Murim Login - Chapter 342

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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 342
[Finding the Divine Physician in Sichuan] was nothing less than a supreme-tier Quest. Given its brutal difficulty, the rewards were bound to be substantial.
Ding. Ding. Ding.
Massive experience points and corresponding level-ups. Achievement unlocked.
I cleared away all the relentless system notifications and holographic windows obscuring my vision. I couldn’t simply celebrate when the Divine Physician’s expression was so troubling.
“What’s wrong? You’re not having second thoughts about being unable to treat him, are you?”
“How could that be? Though I may be an old quack, if I do my utmost, there is certainly hope.”
“Then why….”
He hesitated for a moment before releasing a shallow sigh. The faint smile that had lingered at his lips had transformed into wrinkles etched with anguish.
“There are far too many things that must be prepared for the treatment.”
“Ah, if it’s a matter of cost, you needn’t worry.”
Despite my appearance, I am the youngest son of the Taewon Jin Family. It’s already well-known that the wealth the Taewon Jin Family has amassed through northern trade routes in recent years is staggering.
“If it comes to it, we can borrow some funds from their household. Hey, doesn’t the Hyuk Family Fabric Shop have a branch in Sichuan?”
Hyuk Moo-jin nodded with a reluctant expression.
“We do. For a fabric shop to not have a presence in Sichuan, famous for its silk, would be unthinkable.”
“Then let’s raise some quick capital. If worst comes to worst, we can sell the shop, right?”
“That’s absolutely not acceptable.”
“I’ll pay you generous interest.”
“And if I refuse?”
“Then I’ll pay you handsomely for your passage to the afterlife.”
“…Take it all, then. Just uproot our entire family from its very foundations.”
Okay, problem solved.
Yet for some reason, the Divine Physician’s expression remained dark.
Moon-kyung spoke up in place of our master, who couldn’t find the words.
“Um, Young Master Jin.”
“Yes?”
“The greatest problem isn’t that. Of course, the treatment process will require an enormous amount of wealth, but there are materials that are difficult to obtain no matter how much gold and treasure one possesses.”
“Materials that are difficult to obtain… Are you referring to spiritual medicine?”
“Yes. To treat Red Sky River, we need spiritual medicine that meets certain conditions. It is so precious and rare that we may have to wait several years just to acquire it.”
Several years?
That’s far too long. In just a few months, Jeok Cheon-gang’s lifespan will be exhausted.
At that moment, when I was at a loss for words, the Divine Physician continued in a subdued voice.
“A detailed explanation seems necessary. The reason the patient hasn’t regained consciousness is because his balance has been disrupted.”
“Balance?”
“All things in this world are imbued with the essence of the Five Elements, and they must maintain proper equilibrium. The same applies to the human body. This patient attempted to harness a tremendous force, but in doing so, shattered that balance.”
A tremendous force?
Hearing the Divine Physician’s words, something suddenly came to mind.
Fire God Demon Martial Art. The Yeolhwa Sect’s ultimate secret technique that draws out and amplifies all the power of its user.
‘That was the cause.’
In the distant past, Jeok Cheon-gang faced a thousand Demon Cult disciples and earned the title Fire King through the Fire God Demon Martial Art, but as years passed, his aging and weakened body could not withstand that power and shattered.
“When a vessel shatters, what it contains inevitably spills forth. Fortunately, there is a way to restore it, but to do so requires a rare elixir seldom found in this world.”
“A rare elixir seldom found in this world….”
“Moreover, it must satisfy specific conditions.”
“Please, tell me. I will obtain it by any means necessary.”
The Divine Physician exhaled deeply and nodded.
“It will be extraordinarily difficult, but what choice do we have? We must place our hope in you. Now listen carefully to what I say.”
“Yes.”
The Divine Physician explained in grave detail Jeok Cheon-gang’s current condition, the treatment method, and the specific requirements for the necessary elixir.
“Do you remember everything?”
“….”
“Young master?”
“Ah, yes.”
“I asked if you remember everything.”
“Yes. I remember it all. But this is… hmm.”
