I Became the Oriental Doctor for Divine Beasts - Chapter 1

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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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A doctor for divine beasts.
#1
Early summer sunlight filtered down the slopes of Bukhansan; a narrow alley lined with stone walls.
The early morning air still held a thick, quiet moisture.
Yet on both sides of the alley, luxury cars—black Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, Maybachs—sat packed bumper to bumper.
“Wow, look at all these cars.”
Startled elderly villagers clustered together in the distance, hands clasped behind their backs, murmuring low.
“Why are they all gathered in front of Baekmuodang?”
“Wasn’t it just a neighborhood clinic?”
In front of the traditional Korean house bearing the sign “Baekmuodang Clinic”—
Security guards in black suits and dark sunglasses stood stationed on either side of the gate, watching the surroundings with the stillness of statues.
A tension hung in the air before the entrance.
“What on earth is all this about?”
Meanwhile, inside the treatment room on the first floor of the house.
A woman with long black hair tied back in a single knot sat at her desk with her elbows propped up, pressing her temples with both hands.
A nameplate on the desk read: “Director, Oriental Medicine Practitioner Go Yeon-hui.”
“Ugh.”
Lost in thought, Yeon-hui unconsciously touched the jewel hanging from her neck.
The honey-colored stone—the Cat’s Eye Stone, as it was also called—caught the light and glimmered against her fingertips.
‘My small, precious clinic…!’
Just four days ago.
This place had been a clinic that treated light cases—a strained back, the common cold, indigestion.
A refuge for the neighborhood folk.
But now, in the waiting room of the clinic….
“It’s been a while since we’ve seen you, Director Baek!”
“Ah. Jeong Ra-bit, I’ve been enjoying your latest song. And you’re here again too, Ma Yun-sang?”
“I’m here to manage my condition before the competition.”
Figures she’d only ever seen on TV news—a conglomerate heir, a famous idol, a national athlete—sat waiting their turn.
To Yeon-hui’s eyes, they all had golden aura flowing through their bodies.
And more than that—
A tiger’s tail. A rabbit’s ears. Horse hooves.
Elements that ordinary humans didn’t possess. They had them.
‘Have I finally lost my mind?’
Yeon-hui stretched her neck and peered through the cracked-open door into the waiting room.
But no matter how many times she rubbed her eyes and looked again, the sight didn’t disappear.
Toward the cat curled up on the desk, Yeon-hui called out, nearly on the verge of tears.
“Alfred! Say something!”
The white cat with fur so bright it gleamed swished its tail slightly.
Then, with its odd eyes—one golden, one blue—it stared straight at her.
After which, as if it knew nothing at all, it gave a smug little meow.
That indifference annoyed her so much that Yeon-hui buried her face in her arms on the desk.
* * *
A few days earlier.
In the garden of Baekmuodang, bathed in quiet moonlight.
On a cool summer night, a wind chime hanging from the eaves swayed gently in the breeze, its clear tones ringing out.
“Mm, it’s dried well. Good.”
I sat on the veranda, trimming medicinal herbs for the next day’s treatments.
Beside me was Alfred, a white cat who had been with me since infancy, purring contentedly with drowsy breath.
The aroma of dried herbs spread subtly through the summer night air.
That was when it happened.
[Follow the guidance of the Cat’s Eye Stone.]
Pop—something appeared before my eyes and vanished.
It felt as though semi-transparent letters or shapes had overlaid themselves on my field of vision.
“Huh?”
At the same moment, the necklace began to gleam, tugging me in a specific direction.
I reached for my neck with confused fingers.
It felt as if an invisible hand had seized the necklace and was pulling me somewhere.
— “Yeon-hui, never lose this necklace. It’s not an ordinary thing.”
— “What do you mean by that?”
— “It will protect you, help you, and guide you. Truly.”
Ten years ago, when I turned seventeen.
My mother’s words, spoken as she placed the necklace around my neck, came flooding back with perfect clarity.
I’d never imagined then that they would become her final words.
In any case, nothing like this had ever happened since—
‘Mother, through and through an MBTI Thinker, would never have made such a silly joke…’
Yet I couldn’t ignore the fact that the Cat’s Eye Stone was still glowing, still pulling me forward.
Confused though I was, I jumped to my feet.
“I’d better check it out. Alfred, keep watch over the clinic.”
“Meow.”
The white cat meowed briefly, as if in agreement.
I walked along the winding alleyways of traditional Korean houses at the foot of Bukhansan, following the direction the necklace drew me.
Step. Step.
I walked for some time.
