Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 959
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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 959
A point quite distant from Hwahyeon.
Where the Yangtze River coiled like a dragon, a forest spread out like clouds.
I dismounted from Hwang-gu’s back.
The distance between us and the pursuing Masked Persons had grown considerably.
“Hmm, should I shake them off like this? Or should I settle everything here?”
Yeo Ha-ryun climbed down from Hwang-gu with a weary expression.
It made sense—what my older brother had done to the assassins chasing us was so severe that it would be remarkable if they didn’t cough up blood from their dantian at the seventh stage.
In fact, some of them had collapsed mid-pursuit, spewing blood.
Demonic Cult assassins typically have their emotions suppressed, yet even they had their minds turned to rage!
‘Where on earth did he learn something like that? Could it be that Sama Hyeon taught him?’
The instrument he happened to bring wasn’t the Anheul Pipa I had gifted him, but the Seven-Silver Zither.
Since I met him less frequently than my other brothers, even such trivial details weighed on my mind.
Watching Yeo Ha-ryun glare at the Seven-Silver Zither with displeasure this whole time, I also pondered.
‘Hmm, what if I happen to meet Sama Hyeon while holding the Anheul Pipa?’
Yeo Ha-ryun spoke.
“Settling them would be better. It’s good to reduce their numbers beforehand.”
“I agree with that. Sifu.”
Then.
Someone emerged from the forest.
And in that instant, Yeo Ha-ryun’s expression became that of someone seeing a dead man.
I felt the same way.
“Heukun? I thought he was dead…?”
Yeo Ha-ryun spoke.
“Yes. Since Sifu absorbed the Cheonma Divine Art from my dantian, death should have been inevitable. However… fate has touched him.”
Back during the Golden King’s trial, I had ruined him to protect Sama Hyeon.
And Yeo Ha-ryun had pursued and finished him—or so I had believed. Yet that Heukun had returned alive.
Of course, he was not in proper condition.
He had lost one eye, becoming one-eyed, and half his skin was twisted from severe burns.
Moreover, I had felt no presence at all until he emerged from the forest.
‘Was some special formation technique or sorcery involved?’
The opponent was from the Demonic Cult. Any variable was possible.
Yeo Ha-ryun’s lips pressed into a thin line.
“Heukun. You were alive?”
Already, Yeo Ha-ryun had counted one.
After all, having killed him once, wouldn’t it be better to tear out his neck next time to ensure he stayed dead?
While Yeo Ha-ryun thought thus, Heukun spoke.
“Hahaha! Yes. I’ve crossed the River of Three Paths several times already. I survived in the end, but… you two bastards, no—because of three bastards including Gwang Myeon-hori. I’ve lost so much. Now that the Cheonma Divine Art is gone from within me, I’m not even a Soegooju anymore…”
I thought to myself.
‘Did he beg for his life under another Soegooju from the Six Demon Clans?’
Even so, he didn’t appear to have received proper cultivation.
‘His fingertips continue to tremble, and his gait is unstable. The demonic energy has already begun permeating his very marrow.’
Yet the fact that he maintained his rationality despite this suggested his innate talent was considerable.
And the fact that he came here regardless meant—
“Yeo Ha-ryun! I came here because I wanted to take your head with my own hands! I came prepared to sacrifice even my own life!”
I spoke on behalf of Sama Hyeon, who was not present in this place.
‘Demon Cult Leader, so what do you want me to do about it?’
It might be fortunate that Hyeon was not here.
‘And I hope Cheonwoo remains pure and righteous like the Righteous Faction from now on.’
I was worried because, especially after the recent incident with the fish-folk, encounters with demonic entities were increasing.
The fewer people committing such insane acts, the better.
That was when it happened.
“Sifu. Calm your mind.”
A group emerged from the forest.
A handsome man with a clean impression.
He bowed respectfully to me and Yeo Ha-ryun, introducing himself as Dokun, the ninth Soegooju of the Demon Cult.
Heukun and Dokun.
I thought there might be some blood relation between them.
‘Originally, there was no mention of him in the records of Jicheon Cheonma… He must have been killed by the hands of other Soegoojus, or perhaps by the Righteous or Heterodox Factions.’
So the threads of fate could change like this.
Just as his name contained the character for poison, his hair was a blue-green color.
It seemed he had suffered side effects from cultivating poison techniques.
Yeo Ha-ryun asked.
“Dokun. Is this your doing?”
Dokun smiled with a clean expression.
“The Cheonma has commanded it. One Soegooju is sufficient now. It seems you haven’t received the proclamation yet. Or perhaps not? …With your subordinates scattered about, it’s only natural that your information would be slow.”
“….”
He openly mocked Yeo Ha-ryun.