“…?”
“Could you verify that I understood correctly? Or rather, confirm it for me?”
“I was planning to do so anyway. Go ahead.”
I opened my mouth carefully.
“So right now, the balance has been disrupted by excessive depletion of power, and in particular, the harmony of yin and yang has been broken, correct?”
“Correct.”
“And the cause is uncontrolled, tremendous heat-yang qi.”
“Continue.”
“To restore this broken balance and make it harmonious again, we need an elixir—an extraordinarily potent one—and to obtain it….”
Moon-kyung interjected swiftly.
“It must be an elixir possessing the nature of cold-yin qi. Furthermore, it must contain the accumulated essence of at least sixty years of cultivation.”
“Four months. If we cannot obtain it within four months, everything becomes futile.”
It was the moment the Divine Physician concluded the conversation with a heavy voice.
Ding.
– Linked Quest,
[A Journey of Ten Thousand Miles to Find the Elixir]
has been generated.
– A task you must accomplish; you cannot refuse it!
– Find an elixir possessing the essence of at least sixty years of cultivation and the nature of cold-yin qi!
I stared blankly at the holographic window before finally regaining my senses and asking.
“Is that sufficient?”
“Many other materials are required, but this is the core ingredient that comprises the most critical part. So you should depart immediately and search for the elixir….”
“Ah, yes.”
And so I departed.
Two steps forward toward the Divine Physician. Then I produced something from my robes and offered it.
“Here it is.”
“…?”
“…?”
“Take it.”
The two disciples, who had been staring blankly at me, simultaneously extended their hands and accepted what I offered them.
“What is this?”
“Well, Master. Why don’t you open it first and see?”
“Ah, should I?”
Click.
The Divine Physician swallowed hard and carefully opened the wooden box, and with a pristine fragrance that seemed capable of purifying even a coronavirus, ‘it’ revealed itself.
“Gasp!”
“Wheeze!”
“It is the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng. It contains the essence of more than sixty years and the yin-cold qi. Is this sufficient?”
The Divine Physician, eyes wide open as he alternated his gaze between me and the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, nodded vigorously.
“It is more than enough!”
Ding.
– Quest condition fulfilled!
– Connected Quest,
[Seeking the Elixir Across Ten Thousand Miles]
has been successfully completed!
– Achievement,
[Herb Gatherer]
has been unlocked!
– Substantial experience points acquired!
– Level Up!
As the system notification chimed, my thoughts drifted to Ju Hwa-ran.
‘Thank you, Miss Ju.’
Thinking of her, who had gifted me the Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng while disguising it as a Hundred-Year Snow Ginseng, fearing I might refuse out of burden, a faint smile escaped my lips.
‘I have reason to stop by Shaanxi Province on the way back.’
And I hope that when I do, it will be with a healthy Jeok Cheon-gang.
I asked the Divine Physician, who still seemed bewildered.
“So, what should I do next?”
The Divine Physician, cradling the wooden box preciously, began to move forward.
“Follow me. Moon-kyung, you stay here and tend to the patients.”
“Yes, Master.”
Leaving Moon-kyung, who answered respectfully, we followed in the Divine Physician’s wake.
* * *
Whoosh!
Right beside me, the small figure of the Divine Physician advanced rapidly. With each step he took, a zhang of distance vanished and wind swept past.
What was remarkable was that throughout it all, his feet never once touched the ground.
With a soft tap, the grass beneath his toes bent gently, then returned to its original form.
At that sight, I furrowed my brow.
‘Treading on Grass Flight?’
Treading on Grass Flight was a realm where one dashed forward as if flying while stepping on blades of grass.
Martial artists who had perfected the Divine Footwork to its zenith could employ such techniques, and similarly, Treading Snow Without Trace—leaving no footprints while running across snowy fields—and Treading on Duckweed Crossing Water, the ability to walk across water as if on flat ground, operated on the same principle.
Treading Through Empty Space was a realm achievable only by supreme masters with overwhelming inner force reserves.
‘Of course, if I set my mind to it, Treading on Grass Flight is hardly beyond my reach.’
