: You only feel the pain when the knife falls on your own skin.

Chapter 6: You only feel the pain when the knife falls on your own skin.

The light from the shadowless lamp was more dazzling than ever before.

The cold light fell, and Ji Xiang's eyes stung.

Lying on the operating table felt terrible. Ji Xiang shifted slightly. The operating table beneath him was hard as a rock, and the blue sheet rubbed against his skin, sending a cold, painful sensation through him.

When "himself" and the system NPC went to collect the items, Ji Xiang propped himself up with his arms, unable to suppress the fear in his heart and wanting to escape.

"Ding-dong~"

The system notification sounded, and Ji Xiang frowned slightly, his gaze falling on the upper right corner of his field of vision.

[Temporary Compensation Task: You only feel the pain when the knife falls on your own body.]

Task content: To experience circumcision and the postoperative experience from the patient's perspective.

Quest Rewards: Comprehension +1, Experience +300.

Ji Xiang remained silent.

Is the system playing tricks on itself?

No, Ji Xiang didn't think so.

Especially the system NPC, whose figure was as old and frail as you, but when performing surgery, he looked just like a world-class expert. At least the aura of the professor from Peking Union Medical College Hospital that Ji Xiang saw was many times weaker than that of the system NPC.

Moreover, when he taught me surgery, he exuded a sense of warmth and intimacy.

Ji Xiang knew that the system NPC was genuinely and wholeheartedly teaching him surgical skills, without holding anything back.

Moreover, although the mission is a bit absurd, the rewards are generous, including experience points in addition to comprehension.

Ji Xiang thought about it for a while, and finally lay down again.

The wages of avarice is death.

Ji Xiang scoffed to himself. In truth, even when it came to escaping, Ji Xiang didn't know where to escape to. Moreover, deep down, Ji Xiang vaguely "guessed" that this was the high difficulty he had just requested.

Come on, it's within the system anyway, there shouldn't be any risk.

After much deliberation, Ji Xiang finally focused his attention on the temporary compensation task in the upper right corner of his field of vision.

His emotions were complex.

The light from the shadowless lamp was cold and profound.

Gradually, Ji Xiang entered a strange state.

He vaguely understood that he was experiencing a revolutionary event!

Doctor and patient, roles reversed!

I can feel the details of myself cutting myself!

The extent to which this will improve technological levels is self-evident.

No wonder Ji Xiang accepted the system's arrangements without hesitation when he was asked to sign the agreement.

He was no longer afraid or terrified, but filled with anticipation.

Soon, "oneself" and the system NPC bot returned.

Wearing sterile gowns and gloves, I disinfected the surgical area myself.

Ji Xiang felt a chill in the surgical area. Although he tried his best to calm himself down, he was still startled when the iodine was applied to the area.

My senses seemed to be distorted beyond recognition, and the feeling of cold turned into pain, as if a scalpel without anesthesia was being used to cut my skin.

Ji Xiang recalled the young patient that Colonel Wang had brought him to surgery earlier that day; at the time, he had thought the patient was being pretentious…

But when you're lying on the operating table, the feeling is exactly the same, and you might even feel more overwhelmed by fear than the patient.

Next... is anesthesia.

Ji Xiang opened his eyes slightly, observing "his" movements from a limited angle.

What was originally a skillful move seemed utterly despicable to Ji Xiang himself!

Suddenly, a detail popped into Ji Xiang's mind—when Colonel Wang administered anesthesia to the patient, he used a 10ml syringe but changed the needle to a 5ml syringe.

This is a detail that Ji Xiang remembered at the time simply because of his talent, without thinking about it carefully.

Now that it was his turn to lie on the operating table, Ji Xiang saw "himself" receiving diluted anesthetic drugs. His mind cleared, and he instantly understood what Colonel Wang meant.

The choice of syringe needle may seem like a small detail, but it has a profound impact on the patient.

I didn't change the needle during the surgery, which was a minor mistake.

But even the most insignificant mistake is still a mistake.

Before the surgery even began, Ji Xiang was already immersed in the experience, finding his mistakes and trying to remember them so he would never repeat them.

The system NPC gave his performance a meager 60 points, which was a very lenient score, Ji Xiang thought to himself.

He watched with tears in his eyes as the needle of the 10ml syringe fell, clenching his teeth tightly.

The first injection was given at the root, a location already etched in Ji Xiang's mind.

But the feeling of giving someone an injection is different from the feeling of receiving an injection yourself.

The system task's name—"You only feel the pain when the knife falls on yourself"—flickered faintly, seemingly mocking Ji Xiang as a coward.

It feels so different.

It's really, really different!!

When anesthetizing the mannequin, Ji Xiang injects a small amount of diluted anesthetic, less than 1 ml, into each skin wheal. He doesn't think it causes any harm to the mannequin or the patient.

But when it was my turn, even though it was less than 1ml of liquid, I felt like I had pushed in a whole 10ml tube of anesthetic!

