A Surgeon Who Uses Martial Arts [EN]: Chapter 460

Chapter 90: Breaking Free (1)

‘That’s the face of someone who never saw it coming,’ Junhoo thought, chuckling inwardly at Sihoo’s stunned reaction.

From Sihoo’s perspective, it must have felt like a bolt from the blue – unexpected and devastating.

Especially since it *was* a bolt from the blue, carefully orchestrated by Junhoo.

Junhoo had subtly laid a trap, meticulously ensuring Sihoo wouldn’t suspect a thing.

The key to this trap was the Reverse Disguise Technique [a martial arts technique used to alter one’s appearance].

He had used this martial art to alter his face, concealing his true identity.

Junhoo was, after all, a popular YouTuber with a whopping 2 million subscribers.

If he went around with his original face, he risked being recognized, which would complicate things.

What would have happened if the contractor Sihoo hired had recognized Junhoo?

Initially, they might have been compliant, but after the job was done, they would likely have used Junhoo’s instructions as leverage for blackmail.

Saying things like, ‘Such an important person gave us such dirty instructions,’ and demanding hush money.

Without the Reverse Disguise Technique…

…news of Junhoo’s trap might have already reached Sihoo’s ears, ruining everything.

But that feared scenario never materialized.

The Reverse Disguise Technique effectively protected Junhoo’s identity.

And it would continue to protect him in the major events to come.

“What… what’s going on?” Sihoo asked, his brow furrowed, as if grasping at straws.

“Why is something so absurd happening…?”

“I used the contractors you assigned to Ah-young against you. They’re working for me now.”

“Damn it! Those morons betrayed me.”

“Your inability to manage people is as evident as ever, isn’t it?”

Junhoo sneered, a hint of disdain in his voice.

“You’re still all talk.”

“I don’t think I got this far with just talk, do you?”

“Ugh.”

Sihoo trembled with humiliation and rage.

To think he would be backstabbed by Junhoo, the very person he wanted to get revenge on so desperately.

His fleeting joy was now shattered, replaced by bitter anger.

Sihoo’s face flushed crimson.

The heat spread from his cheeks to the tips of his ears.

“…”

“…”

The two men remained silent for a long, tense moment.

A ray of light pierced through a gap in the collapsed outer wall, illuminating dust particles dancing in the air.

Sihoo was the first to break the silence.

“Let me ask you just one thing.”

“As you wish.”

“If you could only save either Ah-young or your parents, who would you save?”

“You call that a question?” Junhoo scoffed, clicking his tongue at the unexpected and twisted query.

Perhaps it was because humans were inherently twisted that their questions were equally so. Junhoo had never even entertained such a thought.

“Were you trying to imitate the Joker [a reference to the Batman villain known for posing moral dilemmas]?”

“This is a serious matter to me! I’ve been thinking about it ever since I was locked up in the detention center. Answer me!” Sihoo demanded, his expression filled with anger and desperation.

“I don’t want to pollute my mind with such garbage. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“It’s not difficult, is it? Just one word?”

As Sihoo persisted, Junhoo sighed heavily. He moved his lips as if to say something, then hesitated.

“If it were me…”

“Yes? If it were you?”

“I would keep my mouth shut for the rest of my life. I’d make you wonder for the rest of your life.”

“You son of a bitch!” Sihoo finally lost his composure and kicked a loose rock.

The rock struck the wall with a dull thud.

‘That was close,’ Junhoo thought, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief.

He was glad he had acted preemptively after hearing about Sihoo’s release.

If his response had been even slightly lukewarm…

Sihoo’s terrible experiment would have become a reality, targeting Junhoo’s loved ones.

Junhoo would have lost his parents and Ah-young, and would have been consumed by regret for the rest of his life.

The mere thought sent shivers down his spine.

“I’ll admit that you’ve cornered me. But that’s not a problem at all.”

Sihoo laughed maniacally, a disturbing glint in his eyes.

He raised the shotgun he had been carrying over his shoulder, holding it firmly with both hands. He pointed the barrel directly at Junhoo’s chest.

The hole inside the barrel was as black and menacing as a black hole.

“I still have many ways to torment you.”

