Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 65

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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 65
The merchant turned away after speaking those words.
It was cold. Yet it was the truth.
Severing a martial artist’s legs was tantamount to taking their life.
And such things were happening in other places as well.
In the conference room of a mid-sized martial sect.
The Chief Manager and the sect leader sat within, engaged in discussion.
“Sect Leader, what do you think of transferring to Baekrin Uigak?”
“You speak thus because of the Prince consort of Ju Wang-ya.”
“Yes.”
Saving and restoring severed legs held profound significance for martial artists.
The worries of sect leaders who had dealings with Hwaju Uiseon grew ever deeper.
“There are certainly advantages, but have we not always commissioned our sect’s inner elixirs from Hwaju Uiseon? Large sects may have medical chambers within their own ranks to prepare medicines directly, but we have already entrusted far too many matters to Hwaju Uiseon. It would be difficult to change that overnight.”
“Sect Leader.”
“However, that is merely the thinking of old men like us. It will be you young martial artists who lead this sect in the future. Let us gather and deliberate together.”
A small ripple began to create waves across the entire landscape.
* * *
While all those who wielded power in the realm stirred with unease.
Hao-mun was struck hardest of all.
Buntta, where the Prince consort had once sought refuge, had already been reduced to ash by flames.
Yet Ju Wang’s fury showed no signs of abating, only growing ever fiercer.
Internal strife plagued Hao-mun as well.
The Buntta burned, and the Buntta lords and their forces perished alongside them.
Who would now fill the vacant positions became a grave concern.
Conflict intensified from within and without.
Jegalling lay in his heated chamber, reading correspondence.
The letter contained information regarding Hao-mun.
Jegalling turned his head to the side and spoke thus to Jin Cheon-hee.
“Cheon-hee. Do you know of the rule that the government and the martial world should not interfere with one another?”
It was a fundamental matter mentioned at least once in every martial arts tale.
Jin Cheon-hee nodded.
“Yes, I do know of it.”
“Indeed. But as with all worldly matters, such separation is not so easily maintained. After all, the King himself visited us—the Medical Hall of Gangho. Similarly, places like Pyoguk and information brokers are used by both government and martial world alike.”
“It is a difficult matter.”
“Yes. That is the nature of human affairs. Even we of the Medical Hall occupy a neutral ground of sorts, so we must always think carefully about our every step.”
My Master’s eyes curved gently with a smile. I shook my head.
“It is a difficult subject.”
“In a way, it is simple. One need only establish a standard—
and then
proceed accordingly.”
“A standard?”
“One must establish criteria that both the government and the martial world can accept, then act accordingly. Hao-mun brought this calamity upon himself by failing to uphold proper standards and allowing greed to consume him.”
Suddenly, I understood what my Master was trying to teach me.
He was speaking as if anticipating the time after his own death and absence.
So that it might serve as guidance when I inherited the Medical Hall in his stead.
I shook my head.
“Hehe, Master. I don’t understand such things.”
“Hee…”
“Yes. I don’t grasp adult matters at all, so I won’t listen! You should tell me such things only after I’ve grown older~”
You’ll have to live until then.
That was what I truly wanted to say.
The unspoken words rose to my throat.
Jegalling gazed silently at his disciple.
“….”
I forcibly changed the subject.
“What do you think will happen next, Master? As long as alcohol and criminals exist in this world, Hao-mun will never disappear, right?”
I had never seen a martial arts novel without Hao-mun.
It was the same principle as how crime has never vanished from human history.
“Their power will weaken nonetheless. And perhaps it will be resolved at an appropriate time through appropriate means. It cannot persist indefinitely. The Muhua siblings who received treatment for syphilis last time seem to have gained new opportunities. Buntta Province, or perhaps even beyond—they now have a chance to aim higher.”
Sensing my heart, Jegalling spoke no further of the Medical Hall.
I asked.
“When do you think it will be resolved?”
“Hmm, likely within the next week.”
* * *
The following week, the Emperor issued an imperial decree and personally summoned Ju Wang-ya.
Without the government’s cooperation, if one were to independently mobilize the Prince’s military forces to handle matters, it would shake the very foundation of justice.
From her perspective, she would not have endured it, as the local government offices were likely also bribed by Hao-mun, but even the Emperor’s forbearance had its limits.
The Emperor bestowed upon the Prince, Cheon Yu-rang, the title of Marquis, allowing him to properly assume a rank befitting a prince consort, and incorporated him as an adopted son into a meritorious family, changing his household registry.
Furthermore, he allowed her to adopt an imperial granddaughter carrying the Emperor’s blood as a foster daughter, enabling the continuation of the Ju Wang household line.
With such appeasement, even the fiery-tempered Ju Wang could not help but cease her anger.
Moreover, a letter arrived from Muhua. It contained word that good news would soon be forthcoming.
Though she did not elaborate in detail, I had heard that the positions of the two siblings within Hao-mun were rising.
Indeed, it unfolded exactly as my Master had foreseen.
