Chapter 20

Chapter 20. Awakening

Once Jaha finished using Jesaeng Chongyong, changes began to appear in the girl's body.

The Eccentric Physician took the medicine he had prepared and slowly fed it to her one spoonful at a time.

The girl swallowed the medicine, and her convulsions gradually began to weaken.

Nearly fifteen minutes passed like that.

"Now use Jesaeng Chongyong to awaken this girl's consciousness. Once you do that, the treatment will be complete."

"Understood."

Jaha closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again.

"I've withdrawn Jesaeng Chongyong."

"Good. That's enough. I'll rest for a while, then treat your master."

The Eccentric Physician opened the door and stepped outside.

Go Deung and Bang Baekji had been anxiously waiting there.

"The treatment is finished."

"You've truly worked hard. Has the girl's consciousness returned?"

"Not yet. Once she gets a good sleep and wakes up, she should regain consciousness."

While the Eccentric Physician spoke with the members of Seohyeopbang outside, Jaha quickly opened a leather pouch hidden inside his clothes.

He began sprinkling white powder over various parts of the girl's clothing.

Just then, the door opened and Go Deung and Bang Baekji entered.

"What are you doing?"

Jaha looked at the two of them and answered calmly.

"It looked like she was waking up, so I was checking on her."

He pretended to bring his ear close to the girl's mouth.

At the same time, he secretly slipped the leather pouch back into his clothes.

That was close. One mistake and everything could have been ruined.

Cold sweat ran down his back.

"Move aside! This is no longer any of your concern!"

The moment the girl showed signs of waking, the two men began treating Jaha harshly.

Her treatment was already finished, so they no longer had any reason to show Jaha respect.

"She won't have another seizure even without him now, correct?"

"Correct."

Go Deung then spoke to the girl.

"Child, wake up."

When she still did not respond, Go Deung grabbed her wrist and sent true energy into her through her pulse.

"Mm..."

The girl flinched and seemed to mumble something.

Go Deung and Bang Baekji simultaneously leaned their heads toward her mouth to hear what she was saying.

Suddenly—

The girl shot upright and attacked both men.

"How dare you!"

Despite the sudden attack, the two reacted like the peak-level experts they were and knocked her hands aside.

The girl immediately collapsed again and fell back asleep.

"It seems she unconsciously mistook us for enemies and attacked."

Go Deung stopped speaking halfway and looked at Jaha.

"We're done with you. Get out."

Jaha glanced at the two men before leaving the room.

As he walked away, he looked back and smiled.

While they had struggled with the girl, Go Deung and Bang Baekji had breathed in plenty of the powder Jaha had sprinkled over her clothes.

That alone was enough to put a smile on his face.

When Jaha returned to their quarters, Han Seol and Jo Unryong welcomed him with bright expressions.

"Senior Brother Byeokho, the Eccentric Physician is treating Master right now."

"Really?"

"Yes. He's using the Golden Needle Grand Art. They say the Eccentric Physician's Golden Needle Grand Art can even bring the dead back to life."

If he had gone as far as using the Golden Needle Grand Art, then the Eccentric Physician was being extremely generous.

He did not use that technique on just anyone.

"Neither of you leave this place until the treatment is finished. Stay here and guard it."

"Yes, Senior Brother."

Han Seol murmured happily.

"It was such a difficult journey, but coming all the way here was worth it."

"You two have suffered a lot."

Han Seol and Jo Unryong shook their heads at the same time.

"No. Senior Brother Byeokho is the one who suffered the most."

Jaha could not leave either.

He was worried that the experts from Seohyeopbang might interfere with the treatment.

Half an hour later, the Eccentric Physician finally came outside.

His clothes were damp with sweat.

"Your master's illness had already seeped deep into his bones. This old man had to use even his own internal energy before I could finally remove it. Fortunately, I managed to finish the treatment. Let him rest well today, and he should wake up tomorrow."

Han Seol and Jo Unryong repeatedly bowed in gratitude.

"Thank you, Elder. We don't know how we could ever repay this kindness."

The Eccentric Physician waved them off.

"Don't worry about it. Your senior brother will repay everything."

With those words, the Eccentric Physician disappeared.

"Senior Brother, what did he mean? Why would you be the one repaying him?"

"I don't know what he meant either. Let's go see Master first."

Jaha vaguely brushed the matter aside and entered his master's room.

Color had returned to Ha Seonbaek's face.

Even his once-bluish lips had become red again.

Just from that, they could tell that his vitality was returning.

