Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 854

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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 854
So I secretly went to find Eon Jeong-mu and observed him carefully.
‘I can sense a soul?’
That was right. Conversely, Eon Jeong-mu possessed a ‘soul’.
The only problem was that his body looked completely like a corpse.
‘But I can’t reach a conclusion about this on my own either.’
Couldn’t a Kang Si-gong at its peak become indistinguishable from a corpse?
In fact, Gaju Eon-gwon’s body was still technically alive, but only someone with the level of qi perception that I possessed could discern that.
Ordinarily, people might have called him a Poisonous Undead at first glance.
Or perhaps they assumed so based on the rumors circulating through the Gangho realm, given how famous he was.
‘I’m hardly one to talk about others.’
Even when I engaged in eccentric behavior, people attributed it to rumors about me.
When I returned, Sama Hyeon spoke up.
“Isn’t the first problem whether Eon Jeong-mu is even alive?”
“Eon Jeong-mu is truly dead, and they might have created him like a Half-Soul Poisonous Undead?”
“Given how unusual the obsession with the successor of a major Gangho family is, that’s certainly possible.”
Cheonwoo chimed in from beside me.
“An obsession with a successor… But I’m still puzzled about how they even acquired the ability to create a Half-Soul Poisonous Undead in the first place. Just because they investigated the Asura Blood River Monster, can they suddenly create something like that? The categories are completely different.”
I was a Poisonous Undead enthusiast who had cultivated my fascination with them by watching martial arts dramas on Earth, and since arriving in the Gangho realm, I hadn’t neglected my studies on the subject.
While I told others it was research to treat people, from the perspective of Commander Yoo watching from the side, it was nothing more or less than a hobby tinged with personal interest.
“Hyeong, why don’t we use an excuse to examine Eon Jeong-mu?”
“Hmm. Should we?”
If it were another martial artist and someone said “Let me check your pulse,” they might respond with “What, are you trying to take my life!?” and engage in a life-or-death confrontation.
Checking someone’s pulse was essentially equivalent to holding their life in your hands!
Because through that pulse, one could send qi and potentially kill them.
However.
I was fine!
‘I’m a Doctor, after all!’
And a Doctor well-known throughout the Gangho realm at that!
There was no problem with gently grasping someone’s wrist for an examination.
In fact, any martial artist in the Gangho realm would want to have their pulse checked by me once.
That was simply the position of a Divine Physician.
“His behavior is suspicious, but Gaju Eon-gwon’s actions were surprisingly normal.”
“Right. He was serious about it too~”
Gaju Eon-gwon.
He had the face of a Poisonous Undead.
Yet his words were rich with emotion, and he was even taking separate notes on what I said, showing genuine interest in the research.
His expressions were… easier to read than Yeo Ha-ryun’s when observed carefully.
In fact, if I provided this level of testing and received some of Jin Ju-eonga’s Poisonous Undead secrets in return, wouldn’t it be a profitable exchange?
‘If things proceed without any problems and end like this, it certainly would be.’
* * *
Glub, glub.
Black liquid bubbled and churned inside a massive jar large enough to fit a person.
The viscous substance, resembling black oil, even emitted dark-green vapors.
In the center of that jar, Eon Jeong-mu floated with his eyes closed.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes, Father.”
The surroundings were quite alien in appearance.
Various mechanical devices filled the space, and tools for creating something chemical were scattered everywhere.
Among them, I could even see instruments that alchemists from other regions carried with them.
Moreover.
There wasn’t just one jar containing a person.
Including Eon Jeong-mu, there were five jars, and all of them held people inside.
They all had pallid complexions and faces that seemed devoid of life.
And one of them was the Poisonous Undead that I had faced.
“Since all the preparations are complete… let us wait a bit longer now.”
“Of course.”
“Sigh… I wish he had matured a bit sooner.”
Eon-gwon Gaju exhaled a light sigh with an expressionless face.
“Rest now.”
“Yes, Father.”
