Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 1009

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 1009
055. Please Keep Refrigerated
Jin Cheon-hee rode Hwang-gu back toward home.
He continued galloping along the banks of the Yangtze River.
Using the Wonhyang Plate, he began cutting a straight path toward Baekrin Uiseon.
Pabababak!
Hwang-gu’s lightness technique had grown even more refined, allowing him to now gallop across the treetops.
“Truly, this is the Gangho realm. The law of conservation of mass? Might as well feed it to the dogs.”
Ever since I discovered that using a thousand-pound weight while falling made me descend faster, I’ve understood the principle.
Before the supreme martial arts of Gangho, such peculiar Western learning crumbles to dust.
‘Hah! Speak of Lavoisier before a thousand-pound weight? The ancient sages who achieved half-immortality have already severed Newton’s neck with their void-treading steps and hung his head upon the city walls!’
In this Central Plains where the laws of physics lay forgotten, what concern was it if a beast the size of a house carried a person and used a coffin-bearing technique?
Even a single blade of grass that brushed past contained martial essence, crushing the very concept of mass beneath it.
Thus, riding Hwang-gu at tremendous speed, I broke through three cities in an instant.
Without stopping at a single inn along the way, I slept under the stars and continued onward.
And so I finally arrived in Gangso Province!
“Phew. At last, Gangso Province!”
I cheered with all my might, then caught the stench of sweat wafting from my clothes.
‘Ah, I really do need to rest for a day.’
I had raced to meet Namgung Un, patched up the tattered Namgung Un after our meeting, cleaned up the corpses around us, then raced onward through sleepless nights—and now I looked like a common beggar.
“I should rest at an inn for a day. I need to wash my clothes too.”
And there was another reason I had come to Nanjing.
Following the Yangtze River from Anhui Province, Nanjing was the first major city one encountered.
This was because it sat at the mouth of the Yangtze!
“Hail! We greet Magistrate Jin Cheon-hee!”
Whether Podoo, Patrol Sergeants, or Guards—they all recognized me.
Gangso Province was Baekrin Uiseon’s domain.
Moreover, all the constables of Gangso Province had now passed through Yeonmu City.
Some had seen my face directly, while others had seen my portrait.
Still, that said…
‘This is rather embarrassing, the way the constables are acting.’
It felt like some sort of grand political tour.
“Magistrate Jin Cheon-hee! Shall we guide you to the Ju Wang residence?!”
“Ah, no. I only stopped by to sleep tonight. That’s fine.”
“Yes, understood!”
With that, Podoo, the Patrol Sergeants, and the Guards saluted and moved on.
I was about to head to the Baekrin Inn’s Nanjing branch when I suddenly stopped and reconsidered.
‘Ah, if I go there and word spreads that Soggakju has arrived, what then?’
Already, looking like this beggar, I was concerned about bringing shame to my Master’s name.
‘And this strange smell…’
I could tolerate carrying Guan Yunchang’s head above my own, but I absolutely could not bear being called filthy—that was Jin Cheon-hee’s limit.
“…Let’s just find a different inn.”
With that, I shrunk both Hwang-gu and Noeji down to miniature size and tucked them into my robes, then altered my own appearance as well.
My clothes were already in tatters—I looked nothing like someone from Baekrin Uiseon or even a martial artist of the Gangho.
I found a suitable inn and stepped inside.
A modest establishment in Nanjing—neither particularly large nor small.
A few martial artists were present, but none of them paid me any attention.
Complete indifference.
‘Mm, perfect.’
This was exactly the level of anonymity I wanted.
As I was about to secure a room and head upstairs, my stomach growled loudly.
‘I should eat before washing up.’
With that thought, I descended back downstairs and claimed a table in the corner.
“Server, one bowl of thin noodles. And what meat dishes do you have?”
“Ah, our establishment’s five-spice braised pork is exceptional!”
“Then bring me one order of that as well.”
“And alcohol…?”
“That won’t be necessary.”
After saying so, I settled in to wait. Before long, the server returned with the dishes.
“Enjoy your meal!”
Clang!
The moment the bowl was set down, Hwang-gu let out a low growl.
He typically reacted this way when presented with food that was inedible.
‘Hmm… Could it be poisoned…? Would someone in Nanjing really attempt to poison me?’
I hadn’t expected anyone to be that bold.
Yet something felt off.