So he truly deserves to be called the Eccentric Physician. He cured in a single day an illness that no one had managed to treat for years. They say there's no illness the Three Great Physicians of the martial world cannot cure. It seems that wasn't an exaggeration after all.

Truthfully, Jaha had not expected much.

He might have trusted the Yama Physician, but he had only heard rumors about the Eccentric Physician, so he had never placed much faith in him.

"He said Master should regain consciousness tomorrow, so let's wait."

Jaha left Han Seol and Jo Unryong to remain at their master's side before stepping outside.

Now that Ha Seonbaek had been cured, the heavy burden weighing on his heart had become much lighter.

Ha Seonbaek was not even truly his own master, yet Jaha still felt happy.

He was in a good mood, and he also wanted to loosen his body after remaining tense for so long, so he began practicing the Cheongun Sword.

He went through the entire Cheongun Sword three times in succession while thinking.

Byeokho, I'm sorry to say this, but no matter how perfectly you master the Cheongun Sword, no one will ever call you a true expert.

You can't survive this dangerous martial world with the Cheongun Sword alone.

This sword art needs to be heavily modified.

You might somehow manage against second-rate or even first-rate martial artists, but the moment you meet someone above that level, they'll immediately see through and break this sword art.

Then someone else confirmed his thoughts.

Sail Sword Hwang Ilhyeok approached Jaha and asked,

"What is the name of that martial art?"

Jaha knew exactly what he was asking about.

"It's called the Cheongun Sword."

"The Cheongun Sword..."

Hwang Ilhyeok gave a faint smile.

"Too ordinary. The name is ordinary, and the techniques are ordinary as well. Still, I suppose it's suitable enough for an escort."

There was a trace of mockery in his words.

Jaha's nose twitched.

Although this was not even his own sword art, the feeling that Byeokho had been looked down upon caused curses to rise in his throat.

However, instead of cursing, Jaha smiled.

"Orthodox martial arts may appear to lack dominance at first, but their depth grows with time. The sword art of my sect is the same. However, its very nature is different from the martial arts of the demonic and unorthodox paths, so I suppose it would naturally look lacking in Hero Hwang's eyes."

Jaha never imagined that there would come a day when he would praise the martial arts of the righteous martial world.

Regardless, when Jaha appeared to take offense, Hwang Ilhyeok smiled and turned away.

As he left, he muttered so quietly that Jaha was not supposed to hear him.

"Well, you'll soon have a chance to prove that. With your death."

Jaha already knew that Hwang Ilhyeok had been watching him to determine the extent of his abilities.

That was exactly why he had deliberately performed the Cheongun Sword several times in a row.

It was all to lower their guard.

Now that he's seen the Cheongun Sword, he'll probably decide there's no need to be wary of me.

Compared to their own martial arts, the Cheongun Sword is far too ordinary, and my level of achievement is nothing impressive either.

Jaha immediately shook his head.

No. That's wrong.

It's not my achievement that's pathetic. It's Byeokho's.

Byeokho, did you see that? If it weren't for me, how would you have survived this crisis? Even if the bandits hadn't killed you, you would have died here anyway.

As Jaha rambled inwardly, his left hand suddenly shot upward.

Byeokho's lingering soul apparently disliked what Jaha had said and raised his left hand as though intending to slap him across the face.

However, the hand stopped before striking him and slowly lowered again.

Because Jaha's words were true.

Jaha smiled happily.

"So even you finally admit I'm right."

Then he looked around.

"All right. Shall we go do something bad now?"

Once Hwang Ilhyeok was completely out of sight, Jaha headed toward the kitchen of Inui Manor.

He behaved naturally, as though he were simply going there to get some food.

Rice was cooking inside a huge pot.

Because the fire was fueled with firewood, the cooking pot was placed outside the kitchen.

Jaha tossed a few more pieces of wood into the stove and casually lifted the lid.

He looked as though he were merely checking whether the rice was cooked.

Then, in an instant, he dumped the powder hidden in his hand into the boiling rice.

"The rice still has a while before it's ready."

One of Inui Manor's servant girls spoke when she saw Jaha lifting the lid.

"I see. I was hungry, so I came to check whether it was ready."

"Please wait just a little longer."

"All right."

Jaha smiled while looking at the pot of rice bubbling away.

"Then shall we move on to the next step?"

He headed toward the room where the mysterious girl was staying.

As expected, the three protectors of Seohyeopbang were inside the room together with Go Deung and Bang Baekji.

"What do you want?"

"The Eccentric Physician said he seems to have dropped his needle case and told me to look for it."

"Where?"

"He said he might have dropped it while putting on his shoes as he left. I think I only need to check the wooden floor."

