Beside the little girl, there was a woman, leaning over the child, sobbing uncontrollably. In addition, there were two other children, one older and one younger, probably the little girl's older brother and younger brother.

　　There were also a few kind-hearted neighbors or friends offering help.

　　Above the medicine hall hung a plaque, bearing the name "Da De Medicine Hall."

　　In front of the medicine hall, beneath the plaque, stood a doctor in his fifties, dressed in a gray robe, with sharp features, who shouted, "In these ten miles around, who doesn't acknowledge the medical skills of the Hu family? I say this child can't be saved—unless an immortal appears, otherwise she's doomed for sure. Hurry up and take her home. Dying at my doorstep is bad luck. Get out!"

　　Upon hearing this, the woman cried even harder.

　　The little girl's brother was quite indignant, pointing at him and shouting, "Even Divine Doctor Carter can save people, why can't you? It's just that you're not capable!"

　　Several elders familiar with the David Thompson family quickly scolded the child, telling him not to speak nonsense.

　　The child was even more unconvinced, saying, "Anyway, he can't save people and still wants to drive us away. Why should we be nice to him?"

　　The child made a lot of sense, and with that, the few men fell silent.

　　"Don't compare me to that dead man!" Doctor Howard said angrily. "He had a good reputation, but he died of illness himself. What kind of name is that? In the past, he only treated minor injuries and illnesses. You ignorant country folk saw him cure a few cases of rheumatism and called him a divine doctor. Someone who died of illness himself—how skilled could he really be?"

　　Hearing this, a few people nodded, thinking to themselves, "Maybe he really wasn't that skilled, just got hyped up by everyone."

　　At this moment, the crowd suddenly quieted, their faces showing embarrassment, and then parted.

　　A handsome young man in a Daoist robe made his way through the crowd, squeezing in. His eyes swept over everyone, his expression calm, saying nothing, and he squatted down beside the little girl. He only glanced at Doctor Howard before withdrawing his gaze. With his current hearing, he had heard the crowd's discussion from another street, so naturally, Doctor Howard's words had also reached his ears.

　　Back then, this Doctor Howard had a decent relationship with the The Carter Family, often coming to seek advice from his father. But after his father fell ill, this Doctor Howard became the most zealous critic of the The Carter Family.

　　Perhaps the title of "divine doctor" simply aroused jealousy.

　　"Brother Carter, my sister, she…"

　　The child was about to speak when Henry Carter frowned slightly and raised his hand to signal for silence. The woman who had wanted to plead also quickly fell silent.

　　Henry Carter set the kettle aside, took out a roll of cloth from his chest, and spread it open—it turned out to be a set of needles.

　　Under the sunlight, the set of needles gleamed faintly, so faintly that it was almost hard to see the reflection, giving off a slight chill.

　　The onlookers were very self-aware; no matter how skeptical they felt, they had stopped their discussions and watched quietly.

　　Henry Carter's expression was somewhat grave. The venom of the Blood-marked Snake was extremely potent, and the little girl had been poisoned for a long time, the toxin spreading throughout her body—this was a very tricky case.

　　To expel the Blood-marked Snake's poison, rare medicines were required, but these medicines could easily aggravate the poison. One misstep, and it could be fatal. To truly expel the toxin, the snake venom must first be suppressed, but such a method was beyond even the renowned doctors of Fengxing Prefecture.

　　Fortunately, Henry Carter had learned the technique from his father. He took a deep breath, though his heart was far from calm.

　　He closed his eyes slightly, then opened them again, his mind now at peace.

　　Henry Carter flicked his hand, and three long needles were caught between his fingers.

　　He brushed his hand over the little girl's face, and the three long needles landed on the philtrum and the qi meridians on both sides of her neck.

　　With another wave of his hand, he produced three more long needles.

　　His movements were as smooth as flowing clouds and water—waving his hand, picking up needles, inserting them—each motion was as natural and fluid as a casual gesture, surprisingly graceful to watch.

　　Though the crowd were not experts, they felt that his technique was as smooth as flowing water, without the slightest pause. They didn't know how effective it would be, but his calmness and the fluidity of his needlework already won their praise.

　　Others might just think it looked good, but Doctor Howard, who had practiced medicine for decades, showed a slight change in expression. Just from these few moves, he could tell that this Carter boy had truly inherited the art of acupuncture—at least, his needlework was superior to his own. He gritted his teeth slightly, then suddenly sneered, "You didn't burn the needles before inserting them—aren't you afraid of injuring the acupoints or introducing evil qi? Saving people like this, aren't you afraid of killing them?"

　　The crowd's expressions changed slightly, and their gazes toward Henry Carter shifted a little.

　　Before acupuncture, burning the needles to remove impurities and dust was common knowledge. But seeing this calm, seemingly highly skilled young Daoist act so recklessly?

　　Even David Thompson's wife looked a bit anxious, her eyes on Henry Carter showing some nervousness, afraid that his medical skills might really be lacking and he would cause a wrongful death.

　　Doctor Howard mocked, "If you kill someone, you'll have to go to court, you know? You might end up in jail. Such a promising young man—don't get yourself into trouble."

　　Henry Carter's expression remained calm. In the blink of an eye, he had already inserted more than a dozen long needles, and only then did his hand slow down, while his other hand began pressing acupoints to stop the bleeding.