Fu Lao was, after all, the leader of one of the four major gangs in Jiangnan Province. If Li Se hadn't possessed the ability to heal and was making such bold claims while demanding his Ghost Gate Thirteen Needles, Fu Lao's personality would have dictated killing Li Se.
As a major gang leader, killing someone was as simple as drinking water for him.
Li Se paid little attention to Fu Lao's words, stating, "No medical treatment has a hundred percent guarantee. Of course, if you believe you can kill me, feel free to try."
Many found Fu Lao's words to be normal and entirely justified, as Fu Lao's capabilities had led him to kill many people over the years.
However, Li Se's response was exceedingly arrogant, as if he didn't take Fu Lao's words seriously at all, a clear challenge saying, "If you have the ability, come and kill me!"
"Heh, young people are indeed arrogant. Very well, I will let you treat me!" Fu Lao burst into laughter.
Fei Ge of the Flying Car Gang frowned, "Old Fu, do you really believe he can cure your illness?"
He had originally planned to join forces with Fu Lao to eliminate Li Se and then capture the woman. With their combined strength, the Martial Alliance would not dare to make any move.
But now, Fu Lao wanted Li Se to treat him, which meant Fei Ge couldn't act against Li Se. If he did, Fu Lao would then ally with the Martial Alliance.
Xu Zhenxing, standing nearby, was even more resentful but dared not say anything more. He could only cast a malicious gaze at Li Se, hoping that Li Se would die at Fu Lao's hands.
Soon, Li Se and Zhao Ba arrived at the hotel where Fu Lao was staying. Accompanying them were Fu Lao's personal guards and the two Western doctors.
"Treating uremia with traditional Chinese medicine, you truly have the audacity to even consider it. I doubt you'll know how you'll die later!"
"Even if traditional Chinese medicine could treat uremia, it would require the skill of imperial physicians. At your age, you've likely only learned the superficial aspects, if anything!"
As soon as they entered the hotel, before Li Se could even begin the treatment, the two Western doctors started their sarcastic remarks.
They simply did not believe that traditional Chinese medicine could cure uremia, and they were even less inclined to believe that Li Se's medical skills were advanced.
Li Se glanced at the two Western doctors and said dismissively, "That is merely due to your own incompetence."
"You!" The two Western doctors were enraged.
Zhao Ba expressed great confidence in Li Se, "Old Fu, if young Li treats you, you might truly have to bring out your Ghost Gate Thirteen Needles."
Fu Lao was not so optimistic. He was allowing Li Se to treat him merely as an experiment, without harboring much hope, perhaps holding onto a sliver of luck. He smiled and said, "If it can be cured, then the Ghost Gate Thirteen Needles will be yours. Of course, if it's not possible..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but his gaze swept over Li Se. Even without him saying it, it was clear what he meant.
Li Se looked at Fu Lao and said, "Old Fu, you are currently undergoing hemodialysis, sending blood out of your body through a catheter to an artificial kidney. Harmful substances in your blood are removed by a filter membrane, and then the blood is returned to your body. However, this is only a temporary measure and cannot change the fate of waiting to die. Instead of this, it would be better to place your trust in traditional Chinese medicine just once."
Fu Lao said no more. The feeling of waiting to die was indeed very painful.
The two Western doctors were extremely displeased. One of them said coldly, "At least we can extend Old Fu's lifespan. But what about traditional Chinese medicine? Can it work? Traditional Chinese medicine is nothing but deceptive, unorthodox practices!"
This Western doctor spoke quite harshly, mainly because he was truly angered.
"Are you Chinese?" Li Se retorted sharply, "Have you forgotten your ancestors just because you've learned some Western medicine!"
"I'm an overseas returnee, you..." the Western doctor retorted, unconvinced.
Li Se interrupted, "Even a provincial bumpkin can be cultured in freshwater!"
The Western doctor's face immediately turned red, and his gaze towards Li Se became somewhat venomous.
Li Se no longer paid attention to him and got down to business, saying, "Old Fu, from a traditional Chinese medicine perspective, uremia is mostly a deficiency of the spleen and kidney yang, which is the primary pathological mechanism. With spleen and kidney yang deficiency, the qi transformation and the distribution of body fluids are disordered. The clear yang fails to ascend, and the turbid yin fails to descend. Dampness and turbidity accumulate internally, leading to obstruction and blockage. This manifests as nausea and vomiting above, and scanty or suppressed urination below."
He paused and continued, "As stated in 'Zheng Zhi Hui Bu,' 'Guan Ge' refers to blockage and obstruction, where urination is suppressed. Within a day and night, vomiting increases rapidly. This is due to the blockage of turbid evils, preventing the proper circulation of qi and fluids in the three burners. Thus, the 'Guan' signifies the blockage of urination, and the 'Ge' signifies the vomiting and nausea. When yin and yang are completely cut off, death occurs within a day, which is the most critical state."
Li Se glanced at the two Western doctors beside him and continued, "In Western medical terms, uremia is not a single, independent disease but rather an autointoxication syndrome caused by the accumulation of metabolic products and other toxic substances in the body due to renal failure. It is the most severe manifestation of renal failure and the terminal stage of the progression of various chronic kidney diseases. Uremia has its own unique characteristics, and its causes vary."
"For instance, renal tuberculosis, renal arteriolar nephrosclerosis, urinary tract stones, chronic glomerulonephritis, chronic pyelonephritis, renal arteriolar nephrosclerosis, lupus erythematosus, diabetes, prostatic hyperplasia, and bladder cancer can all be causes of uremia."
The two Western doctors were astonished. They had initially thought Li Se had barely grasped the rudiments of traditional Chinese medicine and was merely a fraud.
They hadn't expected him to know so much, speaking so fluently. Without some ability, one couldn't possibly say all this.
Fu Lao also looked at Li Se with surprise and asked, "Then how do you plan to treat it?"
"Did you bring the Ghost Gate Thirteen Needles?" Li Se inquired.
"I did!" Fu Lao was particularly fond of this set of silver needles. The reason was simple: he also hoped to encounter a highly skilled traditional Chinese physician to treat him, as Western medicine offered no hope. Thus, he often carried this set of needles with him.
Li Se said, "Take them out. With this set of needles, I can cure your uremia in one go. Supplemented with some medicinal meals, you will be completely healed."
Fu Lao waved his hand, and someone immediately brought out the set of needles. He wasn't worried about Li Se running off with the needles. It was a joke; he was a gang leader, how could anyone snatch needles from under his nose?
"Heh heh, Old Fu, I think he's clearly got his eye on these needles!"
"Be careful not to be deceived!"
The two Western doctors felt Li Se had ill intentions. Even if he didn't know acupuncture, he could take the needles to auction. These Ghost Gate Thirteen Needles were priceless.
However, Fu Lao's gaze turned menacing, and he shot them a cold glance, "Do you think someone can snatch something right under my nose?"
The two Western doctors trembled and immediately fell silent.