"...Chen Li, do you really know how to practice medicine?" the little Vidyadhara girl asked, unable to hold back any longer. She had been sitting by Chen Li's stall sipping bubble tea, watching him send off yet another "patient."
"Who says I don't?"
"But your pulse-taking posture just now was all wrong."
"Says who? Every single person who's come to me for a consultation has called me a divine physician," Chen Li said, planting his hands on his hips, radiating an aura of incredible smugness.
He was gradually becoming addicted to the chorus of "divine physician."
No wonder the Aeon of Abundance enjoyed bestowing blessings upon others; there was something truly exhilarating about selflessly healing people.
As for how many of the dozens of patients he'd seen actually had a kidney deficiency, Chen Li wasn't sure, but the diagnosis rate was holding steady at 40%.
He had given out 50 doses of medicine and had already gained 20 Abundance Value.
It was a pity that Mobius didn't understand, respect, or have any intention of researching the concept of "dampness" from Traditional Chinese Medicine, otherwise Chen Li's Abundance Value would be accumulating even faster.
"...Fine, as long as you're happy. But this routine of yours won't fool a Xianzhou native," Bailu reminded him kindly.
This was because the people of the Xianzhou had powerful self-healing abilities.
Some Xianzhou natives could have their heads chopped off, run to pick them up, reattach them, and then proceed to fight their way from the South-Heaven Gate to the North-Heaven Gate and back a dozen times.
Without even blinking!
The blessings of Abundance. Even lightning-wielding warriors would give it a five-star review.
"Exactly. That's why I wrote on my stall sign: 'Exclusively for Outworlders'," Chen Li said, pointing to the placard beside him.
His mission was to provide the Outworlders with the warmth of a home away from home.
"Then what was that about 'stimulating the economy'?" Bailu vaguely remembered that was the justification Chen Li had used when he reported his stall to the chief alchemist, Dan Shu.
However, Bailu suspected that Dan Shu also found the whole thing unreliable, otherwise she wouldn't have sent her to keep an eye on Chen Li.
Bailu, the "Dragon Lady Healer" of the Vidyadhara, a renowned physician whose name was synonymous with curing ailments.
"It's true! Think about it. If we can treat the kidney deficiencies of more Outworlders, the Xianzhou could become a beacon of hope for the afflicted, a paradise for those with weak kidneys. Naturally, that would stimulate the economy."
"Let's not," Bailu said, shaking her head frantically.
That title sounded completely absurd.
"Hm?" A familiar, soft sound of surprise reached Chen Li's ears.
"Dragon Lady, to think I'd run into you here." The Master Diviner of the Divination Commission, Fu Xuan, walked up to Chen Li's stall and looked at Bailu.
"Master Diviner Fu, long time no see." Bailu hopped down from her chair and greeted her warmly.
Bailu was very fond of Fu Xuan.
Because she gave Bailu the feeling that even if she didn't grow any taller in the future, she'd have company and wouldn't be laughed at for being short all by herself.
In other words, if even Fu Xuan believed she could still grow taller, then as a Vidyadhara, her own prospects shouldn't be a problem.
"Dragon Lady, I don't suppose you have any of that medicinal tea you prescribed for me before? A certain wanted criminal has had me working overtime and staying up late, so my supply has been dwindling rather quickly," Fu Xuan said, looking at Bailu as if she were her savior.
"Well... I don't have any on hand at the moment," Bailu said, shaking her head with some difficulty.
Every time Fu Xuan worked overtime, the stock of sugar powder used to mix with the eye-soothing tea would vanish at an alarming rate. This was a constant source of frustration for Bailu.
That's right. The tea Fu Xuan thought was for relieving fatigue was really just extra-sugary.
Prescribing the right remedy for the right ailment was what Bailu did best.
"Is that so..."
"Ah, I have a plan," Chen Li, who had been sitting quietly to the side, suddenly said, pushing up the non-prescription glasses he always wore.
"Hm?" Only when he spoke did Fu Xuan finally notice him.
It wasn't that she had intentionally ignored him. Chen Li had just discovered that his Disguise Glasses had a subtle effect of making him blend into a crowd.
The effect wasn't strong, but it was definitely there.
It was also because he was wearing these glasses that Fu Xuan's first action upon approaching wasn't to roll up her sleeves and punch him.
What does the wanted criminal "Dad" have to do with me, Chen Li?
"And you are?" Fu Xuan asked, looking at Chen Li with confusion.
The man was wearing the uniform of a Dan Ding Commission alchemist and was accompanied by the Dragon Lady Bailu. He surely wasn't a nobody, yet Fu Xuan had no impression of him whatsoever.
"Take a guess," Chen Li retorted with a question.
"Hm?" Fu Xuan's brow furrowed.
Seeing that the man was a stranger and not in the Divination Commission's records, Fu Xuan had intended to observe him with her Third Eye, but in doing so, she discovered an anomaly.
She could not perceive the flow of his fate.
However, she didn't connect him to the criminal "Dad."
This was because she sensed a trace of Erudition on him, which had fluctuated quite noticeably just a moment ago.
It was perfectly reasonable for the blessing of an Aeon to obstruct the observation of her Third Eye.
"You have received the blessing of the All-Knowing Deva?" Fu Xuan's voice was laced with astonishment.
The All-Knowing Deva was another name for Nous, the Aeon of Erudition.
Fu Xuan was no stranger to Nous.
During her travels across the stars, she had once been granted entry into the [Library] and had been gifted "eyes" by Nous—the very Third Eye on her forehead.
This eye allowed her to see everything more "clearly."
It was the reason she was known as the "Unfailing Eye."
As a creation of Nous, her Third Eye was more sensitive to the power of Erudition, just as it had been a moment ago.
