I Prayed for a Murim Reincarnation, But I Was Born as the Youngest Imperial Prince - Chapter 104

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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 104
Seonwu did not rush straight into the Yige.
If he were an imperial envoy, he could just march right in and expect them to open the gates, but he was, after all, just a ‘normal’ chivalrous xia.
‘Well, maybe a bit more than normal these days.’
He could definitely feel his own fame.
The moment he stepped into the inn, all eyes turned toward him.
‘I bet at least one of them is a scout from the Beggars’ Sect.’
They were probably comparing his group’s appearance to the descriptions they had received, wondering if it was really them.
“Welcome, masters.”
“We need two rooms for the night and some food. How much for your best room?”
“Our finest room is already taken, sir. But we have two rooms available in the next tier.”
“We’ll take those. And call someone to deliver this to the Yige.”
Seonwu handed over a formal challenge card he had prepared in advance.
It contained a polite request to visit the Yige, asking them to designate a convenient date.
The appearance and equipment of the three men.
The specific business that required sending a formal challenge card to the Yige.
Their generous spending.
Piecing these three clues together, the inn waiter was almost certain of their identities.
‘Still, I should ask carefully.’
“By any chance, are you Great Hero Chivalrous Dragon?”
“Oh? You recognize me?”
“Hehe, your reputation precedes you even to this place, sir. If so, then the two gentlemen beside you must be the Sword Dragon and Earth Dragon.”
“That’s right. Hmm, I guess we really have become quite famous. To be recognized instantly just from a few traits.”
Seonwu felt a wave of deep satisfaction.
‘This means my reputation as a chivalrous xia has truly grown.’
The level of fame required for an information officer of a Wulin sect to recognize you is completely different from a regular inn waiter knowing your name.
It finally sank in that he had become truly famous.
‘This is exactly what I wanted.’
Upholding chivalry, gaining fame.
As for acquiring rare and precious treasures, he had already gathered more than enough, so he could pass on those for now.
And since he hadn’t even found the time to read through his existing secret manuals, he could skip those too.
Plus, making like-minded friends along the way.
Well, if you counted a persistent bond carried over from a past life, and one incredibly talkative sword.
‘Though it has been a bit quieter lately.’
And one rather fierce subordinate.
Did this roughly match the picture he had envisioned?
Either way, his journey into the Jianghu was proving to be a massive success.
The waiter was quick-witted.
He noticed that all three men reacted completely differently to being recognized.
‘The Chivalrous Dragon is delighted, the Earth Dragon doesn’t seem to care, and the Sword Dragon is on his guard.’
The rumors were right about the Sword Dragon’s blade being a terrifying killing sword.
‘The Chivalrous Dragon might be pleased, but if I act too familiar trying to earn a tip and accidentally touch the Sword Dragon’s sore spot, I might end up losing a limb.’
It was best to just quietly do exactly what he was told.
“I will show you to your rooms and have your meal prepared right away.”
“Bring us whatever dishes this place recommends. Make it a generous portion, enough for five people.”
“Understood, sir.”
Basking in his newfound fame, Seonwu waited for the Yige to respond to his card.
The inn food tasted exceptionally delicious today.
* * *
The Patriarch of the Yige fell into deep thought after receiving the formal challenge card requesting a visit.
While patients came and went every day, these visitors were guests in the purest sense.
‘The Three Dragons are coming.’
The current Jianghu highly esteemed this trio of outstanding rising stars who were currently taking the world by storm.
First was the Chivalrous Dragon, the leader of the group, whose martial arts were rumored to surpass his junior disciple’s, though the truth remained unverified.
Then there was the Sword Dragon, who had defeated the proud successor of the Namgung Clan to claim his title.
And finally, the Earth Dragon, a brilliant formation master put forward by the Zhuge Clan.
With the three of them traveling together, their collective name carried far too much weight to be dismissed as mere rising stars.
In particular, their feats of taking down Jinguo Manei and exposing Patriarch Huangbo’s conspiracy were achievements that far exceeded what anyone their age should be capable of.
“Even for one of the Top One Hundred Masters, those would be daunting tasks. I myself wouldn’t have the confidence to face Jinguo Manei.”
Yaxian Gal U-ryang, the Patriarch of the Yige, muttered to himself as he stared at the card.