Eon Jeong-mu and all the others submerged themselves into the liquid within the jars of their own accord.
Eon-gwon Gaju watched them intently for a moment, then eventually left the place.
* * *
My group and I stayed for several more days, conducting tests on the corpse puppets.
Not only I, but Sama Hyeon and Jin Cheon-woo also stepped forward to face the corpse puppets, all at the request of Eon-gwon Gaju.
We faced not only newly created corpse puppets, but also types like Vengeful Undead or Iron-class corpse puppets, and later even engaged with corpse puppets that utilized formation techniques.
In truth, this was beneficial for me.
‘That’s right. I shouldn’t set the standard as a typical martial artist, but as myself.’
I needed to be able to counter not just masters of the martial realm, but anyone who had learned martial techniques.
‘And it’s shocking that they haven’t learned external techniques as much as I expected.’
The treatise I had written before: [Efficient Diagnosis for Corpse Puppets: From Research to Clinical Practice].
This work spread widely precisely because I made painstaking efforts to make it easier for various martial artists to use.
In fact.
‘Why didn’t Ilgwang name his book something like [Corpse Puppet Destruction Technique] or [Jegallim Destruction Sword Technique]?’
‘Ilgwang called it a secret technique by that name! Even if it’s a secret technique anyone can buy with money, at least name it properly. Please!’
‘Exactly! [Efficient Diagnosis for Corpse Puppets: From Research to Clinical Practice]. Who’s going to memorize something this long! Doesn’t Ilgwang have any sense? Just use something like the Three Calamities Sword Method!’
Yet people like that still bought it anyway.
To survive, there was no choice.
Whether it was [Jegallim Destruction Sword Technique], [Corpse Puppet Destruction Technique], or [Efficient Diagnosis for Corpse Puppets: From Research to Clinical Practice], one had to buy it to survive.
‘The problem is that the corpse puppets have evolved to that extent. They’re no longer at the same level as before, making them difficult to face. If that happens, examinations become even harder. And if examinations become harder, there will be more who fail to learn.’
I scratch my head vigorously while observing my siblings’ martial techniques.
It was fortunate that Gaju Eon-gwon brought so many corpse puppets.
In fact.
In the Records of the Jicheon Cheonma, Yeo Ha-ryun barely achieved victory after fighting for days on end, yet I faced a formation composed of four Poisonous Undead!
When the corpse puppet used a formation deployed by martial artists rather than one created through terrain and geography, it certainly displayed an eerie yet formidable power.
However.
I was stronger now than Yeo Ha-ryun had been when facing the Poisonous Undead formation in the Records of the Jicheon Cheonma, and moreover, I possessed something Yeo Ha-ryun never had.
Extensive knowledge of numerous martial arts.
Information about the human body.
And the Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong.
I lacked the destructive power of something like Cheon Sal-seong, but I dismantled the formation itself of the Poisonous Undead formation and exploited the corpse puppets’ weaknesses to neutralize them in a single stroke.
Afterward, I evaluated it as: ‘Generally, one cannot defeat the Poisonous Undead formation without overwhelming it with raw power. Even in a four-versus-four match, victory is nearly impossible. It’s a remarkable formation.’
The meaning of those words was this.
With the intellect of the Jegallim Family, one could win easily.
But for an ordinary martial artist to face this was nearly impossible.
Cheonwoo, watching the test, muttered, ‘So that’s why Commander Gwon Je warned us that the Jegallim Family’s intellect is monstrous.’
Thus, the corpse puppet experiments continued for several days.
Gaju Eon-gwon and I were satisfied, while Sama Hyeon and Jin Cheon-woo grew somewhat weary, left only to stare at us two.
‘Looking at it this way, Gaju Eon-gwon is just as obsessed with research as my brother.’
‘Phew, I’m sensing a madness similar to my brother’s.’
Thus, all the scheduled activities concluded.
And in appreciation for the hard work my group had done, the Eon family held a banquet.
* * *
Ding ding~ Didididding~
The Eon family’s banquet had a slightly different atmosphere from those of other great families.