“…!”
At the far end of the alley, beyond the reach of streetlights, someone was leaning against a wall half-swallowed by darkness.
A middle-aged man in formal dress.
His hair clung damp to his forehead with sweat, and his breathing was rough and irregular.
‘What is this? A drunk?’
I approached cautiously, but—
An unusually pale complexion, thick-lined features. Dark eyebrows.
Taken together, his face carried an impression remarkably like a tiger.
‘Why does he look familiar?’
The moment I hastened my steps to draw closer.
I stopped breathing.
His left eyelid drooped halfway. His forehead above his eyebrow held not a single wrinkle.
His mouth was drawn down crookedly, and drool beaded at his chin.
His lips moved as if trying to speak, but his tongue fumbled uselessly, searching for position.
“This is—!”
My gaze sharpened in an instant.
Ptosis of one eyelid. A forehead completely free of wrinkles despite apparent paralysis. Asymmetrical mouth.
Clear precursors of stroke.
“Can you hear me? Try blinking your eyes!”
I rushed forward and shook his shoulders. He blinked with difficulty.
But the man still couldn’t support himself, his arms hanging limp.
What should I do?
I bit my lip in hesitation when—
[Quest: Your First Purification]
[Success in proper treatment will result in Awakening as a Purifier. Failure will seal your Awakening.]
The same phenomenon from before appeared before my eyes.
What is this?
Startled, my breathing grew rough, but on the other hand, my mind clarified.
‘Proper treatment’—the phrase whipped me into focus.
‘Right. In a crisis, I need to keep my wits about me.’
I opened my eyes wide.
I immediately pulled out my phone and dialed 119, then withdrew a packet of disposable acupuncture needles from my pocket.
“I’m an Oriental medicine practitioner. I’m going to place needles now, so don’t be alarmed.”
For an ordinary person, the best course would be to get the patient to a hospital within the golden hour.
But I’m an Oriental medicine practitioner.
There was something I could do right now, beyond calling 119.
‘I’ll needle the Seven Stroke Treatment Acupoints.’
The Seven Stroke Treatment Acupoints are seven key pressure points used in stroke treatment.
Needling or moxibustion at these points proves effective against post-stroke hemiplegia, sensory disturbance, and speech disorders.
The moment the first needle entered the Baihui Acupoint at the crown of his head—
“…?!”
A tingling shot through my fingertips.
A subtle, strange sensation—like weak electric current—spread through my arm and reached my heart.
And at that same moment, something extraordinary happened.
[Awakening the Purifier’s aura.]
[Opening Spirit Vision.]
“Wha—?”
The next instant, my gaze was drawn to the man’s neck.
What I hadn’t been able to see before now became visible.
Golden aura flowing along the carotid artery at his neck.
But it was blocked by a black smoke-like aura, unable to reach the brain.
Glimmer—!
Then it happened.
The Cat’s Eye Stone at my neck glowed once more.
That light flowed through my arm, to my fingertips, and down into the needle.
The black aura dissolved away and vanished, and the golden aura surged forth with renewed strength.
“….”
Gradually, the man’s breathing stabilized and his expression grew peaceful.
I steadied my own ragged breath and watched him.
But looking again, that strange phenomenon was gone from his body.
‘What on earth just happened?’
Purification, Spirit Vision—
Had I truly ‘purified’ something?
I furrowed my brow in earnest thought, then shook my head.
‘…No, the needles just worked well. I was just frightened and saw things.’
Then the middle-aged man slowly opened his eyes.
He looked around in confusion, then stared directly at my face.
“You… just now—”
Before he could finish.
Two black SUVs screeched to a halt at the alley entrance. Two men in formal suits rushed over and helped him up.
“Chairman, are you alright?”
“Wait, please wait! That patient—I called 119, so he should ride in that ambulance—”
Before I could finish speaking, they loaded the man into the vehicle and disappeared into the darkness.
‘Chairman…?’
As I stood bewildered, looking around, something lay on the ground.
I bent down and picked it up.
A golden badge engraved with a tiger emblem.
A chill ran down my spine.
‘This is the Baekho Group mark!’
Was that man just now the Baekho Group chairman, Baek Ho-jung?
Why would a major conglomerate chairman be collapsed alone in an alley like this?
And why did they take him without calling an ambulance—
I stopped myself mid-thought and dusted off my knees.
‘Whatever. They’ll figure it out.’
A sudden exhaustion weighed down my shoulders.
I forced myself to stop spiraling and dragged myself back to Baekmuodang—
But the shocks weren’t over.
