Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 75

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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 75
As the ice waterfall crumbled, a cave emerged from behind it.
“Hey, Elder! Are you alive!?”
Not a single light could be seen inside the cave. Not even the sound of human presence.
Seolgyeon cried out again.
“Elder!”
Her voice trembled.
Only then did a coughing sound echo from within.
Cough!
“That stubborn old fool, worrying us like this, yet clinging to life so stubbornly.”
She quickened her pace and rushed inside.
I burned a fire-starting stone
myself
to create light.
As the interior of the cave brightened, I could see the Elder sitting in a meditative position.
The first thing I felt was the biting cold.
And a foul stench.
There was a large sword wound on the Elder’s chest.
Where blood had flowed and dried, there were blackened discolored marks. And beyond the sword wound, there were areas that had turned black.
The Elder’s arm.
I immediately rushed to the Elder and took his pulse.
‘There’s not a single part of his body that’s unharmed. And frostbite on top of that….’
Winter mountains are merciless.
I could barely sense any inner energy in the Elder’s body.
Having overcome enemies while poisoned by Sanggongdok, he had then tried to sustain his life using what little inner energy remained, but it seemed far from easy.
From the perspective of modern medicine, it was incomprehensible how the Elder was still alive.
‘To think one can cling to life this long even after being poisoned by Sanggongdok.’
Seolgyeon concealed her joy and deliberately grumbled.
“Old ginger is spicy, Elder. Well, you’re not the type to die in a place like this.”
“First, raise the temperature of the cave!”
At my command, the doctors who came with the Gaebang members began to move.
I spoke urgently.
“Do not move the patient under any circumstances.”
Seventy percent of the human body is water.
When this water freezes inside cells and external impact is applied, the crystallized liquid inside the cells destroys them.
The most important protocol for frostbite.
Do not move carelessly.
Never apply shock.
These are fundamental principles.
Then one of the doctors who came with us spoke.
“What if we immerse the frostbitten areas in warm water?”
“How could that be possible in our current circumstances? Finding kindling to start a fire will already take considerable effort.”
For now, the priority was to keep the patient still and warm their body.
I dusted off my hands.
“It’s fine. There’s no need for that. I’ve trained the water and fire aspects of the Five Elements Divine Skill up to the fifth stage precisely for situations like this. Let me set up the formation first.”
The doctors’ eyes widened at my words.
“Water and fire aspects are opposing forces that clash easily—you’re saying it’s possible to control them?”
It wasn’t about the quantity of inner energy, but how to regulate it.
‘It’s only possible if you learn when your inner energy is scarce.’
Such is human nature. There are things you can only learn when your inner energy is limited, and things you can only learn when it’s abundant.
However, martial artists prioritize accumulating inner energy first.
The same applies to doctors in the Martial Arts World.
This is what happens when you neglect the fundamentals.
Since my inner energy was barely a grain of millet, I had continuously combined and collided the Five Elements Divine Skill.
Repeatedly attaching and severing wood.
The eldest doctor among them asked again.
”
Sobaek
I heard that Doctor Yong hasn’t trained in the Five Elements Divine Skill for very long… are you truly saying it’s possible?”
I nodded.
“It’s possible to the extent of emergency treatment. But please don’t interfere.”
Fundamentals are important. Even small things must not be neglected.
Though seniors repeatedly emphasize this, young doctors tend to overlook it.
They all wanted to learn more elaborate medical techniques. The fundamentals were simply too tedious.
In contrast, I had always practiced the basics of controlling inner energy the moment the Five Elements Divine Skill took root.
An attempt that would have been impossible if I had neglected cutting and grafting stumps even for a single day.
I continued speaking.
“You mustn’t move either, Bangju.”
Gaebangjoo responded with only a faint breath. Even speaking was difficult in this condition.
I positioned myself behind Gaebangjoo, who sat in a lotus position.
Then I slowly began to send forth the fire and water aspects.
Whoooong—
First, I moved the heavy and soft water aspect.
The water aspect flowed sluggishly like ink, guided by my will. Then I drew out the light and sharp fire aspect.
I didn’t make them collide from the start.
I made the fire aspect spiral around the water aspect like a serpent. Then I slowly harmonized them.
Two opposing energies that should have collided merged at the shoulders under my guidance and advanced toward Gaebangjoo.
Invaded by the cold energy—
The
acupoint receives the Five Elements Divine Energy.
‘What’s truly terrifying about frostbite comes after this.’
If I forced my inner energy in too roughly, it would collide with the cold and cause internal injuries to the patient.
I slowly but steadily thawed each meridian one by one, pushing my inner energy inward.
Two hours passed like that.
‘Is he human?’
‘Why isn’t he showing signs of exhaustion?’
Seolgyeon, anxious, questioned the doctors.
“What is it? Is he doing well? Why isn’t he moving?”
The doctors spoke.
“Honestly, we’re not entirely sure. Normally, two hours would be the limit…”
The doctors stared at me as though I were some kind of monster.
Soon, I opened my eyes.
“Moving on to the next treatment.”
Warmth returned to Elder’s body.
Rapid rewarming method.
