper in the sea bowl ignited in green flames, and Qiao Ling shouted, “Go!”

Immediately, the mixture of rice and paper ash in the bowl transformed into small black and white insects resembling ants, crawling out of the sea bowl towards the afflicted individuals.

The ants climbed onto the swollen bellies of the people, burrowing in through their navels. Their cries of pain rose sharply as they convulsed and struggled.

But soon, the ants backed out from the people’s navels, grasping tiny transparent, water-sheen insects with their large mandibles, extracting them with force.

As soon as the insects left the bellies, a torrent of water gushed out from the navels, deflating the originally swollen stomachs like punctured balloons, and the cries ceased.

“Return!”

The ants dragged the insects back to the sea bowl in front of Qiao Ling, although not all ants succeeded. With many afflicted, some ants were entangled by the insects, escaping immediately towards the surroundings.

Sang Que’s Ghost Realm was impenetrable; the insects, hitting the edges, couldn’t escape and were captured and dragged back by the pursuing ants.

Xuan Yu, who had been observing from the rafters, jumped down at this moment, using its paws to swat the fleeing Water Gu insects back toward Qiao Ling.

Most Gu Worms are controlled by a Mother Gu; without eliminating the Mother Gu, it’s hard to kill the Child Gu. As long as the Child Gu finds an opportunity, it will keep parasitizing and replicating.

All the Water Gu were gathered in a sea bowl in front of Qiao Ling, forming what looked like a bowl of clear, transparent water, gently rippling. But on closer inspection, it was full of countless tiny insects.

When all the water Gu had been extracted from the people, Qiao Ling lifted the sea bowl, half-lifted her mask, and drank the entire bowl of ’water’ in one go.

Witnessing this, Sang Que and Xia Chan widened their eyes in shock.

Until that moment, Sang Que had always thought Qiao Ling was just a regular doctor with extensive medical knowledge and skills. It was her first time seeing Qiao Ling resort to anything beyond normal means.

Sang Que had almost forgotten that everyone from the Nine Songs was unlike ordinary people.

Gulp!

Sang Que heard the clear sound of swallowing as Qiao Ling turned her head and burped, feeling more like she had downed a bowl of fizzy water rather than Gu worms.

Qiao Ling wiped her mouth clean, fastened her mask back on, packed her things, and stood up.

“Alright, this problem is solved. Next door, there are still people afflicted with Snake Gu, Flying Gu, and madness Gu. It’s going to be another busy day.”

Qiao Ling pulled Sang Que and Xia Chan, and they were busy from dawn until the next morning, finally treating all the urgent and severely wounded in the Wounded Soldier Camp.

During this period, Qiao Ling didn’t even remember to eat, though she consumed quite a few Gu.

Sang Que realized that Qiao Ling was truly immune to all poisons; no matter if it was Gu or venom, she seemed to absorb them into her own body.

During this time, Sang Que took a moment to collect the corpses from the pit outside the city. The armor and weapons from the corpses had been taken, requiring Sang Que to find what the Ghost Vendor needed elsewhere.

Afterward, Sang Que went hunting for some wild beasts in the nearby mountains for Xia Chan.

Qiao Ling kept eating, while Xia Chan kept consuming, her little face sunken from hunger.

When they were finally done, Qiao Ling went back and collapsed into sleep, undisturbed.

Sang Que gave the hunted beasts to Xia Chan, who considerately shared some with Xuan Yu before indulging herself.

Xuan Yu’s main diet had now become raw meat, and the whole cat had grown considerably larger and wilder.

Like Xia Chan, Xuan Yu occasionally craved certain treats; canned food and cat strips were primarily used to satisfy those cravings.

This day’s toil wasn’t in vain. Now, everyone at Sancha River Pass, be they soldiers or laborers, was grateful to the three of them.

Of course, Qiao Ling, who invested the most effort, received the most incense; swallowing so many Gu worms couldn’t come without a price.

Qiao Ling slept for three whole days.

During these three days, the Qianshou Army across the river made no moves. When the scouts sent by Zhang the Fourth returned, they reported that the Qianshou Army had retreated, leaving their camp in disarray, with blood and corpses strewn everywhere.

Sang Que speculated that they must have ruined the Qianshou Army’s ritual to worship the Water Ghost that day, causing the Water Ghost to backfire, leading to significant losses for the Army and forcing them to temporarily retreat.

The crisis at Sancha River Pass was temporarily lifted, although Zhang the Fourth and his people had to continue holding the position.

Sang Que heard them say that if they held on for another month, the main forces from Jingzhou and Yunzhou would arrive; the Prime Minister had even dispatched the two Yin Walking Generals stationed in Jingzhou to help. Then they could counterattack the Qianshou Army and reclaim lost territory.

Zhang the Fourth also pointed out a relatively safe route for Sang Que so she could head to the central battlefield to find He Buning.

On the morning of the third day, Qiao Ling finally awoke; although she appeared normal, Sang Que, while combing her hair, discovered many strands of white.

Upon seeing this, Qiao Ling sighed with melancholy, took a bottle of potion from the medicine chest, applied it to the comb, and as she ran it through her hair, it returned to black.

It was then that Sang Que remembered that Qiao Ling’s stamina had always been poor, requiring medication to sustain long runs or treks.

Additionally, the way Qiao Ling had been grooming Xia Chan made Sang Que wonder if she was already considering passing on her medical skills.

Before leaving Sancha River Pass, Qiao Ling made another round at the Wounded Soldier Camp. After confirming that the people she had previously helped were fine, she left the medical camp some straightforward but effective prescriptions and advised on some precautions against Gu, before setting off with Sang Que.

Flower sedans cannot be used during the day, so Sang Que requested three horses from Zhang the Fourth. The three of them rode their horses swiftly, following the river northward.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep