With everyone clustered around and the first step of the healing process completed for the torture victims, I gather myself for what comes next. Coming to the decision to inform everyone first, before we start.

“Alright. As you’ve all seen, there are quite a few things that you have to consider when healing somebody. Whether it’s the current situation, the person’s body state, or even environmental factors, it can be a lot to understand. These things will come with time and experience.

“With that said, we have not yet talked about the potentially longest, toughest, and potentially most rewarding factor that comes into play with healing people.”

I pause for a moment to read the room. Seeing who already knows where I’m going with this.

As I suspected, Ai and Lin are one of the first to realize it. Though, I am also a bit saddened to see others automatically understood… likely from their own experiences as well.

“It is the mental aspect. Part of considering the ‘whole’ person includes this.

I wave toward the now healed, but blank, staring victims around us.

Unseeing, despite their eyes being open. Not moving even an inch. Just following any positions that we placed them in. Others, I had to sedate into induced comas for their and our own safety. Their bodies locked into an unending state of fight or flight. Their minds naturally drifting to that area.

"Healing these people physically is of little benefit if their minds are still broken and cannot return to normal life or even grow from their experiences.”

This is rough.

I can heal the mental aspect in the brain. But when just using my healing aura on Ai with her issue, the seed of the mental illness is still there. However, with my new cultivation method, it actually can directly affect it.

To take out the seed at the root.

Here is the toughest part, though.

My scan is telling me that this isn’t the best way to heal them. They need to be able to grow from this. Not have it taken from them and their brain changed to make it not an issue.

I can still use the method to ease their suffering… but they need to be able to mentally push through it, as well. The cultivation method, while wonderful in most situations, is just a tool. It’s how I use it, that’s important.

I stay muted after saying these words. Allowing these prospective healers to mull over what all of this means and how this affects their mindsets to the patients.

Having been quiet thus far, I’m a little surprised to hear Ming’s deep voice speak out over the heads of the others.

“How does one heal another’s mind, Master James? I’ve only heard of some illusions that can achieve such an effect.”

Still can’t get used to that term of address.

“Good question, Ming. There are many ways, with illusions allowing for unique opportunities to do so. But the most critical aspect of helping a person is to understand their condition, selves, and the environment they need to heal.”

Changing the orientation of my body to the room with a wave, I continue.

“A space like this may be good for group emergency healing. Typically, not so for individual wellbeing. My first recommendation is to start a person in a private space and setting it up to be comforting for them. Know your patient to the best extent you can. And then cultivate the toughest personal characteristic in yourself. Patience.”

Turning back to the last patient we worked on, I change it being mobile. Luckily, this world also saw the need to have mobile hospital beds. I speak to the extra staff in the room that I left here to watch the rest of the patients.

“Please make sure that everyone remains stable here. If there are any issues, treat the patient as gently as possible, and if needed, take them into a separate room with supervision. At no time, are you to leave any patients alone. This will not always be the case, but these patients are likely to be suicidal. You don’t want to leave such patients alone.”

Wei, along with the other staff here, nods their heads and observes the patients for any abnormalities.

I don’t expect any problems, as I’ve already put anyone who might have a negative reaction to sleep.

With that taken care of, I roll the patient into a separate room. One with a one-way window, something rarely used in this world, but occasionally seen in low cultivation areas. It is common for hospitals to have at least one.

While the others go into the viewing room, I go into the mirror room with the patient. I direct all of them to be silent for the entire time.

Once everything is set, I direct my gaze towards the woman before me.

Jin Chin.

A 30-year-old woman, who was the foremost cultivation expert of her home, Xiangliang, a small mountain town, located in one of the territories controlled by another sect.

Standing at the peak of Foundation Establishment, she was known in her area to be a big sister to many in the town. Her role was to protect the local area from the spirit beasts scattered around the outskirts, along with other local but weaker cultivators. Her pale skin, short black hair, and fierce personality made it so that few crossed her and her group.

Adding to that, her Jin family was a significant investor in the town. Unequaled in their area and a force to be reckoned with. If you wanted to do business in the area, you were dealing with the Jin Family. Because she is a strong, beautiful cultivator with a good backing, she seemed to have many suitors after her.

