Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 37

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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 37
‘Yoo Ho
I
remained sharp-minded even at the sight of blood. Surgery is grueling work even when one is fully alert, yet he assisted me competently for hours on end.’
Beyond that, whenever I needed something, he would craft it by the next day without fail—the more I thought about it, the stranger this man seemed.
Then I heard Yoo Ho calling for me.
I finished my cultivation and rose to my feet.
* * *
“Good. I’ve heard the account. I understand your mastery of the Five Elements Spiritual Cultivation has advanced?”
I expected Master to speak of Gungwi first, but as always, he inquired about my progress.
I answered him.
“Master, I am ashamed to report that I have reached the third stage of the Five Elements Spiritual Cultivation.”
“Excellent!”
Master’s eyes widened.
Soon, as if conscious of Gungwi’s presence, he cleared his throat and spoke thus.
“A most auspicious development, yet you must never fall into arrogance by trusting in your own talent. Ahem.”
‘Perhaps you could stop patting my head while you say such things, Master.’
One cannot hide the nature of an Eight Immortals prodigy through mere pretense.
Master dismissed Gungwi.
Gungwi bowed deeply to Master and departed. It seemed he had decided to formally join the Medical Guild.
‘Indeed, when a master who has reached the Transformation Realm comes offering his service, one should rush to accept.’
After Gungwi left, Master’s expression returned to his usual Eight Immortals demeanor.
It was a smile that warmed the heart merely to behold.
“My precious treasure.”
“Hehe!”
“Has anything been difficult?”
I explained to Master in detail all that had transpired.
Master listened without interrupting me once.
He occasionally uttered small exclamations of wonder, but when I reached the part about Gungwi’s enlightenment and his entry into the Profound Samadhi state, his eyes gleamed as he listened intently.
‘Yes. This is a tale that would stir the heart of any martial artist.’
After hearing everything, Master nodded. Yet his expression seemed tinged with sorrow rather than joy.
“Truly, you are my disciple. If the Sega clan had even one child like you, they would not have faced such calamity.”
Master said no more and released a quiet sigh.
“Hee, perhaps I am not entirely cursed by fate after all, to have met you even at this late hour.”
“Not at all, Master. I am the fortunate one to have met you.”
The first and second pillars of Baekrin Uijak, one of the three great Medical Guilds of the Martial Arts World, were gilding each other’s faces.
Master spoke.
“But now that I think of it… you left out the story about Yoo Ho.”
“Pardon?”
Master asked gently.
“I know Yoo Ho came to see you. What exactly did you two discuss?”
At that moment, I noticed something.
Yoo Ho’s hand, which had been following my Master’s teacup, hesitated ever so briefly.
* * *
Shortly after.
Yoo Ho and I stepped outside.
A satisfied smile played at my lips, while Yoo Ho’s expression had hardened into rigid composure.
The two men, bearing contrasting expressions, continued walking in silence.
I spoke.
“Why are you following me?”
“Surely you have something to say to me?”
“I don’t think so.”
I posed the question as if baiting him, then continued walking.
Eventually, I led him to the Dovecote where the carrier pigeons were kept.
Conveniently, not a single Medical Assistant was nearby—only birds pecking at grain would hear our words.
There, I came to a halt.
After expanding my perception to confirm we were alone, I changed my tone.
“This is tiresome. Just moments ago you spoke of killing me, and now you wish to exchange pleasantries?”
“Are you truly so desperate to die?”
In that instant, murderous intent radiated from Yoo Ho’s body.
Simultaneously, the carrier pigeons ceased their feeding and began fluttering their wings frantically.
The wild instinct of prey before a predator had seized them.
Only then did Yoo Ho realize he had walked into a trap.
“You deliberately lured me here.”
“I did no such thing. You chose to follow me.”
Naturally, pigeons are far more sensitive than humans.
The thicker the murderous intent, the more violent their reaction would become, and some would surely perish.
Every last one of these carrier pigeons was expensive.
If they died, an investigation would follow to determine the cause. And when it did, suspicion would inevitably fall upon you, standing in this very spot.
‘Did his mind work through all of that in such a short span?’
An unexpected stone had claimed the second seat of the Medical Guild.
Yet despite such circumstances, he earned no resentment from the Medical Assistants—instead gaining their affection, favor, and now even their respect.
There was something strange about it, too peculiar to dismiss as mere charm.
Yoo Ho withdrew his murderous intent.
I smiled wickedly.
“Now you finally seem willing to have a conversation.”
“Your insight is truly remarkable, young master.”
“How sarcastic of you.”
I crossed my arms and leaned my back against the wall. Yoo Ho spoke.
“You do not wear the mask before me that you showed your Master.”
“A member of the Wang clan receives meat befitting a member of the Wang clan, and a Wang family retainer receives meat befitting a Wang family retainer.”
It meant treating others according to how they treated you.
If you treated me like a dog, I would treat you like a dog in return.
I scratched my ear with my pinky finger.
Yoo Ho spoke.
“Why did you speak to the Master in such a manner?”
-Master, Chief Administrator Yoo Ho said he wants to learn medicine from me! He said he wants to perform better surgeries and save more patients!
Jegalling’s eyes widened at the young disciple’s words, which sparkled with enthusiasm.
is
He expressed great delight.