“…”

“The order is messed up, but that doesn’t mean things are truly messed up. I’m going to turn you into a cripple with this shotgun right now.”

“…”

“I’ll call another contractor and kidnap Ah-young and your parents again. Then everything will return to its original course, right?”

Sihoo grinned, a chilling expression on his face.

He had known all along that Junhoo was no ordinary person.

He also suspected that Junhoo came from the Murim [a world of martial arts and cultivation].

That’s why he had been grinding his teeth and sharpening his knife, preparing for this confrontation.

The culmination of that blood and sweat was the shotgun in Sihoo’s hand.

He practiced shooting and obtained a gun permit specifically to subdue Junhoo.

No matter how much Junhoo flew or crawled, how could he possibly handle a gun?

“Don’t worry too much. I’m not planning to kill you right away.”

Click! Bang!

Sihoo boldly pulled the trigger. A deafening sound erupted inside the dilapidated house. White smoke billowed from the barrel of the shotgun.

“Huh?”

Sihoo’s eyes widened in disbelief.

An unbelievable thing had just happened right before his eyes.

Junhoo’s figure seemed to disappear for a split second and then reappear in the same spot.

What was even more astonishing was that Junhoo was completely unharmed, not even a hair out of place.

The aim had been perfect.

There was no way the shot could have missed at such close range.

In the first place, it wasn’t a distance where a shotgun could miss.

He had aimed for the ankle, intending to disable his legs first, so a misfire couldn’t be the reason for the miss.

Click!

Sihoo quickly opened the barrel of the shotgun.

He reloaded the cartridges and aimed at Junhoo’s left ankle again.

Bang!

The huge explosion sound once again reverberated through the house.

But what?

The result was the same as before.

“What… what the hell are you?” Sihoo stammered in shock and disbelief.

A reality he couldn’t comprehend, even after witnessing it with his own eyes.

It was the only explanation: Junhoo had somehow dodged the bullets with his bare body. Otherwise, there was no way to explain how the gun had missed twice in a row.

“I feel sorry for you. I’m a much more amazing person than you think.”

A wicked smile appeared on Junhoo’s lips.

“I already tested that I can avoid bullets by using internal energy [qi or life force] and concentrating my mind. At the shooting range.”

“Such… such an absurd thing…”

“Because I’m a person who defies common sense, I was able to defy common sense and treat other people.”

“Shut up!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Sihoo abandoned his careful aim and started firing wildly. But Junhoo dodged all the bullets with flashy, almost impossible footwork.

To be honest, there were over 100 ways to subdue Sihoo.

He could have taken the gun with psychokinesis [the ability to move objects with one’s mind], turned the barrel in the wrong direction, or simply rushed in and knocked Sihoo down before he could shoot.

But Junhoo deliberately chose to dodge the shots.

He wanted Sihoo to feel his own powerlessness to the bone.

Considering how much Ah-young and Junhoo had suffered because of Sihoo, he couldn’t waste this moment.

“Haa… haa… haa…” Sihoo, who had emptied the shotgun, gasped for breath.

He hadn’t even exerted himself physically, but he was already showing signs of exhaustion.

“Damn it! Why doesn’t anything go my way? Why!” Sihoo cried out in frustration.

“You still don’t know the reason?”

“Reason?”

“You have to have a good heart for the heavens to help you. The heavens don’t help your polluted, corrupt, and rotten mind.”

“Heh heh heh.”

Sihoo suddenly burst into wild, unsettling laughter.

He covered his face with one hand and laughed with his back arched, his body shaking uncontrollably.

He was clearly losing his grip on reality.

“Damn it. I don’t know how many times I’ve been screwed over today.”

Thud!

Sihoo threw the shotgun he was holding onto the floor. A cloud of dust rose from the impact.

“To think you’d dodge the bullets. Today is my complete defeat.”

“Is it just today?”

“No. I still have a trump card left.”

“Trump card?”

Junhoo’s senses sharpened at the ominous word. A chill ran down his spine, and goosebumps rose on his arms.

He had more to show than a shotgun?

It was clear that he had the upper hand, but Junhoo felt uneasy for some reason.

The depth of darkness that Sihoo possessed was hard to fathom.

“My trump card is… you.”

“Me?”

