Chapter 54
Chapter 54
“So that person has finally come.”
“Yes. Moreover, people from the Hwaju Medical Pavilion have been sent. Wang Gak-yeon, Phantom Archer’s daughter. It seems they were greatly embarrassed when we treated a patient they had given up on.”
“I had uneasy dreams, and now unwelcome guests are arriving all at once.”
Zhuge Rin sighed. Yoo Ho continued.
“They say they came out of concern to see the patient Wang Gak-yeon. But she’s already in the final stages of recovery, so they won’t find anything.”
Wang Gak-yeon. Phantom Archer’s daughter.
It had been several months since she received treatment.
Because it was a major surgery, she had to stay in bed and rest afterwards, but now she had regained her health and could be considered fully recovered.
In fact, for an ordinary person, it would have been an injury requiring more bed rest, but the innate true energy her father had given her greatly enhanced her recovery ability.
“They’ve come to find fault. If we refuse, they can use that as a flaw against us, so it’s not a bad move on their part.”“So I showed them. They should be taking her pulse with our Medical Pavilion members now. I also gave Phantom Archer a heads up.”
“Well done. But it will be a burden on our Medical Pavilion members.”
“They’ll try to find fault any way they can, and our side will have to block them. However, there’s no need for you to step in, Master. On the surface, it’s just a visit from other Medical Pavilion members, so we should respond accordingly.”
Zhuge Rin took a sip of tea.
“That’s a minor issue. I’m more worried about the person our Hee is meeting now.”
“Yes. I didn’t expect ‘that person’ to come in person.”
“They must have been curious about the word ‘surgery’.”
“Should we continue to pretend not to know?”
“When has that person ever been someone we could stop if we tried? It seems they want to be left alone, so let’s do that.”
Yoo Ho nodded.
However, there was something even these two hadn’t anticipated.
The misbehavior of the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members was worse than expected.
***
“What, is a patient some kind of toy?”
“How can you say such harsh words!”
“Treating a patient with unverified medical techniques, what else is there to compare it to? If you had left her with us, she would have been cured in twenty days!”
“What are you…”
The White Dragon Medical Pavilion member was speechless.
They hadn’t expected them to pretend they could have treated her after abandoning the patient.
‘My, the shamelessness of the Hwaju Medical Pavilion is infuriating.’
The Hwaju Medical Pavilion physician continued speaking.
“I can understand the patient’s guardian choosing the White Dragon Medical Pavilion. It’s because our Hwaju Medical Pavilion’s virtue was insufficient to earn such trust… However, how can you justify playing with a patient using unverified medical techniques!”
“The patient was on the brink of death. Watch your words. Without that surgery technique, the patient wouldn’t even be alive.”
“What nonsense is that? Our Hwaju Medical Pavilion’s techniques could have easily saved her.”
“The patient’s guardian already showed us your reply saying you couldn’t accept her. Why do you keep lying?”
“We said we couldn’t accept her, not that we couldn’t treat her. Our hall master personally took her pulse and said he was looking for a way!”
‘Lying through their teeth…!’
It seems the upheaval among the martial sects due to this Phantom Archer incident was greater than expected.
The resentment harbored by the Hwaju Medical Pavilion was no small matter.
“Then call them.”
“Who are you talking about? Our hall master isn’t someone who would come for such a matter.”
“How could I, a physician from another Medical Pavilion, summon the great Divine Doctor Baek Rin? Just bring that disciple of his.”
“Hmph.”
“If you have nothing to hide, there’s no reason you can’t call him, right?”
Just as those words finished, the door burst open explosively.
KWANG!
“Well said! You Hwaju Medical Pavilion bastards!”
It was Phantom Archer. White Dragon Medical Pavilion guard warriors were hanging from each of Phantom Archer’s arms.
The guard warriors had thrown themselves to stop Phantom Archer, who was charging like a bull after hearing the news, but Phantom Archer was a master who had reached the Transformation Realm!
Naturally, they had failed.
Phantom Archer’s face, flushed red, was literally like that of a yaksha.
“Because of these bastards, what hardships my daughter went through!”
The Hwaju Medical Pavilion members’ faces turned pale at the killing intent emitted by a master who had reached the Transformation Realm.
It seemed like Phantom Archer might smash their heads at any moment.
The Hwaju Medical Pavilion member hurriedly said,
“D-don’t you know that killing is strictly forbidden within the Medical Pavilion? Calm down!”
“Calm down? What calm down! If it weren’t for our benefactor, you would have already seen me in the Yellow Springs! Alright! Since you’ve come asking to be killed, why should I refuse?”
If murder occurs within the Medical Pavilion, the martial artists staying there will leave.
Because they can’t trust a Medical Pavilion where the agreement to abstain from weapons isn’t kept.
The reputation of the White Dragon Medical Pavilion would end with that.
There could be no greater calamity. But to Phantom Archer, these bastards were enemies who had nearly killed his daughter.
The Medical Pavilion members began to faint one by one under the aura emitted by a master who had reached the Transformation Realm.
At that moment, a child’s voice rang out. It was small and calm.
“Please calm down.”
Surprisingly, Phantom Archer’s killing intent wavered at that voice.
“Benefactor.”
“This is a Medical Pavilion. Resolve your martial world grudges outside.”
It was Jin Cheon-hee, who had just finished treating the grandmother.
At Jin Cheon-hee’s order, Phantom Archer finally withdrew his killing intent.
As the air returned to normal, the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members hurriedly exhaled.
