Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 869
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Chapter 869
How is he?
Yoo Ho answered his master’s concerned question about his disciple.
“Since the earthen vessel is already shattered, he doesn’t look as good as before. And he’s distant from Bunta of Baekrin Uiseon. Still, his hair has been cut, and the rest of him should be healthy.”
“Are all his limbs intact?”
“Yes. All his fingers and toes are safe.”
Unless it were an unavoidable situation.
A master’s heart desires to preserve even a single fingernail or toenail of his disciple.
“His mind?”
“It seems he encountered his own madness, but he recovered quickly.”
“Remarkable. To make contact with that and not lose oneself.”
Jegalling expressed his admiration sincerely.
It was only natural.
Ordinarily, no matter how strong one’s mental fortitude, they would end up like Gaju Eon-gwon.
Believing they act of their own will, but in truth, that is not the case.
Already swept away by the spirit of one who stands higher, they lose themselves without realizing it.
This is not a matter of whether the higher being wishes to control or not.
The human spirit is fragile, so merely brushing against such an existence turns one into a puppet without even the awareness of being lost.
That he endured it was no ordinary feat.
“The power of Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong.”
For what purpose did Gae Pa Josa create this martial art?
Yet Jegalling was at peace, as though that child should naturally be this way.
Rather than that.
“Hmm. Since his hair has become short, I’m curious about that appearance. Given his nature, he’ll grow it back quickly with Cheonryong Gong, so it’s a sight I’ll only see for a moment.”
“He tries to look like a well-educated child of a noble family. That brat.”
“Indeed. These days, many young dragons roam freely in the name of style, but that one already hears the name Ilgwang, and yet still wants to be a ‘good child’ before me.”
Young martial artists desire to break free from convention.
Within Dosan Sword Forest, where even rocks are cut like tofu, fighting makes it naturally difficult to preserve one’s hair.
And so, gradually, one trims their hair according to their own taste.
It is rather the stubborn ones of noble families who obsessively insist on long hair.
Those called ‘young masters’ are plentiful among them.
They listen to their family parents’ words, are deeply influenced by their ideology, and without a shred of rebellion, always keep themselves neat and tidy.
Jin Cheon-hee’s insistence on growing his hair likely has such an influence too.
‘A specialist in driving nails through his master’s heart.’
I almost provoked Jegalling by suggesting we bet on who would live longer—a one-year orchid or Jin Cheon-hee—but I stopped myself.
If I scratched that itch, Jegalling would kill the orchid first.
And then he’d console himself, saying his disciple lived longer than the orchid.
Looking at these mad master and disciple, all I can do is sigh.
If you gave them both shovels, they might dig in different directions and meet at the end of the earth’s axis.
And in the end, even I, an immortal, have joined them, digging together with a shovel.
That person was the only priest, and by deceiving causality to claim it as ‘mine,’ I was no longer a mere observer.
How had things become so messily entangled?
Was it that person’s Thousand Day Technique that caused this?
Jegalling spoke.
“Since your head’s already been severed, you might as well purchase a few more hair ornaments. The finest quality.”
“Are you mocking me?”
“Your head was cut off but it didn’t work out, did it? Look at the ornaments your master worked so hard to obtain and weep.”
His personality was truly terrible even in this situation.
“In any case, I thought Hyeolseonggyo wouldn’t interfere since we’re not far from Beijing… but I didn’t realize the Eongaju itself would be the problem.”
“There are quite a few of those things remaining in this land. And… they will activate one by one.”
“Ha, so you’ve reached the point where you can speak of such matters. The heavenly secrets have truly gone rotten.
Suddenly, I recall Jegal Ryang, another Gae Pa Josa like myself.
What he left behind were merely the Eight Trigrams arranged according to feng shui.
It wasn’t as though ancient techniques were involved.
To those unfamiliar with it, rather than some secret treasure of the Jegallim Family, it seemed like nothing more than a mere arrangement of stones.
That’s why it was easy to move to Baekrin Uiseon.
In a sense, it survived the Great Calamity because of this, but conversely, it doesn’t possess the kind of absurd power comparable to the Jin Ju-eonga.
However, this side also ascended to immortality just as that side did.
