Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 178

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

Chapter 178
“As long as the Dual Thought Technique remains the Dual Thought Technique and the Taeul Danseonggeom remains the Taeul Danseonggeom, it’s an unfixable problem. I can’t even make you understand it. The moment you see the wall, your qi and blood—or your spirit—will shatter.”
Myeong-gil Jingin spoke the text’s weaknesses to me without hesitation.
“Do you think the Taeul is gentle? That it will be as harmonious and comfortable as a parent’s embrace?”
“….”
“The Taeul is fierce and immense. It can only be called gentle when one becomes part of it through ignorance, or when one possesses the vessel to handle it.”
This was because he was an eccentric, and paradoxically, because he was strong enough to earn the title Gwon Je, and precisely because he was weary of it all.
“So the lost secret manual was actually being properly preserved. To become strength when the Mudang sect struggled. Yes… to protect the Mudang again at the right time… Myeong-deok knew this….”
The final piece fell into place.
When the Taeul Danseonggeom became ash leaving only traces, Jang Mun-in’s death by heart demon wasn’t only because the secret manual was the Taeul Danseonggeom, but also because this itself was the Mudang sect’s shame.
Yet it was also the heart of the previous generation, unable to abandon the Mudang in the end.
In that continuous flow of emotion, Myeong-gil Jingin shed tears like a child.
“Am I a fool?”
I shook my head.
“No, sir.”
“I don’t understand why good people leave in such haste. In the end, only useless ones like me remain, yet they don’t even know this and rush anyway. Hehehehe….”
The old man became a young man from his youth for a moment.
“How much longer do I have to live that I’m only now giving you the Taeul Danseonggeom? Myeong-deok, you fool.”
I simply remained there with him in silence.
Returning the Taeul Danseonggeom to the Mudang sect was the right choice.
‘Elder Myeong-deok. I’m sorry for trading on your name so much. But I’ve properly returned it to the Mudang sect.’
Even in this touching moment, my conscience pricked me slightly with regret.
‘Cheonwoo. Your older brother did his best!’
Though it was said to depend on aptitude, if Gwon Je of the Mudang sect had chosen Cheonwoo directly, it seemed possible.
‘With the Taeul Danseonggeom, becoming the sect’s supreme expert is totally doable. Your brother will carry you. Cheonwoo, let’s go!’
My sworn brother Cheonwoo had thus gained an unexpected opportunity.
* * *
Myeong-gil Jingin opened the Taeul Danseonggeom after emptying two bottles of grain liquor.
It was the time needed to organize his feelings toward the Mudang sect and toward those who had passed.
At last, he managed to open the Taeul Danseonggeom with difficulty.
“Huh… Hmm…!”
‘So if it’s Myeong-gil Jingin, understanding becomes possible.’
I could only memorize it; true understanding was impossible for me.
But Myeong-gil Jingin savored each character as if consuming them, understanding one by one.
Soon, a look of enlightenment appeared in his eyes.
“…I see. The Taeul is… ultimately the self. The ancient sage’s words that humans are microcosms means….”
Around Myeong-gil Jingin, who had reached this understanding, the energy began to surge.
Uuuuuung–
The yin and yang energies began to circulate, drawing the Taeul.
Just moments before, Myeong-gil Jingin had been drinking grain liquor and battling his afflictions. Yet upon reaching enlightenment, he transformed into boundless compassion.
Soon enough, even that was brief—the scattered waves of the Taeguk returned to his body.
“You’ve made modest progress. I’m grateful.”
As expected, there was no complete rebirth this time either.
Yet Myeong-gil Jingin’s eyes gleamed far more brightly and mysteriously than before.
“Does this mean you’ve entered the Hyeongyeong realm, then?”
Myeong-gil Jingin answered Jin Cheon-hee’s question.
“Hehehehe, not quite. I’m just half a step short. Once I cultivate this further, I’ll reach it eventually.”
‘Master said he was perilously close to the stage before Hyeongyeong, but looking at our realms, we’re on equal footing with Myeong-gil Jingin.’
Despite the age difference, Jegalling truly is a genius to have reached a similar level.
Though his severed meridians held him back all this time, now there’s truly nothing left to hide.
