Ye Qiu took out his phone. The caller ID was an unknown number. He quickly answered.
"Hello, this is Ye Qiu."
"Little brother, you said you'd get me food. Why haven't you come back yet?"
Lin Jingzhi's coquettish voice drifted into his ear.
Ye Qiu suddenly remembered that Lin Jingzhi was still waiting for him in the ward.
Oh no!
That woman was unpredictable. If she got angry, he would be in for it.
"Sister Lin, I'm so sorry. My mom came to the hospital, and I took her home. I'll head right back."
Ye Qiu told a little lie.
"I see. Then hurry back. I'm bored here all by myself," Lin Jingzhi said.
"Okay, I'll be right there."
He hung up and turned to the Dragon King.
"Dragon King, I have a patient waiting for me at the hospital. I must go back immediately."
"Zhao Yun, send Little Ye back to the hospital."
"Yes, sir!"
Zhao Yun drove Ye Qiu back right away.
On the way.
Zhao Yun asked: "Ye Qiu, be honest with me. Can the Dragon King really live for another month?"
"You don't believe me?"
Zhao Yun said: "It's not that I don't believe you. It's just that prolonging life sounds too unbelievable. Besides, you only inserted a few needles — I didn't see anything magical happen."
"You aren't the Dragon King, so you can't feel the wonder of the Nine Needles of Restoring Yang. Long story short, he'll eat well and sleep soundly for this month."
Ye Qiu added: "You need to find a way to locate an expert to purge the Gu poison from his body. Otherwise, after a month, no one can save him."
"Understood. I'll send men to the desert to look for the Living Buddha right away."
The car fell quiet for a moment.
Ye Qiu suddenly thought of something else and said:
"Brother Zhao, I remember you told me earlier that the Dragon King is the ruler of Jiangzhou's underworld and was once a master on the Tiger Rank. Did I hear that right?"
"You did."
"And the Dragon King also said the leaders of Wudang and Longhushan are in closed-door life-or-death training to challenge for first place on the Dragon Rank. That's correct?"
"Absolutely."
"I'm curious — what exactly are the Tiger Rank and Dragon Rank? They sound pretty powerful."
"They're not just sound powerful. They are powerful."
Zhao Yun asked: "You know the Forbes Billionaires List, right?"
"Yeah. The people on it are super-rich, worth tens of billions or hundreds of billions."
"The Dragon Rank and Tiger Rank are similar rankings — but instead of billionaires, they list martial arts masters."
"Martial arts masters?"
Ye Qiu was intrigued. There were rankings for martial artists?
Zhao Yun said: "Let's start with the Tiger Rank.
It's updated every five years. On the Dragon Boat Festival, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, martial artists gather at the Confucius Temple in Jinling for tournament battles. The top thirty make the list."
"Before the Dragon King was poisoned, he ranked twelfth on the Tiger Rank — the only master from Jiangzhou to make it."
"After the Gu poison took hold, his health declined year by year. He pulled out of the Tiger Rank tournament five years ago and didn't compete.
So we can only say he was a Tiger Rank master."
"What about the Dragon Rank?" Ye Qiu asked.
"The Dragon Rank…"
A look of reverence appeared on Zhao Yun's face.
"To make the Dragon Rank is to be called a Grand Martial Master. Your name is carved on the stone cliffs of Mount Tai, admired by generations.
It's the dream of every martial artist."
"The Dragon Rank is updated once a decade. On the Mid-Autumn Festival, all the world's top masters gather at Mount Tai. Anyone aiming for the Dragon Rank can challenge any master already on it."
"Naturally, most challengers come from the Tiger Rank.
Occasionally, some unknown but extremely powerful prodigies show up too.
But the chance of winning is tiny."
"Actually, the main event of each Dragon Rank update is the battles between the masters already on the list.
Lower-ranked Dragon Rank masters challenge those above them."
Zhao Yun said: "In short, every Dragon Rank master is terrifyingly strong — like an unreachable peak, powerful enough to make people despair."
"Who's on the Dragon Rank?"
Ye Qiu couldn't imagine what kind of skill it took to make that list.
Zhao Yun answered: "In the last ranking, the leaders of Wudang and Longhushan were second and third, respectively.
Fourth was the abbot of the Tianlong Temple in Dali.
Fifth was a woman from the Murong clan of Gusu."
"What about first place?" Ye Qiu asked, burning with curiosity. "Who's number one on the Dragon Rank?"
"The top spot is… why do you ask?" Zhao Yun looked confused.
Ye Qiu smiled. "Just curious."
Zhao Yun then said: "The Dragon Rank champion is Xiao Jiu — the God of War of the Northern Border. He commands a million-strong army, holds immense power, and once single-handedly slaughtered five thousand enemies. For his unmatched bravery, the Emperor named him Marquis Champion."
"Ten years ago, at Mount Tai, the Wudang and Longhushan leaders both challenged Xiao Jiu for first place. Together, they couldn't even withstand three of his moves. The scariest part? Xiao Jiu was only thirty-five years old."
What?!
Only thirty-five?
Meaning he claimed the Dragon Rank top spot at just twenty-five.
Damn, that's insane!
Ye Qiu was utterly shocked.
"After that defeat, the Wudang and Longhushan leaders felt deeply humiliated. They went straight into closed-door life-or-death training, vowing to avenge their shame at the next Dragon Rank tournament."
"But in my opinion, their chances of winning are slim."
Zhao Yun said: "Rumors in the martial world say Xiao Jiu's power is already close to god-tier. He might even qualify for the God Rank."
"God Rank?"
Ye Qiu frowned. What was that?
"I don't know much about the God Rank. I only hear it's updated once every thirty years, for the world's god-tier martial artists. No one knows where the battles take place."
Zhao Yun laughed. "I can't even make the Tiger Rank. The God Rank is way out of my league."
"I wish I could become a God Rank master someday," Ye Qiu sighed suddenly.
"You?" Zhao Yun glanced at him and smiled. "Stick to being a doctor."
"No faith in me at all?"
"You're just an ordinary guy right now. Forget the God Rank — even the Dragon Rank would be impossible for you in thirty years."
"What if I make the Dragon Rank someday, Brother Zhao? Will you be my subordinate?" Ye Qiu joked.
"Sure."
Zhao Yun agreed without hesitation.
In his eyes, Ye Qiu had no martial arts foundation whatsoever. He would never make even the Tiger Rank, let alone the Dragon Rank.
"Time flies. The Dragon and Tiger Rankings will update again next year. Wonder if I can make the Tiger Rank this time?"
As Zhao Yun mused, they arrived at the hospital.
Zhao Yun gave Ye Qiu his phone number.
"If anyone gives you trouble, call me."
"Will do."
Ye Qiu got out and rushed straight to the VIP ward.