The Time-Limited Elixir of the Ruined Clan - Chapter 3

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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 Crumbling Noble Clan’s Limited Spiritual Medicine — Chapter 3

In my past life, I had awakened at this time, but the Spiritual Energy left me in such constant, severe pain that I never properly met my grandfather — a fact I hadn’t realized until now.
The Manyeon Jigeuk Hyeolbo was a legendary substance said to be formed when the earth’s power condensed into pure yang energy over a thousand years, a Spiritual Medicine so potent that ordinary consumption would leave one scorched to death by its yang force.
If Grandfather had used this in his Beolmo Sesu secret formula, he would certainly have included a yin-aspected Spiritual Medicine to control it, and to counter a thousand-year-old remedy, the complementary ingredient would have to be equally precious and rare.
‘To think all of this went into a single application of the Beolmo Sesu — they say you’d strip the very rafters from the house to pay for it…….’
“When you see your grandfather, you must offer him your sincere gratitude, understand? He’s given you something truly precious.”
“Yes, I understand!”
In truth, I didn’t know my grandfather, Danmok Cheongi, very well.
The memories I’d glimpsed showed him shut away in the deepest part of the family’s inner chambers, and then, not many years later, quietly passing away.
‘Did he have some lingering ailment, then?’
The fact that the Manyeon Jigeuk Hyeolbo was meant for Danmok Cheongi himself weighed on my mind.
That he possessed it yet hadn’t yet had it refined into medicine and consumed suggested the difficulty of crafting a remedy suited to his particular condition — and that difficulty implied his state was far graver than it should be.
‘I need to find out exactly what happened to Grandfather.’
I steeled my resolve. Safety and wellness naturally encompassed the family’s peace and prosperity.
‘And when Grandfather passes…….’
The Muwol Geom.

When Danmok Cheongi had stood as the supreme master of the martial world, the Danmok Clan had been unassailable throughout Jeolgang Province.
But after he suffered a severe wound in battle against Hyeol-ra-gok, the clan’s fortune declined rapidly.
Then, when his only heir, Danmok Hyeonseong, was killed in a martial duel with the Geum Clan master mere years ago, the family stumbled badly, and when Danmok Cheongi himself passed not long after, the Danmok Clan had withered to a point where calling it a “Noble Clan” felt almost shameful.
Without the accumulated prestige of its history to sustain it, it would have long since become simply “the Danmok family.”
Perhaps, had a few more years passed after my own death, that would truly have come to pass.
‘With this chance, I have to make something of it — somehow.’
Before, I had no idea why I was sick, how I became sick, or why I couldn’t build Internal Power. But now — now was different.
Wiji Cheong accepted a white-furred collar from the nursemaid, Jang, and wrapped it around my neck, then took my hand.
The Wolryeong-jae, where the Grand Patriarch Danmok Cheongi lived,

was situated in the deepest recess of the clan compound.

* * *

The Wolryeong-jae, built of deep-hued sandalwood so dark it seemed almost black, possessed a quiet, understated elegance at first glance.
Though years of mere minimal maintenance had left worn patches visible in every corner.
Gang Rip, the steward standing at the entrance, greeted the two of us as though he’d been waiting.
After a single glance at me, he bowed respectfully and ushered us inward.
As we passed through air fragrant with the subtle scent of medicinal herbs, a heavy beaded curtain came into view first.
“Ryon has come to offer her thanks, Father,” Wiji Cheong said softly, settling a hand across my shoulders.

“Hmm. How fares the child’s health?”
From behind the curtain came an old man’s rough, weighty voice. Danmok Cheongi appeared to have no intention of drawing back the beads.
“Thanks to your care, I’ve recovered wonderfully.”
“So the Dang physician says it’s nothing short of a miracle.”
“Without Physician Dang and you, Father, there would have been no miracle. Ryon, offer your thanks properly.”
Wiji Cheong answered. The old man’s tone wasn’t particularly warm, yet he clearly knew the details of my condition.
In the past, even after waking, I’d been too confined to bed to properly exchange greetings — my memories of those times were hazy. Now I rolled my eyes and made my decision to act.
“Yes! I’m all better because of the medicine you gave me. That’s why I came to thank Grandfather…….”
I stepped forward one pace at a time, eyes fixed on where the curtain hung.
“Could I go inside and thank you properly?”
I continued in an innocent, naive voice, as though I understood nothing of the situation.
“I want to thank Grandfather, but this is in the way.”
A flutter of surprise emanated from behind the curtain. It seemed he found it striking that such a young child, scarcely risen from her sickbed, spoke with such measured precision.
Soon a rough, twisted laugh — like metal scraping — came from within.
“Hmm. The child has nerve. Let her in.”
The moment permission was granted, I swept straight past the beaded curtain made of strung bamboo beads.
“……!”
Danmok Cheongi sat quietly in an old wooden chair, his weathered face marked on one side by a terrible burn scar.
The wound looked as though someone had slapped red mud across it carelessly. The scar visible on his left hand, resting on the chair’s armrest, was much the same.
It was a face familiar to Ryeon. Before he had received the Beolmo Sesu, the old man would sometimes visit him in secret while he lay still, then leave just as quietly.
But…….
‘Heavens. The light makes it hard to see his face clearly.’
He swallowed dryly.
A gaudy notification had flashed suddenly before his eyes.

