Chapter 1: Chapter 1

A Mercedes S-Class and two Land Rover Range Rovers were making their way through Dragonlake Penitentiary. The warden and a group of the main wards were standing up straight at the entrance, looking solemn. The cars stopped, and a young man got out of the Land Rover. He then opened the door of the Mercedes and helped a sickly middle-aged man out of the car. The man was about forty years old, majestic, stern, but at the same time, sallow. He would wince from time to time. The pain he was enduring was too much even for a man like him. At one point, he wanted to just end it all. The warden tensed up and saluted the man. “General Caesar!” The sickly man was none other than Thaddeus Caesar, the lieutenant general of a certain military zone in the Kingdom of Igneus. He was one of the top-ranking members of the military and a relatively young one at that. A bright future awaited him. Thaddeus waved the warden down. “It’s alright, warden. Now, where’s Dr. Barrett?” The warden was a man called Chester Lampoon, and he was in charge of a prison called Dragonlake Penitentiary. Quickly, he bowed. “Dr. Barrett is waiting in the lobby. Come with us, please, general.” Chester led the way to the office, where a lad in inmate attire was waiting in the lobby. He was twenty-two, not handsome, not ugly, and he was smoking. His eyes were narrowed, though he seemed to be observing the newcomers. This lad was called William Barrett; the very same Dr. Barrett Thaddeus mentioned. One of the guards barked, “Put that out. The smell of cigarettes hurts the general.” William ignored the guard. “Who’s the patient?” Thaddeus looked at the lad curiously. He’s the doctor? But he’s so young. The general nodded. “That will be me, doctor.” Right away, the general coughed as he choked on the smell of tobacco. Ever since he was down with his headache, the smell of tobacco would make him cough. Shocked, Chester said, “Put that out, Barrett. You’re affecting the general.” William puffed. “It’s alright. He won’t die from a little cough.” Incensed, the guard tried to snatch William’s cigarette away, but he couldn’t even touch William. William swung his arm, and the guard felt like he was electrocuted. His right arm felt numb, and it went limp. Shocked, he backed off and stared at William warily. He yelled, “We can’t take him on alone!” At least five of the guards whipped their guns out and pointed them at William. The general’s safety was always their first priority here. Lazily, William said, “Some way to treat a doctor.” Thaddeus raised his hand. “Put your guns down.” The guards put their guns away, and Thaddeus looked at William apologetically. “Sorry for the fright, doctor. Now, may we proceed with the consultation?” “Naturally.” William smiled. “It’s a doctor’s job to help their patients out. Moreover, your condition isn’t hard to heal.” A handsome lad appeared from behind the general. He stared at William with bright eyes and asked, “You’re not some conman, are you? You don’t even know what kind of condition my father has, and you claim you can heal him?” William looked at the lad. “I never said I don’t know what his condition is.” The lad was Thaddeus’ sonDeacon. Deacon froze. “You know?” William ignored him. Instead, he asked Thaddeus, “You are down with a constant, splitting headache. You tried slamming and needling yourself to lessen the pain, I presume. The agony is at its height at about two to three and five to six in the morning. The pain has affected your sleep quality and weakened your immune system. That’s why you’re down with colds, pneumonia, and stomach ulcer, correct?” Thaddeus trembled, and he gasped, “Yes, doctor. That is a perfect diagnosis!” Deacon was shocked. He got it all right? “Yeah. I can heal you easily, but first, I need to talk to the warden.” Chester’s face fell. He’s going to ask for a reduction of his sentence again. When William arrived two years ago, he was sentenced to seven years of prison. After that, he received two reductions, bringing his sentence down to three years. Now he wants another reduction? This is going to be hard. William sneered, “Why the long face, warden? Oh, I see. You know what I’m going to say, and you can’t do it, can you?” Reluctantly, Chester huddled closer and pleaded, “I can’t reduce your sentence anymore, man. Rules are rules. There has to be at least one year between each reduction. Your last reduction was three months ago.” William scoffed. “Yeah, right. You still have two preferential slots left.” Chester was placed in a dilemma. Those slots were precious. They were reserved for those who behaved and reformed well in prison. If they were sentenced to less than two years, then they could be released early. He was reluctant to use those slots on William since a lot of people were waiting for them. Knowing that Chester wouldn’t give the slot to him without a push, William closed his eyes. “I’m tired. I need to rest. Take me back to my cell.” Panicked, Chester quickly said, “How about this? I can get my friend to bail you out.” William rolled his eyes. “No. A sentence reduction is all I want. Make my release happen in three days.” William had a reason to leave. When he called his family earlier that day, his sister told him their mother was hospitalized. Worried, he wanted to go home right away. Chester wanted to negotiate, but Deacon stood up. “Dr. Barrett, if you can heal my father, then I can make sure you’re released today.” He promised William before he looked at Chester. “Mr. Lampoon, I know how precious the slots are, but please, help us out. The Caesars will do everything in our power to give you two more preferential slots next year.” Okay, he’s going to take all the responsibility and give me an extra slot. Delighted, Chester said, “Right away, sir!” Then he grinned at William. “Congratulations on your release, William. Come back and visit us often.” “As f*cking if,” William snapped. I’m never coming back to this sh*thole. He stood up and told Thaddeus to sit down, then he took out a set of golden needles for the acupuncture session. The technique was named Righteous Guardians. It was made for combating headaches caused by nerves in the head, and he was the only one in the world who knew of this technique. A moment later, Thaddeus’ head was filled with needles, and his headache was disappearing. After so long, he finally felt peace. Noticing his father’s look of comfort, Deacon apologized, “I apologize for my behavior, doctor. Not everyone has your level of skill.” “Don’t apologize. That was the correct approach. You have to be serious when it comes to treating a disease,” said William. He wrote a prescription and gave it to Deacon. “Make this every time your father has a headache, and make sure he takes it.” Deacon took the prescription. “How long will it take for him to recover fully, doctor?” “After this session? Three days if you take the medicine,” said William confidently. Delighted, Deacon said, “Did you hear that, Dad? You’re going to get better soon.” Thaddeus opened his eyes and smiled. “I feel refreshed and comfortable, doctor. I can see why they recommend you.” William ignored the flattering and placed both hands on Thaddeus’ back. He summoned his Qi to crush the blockades in Thaddeus’ meridians so he could heal faster. Half an hour later, William was sweating profusely, and the steam on the top of his head converged into a pillar about four inches tall. Everyone was shocked. One of the guards shivered, and with a trembling voice, he said, “C-Convergence of the Stars?”