Yet what struck me as remarkable was that the person displaying Treading on Grass Flight before me was the Divine Physician.
‘I knew he had learned martial arts, but… his Divine Footwork is particularly exceptional.’
I had already discerned that the Divine Physician possessed martial training from our first meeting.
Though his frame was small, he carried a vitality and solidity comparable to young martial artists, and the inner force cultivated in his dantian was considerable.
‘His martial prowess is first-rate, and his inner force reserves seem to be at the pinnacle.’
As I was quietly assessing him, the Divine Physician turned his head, sensing my gaze, and smiled as he asked.
“What troubles you?”
I answered honestly.
“Your Divine Footwork is quite remarkable.”
“Heh heh. No matter how hard this old man strives, how could I compare to you? I simply happened to learn it along the way.”
“In truth, before meeting the Divine Physician—or rather, Old Master Dong—I never would have imagined you had learned martial arts.”
“You must have been surprised. Everyone else is the same.”
Glancing back, everyone except Chung Poong wore expressions of burning curiosity.
Since things had come to this, there was no reason to evade the question. It was better to simply ask outright.
“Though it may be presumptuous, may I ask how you came to learn martial arts?”
Martial arts from a physician—it was awkward enough, yet the Divine Physician did not avoid answering.
“When I had just become a physician in my youth, my master taught me directly.”
“Then, could it be that your master…?”
“Indeed. My master was a martial artist.”
That the Divine Physician’s master was from the Martial World—it was an identity I had never anticipated.
Seeing my expression, he burst into hearty laughter.
“Heh heh. There is nothing to be surprised about. When he accepted me as his disciple, he had already left the Martial World.”
“Ah, I see.”
“My master achieved the highest realm both as a martial artist and as a physician. He became a physician to erase the karma of killing he had accumulated. That is what he told me.”
Suddenly, I felt as though I understood that sentiment.
I too had accumulated the karma of killing. At first, I wielded my spear thinking only of returning home, believing this was a virtual world created by a game.
‘But everything was real. They were all living people.’
By the time I realized that truth, it was already too late.
I could not stop, and I did not stop. I killed to survive, and I killed because they were enemies.
In the Martial World and in the modern era alike.
At some point, the stench of blood had seeped deeply into my very being. It was a reek that no amount of washing could cleanse.
“…I see.”
My delayed response drew a gentle smile from the Divine Physician.
“It is merely each person’s choice. My master chose the path he believed to be right, and I did the same. However, since so many sought out this old man, I had no choice but to learn martial arts for self-preservation. I was naturally dull-witted and received much criticism, but heh heh.”
Everyone carries memories with them.
Divine Physician, who had been laughing aloud at the recollection of time spent with his master, suddenly stopped in his tracks.
“Well, we’ve arrived.”
Crunch.
Frozen leaves shattered beneath someone’s feet.
This was a particularly frigid valley nestled within the Qimen Formation that sprawled outward from Divine Physician’s dwelling.
“Exactly where is this place?”
“This old man calls this place Han Bing Ji.”
Han Bing Ji—a fitting name indeed.
Though Gangwon Province or Moscow might sound more apt, I suppose.
I glanced at Hyuk Moo-jin, who had already begun shivering uncontrollably, before asking the most pressing question.
“So what do we do now?”
“You’ll have quite the ordeal ahead. We need to gather and harvest various medicinal herbs and other materials necessary for the initial stages of treatment.”
“That sounds simpler than I expected.”
“Let me see… I believe a hundred roots of each variety should suffice.”
“Ah, yes. A hundred roots.”
“A hundred roots of each, I said.”
“Right, of course. A hundred roots.”
I had been nodding along when I froze. Wait—what exactly did I just hear?
“A hundred roots of each? Not a hundred total?”
“That’s correct.”
Divine Physician continued with a chuckle.
“A hundred roots of each of twenty-four varieties.”
“…!”
Ding.
– Linked Quest,
[Han Bing Ji Medicinal Herb Slave]
has been created!
– An obligation you cannot refuse!

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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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