The news of the five-year appointment spread far faster than anyone in the Su Family had expected.
Within hours, the matter had become the subject of countless discussions throughout Dongtai Prefecture.
Within several days, neighbouring counties had heard about it.
Within a few weeks, even cultivators from surrounding prefectures had begun discussing the absurd challenge between the Su Family Young Master and the Core Disciple of the Jade Sword Palace.
Some pitied the Su Family.
"That child truly drew the short straw."
"To think the Su Family Young Master would challenge Liu Ruyan..."
"He doesn't even possess Internal Energy."
Others saw the matter differently.
"Perhaps this is divine justice."
"The Liu Family's young miss has already become a Core Disciple. Why should she waste her youth on a cripple?"
"Five years? He won't even be able to catch up to her cultivation."
Then there were those who remained silent.
They didn't pity Su Yang.
Nor did they support Liu Ruyan.
Instead...
They quietly fanned the flames.
A rumour here.
An exaggerated story there.
By the time the news reached the more distant counties, Su Yang had already become everything from a proud young master refusing to accept reality to a foolish cripple challenging a genius of the Jade Sword Palace.
Some claimed Liu Ruyan had personally humiliated him.
Others claimed Su Yang had sworn to defeat every disciple of the Jade Sword Palace.
None of those stories were completely true.
But that hardly mattered.
People loved watching a promised battle.
Especially one with a five-year deadline.
Everyone now wanted to know the same thing.
Five years later...
Would the Su Family Young Master still be a cripple?
Or would he somehow become strong enough to challenge the woman who currently stood far above him?
No one knew.
But one thing was certain.
Everyone would remember that appointment.
And when five years finally passed...
Countless eyes would gather to witness the result.
...
Meanwhile, Lin Sheng remained remarkably indifferent to the storm.
He had already witnessed everything that had happened inside the Su Family's receiving hall.
He had watched Su Yang tear apart the engagement contract.
He had watched Liu Ruyan accept the five-year appointment.
And he had watched Han Yu reveal his position on the Human Martial List.
Rank forty-two.
That alone was enough to tell Lin Sheng something about the current younger generation of Dongtai Prefecture.
The Human Martial List wasn't merely a ranking.
It was also a rough indicator of the resources and talent concentrated throughout the Martial Continent.
A young cultivator capable of entering the top fifty before reaching thirty years of age was undoubtedly extraordinary.
Yet...
Lin Sheng wasn't particularly worried about Su Yang.
At least not yet.
The boy had something else.
Something that Lin Sheng still hadn't been able to determine.
Fate.
Opportunity.
Or perhaps...
Something even more mysterious.
For now, however, there was no reason to interfere.
Lin Sheng returned his attention to his own affairs.
Several weeks quietly passed.
His medical business continued expanding.
At first, only ordinary people came seeking treatment.
Then came martial artists.
Some had damaged meridians.
Some suffered internal injuries after fights.
Others had accumulated hidden injuries from years of cultivation.
Normally, treating such conditions required extremely experienced physicians.
Lin Sheng, however, possessed something that no physician on the Martial Continent could compare with.
Crystal.
Every patient who entered his medical shop became another source of data.
Internal injuries.
Qi circulation.
Organ damage.
Muscle tears.
Meridian blockages.
Crystal could analyse all of them with astonishing precision.
Lin Sheng merely needed to follow the recommendations.
As a result...
His success rate became frighteningly high.
The reputation of Divine Physician Lin gradually spread.
At first, only ordinary martial artists knew his name.
Soon...
Several martial families began sending injured disciples to seek treatment.
Even some cultivators from the outer city began visiting his medical shop.
Lin Sheng accepted them all.
He didn't refuse anyone because of status.
As long as the illness was within his ability to treat, he would treat it.
That reputation soon became one of his greatest assets.
A physician who could repair internal injuries was worth far more than an ordinary merchant.
More importantly...
Physicians possessed something merchants didn't.
Connections.
Every patient who recovered became another potential source of information.
Lin Sheng quietly allowed his network to expand.
He didn't need to ask questions.
People naturally talked while being treated.
Which family had obtained a new martial technique.
Which sect had recruited another genius.
Which elder had recently broken through.
Which faction was secretly fighting another.
Information flowed toward him naturally.
And Lin Sheng simply listened.
...
Several days later.
A cloaked figure quietly approached the medical shop.
The person's movements were smooth.
Their aura was deliberately suppressed.
Their face remained hidden beneath a wide hood.
But the moment they entered the building...
Lin Sheng already knew who they were.
His Mental Perception had quietly swept across the newcomer.
The person's breathing.
Heartbeat.
Qi circulation.
Even the subtle rhythm of their steps.
Everything was familiar.
Lin Sheng looked up from the patient before him.
"You've come."
The cloaked figure stopped.
For several breaths, neither spoke.
Then Lin Sheng calmly asked,
"May I know what you require?"
The person slowly removed their cloak.
A familiar face appeared.
The Su Family Patriarch.
Lin Sheng's expression changed slightly.
"Patriarch Su?"
The surprise in his voice was deliberately exaggerated.
The Patriarch noticed it.
His expression softened slightly.
"Physician Lin."
Lin Sheng stood and gestured toward a nearby chair.
"Please sit."
The Patriarch nodded.
He sat down.
Lin Sheng poured him a cup of tea.
The moment the tea entered his mouth...
The Patriarch's expression changed.
His eyes widened slightly.
He could feel his Gang Qi flowing through his meridians far more smoothly than before.
There was no obstruction.
No stagnation.
No slight discomfort that had accumulated through years of cultivation.
Even his breathing became smoother.
The Patriarch silently stared at the tea.
"This..."
Lin Sheng smiled.
"Just tea."
The Patriarch looked at him deeply.
Just tea?
He didn't believe it.
Someone capable of using spiritual materials of this quality to brew tea...
Could not possibly be an ordinary physician.
A trace of caution quietly appeared in his heart.
Alongside it...
Was respect.
He had originally come because he had heard that Divine Physician Lin possessed extraordinary medical skills.
Now...
He suddenly felt that he might have underestimated the man.
After several breaths, the Patriarch finally spoke.
"I came today..."
"...to request Physician Lin's services."
"Oh?"
Lin Sheng calmly raised his eyebrows.
"Does this concern someone like your son, perhaps?"
The Patriarch's expression immediately deflated.
He had prepared himself for rejection.
After all, the Su Family had already invited countless physicians to examine Su Yang.
None had discovered a solution.
Some had claimed his acupoints were naturally defective.
Others had declared that his condition was impossible to treat.
A few had even advised the Su Family to abandon hope.
The Patriarch had almost accepted that reality.
Now...
He looked at Lin Sheng.
"Physician Lin..."
"My son..."
Lin Sheng smiled.
"Don't worry."
"I'll examine him."
The Patriarch's eyes widened.
"You're willing?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
Lin Sheng's smile remained calm.
"I cannot promise miracles without seeing the patient."
"But..."
"I can promise that I'll do everything within my ability."
The Patriarch hesitated.
Lin Sheng added casually,
"And if your son's acupoints truly can be repaired..."
"I'll repair them."
The Patriarch's breathing became slightly heavier.
"Then..."
"When can you see him?"
Lin Sheng placed his cup down.
"Whenever you are ready."
At last...
The opportunity he had been waiting for had arrived.
He would finally be able to examine Su Yang personally.
Not merely to treat him.
But to determine what exactly was hidden inside that young man's body.
And perhaps...
Whether Su Yang truly possessed the fate of a Child of Luck.