Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 64

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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 64
“….”
I did not answer.
I simply picked up the fallen lotus root slice and silently placed it in my mouth.
The lotus root crunched between my molars, releasing the soy sauce marinade.
The sweet, salty, crisp texture was delicious.
After a moment of contemplation, I asked this question.
“If I go there, can I become the greatest doctor under heaven and heal my Master?”
It was a question similar to the one I had posed to Ju Wang.
At those words, Hyeolsaeng Nogoe’s brow furrowed.
“Later, Baek Rin permitted me to take his pulse even if I could not treat him. After taking his pulse, I concluded that even I could not cure him. That he has survived this long is remarkable.”
I nodded. Hyeolsaeng Nogoe marveled.
“Even when offered all the darkness in the world, you seek your Master first… I envy you, Baek Rin.”
Jegalling gazed at me with a pleased expression.
“He is my disciple, the entirety of what I possess. I am simply grateful, endlessly grateful.”
I reflected.
‘This much aligns with the plan, but….’
Martial artists in the Gangho, the stronger they are, the more they favor those whom money and power cannot sway.
As with Ju Wang’s invitation, if one readily accepts what is offered, they nod outwardly yet harbor secret disappointment within.
‘So you too have come, coveting this lord’s martial prowess, authority, and wealth. Hmph, such is the world.’
This sentiment resembles that of the wealthy magnates from 1990s dramas.
The crucial point is not to yield.
Whether a mother-in-law throws money at your face or a tycoon scatters bills asking what your price is! Absolutely! One must never yield!
Of course, this spirit gradually changed as time moved into the 2000s, but that was how it was then.
Hyeolsaeng Nogoe grew increasingly fond of me, her attachment deepening.
“You need not be my disciple. Then, how about another arrangement?”
“Another arrangement, you say…?”
Hyeolsaeng Nogoe became quite urgent.
As a master of the Banro Hwandong technique, she had lived more lives than ordinary martial artists.
In the Gangho, the title ‘Nogoe’ was not bestowed upon just anyone.
Those who survive every scheme from both orthodox and heterodox factions, remaining consistently strong and strange.
When humans abandoned the attempt to comprehend such beings through reason, the epithet Nogoe was affixed to them, laden with fear, revulsion, and awe.
Fifty years had passed since her epithet changed from Hyeolsaeng Goe to Hyeolsaeng Nogoe. And through the Banro Hwandong, she continued to live.
In all that time, she had met but a single talent.
Moreover, the only being who could understand that obsession to heal, even if it meant opening a person’s body.
“Listen well, young one. I have believed and held that among all medical arts, surgery is supreme. If the body suffers from physical ailment, should one not naturally open the body and cure the disease?”
The patient’s consent was absent from this philosophy.
Those marked by her had to undergo treatment.
She was one whose priorities were jumbled and inverted.
Good and evil were likewise muddled as in a muddy swamp.
That is precisely why she is extraordinary.
“….”
I swallowed the bamboo leaf tea instead of answering.
Hyeolsaeng Nogoe continued speaking.
“You are the child who will prove it. In this Gangho where even the successors of Hua Tuo have abandoned their healing arts, you have already begun to demonstrate it. That is why I cannot abandon you.”
She exhaled softly.
Her auburn hair swayed with her breath.
“I will grant you the privilege of accessing the secret records of Heukjeon School.”
At those words, Baek Rin’s eyes widened.
My heart felt as though it might leap from my chest.
‘Secret records? She’s offering to show me patient charts?’
In any Medical Guild, allowing outsiders to view secret records is the ultimate taboo.
In the Gangho where medical ethics reign supreme, medical texts are treated like the secret manuals of martial sects. But setting that aside, there are treatment records.
That is, patient charts are organized within the secret records.
Which patients had what symptoms, what medicines were prescribed, how they were treated, and what the progress was—knowing merely this much allows one to understand nearly everything about that Medical Guild.
Furthermore, by carefully examining what injuries a patient suffered in the past, one can discern the patient’s martial arts characteristics.
Even the same swordsmanship results in different injuries between left-handed and right-handed martial artists.
If one has learned demonic cultivation, internal injuries reveal everything.
Then one can also know their weaknesses.
It was an extraordinary offer.
“….”
I fell into thought.
“What must I offer in return?”
“When the time comes, you shall learn my healing arts.”
I shook my head.
“I am already learning my Master’s healing arts.”
I know Hyeolsaeng Nogoe’s healing arts are formidable, but I possess twenty-first century modern medicine.
There is little desire for more.
“Tch! Then what of martial arts, martial arts! What about martial arts!”
I glanced back at my Master and replied.
“I am already learning the supreme martial art under heaven. Learning other martial arts would be meaningless.”
My Master laughed brightly, finding my response delightful.
