The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 119

Yi Rip looked at Dan Akseon with surprised eyes.

He never imagined that the child, with such a gentle and soft nature, could express his beliefs with such a firm and resolute attitude.

Moreover, the other party was an elder of the Hyeongsan Sect.

Far from being intimidated, he was actually strong enough to retort coolly.

It was truly refreshing.

Hong Jeokmoon felt the same way.

It was an opportunity to see Dan Akseon in a new light.

Cho Akryang, Beom Gyewi, and even Han Seolhwa.

There was a good reason why masters of the Grand Master level cherished Dan Akseon so much.

But…….

Yang Il-so’s disgraceful behavior didn’t end there.

When he ran out of things to say, he began to make lame excuses.

“Which righteous martial arts sect would want the bloodline of a demon doctor? Just the fact that his flesh and blood have set foot in the Hyeongsan Sect is an insult and humiliation to me. And for such a ridiculous reason.”

Yang Il-so glared at Dan Akseon.

“A forbidden area where righteous people cannot enter… Do you think that makes any sense?”

Yi Rip couldn’t stand by any longer.

“Elder, it seems you have a great misunderstanding. We came not only because of the joint letter. Rather, that is a secondary issue.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Won Gong Bo Sword. We have come to tell you how to retrieve your sect’s lost divine artifact.”

At those words, all the Hyeongsan disciples, including Jin Jo-un, couldn’t help but be amazed.

Especially Yang Il-so was as shocked as if he had been struck by lightning.

Yi Rip turned his head towards Jin Jo-un.

“Do you know about a man named Gwak Yu?”

“Gwak Yu? If it’s Gwak Yu…….”

Jin Jo-un, who tilted his head at Yi Rip’s question, turned his gaze towards Yang Il-so.

That was because Gwak Yu was Yang Il-so’s disciple.

Was it because the name of his disciple, who had been missing for a long time, was mentioned?

Yang Il-so showed a noticeable look of embarrassment.

Seeing Yang Il-so’s appearance, Yi Rip could sense that Ga Du-dal’s words were true.

“Did the sect leader know that he was a gambling addict?”

“Yes? Such…….”

Jin Jo-un was greatly embarrassed as if he had never heard of it.

Yang Il-so, who had been standing with a pale face, belatedly let out an awkward sigh.

“Haa… I didn’t want to reveal my disciple’s faults, so I tried to bury it on my own…….”

Yi Rip inwardly scoffed at Yang Il-so’s performance.

However, Yang Il-so, who had no way of knowing the truth, began to calmly tell lies.

“It is true that that guy was addicted to gambling. No matter how much I scolded and reprimanded him, he wouldn’t listen. So, rather than becoming a disgrace to this sect, I decided to get rid of him myself. He is not missing. I expelled him.”

“No, Elder! How can you make such a major decision on your own?”

Yang Il-so cleared his throat at Jin Jo-un’s surprised words.

“I am sorry, Sect Leader. But this is a matter directly related to the reputation of this sect, so I had no choice but to make the decision myself, as I was the one who took him in.”

Yi Rip interjected in a low voice.

“Gwak Yu is dead.”

“……!”

Yi Rip continued, addressing the surprised Jin Jo-un.

“There is a witness who confirmed his body, but he did not see the culprit who killed him.”

At those words, Jin Jo-un sighed, and Yang Il-so felt relieved.

“However, through various circumstances centered around him, we have been able to guess the whereabouts of your sect’s divine artifact, the Won Gong Bo Sword.”

“Is that true?”

Yi Rip calmly nodded towards Jin Jo-un, who asked back with an excited face.

“Of course.”

Yi Rip smiled and began to speak.

“Before he died, he leaked the whereabouts of the Won Gong Bo Sword to the gambling house he frequented. So, I investigated this matter, and I found out that the people related to him have disappeared. Most of them are either dead or missing.”

“Then how…….”

“Fortunately, there was someone who overheard what Gwak Yu said at the time.”