"I had the fortune of meeting him once during my travels and received a small blessing. Pay it no mind," Chen Li nodded.
In truth, he hadn't.
Chen Li didn't know if it was because his question had been too tricky, or because he hadn't answered Nous's question about the nature of miracles.
In any case, Nous had given him nothing.
If he had to say something, it was that Nous had used his divine power to grant his wish—by taking away all the trash from the concert venue.
But that didn't matter. The effect of the Erudition Value was the same.
The Miracle Card couldn't create something from nothing; the concept of "Erudition Value" originated from Nous. The card merely made it universally applicable across worlds and strengthened the effect by a "billion" percent.
In the world of Honkai: Star Rail, the Erudition Value could even channel the power of the Path of Erudition, granting Chen Li a small extra buff. Here, he could easily pass for a Pathstrider of Erudition whenever he had the buff active.
Although this Miracle Card couldn't summon the Aeon of Erudition, its effects worked even outside this world. To Chen Li, it was even more useful than [Seeking Medicine].
"Hey, you have that kind of background?" Bailu was a little surprised.
She hadn't known about this. All she knew was that the chief alchemist had asked her to look after this novice alchemist, Chen Li.
Though Bailu didn't know why, Chen Li had started by buying her 10 cups of bubble tea, 20 lollipops, 30 chocolates, and a huge pile of snacks... so she had grudgingly accepted the task.
"That's right," Chen Li said with a wistful tone.
"Then shouldn't you be seeking a position at the Divination Commission or a similar place? Why become an alchemist?" Bailu asked, perplexed.
She wasn't speaking out of turn in front of the Master Diviner. The Divination Commission's prized artifact, the Matrix of Prescience, was one of Nous's miracles, and the daily work of its diviners was to record various texts and use them as a basis for divination.
If there was one place on the Xianzhou most suited for a scholar of Erudition, it was undoubtedly the Divination Commission.
"Because through my many years of travel, I came to understand one thing."
"What's that?" Fu Xuan's interest was piqued.
"I realized that scholarship could not save the Xianzhou! So I decided to abandon the pen for the sword."
"But..." Fu Xuan gestured at the stall in front of him.
You call this abandoning the pen for the sword?
"Later, while traveling the galaxy punishing evil, I attracted the attention of the Reignbow Arbiter..."
"For real?" Fu Xuan and Bailu were both startled.
"It's true. Would I lie to you? Look!" Chen Li pulled the Longbow of Peace out from under the table.
Under his control, the bow revealed a sliver of The Hunt's power. But worried that Jing Yuan might notice and ruin his fun, he immediately stuffed it back under the table.
Fu Xuan was different from Jing Yuan. Jing Yuan was an Emanator of The Hunt and extremely sensitive to its power, which was why he could vaguely sense the Hunt's aura on Chen Li during the Six Charioteers' meeting, even from within the Seat of Divine Foresight.
But there was no need to worry about Fu Xuan. Their first meeting had been via holographic projection.
No matter how powerful her Third Eye was, it couldn't see through an internet cable.
And by the time they met in person for the first time, Chen Li had already cleansed himself of any lingering power residue.
"That's weird, where'd the bow go?" Bailu scratched her head and emerged from under the table.
While Fu Xuan's Third Eye was still reeling in shock from the power of the Reignbow Arbiter on the bow, Bailu had already dived under the table to find where Chen Li had hidden it.
But she found nothing.
"Stop looking. This is a grace from the Reignbow Arbiter. I can hide it anywhere."
"Oh," Bailu replied, not pressing the issue.
If you say it's a grace from the Reignbow Arbiter, what else can I say?
The Reignbow Arbiter is unparalleled in this world! The Reignbow Arbiter is brilliant beyond compare! The Reignbow Arbiter is so beautiful that fish sink and geese fall!
"And what happened next? What did you do with the Reignbow Arbiter's grace?" Fu Xuan continued her questioning.
"Do you two remember the Third Abundance War?" Chen Li suddenly asked.
"I remember... Don't tell me..." At the mention of this war, Fu Xuan's tone wavered.
"That's right. It was because of that war that I began to ponder the meaning of The Hunt. Then, I chose to abandon the sword for medicine, because I realized that healing the sick and wounded was also important," Chen Li said with a sigh.
The fake identity Dan Shu had created for him was that of a Xianzhou native who had survived the Third Abundance War.
According to Dan Shu, this identity was useful for eliciting sympathy.
Since Chen Li's appearance was indistinguishable from a Xianzhou native's, Bailu hadn't found anything odd about him even after sitting beside him for half a day.
Although Chen Li looked a bit young, Xianzhou natives had such long lifespans that it wasn't strange for someone a few hundred years old to still look youthful.
Fu Xuan herself was who-knows-how-old, and she was still short.
"I see..." Fu Xuan's feelings grew even more complicated.
In Stardate 8072, the Xianzhou Fanghu was nearly one-fifth destroyed by a light arrow from the Aeon of The Hunt during a war with the Denizens of Abundance.
Of course, it was an act to save the entire worldship.
The reason Fu Xuan's feelings were complicated was... she was the one who had proposed the plan to seek help from the Aeon of The Hunt.
"You are the Master Diviner of the Divination Commission, Lady Fu Xuan, correct? Would you like me to take your pulse? To check your physical condition," Chen Li suddenly asked.
"You may," Fu Xuan said, and as if guided by some unseen force, she placed her wrist on the small pillow in front of him.
Chen Li's fingers rested on Fu Xuan's pulse points. After a moment of thought, he blurted out, "You have a kidney deficiency."
"???" by Fu Xuan.
Beside them, Bailu slapped a palm to her own face.
Here we go again.