Although it wasn't very painful, it was extremely uncomfortable, with localized soreness, numbness, swelling, and pain—a feeling that's hard to describe.

This was only anesthesia; Ji Xiang was on the verge of tears.

No wonder the system compensated me; this feeling is truly unpleasant.

Intermittent anesthesia was applied to the root area. After waiting for a while, "I" touched myself and asked, "Does it hurt?"

"..."

Suddenly, a rather unpleasant feeling enveloped me, as if night had fallen.

I just gave myself a shot in the head!

Could it be...?

Ji Xiang's body was out of control, and he said in a hoarse voice, "I can feel it."

He tried to express his feelings, but no sound came out.

The system uses digital markers to simulate human pain and the degree of anesthesia.

Damn it!

Ji Xiang was on the verge of collapse.

Sure enough, "he" picked up the syringe and drew another vial of anesthetic.

Looking at his own indifferent expression, if he could move, Ji Xiang would love to raise his hand and slap him, even if it was his own face.

However, Ji Xiang can only feel it now.

Is this what it means to be at the mercy of others, like fish on a chopping board?

Ji Xiang was still young and had never been beaten down by society before; this was the first time he had ever felt so desperate.

A sharp pain shot through his head, and Ji Xiang, who always prided himself on his unwavering resolve, let out a scream in his heart.

This thing hurts terribly, it really hurts, it's not just an exaggeration.

In an instant, Ji Xiang saw stars, sweat beaded on his forehead, and his heart raced.

If he could make a sound, Ji Xiang was certain that his screams were several degrees louder and more pitiful than those of the patient who had watched Colonel Wang perform surgery.

But this is only the beginning; the main point is yet to come.

As the anesthetic was injected, Ji Xiang was in excruciating pain, his legs trembling uncontrollably.

He cursed the system NPC in his heart, thinking that he should increase the difficulty and not just perform boring circumcision surgeries. Who the hell wants to feel the patient's pain?

Even though Ji Xiang knew the significance of what he was doing at that moment, he was still cursing in his heart.

That fucking hurts!!

The anesthetic took effect shortly afterward.

But the so-called "not long time" is from the doctor's perspective, and from "one's own" perspective.

At this moment, Ji Xiang lay on the operating table, every second filled with excruciating pain that made it hard to breathe.

It's not just a description; when Ji Xiang was given acupuncture to numb his head, he didn't even catch his breath, his whole being fighting against the intense pain.

Even though the pain was excruciating, Ji Xiang remained stubborn and maintained his dignity, stubbornly refusing to let the system NPC stop the surgery.

But it really hurts.

After anesthesia was completed, the surgery began.

The local infiltration anesthesia took effect, and there was no pain, but Ji Xiang could feel something touching him.

For a moment, Ji Xiang even suspected that "he" was performing surgery with adzes, chisels, axes, and saws, and that he would definitely be crippled after the surgery.

The fear of being abandoned overwhelmed Ji Xiang like a tidal wave, so much so that the tasks on the system panel were no longer as flashing and tempting as before.

But Ji Xiang didn't move. He lay limp on the operating table, as if his bones had been removed, completely at their mercy.

His mind was blank; he had no reflections or extraneous thoughts.

Ji Xiang just felt it was very noisy and time was passing too slowly; even describing it as "each day feeling like a year" was a little less accurate.

Today, I entered the system's operating room for surgical training. With the guidance of the system's NPC, I successfully mastered the circumcision surgery, which can be completed in ten or twenty minutes. This is something that Ji Xiang can be proud of.

But now he feels that his own surgery is still too slow, as slow as a tortoise crawling.

Let's finish this quickly. If it weren't for his pride, Ji Xiang would have wanted to beg the system NPC for mercy.

Can't hold on? No, I have to hold on.

What was a bizarre and inexplicable experience eventually turned into a battle between Ji Xiang and the system NPCs, and between Ji Xiang and himself.

He gritted his teeth, and the grinding sound between them traveled through his bones to his eardrums, clearly audible.

"Teacher, I'm done."

After an unknown amount of time, Ji Xiang heard "himself" speaking and suddenly felt a jolt of energy.

We finally made it through!

finally!!

"It's alright, I'd give it a barely passing 60 points."

60 point?

They can't even score 6 points!

Ji Xiang had completely changed, silently cursing his own arrogance back then.

"Let's end this," Ji Xiang thought.

However, the ending that Ji Xiang had envisioned did not occur.

A stretcher was brought in, and Ji Xiang was lifted onto it and taken out of the operating room.

Several classmates outside started teasing him, and one particularly despicable friend even pretended to play a prank.

Ji Xiang was dumbfounded. Was the simulation not over yet?

The knife was already on his body, he felt the pain, and he had a clear understanding of his own surgery. How come the simulation wasn't over yet!

After resting in the observation room for two hours, Ji Xiang, supported by his classmates, returned to his dormitory with strange gait.

