Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 107
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 107
After finishing our meal, the two of us headed to Jegalling’s Office for tea.
We sat across from each other at the desk, leaving aside the mountain of documents and letters piled high.
Yoo Ho brought the tea.
It was jujube tea.
It carried the fragrance of autumn, now long past.
“What did you want to discuss? You didn’t mention it at the Communal Dining Hall, so it must be something important.”
At those words, I nodded.
“I intend to venture into the Gangho.”
My Master’s expression froze for a moment before softening into a gentle smile.
“I see. The Gangho—for your achievements, it’s rather overdue. This time, you’re not going to search for Mannyeonhwari again, are you…”
Jegalling’s eyes narrowed slightly. He had reached his conclusion.
“Is it because of the five spiritual creatures and seven spiritual medicines you mentioned before?”
I was slightly taken aback at those words.
In the past, when I had spoken of how I knew the location of Mannyeonhwari, I had added this as well.
-How did you know it was there?
-In truth, I know the locations where at least five spiritual creatures dwell, and I know the sources of seven spiritual medicines.
Jegalling naturally had not forgotten what I said then.
And once again, he caught me off guard by asking first.
I nodded readily.
“I will bring them back before anyone else discovers them.”
“It seems there is more to this than that.”
“….”
In truth, there was another reason.
The protagonist of the Supreme Cheonma was Yeo Ha-ryun.
Though he suffered from the karma of the Heavenly Killing Star, he did not take the initiative to commit evil acts.
Moreover, once he ascended to the position of Cheonma, he would naturally reform the Demon Sect in his own way.
In the Demon Sect of the strong, the Cheonma was law itself.
When Yeo Ha-ryun became Cheonma, the system of the Demon Sect would undergo transformation once more.
On the other hand, the true enemy in the Supreme Cheonma novel was the Blood Immortal Sect.
The Blood Immortal Sect.
The absolute evil of the Supreme Cheonma. The Demon Sect’s true name was the Ilwol Singyeo—a religious organization that revered the sun and moon.
Just as the Mudang Sect and Huashan Sect revere the Primordial Celestial Worthy within Taoism.
The Blood Immortal Sect was somewhat different.
A branch of Taoism, but they revered the Heavenly Lord of the Primordial Beginning as their god instead of the Primordial Celestial Worthy.
They were essentially a religion that followed Geumodo, the gathering place of legendary immortals. And they were one of the primary enemies of the Supreme Cheonma.
Above all, precisely because they revered immortals, their favorite food was the problem.
They offered living humans as sacrifices.
‘In truth, there are many other enemies besides the Blood Immortal Sect.’
But thinking of the future, it was right to interfere with the Blood Immortal Sect’s activities at this stage.
However, if I told Jegalling about this, I would genuinely face confinement.
It wasn’t merely a matter of stepping into Gangho—it meant fighting against a faction even more dangerous than the Demon Sect.
‘Cheon-hee, even if your legs break, it’s fine. In two months they’ll mend, so shall we ask this Master again then? It won’t hinder your work as a doctor,’ he might say kindly while snapping my legs once more with his fiery energy carefully applied.
He would ensure the regenerative power of the Five Elements Divine Skill wouldn’t work properly by infusing it with his flames.
‘Even if my lips tear, I can’t speak of it. Heh.’
I rolled my eyes.
“That is all, Master.”
First and foremost, I must speak only truth to Jegalling.
Even if I don’t reveal every detail, I must never lie.
If caught, the aftermath would be devastating.
“Is that your primary objective?”
“Yes.”
It wasn’t a false statement.
Two of the five spiritual beasts would be claimed by the Blood Immortal Sect first.
Furthermore, four of the seven spiritual medicines would be taken by those unrelated to the Blood Immortal Sect.
They were also enemies of Yeo Ha-ryun.
‘Ha-ryun, your brother is suffering like this. Just wait a bit longer. I’ll clear the path for you at full speed!’
Since I saved Master’s life, now it was my turn to clear the thorny path that lay ahead of Yeo Ha-ryun!
If I consumed the two spiritual beasts and four spiritual medicines first?
Naturally, their forces would diminish as well.
‘While I’m at it, I’ll strengthen my brother’s body too.’
After all, if I consumed what the enemies would eat, wouldn’t that be beneficial for everyone?
Beyond that, there were many other matters to handle.
True to their nature as the epitome of evil, the Blood Immortal Sect was committing atrocities even at this very moment.
It was impossible to stop everything.
But I could certainly scatter thorns along their path.
If I dealt with those matters beforehand, the future would be brighter.
“….”
Master fell into thought.
I swallowed hard. Soon, Master opened his lips.
“However, there is a condition. Learn one more martial art before you go. If you master it within the allotted time, I will permit your venture into Gangho. If you fail, remain silent and wait in the Medical Hall until the Yongbong Assembly ends. Yoo Ho! That thing!”
At those words, Yoo Ho brought something with an expression as if he’d bitten into excrement.
It was shackles.
“Special-made shackles forged from Mannyeonhan Steel. Cheon-hee, since you’re hiding things from your Master, I too shall be strict. Are you prepared?”
Yoo Ho had spoken like this in the past.
-Hehehehe, I was already searching for Mannyeonhan Steel anyway. From the way you measured the young master’s ankle circumference by eye, it should be completed soon.
