Countless people instantly flooded the West Hua Medical University forums. Even though the school administration had recently upgraded the servers, the sheer number of simultaneous logins caused the webpages to load slowly. The one saving grace was that this time, the forums didn't crash from the high traffic.
Before opening the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor* that Zhao Yuan had posted, some of these people were skeptical, while others were hoping for a pleasant surprise.
But regardless of their initial mindset, once they saw the contents of the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*, their reactions were surprisingly uniform. First came a curious "Huh?", followed by a silent, intense study. In the end, they became completely engrossed in the knowledge of this classic medical text, forgetting everything else.
As a result, many Traditional Chinese Medicine professors and experts skipped work and class that day. Even when calls came in inquiring about their absence, they unhesitatingly chose to be truant. To avoid being disturbed, they even turned off their mobile phones and unplugged their landlines, all so they could study the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor* in peace.
No one could yet be certain if this was truly the legendary *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*. But they were profoundly impressed by the wealth of knowledge and theories contained within its pages.
Xiao Xianlin, a "national treasure" level expert from West Hua Medical University, was one of them.
He was scheduled to attend a medical seminar that morning, but after reading the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*, he called his assistant without a second thought and told him to cancel.
The assistant was in a bind. The seminar was a high-profile event, with attendees being prominent figures in the field of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Backing out at the last minute would offend a lot of people. But Xiao Xianlin had made up his mind, so the assistant had no choice but to bite the bullet and call the organizers.
The moment the call connected, before he could even get a word out, the person on the other end asked, "Has something come up for Elder Xiao? Is he unable to attend the medical seminar?"
"How did you know?" the assistant asked in surprise.
The organizer sighed. "In the last ten minutes, we've gotten calls from seven or eight different experts and professors, all saying something urgent came up and they can't make it. I find it strange. How can it be such a coincidence that everyone has an emergency at the exact same time? Man, level with me. Did we do something to offend all these esteemed professors?"
"What? That many of them have emergencies?" The assistant's jaw dropped in astonishment. It wasn't until half an hour later that he finally learned the real reason for their absence. By then, he too was lost in his own study of the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*...
A little over an hour later, Xiao Xianlin finished reading the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*.
Of course, this was just a cursory read-through. Many of the theories and points of knowledge in the book would require a great deal of time to research and study before they could be mastered.
And yet, even after just one quick read, Xiao Xianlin's shock was immense.
He closed his eyes in thought for a moment, then picked up his phone, found Liu Mingzhang's number, and made the call.
The phone rang for quite a while before it was finally answered. Liu Mingzhang's impatient voice crackled through the line. "Old Xiao, what is it? I'm busy. If this isn't important, I'm hanging up!"
True to his word, Liu Mingzhang was about to hang up.
"Don't hang up!" Xiao Xianlin cried out. "Have you seen the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*? The one posted on the university forums by 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor'?"
The moment his old friend mentioned the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*, Liu Mingzhang not only stopped himself from hanging up but began to gush with excitement. "Is that even a question? Of course I've seen it! I'm studying it with a few of my students right now. I'm telling you, so much of the knowledge and theory in this book is incredibly profound! If we can fully master it, it will elevate the entire field of Traditional Chinese Medicine! Especially when it comes to fundamental theory—we're talking about a quantum leap!"
"My thoughts exactly!" Xiao Xianlin agreed, then asked, "Do you think this could really be it? The legendary *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*, lost for a thousand years?"
On the other end of the line, Liu Mingzhang fell silent.
He had been focused on studying the book's contents and hadn't considered this question.
After a moment's thought, he didn't rush to answer. Instead, he asked, "What's your take on it?"
Xiao Xianlin shared his view. "I'd say there's at least a seventy percent chance it's genuine. This book that 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' posted... its writing style, its knowledge, its theories—they're all a clear continuation of the same tradition as the *Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor*!"
"I'm inclined to agree," Liu Mingzhang said with a sigh. "I just can't imagine where this 'man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' could have possibly found a classic medical text that's been lost for millennia. But what I admire even more is his character! He didn't hoard this book for himself; he shared it with the world. An act like that is a massive boon to the development of Traditional Chinese Medicine! A person like him deserves to be recorded in the annals of history, to have entire biographies written in his honor!"
"Exactly!" Xiao Xianlin agreed, nodding emphatically. "For 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' to release the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor* is truly a monumental achievement, one that will benefit generations to come! Old Liu, I propose that you and I take the lead. We'll gather a few other titans from the world of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and together, we will study the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor* and formally validate it, proving that it is indeed the great work that was lost for a thousand years!"
"Yes! That's a wonderful idea!" Liu Mingzhang said, his voice filled with excitement. "This is the kind of work that goes down in history. Count me in!" Then, he sighed. "It's just a shame we have no way of contacting this 'man who wants to be a Witch Doctor'. If we could have him lead the seminar, imagine how much more we could gain!"
"Yes, that is a shame," Xiao Xianlin agreed. "Even for something as momentous as releasing the *Outer Canon of the Yellow Emperor*, 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' didn't use his real name. He just used an alias to post this world-altering text. His indifference to fame and fortune is truly admirable!"
Liu Mingzhang mulled this over for a second. "Old Xiao, I think 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' can be indifferent to fame and fortune, but we can't just stand by and do nothing. If we do, future generations will ridicule us!"
"What do you mean?" Xiao Xianlin asked, confused.
Liu Mingzhang's voice grew serious. "We have to find him. We have to find 'the man who wants to be a Witch Doctor' and ensure he receives the honor and gratitude he deserves! We must make sure his name is immortalized, so that future generations will sing his praises!"