Li Yundong returned to find the great hall in utter chaos, everyone flustered and helpless. Li Xiaoxian was pressed against Shen Wancai, weeping as if the sky itself were falling.

Li Yundong frowned, then offered a knowing smile. "Madam Li, if you keep clinging to CEO Shen and crying like that much longer, I doubt even an immortal could save him."

Li Xiaoxian instantly froze at the sound of his voice. She straightened up, her eyes blazing with a mixture of shock and fury as she stammered, "You... why are you back?"

The Third Concubine at this moment asserted her dominance, rushing in front of Li Xiaoxian and sharply rebuking her, "Get away from him! What exactly is your intention?"

Li Xiaoxian retorted, her neck stiff. "What intention could I possibly have? I simply don't want this barefoot doctor to kill Old Shen!"

The Third Concubine trembled violently. "The master has no pulse anymore! Are you still thinking about that? I believe you truly want to kill Old Shen, which is why you’ve been obstructing things at every turn, haven't you!" With that, she shrieked, yelling at the crowd, "Look at this! If she weren't guilty, why would she keep trying to stop Young Master Li from saving the master?"

Li Xiaoxian felt a guilty prick in her heart. Seeing everyone look at her with suspicion, she thought inwardly: Too much time has passed; the Old Master's heart has surely stopped. Even if this Li Yundong is a divine physician, he might be powerless now! Hmph...

She stood up, facing the Third Concubine without yielding an inch. "Do you think I'm that kind of person? I think you want to kill the Old Master, insisting on bringing in some barefoot doctor to treat him!"

The Third Concubine then rushed to Shen Wancai, feeling his pulse and then his chest. She no longer had the patience for squabbling with Li Xiaoxian. Trembling, she whispered to Li Yundong, "Young Master Li, the master... he, he has no pulse at all. After all this time, c-can he still be saved?"

Yin Mengfan, standing nearby, was also sweating profusely and urged him on. "Li Yundong, hurry and save him! Use, use that massage technique of yours!"

Li Xiaoxian, Shen You, and Rong Jun all scoffed at this, saying in unison, "Massage can save someone? What a joke!"

Li Yundong didn't even glance at them. With supreme confidence, he smiled at the Third Concubine. "Of course he can be saved. CEO Shen just passed moments ago; his soul is still inside. Why wouldn't he be savable? Moreover, I already gave him a miraculous elixir just in case, hoping to avert disaster, but alas, he didn't take it, which resulted in this situation..."

Saying this, he flipped his wrist and produced a Nine-Cycle Jade Dew Pill. Smiling, he said to Shen Hui at his side, "Go get a cup of water. Dissolve this in it, and then have CEO Shen drink it."

When the others saw Li Yundong pull out another dark-looking pill, their faces registered shock. They inwardly mused: Isn't this too reckless? What is that thing? Could he really be one of those charlatan doctors selling snake oil?

Although the Third Concubine saw Li Yundong as her last hope, the sight of the black pill, seemingly rolled from mud, made her uneasy. She cautiously asked, "Young Master Li, this... this can actually save someone?"

Li Yundong burst into laughter. "This is made from dragon liver and phoenix gall. How could it not save someone?"

Rong Jun sneered, "Dragon liver and phoenix gall? You really commit to the bit!" He turned to Li Xiaoxian. "Aunt Shen, are you really going to just stand by and watch this guy run wild?"

Li Yundong glanced at him, smiled faintly, and said again to Shen Hui, "Aren't you going to fetch it to save him?"

Shen Hui snapped out of her daze, suspecting nothing, and instantly snatched the Nine-Cycle Jade Dew Pill from Li Yundong's hand, rushing away quickly. The Third Concubine also knew that the arrow was already loosed from the bow—she had to take this gamble, or the consequences later would be unimaginable.

The Third Concubine harshly snapped at Rong Jun, "Shut your mouth! This is not your place to speak. Whatever happens, I will bear the responsibility alone!"

This single sentence instantly silenced Li Xiaoxian, who had been about to jump in again to stir up trouble. She swallowed her words, crossed her arms, and watched the developing scene with a cold smirk.

A short while later, Shen Hui came running back, clutching a cup of water, shouting, "Coming, coming! The medicine is here!"