All until a prominent, big shot young master came to town and was offended when she tried to stop them from committing travesties against others and herself.

Unlike the time when I saved Mei Lin, there was no sect cultivator moderating her fight against a young master. While she managed to win against the young master, she and her town couldn’t handle the repercussions of that.

The young master’s family was much larger than the Jin Family and prominent in the local sect. They sent in stronger cultivators and suppressed any dissent in the area by force. The young master's faction took control of the town, wiping the Jin Family off the map.

Jin Chin, of course, was crippled and forced to see everyone she knows and loves tortured to death. She fought every second of it. But after enduring years of being used like a toy, she was eventually sold to Long Heng, who carried on with his own agenda.

All because he sought someone with a fiery spirit who had demonstrated their resilience in enduring extended and diverse forms of torture without succumbing.

He succeeded.

In part, at least.

… I'm going to have to deal with this delicately.

Like the others, I won’t be restoring her cultivation. I only healed their bodies. I can’t be sure what they will do, so I’m keeping them at a normal human level for now.

For the purposes of this mental healing, I’ll be using a combination of techniques from my cultivation method and therapy techniques, all while explaining alternate ways they can use to achieve similar effects.

I place my hand on her head and start directing my healing aura and cultivation method to gently apply effects to her mind. Simultaneously, I place a light alchemical solution right under her nose, that's vapors drift into her nose, as she breathes.

I speak aloud, describing my actions.

“Right now, what I am doing is healing and stimulating certain parts of her brain. Allowing her to experience her trauma from a different perspective. The priority on this is to help her understand what she went through and process it in a way that will let her emotionally handle it when she’s awake.”

At this point, her hands and legs begin to twitch, with her breath rapidly speeding up. She’s going through the trauma again. I immediately increase my healing technique to help remove a bit of the trauma seed. Not all of it, but enough to help her cope.

However, it’s up to her whether she keeps fighting. If she decides it’s too much and gives up, I’ll use more of my ability to compensate, but it may cause her more long-term emotional issues.

Because of this, as I heal, I feel myself urging her to keep fighting through it and make it through this. To learn and grow from it.

The tremors calm down, with her breathing stabilizing again. Like before, at every step, I explain the situations and my actions.

“As you just saw, she was having negative repercussions from going through the experience. In order to prevent a downward spiral, I healed her mind and calmed her body. You can achieve similar effects to what I’m doing, using other alchemy solutions and illusion techniques. All of which you will read about later on from the book list.”

For the next 5 minutes, I repeat this pattern. Periods of shaking, vomiting, and other physiological effects occur. Each of which I address accordingly.

All until the room stills, as her eyes gradually open. Immediately, she tries to sit up.

As she hasn't used her recently restored body in a long while, I assist with this. Typically, one wouldn't have them sit up, but since her body is healed, she won't suffer too many negative effects from this.

What I'm really concerned about is whether she will allow me to help her, or if she will have an intense negative reaction.

But unlike how I was expecting, she allows me to do so. Even leaning on me a bit for stability. Holding onto my arm tightly.

I watch as she quickly glances at me and then scans the room, gathering information on her surroundings. All before her eyes lock onto mine. Giving me a measuring, but slightly pained, look.

She says nothing during this, but the feeling I get is like she’s trying to determine my intentions just from this.

Now that I think of it, the cultivation technique uses my qi and intent to perform the healing process. It’s likely that she may have seen a version of me in her mind, as she was processing all the trauma. Perhaps like a mental apparition of sorts. Working with her and following my actions and thought processes.

It’s tough to tell what she would see. As it’s a combination of their mind and my influence on it. So, it may or may not be an accurate representation of me.

My cultivation method works off my intent and only allows me to help people, so at the very least, it shouldn’t have given off a negative impression.

…

That’s what I hope, at least.

 

 After staring for a while, I can feel the intensity in her gaze dim. She looks away after a moment and takes a breath before speaking. Still not looking at me anymore.

“… who are you and why are you helping me?”

That’s an easy one. And one that I can tell will have a good impact.

“My name is James. I helped you and the others because I could do so.

“No more, no less.”

Her eyes dart back to me, as if in confusion and hope. But then widen a bit.

“… Others?”

And so it begins.