Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 173

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

Chapter 173
I settled calmly before Jang Mun-in and the elders.
‘One would expect to feel nervous in the presence of such towering figures of the orthodox sects….’
Yet despite the oppressive atmosphere that would have weakened the knees of any late-stage martial artist, I spoke my piece with composure.
“Before I explain the circumstances of this incident, I need to verify certain geographical details of the region. Is there an elder here who has conducted a direct survey of the area? Ah, I see there is one.”
But something felt odd.
Rather than explaining a tale of the martial world’s hidden history, it resembled a presentation validating and proving the hypothesis of an academic thesis.
‘Strange. The explanation is easy to understand, yet somehow it’s making me drowsy….’
Jang Mun-in found this peculiar young man’s peculiar method of explanation even stranger.
An uncanny sense of pressure emanated from the youth.
It was the kind of pressure that made one feel compelled to take notes on his every word.
“So to summarize, you discovered it while searching for the elixir.”
“Yes. Please refer to the Jin Cheon-hee movement map 3-1 that I provided earlier.”
Rustle—
The sound of paper turning echoed.
There lay a map of my movements drawn by Yoo Ho.
Before coming here, I had possessed considerable time. And I had not squandered it.
At that moment, I had thought to myself.
‘Right. The remains of the deceased… and with the Dual Thought Technique involved, a blood feud could easily erupt. To prevent this, not a single doubt can remain.’
Fundamentally, people of the Gangho draw their blades before they speak.
Before swords were unsheathed over the remains and lives were lost, I would resolve this through dialogue and communication.
Thus was born the pamphlet—a lengthy report combining my woodblock printing with Yoo Ho’s illustrations.
Indeed.
I, Professor Jin, had done my utmost.
And that ‘utmost’ was precisely… an unprecedented spectacle in the Gangho.
Jeong Gwang clenched his teeth.
‘I’ve heard the Jegallga has many eccentrics, but not to this extent…!’
Unfamiliar with presentations, Jeong Gwang found it difficult to locate flaws in my explanation.
Moreover, I would occasionally cry out, “Any questions up to this point?” and then, three seconds later, “Don’t be shy… well then, I’ll assume you’ve all understood and proceed to the next section,” flowing through everything as naturally as water.
At last, I reached the part where I discovered the remains and acquired the Dual Thought Technique.
“The deceased’s body was properly cremated using the Jegallga’s Five Elements Formation. The relevant testament is in reference material 5-1. Please open it.”
Crackle—
Something… felt wrong.
Jeong Gwang realized this was not sound judgment, and that something was proceeding in a strange manner.
In the pamphlet I had distributed, the full text and summary of the testament left by the late Elder Myeongdeok were written.
First. Cremate the body and deliver the remains to the Wudang Sect
Second. Transfer rights to remaining belongings to the discoverer
Third. The Dual Thought Technique may be learned, but must be returned to Wudang
‘Insane, insane… what is this….’
Indeed, was a three-line summary of the deceased’s testament even a testament at all.
But suddenly, the Elder sitting beside him began to shed tears.
“Myeongdeok… Elder Myeongdeok… How much you must have longed to return….”
“Sob… Master… I truly missed you.”
“Myeongdeok… You foolish thing….”
As I comforted the Elders who embraced the portrait while weeping, I offered them a moment of silence—roughly seven minutes—to pray for the deceased’s eternal rest.
I spoke.
“I am deeply honored to have conveyed the deceased’s final wishes to our sect in this manner.”
Even Jang Mun-in’s eyes glistened with moisture.
“No. I never expected Seo Baek-ryong to have prepared so much for our sect.”
“Not at all. This merely reflects the deceased’s legacy. Given the sensitivity of the matter—one that could easily spark conflict—I did my utmost. I am grateful for the opportunity you provided me to explain this.”
“Seo Baek-ryong….”
Jeong Gwang’s brow twitched. This could not continue.
If things concluded so smoothly, swept up in the atmosphere Seo Baek-ryong had created, there would be no second chance.
“Wait!”
At Jeong Gwang’s cry, everyone’s eyes snapped open.
I too seemed startled, my eyes widening slightly before my expression settled into composure.
The look of a teacher.
“If you have questions, please speak.”
“So you’ve ultimately mastered the Dual Thought Technique.”
Since I was already caught by Myeong-gil Jingin, there was no need to hide it. I answered.
“That is correct.”
At those words, another Elder influenced by the sect’s professor spoke.
“Yet the deceased’s final wishes did permit it….”
“…That is merely Elder Myeongdeok’s personal wish! It is not the Jang Mun-in’s authorization, is it not? Is there truly no problem with an outsider mastering our sect’s secret techniques?”
Jeong Gwang gathered his facial muscles and his voice trembled slightly.
His expression was that of an Elder genuinely concerned for the sect’s future. Jeong Gwang’s political maneuvering was no trivial matter.
The other Elders’ hearts grew heavy at Jeong Gwang’s expression.
“I am deeply troubled. What if our sect’s secret techniques spread to the Jegallga? Of course, I know Seo Baek-ryong is not a bad person. But one cannot predict the future. Is this truly acceptable? I ask—is it truly acceptable?”
“….”
A throat clearing sounded.
I rolled my eyes slightly and grasped Jeong Gwang’s intention. It was not a difficult matter to discern.
‘Hmm. That Elder is trying to provoke me. And he likely wants to do so in the martial way.’
This too was something I had anticipated. I had prepared Plan B accordingly.
Just as I was about to step forward, Jang Mun-in opened his mouth.