[Yeon-hui. You have finally awakened.]
I froze.
At the solemn voice of an elderly man coming from the veranda, I went rigid.
Alfred was looking directly at me… speaking in human speech.
“Ha ha ha ha.”
I must have truly lost my mind.
I’d struggled to run the clinic alone after my parents passed, but—
Just when things were finally stabilizing and I thought Alfred and I could at least scrape by together—!
“I think I’m just too tired. I need to go rest.”
The first floor of the traditional house is the clinic; the second floor is my living space.
Swallowing a hollow laugh, I climbed the stairs, and the cat padded softly after me.
[Yeon-hui. Why do you hear but pretend not to?]
What is this? What is any of this?!
Gritting my teeth, I quickened my pace.
The voice following me from behind sighed lightly, as if in resignation.
[Very well. It will be difficult to accept. We’ll talk tomorrow.]
…Sleep.
Everything will be fine after I sleep.
I rushed into my room and shut the door with a bang.
* * *
The next day.
Beneath an unusually clear sky, the air at the foot of Bukhansan was cold and crisp from early morning.
Dewdrops collected overnight glistened on the jujube tree leaves in the yard, and sparrows chattered beyond the wall.
I stood in one corner of the kitchen brewing medicinal tea, murmuring to myself.
“Last night must have been a dream.”
After taking a sip of the sweetly brewed Ssanghwa-tang, warmth spread through my belly and a soft smile emerged.
Choosing “today’s medicinal tea” based on my condition and brewing it is my precious morning routine.
“Ha, of course. It doesn’t make sense.”
A cat couldn’t possibly speak human language.
And black smoke and golden aura—I must have just seen things because I was exhausted.
‘And most importantly, there’s no way a major conglomerate chairman would collapse in the alley in front of my house.’
Repeating this to myself, I picked up the mug of Ssanghwa-tang and headed to the living room.
Click.
The moment I sat leisurely on the sofa and turned on the TV.
『[Breaking News] Baekho Group Chairman Collapses in Street… Consciousness Recovered with Help from ‘Unknown Citizen’』
The news anchor’s calm voice accompanied—
On the screen, footage of the chairman’s hospital arrival and an interview with Baekho Group officials played in banner headlines.
Pfffft—!
I nearly spewed the Ssanghwa-tang I’d been holding in my mouth.
“…Ugh, cough, cough.”
After swallowing the Ssanghwa-tang,
I managed to avoid the disaster of staining the living room rug, but let out a choking cry.
‘So last night… really happened?’
While I was trying to steady my racing heart,
Suddenly, the outside grew chaotic.
The low, firm voices of bodyguards, the dull sound of car doors closing, the murmur of voices.
“…?”
I peeked carefully out the window.
Then I clapped both hands over my mouth.
Men in black suits lined up, and one man walked through their midst.
‘Is that… Baek Eun-ho, the Baekho Group heir?’
A face that appeared to be in his late twenties, tall and lean with a sharp jawline, shoulders held straight and proud.
His sharp, clear eyes somehow resembled a tiger.
The man strode right through the clinic door and called out loudly.
“Where is the Oriental medicine practitioner who helped my father yesterday?”
The stranger’s voice carried up to the second floor living space with perfect clarity.
In that instant, red warning lights flashed in my mind.
‘If I admit it? My peaceful life ends right here.’
My instincts were screaming at me.
I decided unconditionally to play dumb.
I came halfway down the stairs, tilted my head as if confused, and put on the coldest expression I could muster.
“I’m sorry, what? The clinic doesn’t open until later. Please leave.”
While giving this curt dismissal, my inner voice was screaming.
‘Please, just go. Please!’
Baek Eun-ho climbed the stairs with long strides and stared at me intently.
Close enough that a slight reach would touch.
Pale skin, dark blue-black hair.
His eyes held a subtle blue tint that made him seem almost like a white tiger incarnate.
‘If I avoid his eyes, I’ll look suspicious.’
I summoned all my willpower and met his gaze. I wanted to seem as confident as possible.
That was when—
Swish—.
Something flicked across my vision.
A rope with white and black stripes—
“…!”
I instinctively stepped back. It wasn’t a rope.
The man before me had just ‘swished his tail.’
And I don’t mean figuratively.
A literal white tiger’s tail with black stripes swayed behind the man’s back!
“Ah…?”
My pupils followed the motion instinctively.
Baek Eun-ho twisted one side of his mouth into a smile, then
leaned in close to my ear and whispered softly.
“You can see this, right?”

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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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