Since Jaha was asking to search outside rather than inside the room, they had no reason to stop him.

Besides, if the Eccentric Physician returned personally, he would likely enter the room and search everywhere himself.

Wanting to avoid that inconvenience, they quickly gave permission.

"Find it quickly and get lost."

Hearing those words, anger surged inside Jaha.

Their attitude had changed far too much in a single day.

They had not treated him this badly at first.

Now they looked at him as though he were an insect.

No...

It's more like they're looking at a dead man.

They wouldn't suddenly change this much unless they'd already decided to kill us.

Jaha had once stood at the very peak of the demonic path.

He could clearly read their intentions from the slightest changes in their words and behavior.

If it had been Byeokho, he would never have noticed anything and would have died according to their scheme.

Pretending to search the wooden floor, Jaha secretly slipped one scorpion stinger from the Poison Beast Forest into each of the Seohyeopbang experts' shoes.

There was a reason Jaha was going through the trouble of poisoning them separately like this.

If you bastards allow us to leave peacefully, nothing will happen.

But if you don't... you're going to suffer badly.

After spending quite some time pretending to search for the needle case, Jaha said,

"It doesn't seem to be here. I suppose I'll have to look somewhere else."

After Jaha disappeared, Go Deung asked,

"Did he do anything suspicious?"

"No. He only inspected the wooden floor and the surrounding area. I watched him the entire time, but there was nothing suspicious."

Go Deung trusted the words of Protector Saeng Goryang, who was famous for his exceptionally sharp eyes.

When Jaha returned to their quarters, Han Seol was already waiting for him.

"Senior Brother Byeokho!"

There were traces of tears on Han Seol's face, yet she looked incredibly happy.

That alone told Jaha what had happened.

"Has Master awakened?"

Han Seol nodded vigorously while fighting back tears.

"Yes!"

"Then let's go inside."

When Jaha entered the room, Jo Unryong and the Eccentric Physician were sitting beside Ha Seonbaek.

Jo Unryong had clearly cried as well.

Tracks ran through the grime covering his cheeks.

"Master!"

Ha Seonbaek looked at Jaha with a gentle smile.

"Byeokho... So it's you."

His voice was dry and weak.

Yet the warmth contained within it made tears suddenly fall from Jaha's eyes.

"Come here."

In truth, it was Byeokho who had been overwhelmed enough to cry.

But Jaha himself also felt as though his dead father had somehow returned to life, and tears began flowing from his own emotions as well.

He could no longer tell whether these tears belonged to Byeokho or to himself.

Ha Seonbaek reached out with his thin, bony hand and took Jaha's hand.

"My second disciple has become so dependable."

Before being their master, Ha Seonbaek had been like a father to them.

That made Byeokho's emotions even stronger.

"It seems this foolish master has caused all of you a great deal of hardship."

Ha Seonbaek appeared to have already received a rough explanation from Han Seol and Jo Unryong.

He seemed to know why they had come all the way to Inui Manor.

"Because this useless master couldn't take care of himself, I had to send all of you far away to earn money... I'm truly sorry."

Jaha shook his head.

"Master, please don't say such things. If one of us had fallen ill, you would have done anything in your power to save us. How could earning money for Master's medicine possibly be called hardship?"

"Compared to the kindness you've shown us by raising us all these years, what we've done doesn't amount to even one ten-thousandth of it."

The Eccentric Physician listened to their conversation with an indifferent expression.

Yet seeing such deep affection between master and disciples warmed his heart.

He had never experienced such a close bond between fellow disciples or between master and disciple.

Perhaps that was why their conversation somehow felt even sadder to him.

Then Ha Seonbaek asked,

"Did Cheongryong also go to Taiyuan to earn money? I don't see him here."

At his master's question, Jaha gave Han Seol and Jo Unryong an approving glance.

They had handled things well.

"Yes. First Senior Brother isn't someone who could just sit around doing nothing, is he? He went to Taiyuan to earn money. He'll return after you've fully recovered."

"Now that I'm awake, call everyone back. There's no need for them to keep suffering."

"Understood, Master. We'll send them letters, so don't worry about anything except recovering your health."

Jaha smiled.

"Just imagine how happy the disciples will be when they return and see you healthy again."

"Yes... You're right."

Ha Seonbaek gave a contented smile and closed his eyes.

Then he turned his head away.

Hot tears flowed down his cheeks.

The disciples could not bear to watch him cry, so they also turned their heads away.

Watching this group of master and disciples, filled with such care and affection for one another, the Eccentric Physician showed a rare, warm smile.