“And here you are thinking of another master while I’m still around?”
Smack!
How did he catch that?
Jin Cheon-hee clutched his forehead.
“That’s too much!”
“I see everything. This brat—even from this distance, your mind is only on your master. Filial piety taken too far becomes unfilial. You rascal.”
Myeong-gil Jingin clicked his tongue at Jin Cheon-hee and spoke thus.
“I shall transmit to you the Taeguk Wisdom Sword.”
“What? But I’m a lay disciple?”
Jin Cheon-hee asked with astonished eyes.
“You’ve already learned the Dual Thought Technique—why feign modesty? Moreover, you should learn the Taecheongsan Suryeok as well.”
“But I fear the other Mudang hermits won’t approve.”
“If the Way can be spoken, it is not the eternal Way. If that fellow feels jealousy toward you, he’s already strayed from the Way.”
“But hermits are still human—it can’t be helped.”
“Enough! How shameless do you think I am? You bring me the Dual Thought Technique and the Taeguk Wisdom Sword, and I’m supposed to teach you adequately and send you off? If I did that, I’d have no face to show Myeong-deok later.”
Later.
In those words, an inexpressible longing resonated.
What weight did the departed hold for him?
In Gangho, a master was like one’s own father, and a disciple like one’s own sibling.
That weight became longing, pressing down upon his heart.
“And surely you’ve already read through it all, given your nature. You’ve memorized the secret techniques?”
“I only intended to study the fundamental martial principles. I’m still learning the Taeul Danseonggeom.”
“That’s a divine technique in its own right, but compared to the true Taeguk Wisdom Sword, the difference is like that between a child and an adult. Then let’s do this—I won’t transmit the Taeguk Wisdom Sword itself, but I’ll explain its principles in detail. How does that sound?”
Jin Cheon-hee fell into thought.
It was a good offer. But would the Taeguk Wisdom Sword truly apply to the Taeul Danseonggeom?
The Dual Thought Technique and Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong had shown optimal results. Would this be the same?
His deliberation was brief.
“Then I humbly accept. In exchange, I won’t learn the Taecheongsan Suryeok. Learning that as well would be beyond my capacity.”
“A true prodigy indeed. Most would be desperate to learn even one more thing. Very well, let’s do that.”
“And in place of not learning the Taecheongsan Suryeok, I have one more request.”
“What is it?”
I hesitated for a moment before finally speaking what I truly wanted to say.
“…Please look after Cheonwoo.”
“You certainly do cherish your younger brother.”
“He’s been through so much. I just hope only good things come his way from now on.”
“It seems he could spend his entire life repaying his filial duty to you and it still wouldn’t be enough. No, judging by his nature… even if you told him to stop, he’d cling to you and insist on it.”
At those words, I burst into laughter.
“Filial duty requires proper growth first. And besides, what kind of filial duty is there between sworn brothers? It’s simply affection. Just affection.”
“I’ll tell him everything that happened today. Remember that. My word, you’re giving up Taecheongsan Suryeok and asking me to look after your brother.”
“Thank you.”
“There’s no need to thank me. I was planning to do it anyway. Everything of this Mudang Gwon Je will be passed down entirely to that boy.”
I nodded in acknowledgment.
That was enough. No matter what storms swept through Gangho, Cheonwoo would survive.
That was the greatest gift I wanted to give him.
* * *
A month had passed.
Through discussions with Myeong-gil Jingin and his group, I made considerable progress.
I hadn’t reached the realm of Hwagyeong, but I was able to refine all my martial techniques comprehensively and harmonize them together.
In particular, my advancement in the Dual Thought Technique was remarkable, and now I had become quite skilled at handling two types of energy.
Beyond that, I eventually learned the Taeul Danseonggeom, and I could finally understand why it was counted among the Five Great Divine Techniques.
‘They’d say it’s not just one of five, but absolute. The greatest under heaven.’
In any case, all divine techniques believe without doubt that their own technique is the greatest under heaven.
However, it was true that the Taeul Danseonggeom was particularly special among them.
Especially when combined with the Dual Thought Technique, it displayed its true power, and I could see that the essence of the Taeul Danseonggeom lay in ultimate defense.