* * *
On a day when the mountains and vegetation surrounding Baekrin Uigak bloomed in deep verdant green, I sat face to face with my Master in private audience.
I sat in my Master’s quarters, gazing blankly at the mountain scenery beyond the glass window.
The exchanges with Heukjeon Uiseon were proceeding sequentially and in secret.
Furthermore, Hyeolsaeng Nogoe had agreed to visit occasionally and transmit martial techniques to me, leaving behind several volumes of foundational secret manuals for that purpose.
Yet I had no intention of learning them just yet.
It was best to master everything only after first establishing a solid foundation. Otherwise, one would end up being neither one thing nor the other.
I gazed upon the verdant life blooming fresh and vibrant as these thoughts occupied my mind.
Then, suddenly, I came to my senses at the sound of my Master’s voice.
“You look like someone seeing summer for the first time.”
Half wrong, half right—so I smiled softly at his words.
“The summer in these mountains is truly refreshing, Master.”
“Even so, the night air is still cold, so one must not grow careless.”
I nodded in acknowledgment.
Yoo Ho crossed between us.
“Apple tea. Made from young summer apples.”
The distinctive tart and sweet fragrance of unripe apples filled the room.
It was the scent of early summer sunlight.
My Master took a sip of the tea and closed his eyes in satisfaction. Then, after a moment, he spoke.
“By the way. You said you had something serious to discuss, did you not? Are you prepared?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
This meeting was one I had requested.
Several months since entering the Medical Hall.
After treating Wang Gak-yeon and earning recognition from the Fourth Patriarch, I established the Surgical Division.
Following that, I received transmission of the Five Elements Divine Art, and to systematically impart surgical medical knowledge, I compiled it into written texts.
Furthermore, I conducted surgeries to transmit surgical knowledge, and even created penicillin, an antibiotic.
“Until now, I have been transmitting the medical arts I possess, but truthfully, my methods have been rather haphazard.”
“Such systematic knowledge, haphazard?”
“That is why I have come to believe that I must share medical knowledge in greater detail and with more organization. To accomplish this, I requested this conversation with you.”
There was much knowledge I had not yet revealed to Jegalling, deeming the time premature.
For instance, the concept of cells was one such example.
In truth, even Baek Rin-ui-seon, along with the other doctors, did not fully understand the true efficacy of penicillin, the antibiotic named Baekrin Seokyu and Baekrin Sindan.
-Hee, you are my disciple, but I regard you as a doctor in your own right. There is no need to tell me everything, but teach me of the medical arts you know. I, too, shall teach you all that I possess.
In Gangho, this was not a typical master-disciple relationship.
Yet we were not martial artists but doctors, and this was something we must do to save lives.
‘What should I speak of first?’
I had contemplated this day extensively.
In the end, there was only one answer.
Whether my Master understood or not, I would share everything.
Before the matter of life, calculations were meaningless.
For I believed that if our knowledge combined, we could save many martial artists.
“First, the knowledge I possess is concentrated in surgery. Moreover, I believe much of it differs from existing pharmacology.”
My Master nodded.
A calm light began to shine in his eyes.
I realized he was awakening his mind using the true qi of the Five Elements Divine Art to operate the Hyeonwon Jeondan Divine Art, the secret transmission of the Jegalling Clan.
In such a state, neither writing nor recording devices were necessary. One need only employ the inherent weapon humans possess—the mind.
I continued to share the knowledge I possessed, one piece after another.
When necessary, I did not hesitate to draw diagrams to explain my points.
My Master would immediately ask me whenever curiosity arose.
Since neither of us were martial artists by nature, we paid no mind to such things as pride.
Only enthusiasm for learning and the joy of discovering what we did not know filled the space between us.
However, this was not a matter to be concluded in a short time. Thus, when the sun began to set,
my Master Jegalling spoke.
“Extraordinary. Such knowledge indeed….”
“What I have explained so far is merely an approximation of the fundamental concepts. To teach it in detail… would require at least several years.”
“I see. Remarkable. Truly remarkable.”
My Master Jegalling nodded slowly.
“Cells, then. So tiny things gather together to form a single life.”
My Master’s eyes half-closed. And from his body, a radiant aura of five brilliant colors began to disperse like mist. And it slowly rotated.
“Surely not….”
I tensed.
A staple of martial arts novels.
I felt a slight anticipation—could the same phenomenon that had occurred with Gungwi be happening to my Master?
However, the mist emanating from Jegalling’s body was drawn back into him and vanished.
Light shone in my Master’s eyes, gleaming brightly.
“Master. Are you well?”
“I am fine, Yoo Ho. Hehehehe. To gain enlightenment at this age… had it not been for my constitution, I might have achieved something great. What a pity….”
“Master….”
“Still, even this alone has lightened my heart considerably. I feel quite improved.”
“Is that truly so?”
“Of course.”
‘Ah… how regrettable….’
I sighed deeply at the sight of my Master.
Had he undergone a complete transformation from this, he might have escaped his heavenly curse.
It seems it will not be so easy.

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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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