-Is that true! Yoo Ho! All this time I thought you disapproved of Jin Cheon-hee! I never knew you had such passion for medicine…!
In that moment, Yoo Ho thought to himself.
Wouldn’t it be better to confess the truth himself and have his head literally fly off by Jegalling’s hand?
Wouldn’t that be better than learning medicine from that bastard?
But because of Jin Cheon-hee’s next words, Yoo Ho became like a mute who had eaten honey.
-I told him we should work hard together to heal the Master’s body.
The expression Jegalling made at that moment was something Yoo Ho had never seen in his entire life. And it was an expression that Yoo Ho himself had never been able to elicit, no matter how hard he tried.
Jin Cheon-hee had drawn it out with just one sentence.
Yoo Ho spoke.
“Do you wish to die?”
“If you kill me, who will treat the Master?”
I alternated between formal speech, casual speech, and informal speech as I spoke.
A child who would die with just a flick of a finger.
To be threatened by such a child—Yoo Ho found it absurd and laughed.
Suddenly, he looked at the back of my hand.
He did not miss the subtle trembling.
This young man had not lost his fear.
Rather, he had properly assessed Yoo Ho’s capabilities.
Why would he advance despite trembling hands, despite his fear?
Yoo Ho spoke.
“So this wasn’t simply to mock me.”
Yoo Ho had suspected this was done to diminish his influence over the Medical Guild.
Such power struggles were always present wherever there was an organization.
But it seemed that wasn’t the case.
To act this way despite such fear—there must surely be another intention behind it.
Yoo Ho became curious about what that might be.
“That’s right.”
“What do you want?”
“Become a warrior in white. Chief Administrator Yoo Ho.”
I spoke with an expression like a pale, cute creature proposing a contract.
* * *
“A warrior in white?”
I steadied my voice.
“I need a nurse to assist me.”
A nurse.
One of the things that doesn’t exist in this world. Those who assist doctors are themselves doctors, after all.
To be precise, a doctor’s disciples serve as their assistants.
Essentially, junior doctors fulfill the role of nurses.
The Medical Guild is no different.
Doctors with less seniority worked as assistants to those with greater experience.
Of course, there were servants who assisted the doctors, but they merely performed menial tasks—fetching items the doctors needed or bringing hot water.
This was why I had conceived of the necessity for nurses.
I needed someone who could provide support so I could give my full effort to surgery.
This was essential for expanding medical personnel and for providing better care to patients.
Yet becoming a nurse, like becoming a doctor, was not something anyone could do.
First, there was physical stamina.
Nursing fundamentally demands considerable physical capability.
One must be in constant motion throughout the day, exerting strength continuously. The work is grueling, and shifts are long.
I had no confidence I could win even once in an arm-wrestling match against a veteran head nurse.
Considering the arm muscle mass developed from such demanding work, this was only natural.
Second was composure and clarity of mind.
The work was blue-collar, yet simultaneously white-collar.
Paperwork? Of course there was.
Beyond that, one had to continuously monitor patients’ conditions while working, and often quick reflexes and sound judgment were essential depending on circumstances.
That wasn’t all.
Assisting with various surgical procedures, patient care, wound dressing, pre- and post-operative patient management, specimen collection, supply management, and more….
Even hospital telephone consultations fell to the nurses.
Finally, there was knowledge. In other words, study.
‘This is such a fundamental matter it hardly needs saying.’
And so, in my view, nurses were not something soft like “angels in white.” They were “warriors in white.”
They were those on the very frontlines of battle against disease and suffering.
In the United States, roughly five patients are assigned per nurse, whereas in Korea, a single nurse must care for as few as ten or as many as forty to fifty patients depending on the hospital.
The conditions were far too harsh.
Contrary to public prejudice, nurses were as important as doctors and inseparable from treatment itself.
In the Gangho, the situation was even worse.
In this Gangho where surgery was called something else entirely and knowledge was scarce, how could I possibly find a nurse?
I pondered this.
‘What would be the workload of the Gangho’s only nurse?’
Right before my eyes was a perfect candidate for a nurse.
Having used him as an assistant, I found him capable, with quick thinking. It was convenient that I couldn’t tell whether his martial skill was from martial arts, demonic cultivation, or something else entirely. Moreover, he held the position of chief administrator and was already handling patient admissions and discharges along with various financial matters.
Moreover, it’s an ideal position for nurturing junior talent.
He appears to be in good physical condition as well.
When I mentioned this, Yoo Ho responded.
“I am your enemy, sir. Why would you deliberately keep an enemy at your side?”
At those words, I couldn’t help but laugh aloud.
Yoo Ho’s brow furrowed slightly.
“Do you find my words amusing?”
“No, it’s just that I’ve heard something similar before.”
-Why do you do this, Jin Cheon-hee? Is factional loyalty a joke to you? Do you think skill alone is enough?
My senior colleague ultimately couldn’t endure it and left the hospital. I survived within that environment.
The first piece of advice I heard back then was ‘learn golf in advance.’
I hated golf. I simply preferred reading martial arts novels. Instead, I lived like water.
Never offending anyone unnecessarily. Yet, if someone harbored ill will toward me but could be of use, I kept them close.

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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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