“Aha, there is no helping it, Hyeolsaeng. My disciple already practices the supreme martial art under heaven, so what can be done when he refuses? Hahahaha!”
Crack crack—
Hearing Baek Rin’s smug laughter, Hyeolsaeng’s composure shattered.
I spoke.
“Then what of this? When I use my healing arts, I will share with you the prescriptions for how I treated which patients and in what manner.”
“What?”
In America, hospitals have now begun sharing patient medical data across all institutions.
Every time a patient changes hospitals, having to repeat all examinations was problematic, and moreover, without knowing a patient’s medical history, treatment often became impossible.
In emergencies especially, patients often died because I didn’t know their underlying conditions or allergies.
It was a tragedy—they could have been easily saved if I’d simply known their medical history.
The more I learned about the Medical Guild, the more this gap frustrated me.
It was the same during this incident with King Ju Wang.
If Hwaju Medical Sect had known the patient’s medical history beforehand, perhaps I could have detected the poison faster.
No matter how much the Martial Arts World prided itself on secrecy, I couldn’t deny that this closed nature killed patients.
I understood that such an entrenched atmosphere couldn’t be changed easily.
But within my means, I wanted to save more martial artists.
“Are you saying I should learn your techniques instead? Hahahaha.”
“Since you’ve shown me your methods, I too will learn much from Heukjeon School.”
It transcended the master-disciple framework—a form of medical knowledge exchange.
I spoke.
“And if it’s acceptable, I’d like to receive some medicinal formulas.”
“Medicinal formulas?”
“The formulas available through Jeongpa have their limits. And if needed, we could send Heukjeon School the formulas we have that you lack.”
It was a kind of alliance.
Both Medical Guild leaders were astonished by my vision. It shattered the existing framework—something no one had dared even imagine.
Jegalling spoke.
“Cheon-hee. You’re drawing quite the grand picture.”
I shook my head.
“I’m not sure if it’s grand or small. I simply think that if I can save even one more life within my ability, that’s enough.”
“Hahahaha!”
At my answer, Hyeolsaeng Nogoe burst into laughter.
“I covet only one disciple, yet you covet the entire world.”
I flustered and waved my hand.
“No, that’s not it. I’m simply….”
“…Simply? Don’t feign modesty. The advancement of medicine is the fastest way to change the world—all us Medical Guild leaders know this, but the Martial Arts World doesn’t yet.”
She laughed heartily for a long time.
“Baek Rin, I genuinely envy you.”
Her laughter subsided.
“Then let’s do this. Learn what Baekrin Uigak doesn’t teach you. Muscle-strengthening techniques and concealed strikes should be fine, yes?”
I looked toward Jegalling.
Jegalling spoke.
“Hyeolsaeng Nogoe’s muscle-strengthening techniques and concealed strikes are unparalleled in the world. A fine opportunity. Learn them, Cheon-hee.”
I nodded.
“Since Master permits it, I will learn.”
“The more I hear, the more jealous I become. Baek Rin. How did you acquire such a disciple?”
“It seems the Founding Master watches over us from heaven.”
Hyeolsaeng Nogoe sighed.
“For ones like us, the greatest fortune is meeting a worthy disciple—and Baek Rin has achieved it. That fellow couldn’t accomplish Reversal of the Heavens even if he tried… kuk, but that one—his body prevents enlightenment from manifesting as Reversal of the Heavens. As a master, I would be far superior.”
My attachment to Jin Cheon-hee dripped away, drop by drop.
For Hyeolsaeng Nogoe, Jin Cheon-hee was a being I desired so desperately to possess.
“I will be the one to heal you, Master.”
“Hmm?”
“If you simply recover your health, Master, I believe you will smoothly reach the realm of Half-Step Returning to Chaos. Considering your martial talent and the techniques of my sect, you could even surpass that.”
It was a bold response.
I had attacked, questioning why he served as master when he was sickly and couldn’t even reach Half-Step Returning to Chaos. He countered by saying that if he healed his master, he could aim for a realm similar to mine, or perhaps even beyond.
It was not an answer a young child would give. No, there was no one in all of Gangho who could give her such a response.
Because the opponent was Hyeolsaeng Nogoe of Heukjeon School, whom no one in Gangho dared to touch.
Meanwhile, Jegalling seemed moved, gazing at Jin Cheon-hee for a long while.
He had never imagined that in the little time remaining in his life, he would meet someone who supported him so completely.
“Hee. Even if my life ends, it is well. Now I truly have no regrets.”
Jegalling stroked his disciple’s head.
His disciple was everything to him.
“Your single word was enough for me. It was enough.”
At those words, Jin Cheon-hee grumbled at him not to say such things.
But Jegalling hardened the secret resolve he had harbored all this time.

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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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