The others saw Shen Hui sprinting, holding a transparent glass cup. Steam rose from the water, which had a greenish tint. Even before she reached them, a pleasant fragrance wafted forth.

They cried out in amazement, "So fragrant! So fragrant!"

The Third Concubine, inhaling the scent, immediately felt her heart settle and her spirit calm, as if her entire breathing had become smoother. Startled, she exclaimed with wild joy, "Could this truly be a miraculous elixir?"

Everyone else was now staring wide-eyed at the water cup in Shen Hui's hand, urging her on, "Hurry and make CEO Shen drink it!"

"Okay!" Shen Hui quickly responded. She rushed to CEO Shen's side and was about to pour the medicine in.

Li Yundong, standing nearby, interjected, "It's so hot! If CEO Shen doesn't die from his illness, he'll surely be scalded to death by you!"

Shen Hui startled, her hand shook, and some of the water in the cup spilled onto her hand. Being delicate-skinned, she cried out in pain, and the cup tilted, the liquid inside seemingly about to splash entirely onto the floor.

A wave of gasps rose from the crowd. Li Yundong, with lightning-fast reflexes, flicked his toe up, catching the glass cup mid-air, and then extended his hand, steadying it before setting it down safely.

Li Yundong glanced at Su Chan, who had been watching him silently all along. He smiled slightly, wanting to show off a bit for these short-sighted people who looked down on him. He subtly drew the Yin energy from his right kidney and channeled it into the hand holding the cup. Instantly, a layer of frost began to form on the outside of the glass.

The crowd was dumbfounded, struck speechless, jaws agape.

In the blink of an eye, the outside of the cup in Li Yundong's hand was coated in ice. He then used his other hand to gently tap the exterior of the cup—ding—and the layer of frost immediately shattered, falling to the ground with a crackle, transforming into mist in an instant.

Li Yundong smiled and handed the cup back to the stunned Shen Hui. "Be careful now, don't spill it. This is a life-saving, miraculous elixir."

Shen Hui numbly took the cup and knelt beside Shen Wancai. The Third Concubine carefully lifted Shen Wancai's head, parted his lips, and Shen Hui slowly poured the medicine into his mouth, drop by drop.

However, Shen Wancai had already passed; his throat muscles were rigid, making swallowing impossible. The liquid just pooled in his mouth. The Third Concubine grew frantic and looked up at Li Yundong, asking anxiously, "Young Master Li, what do we do?"

Li Yundong smiled faintly, squatted down, and pressed lightly on the Lianquan acupoint on Shen Wancai’s throat. Instantly, all the medicinal liquid flowed down his throat.

The surrounding crowd breathed a collective sigh of relief, joyfully exclaiming, "He drank it! He drank it!"

Shen You and Li Xiaoxian felt a sudden tightening in their chests. They exchanged a nervous glance, watching Shen Wancai intensely, terrified that he might suddenly spring back to life.

But as everyone watched Shen Wancai, they saw that after swallowing the medicine, he showed absolutely no reaction, remaining exactly as before.

The Third Concubine watched for a moment, then anxiously looked up at Li Yundong. "Young Master Li, why is there no reaction?"

Shen You and Li Xiaoxian secretly relaxed, letting out a huge sigh of relief. Li Xiaoxian feigned torrential tears and cried out loudly, "Old Shen could have been saved! Now you've truly killed him!"

The crowd, prone to believing rumors, was instantly alarmed. "What? Dead?"

The Third Concubine and Shen Hui fearfully checked Shen Wancai's pulse again. Still nothing. The two women collapsed onto the ground like clay statues, their eyes filled with terror and despair.

Shen You immediately pointed at Li Yundong and roared, "You murderer!"

Rong Jun, unwilling to be left out, coldly sneered, "I told you long ago that such a barefoot doctor is unreliable! But nobody would listen!"

Li Yundong watched the crowd stage their emotional performances, and he couldn't help but burst into laughter. "How quickly can the potency of a medicine take effect? It requires at least a day! However, if you wish to see him wake up immediately, we need one more guiding agent!"

The Third Concubine jumped as if jolted by electricity, as if her spirit had returned to her body. She hurriedly followed up, "What guiding agent?"

