Doctor’s Rebirth - Chapter 96

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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 96
Fire
‘I’m nervous. Normally, I wouldn’t perform surgery on family myself….’
The realization that no one else could take my place felt unbearably isolating. I thought to myself.
My fingertips trembled.
This was my Master’s surgery.
I pressed one hand against the other to steady myself.
‘It’s fine. I’ve prepared for everything. That’s why I came all this way.’
I was someone who thrived under pressure. I had no intention of falling apart.
I repeatedly clenched and unclenched my cold hands. Strangely, my palms were already damp with sweat.
Fear and tension made my hands tingle.
‘There’s no helping it. I’m fine. I have plenty of time to compose myself before the surgery begins.’
This was when I needed to show the strongest version of myself.
I drew a deep breath, feeling it reach into the darkest corners of my mind and expand within me.
Then I exhaled slowly and deliberately.
Gradually, my breathing became increasingly rhythmic.
The sensation of my racing heartbeat slowly returned to its natural state.
Once I felt certain that my inner self had achieved equilibrium, I circulated my internal energy through the microcosmic orbit.
It marked the beginning of the day.
* * *
When word came that preparations were complete, I dressed in surgical robes and stood ready.
I passed through the Medical Assistants preparing the Hwasaengjin and entered the operating chamber.
This was where the Medical Guild’s director would be operated on.
By his student’s hands.
Every Medical Assistant’s gaze fixed upon me.
They surely had countless questions. Why did such a young child possess so much knowledge? How could he absorb the Medical Guild’s teachings so rapidly?
The former I could not answer, and the latter was simply the result of relentless effort.
The Hwasaengjin flowed past my body.
Entering the Operating Room, I found countless Medical Assistants and Yoo Ho.
And my Master, sedated and ready.
His handsome face was deceptive—my Master was actually quite formidable.
The massive frame, nearly approaching 190 centimeters in height, lying motionless exerted tremendous psychological pressure.
Instead of greeting the Medical Assistants, I asked them directly:
“What is his vital condition?”
“The pulse shows no significant irregularities.”
“You’ve continued the acupuncture treatment?”
“Yes. We haven’t missed a single day.”
Prior to surgery, we had used acupuncture and moxibustion to slow my Master’s systemic circulation.
This was necessary to stabilize blood pressure and pulse as much as possible, thereby reducing the pressure exerted on the aortic wall.
The problem was that doing so would cause my Master’s body temperature to drop dramatically.
That’s the annoying aspect of the Nine Yin Meridian Severing.
The harmony between yin and yang is severely disrupted, artificially generating cold energy within the body.
Confronting the Martial Arts World’s meridian severing with modern medicine creates such a maddening situation.
What prevents it is the ondol.
A heating system.
I prioritized constructing heating facilities.
‘I bought time through internal medicine treatment.’
The next challenge was managing the pain.
The pain from aortic dissection is typically described as the sensation of an axe striking the chest.
It’s not merely suffering—it’s excruciating agony.
My Master had endured the torment of meridian severing since childhood, and with aortic dissection progressing, the relentless pain persisted.
‘It seems this intense suffering greatly shaped my Master’s temperament, which is why people around him often misunderstand….’
Regardless, managing the pain until the day of surgery was a critical task.
I utilized acupuncture as much as possible while keeping movement minimal and maintaining pain control.
Balancing internal energy with the Five Elements Divine Skill also helped.
I assisted with that directly.
‘I carved out precious time.’
My Master endured remarkably well. Now it was my turn to step forward.
All those efforts existed for this moment.
“The procedure itself is straightforward. If I make no mistakes, there will be minimal aftereffects. Unlike before, I won’t be using a blade to cut through bone and flesh.”
I forced a faint smile.
I am the leader here.
If the surgeon grows tense, the staff becomes even more anxious. Tension breeds mistakes.
“Let’s finish quickly and grab a meal. I’m craving meat today.”
I pulled my facial muscles taut with shameless composure.
I located my Master’s femoral artery in the thigh.
Surgery begins.
* * *
The procedure starts by inserting a catheter into the femoral artery of the thigh.
Following my Master’s slow pulse, I threaded a thin golden wire that would serve as the guide.
‘I never imagined performing such surgery in the Martial Arts World. Not even I did.’
I certainly never expected to procure the materials myself.
A thin tube approximately 6mm in diameter continues advancing along the aorta, deeper inside.
Like a salmon swimming upstream against the current.
“Phew….”
Even with internal energy cultivation, I still miss medical imaging.
The Medical Assistants watched my every movement.
‘A surgical technique without using a blade—is such a thing even possible?’
What I brought was that revolutionary a method.
Normally, when the aorta develops problems, it’s called internal injury, and death is inevitable. Before the heart stops, the patient suffers extreme chest pain.
Even when a renowned doctor diagnoses the pulse and identifies the cause, treatment ends with acupuncture or herbal decoctions.
They label it as heart disease and advise avoiding situations that provoke anger, refraining from strenuous exercise, and steering clear of greasy foods—that’s where their counsel concludes.
When such methods fail, the patient dies in agony.
And more often than not, failure outnumbered success.
The Severed Yin Pulse is even more vicious. Apply the same treatment, and the patient dies from the cold qi.