“So what do you propose? To cripple his dantian? Against the Patriarch of Baekrin Uigak?”
Jeong Gwang was the most shocked at those words.
He never expected Jang Mun-in, who had always supported him, to openly counter him like this. Jeong Gwang spoke.
“Our sect has long placed itself under Hwaju Uiseon rather than Baekrin Uigak. This means we owe a debt to Hwaju Uiseon.”
I immediately grasped the intent behind his words.
‘He means if necessary, he would consider that option as well.’
It was aggressive, certainly. But I knew it wasn’t sincere.
He’d brought up this matter deliberately to intimidate me.
‘For an ordinary late-stage master, this would be a terrifying situation.’
And not just any sect—the Wudang School.
If someone suggested sealing one’s dantian at a conference like this, any late-stage master worth their salt would lose control of their bladder.
But I wore the skin of a youth while my soul remained ancient.
‘You know how to threaten people, Elder.’
Still, I didn’t step forward deliberately.
It was a matter to decide after seeing how Jang Mun-in would handle it.
“Do the other elders think the same? That since we’ve placed some of our people under Hwaju Uiseon’s care, we can afford to make enemies of Baekrin Uigak? That we should simply watch as our sect’s honor is tarnished?”
“Ahem.”
“….”
The other sect leaders clamped their mouths shut, their eyes darting between Jeong Gwang and Jang Mun-in.
‘The Wudang School of today is truly rotten.’
At that sight, Jang Mun-in let out a hollow laugh.
“Heh, how has our sect come to this….”
“….”
Then a withered, wrinkled hand blocked my path.
“Tsk tsk, foolish lot.”
Without a sound, Myeong-gil Jingin was seated there.
“Master!”
“Yes. You foolish boy.”
At Myeong-gil’s words, Jang Mun-in felt slightly wronged.
‘You dump all the work on me and now you act noble?’
Though he looked at him with such eyes, Myeong-gil wasn’t swayed in the slightest.
“What? I was testing whether you could handle it well. Did you think I left because I was bothered?”
He’d definitely left because he was bothered.
Every elder, sect leader, and even I—an outsider—was certain of it.
“It’s nothing complicated. I’ll simply take him as my disciple. Since he’s the Patriarch of the Medical Hall, I’ll accept him as a lay disciple.”
‘What?!’
It was madness. The elders’ eyes widened as they began murmuring in unison.
I spoke quickly as well.
“That’s not quite appropriate.”
“Co-transmission by two masters isn’t without precedent. It happened five times in Wudang’s history, didn’t it?”
“…It was four times, Master.”
“Yes. Four times is plenty! If Baek Rin says anything, tell him to come find me. That young brat owes me a debt from long ago, so he won’t dare object.”
“You’re saying Master is the one who owes a debt?”
At my words, Myeong-gil Jingin spoke.
“Hmm, didn’t Baek Rin tell you? I was the one who saved his life when he was young. And when he demanded blood compensation from the Changryong School to repay the Jegallga’s enmity, I was the one who pressured the Martial Alliance to approve it.”
‘So something like that had happened.’
Jegalling rarely spoke of his past.
He would simply say it was something that had passed, and leave it at that.
I myself stopped asking further questions.
I believed there must be good reason for Jegalling’s silence on the matter.
Besides, I had no desire to pry into things he clearly wished to keep hidden.
“Then… I understand, Master.”
Jang Mun-in bowed deeply.
As Jang Mun-in bowed, all the elders followed suit, paying their respects to Myeong-gil Jingin.
He was not merely a master, but a successor of the lineage.
The one who inherited the fist of Wudang.
Confucian principles, legitimacy, and power.
With these three united, no one dared to object.
“….”
Only one.
Jeong Gwang-man alone glared at me with barely concealed anger in his eyes.
Seeing this, Myeong-gil Jingin sighed and spoke.
“How can you call yourself a Daoist with that attitude?”
“I…”
“Enough! I’ve told you repeatedly—the only reason I tolerate you is because of Myeongsin. In any case, since he is now a joint successor of Wudang, treat him with proper respect.”
With that, he rushed out again.
“….”
Jang Mun-in exhaled heavily.
Since the master had decided, the cleanup fell once more to Jang Mun-in.
‘Why does heaven make me Jang Mun-in and subject me to this suffering? Someone like me, unfit for the role…’
For a moment, he resented heaven, resented his master, and resented himself.
Yet resentment changed nothing.
“First, you remain a lay disciple. But as the sole successor of Wudang’s lineage, I grant you the Taeching Divine Elixir.”
Everyone gasped at the mention of the Taeching Divine Elixir.
‘The Taeching Divine Elixir!’
I too stared at Jang Mun-in with wide eyes.
The Taeching Divine Elixir was Wudang’s supreme healing elixir,
one of the seven greatest elixirs of Gangho, equal to Shaolin Temple’s Grand Restoration Elixir.
It is one of the seven great elixirs of the martial world, like Rimsa’s Great Restoration Pill.
‘…This is incredibly powerful…?’
The seven greatest elixirs of Gangho are as follows:
Wudang – Taeching Divine Elixir
Shaolin Temple – Grand Restoration Elixir
Hwaju Medical Hall – Hwaju Divine Elixir
Heukjeon Medical Hall – Blood Shadow Divine Elixir
Demonic Sect – Broad Darkness Divine Demon Elixir
Moshan Sect – Yingxin Guidan
Baekrin Uigak – Baekrin Divine Elixir
Shaolin
Temple’s Great Returning Elixir is renowned for being difficult to obtain.
The Baekrin Divine Elixir, though expensive, requires nothing beyond money unlike other spirit elixirs, nor does it prioritize internal cultivation advancement. Yet it is the only internal injury treatment medicine in all of Gangho and a miraculous cure even for incurable diseases.
It does not depend on constitution and has virtually no side effects, making it more than worthy of claiming one of the seven positions.
“Does anyone have objections?”
None of the elders dared to speak.

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