Jin Cheon-hee said,
“I heard you wanted to see me.”
***
The Hwaju Medical Pavilion members were at a loss for words at Jin Cheon-hee’s calm demeanor.
They had heard he was young, but this wasn’t just young, it was childlike.
Looking down at the tiny hands that seemed barely able to hold an acupuncture needle properly, a Hwaju Medical Pavilion member asked,
“By any chance, are you a master of the Half Old Return to Youth technique?”
Half Old Return to Youth.
It refers to reversing time and becoming younger.
Not only does one become younger, but the body is reconstructed to fit martial arts, and any impurities in the body are purified.
Regardless of age or gender, one’s gaze deepens and appearance becomes extremely beautiful, and since Jin Cheon-hee’s beauty was not ordinary, that’s probably why they asked.
Jin Cheon-hee smiled and replied,
“No, I’m not. I’m just a novice who has just started learning martial arts.”
Judging by the aura emanating from him, it didn’t seem to be a lie.
Although his gaze was too deep for a child, which was a bit concerning, all the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members seemed relieved.
Phantom Archer said,
“If you try to slander my benefactor even a little, I swear by my title ‘Phantom Archer’ that I won’t let it slide!”
“Don’t do that.”
“Benefactor.”
Phantom Archer, who had been roaring like a tiger, softened again at Jin Cheon-hee’s single word.
“These people just came out of concern for the patient. Don’t be like that.”
It was strange. His manner of speech was unmistakably that of a young child, but the meaning behind it was that of an adult.
It felt as if an old veteran who had been through everything was deliberately pretending to be a child.
Phantom Archer sighed.
“If that’s what you say, please at least allow me to stay by your side until the conversation is over. Benefactor.”
“…”
Jin Cheon-hee was at a loss for words and looked around.
That appearance was truly that of a pure child concerned for the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members.
In fact, Jin Cheon-hee was thinking:
‘The stage has been set nicely. Phantom Archer acted out well.’
The upper hand that the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members had been holding had now passed to Jin Cheon-hee.
Jin Cheon-hee furrowed his brow as if he had no choice.
“Alright. Hero Wang worries about me too much.”
“I don’t deserve to be called a hero by you, benefactor. Please just call me Phantom Archer like others do.”
After speaking so respectfully to Jin Cheon-hee, he berated the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members.
“Know that you’re alive today thanks to my benefactor! If you try to tarnish my benefactor’s honor even a little, I won’t stand idle, I’ll cut your throats the moment you leave the White Dragon Medical Pavilion!”
The master of the Transformation Realm let out an emotional roar.
The resounding momentum made goosebumps rise on everyone’s arms except Jin Cheon-hee’s.
Jin Cheon-hee lowered his eyelashes and smiled at the Hwaju Medical Pavilion members.
“So, you said you had something you were curious about?”
“Th-that…”
The Hwaju Medical Pavilion members looked at each other, swallowing hard.
They had only thought of it as a normal patient-doctor relationship, but they hadn’t heard at all that this Phantom Archer bastard was staying behind and serving him as his lord.
Moreover, Phantom Archer’s martial power seemed to have increased beyond what they knew.
‘We thought he would have become a toothless tiger after using up his true innate energy, but…’
‘The herb master said that if he moved his daughter and treated her, he would have had to use up not just his true innate energy but even his innate energy to endure, so how is this possible?’
It was the opposite of what they had gathered, compiled, and predicted through medical intelligence and various associations.
Phantom Archer was still formidable. In fact, he seemed even stronger than before.
***
Questions continued.
Jin Cheon-hee slowly sipped his tea as he continued the conversation.
“I can’t say more than that because it’s related to the secret techniques passed down from our ancestor.”
Why are there so many secrets? But in the martial world where techniques are passed down through unofficial lineages, it wasn’t particularly strange.
Jin Cheon-hee let out a small sigh.
“Our ancestor was someone who came from a distant continent, and his name is not known.”
“But we should know it, shouldn’t we?”
“Alright. His name was Hippocrates.”
“Hippo… what?”
“Our sect is not only very difficult to enter, but we go through very, very harsh trials before becoming a physician. When we are recognized as a physician, we take an oath.”
It sounds like nonsense, but half of it was true.
“We heard that you had amnesia…”
At those words, Jin Cheon-hee smiled bitterly.
“That’s right. I’ve lost most of my memories, but the memories of our ancestor and sect still remain. It’s truly fortunate.”
What can you do if I say I remember?
Jin Cheon-hee moved his facial muscles calmly with a straight face.
“I’ve revealed even our ancestor to you. I’ve done all I can.”
It was confusing.
Somehow it sounds like nonsense, but it also feels somewhat plausible.
“Can you swear on your parents’ names about your ancestor and sect?”
At those words, Phantom Archer berated them.
“Your liver has come out of your belly. How could you think my benefactor would lie about his sect and ancestor!”
For martial artists, the sect and ancestor that form the roots of their school are the most important elements.
Usually, this is something they are reluctant to disclose even to members of the same sect.
Jin Cheon-hee was taking the risk of disclosing this.
In fact…
‘Should I have used a name like Xylitol Whee-ba Whee-ba instead of Hippocrates? No, no, well, at least some of it is true.’
Jin Cheon-hee said,
“How could I lie when swearing on my parents’ names?”
Jin Cheon-hee doesn’t even know who his parents are. But whether in Korea or the martial world, isn’t it a deeply Confucian society?
If you swear on your parents’ names, it’s half-believed no matter what.