A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 296

Chapter 57: Breakthrough (1)

Jun-ho inflicted the ‘Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique,’ a torture method of the Demonic Sect, directly on himself.

The reason was to indirectly experience the pain of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS).

Although it’s difficult to quantify and measure pain.

He thought the pain from the Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique would be comparable to that of CRPS.

‘Wow… seriously…’

Dozens of curse words flooded his mind.

Those curses sprinted from his chest towards his throat.

His left leg was incredibly painful.

The pain felt like a sharp sashimi knife filleting his skin.

It was as hot as sticking his arm into a furnace.

Even though he had endured the Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique several times, the pain was still horrific.

There was no immunity to pain.

However, thinking of Ju-won, Jun-ho willingly endured the terrible pain engulfing his leg.

If Jun-ho couldn’t cure Ju-won’s CRPS, Ju-won would have to live with this pain for the rest of his life.

It was a curse, a hell, and a prison without bars.

‘First, let’s try pain-relieving acupressure.’

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

Jun-ho’s right index finger moved swiftly and accurately, like the beak of a hawk hunting its prey.

He targeted the major acupoints on his left leg.

Liver Meridian Point, Blood Sea Point, Spleen Meridian Point, Zhigou Point, Lougu Point, Shangqiu Point in order.

These were the major acupoints from his thigh to his ankle.

Following that, Jun-ho performed acupressure on the nerves passing through his leg.

After finishing the pain-relieving acupressure, he could finally breathe a little.

If the original pain level was 10, the current pain level was about 6.

He had enough 余裕 [yoyu – leeway or margin] to look around.

Jun-ho sighed in relief and looked down at his leg.

The condition of his leg was still poor.

The skin was flushed red, and the muscles were twitching uncontrollably.

The tendons and blood vessels were also bulging.

‘Clearly, ‘pain-relieving acupressure’ has its limits. But what else can I do beyond this…’

While seriously contemplating.

He tasted something salty and fishy in his mouth.

His lips, which he had been biting to endure the pain, were torn, and blood was seeping out.

For the first time in a while, Jun-ho felt like he was facing a huge wall, overwhelmed by a massive tidal wave of helplessness.

To escape from despair.

Jun-ho got up from his seat and paced around the duty room window.

He limped on his left leg due to the pain from the Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique.

However, no clear solution was in sight.

CRPS was a rare disease of unknown cause, and the treatment was still shrouded in mystery.

A solution wouldn’t just pop out of nowhere.

After wandering for a while, Jun-ho’s steps turned back to his desk.

In Jun-ho’s hands was an orthopedic textbook.

The area where Ju-won was suffering from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome was his leg.

So, he thought it would be good to learn more about the leg in detail.

Flip. Flip.

The swiftly turning pages stopped at a point with anatomical pictures.

Jun-ho meticulously examined the anatomical structure of the leg.

Skin, muscles, joints, subcutaneous fat, muscle fibers, nerves, blood vessels, etc.

He looked again and again to see if there were any areas he had missed.

Creak.

Just then, the door to the duty room opened, and Chief Dong-won entered.

“What are you doing, our ace?”

Dong-won approached with a friendly voice and put his arm around Jun-ho’s shoulder.

Jun-ho not only took on all the duty shifts but also handled numerous ward tasks perfectly.

To Dong-won, Jun-ho was a precious gem.

“I’m studying orthopedics a bit.”

“Why orthopedics all of a sudden?”

“Today, a CRPS patient was transferred from the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine. I thought it would be helpful to study it separately.”

“Your heart is commendable. But what’s the point of us struggling? It’s an incurable disease that even world-renowned doctors can’t cure.”

“Still, I don’t want to just stand still.”

“Jun-ho.”

Dong-won called Jun-ho in a meaningful voice.

“Yes, Chief.”

“A person should know when to give up appropriately. When a road is blocked, you should know how to turn back.”

“……”

“Wouldn’t it be better to focus on what you can do rather than focusing on what you can’t?”

Dong-won’s words made sense.

Jun-ho might be hitting a rock with an egg [attempting the impossible].

Martial arts and inner energy were indeed like cheating, but they weren’t omnipotent.

Martial arts and inner energy also had clear limitations.

However, Jun-ho didn’t want to admit that fact.

He also didn’t want to watch Ju-won suffer.

If Jun-ho gave up too….

No one would be left by Ju-won’s side.

“It may seem foolish, but I still want to do what I can. If I struggle, I might stumble upon something, right?”

Jun-ho smiled weakly.

“Chief, Professor Hong is planning to perform a nerve block on Ju-won, who has CRPS. What do you think?”

“It probably won’t work.”

“Why? There are quite a few papers that say it’s effective in reducing patient pain.”

“Well, my colleague is in the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, and…”

Dong-won scratched his head and continued.

“CRPS type 1 doesn’t respond well to nerve blocks. Do you know the difference between type 1 and type 2?”

“Yes. Type 1 is when there’s no damage to the peripheral nerves, right?”

“So, when there’s no nerve damage, nerve blocks are unlikely to be effective.”

“Then why bother with the surgery…”

“It’s obvious. He’s just trying to add another surgery to his record. Professor Hong has the most surgeries in our department. He’s good at finding patients who can be operated on easily and quickly.”

Hearing the secret behind this surgery, Jun-ho was shocked once again.

If Dong-won’s words were true.

(Which they probably were.)