It’s a technique of soaking the frostbitten area in hot water around 37 to 42 degrees to thaw it. However, given the circumstances, I resolved it by sending inner energy instead.
In the modern world, one must be careful never to move the frostbitten area and immediately transport the patient to a hospital.
But this world had no cars, asphalt roads, or helicopters, and Elder’s condition made it impossible anyway.
I breathed heavily.
‘I succeeded.’
As I relaxed Elder’s constricted blood vessels and muscles, I felt the blood flow returning to normal.
But at the same time, blood began flowing from the wounds Elder had sustained.
‘Acupuncture is perfect for this.’
I inserted needles into the patient’s meridians to buy time.
After tearing off the wet clothes, I wrapped the body in blankets soaked in hot water. The cave felt as warm as a bedroom.
It was thanks to the four doctors who came with us spreading out the fire formation.
The Gaebanmundo members covered the interior of the cave with leather blankets to raise the temperature.
It was because they moved steadily while I administered treatment.
Seol Gae asked.
“Can we move him to Baekrin Uigak for treatment?”
I shook my head.
“External wounds are problematic, but the internal injuries are severe. Even if he’s passed the critical point, there’s a high chance he won’t survive the journey.”
“Hmm…”
“Bangju has three problems. First, the external wounds from the beast—the sword strike reached his intestines. Fortunately, the blade didn’t reach any vital organs.”
“That’s fortunate.”
“I succeeded in performing emergency hemostasis by sending inner energy,
but
another problem has arisen.”
“What is it?”
“First, to protect the body from cold, the basic principle is to circulate inner energy to the nerve endings. That’s why martial artists in the Gangho can run through snowy fields wearing only thin cotton robes.”
“What are you trying to say, child?”
“It’s severe frostbite. You’ve already lost all sensation in your limbs.”
“But you already treated me. If I circulate my inner energy….”
At those words, I swallowed hard. There was something I needed to say. But as a doctor, I didn’t want to say it, and as a patient, I didn’t want to hear it.
I clenched my teeth.
“Frostbite is more terrifying than wounds.”
Martial artists—in fact, modern people too—underestimate it.
They underestimate frostbite.
During Napoleon’s invasion of Russia, many soldiers died not from bullets or blades, but from frostbite.
Frostbite is classified into four degrees.
First degree: swelling from the cold. This is a common symptom that occurs in winter when people don’t dress warmly enough.
Second degree: blistering and pain. There are methods like soaking in warm water and thawing slowly, but I recommend going to a hospital.
Third degree: blackened blisters beginning to form and numbness setting in. Don’t rub or move it carelessly—you must go to a hospital immediately.
From here on, it’s classified as deep frostbite.
Fourth degree: completely blackened tissue with no sensation whatsoever. The subcutaneous tissue is damaged.
“You’ve endured fourth-degree frostbite for days. The fact that you’ve preserved your life is already a miracle.”
Even after treatment, complications are the problem.
Nerve tissue is sensitive to temperature.
Just as burn patients continue to experience pain even after healing, the same applies to frostbite. Abnormal sensation is a typical aftereffect of frostbite.
Seol Gae asked.
“Wounds and frostbite. What’s the final problem?”
“Your qi and blood have become twisted from forcibly circulating your inner energy. If you try to travel long distances by force in this state, you’ll become a cripple for life.”
The cave filled with silence.
“Is there a way to treat it?”
It was a single word squeezed out from Seol Gae.
“Anything, anything at all. Tell me what’s needed, and I’ll do whatever it takes.”
She didn’t mention sect or honor.
It was simply a statement that she would do whatever was necessary. But knowing the future as I did, I understood how heavy those words truly were.
I shook my head.
“What’s needed, I’ve already prepared. What’s truly necessary is resolve.”
“Resolve?”
“You must abandon your right hand and left foot—all five fingers and everything below the ankle.”
Crash!
At those words, she couldn’t hold back and struck the ground.
“Are you saying I should give up being a martial artist! Or even living as an ordinary person?”
Then a rusted metallic voice rang out. It was Bangju’s voice.
“Seol-ah….”
At that small voice, the killing intent radiating from her dissipated in an instant.
“Elder, are you awake?”
“Cough, cough. How could I lose consciousness with you shouting like that? In any case, you’re setting a poor example as a successor. That’s why people treat you like a dog.”
“This stubborn old fool is perfectly fine! That quack said he’d cut off the old man’s perfectly good limbs, but what am I supposed to do about it!”
“You’re a mad dog.”
“Look, look—he’s perfectly fine! Talking away! Soon enough he’ll smack the back of my head so hard it makes a sound! He will!”
“….”
“Why aren’t you saying anything!”
“When a mad dog barks, what’s a person supposed to say? I just think, ‘There goes the dog barking.’ Keke!”
Bangju broke into laughter, his weathered face crinkling with amusement.
Then he turned to Jin Cheon-hee and spoke.
”
The Dragon Doctor of Sobaek
is a true master physician. All four limbs had no sensation, yet he saved two of them. And not just any joints—he severed only the tips and brought them back to life….”
At those words, all the Gaebang members, including Seol Gae, stared at Jin Cheon-hee in astonishment.

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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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