"Are you sure there’s even anything left to save here...?" May asked hesitantly, reluctantly approaching the woman lying on the bed. The stench emanating from her decaying body indicated that even if she woke up from her coma, her life would not be very long.

  “Of course there is something to save. Although her health has deteriorated, if she wakes up, she will quickly return to full health. It may not be obvious, but she was a powerful cultivator. A few months of rehabilitation and she'll be as good as new,” Nadine replied. May doubted whether Nadine believed her own words. “Later, I'll show you the mansion's alchemy lab where you can work. If you need anything, just let me know.”

  Shortly after, Nadine left, claiming she had nothing more to do there. Personally, May thought that even she couldn't stand the smell and the depressing atmosphere. May sighed quietly and put on the elegant silk gloves that were meant to complement her wedding outfit. Unfortunately, neither latex nor nitrile had been invented in this world yet. May, however, had no desire to touch her with bare hands.

  She began to examine her body as best she could, but unfortunately, she had not been a doctor in her previous life, so her skills in this area were limited.

  Severe bedsores, hardly surprising given how long she's been in a coma. It looks to me like she also has muscle atrophy. I’m guessing physiotherapy in this world is generally non-existent.

  “Xuan Haoyu... Who would have thought she would end up so miserably,” Niu Pin said suddenly out of nowhere. His words surprised May a little.

  "You knew her?" she asked, surprised. "I didn't expect that."

  "May... Cultivators at our stage are able to live three times the lifespan of ordinary mortals. That’s more than enough time to get acquainted with one another," he replied, sitting in one of the nearby chairs. "Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage in our sect are a fairly small and insular circle; almost everyone knows everyone else."

  May nodded, as it made sense. Cultivators at this stage were the main strength of the sect, and their numbers were limited. Additionally, people at the same stage tended to associate with each other. Similarly, cultivators rarely formed bonds with mortals, as it was ultimately futile since their lifespan was limited.

  "Well, to tell you the truth, I thought you were a bit younger. According to Nadine, this woman fell into a coma about thirty years ago. I just didn't expect you to already be a cultivator of that level back then."

  Niu Pin snorted and seemed slightly offended by her words.

  "Nadine greatly exaggerated her estimates. Xuan was poisoned about fifteen years ago, roughly around the same time I broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage," he replied in a lowered voice.

  Oh, so he’s been at this stage for over fifteen years... Hmm, good to know, May thought.

  “Did you know her quite well?” May asked, considering his earlier words.

  "Not particularly; we spoke a few times. Back then, she was a high-ranking individual in the sect’s military. She gave me some advice after my breakthrough those years ago," he replied dryly, casting a quick glance at the woman in bed. "May, would you care to explain what’s going on here?"

  “I suspect you overheard our conversation on the way here,” May replied calmly, stepping away from the woman. “Nadine wants me to cure her. So don't pretend you don't know what Nadine's goal is in this.”

  The man gave her a curious look. "I admit I heard what that girl wants. However, I don't know what your goal is in all this."

  "Let's just say she has something I want," she replied with a sigh. "And as it happens, it's something I want very much, and no one else can give it to me."

  Niu Pin tilted his head inquisitively, then shrugged. "I understand you perhaps all too well. Just don't get into trouble."

  "I don't intend to give you more work, if that's what you're getting at," she replied.

  "Fine then, I won't pry for details," he said, rising from the chair. "I'll watch the door on the other side. In the meantime... do whatever you want."

  Having said that, he left her alone. May smiled weakly to herself. Niu Pin certainly knew how to judge when to back off.

  All right. Since I'm alone now... Hmm... Okay, I have no idea where to even start. Minnie, I think I'm going to need a little help.

  "On it. First, I suggest generating a simple report on her health. For 10,000, you'll get the most essential details."

  Ugh, I have to pay that much just to verify her health? In that case, the medicine will probably be ten times more expensive. I might as well beat Nadine until she sings and I won't spend a penny.

  "Sure, great plan," Minnie replied. "Especially in her family home, where she’s surrounded by powerful cultivators who have arrived for the wedding."

  While the thought of beating Nadine was a joke, May still felt a primal urge to punch that smug face. However, she quickly brushed aside those useless thoughts and began thinking about what to do.

  How the hell does she expect me to save her life...? Basically impossible. It sounds like I have no choice but to ask the system for help.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  “Okay... Let's start with that report on her condition. I need something more detailed than what Nadine gave me.”

  She felt a sharp pain in her head. It was the same feeling she got when she received information directly into her brain. A huge amount of data flooded her brain at once, slightly overloading it. She had to sit down for a moment and process it. Once again, she began to fantasize about taking some paracetamol.

  Although the headache remained, after about twenty minutes she was able to stand up without any problems.

  Hmm, that was useful.

  She learned many useful things, but most importantly, that all the experts were wrong about the reason for the woman's coma. She had a brain tumor! May was shocked by the information and that she was still alive after such a long time.

  Unlike on Earth, cancer was uncommon in this world. Cultivators' bodies were resistant to most common diseases, and cancer was also a rarely seen problem among cultivators. Of course, they were still a concern for mortals, but they had neither the influence nor the resources to conduct research on them, so knowledge on the subject was limited.