Li Yundong smiled faintly. "Fresh West Lake lotus seeds!"

Rong Jun couldn't help but burst out laughing. "That kills me! Where would you find fresh West Lake lotus seeds this time of year?"

Li Yundong smiled mysteriously and said, "If I say there are, then there are!" He then turned to Shen Hui again. "Go fetch a water basin and fill it halfway with water."

Shen Hui wiped the tears from her eyes, instantly stood up, ran to the washroom to grab a red basin, filled it halfway with water, and rushed back. She ran up to Li Yundong, pleading desperately, "Li Yundong, you must save the Old Master!"

Li Yundong smiled, took the basin, nodded, "Don't worry. With me here, he won't be able to die even if he wanted to!"

Saying this, Li Yundong took the basin, rolled up his sleeves, plunged his hand into the water, and said with a smile: "I will go fetch the fresh West Lake lotus seeds right now. Everyone be patient and wait for me."

With that, he closed his eyes, and his Yang spirit instantly left his body, transforming into a streak of azure light that vanished.

Everyone's attention was focused on the water basin; no one noticed the flash of blue light behind Li Yundong.

For a time, the great hall fell silent. Everyone held their breath, watching Li Yundong's basin, as if waiting to see where he would produce the fresh West Lake lotus seeds from.

Although Rong Jun didn't believe Li Yundong could conjure fresh West Lake lotus seeds out of thin air, he didn't dare provoke the public anger at this moment, merely watching the scene with a cold sneer.

But after waiting a minute, seeing no movement from Li Yundong, they patiently waited five minutes more. Yet, Li Yundong remained perfectly still, as if he had fallen asleep.

At this point, impatience began to set in. Rong Jun sneered, "Putting on a show, what is he doing?"

The crowd began to murmur. The Third Concubine and Shen Hui were as anxious as ants on a hot pan, desperate to urge Li Yundong on, yet afraid to do so.

Su Chan, who knew Li Yundong was using Yang spirit projection to fly instantly to the bottom of West Lake to retrieve the seeds, called out loudly to the Third Concubine and Shen Hui, "Don't worry! Since Yundong said he could save him, he definitely can!"

Seeing Su Chan speak with such certainty and confidence, the Third Concubine and Shen Hui felt slightly reassured. But after several more minutes of waiting with Li Yundong unchanged, Li Xiaoxian lost her composure. She shouted, "I knew this fellow was unreliable! Stop waiting, or Old Shen will truly be beyond saving!" She then pointed at the Third Concubine and harshly accused, "I think you are the one trying to kill Old Shen! It was still time to send him to the hospital just now, but after all this delay, even an immortal couldn't save him now!"

The Third Concubine hadn't expected Li Xiaoxian to seize the opportunity to turn the tables on her. Her face turned pale, panic overwhelming her. For a moment, she forgot to retort. Seeing everyone looking at her with suspicious gazes, her mind went blank, and her body suddenly went limp, collapsing to the ground as she began to weep in despair.

Just then, everyone heard a light chuckle, and a gentle voice rang out clearly in their ears: "Why cry? Haven't I returned?"

The crowd started in shock, turning to see Li Yundong smiling faintly at them, his hand still resting in the water basin.

The Third Concubine gave a sudden jolt, scrambling quickly to her feet, looking at Li Yundong with desperate hope. She stammered, "Young Master Li, you’re back? The, the West Lake lotus seeds?"

Li Yundong lifted his hand from the basin and laughed, "They are right here!"

The crowd stared intently, only to see Li Yundong holding a dark, mud-covered object that looked like a vine-like old root. They were instantly dumbfounded, thinking inwardly: This is a West Lake lotus seed? No way. Is this a prank?

Rong Jun couldn't help but laugh hysterically. "If that's a West Lake lotus seed, then the bonsai tree sculpture in my house must be a thousand-year snow lotus! This is hilarious! You expect us to believe this tree root can pass as a West Lake lotus seed to save a man? Don't make me laugh!"

Li Yundong showed no anger. He smiled slightly and said, "If I say it's a West Lake lotus seed, then it is. If I say it can save a life, then it can save a life!"