Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 954

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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 954
Clinging to Hwang-gu’s back as we raced forward, I could see smoke rising in the distance.
“Hwang-gu.”
Woof!
Without lengthy instructions, Hwang-gu immediately grasped my intention.
We understood each other through the smallest movements, as if we shared a single soul.
Hwang-gu tensed his hind leg muscles.
Bones became a bow, muscles became the bowstring, and inner energy became the arrow.
The spirit beast’s keen nose caught the scent on the wind, divining the distant location.
At last.
Boom!
Following the taut muscles and the flow of inner energy, the massive body launched skyward like a flea.
The dog executed an ascension technique that would have taken an ordinary martial artist twenty years to master—relying on nothing but instinct.
Unaware it was even performing a technique, the dog bounded upward with its tongue lolling out, panting happily.
Joy.
The wind carried scents never encountered before, and my warmth radiated against his back.
His belly was full.
Hwang-gu knew nothing of the martial world’s hidden secrets.
He only knew the freedom of this moment brought him happiness.
Meanwhile, my expression grew increasingly rigid.
What lay beneath us was a sight too terrible to bear.
A scene of such horror that I, bearing the physician’s oath, could not ignore it.
Corpses were stacked like autumn leaves, with bamboo tubes laid beneath them.
Blood flowed down the tubes.
The living drank it greedily.
They were martial artists.
‘Why?’
Martial artists who were not followers of Hyeolseonggyo.
Yet I did not immediately explode in rage.
Instead, I simply observed the surroundings coldly from above.
‘I see. Blood-drinking demonic techniques manifest this way, or so I’ve heard. Given the irregular balance in one leg, their sense of equilibrium has been disrupted… The demonic energy has clouded their minds, reaching even their consciousness.’
Crash!
Hwang-gu landed on all four paws.
The impact was so forceful that it created a bowl-shaped crater where he touched down.
Yet I felt no shock at all, which meant Hwang-gu had absorbed the impact to protect me.
I stroked Hwang-gu’s head, and he licked my face happily.
To Hwang-gu, people dying and others drinking their blood was not a tragedy.
It was like watching a chicken drink chicken blood.
He might think it strange, might find it odd, but he felt no tragedy or rage.
The dog only felt slightly concerned because his master appeared displeased.
These guys looked at Jin Cheon-hee and spoke.
“Huh? There’s the prey… it came.”
Their speech was slurred.
How deeply had the demonic cultivation infiltrated their minds?
“Hey. You grab it.”
“You grab it. You bastard. I’m stronger now, aren’t I?”
“That’s funny. Your neck, I’ll snap it—ugh?!”
In that instant, in the mere blink of an eye, Jin Cheon-hee filled his entire vision.
And the moment the young man’s delicate hands seized that person’s arm.
Crack-crack-crack!
Rotational force transmitted instantaneously through fingers, back of hand, wrist, elbow, shoulder, and neck.
Like fabric caught in factory machinery, his entire body dislocated in an instant.
“Gaaahhhhh…? Wait, why are my bones like this?”
Tremendous pain should have flooded through him.
Even though he himself had screamed in shock.
That person calmly looked down at his own body.
Watching this, Jin Cheon-hee thought coldly.
‘Demonic cultivation that numbs pain.’
It didn’t matter. If they couldn’t move, that was all that mattered.
Jin Cheon-hee’s body moved like lightning, systematically dislocating those who had cultivated demonic arts.
And following his master, Hwang-gu joined the fray as well.
Grrrrrrr!
He didn’t understand much, but since his master was fighting, he fought too.
How delightful!
“Damn it. It’s Cheonhailgwang!”
Even as demonic cultivation crept into their very brains, some still retained enough cognitive ability.
Following their voices, the others chimed in as well.
“Is it really?!”
“Hahahaha! What does the blood of Cheonhailgwang taste like!”
Normally they would flee or prepare a formation.
But these guys were different.
Rather, they were charging forward without restraint.
It felt like a side effect of the demonic cultivation.
However, this suited him just fine.
‘Chasing after fleeing enemies was tedious anyway. This is better.’
Thinking thus, he began breaking and dislocating every single one of them.
They couldn’t feel pain anyway, and considering the atrocities these people had committed, it was almost merciful to keep them alive.
‘I’ll send them all to the government office.’
Thud!
“Gaaahhhhh!”
Still, breaking through the dantian appears to be quite painful.
‘Looking at the form of this demonic cultivation… it doesn’t seem to be from Hyeolseonggyo. As expected, it’s the Demon Cult’s method. Pure demonic cultivation.’
I suddenly recalled Jicheon Cheonma.
In Jicheon Cheonma, the primary enemy was certainly Hyeolseonggyo.
However, the Demon Cult was no trivial matter either.
Especially as the blood feuds among the Soegooju intensified, the Demon Cult eventually began spreading demonic cultivation in all directions.