I dipped the tip of my chopstick into the dish and tasted it cautiously.
Fortunately, there was no poison. However…
‘Wait, this meat is slightly spoiled?!’
The strong spices had masked it, but the meat was subtly off.
‘Unbelievable… Nanjing is the second most prosperous city in the empire, and they’re serving spoiled food? No, wait… it’s not severely spoiled, just… the flavor is slightly compromised…? This is rather…’
Someone with a weak stomach would certainly have gotten ill.
I ate only the noodles, which were fine, and left the five-spice braised pork untouched.
Instead, I retrieved some dried meat and gave it to Hwang-gu and Noeji.
Though these two spiritual creatures could consume even poison pills without falling ill, I felt uncomfortable feeding them spoiled food.
Surprisingly, the two of them didn’t even touch the five-spice pork either.
‘Ah, I’ve made their palates far too discerning.’
Having a master chef renowned throughout the realm as their owner meant they now refused to even glance at spoiled food.
In a way, that was fortunate.
‘Though it does mean raising them will become more troublesome.’
To satisfy this palate, I’ll need to continue feeding him only delicious food.
I chewed on the thin noodles with complicated feelings and pondered.
‘This… I should look into it.’
Sanitation.
Public hygiene in particular was crucial.
* * *
This was a tavern officially operated by the Hao-mun in Nanjing.
Of course, even if it was official, only martial artists or those in the know were aware of it.
Since they also had to do business with ordinary commoners, openly advertising it as a ‘Martial Sect Tavern!’ would drive away customers.
And in the back of that tavern, a disciple of the Hao-mun was blinking his eyes.
“Uh… so, I just need to deliver this to Baekrin Uiseon?”
A Hao-mun disciple dressed as a server. His martial skill was around second-rate.
Jeon Sam, a Hao-mun disciple belonging to the Nanjing branch, wore an expression asking why he was being asked to do such a thing.
“Yes. Please send it quickly.”
Because.
I was holding out a letter in front of him.
“If it’s a request from the Pale-Eyed Deity… of course we’ll do it, but… is there a particular reason you’re using us…?”
This Gangso Province is your territory anyway.
So why are you using us?
That meaning seeped into his words.
“This way is faster than Pyo Guk. I’d appreciate it.”
That was true.
“Yes. Don’t worry.”
Jeon Sam said so and accepted the letter.
He had no way of knowing that this letter contained my message to my Master.
I left the Hao-mun tavern and began walking.
And I muttered to myself.
“The Hao-mun tavern passes inspection.”
Sanitation investigation, begin!
* * *
I conducted various investigations over three days.
First, I went to inns and ate the food directly, evaluating sanitation along with taste.
My refined palate, perfected through the Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong, could easily distinguish spoiled food.
Moreover, when I let Hwang-gu and Noeji just sniff something once, the two of them caught it remarkably well, so there was no room for error.
Especially Hwang-gu—being no mere dog—noticed before I even set the bowl down.
That wasn’t all.
At night, I transformed into a middle-aged thief and secretly infiltrated the kitchens of various restaurants and inns.
After directly inspecting the condition of the dishes and ingredients that way.
I could reach a conclusion.
Sanitation.
Most people don’t follow them at all!
Though I had issued proclamations regarding food hygiene laws, I was already well aware that the sanitary standards of this era differed vastly from those of Earth.
Just look at Cheol-san from the Geum Feng Blood Beauty incident.
People thought nothing strange of him cooking while scratching his backside.
Moreover, there’s a somewhat widespread mentality of “as long as eating it doesn’t cause stomach troubles, it should be fine.”
And there’s another primary reason.
‘There are no refrigeration facilities.’
Without refrigeration, ingredients spoil easily, and selling these borderline-rotten goods is considered perfectly normal—that’s why such things happen!
‘In the end, to say “these uncivilized ancients, living so unsanitary!” would only invite the response “Oh my, hero, if you’re capable of saying such things, then you must be able to invent a refrigerator, yes?”‘
Ultimately, modern humanity maintains food hygiene only because it’s possible to do so.
A world where agriculture and transportation haven’t been industrialized.
In a world without refrigerated distribution technology, food hygiene simply wasn’t a priority.
Especially when people starved to death during droughts and floods.
‘Even slightly spoiled food is better than starving.’
Many people think this way.
Moreover, since the Hwa Continent itself is abundant in spices, it’s easy to mask flavors with them, making such practices even more common.