‘If Ilkana heard this, she would weep bitterly…’
Yeo Ha-ryun had acted alone out of consideration for his subordinates, but he never expected it to become a subject of ridicule.
However, Yeo Ha-ryun spoke calmly without a trace of anger.
“First. I have always preferred to move alone. And second. I alone am sufficient to eliminate both of you.”
A clear provocation.
But I knew that Yeo Ha-ryun wasn’t provoking—he was simply stating a fact.
A true master, especially an overwhelmingly powerful one, had no need to think that far ahead.
“Ha? Hahahaha! Your audacity remains unchanged. Very well. Then I shall take your life here.”
As he gave a hand signal, numerous Demon Cult disciples began to emerge from the forest.
Goooooo—
Demonic energy spread in all directions.
However.
While the Pursuers had lost their reason due to demonic arts and displayed abnormal behavior, these ones showed restraint.
As I drew closer to Hyeongyeong, I sensed the enemies’ intentions gathering with pristine clarity.
‘As expected, they’ve all awakened to the nature of intention.’
Those who had comprehended what intention was, even if I didn’t know exactly how they contained it.
The world transforms simply by knowing such things, does it not?
‘It won’t proceed as easily as it did with the Pursuers…’
As I observed this, something suddenly came to mind, and I posed a question.
“Dokun, Soegooju, I have a question.”
When Dokun raised his hand, the demonic cultists halted.
“What is it, Ilgwang?”
“What exactly is this ‘Magi’ that you speak of?”
“Hmm?”
An unexpected question.
Yet it was a question that probed the very essence.
“I’m curious about what this ‘Magi’ is that the Ilwol Singyeo reveres so greatly. Before you arrived, I encountered Pursuers who had learned demonic arts. They lacked reason entirely. Should I say they became fools? They couldn’t ‘perceive’ any threat or danger approaching them at all. It was as if a corner of their minds had been torn away.”
“Hahaha, and so?”
“But your subordinates… they appear quite restrained, following orders precisely. Haven’t they also learned demonic arts? Yet there’s a significant difference from the Pursuers. Why is that?”
It made no sense to attribute this merely to the difference between superior and inferior demonic arts—surely not all of these many individuals had mastered superior techniques.
I grew curious whether it was a difference in special cultivation methods or training approaches.
Dokun regarded me.
The madman of the Jegallim Family.
What could those blue eyes possibly be thinking?
‘If only I could draw him to our side, but since he’s already joined hands with Yeo Ha-ryun, there’s nothing to be done.’
A man destined to die anyway.
Dokun smiled faintly.
“Magi is freedom. The freedom to do anything. But therein lies the problem.”
“What problem is that?”
“The freedom of two or more beings must inevitably clash with one another.”
I nodded readily.
‘Of course. If two people both desire the same object simultaneously, and neither has any intention of yielding, then conflict becomes inevitable. Ah, could it be…?’
Dokun continued.
“The lesser Magi submit to the greater Magi. They dream of freedom, but… to survive, it must happen this way. That is the fate of those who belong to Magi. The reason we absolutely obey the Cheonma is for the same reason.”
This was a tale absent from the Jicheon Cheonma.
It was natural.
In the Jicheon Cheonma, Magi was depicted as winner-takes-all, where all naturally submitted to the Cheonma.
Of course, it could be said to align with what Dokun described, but the process to reach that point was entirely different.
Therefore, the result could not be simply defined as mere survival of the fittest.
After the Cheonma’s ascension.
The Ilwol Singyeo was consumed by internal strife, then annihilated and collapsed by Yeo Ha-ryun.
In truth, it wasn’t only the Ilwol Singyeo—most were slain by Yeo Ha-ryun and disappeared.
“That’s… quite an unusual story. Are you saying that everyone who learns demonic techniques becomes like that?”
“Not at all. Only those who cultivate true demonic martial arts—the Cheonma Divine Art—can achieve such a thing.”
Was it an analogy?
Just as iron filings cling to a magnet, those who had learned the Cheonma Divine Art wouldn’t simply submit of their own accord or regain consciousness in such a manner.
If that were possible, there would be no need to keep subordinates at all.
‘It must be a method that provides some form of assistance during the cultivation process.’
I doubted he would answer beyond that point.
As I turned my gaze toward Yeo Ha-ryun, he spoke.
[When my subordinates lost their reason to demonic energy invasion, I struck them on the head. Strike them, and they either die or regain their senses. Whether they live or die is for Ilwol to judge.]
Truly, a martial arts protagonist of old.
‘Now that I think about it, I believe there was such a scene in Jicheon Cheonma.’
The other Soegooju seemed unlikely to restore reason by beating each subordinate one by one like this.
There were far too many subordinates, and Dokun didn’t seem like the type to do such a thing.
Dokun continued speaking.