Demonic cultivation given freely?
Normally, even if offered, one should avoid demonic cultivation.
Not the true demonic cultivation learned by the Six Demon Clans or Soegooju candidates, but the inferior demonic arts learned by those beneath them—the more one cultivated it, the more madness would seep into one’s very core.
Everyone in Gangho knew what those side effects were.
Yet, debts in Gangho run deeper than ink.
Those willing to do anything to repay their debts.
Or those thinking that since they didn’t know when they’d die anyway, they might as well seize power and climb higher—such people began consuming demonic cultivation.
‘And so numerous martial artists driven mad by it began to appear.’
Of course, among them, a small minority existed who could control their madness and heart demons, maintaining sound minds.
But such individuals would either become righteous heroes or true demons, while the vast majority simply descended into madness, madness, and more madness.
‘Though I’m uncertain whether the entire Demon Cult is moving, or if only some of them are acting as certain Soegooju did in Jicheon Cheonma.’
The Demon Cult, when examined internally, is divided into six families known as the Six Demon Clans.
‘They said the Three Elites are moving… I met Mu-jon before… Is Ma-jon moving as well? Is this a prelude to something greater? Or is the Six Demon Clans acting independently?’
In Jicheon Cheonma, Yeo Ha-ryun defeats them one by one while falling into profound heart demons.
The Demon Cult must be changed.
To change it requires greater power.
But now it’s different.
The Cheonma who should have ascended still exists, and the heavenly fortune is becoming disrupted.
I close my eyes.
I recalled that Cheonma from the past—the one who stole the gamsal tang and disappeared.
She was one with an aura unlike a human and a heart unlike a human.
She was a living demon who would drench this world in blood.
Truly a great evil!
In contrast, what of the Six Demon Clans?
Those who coveted the Cheonma’s power even more than what I witnessed in Jicheon Cheonma.
Those willing to do anything to make their own children the next Cheonma.
‘I have no physical evidence of which side is doing this. For now, I only have suspicion. But….’
I turn the sword of my heart toward them.
I will stop the Demon Cult.
In some ways it might seem similar to stopping Hyeolseonggyo, but it’s different.
Hyeolseonggyo operates as a cellular organization with no fixed location, but the Demon Cult is established in Cheonman Mountain Range.
‘Moreover, there are cases where missions are received from multiple places at once.’
Usually that’s how Yeo Ha-ryun operates.
Considering the distance from Sipman Mountain Range to here, it seems wasteful to assign only one mission.
That was when it happened.
“Ugh, uuuugh….”
From somewhere came the sound of blood being coughed up.
A sound so faint that only someone trained in internal energy like myself would have heard it.
I rushed forward urgently and rummaged through the corpses.
Among them, a young child was groaning, utterly exhausted.
I quickly sealed the pressure points to stop the bleeding, retrieved a medicinal pellet, crushed it rapidly with my inner energy for easy swallowing, and placed it in his mouth.
Gulp.
Fortunately, he swallowed it.
I gazed at him with relief and infused my vital energy into him.
“Ugh. Uuh…. W… who….”
“It’s alright. You’re safe now.”
I spoke these words and cradled the child in my arms.
I searched thoroughly to see if there were any other survivors besides this child, but there were none.
An entire village had been completely annihilated.
The sole survivor of that place.
Could one even fathom the weight of that?
This child would now spend his entire life bearing the scars of this tragedy.
I ground my teeth.
‘I’ll seal all their dantians and sever their limb meridians, then send them to the government office. And this child… I’ll entrust him to Bunta of Baekrin Uiseon.’
Still, I was grateful to have saved at least one life.
I thought to myself.
‘I must stop the Cheonma and the Demonic Cult.’
I missed Yeo Ha-ryun.
* * *
The place I arrived at was a fairly large port city called Hwaxian.
It was quite famous even within Anhui Province, serving as a midpoint for logistics transport.
‘Above all, water bandits frequently appear here.’
The informant pointed southeast from Hwaxian.
An island in the middle of the Yangtze River!
‘Are there Demonic Cult members on that island?’
It seemed so.
To get there first….
‘I should turn over the captured water bandits to the authorities and entrust the child to Bunta.’
Even though I had sealed their dantians and severed their limb meridians, I couldn’t leave such dangerous individuals in front of Bunta.
I headed to the government office to hand them over first.
The moment I arrived at the entrance of the government office, officials came rushing out barefoot.
“What an honor to meet the renowned Magistrate Jin!”
Judging by how cleanly they had swept the entrance, it seemed they had been informed in advance that I was coming.
I tossed the prisoner sled that Hwang-gu was dragging to them.
“Please accept this.”
“Gasp! These… these are the water bandits from Supaechai?!”
Noticing the Magistrate’s unusually pallid complexion, I asked.
“Magistrate, why are you so frightened?”
