The Genius Doctor of the Mount Hua Sect - Chapter 33

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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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Huashan Sect Prodigy Physician 33

“How to fight?”
Baek Hyeon asked back, a note of bewilderment in his voice.
“That’s right.”
Cho Ujin nodded.
His eyes held a fierce resolve quite unlike his usual bearing.
“I don’t mean you should learn my martial arts, of course. You’re already studying the Huashan Sect’s techniques, and besides, my methods carry too much killing intent—they wouldn’t suit you.”
“Then what should I learn?”
“How to fight, literally speaking. It’s different from theoretical martial arts—it’s about actual combat strategy.”
Cho Ujin said this while holding Baek Hyeon’s gaze.
“I know you’re unnaturally strong for your age. Your acupuncture is remarkable, and the technique to temporarily amplify your strength—with those alone, you won’t fall easily to ordinary opponents.”
“I thought so too.”
“But not falling to ordinary opponents means you’ll be vulnerable to stronger ones. Will you spar with me for a moment?”
Baek Hyeon readily nodded.
Cho Ujin clearly wanted to teach him something.
They moved behind the Huashan Medical Clinic and faced each other.
“Try to land a strike on me however you can.”
“I won’t hold back.”
Baek Hyeon unleashed the Huata Acupuncture Technique at full power from the start.
Whoosh!
Five long needles converged on different acupoints. But Cho Ujin didn’t bat an eye—he simply flicked them away.
Clang!
The needles spun uselessly through the air.
‘He’s truly a Peak Master.’
A different caliber entirely from the small fry he’d faced before. Baek Hyeon immediately opened the first gate of Eight Extremes Open Source and pressed the attack.
He was determined to land at least one blow on Cho Ujin.
Suddenly, Cho Ujin’s left shoulder opened.
An obvious gap.
Baek Hyeon seized the moment, deploying a variant form of the Plum Blossom Sword Technique, driving his blade toward Cho Ujin’s shoulder.
In that instant, Cho Ujin’s sword vanished.
Swift.
A cold blade edge kissed Baek Hyeon’s throat.
……
“That gap was deliberate.”
Cho Ujin lowered his sword and spoke.
“The moment you spotted the opening, you thrust your blade exactly as you’d been taught. But you never stopped to ask why I’d revealed that opening in the first place.”
Cho Ujin was telling him he’d walked into a trap.
That sparked something competitive in Baek Hyeon.
‘Should I open the second gate? Or maybe all the way to the third…’
I might actually land a hit on him then. Though the backlash would be severe.
But even as the thought formed,
“Let’s stop here.”
Cho Ujin lowered his sword.
Baek Hyeon felt clarity wash over him and immediately sheathed his blade. Even he could see how reckless it would be to open all three gates just for a sparring match.
“How was it?”
“I couldn’t see any weaknesses. What I thought was a weakness wasn’t one at all.”
“On the other hand, your weaknesses were crystal clear to me. Honestly, I could have slit your throat within three seconds.”
Baek Hyeon scratched his head.
“Was I really that sloppy?”
“No. Given your age and how long you’ve been studying martial arts, your progress is frankly impossible. But your sword still carries the habits of someone lacking real combat experience.”
“What kind of habits?”
“You’re so focused on executing the learned technique forms precisely that you don’t think about why your opponent gave you an opening. You follow the taught forms rigidly, regardless of circumstances.”
Cho Ujin picked up his sword and demonstrated.
“Doctrine is powerful, but it crumbles when facing the unexpected. That’s why martial artists must always fight as if their sword won’t work—constantly imagining unfavorable scenarios.”
“Is this what you want to teach me, Cho?”
“Exactly. How to fight without being enslaved by technique forms. How to adapt to sudden situations using whatever cards you hold. And other things you’ll need to survive in the Murim world.”
“I want to learn.”
Baek Hyeon answered without hesitation.
Cho Ujin regarded Baek Hyeon with a flicker of surprise.
“I thought you’d need more time to consider it.”
“If I were merely a physician, you’d be right. But I’m also a martial artist of the Huashan Sect.”
Back when he was Sin Ui, he had trained in the martial arts only enough to protect himself.
At worst, he could deploy the Eight Extremes Open Source to fight or escape from powerful opponents.
But Baek Hyeon, martial artist of Huashan, needed strength beyond that.
To fulfill Cheong Jin’s wish, he had to revive the Huashan Sect.
For that, formidable power was essential.
‘Of course, I’m not sure what the people of Huashan will think of this.’
Still, receiving instruction from a master like Cho Ujin was a rare opportunity. He had to seize it while he could.
“Good. You’ve thought it through well. My benefactor is indeed sharp-witted.”
Cho Ujin spoke with a faint smile.
Considering how rarely he smiled, it was as good as beaming.
“But I won’t have time to devote myself entirely to training. I have work to attend to. You understand?”
“Of course. Then we’ll do your training in whatever time remains after the Huashan Medical Clinic’s work is done. Does that suit you?”
“That works for me.”
Early mornings would be spent training in Huashan Sect techniques with Cheong Jin, and afterward he’d work at the Huashan Medical Clinic, so the only free time he’d have was the evening anyway.
Of course, that meant losing some of his personal leisure time, but…….
‘This will all become part of me, shaping who I become.’
With that thought, Baek Hyeon parted ways with Cho Ujin.
He found himself already looking forward to tomorrow’s training.

