The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 145

The biting cold had subsided.

The days grew longer, and most of the snow that had piled up to their knees melted away, revealing the hidden rocks.

New moss began to sprout around, painting Mount Kunlun with colors distinctly different from the pure white of winter.

Spring had arrived.

Standing at the entrance of the Samsung Clinic, Dan Ahk-seon politely bowed to the Kunlun Sect members who had come to see them off.

Everyone, from the Kunlun Sect Leader, Gwangjin Dojang, to the elders and young disciples of Dan Ahk-seon’s age, wished them a safe journey.

Some of the younger children even sniffled as they bid farewell to Dan Ahk-seon.

They had grown quite fond of him during their time together.

“I’ll come again. So don’t cry.”

Hiding his tears and nodding earnestly, Dan Ahk-seon smiled at Gwangseongja.

“I’ll see you again, hyung [older brother or respected male figure].”

“Of course, we’ll see each other. If you don’t come, I’ll come find you.”

“But if the Murim Alliance [martial arts world alliance] declares this area a forbidden zone, won’t it be impossible for members of the Orthodox Faction to come?”

“Didn’t they say you can come if you’re sick?”

“Still, we shouldn’t meet like that.”

Dan Ahk-seon laughed and took Gwangseongja’s hand.

“If you let me know in advance, I’ll come out. So, don’t get sick, okay?”

Gwangseongja smiled and squeezed the hand he held.

“Okay. Anyway, let’s definitely meet again.”

While Dan Ahk-seon was saying his goodbyes to Gwangseongja, Cho Ahk-ryang met face to face with Gwangjin Dojang.

“Thank you for your hospitality.”

Gwangjin Dojang waved his hand dismissively at Cho Ahk-ryang’s words.

“Hospitality? Not at all. We say that all within the four seas are brothers. It was an honor to be with the three heroes, even for a short time.”

“Then, let’s meet again.”

Gwangjin Dojang nodded and bowed to Beom Gye-wi and Han Seol-hwa.

“I hope you have a safe journey.”

Seeming awkward in this situation, Beom Gye-wi awkwardly nodded.

A faint smile appeared and disappeared on Han Seol-hwa’s usually cold face.

With that, Dan Ahk-seon and his group said goodbye to Kunlun and set off on a new journey to their next destination.

On the way down Mount Kunlun.

“Now, only one of the Nine Great Sects remains.”

Dan Ahk-seon nodded at Cho Ahk-ryang’s words.

The only one left of the Nine Great Sects.

It was the Mount Kongtong Sect.

“But why are we going to Gansu Province, which is closest to the Divine Devil Valley, last?”

Cho Ahk-ryang was curious about the reason.

At first, he thought there might be a reason, but now he couldn’t help but ask.

“If we had visited the Mount Kongtong Sect first, we wouldn’t have been able to get the signed alliance agreement.”

Confusion appeared on Cho Ahk-ryang’s face.

“What do you mean?”

“My mother has a bad history with them.”

Cho Ahk-ryang was taken aback.

“A bad history? With the Mount Kongtong Sect?”

Dan Ahk-seon nodded with a bitter smile.

“Yes. That’s why I needed the signed alliance agreement from the other eight sects first. I thought they would be more likely to agree that way.”

It was a kind of pressure.

It would be strange for them to be the only ones opposing something that all nine sects had agreed to.

Walking side by side, Dan Ahk-seon said.

“The reason why my mother was called the Devilish Physician and only treated members of the Demonic Faction is also because of the Mount Kongtong Sect.”

“Was the Devilish Physician originally from Gansu Province?”

“Yes.”

She was born and raised in Gansu. But as her medical skills became known, she traveled like the wind throughout the Central Plains [historical regions of China].

Patients in need of a doctor don’t discriminate by region.

The reason she returned to her hometown to live in seclusion was also because of that.

Aversion and disillusionment with people.

And some other reason forced her to hide her existence.

While searching for a suitable place of seclusion, she realized that the Divine Devil Valley, which she had frequented like her own backyard, met all the conditions.

In the end, she had come full circle and returned to her hometown.

Dan Ahk-seon brought up an old story.

“One day, patients came to my mother.”

They were all seriously injured.

“But my mother couldn’t help them. She was already treating another patient.”

Dan Ahk-seon continued with a bitter expression.

“My mother told them that she already had a patient. Moreover, the patient she was treating was in critical condition and could die at any moment if treatment was delayed.”

She couldn’t stop treating the patient she had already taken in, so she couldn’t accept the patients who came later.

Moreover, they were not in as critical condition as the first patient.

“But they insisted on waiting. They said they had to be treated by my mother.”

The problem was that the injured people’s conditions began to worsen over time.

When the patients’ conditions became severe, they couldn’t insist any longer and hurriedly went to find another doctor.

However, in the end, three of the worsened patients died during treatment.

Among them was a promising disciple who had been designated as the next sect leader.

“Enraged, they broke into the clinic and killed the patient my mother was treating.”

She was furious to witness the patient she had worked so hard to save being murdered before her eyes.

She later learned that the patient she had been treating was a famous expert from the Demonic Faction.

And his injuries were the result of a life-or-death battle with the patients who came later.

Cho Ahk-ryang was finally able to understand the situation.

“Could it be that the patients who came later were…?”

Dan Ahk-seon nodded with a bitter face.

“Yes, they were members of the Mount Kongtong Sect.”

Because of that incident, she vowed never to treat members of the Mount Kongtong Sect again.