‘Did that person also foresee the Great Calamity?’
From what I’ve heard, the Jin Ju-eonga is somewhat older in history.
However, I sensed that the Sajo of this side didn’t refrain from doing so out of ignorance.
“I must search more thoroughly for the main family’s artifacts.”
Hubei Province.
Where the Jegallim Family originally resided.
Thanks to being close to the Mudang Faction, Gwon Je was able to find and help the young Jegalling.
“By now, that place would be nothing but ashes.”
“Yes. That’s right. Which is why I never wanted to see that place again.”
The place where everything ended.
And.
The place where everything began.
Jegalling closes his eyes.
“Variables keep increasing. Still… it’s fortunate that it’s manageable enough.”
Soon his gaze settles on a letter that came from Dokgo Junghu.
Though written in cipher, Jegalling deciphered everything simply by looking at it.
-Hyeolseonggyo Hebei Branch annihilation complete.
“Still, I don’t wish to return to that place again.”
It was only natural.
That place was like Jegalling’s reverse scale.
* * *
Days at the Jin Ju-eonga.
The people of the Jin Ju-eonga clan treated me with extraordinary kindness.
“It’s not like they’re treating you as a benefactor—they’re actually treating you as one. Brother, they’re comfortable doing this, so just accept it comfortably.”
Though Sama Hyeon said that, I still felt… uncomfortable.
A servant even came to undress me for a bath, and I was so startled I nearly jumped out of my skin.
As time passed, the three of us recovered considerably.
It was thanks to the Jin Ju-eonga clan’s meticulous care and the medicinal tonics served at every meal.
‘Wow, the Jin Ju-eonga clan really does have deep pockets.’
Even with all those jiangshi lost, the money didn’t simply disappear.
I could hear the servants whispering among themselves.
They said they’d never seen Gaju Eon-gwon, who was usually so stingy, spend money so lavishly.
Perhaps that was only natural.
After all, everyone except those who had been near the ruins had forgotten those memories.
‘That’s right. There are things in this world better left forgotten.’
Especially the experience of becoming a jiangshi.
There’s no use remembering it.
The people of Jin Ju-si who hadn’t become jiangshi were perfectly fine except for some fatigue the next day.
Eon-gwon was emptying the warehouses, distributing grain and medicinal tonics.
It was atonement for having been caught up in this incident.
“Anyway, Eon-gwon is really strange. If the opponent had been a martial artist, I would’ve told him to go ahead and blame me for being brainwashed.”
“Considering the old Bidong incident, he certainly had that kind of personality.”
“Looking at that, it seems you really can’t judge a person by just one side.”
“I’m just grateful he didn’t take his own life. Hyeon-a. I could’ve ended up cleaning up that mess myself…”
Jin Cheon-hee spoke with hollow eyes.
Cheonwoo said.
“Brother, since things have come to this, wouldn’t it be good to dispatch some researchers from Baekrin Medical Guild to the Jin Ju-eonga clan?”
“Wow, Cheonwoo hyung, no wonder they say you’re a fox.”
“That’s not it. I’m just saying it would be good to exchange with each other now that we’re close. The Jin Ju-eonga people now regard you as a benefactor. Wouldn’t it be nice to discuss a brighter future together?”
“Translating what Cheonwoo hyung said, that means we should squeeze out more money, right~?”
Cheonwoo laughed—hahaha—and while peeling an apple, suddenly shoved it with the peel still on into Sama Hyeon’s mouth.
Jin Cheon-hee spoke.
“I don’t know. I just want to go back to the Medical Guild once I’m fully recovered. I’d like to see my Master too.”
Just then, a fake cough sounded from outside.
It was Eongaju.
“A tiger, indeed. A tiger.”
Sama Hyeon whispered softly while spitting out the apple peel.
* * *
Eongaju led Jin Cheon-hee to the Eon clan’s archive.
Worn books stretched endlessly, and the smell of book mold and ink hung thick in the air.
“I’ve been thinking about what I can offer in return to the benefactor who saved our main family.”
“That means…”
“I intend to open the secrets of the Eongaju family.”
At those words, my eyes widened.
“Are you serious?”