With the Yihua Jiemufa’s technique of using softness to overcome hardness—deflecting all attacks—I could even draw the Taeul and redirect all force away.
And when one obtained the secret principles of this sword technique, something terrifying occurred.
Only now, after reading the secret manual of the Taeul Danseonggeom and training alongside Myeong-gil Jingin, did a phenomenon appear that he demonstrated—space itself seemed to warp.
‘How exactly does the principle… how does it work?’
I wasn’t a physics major, so there was no way I could interpret this phenomenon.
No, before that, in a world where people could run on water and split rocks, learning physics wouldn’t seem to help explain this either.
“Space can actually bend…?”
“When the subtlety of yin and yang touches the Way, it’s possible to bend it through Taecheongsan Suryeok. You should try unfolding it with the Taeul Danseonggeom.”
“If that’s possible, you’d be the greatest under heaven.”
“Hehehehe, how reckless. But you’re right. Even I find it difficult to fully unfold this. Now I understand why it was lost. Cheonwoo, do you perhaps understand why?”
At those words, Cheonwoo brushed the sweat from his body and stood up.
Over the past month, Cheonwoo had achieved great progress equal to or exceeding what I had accomplished.
Perceiving and sensing energy was Cheonwoo’s specialty.
For such a Cheonwoo to receive direct instruction in the Taeul from Mudang Gwon Je was truly an opportunity that could be called once in a lifetime.
Cheonwoo answered quietly and steadily in a low voice.
“Would it be acceptable to answer based on intuition alone, Master?”
“Yes.”
“From what I can see, the Taegeuk Hyegeom appears to be an arrangement designed for martial artists who have reached the realm of Hyeongyeong.”
“Hmm. Continue.”
“When space became distorted, I could sense the flow of qi. Both the inner strength one possesses and the principles needed to control that inner strength—if either one is lacking, one cannot control yin and yang, and will be unable to bear the Taegeuk.”
Myeong-gil Jingin continued, seemingly satisfied with Cheonwoo’s explanation.
“My master once told me that to transcend the realm of Hwagyeong and reach Hyeongyeong, one must attain Shimmujeolgi.”
“Shimmujeolgi?”
“Keke. Originally, inner strength cultivation works through breathing to accumulate qi, and through the eight extraordinary meridians, qi moves within the body and manifests its power. Is there anyone in Gangho who doesn’t know this?”
“I understand it’s the foundation of all martial arts.”
“Yes. But upon reaching Hyeongyeong, one enters the realm of Shimjeukssal—the state where one can kill with intent alone. Gangho martial artists call this Shimgeom, the Heart Sword.”
It’s a realm that any martial artist in Gangho has imagined at least once.
“However, that is something naturally attained upon reaching Hyeongyeong. Beyond that exists a realm where one controls and uses true qi with the mind itself. That is Shimmu. This is what Shimmujeolgi means.”
I asked.
“In other words, Shimmujeolgi is the evolved and advanced technique of Shimgeom.”
“Correct. This Taegeuk Hyegeom is a martial art unfolded based on Shimmu. That’s why it distorts space.”
“Ohhh….”
As expected, a modern person cannot comprehend this.
It’s already strange enough that one can kill with the power of the mind alone, but the principle of creating absolute techniques based on the Heart Sword seemed distant and incomprehensible.
‘So that’s why I couldn’t understand it even after memorizing it.’
I do have a rough understanding of what Shimmujeolgi is.
The reason is simple. It appeared in a novel.
Later, Yeo Ha-ryun perfects the Cheonma Divine Art and becomes able to use Shimmujeolgi through it.
But even in the novel, only Yeo Ha-ryun, the Final Boss he defeats, and the Three Elites—called the strongest among Gangho’s ten greatest masters—could use Shimmu.
In fact, during Yeo Ha-ryun’s era, one of the Three Elites either ascended to immortality or died of natural causes and is no longer in this world, while the other two are murdered by the hidden forces.
Thus, only Yeo Ha-ryun and the Final Boss remain as absolute beings wielding Shimmujeolgi, destined to clash.
To think I would learn and witness fragments of such Shimmujeolgi here!
‘Kya… I’m getting intoxicated by martial arts fantasy.’

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