The acute pain is so severe that the patient’s pulse races from the suffering alone, and the vicious cycle perpetuates itself.
Ultimately, with high probability, the patient perishes before reaching adulthood.
What Jin Cheon-hee demonstrated was a form of medicine they had never witnessed in their entire lives.
Among these, this particular surgical technique was the most absurd.
In theory, it’s certainly possible. But will it actually work?
‘He is the favored disciple of the Medical Sage. If he would offer his own body, it must mean he believes it’s possible.’
‘But if this surgery succeeds after the Baekrin Sindan, what upheaval will sweep through the Gangho?’
He treats the Severed Pulse—deemed incurable.
According to Jin Cheon-hee, it is not complete healing.
Merely alleviating suffering and extending the lifespan.
Even that alone was impossible.
Jin Cheon-hee’s closed eyes opened halfway.
His refined eyes gleamed with brilliance.
He spoke with a voice so dazzling it could inspire jealousy.
“We’ve finally arrived.”
The golden thread had reached the problematic thoracic aorta.
Now came the turn to install the stent graft I had prepared in advance.
In the language of the Martial Arts World, it was called an artificial blood vessel, a synthetic vessel. Yet due to old habits, I kept using the term stent.
* * *
The stent arrived at the diseased area.
The metal mesh inside expanded like a balloon, and the folded stent began to unfold.
Both the metal mesh and stent were crafted from the golden thread obtained from the Mannyeonhwari’s inner core.
As I unfurled the stent, my concentration deepened.
‘If I secure it incorrectly and blood leaks into the aortic wall, I’ll need a second surgery. But there won’t be a second chance.’
I couldn’t even catch two Mannyeonhwari, and even if I somehow found them, I had no way of knowing my Master’s condition by then.
When I escaped from the Abandoned Monastery’s seclusion training at the end, an ordinary Master would have noticed long ago.
My Master’s condition was so poor that I couldn’t even confirm that.
‘Exhale….’
From here on, the sensitivity in my fingertips was paramount.
* * *
Jegalling’s eyes opened.
It was strange.
There was no pain. The languor remained, but the crushing pain that had gripped his heart was gone.
He slowly raised his upper body.
Then he suddenly saw Jin Cheon-hee asleep on his lap.
Had he been directly monitoring my condition after the surgery?
Extreme exhaustion was etched across my face.
Since making that promise with Jegalling, I hadn’t slept properly for a single night.
During those days when I wondered if I was engaging in self-abuse, I accomplished everything I possibly could.
Jegalling stroked my back.
“Since you’ve given everything for me, now I must give everything for you.”
Jegalling neatly tied back his silver hair.
After laying me on the bed, he stepped outside.
It was the middle of the night when everyone was asleep.
Outside, Yoo Ho stopped moving something and looked at Jegalling in surprise.
“Master.”
“Strangely, my chest doesn’t hurt. The medicinal energy seems to have nearly dissipated.”
He closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.
“No, that’s not right. Even with medicinal energy present, I’ve never felt this painless.”
“The procedure was completed successfully.”
“Yes. My heart is telling me that.”
Jegalling gazed up at the night sky.
“I never knew the stars could shine so brightly. I didn’t know the air could smell so fragrant.”
Like someone newly born, Jegalling murmured to himself.
Soon he spoke.
“Just the absence of pain makes life taste so sweet. It truly does.”
Creating an artificial blood vessel using the Mannyeonhwari’s inner core was madness.
But as a result, the Mannyeonhwari’s vital fire continued to circulate.
Of course, Jegalling’s inner power didn’t increase. Absorbing the artificial vessel to increase inner power would simply mean death.
But there was no more pain, no more risk of death.
I hadn’t completely healed the severed meridian itself, but even that alone made Jegalling’s vision spin with vertigo.
“Please don’t overexert yourself today, Master. Rest instead.”
“Yes. But there’s one thing I want to try.”
A small smile played at the corners of Jegalling’s mouth.
* * *
A delicious aroma wafted through the air.
I slowly opened my eyes.
‘Oh, I must have fallen asleep without realizing it!’
When I opened my eyes, I was lying straight on Master’s bed.
I looked around.
‘Where is Master?!’
As I sprang up, I heard a low chuckle.
“Hee.”
“Master…”
“I’ve prepared breakfast. Would you like to eat?”
I sat at the table with disheveled hair. Before me lay an array of delicacies, with a particularly large bowl of broth positioned prominently in the center.
“Master, how is your body?”
“Here you are surrounded by such fine delicacies, and that’s the first thing you ask me.”
“….”
“A person cannot survive the Gangho if they’re so naively virtuous.”
My master clicked his tongue and lifted the lid from the broth bowl.
Carp soup revealed itself, releasing a rich and fragrant aroma.
“I’m fine. I’m more than capable of preparing medicinal cuisine with Mannyeonhwari flesh.”
“Wow, then….”
“Your procedure was successful.”
At those words, Jegalling watched as my eyes welled up, the moisture gathering at my retinas.
“Eat.”
“Master.”
“The broth will grow cold.”
I wiped my eyes with my sleeve.
Then I picked up a piece of Mannyeonhwari flesh.

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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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