“Hmm, precious guests indeed.”
Though he was a physician, he was also the leader of a sect.
‘Our pavilion is on bad terms with other physicians, so we have plenty of enemies.’
For now, they hadn’t clashed severely with the medical circles outside Fujian Province, but there was no telling what the future held.
In fact, a confrontation was highly likely.
He had absolutely no intention of stopping the expansion of his disciples, after all.
If he could build a good relationship with the trio now, he might be able to count on their help down the line.
While he had formed connections by treating patients from various Wulin sects, one could never have too many powerful masters on their side during an emergency.
‘For now, my cultivation realm is higher than theirs, but given how extraordinary they are at such a young age, they will surpass me before long.’
Since none of the current patients were in such critical condition that he had to treat them personally instead of letting his disciples handle it, he decided to clear his schedule.
“Tell them they are most welcome, and invite them to join me for lunch tomorrow. Prepare a grand feast.”
“Yes, Master.”
* * *
Seonwu beamed broadly when he arrived and received such a warm welcome from the Patriarch.
“I didn’t expect someone as busy as you to clear your personal schedule for us. It’s an honor.”
“Haha, when three renowned heroes of the realm come to visit, how could I possibly stay inside?”
“Still, I worry that we might be causing an inconvenience to your patients.”
“Not at all. I’ve already checked on the patients who require my personal attention, and my disciples are more than capable of handling the rest.”
“In that case, I will gladly accept some of your precious time, Elder Yaxian.”
Seonwu studied Gal U-ryang.
Although the man’s title contained the word for an immortal sage, his actual appearance didn’t quite match that image.
‘He looks less like an immortal and more like a… well, a very stubborn university professor.’
Among professors, there were always those who were socially adept and masters of politics, but there was also the opposite type—the stubborn eccentrics entirely consumed by their own research. Gal U-ryang definitely felt like the latter.
He didn’t possess the detached, carefree aura of a typical Daoist master.
‘Then again, he’d need that level of stubbornness to keep doing his own thing regardless of how much the other physicians curse him.’
“The people speak very highly of the Yige, praising how you offer such exceptional medical care for incredibly charitable fees.”
“Haha, to be honest, our prices aren’t actually that low. If we truly charged pennies, how could our pavilion afford to build a place of this scale?”
“Even so, compared to the physicians in other provinces, they say Fujian Province is an absolute paradise.”
“Mmm, that is simply because the physicians in other provinces charge far too much.”
Gal U-ryang firmly restated his conviction.
That response alone brought a smile to Seonwu’s face.
‘Hmm, should I speak to Father and give the Yige a bit of royal backing? Even if I leave them alone, they’ll probably keep churning out more physicians over time, but…’
That would take far too long.
In the meantime, countless people would continue to suffer.
‘Ugh, technically, a shortage of physicians is something the state should have taken care of in the first place.’
Granted, he had been too young and focused entirely on his studies to notice, but the Imperial Court had been established for forty years now.
‘Maybe they were too busy fighting off demonic monsters to think about this sort of thing? Well, I suppose it has been a forty-year wartime state.’
Seonwu couldn’t bring himself to openly criticize his father, the Emperor, for running the country so carelessly.
He had his doubts internally, but keeping them to himself made him a reasonably filial son.
However, not blaming his father was one thing.
‘I can’t just leave the current situation as it is.’
That said, he couldn’t blindly trust the Yige based solely on what Jun had told him.
He needed to see for himself whether they actually treated people properly.
He had to verify if the name of Yaxian was merely an empty rumor.
‘It’s not like I’m trying to conduct some rigorous medical evaluation.’
He just wanted to see if they maintained the absolute basics.
“Would it be possible for me to observe how you diagnose and treat actual patients? I promise to move quietly so as not to disrupt anything.”
“Haha, there really isn’t much to see.”
“I don’t intend to open a clinic of my own, but I am simply curious to see how this place differs from others.”
“In that case, would you care to join me when I do my rounds shortly? However, you must promise to watch in absolute silence.”
“I shall do exactly that.”
Seonwu suddenly thought of the Imperial Physicians back at the palace.
‘Come to think of it, those imperial doctors always seemed incredibly idle.’