A family’s secrets are the heart of that family.
Whether it’s the Namgung Family, the Bota Clan, or the Gongseon Family—no matter how great a debt they owed me, they would never expose their family’s heart.
Because it is their spirit and their roots.
But Eon-gwon was different.
“We nearly faced complete annihilation, didn’t we? Though I suppose if you call that being alive, it might feel different. But that’s how I see it. Learn the secret techniques freely. There are also research materials related to corpses, so feel free to examine those as well.”
“Wow…”
“As expected, you like it. I thought you’d prefer this over elixirs, spirit pills, or the Martial Arts Compendium, and my prediction was correct.”
Corpses, so much knowledge about corpses!
My eyes sparkled like stars.
“Is… is this really okay? Truly? Really?”
Did this mean exposing the very foundation and roots of the family was acceptable?
Once I learned this, I could dismantle the martial techniques of the Jin Ju-eon family whenever I wished.
That wasn’t all.
If I revealed the method of dismantling to others, they too could dismantle the Jin Ju-eon family’s martial arts.
Yet Gaju Eon-gwon simply nodded calmly.
“It’s fine. If you wish, I’ll allow my younger siblings to access it as well. Of course, since their foundational knowledge differs, they probably won’t understand it as well as you do.”
That was true enough.
Handing a specialized text to a layperson and praising it as knowledge that could change the world would mean nothing to them.
It would be different if it were a similar martial art, but this is the corpse field, isn’t it?
For my two younger siblings, it’s a field a million light-years away.
‘Still, to see all of this, I’ll need to stay here longer. What should I do?’
Especially the corpse-related records—I have no idea how vast they are.
An ordinary person would need another year just to get through them.
And even then, they’d probably forget half the content.
When I told my younger siblings, they readily agreed.
“That works out well. Since we’re here anyway, I want to refine my external martial arts a bit more.”
Cheonwoo has no real interest in the Jin Ju-eon family’s secret techniques.
Rather, he wants to refine the fundamentals of the Mudang Faction further.
Hyeon spoke up.
“Hmm~ I don’t need the corpse knowledge, but are there any small, practical techniques like the Earth-Form Preservation Method? I’d just like to learn those.”
Hyeon is a thorough pragmatist.
That’s how this child has survived until now.
It was interesting and amusing to see how the Righteous Faction and Heterodox Faction split so clearly.
‘In the end, even the same tree takes on a different shape depending on where it’s planted.’
People are no different.
I suddenly grasped one truth of life.
It was a lesson from the living that ancient ruins could never teach.
‘….’
While reading a favorite corpse cultivation text, I suddenly found myself glancing over my shoulder.
An inexplicable dread had seized the back of my neck.
Life and death.
‘What was she? And what was that relic?’
Killing people was easy, and saving them was equally easy.
The principles of the world that I thought would never change—I had overturned them as easily as flipping my palm.
Of course, a price had been paid.
Yet the first bell that rang had transformed everyone into corpse cultivators without any price at all.
‘It’s as if she’s toying with humanity itself.’
What was Heaven?
Was it filled only with beings like that relic?
Killing people, saving them, turning them into Hyeongyeong.
Beings that humans could never resist—entities that drove one mad merely through contact.
Along with the primal terror that any living being could not help but feel, an irritating sensation crept over me.
‘Cheonma said she would shatter Heaven.’
She is a living Demon and is revered as death itself.
Her shattering Heaven surely did not stem from some desire to liberate the Gangho from suffering, or from love of humanity itself to forge cooperation.
It was simply because she disliked having something above her head.
Such a trivial reason.
That is why she shatters Heaven.
Truly a mad and violent Demon.
Viciously selfish, narcissistic, and arrogant.
‘But it is useful nonetheless.’
In overcoming such terror.
Could there be a way to win against those who toy with life and death?
She would not simply be lying here on the ground without thought, postponing the Hyeolseon.
‘It seems she’s quietly preparing her hand in advance.’
Those whom Cheonma aims to shoot.
They are like those who treat human ‘death’ as a game board and enjoy their ‘play’.
Death play.
Recalling an old film, I pulled out the next corpse cultivation text.
Jin Ju-eonga’s death play.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————