Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 819

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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 819
Crack—
In that instant, the air began to resonate instantaneously.
A transformation so profound that even those ignorant of geomancy could sense that something had shifted.
‘Normally, ten geomancers would require days to complete such calculations, yet my Master accomplishes it all in a single moment.’
To alter the formation based on weather and time meant, conversely, that any change in either variable necessitated recalculating everything from scratch.
Small formations posed no particular difficulty.
Formations of the caliber used by minor and mid-tier sects didn’t even require auspicious date selection.
But the scale my Master now undertook was excessively intricate and excessively vast.
Ordinary geomancers found it so complex that they would simply fix a date and construct only when weather conditions aligned—a level of absolute formation.
Yet the Jegallim Family operated in the opposite manner.
The desired moment of execution became the moment of calculation itself, with date and weather merely variables to consider in that instant.
And with the Eight Trigrams already challenging, layering the Five Elements atop them only escalated the difficulty further.
“For this to be possible at all, one must achieve mastery of the Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong.”
“One must also be well-versed in the Book of Changes and formation theory, I presume.”
“Indeed. Thus, only those with proper qualifications may utilize this cauldron.”
The Jegallim Family’s arrogance suddenly made sense to me.
The mere ability to use this cauldron would serve as proof of proximity to the Jegallim Family’s life’s work.
Once the formation alignment finally concluded, my Master spoke.
“This is not a secret transmission of the main house. The main house’s secret transmission actually resided at a lower realm than this. Though the cauldron’s form itself was created by Gae Pa Josa.”
I found myself newly curious about what manner of person Gae Pa Josa might be.
And had the Jegallim Family produced talented individuals capable of using this cauldron in every generation?
Even with the Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong, which creates geniuses, surely not every generation birthed only those with exceptional five-element affinities.
My Master continued.
“In the past, there existed a sect called Yakson and another called the Five Elements Sect. This was created by combining the secret transmissions of those two sects. I created it myself to survive, but… regrettably, I failed to cure the Nine Yin Severed Meridians. Reflecting upon it now, this too was a trace of despair.”
Even as the unconscious whispered that there was no way, Jegalling did whatever he could to survive.
The process of a thread-thin hope transforming into despair.
How many times had my Master despaired before this cauldron?
Then, from somewhere, a breeze stirred, and my Master’s hair swayed gently.
According to the formation, the five cauldrons began to emit distinctly different energies.
“Each cauldron bears responsibility for one attribute of the Five Elements, and through their mutual generation and restriction, they create the spiritual elixir within the cauldron. The Five Element Pills and Five Element Divine Pills you once consumed were all created through this method.”
“How profound.”
“Even knowing how to align the cauldrons, mastery remains a separate matter entirely. And we must prepare several batches of these elixirs.”
“For sale?”
As Jin Cheon-hee’s eyes brightened, Jegalling couldn’t help but chuckle.
Truly, my disciple earned like a dog yet spent like a prime minister.
“That might be possible if necessary, but not now.”
“Then…?”
“For use within the Medical Guild itself. You and I have little need for elixirs of this caliber anymore, but others are not in the same position, are they?”
Jin Cheon-hee nodded in agreement.
Having a subordinate grow stronger was also beneficial for me.
“Since Muyue no longer needs the elixir, I’m providing it to the Medical Assistants who will support him. And while I’m at it, I’ll also conduct the Grand Technique….”
My Master continued speaking while inspecting the alchemical furnace.
“Fortunately, I’ve obtained excellent materials from the imperial palace. I should be able to perform the Grand Technique on at least a dozen or so people.”
At those words, I felt a slight chill run down my spine.
‘Terrifying! My Master is planning to mass-produce Muyue Mark 2!’
That was right. My Master wasn’t satisfied with just one.
‘Perhaps it’s actually fortunate for Muyue.’
Since things had come to this, wouldn’t it be better if at least one more person became stronger?
* * *
Thus, the work on the alchemical furnace was completed.
‘Wow, so this is the origin of Western alchemy.’
Wasn’t it said that Eastern alchemy traveled westward and became alchemy? Similar stories have been transmitted in this world as well.
Perhaps that’s why there were mysterious operations that couldn’t be explained by simple chemistry alone.
After all, spirit pills themselves could be said to be substances containing qi, so it made sense.
After finishing the work on the alchemical furnace, my Master turned around.
“Did you observe well?”
“Yes, Master.”
Jegalling gazed at his disciple’s blue eyes and smiled faintly.
“Good. Tomorrow, you shall try it yourself.”
“Yes!”
Normally, it would be impossible to replicate something after seeing it only once.
But this child was different.
I had already imparted the theoretical knowledge, and only practice remained.
“The finishing work can be done at the medicinal herb pavilion, so you can leave it to the head physician there.”
My Master walked with long strides.
His disciple followed in quick, hurried steps.
The two of us walked together while conversing.
“This visit to the imperial palace…I went to handle several matters. First, there’s the question of your future position.”
“My future position?”
Jegalling spoke calmly without blinking an eye.
“His Majesty the Emperor keeps urging me to have you enter official service.”
I didn’t mention the fact that it was done with my surname as the condition.
If he found out, my disciple would fall into a strange sense of self-doubt along with the burden.
That was the kind of person he was.
Talent, skill, and ideas on a completely different dimension from others.
Yet he acted as though he possessed nothing at all.
Rather than that.
“E-enter official service?”
Enter official service.
It meant obtaining an official position.
Though I was currently a provincial governor, what the Emperor wanted was for me to obtain a position in the central government and work there.
‘A provincial governor is essentially a local official, after all.’
He wanted me to come all the way to the imperial palace itself and accept an official position to work there?
“So Master declined that and came here instead?”