“Their hideout lies on an island across from this harbor, Tae-su. The martial prowess of that bandit leader is far from ordinary… and on top of that, the Yangtze River has overflowed recently. I haven’t the faintest idea what’s happening.”
The Magistrate also mentioned that a massive explosion had occurred in the Yangtze River, creating something akin to a tidal wave.
Because of it, the harbor had been thrown into complete chaos.
It seemed he was worried the government office itself might suffer damage.
‘Tsk. I’d like to scold him for worrying about his own safety when water bandits are at the door… but the garrison has no real power.’
They wouldn’t openly assault the government office, but they could certainly seize this manager’s family and torture them.
This was truly a dog’s situation.
I immediately searched my mental database.
‘Supaechai’s leader. An expert of the highest caliber… though whether he’s reached Hwagyeong or not remains unclear. If I recall correctly, he was once a disciple of some sect called Bakdomun, but after gaining an opportunity and committing crimes, he became a water bandit.’
But Supaechai is on that island?
Water bandits who’ve cultivated demonic arts… Supaechai. The direction that Wonhyangban was pointing toward.
I reached my conclusion immediately.
‘There’s definitely something there.’
It took less than a single blink to reach that conclusion.
“Don’t worry. I’ll personally suppress them for you.”
The government officials’ expressions brightened at my words.
“We’re so grateful!”
“Yes! As expected of Tae-su!”
They seemed more grateful for their own safety than for capturing criminals.
I responded appropriately and left the government office.
Then I arrived at Bunta.
“Soggakju!”
A medical staff member immediately recognized me and rushed over.
“These are survivors from Hyeolsa. Black Dao cultivators whose demonic energy has reached their brains burned the entire village.”
“Ah… such a tragedy…”
The child had already wept dozens of times, yet still began crying again.
In a way, it was a relief.
It was healthier to shed tears than to show no expression after enduring such horrors…
I grasped the child’s hand.
“These people here will help you.”
The child spoke through tears.
“…Don’t go. Don’t go!”
As the child desperately clutched my sleeve, another medical staff member intervened.
“Yonseok, you should tell Soggakju to have a safe journey.”
“Don’t gooooo!”
The child wouldn’t listen.
I simply dislike seeing someone I’ve only just managed to reassure disappear.
I gaze down at the child with dark, weary eyes.
“Yes. It’s difficult… I know….”
I held the child for a long time until his sobs subsided.
His parents, his siblings—all dead.
Drained of blood by Black Dao Cultivators intoxicated with demonic cultivation.
Such tragedies were not uncommon in the Gangho, yet that did not make them any less tragic.
A wound that would mark his entire life.
Even I, watching to see how this child could possibly go on, felt the weight of it all.
The child gathers words hesitantly from his throat.
“…Where are you….”
“Your older brother is going to fight the Demon Cult now.”
“Huh?”
“I will find those who did this to you and stop them no matter what.”
I meet the child’s gaze directly.
“So that no one else in this region becomes a victim. Will you stay here and be well?”
“…I don’t want to. I don’t want to!”
The child shook his head vigorously for a long time.
I gently stroked the crown of his head.
His scalp was damp from how much he had cried.
“….”
After crying, and crying, and crying some more.
He looks at me.
Then he looks at the faces of the Medical Staff, back at me, and then at the Medical Staff’s faces again.
“…They’re really scary. Can you really win, older brother?”
“I can win. Yes. I will win.”
“They’re incredibly strong.”
“But your older brother already won just now, didn’t he?”
“….”
The child hesitated, and hesitated again, before finally releasing my hand.
Taking that as a signal, I nod.
The child speaks.
“You have to win for sure.”
“Yes. I’ll win and catch every last one of them.”
A promise made with a child.
I pull a candy box from my sleeve.
Star candies I eat from time to time when things grow difficult.
They were half-filled.
“Take care of yourself.”
The child bursts into tears again. But he no longer clings to me.
I looked toward the Medical Staff.
The Medical Staff spoke with worried eyes.
“You must be careful on your way, Soegooju.”
“If you get hurt, come straight to Bunta.”
“I understand. Don’t worry.”
The Doctor steeled myself mentally.
‘I will fight the Demonic Cult.’
After I had gone far away, the child suddenly looked down at the ground.
“Oh, frost!”
Where I had stood, frost lay cold and crystalline.
“It’s supreme-grade ice technique. It seems Soegooju was quite angry.”
The Medical Staff member spoke thus and carried the child inside.
The frost created by pure intent did not melt, whether day turned to night or night to day.
“How strange. If it were ice created by martial technique, it should have vanished in half a double-hour.”
The Doctor had become capable of creating cold through intent alone.
This meant the Gangho’s blood tribulation was breaking through the wall of the five desires and seven emotions.
The frost that had formed this way remained in that place for a long time, standing guard.
And brought a chill to all who entered Bunta.

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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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