Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 132
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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 132
The day after sending all the letters.
I finally borrowed the Training Ground behind the Medical Hall and could observe the flow of my inner energy.
To properly control the Five Elements True Qi after breaking through a full cycle, I needed this time to refine my inner self.
I spread my fingers.
From each of my five fingers, the Five Elements Qi—water, metal, earth, fire, and wood—extended outward.
The Five Elements Qi that flowed from my fingertips rotated through mutual generation and mutual restraint.
A miniature universe created from the Five Elements.
‘They said controlling inner energy becomes difficult when it becomes excessive, but this is easier than I expected.’
It’s similar to how large trucks and small cars navigate curves differently.
The greater the mass, the harder it is to change direction, and naturally, fine control diminishes.
Yet I discovered that the Five Elements continued their mutual generation and restraint, moving according to my will just as before.
‘Interesting. This is different from what I learned.’
Among the Five Elements, metal was somewhat lacking. But it wasn’t at a level I couldn’t control, and as I accumulated more energy, harmony would be restored naturally.
Soon, I divided the Five Elements and wrapped them directly around my hands.
‘Last time fighting the Black Lightning Blood Demon, I channeled earth element qi into my fists.’
I used it because I needed an insulator. But simply wrapping qi like this enhances the impact.
With a sword, it becomes sword energy; with hands, it becomes palm energy or hand energy.
Then I recalled the mysteries of drawing objects from thin air.
As my hair lifted slightly into the air, the earth element qi gathered in my palm rose like a sphere.
‘The Black Lightning Blood Demon used palm strikes like this.’
I fired it toward a wooden dummy in the distance.
Boom—crash!
With a thunderous sound, the wooden dummy shattered into pieces.
Now that I’d surpassed a full cycle, I could finally use palm strikes.
In modern terms, a ‘ranged attack technique.’
The power was considerable—enough to kill an ordinary person without them taking a single step.
“So this is the pinnacle realm. Wow… I’ve only been learning martial arts for a few years, and already I’ve reached the pinnacle….”
Even with the help of spirit medicines, it’s impossible without enlightenment.
‘I’m still the same person I always was.’
My enlightenment would be different from that of martial artists.
But as the saying goes, all rivers flow to the sea. Ultimately, within the great trunk of martial arts, I was steadily advancing toward my own truth.
I continued to repeatedly examine and contemplate my power.
‘First, I need to obtain the Dual Thought Technique as quickly as possible.’
The Heavenly Earth Stone Fungus that Cheonryeong gave me was far more helpful than his inner elixir.
Thanks to it, I reached a full cycle faster than originally planned.
‘And I need to catch that spirit centipede too.’
The centipede was not a furry friend.
Unless it had fluffy fur like a dog or cat and cried innocently with ‘kyuu~’, I wouldn’t feel much compassion.
From my perspective, I felt no such mercy toward it.
‘No… a centipede with fur? That’s not much better either.’
The more I imagined it, the more it looked like something from a gore film.
As someone with a hair bias, I decided to simply catch the centipede and consume its essence or absorb it.
‘Is the centipede closer? Or is the Dual Thought Technique closer…?’
After calculating, the Dual Thought Technique was closer.
‘Obtain the Dual Thought Technique, then immediately go catch the centipede. Good. Decision made!’
With that decided, I completed my cultivation.
Just then, a Medical Assistant tried to speak to me but stumbled.
‘Oh no, the medicine will spill everywhere.’
I immediately used Wind Cloud Qi to steady both the medicine and the Medical Assistant.
The Medical Assistant’s eyes widened.
“You’ve achieved a breakthrough.”
I smiled faintly.
The wall of the first heavenly cycle.
Countless martial artists had been frustrated here.
Having crossed that wall, I felt a deep sense of ease.
* * *
I met Sama-hye right away.
Sama-hye’s body had recovered enough that she could walk on her own now.
“Benefactor!”
The moment Sama-hye recognized me, she tried to rush over.
I quickly caught Sama-hye.
“Are you well?”
“Hehe! Yes! Oh, I received the letter you sent. I’m really working hard!”
Sama-hye chattered away as if I might disappear at any moment.
Despite the great sorrow she must feel from her brother Sama Hyeon’s disappearance, her expression was remarkably bright.
“Benefactor, I missed you so much.”
I smiled gently.
‘A child can become this bright simply from recovering and having better circumstances.’
Though her family wasn’t by her side, she seemed to have received word that they were doing well at the trading company.
Regular meals and a body that no longer ached.
A clean environment had restored Sama-hye’s nature to its original brightness.
The child who had murmured about wanting to die without pain was no longer here.
“Benefactor! Hehe! Oh, I have a question.”
“Hmm?”
What Sama-hye pulled from her bedside was surprisingly the Ten Medicinal Herbs Compendium.
It was a book about ten common medicinal herbs found in our surroundings.
Though it was a basic text typically used as an introduction for aspiring doctors, it contained difficult terminology that made it challenging for children to understand.
“Can you understand this?”
At my words, Sama-hye shook her head.
“There’s so much I don’t know, so I wanted to ask you about it.”
I was actually surprised by her words.
‘You need to know something to even ask questions… but she can do that?’