At this point, Ji Xiang could no longer feel the pain. He felt that his surgery had been done well, otherwise he wouldn't have recovered so quickly.

Ji Xiang walked back and forth in the dormitory in an awkward posture several times. His movements were not restricted, and he did not experience severe postoperative pain in the surgical area, only a slight discomfort.

It was just uncomfortable, but all of it was within tolerable limits.

Although he was moving normally, Ji Xiang knew that frequent friction would definitely affect the surgical incision, so he obediently lay down on the bed, picked up his phone, and started playing games to distract himself.

Time flew by as the entire army launched attack after attack.

Eating, sleeping, and playing games were just as comfortable as if he hadn't had surgery at all, and Ji Xiang felt that his surgery had gone quite well.

But he didn't know how long he had slept when a sharp pain, as if it were a physical force, swept through his body. In that instant, Ji Xiang felt as if he had been cut in two by a cleaver, and he was in excruciating pain.

He was jolted awake from his sleep, feeling a surge of pain in the surgical area.

MD!

During sleep, the corpora cavernosa became engorged with blood... Ji Xiang was speechless.

He had heard these things from his teacher in class, but they became so clear when they applied to him, completely different from when he was listening to the teacher's lecture.

Sure enough, you don't feel the pain unless the knife is on you.

Why does it hurt so much? Ji Xiang's first thought was that the knots he had intermittently stitched might have broken.

Although he didn't have anything handy, Ji Xiang still opened the gauze, applied pressure, and personally checked the wound.

It can't break.

Upon seeing the incision, Ji Xiang breathed a sigh of relief. It was nothing serious; he had simply been too cautious.

Without sterile iodine solution, Ji Xiang could only make do with the bandage for now and wait until dawn to go to the hospital for a proper dressing change.

It was still dark, and his roommates were sleeping soundly, so Ji Xiang dared not sleep any longer.

He was afraid of another episode of congestion.

Even the knots that were tied with just the right tightness became loose.

If it happened again... such a thought popped into Ji Xiang's mind.

But he didn't know what to do next.

For a novice like Ji Xiang, the line between success and failure is so thin is too fantastical.

Let alone Ji Xiang, even an old professor like Colonel Wang could only vaguely sense that level. He might reach it one day when his level exploded, but even Colonel Wang couldn't maintain it stably.

Ji Xiang picked up his phone and, as usual, started searching online.

After watching for only a few minutes, Ji Xiang was shocked by his own subconscious actions—going online to see a doctor?! Is this something a medical student should do?!

It turns out that everyone is the same at this point. Ji Xiang sighed deeply in his heart.

But he didn't close the page; instead, he continued reading.

But there was too little nutritious information, so Jixiang reluctantly closed the page.

During the long night, afraid to sleep, Ji Xiang could only put on his headphones and start scrolling through short videos and mid-length videos on Bilibili.

The young man's body is so good! I'm just watching him repair the donkey's hoof!

Ji Xiang knew this was a rare good time in his life, but it also caused great confusion for him regarding the surgery.

Early in the morning, Ji Xiang went to the hospital to change his dressing, sporting dark circles under his eyes.

"Wasn't it supposed to be a five-day dressing change?"

Ji Xiang felt quite helpless upon hearing "himself's" impatient words.

It's an extremely strange feeling, a kind of impatience with oneself, something that's probably not even commonly depicted in science fiction.

"The gauze fell off," Ji Xiang said frankly.

As a medical student, Ji Xiang was exceptionally intelligent and quick to understand, so he naturally knew what doctors feared most.

The pressure bandage falling off is what surgeons fear most.

Sure enough, Ji Xiang saw that "himself" looked rather unwell, with tension and anxiety evident in his expression, clearly indicating that he was a young and inexperienced doctor.

When Ji Xiang arrived at the dressing room and saw the bruises and swollen circumference after the pressure bandage was removed, his heart skipped a beat.

During his university internship, Ji Xiang worked in the urology department, where he was responsible for changing dressings for patients.

To be honest, the bruising and swelling I'm seeing aren't serious.

But when it came to his own body, Ji Xiang felt like something was about to break!

My body started releasing adrenaline like crazy, and I broke out in a cold sweat on my back.

"The incision is alright, don't worry."

"Myself" comforted himself as Ji Xiang watched with a mournful face as "myself" changed his dressing.

When the gauze was completely removed, and "I" stared at the surgical area while holding it with my hand, the feeling... it wasn't just wonderful, it was quite wonderful.

Seeing the swelling and cyanosis, Ji Xiang's heart rate began to rise under the influence of various hormones. His heart was pounding wildly, each beat hitting his throat, as if it was about to jump out of his chest at any moment.

But before Ji Xiang could develop any further emotions, the scene flashed.

"Your vital signs have changed. That's enough about empathy. Get up."

The system NPC's voice came through, and Ji Xiang's vision blurred as the scene changed, suddenly returning him to the system's operating room.

(End of this chapter)