* * *

Meanwhile, word that Baek Hyeon had defeated Gusabang spread through the streets of Hwaam County like wildfire.
Everyone who heard the news was astonished.
The Dragon of Huashan, famous as a physician, had destroyed a sect of villains—no wonder the whole county was shocked.
“I hear one of the investigators from the Murim Alliance Hwaam Branch was captured by Gusabang and tortured. The Dragon of Huashan apparently treated him and became so enraged at their conduct that he struck.”
“So he attacked Gusabang?”
“Yes. The Dragon of Huashan, the Emotionless Sword, and the Hwaam Branch commander went together and wiped them out. Remarkable, isn’t it?”
“Hmm. But wouldn’t most of it have been the Emotionless Sword? With his skill, annihilating Gusabang wouldn’t have been difficult.”
“The Emotionless Sword handled the majority, true, but the Dragon of Huashan’s contribution was far from negligible. The Branch commander praised him endlessly.”
“Oh, I’ve heard that too. They say with a single sweep of his hand, dozens of long needles pierced his enemies?”
“Remarkable indeed. To master both the healing arts and such martial prowess at such a young age…….”
“Isn’t it Huashan’s good fortune? After the death of Huashan’s finest swordsman, I thought the sect would fade away, but it seems heaven has not yet abandoned Huashan.”
People’s interest turned toward the Huashan Sect.
They believed the secret to raising the Dragon of Huashan lay within the sect itself.
But the actual members of Huashan were left bewildered.
The Dragon of Huashan—or rather, Baek Hyeon—was indeed a disciple of Huashan, but they had never deliberately invested special effort in cultivating him.
“Hah, even hearing such news, I can scarcely believe it. Isn’t that right, Un Am?”
“Honestly, I feel the same. In my memory, Baek Hyeon was a frail child, always a cause for concern.”
Un Am answered with a laugh, responding to the Elder who had been taking tea and conversation together.
“And yet not only did he recover his health—it seems miraculous—but now he performs such feats…….”
“The Primordial Celestial Worthy must be watching over him.”
“Indeed. Otherwise, Sin Ui’s legacy could not have been carried forward.”
A bitter expression crossed Un Am’s face.
“Sin Ui—that friend—we owe him a great debt. Yet we harbored resentment toward him…….”
“It couldn’t be helped. It wasn’t Sin Ui’s fault, but because of matters related to him, Cheong Jin died.”
“My only feeling toward both of them is sorrow. If only, on the day Cheong Jin fled, all of Huashan had pooled our strength to support him…….”
“Un Am, it is only the past now. Besides, you know as well as I that such a thing would have been impossible.”
Cheong Jin had left Huashan without revealing where he was going.
They learned only much later that he had marched on the Blood Cult.
Un Am let out a long, heavy sigh.
“You’re right, it is merely the past. But we must not forget them because of it.”
“Of course not. Who in Huashan could forget Cheong Jin?”
“We owe those two a debt. Huashan must repay it in kind. We should pay closer attention to Baek Hyeon.”
Un Am spoke with quiet resolve.
Huashan had already lost one precious disciple needlessly.
He would not lose Baek Hyeon in the same way.
But there were those who viewed the news differently.
“The Gusabang is crumbling because of some snot-nosed brat barely past the Stage of Learning? Damn it all!”
Bang!
His fist came down on the table with the force to shatter it.
Yet even after this outburst, the Jeok Dok Moon Master’s fury remained unabated. He contorted his face and bellowed.
“What in hell happened? And why did that bastard Cho Ujin have to meddle?”
“It appears Cho Ujin and Baek Hyeon share a rather close relationship. Perhaps you should calm yourself, Master.”
It was a lean-faced young man who spoke these words of reason.
The Jeok Dok Moon Master’s rage subsided slightly at the sight of him.
This was a man whom even the master of Jeok Dok Moon could not treat carelessly.
“You too, Young Man—you’re not angry? One of our primary revenue sources has just been utterly destroyed.”
“Of course I’m angry. Word is they burned all that opium to ash, did they not? The losses we’ve sustained are staggering.”
“Indeed. But I’m at a loss for what to do about it. I’d drag our men there and torch that so-called Huashan Medical Clinic to the ground myself, but…”
“Then both the Murim Alliance Hwaam Branch and the Huashan Sect would move against you.”
That was precisely the problem.
Baek Hyeon was a member of the Huashan Sect and had received the favor of the Murim Alliance branch.
Intelligence suggested he had also treated Gae Bang for his injuries, thereby incurring his debt as well.
To lay hands on such a man would invite three major powers to descend upon them.
“We might manage a crumbling Huashan Sect or a single branch of the Murim Alliance, but if all three come at us together, it’s over. Damn it—if that happens, Jeok Dok Moon will cease to exist entirely.”
How could one gamble with everything that had been built to this point?
The Jeok Dok Moon Master certainly could not.
He had far too much to lose by mobilizing large forces directly.
Especially not now, with surveillance so tight.
“And yet I have no desire to leave this whelp unpunished. Damn it, Young Man—is there no other way?”
“There is one thing that comes to mind.”
“What?”
“The real problem is Jeok Dok Moon acting directly against him, is it not?”
“Right.”
The young man smiled thinly and continued.
“Then we simply have someone else strike instead. As it happens, there is a sect that bears ill will toward the Huashan Sect.”
“Which one?”
“The Baek Geom Sect. A righteous sect that is anything but righteous. Particularly after their humiliation in the last Martial Competition, they despise Baek Hyeon.”
The young man’s smile turned cruel.
“If we provoke them properly, couldn’t we wound Baek Hyeon through them?”

* * *

Not long after.
“Audacious.”
Gwak Hyeong, the Baek Geom Sect Master, crumpled the letter that had been delivered to him in secret, his anger blazing.
“These damned heretics trying to use me?”
A response neither the Jeok Dok Moon Master nor the young man had anticipated was now unfolding.

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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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