At those words, Yang Il-so turned pale and shouted.

“That can’t be!”

Only after everyone’s attention was focused on him did Yang Il-so belatedly panic and said to Jin Jo-un.

“Sect Leader, please do not be swayed by the absurd rumors of the martial world. As is often the case with rumors in the martial world, they are often exaggerated and inflated, aren’t they?”

“It is a divine artifact passed down by the founders. Even if it is just a vain rumor, it is right to confirm it, isn’t it?”

Yang Il-so closed his mouth at Jin Jo-un’s firm attitude.

After losing the divine artifact passed down by the master, there was not a single day that he did not regret it. This tormented him more and more as time passed, and recently he could not even sleep properly.

“In fact, I have been working hard to restore the Won Gong Bo Sword.”

Jin Jo-un sighed and continued.

“Although it is not an object containing the will of the founders, there must be a divine artifact of this sect for future generations.”

That is why he invested a huge amount of money and effort to obtain Uncheol [a rare and strong metal], which is the same material as the Won Gong Bo Sword.

“Huh… That’s amazing. That Uncheol thing can’t be obtained just with money.”

Jin Jo-un wore a bitter smile at Yi Rip’s exclamation.

What’s the use of saying it?

If the Cheongseong Sect had not suddenly collapsed due to some incident…….

He would have had to pour in a huge amount of money, so much so that he would not have dared to go near the Nine Great Sects for the next ten years.

“How could it have been done with my efforts alone? The founders must have felt sorry for the situation of this sect.”

“But even if you restore it, won’t there be a problem left? I heard that the Hyeongsan’s secret technique is hidden in the Won Gong Bo Sword?”

Jin Jo-un smiled and shook his head.

“That is just a distorted rumor. There are letters on the Won Gong Bo Sword, but it is just advice for future generations, not a secret to martial arts.”

Yang Il-so’s expression hardened noticeably at those words.

Yi Rip was not one to miss this.

“Still, wouldn’t it be better to retrieve the real Won Gong Bo Sword if possible?”

“What’s the use of saying it? If that were to happen, there would be nothing more to wish for.”

At this point, Yang Il-so became anxious.

Because there was no way to confirm how much Yi Rip knew.

Yang Il-so looked at Jin Jo-un with a serious face.

“The task of finding this sect’s divine artifact must be solved only by the power of this sect. If we solve it with the help of outsiders, it will become a laughing stock in the martial world. Besides…….”

“Stop. Stop there, Elder Yang.”

The other Hyeongsan disciples wore surprised expressions at Jin Jo-un’s appearance of cutting off Yang Il-so’s words firmly.

This is because they knew how much he had conceded to Yang Il-so.

Therefore, most of the Hyeongsan disciples had to pay more attention to Yang Il-so’s mood than to the sect leader.

Yang Il-so, who was initially embarrassed and unable to speak, soon stared at Jin Jo-un with a flushed face.

“Sect Leader! How can you ignore my loyal words by being swayed by the nonsense of people from other sects?”

“I told you to stop!”

Jin Jo-un’s roar erupted.

“It is this sect’s elder who is ignoring my words!”

“……!”

“If that’s the case, why did you give up the position of sect leader from the beginning!”

The Hyeongsan disciples could not hide their embarrassed expressions at the intense gazes and voices of the two people.

And so was Dan Akseon.

This was not something to do in front of guests.

In the end, Dan Akseon stepped forward. It was an issue that started because of Yi Rip, but in the end, it was a problem that he had to solve.

“There’s no need for you two to fight. I can just give up on the joint letter.”

Everyone, including Yi Rip and Hong Jeokmoon, looked at Dan Akseon in surprise.

However, Dan Akseon had a firm plan of his own.

“But since I’ve come this far, please let me fulfill my duty as a doctor. I’ll just treat a few patients and go back.”

“Patients?”

Dan Akseon smiled quietly at Jin Jo-un’s questioning face.