The performers came and played soft music with a calm timbre, and the dancers moving in the center of the banquet hall danced in harmony with the music, evoking classical dance.
Moreover, if there was one more distinctive feature, it was that everyone appeared to have pallid complexions as if they were corpse puppets, presumably from practicing the Corpse Puppet Art.
[Oh, has everyone in the Eon family learned the Corpse Puppet Art?]
I spoke to my two brothers using the Six Harmonies Resonance, an advanced technique among sound transmission methods.
While ordinary sound transmission is one-to-one communication, Six Harmonies Resonance is multi-directional communication.
Naturally, this was a technique I could perform given my deep expertise in sound arts.
[Right~ This is quite strange, isn’t it? From what I know, it shouldn’t be. The Corpse Puppet Art is supposedly a secret technique kept strictly confidential, right? It’s basic that only blood relatives should be taught it. The servants and performers can’t all be blood relatives, can they?]
[They don’t seem to be complete corpse puppets though, brother. I can sense vitality, and they’re breathing.]
[How peculiar….]
While I, Cheonwoo, and Sama Hyeon conducted our discreet conversation through Six Harmonies Resonance.
Gaju Eon-gwon, seated at the head table, rose from his seat.
The music ended, and the dancers’ movements ceased.
“Today, this banquet is held because Jin Cheon-hee, the Minor Sect Leader of the Baekrin Medical Guild, has provided our family with considerable assistance.”
The dancers slowly exited the central stage.
In the meantime, Gaju Eon-gwon speaks again.
“I would like to express my gratitude once more to Jin Sogakju, who has been of tremendous help.”
He offers a fist salute, and I return the gesture in kind.
“You honor me with such excessive praise. I hardly know what to say.”
“Haha, as modest as ever. Now then, let us all eat and enjoy ourselves!”
With Gaju Eon-gwon’s words, everyone begins to converse and enjoy their meal.
Yet the noise level remains quite subdued.
Had this been a banquet of another family, there would already be raucous toasts and refusals of drinks, but the atmosphere here feels remarkably quiet and dignified.
‘It feels like drinking wine among the undead.’
In old RPG games, didn’t cities of the undead always appear?
An undead king sitting upon his throne, commanding his undead subjects.
[Brother, are you trying to provoke them now?]
‘This Hyeon fellow has truly keen instincts.’
I nod and open my mouth.
“Gaju, there is one thing I would like to ask you directly.”
“Oh? Directly, you say? What is it that puzzles you?”
“Is Soggakju Eon… actually alive?”
Thud.
Everyone falls silent.
Though the banquet had been quiet to begin with, now it becomes so still that even a falling needle would make a sound.
All eyes turn toward me.
‘An abnormal reaction! There is definitely something here.’
“Hmm. I am curious what makes you think so.”
“I am a Doctor. I am not the same as a martial artist of the Gangho.”
“A Doctor who neutralized the main branch’s Poisonous Undead formation. That is quite amusing.”
“Is not the definition of who one is determined by one’s own thoughts?”
“Yet who in all the realm would see you as merely a Doctor? The way others perceive you may well be the truest reflection of who you are.”
“That may be so. But before that, as a Doctor, I could not sense even a trace of vital energy from Soggakju Eon. Yet I clearly sense it from you, Gaju, who has perfected the martial arts of Jin Ju-eonga.”
“Heh heh.”
Eon-gwon, his face still expressionless like that of a corpse, strokes his beard and laughs silently.
“From the way you ask, it seems our Jeong Mu has indeed achieved perfection.”
“You mean he has perfected the Dreaming Soul Poisonous Spirit Corpse Art?”
“Indeed. Shamefully so. I have not achieved it myself. That is why you sense vital energy from me.”
My expression becomes serious.
“The Dreaming Soul Poisonous Spirit Corpse Art aims to become a corpse while still alive, and thereby touch the realm of the Immortal. Do you happen to know of the Corpse Dissolution Immortal?”

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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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