There was one more reason why he shouldn’t give up on Ju-won.

* * *

A new morning dawned.

Jun-ho frowned as he got up from his desk.

It was because of the intense pain coming from his leg.

Jun-ho had been working all night with the Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique inflicted on himself.

It was a symbol of empathizing with Ju-won.

And a firm will to cure Ju-won.

Still, if this condition continued, it could negatively affect the treatment of other patients.

Jun-ho released the Sever Tendons and Break Bones Technique with acupressure.

Only then did he feel like he could live.

He was able to enjoy freedom from pain.

Foolishly, it seemed that humans only realize the importance of health when they are in pain.

Bzzzz. Bzzzz.

A call came early in the morning.

It was not the pager but his cell phone, and his teacher Park Jae-hyun’s phone number appeared.

Jun-ho hurriedly connected the call.

“Yes, Professor.”

-I’m sorry, I was too busy yesterday to answer the call. I thought about calling you even at dawn, but I didn’t think that was a good idea.

“No, Professor. Oh, and thank you for the cervical and lumbar spine data you sent me the other day. I’m finding it very helpful.”

Jun-ho bowed his head and answered.

Jae-hyun’s data was a hit again.

Cases directly performed by the teacher.

The advantages and disadvantages of the case.

Well-organized similar types of overseas papers that are good to know.

It was almost like changing schools.

Thanks to that, Jun-ho was quickly breaking through systematic and extensive cervical and lumbar spine diseases.

-Of course, it should be helpful. I organized it with my blood and sweat.

Jae-hyun’s voice was filled with laughter.

-Anyway, there’s a reason why I contacted you separately, right?

“How did you know that?”

-When people like you and I contact each other, there’s always trouble related to patients. Tell me honestly.

“Then, I’ll tell you without reservation.”

Jun-ho told him about his concerns about Ju-won, leaving nothing out.

Throughout the story.

Sighs could be heard from beyond the receiver.

-You’re looking for a very difficult path. I don’t think I can help you this time.

“I guess it’s difficult to find a cure for CRPS, right?”

Jun-ho asked in a dejected voice. CRPS was impregnable to the point that even his teacher Jae-hyun gave up.

As Dong-won said yesterday.

It seemed wise to give up on treatment.

-That’s right. Because it’s a road that no one has seen and no one has ever been on. But still.

“……”

-I hope you don’t get frustrated. Even if there is no way, if you look for a way, you may see a way. Even if it’s not right now.

“……”

-Humans are great. Who would have imagined that mankind would be able to launch rockets into space and land on the moon in the past?

“……”

-If you keep your determination, you will see the light someday.

“Thank you for your kind words, Professor.”

Even after hanging up, Jun-ho’s gaze remained on his cell phone for a long time.

He was savoring the deep lingering impression that Jae-hyun had left.

But even at this time, Jun-ho didn’t know.

Through an absurd opportunity.

The miraculous fact that he would completely cure Ju-won’s Complex Regional Pain Syndrome the day before Ju-won was discharged.

* * *

Three days had passed since then.

Jun-ho was helping Ju-won within the limits of what he could do.

Whenever he had time, he would visit Ju-won and talk to him.

And if the allowable amount of narcotic analgesics was exceeded, he would perform pain-relieving acupressure.

In the process, he was able to become quite close to Ju-won.

Ju-won was very interested in martial arts, and especially enjoyed watching the ‘Fighter Kwon’ channel.

The ‘Fighter Kwon’ channel was….

A channel run by Kwon Hyuk, a former mixed martial arts fighter, with 700,000 subscribers.

The main content included martial arts training methods, fighting tips, daily life, and exercise guidance for other YouTubers.

After recognizing the channel, Jun-ho contacted the MCN [Multi-Channel Network – a company that works with YouTube channels] he belonged to.

He asked if they could arrange a collaboration with the Fighter Kwon channel.

Then Jun-ho’s manager, Young-eun, tilted her head.

-Is there a reason why you’re thinking of collaborating with the Fighter Kwon channel?

“One of my patients is a fan of him. I thought it would be helpful to get his autograph and a cheering video.”

-Ah… but Kwon Hyuk’s reputation is generally not good. I heard he creates a lot of artificial concepts to get views.

“Really? I haven’t heard that story?”

-The videos that have been uploaded recently are especially like that. One of the YouTubers in our MCN who collaborated with Kwon Hyuk said he was a bit of a bad person.

Young-eun didn’t seem to like the collaboration with Kwon Hyuk.

However, Jun-ho stubbornly pushed for the collaboration.

Even if Kwon Hyuk’s personality was bad.

Kwon Hyuk’s autograph and cheering video would be a great help to Ju-won.

-Then I’ll contact him separately and let you know as soon as the date is set.

“Yes. Thank you, Manager.”

Jun-ho hung up.

The very next day.

Ju-won underwent a nerve block in his leg under the direction of Hoon-shik.

Since the original intention of planning the surgery was impure.

The surgery had almost no effect.

Even after the surgery, Ju-won’s pain did not decrease even by a strand of hair.

Ju-won and Ju-won’s guardian were greatly disappointed, but they didn’t seem to despair.

It seemed that they sensed that if Ju-won collapsed first.

Or if the guardian collapsed first.

If either one started to collapse, both would collapse at the same time.

That’s how the day of Ju-won’s discharge was approaching in two days.

For the first time in a while, Jun-ho left the hospital.