He targeted three acupoints—Dubi, Xuehai, and Liangqiu—slowly inserting the needles and constantly twisting them with a reinforcing method.
Monty's pes anserine tendinitis was different from Hill's. Hill had inflammation, redness, and swelling caused by an acute sprain, whereas Monty's was the result of long-term athletic activity, improper maintenance, and chronic strain.
In traditional terms, it was a case of "cold evil" invading the body, causing the flow of qi and blood to stagnate.
Therefore, the logical approach was to use a reinforcing method to invigorate his qi and blood, thereby clearing the blockages and providing relief.
Even though Chen Yu had told him to relax, Monty's body was still wound incredibly tight.
Quinn, meanwhile, was grimacing and twisting his head away, wearing the expression of someone who wanted to watch but couldn't bear to. After a long moment, he couldn't help but ask, "Does he owe you money or something? Why are you torturing him like this?"
As he spoke, he couldn't resist sneaking another glance at Monty.
'A guy over two meters tall, willingly letting himself be tortured like this… Chen Yu must have some kind of dirt on him.'
With a lightning-fast movement, Chen Yu withdrew the needle.
Gained 1 experience point.
"See? It didn't hurt, just like I said," Chen Yu said with a smile.
Monty nodded blankly, his smile stiff.
He suddenly remembered that Hill had said yesterday that he'd been receiving treatment from Chen Yu for a while now.
'He must be getting this kind of treatment too, right?'
'Does that mean Hill is getting poked with needles every day?'
'How horrible!'
Chen Yu had Monty sit up, then brought out a moxa stick. He lit it and began applying Moxibustion along the meridians, focusing on the areas of blood stagnation.
Quinn's grimace intensified.
'Needles weren't enough? Now he's using fire?'
He sized up Chen Yu. 'This kid looks so refined and gentle, but his methods are absolutely vicious. The most ruthless torturer I know is no worse than this.'
Once the Moxibustion was complete, he gained another experience point.
And with that, his experience bar was full.
"Congratulations. You have obtained a Bronze Level treatment effect (1 use)."
Chen Yu's eyes lit up. 'My luck's not bad,' he thought.
'Isn't this why I opened the clinic? For these treatment effects.'
When he looked back at Monty, Chen Yu's smile was significantly brighter.
'This guy's a lucky charm! Unlike Hill. I've been giving him Acupuncture every day, ground out two whole rounds of experience, and still haven't triggered a single treatment effect.'
'And since he's already here, I might as well give him the full package.'
"Chen, your massage technique feels a little different from Houston's," Monty said as his body relaxed. He could feel the aching soreness in his knee turning into a comfortable warmth under Chen Yu's fingers.
Houston's touch was much rougher by comparison.
'Of course it is,' Chen Yu thought. 'I'm using the Eye of All-Seeing to massage along the grain of his muscle fibers. Can Houston do that?'
Finally, he applied a medicinal plaster, then stopped and gestured for Monty to get up and move around.
'This should have an effect.'
'It wasn't just the full course of rehab therapy; it was mainly the Acupuncture.'
'I have the bonus from my Basic Acupuncture Therapy Techniques. Five percent is nothing to sneeze at.'
Monty stood up. He tried bending his knee, squatting down, and moving around a bit.
"It feels... so much better. I can barely feel any pain at all! Chen, this is incredible!"
Hill had spent a good part of yesterday hyping up how effective Chen Yu's treatments were. Only now did Monty realize Hill hadn't been exaggerating at all.
"Chen, is my tendinitis cured?" Monty asked excitedly.
Chen Yu shook his head. "How could it be? I've only relieved your pain for now; the inflammation is still there. You still need to be careful and protect your knee. Ideally, you should come back for treatment every three days. With this, and some anti-inflammatory medicine, you should be fine in the short term after four or five sessions, if all goes well."
Monty nodded emphatically and gave Chen Yu an emotional hug to show his gratitude.
Chen Yu patted him on the back, feeling pretty good himself.
'Between Quinn and Monty, their bills should cover the cost of taking over this clinic.'
'This is how doctors make money, after all, especially from clients who aren't short on cash.'
After giving him a few more instructions and a prescription for some anti-inflammatory medication, Chen Yu walked Monty to the door.
As they reached the door, Chen Yu added, "Monty, regarding the matter with Billings, I'm afraid I can't help you. He and I are not on good terms."
Monty sighed helplessly. He was starting to put the pieces together. He figured Chen Yu and Billings must have had a falling out over Hill's diagnosis.
"It's alright. I'm a player, after all. If the team needs me, then I have to play."
Monty waved, got in his car, and drove off.
Chen Yu stood frozen in place. Monty's words had soured his mood again.
'The team needs you, but doesn't your family need you?'
'Is winning a game really more important than your health?'
From a doctor's perspective, Chen Yu couldn't comprehend that mentality.
Back in the clinic, Quinn still hadn't left. He was leaning on his crutch, carefully examining one of the silver needles between his fingers.
When Chen Yu came back, Quinn didn't put it down. "So," he asked, "sticking that big guy from the Magic with needles—that's a form of treatment?"
Chen Yu nodded. "Want to give it a try? This is the treatment I was talking about when I said I could relieve the pain in your leg."
Quinn put the silver needle down.
'It's so sharp, and he pushes it in so deep... 'Relieve pain'? More like 'create pain'.'
But after grimacing in thought for a moment, he nodded. "Fine."
Given the previous success with his spinal adjustment, Quinn was actually quite interested in Chen Yu's strange and unorthodox treatment methods.
With nothing more to be said, Chen Yu had Quinn lie back down, informing him that his Acupuncture wasn't cheap: 500 US dollars per session.
Quinn waved his hand dismissively. "I've got money."
He said it with the air of a millionaire.
'If you're so rich,' Chen Yu grumbled internally, 'why are you coming to a little clinic like this?'
Quinn's condition was far more complex than Monty's.
His knee was like an old engine that had been sitting around for decades; it needed a complete overhaul before it could even hope to start again.
He still focused on a reinforcing method, needling multiple acupoints around the knee.
Chen Yu was quite optimistic about the prognosis.
The first treatment for a chronic injury always produces the most dramatic results.
'Besides, I have the system's treatment-effect bonus.'
Sure enough, as Chen Yu removed the needles and Quinn tried to move his knee, his expression changed instantly.
The range of motion in his knee, along with the pain and numbness, had all improved significantly.
Quinn was stunned.
His leg had been broken in a fight when he was younger. It had healed at the time, but as he got older, all sorts of problems started cropping up. He'd been to countless hospitals, but none of them offered any real solution.
Eventually, he had no choice but to rely on painkillers just to get by.
'He never imagined that a single treatment from Chen Yu could be this effective.'
Quinn didn't let it show on his face, however. Instead, he pointed. "That fire thing—is that any good for me?"
'Even if you hadn't asked, I was planning on using it,' Chen Yu thought.
He nodded. Just as he was about to explain the effects of Moxibustion, his phone rang. Normally, he wouldn't take calls during a treatment, but after a glance at the caller ID, he apologized, stood up, and answered.
It was Kevin Wash.
She started by asking about Hill's recovery progress.
"It's going well." Hill's path forward was just a matter of following the rehabilitation plan.
Wash said, "Here's the situation, Chen. Do you have a moment? Could you come over to our clinic? I have a patient, a wide receiver for the Jaguar Team. He has severe fluid and swelling in his knee, and he's in a hurry to get back on the field. I thought your methods might be able to help him."