Then he raised his hand and pointed to one place.

“The elders over there.”

Surprise appeared on the faces of the elders who were pointed out by Dan Akseon.

That was because they didn’t seem to have any major pain. But they were speechless at Dan Akseon’s next words.

“That person’s pupils are different in size, and as a result, his eyesight has deteriorated significantly. You’ve been having blurry vision and dizziness recently, haven’t you?”

“Of course, that’s just old age…….”

“Even with old age, the size of the pupils doesn’t change. That phenomenon occurs when the balance is tilted to one side. It can also occur as a result of repeated unconscious actions, such as habits or mannerisms.”

“Such…….”

“Can I take your pulse? That way, I can figure out the exact cause.”

Jin Jo-un, who received the elder’s gaze, slowly nodded.

As soon as the sect leader’s permission was given, he obediently entrusted his wrist to Dan Akseon’s hand.

He closed his eyes and concentrated on taking his pulse for a while.

Dan Akseon opened his eyes and nodded.

“You’ve been receiving special pressure repeatedly for a long time. The flow of blood and true energy [internal energy] in your head has lost its balance slightly. You probably often circulated a special internal energy technique to withstand external pressure, and I think that’s the reason.”

The same was true for the others.

Although the affected areas were different, there was a place where the flow of true energy was distorted.

Even the sect leader, Jin Jo-un, was the same.

Lastly, Dan Akseon tried to take Yang Il-so’s pulse, but he gave up because he refused so fiercely.

Dan Akseon, who had been deep in thought, said to Jin Jo-un.

“This is a really unusual case. I think the cause of all four of you is the same.”

“The cause, you mean……?”

“Have you ever focused on training only one part of your body?”

Jin Jo-un shook his head.

At least as far as he knew, there was no such martial art in the Hyeongsan Sect.

“Then, have you ever repeatedly visited or stayed for a long time in a place with a unique environment? For example, a place like a maze or a formation where you have to move in a specific direction.”

At those words, Jin Jo-un and the other elders were surprised.

That’s because there was only one place that Dan Akseon mentioned.

It was Unjin Hermitage.

It was where the training room where the sect leader and elders could seclude themselves and practice was located.

Dan Akseon nodded at Jin Jo-un’s explanation.

“I think I’ll have to check it out myself. I need to know what kind of formation it is to be able to treat it.”

“But that place is…….”

Jin Jo-un looked at the elders with a troubled face.

He could open his training room as much as he wanted, but the elders’ training rooms were an exception.

This is because, according to the tradition of the Hyeongsan Sect, entry to the training room is only possible with the permission of the owner.

So, while he was hesitating, Dan Akseon, who was looking around, realized something and asked.

“Can I ask you one more thing?”

Dan Akseon hesitated to open his mouth for a long time after saying that.

Jin Jo-un said softly at Dan Akseon’s troubled expression.

“What kind of question is it that you’re hesitating so much?”

“I’m being careful because it might be a rude question.”

“It’s okay, tell me.”

Dan Akseon, who nodded, voiced the question he had in mind.

“Why can’t I see older people?”

“……?”

“It seems like the elders are younger than the other sects I’ve visited so far.”

“……!”

Jin Jo-un was very surprised.

He never thought that he would ask such a question.

But soon he sighed and opened his mouth.

“It’s because of this sect’s martial arts.”

“Martial arts?”

“Most of this sect’s martial arts were created with an emphasis on change and overlap. Therefore, it requires a huge consumption of true energy.”

One of the elders nodded.

“When you get old and your energy runs out, you can’t use it even if you want to.”

The other elders added one word each.

“Besides, the operation method is also tricky. If the true energy is disturbed even by mistake, it will lead to Qi deviation [a dangerous imbalance of internal energy] right away. Like a double-edged sword.”

“I am confident that the power is second to none in any sect, but it is also that dangerous.”

Dan Akseon tilted his head.

“That’s strange.”