“Sigh… so this is what they mean by darkness beneath the lamp.”
I thought I’d been sincere about public health and sanitation, yet I overlooked something like this!
‘Tsk, as the weather grows warmer, meat spoils even more easily.’
But I can’t force every restaurant to install a Sobing Jeong.
The cost is genuinely expensive.
‘This is a matter of technology.’
While I’ve developed Baekrin Province considerably, it’s still insufficient.
This isn’t a situation that will simply disappear through enforcement alone.
‘Then…’
My thoughts grew deeper.
* * *
Arrival at Baekrin Medical Guild.
Though I’d already washed at the inn, hearing that Master was occupied with other matters, I quickly washed once more during that interval and even changed into fresh clothes.
The shabby beggar appearance from moments before had vanished, leaving only the pristine visage of a refined nobleman.
Upon hearing that Master had returned to his study, I hurried there at once.
In the study were Master and Yoo Ho pouring tea beside him.
At this familiar scene, my heart swelled without my realizing it.
“Master, this disciple has returned safely!”
“Mm, yes. Did you enjoy yourself? At Hwain…”
“Cough.”
Just as my legs were about to give way, Master immediately continued.
“…I heard you had a pleasant time with Hyeolpyeon-wang.”
“…”
A master at teasing his disciples, indeed.
I let out a sigh and recounted the events of recent times in broad strokes.
I had already sent letters, but there were things that couldn’t be conveyed through written word alone.
“So, what about that bird called Chimjo?”
“It was terrifying. Not quite on the level of Eungryong, but it was definitely a being beyond human. I wondered if it might be something like Hyeolseon… but…”
However, it didn’t feel particularly sinister.
Though it carried poison, it didn’t seem to enjoy devouring humans.
It was simply a bird that purely enjoyed hunting poisonous creatures.
Because of this, Chimjo emanated an immense pressure and a pure aura of poison, though not a sinister one.
When my disciple explained this, my Master spoke.
“Such creatures are beginning to appear now… We’ll need to be careful going forward. But why did you take so long in Nanjing?”
“That’s actually something I wanted to tell you about, Master.”
“What is it?”
I opened my eyes wide.
My blue eyes shone like stars.
“It seems the time has come to implement an alternative for the world’s sanitation.”
“Sanitation?”
Where on earth did this disciple pick up something like this?
Jegalling wanted to laugh but held it back.
Unaware of this, I continued speaking.
“Yes. Sanitation. Public health and hygiene for humanity. It’s absolutely necessary for the wellbeing and health of people!”
“Sigh… So what kind of insane thing are you planning to do now?”
I suddenly raised my left arm.
“With this. I’ll create a refrigerant!”
It contained both Hyeongyeong poison and Chimjo’s poison.
“You’re going to make a refrigerant with that?”
Jegalling tilted his head in confusion.
He already knew what a refrigerant was. After all, there was that time I had mentioned wanting to make a refrigerator.
But then.
“You’re making it from what?”
I spoke.
“From Hyeongyeong poison.”
In that moment, from my fingertips came a crackling sound.
Crystalline poison made of ice materialized. It wasn’t comparable to minor ice crystals, but it was definitely emanating cold.
It was only natural.
Because it was truly a Han Bing poison.
“Is a refrigerant possible with that?”
“Yes. I experimented with Chimjo’s poison on the way here, and it seems feasible.”
Oh, truly a treasure of the martial world!
“Hope, usually when someone says they possess a poison of martial world treasure grade, it means there’s no one in the world they can’t kill. At best, it means they have medicine that can save people. That’s how it’s used.”
“But it’s also possible to use it as a refrigerant coolant, Master. I experimented with the durability of this Han Bing poison the entire way here. If done properly…”
“…You’re using the precious Chimjo poison for that?”
“The duration itself operates on a different level. There’s a reason it’s listed in the Martial Arts Encyclopedia, after all.”
Han Bing poison with extended duration.
‘A poison meant only for the enemies who killed one’s parents.’
Ordinarily, it strips away the target’s body heat until death, and even after the victim perishes, the poison remains, preventing the corpse from decomposing—a vicious toxin indeed.
Combined with Hyeongyeong poison and Chimjo poison together, the duration would be even more relentless.
‘And he intends to use that to create refrigeration coolant.’
My disciple, but is he insane?

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————