* Simgan 3 Star (1 Star▲ ) Achievement *
You can now view the Natural Aptitude and Star Rating sections.
You can now view detailed breakdowns of your personal achievements.

Merely facing Danmok Cheongi and seeing his face had elevated Ryeon’s Simgan by one rank.
The features around him blurred and merged into the golden radiance that enveloped him—but his eyes remained sharp and brilliant even through that luminous haze, gleaming like those of a great predator.
Ryeon came to himself when he glimpsed a turbid red light flowing from Danmok Cheongi’s waist.
‘Is this something I can see because Simgan has reached 3 stars? Could that be an old wound from when he destroyed the Hyeol-ra Valley?’
Ryeon quickly made a show of smoothing his sleeves, then floated the Seongyeong

before him.

Danmok Ryeon
Jowhoa : 7 Star – May pass unnoticed.
Simgan : 3 Star – Can perceive far more than before.
Jeongwhoa : 2 Star – Can purify life force.
Stamina : 5 / 100
Internal Power : Cannot acquire
External Power : Not acquired
Spiritual Energy : 70 / 100

New descriptions had appeared beneath each of his abilities—Jowhoa, Simgan, and Jeongwhoa. It seemed that because Simgan had reached 3 stars, it had gained the note: “Can perceive far more than before.”

Danmok Cheongi
Characteristics : Guardian of the Martial World / Sinew Collector / Burdened by Regret / Broken Wings
Nakseong Sibigum : 11 Star (12 Star)
Muhanbо : 12 Star
Yuseong Jingyeol : 10 Star
Natural Aptitude and Star Rating : High-Middle
Concerns : Danmok Ryeon’s health and aptitude, the clan’s declining fortunes, destroying the Hyeol-ra Valley, Danmok Hyeonyeo and Danmok Hyeonwoo’s achievements

Now he could also see his Natural Aptitude and Star Rating. The Nakseong Sibigum had originally reached 12 stars in mastery, but the wounds had left him unable to fully express that power.
Ryeon quickly sorted through his confusion and offered a proper bow.
“Ah! Grandfather…… Thank you for the medicine.”
Danmok Cheongi’s eyebrows twitched at the greeting, then he stroked his jaw and spoke.
“I held it only because I could not use it myself. But that does not mean the medicinal materials are without worth. Do you understand? You have been given such great expectations from our house—you must dedicate yourself to living up to them!”
Danmok Cheongi’s voice resonated powerfully through the room.
Ryeon swallowed a sigh. How could someone with such radiance, shining like the sun itself, have passed away so quietly in just a few years?
But this was not the time to dwell on regret.
“Yes, Grandfather! I will do my best!”
If he could heal Danmok Cheongi’s wounds, he might be able to extend his remaining years. And with his own power, it would surely be possible.
Spiritual Medicines and Spiritual Beings that exist in nature typically possess extreme properties. They develop such traits to adapt and survive in nature’s harsh environments.
For instance, Manyeon Seolsam carries extreme yin properties, while the Manyeon Jigeuk Hyeolbo in his formula carries extreme yang properties. The inner cores of creatures like the Human-Faced Spider

and the Poison-Horned Demon Dragon

carry extreme toxicity—to consume such things, one needed to account for their properties and balance them. Swallow them raw, and the blood vessels would either freeze or burn you to death.
Even Spiritual Elixirs, carefully balanced and refined from such materials, could not be consumed carelessly. Power too great and too potent becomes a poison unto itself.
Danmok Cheongi must have merely held the Manyeon Jigeuk Hyeolbo because the various Spiritual Medicines needed for his formula could not be made to complement each other’s properties.
‘Normally, absorbing too much Spiritual Energy at once becomes poison, but if one lets it seep in gradually, bit by bit…….’
But his own power was different. It was pure Spiritual Energy itself, leaning toward neither yin nor yang.
A power that, once absorbed, could shore up weak points, reinforce strong ones, and envelope everything in natural harmony.
The vessel that held Spiritual Energy—the meridians—had shattered under the weight, triggering Ascension, precisely because the Spiritual Energy had crashed down like a tidal wave, demanding absolute caution with every drop.
But if he were to refine this Spiritual Energy carefully, patiently, over a long span of time, and then transmit it to his grandfather?
Then his grandfather could live out a full natural lifespan…….
And he himself could use the accumulated Spiritual Energy before it grew too thick, prevent the Noble Clan from descending into chaos, and repay the debt owed for the Manyeon Jigeuk Hyeolbo.
‘Killing three birds with one stone! No, wait. Three gains from one throw!’

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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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