But that made sense, considering everyone around them was a master who had trained their martial arts beyond a certain level.
Furthermore, they didn’t practice unorthodox internal energy—which boosted combat power but ruined one’s health—but rather the purest, most orthodox inner energy.
‘They hardly ever had a reason to get sick or injured in the first place.’
Modern medicine didn’t exist here, but anyone who mastered pure inner energy became practically immune to regular diseases and poisons.
As a result, the Imperial Physicians had nothing but free time.
‘If you look at it that way, doesn’t Patriarch Yaxian have way more clinical experience, making him the true expert compared to those palace doctors?’
It was time to make a comparison.
While it wouldn’t match up to modern medicine, the man was hailed as a divine physician in the Wulin, so he must have surpassed medieval standards at least.
‘They don’t even have antibiotics, so I shouldn’t set my expectations unreasonably high, though.’
* * *
Keeping his word, Gal U-ryang led Seonwu’s group into the wards to begin his rounds.
“Our pavilion has several halls where we house patients, and I will show them to you in order.”
“Oh, it seems you didn’t just build this place to be large for the sake of it.”
“Indeed, each hall serves a specific purpose. This first one is for patients with mild illnesses. My disciples handle them. Usually, they don’t stay very long.”
Seonwu perked up his ears.
‘Ah, so they don’t divide it into departments like internal medicine, surgery, or ophthalmology.’
Then again, while physicians in this era were known for being good at either acupuncture or herbal medicine, they didn’t specialize by splitting into distinct departments like modern doctors.
“The second hall is for those suffering from severe illnesses that require surgical techniques. We wash them clean first, and then either myself or one of my senior disciples opens the body with a knife inside a purified formation.”
“A surgical technique?”
“Yes, the lone patient in there right now is someone suffering from Xiyang Disease. His body is terribly weakened, so he is currently resting to restore his energy before we perform the surgery.”
“What is Xiyang Disease?”
It was an illness Seonwu had never heard of back in the Imperial Court, where masters were a dime a dozen.
“It is a disease where a part of the flesh or an internal organ turns malignant and gradually spreads throughout the entire body. It was named after Xiyang, the legendary living mud that grows endlessly on its own.”
Seonwu instantly sent a sound transmission to Jun.
[Isn’t that cancer?]
[Yeah, it’s cancer. Aside from Yaxian, a few other physicians here who excel at surgery actually open up the patient, cut it out, and save them.]
[…What?]
[They don’t have disinfectants, but they wash everything thoroughly with water and use a purification formation to sterilize the area. The medical knowledge here is far more advanced than in the rest of the Ming Dynasty.]
They performed cancer resection surgeries?
[Isn’t Yaxian a traditional doctor? A traditional doctor performs cancer surgery? On top of that, his title isn’t even the Surgical Sage, it’s the Medical Sage?]
[Drop your prejudices.]
Seonwu felt a sudden dizziness.
I mean, cutting it out was indeed the correct way to treat cancer, but they were actually doing that here?
“The third hall is for patients who don’t require surgery but are treated with acupuncture, herbs, and moxibustion. Their conditions are grave and complicated, so I must inspect them personally rather than leaving them to my disciples. I already checked on them this morning to prepare for your arrival, so there is no need to visit them again this afternoon.”
“I see.”
“The fourth hall is a place reserved for patients with highly contagious diseases who require strict isolation, but fortunately, it is currently empty.”
“Ah, that is a relief.”
Seonwu was deeply impressed by how much more systematic the operation was than he had anticipated.
‘Sterilization and surgery… This place is actually much further ahead than I thought.’
Because the residents of the Imperial Palace practiced pure, orthodox martial arts, they practically never fell ill, meaning he had never given the state of medical arts a second thought.
Yet the level of the Yige went far beyond simply being good at sticking needles or brewing spiritual medicines.
“What about over there?”
“Ah, that place handles non-essential, superficial treatments, but it brings in quite a bit of money. While it cannot be called the profound way of medicine, the funds earned there help support our other wards… Truth be told, many of my disciples are far more interested in that hall.”
“What exactly do they do there?”
A superficial but lucrative practice?
“One of the treatments is for curing hair loss.”
“Excuse me? You cure baldness?”