‘Damn it! I thought that was a joke back then? Was it real?’
What even was Mannyeonhan Steel?
It was the iron used to forge the greatest blade under heaven—a supreme treasure that never deteriorates no matter what is done to it.
It was iron that couldn’t be obtained even if one threw fortunes at it.
What madman would obtain Mannyeonhwari and forge it into shackles?
I realized the truth—that madman was my Master.
And I was another madman, fleeing from my Master to fight the Ilwol Singyeo.
My Master spoke gently.
“There’s no need to fear, Cheon-hee. If you win our wager, this will never come to pass.”
“What martial art must I learn?”
“Poison Art.”
“The deadline is…?”
My Master’s eyes curved softly.
“One week. If you refuse, we can forget about the Gangho appearance entirely. You can simply travel with this Master after the Yongbong Assembly concludes.”
That wouldn’t do.
If I traveled with him, my plan to secretly sabotage the Ilwol Singyeo would crumble to nothing.
My most crucial objective would slip away.
My lips pressed into a thin line.
‘Learn Poison Art in one week. Normally, it’s impossible.’
Even for me, I knew this was madness.
Yet a strange confidence rose from deep within me.
It was the solid self-assurance born from countless trials of hardship.
“I’ll attempt it.”
‘If all else fails, what’s a pair of shackles?’
At my expression, my Master laughed coldly.
“So my disciple is determined to do what he cannot tell me about. Very well. Let us make a wager.”
* * *
The next day.
The Training Room.
The Five Elements Divine Skill inherently possessed high resistance to poison.
The essence of the Five Elements burned, neutralized, repelled, and absorbed poison.
Yet even that had limits against the Da Family’s orthodox Poison Art.
I would not have realized this without the previous sparring match.
To truly counter poison of the Da Family’s caliber, I needed to master Poison Art myself.
Poison Art itself contained a paradox—one’s own poison must be neutralized by oneself.
Just as serpents do not perish from their own venom, nor does the Da Family succumb to poison.
Those who mastered Poison Art naturally grew resistant to others’ toxins.
It was an intriguing principle.
Among the various Poison Arts, I chose only one.
The Five Elements Poison Art.
It could only be learned by those who had mastered the Five Elements Divine Skill.
It infused the essence of poison into the Five Elements qi—originally created by the Wudok School in Yunnan through their research of the Five Elements Divine Skill.
However, to master the Five Elements Poison Art, one’s achievement in the Five Elements Divine Skill had to reach a certain level, and learning the Five Elements Divine Skill itself demanded extreme discipline.
Naturally, few from the Wudok School had ever mastered the Five Elements Poison Art.
And so, as time passed, the Five Elements Poison Art eventually flowed into the Jegal Family.
The main family modified it to defend against assassination attempts using poison.
From the Jegal Family’s perspective, they had no desire to actively train in poison arts, which wasn’t even their specialty.
Given that they were already being scrutinized for their intellect, using poison arts would only invite unwanted attention from the Gangho community.
Thus, the Five Elements Poison Art retained some utility as a poison technique, but its primary focus was on building resistance against such poisons.
I spent a day memorizing the incantations related to the Five Elements Poison Art that my Master had taught me.
The next day, I began my training by ingesting the Five Elements Mutual Restraint Poison.
I received the Five Elements Mutual Restraint Poison from Yoo Ho.
“It doesn’t have any scent at all?”
“Even if it’s a training poison, it’s still poison, so naturally it wouldn’t, would it, Young Master?”
“If I take this wrong, will I die?”
“You won’t die. But I’ve heard you’ll suffer quite considerably.”
“Suffer?”
“There is an antidote, but the side effect is that you’ll be passing bloody stools for an entire month, or so I’ve heard.”
Truly, this era’s approach to educational welfare was remarkable.
Which meant it didn’t exist at all.
“….”
Failing during poison art training meant ending up in the Medical Hall because of your intestines.
‘This is quite the profitable venture for my Master, isn’t it?’
Just thinking about what would happen if I lost the bet made me shudder.
‘Cheon-hee. Don’t be scared. You can win this. A week is enough time to create heaven and earth. You can do anything.’
I encouraged myself and swallowed the Five Elements Mutual Restraint Poison.
“This tastes quite sweet?”
“It’s a poison suitable for mixing into refreshments. Since it seeps directly into your inner energy, it will have effects similar to yet opposite of spiritual elixirs.”
As expected.
I felt it dissolving rapidly before I could fully swallow it.
At the same time, breathing became increasingly difficult.
‘This is definitely poison. Damn it.’
My body alternated between burning heat and freezing cold.
My lungs hardened like stone.
‘Bloody stools aren’t even the problem. This is….’
I sat in lotus position and recited the incantations my Master had taught me.
Yoo Ho spoke.
“Recognizing the poison is stage one, and containing it is stage two. Most people suffer at stage two, or so I’ve heard.”
There were five stages in total.
I began to identify the Five Elements Poison that had entered my body.
‘I have a long way to go before containment.’
Whether I expelled it outside my body or merged it with myself, I had to gather it all in one place.
I didn’t respond to Yoo Ho’s words.
Not out of disrespect, but simply because I had no capacity to answer.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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