“Seo Junhoo’s soft and tender mindset is my weapon.”

Sihoo continued with a twisted smile.

“So, what are you going to do now?”

“…”

“Are you going to kill me? Seo Junhoo, who doesn’t care about anything to save a patient, is going to kill someone?”

“…”

“No. That will never happen. You can dodge bullets, but you can’t kill me.”

Sihoo said confidently, his eyes gleaming with a strange certainty.

After Junhoo dodged the bullets, Sihoo’s conviction had only grown stronger.

Why would a guy with such unbelievable physical abilities leave him alone during his residency?

It must be because he was kind by nature.

It must be because he only knew how to save people, not kill them.

If Sihoo were in Junhoo’s position, he would have killed himself a hundred times over.

Because the best way to solve a problem was to eliminate the problem itself.

“You don’t have the guts to kill anyone. Even if it’s trash like me.”

“…”

“Why? Do you have nothing to say because I hit you where it hurts?”

Sihoo laughed, a triumphant sound.

Meanwhile, Junhoo remained silent for a long time despite Sihoo’s provocation.

His tightly closed lips did not open easily.

His fists were also clenched tightly. Veins and blood vessels sprouted like seedlings on the back of his hands, a testament to his inner turmoil.

Sihoo’s point was correct.

Junhoo couldn’t bring himself to kill people.

He could have secretly called Sihoo out during his residency and taken his life, but he didn’t.

Why didn’t I do that back then?

Junhoo asked himself, a flicker of regret in his eyes.

In fact, it wasn’t that difficult for Junhoo to harm others.

Wasn’t he from the Murim?

He had cut off the heads and limbs of countless demonic figures with his sword without hesitation.

And he didn’t even blink an eye.

If he didn’t have the experience, maybe it would be different.

But in a situation where he had the experience, it shouldn’t be difficult to do the same to Sihoo.

But Junhoo hesitated.

In the end, he couldn’t act.

Because… he felt a sense of revulsion in his heart.

The place where Junhoo lived was not the Murim but the modern world.

In the modern world, murder was hard to justify.

He had come to instinctively feel disgusted by harming someone.

That wasn’t all.

Junhoo in the Murim was a swordsman, a warrior.

But Junhoo in the modern world was a doctor, a healer.

A person who had to save someone was harming someone?

Even if it was a vicious criminal?

Because the Murim self and the modern self collided, Junhoo couldn’t summarily judge Sihoo.

“I’m telling you again, you can’t kill me. That’s the biggest weapon I have.”

“…”

“If you can’t kill me, I’ll be a shadow and chase you for the rest of my life. That means someday Ah-young, your parents, and even you will be eaten by me.”

“…”

“Even if I lose today, I can’t help but be the winner in the long run.”

Junhoo, who had been looking down, slowly raised his head.

He looked at Sihoo with eyes full of an unusual, intense light.

Step. Step.

Junhoo approached Sihoo, his movements deliberate and measured.

Soon, the distance became close enough for the two to see themselves reflected in each other’s eyes.

Sihoo didn’t budge even as Junhoo approached, his confidence unwavering.

Rather, he was looking at Junhoo as if he were a naive child, underestimating his opponent.

“All you can do is torture me at best. Go ahead. I can endure any torture.”

“You’re right,” Junhoo said in a low, cracked voice, reaching out his palm. Junhoo’s palm rested on Sihoo’s left chest, directly over his heart.

At that moment, a strong, agonizing current surged through Sihoo’s heart.

“Kuh-ugh!” Sihoo cried out in pain, collapsing to his knees on the floor.

His heart was beating so erratically and forcefully that he felt a terrifying sense of unease. It felt like his heart would burst like an overinflated balloon if this continued.

As time went on, even breathing became a struggle, each gasp a painful reminder of his failing body.

A bucketful of saliva poured from Sihoo’s open lips as he desperately tried to draw air into his lungs.

“I can’t kill people, but I can kill beasts,” Junhoo’s voice was faintly heard, a chilling declaration.

While Junhoo’s words echoed in his ears, Sihoo buried his face in the dirt, his body convulsing uncontrollably.

His consciousness gradually faded away, the darkness closing in around him.

“And you’re a beast.”