The Reincarnation Of The Divine Physician

Chapter 002

The wooden door groaned one last time before its top hinge snapped, leaving a gap wide enough for the cold night air to rush in. Three scruffy men with fierce faces stood at the threshold. In the middle, a stocky man with a scorpion tattoo on his neck peered inside with a sneer.

He was Reno, a loan shark who terrorized small shop owners in Crescent Alley.

"Heh, you're still breathing, Arkhan," Reno rasped, his breath reeking of cheap booze and heavy smoke.

"Thought your rotten heart finally gave out. I was ready to call a gravedigger."

Arkhan stayed silent behind his practice desk, leaning his left hand on the edge to hide his trembling legs. His dull eyes locked onto Reno with an unnatural calm—the kind reserved for predators, not prey.

"Hey! You deaf?" yelled a skinny thug with blonde hair, stepping in and kicking a plastic chair across the room.

"Boss Reno's asking for this week's cut. Your debt's piling up!"

Arkhan slowly raised his head.

"Debt?" he whispered.

The previous owner's memories flashed in his head. The principal debt was only ten million rupiahs for last year's hospital bills. These thugs jacked it up to fifty million with absurd compound interest—an impossible amount for a starving young man.

"Three days," Arkhan suddenly spoke up.

Reno frowned. "What? Three days for what?"

"Come back in three days," Arkhan said, his raspy voice steadying.

"I will pay everything, including your fake interest. Now get out. You're dirtying my air."

Silence hung over the shop before the three men burst out laughing. Reno laughed so hard his potbelly shook.

"You hear that?" Reno turned to his men.

"This beggar doctor tells us to get out? Promises to pay in three days? With what? Selling your rotten kidney?"

Reno stopped laughing, his face turning cold and ruthless. He stepped forward and grabbed Arkhan's loose collar.

"Listen up, kid. I don't care about three days. Pay up tonight, or this shop is mine. I'll break your legs too, just so you're a real drain on the world."

Arkhan felt the rough pull on his collar. Physical and emotional stress made his heart ache, but an ancient power stirred beneath the pain. The old sewing needle sat ready between his fingers.

"I gave you a choice," Arkhan whispered right in Reno's face.

"Choice? What choice?!" Reno raised his fist, aiming for Arkhan's pale face.

The punch never landed.

Lightning fast, Arkhan's right hand struck. The needle poked a small point right under Reno's armpit—the spot where Arkhan routed his last drop of soul essence.

Zhap!

Reno froze. His eyes bulged, and his arm dropped like a wet rag.

"Boss? Boss Reno, what's wrong?" the blonde thug stammered, watching his boss freeze with his arm half-raised.

Reno opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Total paralysis surged through the right side of his body like a lightning strike. He couldn't twitch a finger as cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Arkhan effortlessly peeled Reno's limp fingers off his shirt. He stepped back, catching his breath after burning precious energy in this weak frame.

"What did you do to the Boss?!" the other thug, a muscular guy, charged forward in a rage.

Arkhan didn't dodge. As the guy threw a punch, Arkhan slipped to the side and pressed two fingers behind the man's ear.

Pluck.

The heavy thug collapsed, eyes rolling back as he convulsed, foaming at the mouth.

"Damn it! You using black magic?!" the blonde guy screamed in terror.

He pulled a switchblade, his hand shaking uncontrollably. He had never seen anyone drop a two-hundred-pound man with a mere touch.

Arkhan fixed him with a icy stare that left no room for negotiation.

"If your twitching friend doesn't get pressure on his pulse point in ten seconds, his brain nerves will fry. He'll be a vegetable for life."

The blonde thug swallowed hard, his courage completely gone. "P-please... fix him! I... I've got nothing to do with this!"

"Get them out," Arkhan ordered. "And remember my words. Three days. Tell your frozen boss if he steps foot here before then, I'll make sure he never moves again."

Arkhan then snapped his fingers right in front of Reno's eyes.

Snap!

The paralysis lifted instantly, but a wave of agonizing pain shot down Reno's spine. He collapsed onto the cold floor, gasping like a fish out of water, staring at Arkhan in pure terror. It felt like standing before a reaper in a sick man's skin.

"Get out," Arkhan said softly, every word heavy with command.

Reno didn't dare argue. Helped by the blonde thug, they dragged their twitching friend out into the night, their hurried footsteps fading down Crescent Alley.

Once quiet returned, Arkhan's legs gave out. He slid down against the desk leg, his heart pounding so hard his ears rang.

Cough! HACK!

Dark blood splattered across the floor again, heavier this time. Using even a drop of soul energy had torn the fragile vessels in his chest.

"Absolute trash..." Arkhan smiled bitterly, wiping blood from his chin. "Taking down two roaches almost killed me again."

He closed his eyes to calm his circulation. He knew the three-day deadline wasn't a bluff. He needed to find basic herbs to strengthen his meridians fast, or the next fight would be his last.

In the quiet night, Arkhan stared at the broken needle in his hand.

"The era has changed, but human pressure points haven't in thousands of years. As long as I have a needle, no one touches me."

Yet behind his confidence, one reality remained clear: buying herbs required money. And in this modern world, money ruled right below power.