PCJ – Chapter 687 New Medicine

The phenomenon observed by chance during the last experiment piqued Mei Qing’s interest. The optimization reagent not only induced certain mutations in the human body but also caused some changes in viruses.

Through experiments conducted over this period, Mei Qing discovered that the spiritual energy contained in the spiritual spring had inhibitory effects on many viruses. She also found that using appropriate combinations of medication along with spiritual energy could help repair certain pathological conditions. It was even effective against malignant tumors, showing promising results in converting cancerous cells back to normal ones—an astonishing discovery.

“If we have enough spiritual spring to produce this drug, we could save countless lives of cancer patients. This would be of great significance to humanity,” Mei Qing said excitedly to Zhang Jiaohua.

“At present, all spiritual springs on Earth are on the verge of drying up. However, I can provide you with a limited amount for drug production. But don’t expect too much—I suggest you try to do more with less. Use the spiritual spring as a catalyst, not a core ingredient,” Zhang Jiaohua replied.

Mei Qing nodded. “I understand. My recent experiments have been focused on reducing the amount of spiritual spring needed and finding the most effective formulation.”

Zhang Jiaohua’s biggest concern wasn’t the supply of spiritual spring—Mei Qing’s demand wouldn’t be very large, and he could meet it without much pressure. What he truly worried about was the potential trouble the drug might cause once it hit the market, especially the unwanted attention from Daoist sects.

The Meishan Sect currently didn’t have the strength to compete with behemoths like the Kunlun Sect. If they drew the attention of such factions, the peaceful days of the Meishan Sect would be over. However, Zhang Jiaohua also felt that what Mei Qing was doing was very meaningful. As a cultivator, even though he had transcended ordinary people, he believed that cultivators couldn’t survive on this planet in isolation. If humanity were to go extinct, could cultivators really survive alone? It might seem like cultivators had long lifespans and immense power, looking down on mortals like ants. But in the face of the Dao of Heaven, weren’t cultivators also just ants? For cultivators to continue to grow and thrive, they needed community—and humanity was their foundation. If the foundation was shaken, cultivators could not survive forever.

Mei Qing was about to enter clinical trials for the new drug. This time, she had formally submitted an application to the relevant authorities. The application didn’t take long to be approved, due to the special nature of the drug. Drugs for critical illnesses and rare diseases could be fast-tracked, and the timeline for clinical trials and certification would be significantly shortened.

One of the patients participating in the trial was Li Hao, a freshman at Tsinghua University. Shortly after enrolling, he was diagnosed with leukemia. His parents and sister were not suitable bone marrow donors, and he had to rely on repeated chemotherapy to stay alive. But each round of chemo severely weakened him, and a matching donor seemed nowhere in sight.

Through this clinical trial, Mei Qing’s team got in contact with Li Hao. His family situation was not good. Even if a donor had been found, his family couldn’t afford the cost of treatment. Even the chemotherapy expenses had been mostly covered by school-organized fundraisers.

Though the risk of the new drug was uncertain, Li Hao agreed to participate immediately upon hearing the opportunity.

Li Hao’s parents were very worried. When he entered the clinical ward, the whole family embraced and wept.

“Mom, Dad, Sis—don’t worry. I’ll come back safely. It’s time I settled things with my illness,” Li Hao said calmly.

“My son, it’s our fault—we don’t have the ability to save you, and now you have to take such a huge risk,” his father, Li Jiangyan, said with guilt.

Li Hao quickly responded, “Dad, you raised me and sent me to college. Even during my illness, you never gave up on me. I’ll never be able to repay you. If anything happens to me and I don’t make it, you all must live well. Jingwen, you have to take good care of Mom and Dad for me.”

“Don’t say such things, son. The doctor said this clinical trial is safe, and the medicine is showing very good results. You must come back alive!” his mother, Pang Jiahui, pleaded.

Mei Qing and Zhang Jiaohua stood nearby, witnessing this heart-wrenching farewell.

“Teacher Mei, feeling the pressure?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

Mei Qing nodded. “Yes, a bit. If something goes wrong with the drug, I don’t know how I could face their families. The drug worked very well in animal trials, but I truly can’t guarantee the outcome in human trials.”

Seeing how anxious she was, Zhang Jiaohua tried to comfort her. “Teacher Mei, don’t worry. It will succeed. There’s no good treatment for this disease even abroad. Monoclonal antibodies are expensive and have limited effectiveness. Domestically, we’re even further behind. Foreign medications are outrageously expensive, and even then, they’re often hard to get. If you succeed this time, it’ll be a tremendous service to mankind.”

“Jiaohua, if you were the one doing this research, you’d probably do it even better. Don’t tell me that when you were studying in-vitro embryo cultivation, you never thought about applying active agents to cancer treatment?” Mei Qing looked at him, seemingly hoping for an answer.

“No, really—I never thought of that,” Zhang Jiaohua shook his head firmly.

In the hospital ward, the medical staff were already preparing to administer the new drug.

“You’re Xu Gao, right? Liver cancer patient?” one nurse confirmed the patient’s identity again.

Lying weakly on the bed with a waxy complexion, Xu Gao nodded. He wasn’t very old—just in his fifties. He had suffered from hepatitis B, which later relapsed due to negligence. The disease had worsened, and now he was in the late stages. Doctors at a major hospital had told him he had less than a year to live.

Xu Gao nodded, having mentally prepared for the worst. Strangely, this gave him a sense of peace.

“We’re going to inject the new drug now. If you feel any discomfort, please let us know immediately. We’ll be monitoring you closely,” the medical staff said gently.

As the drug slowly entered his body, Xu Gao became completely calm and felt no fear. On the contrary, a sense of unprecedented comfort spread through him. It was a sensation he hadn’t felt since falling ill. He found it strange.

Outside, his son Xu Minglun and wife Guo Yulan waited anxiously. Xu Minglun was the pillar of the family—if he fell, the whole family would collapse.