Though it was called a decline, in reality it meant refusing coercion, which must not have been easy for him.
‘I’ve caused Master considerable trouble.’
My eyebrows drooped dejectedly. Jegalling observed this with evident amusement.
‘Yes. This is just the right amount.’
Even my Master Jegalling found this level of teasing entertaining.
While it wasn’t ideal for me to be overly melancholic, there was something genuinely amusing and delightful about this fundamental nature of mine—living with such self-doubt.
How much more would I need to accomplish before becoming arrogant?
Did the people of Gangho know this side of me?
Ilgwang—the Mad One.
Beneath the surface of living like a madman, crashing through the world, lay this hidden truth.
“In exchange, I handled several matters that troubled His Majesty the Emperor. They weren’t particularly difficult tasks.”
“Ah, so that was the wager the Eunuch General mentioned.”
“Something like that.”
“So what reward did you receive for winning the wager?”
“Why don’t you guess?”
I scratched my head and spoke.
“Hmm~ Usually in such cases, the reward would be a tax exemption grant. Perhaps for one or two years?”
“Haha. You’ve studied even the imperial customs thoroughly. Well, considering you were the one who obtained and copied documents from thirty years ago that officials still use, it makes sense you’d arrive at the answer so quickly.”
“Am I right?”
“No. I received the authority to command a bugok.”
My eyes widened at those words.
“What? A bugok… the authority to maintain private soldiers?”
“Yes. The authority to command one thousand bugok soldiers has been granted.”
My hair stood on end.
This was something almost never found, even when searching through all the precedents.
“Isn’t bugok authority supposed to be exclusive to the imperial family?”
“Founding merit families also possess some according to the Previous Emperor’s will. Even now, there are only a handful of families with bugok authority.”
This was absurd.
Of course, private soldiers?
This was a fairly common concept for those in Gangho.
Just the Namgung Family alone—how many forces of martial power did they possess?
All of them would crawl if ordered by the Gaju, or die if commanded to do so.
It wasn’t only the great families.
Each member of the Mudan Sect possessed martial prowess exceeding that of ordinary soldiers.
What of the Demonic Sect?
There, they don’t pay taxes, so we can’t even know how many people exist there.
But that’s a concept of the Gangho, and the government’s private estate feels entirely different.
‘Even our Baekrin Medical Guild has a military force, but… wow. He’s really playing both sides.’
Government and Gangho.
Only a Doctor can walk the line between both sides—a privilege unique to our profession.
Of course, there’s the danger of losing one’s head to either side, but looking at the current situation, he’s sucking the honey from both without getting caught.
“Huh… How could he…? Surely other officials would object… Ah, they won’t.”
“Right. You catch on quickly.”
The Gaju of the Mi Family had his head displayed in the imperial capital.
A perfect example of the Emperor’s wrath made manifest.
It was obvious that my Master Jegalling was the primary architect of the Mi Family’s destruction.
And the chess piece he moved was none other than—
‘Oh, it was because of me.’
Me, Jin Cheon-hee.
The primary contributor to the Mi Family’s downfall, and on the surface, a crazy dog who read the Emperor’s innermost thoughts from the shadows and became his instrument.
“Didn’t all the officials come to know that you don’t accept bribes? Then think about how you must appear to them now. Give it some thought.”
“Ah, I see.”
A second Eunuch General.
‘Wow, there were some crazy bastards shouting that I’m the Emperor’s beloved concubine, but now I’m the Emperor’s loyal servant… no, wait. I shouldn’t think of it that way. Am I becoming the Emperor’s crazy beloved?’
Should I avoid the back entrance next time?
Now that I think about it, how many times have I gone through the back entrance to receive imperial orders from the Emperor and come out after a private audience?
Considering that eyes and ears are everywhere in the imperial palace, it must have seemed quite peculiar.
“In any case, I’ve received the Emperor’s favor.”
“Yes.”
In other words.
No one objected.
Because surviving today became more urgent than opposing it.
“But Master, why grant such authority in the first place….”
It’s a funny thing, but whether the private estate exists or not, the Baekrin Group remains strong.
Baekcheon-gun did sneak in once, but that’s something even the elder Hyeolsaeng Nogoe does from time to time.
The Baekrin Group can’t stop that, but creating a private estate won’t stop it either.
‘Why go this far?’
My Master spoke.
“Why, you ask? To ensure that nothing corrupt ever takes root in this Kangso Province from now on.”
“Yes? Ah, could it be…?”
Jegalling observed his disciple’s eyes.
In those wavering pupils, I felt the speed of his thoughts.
Still immature, but he was following his Master properly.
“You caught on immediately. A private estate is a private army. At the same time, it also grants investigative authority.”
Soon after, Jegalling arrived at his office.
My Master opened the door using only the tip of his fan, then stepped inside.
Given how broad his frame was, the door itself was quite sizeable.
The office door in particular was renowned for being large and heavy, yet watching him open it smoothly with merely the fan’s tip, I couldn’t help but admire him inwardly.
“Follow me inside.”
“Ah, yes, of course!”
So even this required permission to enter. This man.
Jegalling felt slightly displeased, but wasn’t he always like this?
No matter how close they were, the reason they never seemed to grow truly intimate was precisely because he drew a line at critical moments and never crossed it.
Whether due to childhood memories or something else, this man simply couldn’t do such things well.
He gave much to others but struggled to receive, often losing out in the exchange.
That’s why being a Doctor suited him.
‘Yet that unique talent of his is what keeps this child alive.’
In the Gangho, such a temperament was dangerous enough to cost one’s life, yet this boy possessed a talent that transcended even that peril.
‘A talent to defy the heavens themselves.’
As proof, this boy had already begun to see through Jegalling’s subtle schemes.

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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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