  The primary cause of her condition was indeed poison. But over the years, it had obviously disappeared from her body. Her meridians had long been free of it! However, it seemed that as a result of being poisoned, her body had become extremely weak, and with her meridians blocked, the cancer had been able to develop.

  The poison finally disappeared from her body, but it seemed that the poison also had carcinogenic effects, an effect unknown to anyone.

  Normally, her body would have been able to deal with such an early stage of cancer, but because of the poison, she suffered from a weakened meridian syndrome, which caused her Qi flow to be poor.

  So how did she manage to survive so long with a brain tumor? She was at the Foundation Establishment stage. Her body couldn't defeat the cancer, but it was able to protect her from its effects to some extent. However, this led to the ruin of her body, and she was at a critical point.

  Her body is literally falling apart.

  She was a cultivator who boasted of great physical strength, as she was responsible for training the beast. It's a miracle she survived this long.

  If she wanted to cure her, she had to get rid of the weakened meridian syndrome first. Everyone thought that the reason for the weak Qi flow was the poison that had gotten in her system, but in reality it was the effect of the tumor. Although it wasn't part of the medical information, May suspected that the tumor might have developed in the part of the brain responsible for secreting hormones that controlled the flow of Qi in the meridians.

  It might be difficult to solve, but if the flow of Qi returned to normal, her body would have a real chance of fighting the cancer.

  However, remission was currently impossible, and she understood that well. Although the growth of the brain tumor was limited, over such a long period of time, it had developed to such an extent that it was impossible for the body to deal with it on its own.

  Chemotherapy and radiotherapy would be useful. Or maybe even surgical removal...? I have no idea, I'm not a doctor... Ugh, first I have to see what can be done.

  The mere thought of how much money it would cost made her headache even worse. After a moment, however, she realized something. Although Nadine wanted to cure her...

  Shouldn't that information alone be valuable enough? If I play my cards right, maybe I can get an answer from her without doing anything else. Besides, it's impossible for me to cure cancer at such an advanced stage anyway. Telling her exactly what's wrong with her... Maybe that's enough?

  “Well, progress in her treatment has stalled because the experts don't know what's wrong with her. If you give Nadine the exact cause, that should be enough for her. To be honest, under normal circumstances, even obtaining this information would be impossible for you without the system,” Minnie said. “In the meantime, you should get as much money out of this girl as possible.”

  Hmm, indeed, she said that if I needed anything, I should ask... But is that really...

  Minnie didn't let her finish.

  “Come on, you can't be feeling sorry for someone who's taking advantage of you, can you? Besides, you've already spent ten thousand on her. You may be rich, but that's still a lot of money.”

  Minnie... That makes a lot of sense! I'll make her a list of the ingredients I need and get that money back!

  May left the building and returned to her room. Niu Pin seemed slightly surprised that she had finished so quickly, but he didn't say a word.

  May began to write down various expensive alchemical substances that were still widely available. Unfortunately, this was quite problematic, as the system's selling price was three times lower than the market price. The system was great for buying things, but useless for selling.

  Well, no one said I have to sell only to the system. From time to time, I can sell things on the market without attracting the attention of others. With my status as Hua Tang's disciple, it's not as suspicious as it used to be.

  “That should be enough,” she said, getting up from the table and heading for the door.

  “What is it?” Niu Pin asked with slight interest.

  “A shopping list.”

  She went to the main guest room. Weddings were an opportunity to meet influential people. In this respect, May was a little behind.

  She opened the door and was greeted by noise and crowds of guests. No one even noticed her arrival. She deftly avoided the people and looked around.

  Well, most people don't know what I look like. They probably think I'm some kid who came with her parents.

  She liked the fact that she wasn't attracting attention, it was better for her that way. As a student of Hua Tang, her status wasn't too bad. In addition, she was one of the sect's geniuses, and news of her penicillin manufacturing company had also spread. A child earning such huge sums of money was quite a novelty.

  Finally, she spotted the person she was looking for, Nadine Albrecht, standing and talking to a group of people. May moved closer, and when Nadine noticed her, she excused herself from her conversation and headed in her direction.

  “What is it?” she asked with a hint of urgency in her voice. “Can't you see I'm busy?”

  “I have a suspicion about her condition,” said May. “If I'm successful, I may be able to determine the real cause of her illness.”

  “The real cause? The cause is already known,” she replied coldly.

  “That's what you think. I have a different theory. In any case, I'll need a few things,” she said, handing her a piece of paper with the ingredients.

  Nadine began to read it and after a moment frowned in dissatisfaction.

  ”They're all expensive ingredients. Do you really need them?”

  “Yes. I need them for the diagnosis,” May replied.

  The green-haired woman looked at her for a moment and then replied. “All right. However our agreement does not concern the diagnosis, but healing her."

  “If I'm right, the problem will be medical, not alchemical. She may need surgery,” May replied. “That's beyond our agreement. However, if I give you the solution, won't that be enough? I won't do it directly, but the effect will be the same. The woman will recover, and the merit will be yours.”

  Nadine paused for a moment.

  “I need to think about it,” she replied. “The ingredients will arrive today.”

  Huh. You can't deny her efficiency.