“Allowing them to maintain their reason is also a greater demon’s work, and causing them to lose their reason is also what a greater demon does.”
So if those assassins had been commanded by someone from the Demonic Cult, things would have been different.
And…
“Ah… I see… So the Cheonma Divine Art has such a function.”
I didn’t know the detailed method, but I understood the principle.
I seemed to have a profound realization, stroking my chin repeatedly while repeating the same words, then muttered softly.
“…Then it might be worth trying.”
An incredibly faint murmur. No one heard it.
“Before you depart on the yellow springs path, I hope your curiosity has been satisfied. Then… allow me to present you with death. Please, do not refuse.”
The Demonic Cult members began approaching with their swords drawn.
The formation they created amplified the demonic energy, which began to strengthen.
Yeo Ha-ryun raised his momentum.
Then.
I suddenly covered my own eyes with both hands.
Then, lowering my hands again, I murmured.
“Who knows. Who will be the one to die.”
It was a quiet voice.
It resembled the voice of the Cheonma.
It was the sound that everyone feared and dreaded most.
Yeo Ha-ryun turned his gaze toward me.
Feeling my younger brother’s gaze, I laughed.
And I felt the bodies of Dokun and Heukun tremble slightly.
Still, I laughed.
And as I laughed… I spoke with an intonation similar to the Cheonma.
“Freedom. It seems like a good thing. I’ve been quite angry all this time.”
As my voice flowed out, the Demonic Cult members’ sword movements began to halt.
And the bodies of the Demonic Cult followers were equally immobilized, as though trapped in the deepest abyss.
Kuguguguguguuu—
The Five Elements Divine Art. I can command all the natural qi of heaven and earth.
Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong. I can calculate everything under heaven.
I spoke.
“Ha, hahaha. There may be those here who don’t know, or have forgotten. But I… actually possess the Cheonma Divine Art as well.”
“…!?”
Yeo Ha-ryun’s eyes widened slightly.
That was right. My brother was also a wielder of the Cheonma Divine Art.
The ultimate Demon that they spoke of.
If a greater Demon dominates a lesser one, then there was already another such Demon present here.
One who rarely killed, who shunned the path of tyranny and saved people.
That is why I had forgotten.
Chill—
Here. The seed planted directly by the Cheonma was beginning to sprout.
“The Cheonma Divine Art. As the progenitor of all Demons, all Demons shall kneel before the Cheonma. What do you think happens when this is combined with Hyeonwon Jeondan Singeong and the Five Elements Divine Art?”
In that instant,
my eyes began to shine with a dark cyan light.
A radiance in my eyes that even Yeo Ha-ryun had never seen before.
“Brother.”
Yeo Ha-ryun reached out and grasped my shoulder.
I turned my head slightly to look at him.
My brother was smiling.
Yet beneath my feet, frost was seeping in coldly.
It was the same frost that had formed at the Medical Guild branch, and it was also a sign of a certain promise.
“Ha-ryun, your brother… made a promise with someone. That in this land where I exist, there shall be no one committing such atrocities.”
A child was crying, spitting blood from within a corpse.
Ah, that blood and those tears fall upon the Cheonma’s seed.
An awakening of Demon that no matter how heinous the villain, no matter how high they rose in the Hyeongyeong, no matter even an entity of unknowable distance—none could achieve.
The tears of a nameless child accomplished it.
Holding that lump of flesh, the Doctor swallowed the rage inward, inward, inward, inward, inward….
Deeper and deeper into the depths, swallowing again and again.
The seed had finally found its moment.
Not among the five desires and seven emotions—neither anger nor hatred.
Only one thing awakened the seed.
Sorrow. Love.
“Originally, I planned to return once, reorganize, and then emerge. But thanks to this, I’ve come to understand the true nature of Demon. It’s fortunate.”
I felt the sprouted Demon.
The Cheonma Divine Art.
In that moment, I took a step forward.
I walk forward.
Frost traces beneath my feet like brushstrokes from a master painter.
Crackle—
“Freedom. Freedom. Freedom. Doing as I wish is the very essence of the Demon. So why shouldn’t I do as I please? Isn’t that right? Justification. Ideology. Morality. I cast all of it aside. And so….”
My will, riding upon fury, condensed the air itself, and it resonates with the Cheonma Divine Art sleeping within my depths.
“Now then, patients. It is consultation time. If you can escape, I suggest you do so.”
A chill—
At that sight, every member of the Demonic Cult involuntarily took a step back.
‘It’s merely a slight change in atmosphere!’
Why did fear suddenly surge toward that person?
It must be an illusion, surely an illusion!
Dokun confronts Jin Cheon-hee and unleashes his killing intent.
“갈(喝)—–! 모두 정신 차려라!”
Waves of frost begin to swirl around the Doctor.
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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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