I recalled my first days entering medical school. A place where people considered themselves intellectually gifted gathered together. Yet none of us could fully grasp the professors’ lectures.
The professors told us to ask questions, but no one dared to do so back then.
Part of it was due to Korean culture’s reluctance toward questioning, but much of it was simply not knowing enough to ask.
So I returned to my dormitory and reviewed what I had studied.
I’d heard that wealthy families sometimes hired tutors for medical school subjects, but that was a luxury I couldn’t afford.
The ability to ask meaningful questions only came after knowledge and time had accumulated.
“You’ve studied very diligently.”
“No, it’s just… there are so many illustrations. I like them.”
I answered Sama-hye’s question and tested her with a few additional inquiries. She had memorized and understood a considerable amount of material.
“Do you like this book, Sama-hye?”
“Yes! Master! I want to see more!”
I gently patted Sama-hye’s head.
* * *
‘Could Sama-hye be a genius?’
My shoulders lifted with pride.
I’d lived my entire life unmarried and never had children, but I imagined this must be what it felt like.
‘Among my classmates, there wasn’t a single parent who didn’t brag about their kids.’
Perhaps I was being foolish.
I rubbed my chin.
‘No, no—right now she’s just interested, and later there will be many more interesting things to do. Why would she specifically want to learn medicine?’
I tried not to get too excited.
Whenever I saw my patients living their lives without hesitation, I felt an indescribable emotion as a surgeon.
Especially when I watched young children grow well and pursue their dreams, fighting against the world, I felt a sense of fulfillment all day long.
It was an emotion difficult to express with just the word “reward.”
‘Grow well.’
Baekrin Uigak would protect Sama-hye as both a patient and a disciple.
I taught Sama-hye several external cultivation techniques and medical texts.
Once preparations were complete, I set out on the road.
* * *
Ten days later, I arrived at the Valley of No Return without incident.
Bulgwi—No Return.
It meant a valley from which one could never return.
The paths here were as narrow and treacherous as if an axe blade had been twisted into countless curves.
Especially because the rocks were slippery and sharp, travelers fell frequently.
Even when families sought to retrieve the bodies, most bounty hunters shook their heads.
-Once you fall into the Valley of No Return, you can’t even find the body. The valley is so cruel that even family members who go searching end up dying there.
I remembered this line from the original work. It was that kind of place.
And somewhere in this Valley of No Return, in a place where few mortals could ever reach, there existed a copy of the Dual Thought Technique left behind by an Elder of the Mudang Sect from generations past.
“Sigh, why must secret techniques always be hidden in such difficult places? What do you two think?”
Squeak squeak!
Yowl yowl!
I didn’t bother using a dharma tool to understand the conversation between my two spirit beasts.
I could sense what they meant without them saying it.
Before my eyes stretched a magnificent, winding valley with sheer cliffs towering majestically.
To leap down to the exact cave I sought would truly require nothing but luck.
Even in the novel, the exact location of the corpse on this cliff face was never clearly specified.
‘Why didn’t the Heavenly Demon’s Supremacy come with illustrations? How wonderful it would have been if they’d included a map as a visual guide.’
However, I knew roughly which area it was, and that alone gave me a considerable advantage over others.
This was because after the Mudang Sect discovered that their Elder from generations past had died here, they made tireless efforts to retrieve the body.
They searched for nearly ten years. Yet they never found it.
Other martial artists, hoping fortune might favor them, had even risked their lives descending on a single rope.
But they never found it either.
Truly a cursed terrain.
I withdrew some jerky with a melancholic expression.
“Alright then, you two. You already understand what you need to do, right? Hwang-gu will use his sense of smell to find the old corpse. And Cheonryeong—my thunder spirit—will fly there and verify whether it’s truly the Elder of the Mudang Sect.”
I framed the situation this way.
“Hah, can I really get away with this so easily? I feel ashamed before the martial artists who lost their lives here and the members of the Mudang Sect.”
Knowing roughly the location from the novel, plus having two spirit beasts at my disposal.
Yet sadness lingered in my eyes even as a smile played at my lips.
Who would have thought I’d manage this so effortlessly?
Yowl, smack smack—this jerky is delicious! Eating jerky! So delicious! Loyalty loyalty!
Squeak squeak!—This time it’s premium lamb jerky?
“Alright, you two. I’ll give you more of this when you find it.”
Yelp yelp!—Mom, fighting spirit!
I gave one piece each to the young ones, Cheonjin and Nanman.
Since Cheonryeong only needed one form, the pups would rest in my medicine box.
“Alright then, I’ll cheer you on!”
Yowl…?—Lots of strange smells. Going!
Hwang-gu dashed off first.
Cheonryeong flew after him.
Having gotten my way so easily using my two spirit beasts, I gazed up at the sky.
‘When I eventually meet the Sect Master of the Mudang Sect through Cheonwoo, I’ll have to lie and say I obtained this through tremendous hardship.’
If they learned I’d gotten it so easily using spirit beasts, they’d surely feel a bitter ache.
“Well then, shall I prepare some food for the children?”
I built a campfire and retrieved my cooking utensils.
“Come to think of it, they already love jerky, so if I roast it using the Fire-Generating Technique from the Five Elements True Qi, would they go even more wild for it?”
I muttered this to myself quite naturally.
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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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