“Indeed. While it is not a critical illness, there are plenty of wealthy men who worry deeply about it. Therapies that make their hair thick and full again bring in a massive fortune.”
“Do you actually regrow hair even if someone has gone completely bald? Or is it just a preventative treatment when it first starts thinning?”
“Hmm, it requires very expensive ingredients, but we can make hair grow back even in cases of complete baldness.”
[Hey, complete hair loss means the hair follicle cells are dead, so you shouldn’t be able to revive them, right?]
[When people undergo Marrow Cleansing and Bone Rebirth, missing teeth grow back and severed family jewels regenerate. While it’s not quite to that extreme, just making hair grow back is entirely possible. Yaxian happens to be an expert at treating hair loss.]
Seonwu blinked in sheer disbelief.
This wasn’t a matter of lowering his expectations…
If anything, wasn’t modern medicine taking a massive defeat here?
“We also offer treatments for weight loss. While some people suffer from a lack of food, there are others who grow overly plump from eating too much and moving too little, and they worry deeply over it.”
[Dieting?]
[Yeah. Genuine martial artists like us have no need for it, but not everyone is like us.]
“Do you suppress their appetite?”
“We do that, and we also use acupuncture to stimulate the body to burn off and expel the excess fat.”
“Remarkable…”
“This is another treatment that only the wealthy receive, haha. Both are considered trivial side-tracks in the grand scheme of medicine, but having such a source of income allows us to keep the fees for severe illnesses reasonable, which keeps our pavilion afloat. No matter how strict the rules of the Yige are, my disciples wouldn’t stay if I forced them to live in absolute poverty. It is a highly useful place in its own right.”
Yaxian offered the explanation almost defensively, but Seonwu was simply astonished.
‘Good heavens, shouldn’t he be called a divine physician instead of just Yaxian?’
Wasn’t the title of Medical Sage actually far too modest?
One thing was absolutely certain.
‘Yaxian is a truly exceptional doctor. I need to provide him with support—whether that means helping him train more disciples or shielding him from the jealousy of other medical factions…’
Seonwu followed closely behind Yaxian, his mind already churning with ideas on how he could assist.
Just then, a disciple rushed over to report.
“Master, I believe you need to check on the patient in bed fifteen of the third hall.”
“Very well. I shall go.”
Yaxian entered the building and gently took the patient’s pulse.
Trying to understand that action by the standards of a world without martial arts would be a mistake, as he was actually channeling his own Vatality Restoring Poison Medical Art through the patient to examine their internal state.
After assessing the condition and altering the prescription, he turned to question his disciple.
“Do you understand why I added a fraction of ginger and removed the Eorinchon from the prescription you wrote? Can you see what you overlooked?”
“Yes, Master. The patient’s symptoms have shifted, causing either the Fire Qi… or the Water Qi to…”
Listening to the discussion between the master and disciple, Seonwu smiled, feeling a strange sensation.
‘Well, in this world, this actually counts as a perfectly valid diagnosis.’
Having mastered martial arts and possessed inner energy himself, he understood how it worked.
While bacteria and antibiotics were important, the truth remained that Qi was an incredibly powerful, tangible force in this realm.
In the end, none of that mattered.
They could perform surgeries.
They could cure baldness.
They could help people lose weight.
If a single clinic could accomplish all of that, what couldn’t they do?
By the standards of this world, this place was practically a cutting-edge medical facility.
‘The wards are hygienic… and well-managed… Yeah, I can definitely throw my support behind this place.’
The rumors matched reality.
On top of that, the information provided by his friend Jun solidifed it.
In many ways, backing this pavilion to improve medical care across the entire country seemed like an excellent idea.
‘Granted, there might be a side effect where a single academic lineage ends up dominating the nation’s medical circle…’
But it wasn’t as if they could expand fast enough to completely wipe out everyone else overnight anyway.
Besides, the Yige was hardly going to stage a rebellion against the absolute martial might of the Imperial Family.
‘Yep, no problem at all.’
Without even realizing that his thoughts were entirely focused on statecraft—resembling an imperial prince or a king rather than a simple chivalrous xia—Seonwu arrived at his own conclusion.
And thus, without even knowing it, Yaxian Gal U-ryang had just secured the backing of the Imperial Court.

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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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