I am the Holy Poisoner, the Empress advised me to calm down

"It's at a resort in Hainan. The environment is great and suitable for academic exchange," the woman said. "All expenses will be covered by the organizer. You just need to bring your luggage."

Lin Fan considered it over and over again, and finally agreed. After all, the temptation of the Hua Tuo Sutra was too great. Even if it was a trap, he was not afraid of it with his strength.

"Okay, I'll participate."

"Great! I'll send you the details right away."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan felt something was amiss. However, the allure of the Hua Tuo Classic was too great for him to refuse.

Seeing his serious expression, Xiaoyu asked with concern, "Master, what's wrong?"

"Someone invited me to attend an academic conference, saying that there was a rare copy of the Hua Tuo Classic." Lin Fan said truthfully.

"The Hua Tuo Classic?" Xiaoyu's eyes lit up. "Hasn't that been lost for a long time?"

"Yeah, so I'm a little skeptical." Lin Fan shook his head, "But if it's true, I can't miss it."

"Master, could this be a trap?" Xiaoyu said worriedly.

"It's possible." Lin Fan nodded, "But wealth and honor come with risk, and this opportunity doesn't come once in a lifetime."

That evening, Lin Fan received detailed conference materials. The organizer was an organization called the "Huaxia Medical Research Foundation," and the meeting was held at the Coconut Breeze Island Resort in Hainan.

As Lin Fan looked at the information, he felt something was amiss. He had never heard of this foundation before, and the meeting seemed small, with only a few dozen people invited.

But the temptation of "Hua Tuo Jing" was too great, and Lin Fan finally decided to take a look.

Three days later, Lin Fan boarded a plane to Hainan, traveling with dozens of other Chinese medicine practitioners, most of whom were well-known doctors from various places.

In the waiting hall, Lin Fan met an acquaintance - Wang Mingde, an old Chinese medicine doctor in his fifties who was quite prestigious in the industry.

"Doctor Lin? I didn't expect you to be here too." Wang Mingde took the initiative to greet him. "I heard there's a rare copy of the Hua Tuo Classic this time, and I couldn't resist my curiosity."

"Teacher Wang, do you think this is reliable?" Lin Fan asked directly.

Wang Mingde shook his head. "To be honest, I find it strange too. The Hua Tuo Classic has been lost for so many years, how could it suddenly appear? But what if it's true?"

"Indeed." Lin Fan nodded. "It's better to believe it than not to believe it."

On the plane, Lin Fan observed the other doctors attending the conference. Most of them looked excited, clearly drawn to the Hua Tuo Classic. But a few also had doubts on their faces, clearly sensing, like him, that something was amiss.

After landing at Haikou Airport, a special car took everyone to Coconut Breeze Island, a private island about ten nautical miles from the coast. The environment is indeed beautiful, but it is also quite closed.

The receptionists at the resort were all young women who spoke gently and politely, but Lin Fan always felt that their smiles were a little stiff.

"Dear doctors, welcome to Coconut Breeze Island." A woman in a business suit stood in the lobby. "I'm the coordinator of this conference. You can call me Xiao Li. We'll be here for academic exchanges over the next few days."

"Xiao Li, when can we see the Hua Tuo Classic?" asked an impatient doctor.

Xiao Li smiled and said, "Everyone will be able to see him after the meeting officially starts. But before that, we have some other activities arranged."

Everyone was assigned to their respective rooms to rest. Lin Fan's room was on the third floor, and from the window he could see the azure ocean. However, he noticed that aside from the resort, there seemed to be no other buildings on the island, and he didn't see any other tourists.

At dinner time, all the doctors attending the conference gathered in the hall. Lin Fan roughly counted them and found there were about forty of them.

"Dear colleagues, welcome to Coconut Breeze Island." A middle-aged man stood up and spoke. "I am the chairman of the Huaxia Medical Research Foundation, my last name is Chen. I invited you all here mainly to conduct in-depth academic exchanges."

As Chairman Chen spoke, Lin Fan noticed that his Mandarin had a strange accent, very similar to that of Manager Tian who had come to the clinic that day.

"Chairman Chen, when can we see the Hua Tuo Classic?" Wang Mingde asked.

"No rush, no rush." ​​Chairman Chen smiled and waved his hand. "We will officially start the academic exchange tomorrow, and everyone will be able to see it then. Get a good rest tonight."

After dinner, Lin Fan took a tour of the island. He found that while it wasn't large, it was heavily guarded. There were security patrols along the beach, and the resort staff seemed professionally trained.

Even more strange was that he found several very weak patients in a remote corner, who were being helped to walk around. These people were pale and staggering, and were obviously seriously ill.

The next morning, the meeting officially began. Chairman Chen stood on the stage, with an antique wooden box beside him.

"Dear colleagues, this is the legendary only copy of the Hua Tuo Classic." Chairman Chen carefully opened the wooden box and took out a yellowed ancient book.

Everyone was immediately excited and wanted to come forward to watch, but Chairman Chen waved his hand to stop them.

"Everyone, please don't be impatient. This book is extremely valuable and cannot be touched casually," Chairman Chen said. "But I can open it and show it to everyone."

He carefully flipped open the book, and indeed, it contained some ancient medical information. However, Lin Fan's sharp eyes noticed that the information seemed to be pieced together, and many parts of the text lacked logic.

"Is this book true?" someone questioned.

"Of course it's real," Chairman Chen said confidently, "We spent a huge amount of money to buy it from an overseas collector."

"Then why don't you let us study it carefully?" Wang Mingde asked with a frown.

"Because this book is so precious, we're worried about damaging it," Chairman Chen explained. "However, if anyone can perform well in our tests, they'll have the opportunity to study it up close."

"What test?" everyone asked in unison.

Chairman Chen smiled mysteriously and said, "We have prepared some special cases and need everyone to diagnose and treat them. Whoever can cure the most patients will have the opportunity to study the Hua Tuo Classic."

Lin Fan's heart was filled with alarm. This was indeed a trap! They wanted to use the Hua Tuo Classic as bait to get these Chinese medicine practitioners to treat them. As for those patients, they were probably not from legitimate backgrounds.

"I don't think this is appropriate," Lin Fan said, standing up. "Academic exchanges should be equal, not competition-based."

Chairman Chen glanced at Lin Fan, a hint of displeasure flashing in his eyes. "Doctor Lin, what you said is wrong. Traditional Chinese Medicine is all about curing illnesses and saving lives. If you're not even willing to treat your patients, what kind of medical ethics are you talking about?"

"Of course we should cure diseases and save lives, but you obviously have ulterior motives in doing this." Lin Fan did not give in.

"Doctor Lin, you're overthinking it." Chairman Chen sneered, "This is a legitimate academic exchange activity."