“Later, my father, who had connections with the Mount Kongtong Sect, tried to mediate, but resentment still remained.”

She was famous for her stubbornness, but she was the only one who listened to him.

Despite her arrogant and dogmatic personality, she inwardly acknowledged her father’s skills, who was the only one who could compete with her.

“But even my father couldn’t persuade my mother.”

As she became enemies with the Mount Kongtong Sect, all sorts of bad rumors about her began to spread.

The Nine Great Sects, who were on par with the Mount Kongtong Sect, also ostracized her.

“Angry, my mother initially limited it to the Mount Kongtong Sect, but eventually declared that she would not treat the entire Orthodox Faction.”

Then, from that time on, members of the Demonic Faction who heard the rumors began to come to her.

“It was around that time that my mother began to be called the Devilish Physician.”

Because of this, the Mount Kongtong Sect had to go through an unexpected ordeal.

They couldn’t just stand by and watch the Demonic Faction wreaking havoc in their territory.

However, the Demonic Faction members, who had been on the verge of death, would suddenly recover and carry out revenge.

As similar cases were repeated, the damage increased exponentially.

“It must have been a headache for the Mount Kongtong Sect.”

“Yes. I heard that fighting didn’t stop in the Gansu area for a while because of that. So the Mount Kongtong Sect’s resentment towards my mother must be very deep.”

Unlike Cho Ahk-ryang, who nodded with a complicated expression, Dan Ahk-seon sighed deeply.

“My mother wasn’t wrong.”

Beom Gye-wi nodded.

“That’s right. The Devilish Physician wasn’t wrong. It was all the fault of those Mount Kongtong Sect bastards.”

In the end, they were the ones who started the trouble and made the problem worse.

Beom Gye-wi’s eyes flashed with a fierce light.

“They’re as shameless as ever.”

He was exuding a murderous aura as if he would kill a Mount Kongtong Sect disciple right in front of him.

On the other hand, Cho Ahk-ryang carefully observed Dan Ahk-seon’s expression.

“It seems like you also have bad feelings towards the Mount Kongtong Sect.”

Dan Ahk-seon didn’t deny it.

“Yes. I hate them. How can a doctor kill someone they just treated? Especially in front of the doctor who saved that person.”

His eyes had already turned cold.

“How can I like people like that?”

It was an animosity that was unlike Dan Ahk-seon.

However, the three of them nodded silently, fully sympathizing with his feelings.

“Then, why don’t we just not get their signed alliance agreement?”

Dan Ahk-seon’s eyes wavered for a moment at Cho Ahk-ryang’s words. But he shook his head with a resolute face.

“No. I still want to get it. That way, at least we won’t have to face them inside the forbidden zone.”

Because of their pride, they wouldn’t do anything rash, but you never know what might happen.

There was a chance that they might enter and leave the Murim Alliance, claiming that they didn’t agree.

He didn’t want to give them the right to enter the forbidden zone.

“I have to do it, even if I don’t like it. I have no choice to protect everyone.”

The three of them cast a pitiful look at Dan Ahk-seon, who was worrying about such things at a young age.

One week later.

Dan Ahk-seon and his group entered Gansu Province.

The schedule was much earlier than expected.

Perhaps the training in Kunlun had been quite helpful, as Dan Ahk-seon was now able to use his lightness skill [a martial art technique that allows one to move with great speed and agility] for quite some time.

The three of them were just proud of Dan Ahk-seon, who had developed so dramatically in just one year.

Mount Kongtong, where the Mount Kongtong Sect was located, was south of Lanzhou, the capital of the province.

They decided to stop by Lanzhou first before visiting the Mount Kongtong Sect.

Their appearance was a mess due to the long journey.

Because they had hurried, living outdoors was a daily occurrence.

So their clothes became ragged and their appearance was shabby.

Even in the midst of all this, Han Seol-hwa was still neat and tidy.

Dan Ahk-seon’s clothes were dirty, but his face was clean.

Thanks to Han Seol-hwa’s martial arts, washing was possible even in places without water.

Han Seol-hwa froze the surrounding air and used the condensed water droplets to wash her face, and she also washed Dan Ahk-seon’s face from time to time.

However, Cho Ahk-ryang and Beom Gye-wi could not enjoy such luxury.

As the two of them entered Lanzhou looking like beggars, the passersby frowned and stepped aside.

Beom Gye-wi nodded as he watched the path created through the crowd that had parted like the tide.

“Now I know why the Beggars’ Sect doesn’t wash. This is the taste of it.”

Cho Ahk-ryang, who was giving him a pathetic look, soon realized that his own appearance was not much different and sighed.

However, on the one hand, he felt relieved just by entering Lanzhou.

Because it was close to the Divine Devil Valley.

How long had they been walking?

Unexpectedly, they were able to meet a welcome figure.

“Young Master!”

A man approached with a bright smile and a quick pace.

It was Pungjinseong.

Having heard the news that Dan Ahk-seon and his group were returning through the eyes and ears of the Beggars’ Sect scattered throughout the Murim world, he had been waiting for them here for several days.

“Uncle!”

Dan Ahk-seon also started running towards Pungjinseong.

But as the distance between them narrowed, Dan Ahk-seon looked surprised.

The welcome person was not only Pungjinseong.

“Welcome.”

Sa Musim, who was standing behind Pungjinseong, politely clasped his hands towards Dan Ahk-seon and the others.

“I missed you, Chief Manager. How have you been?”

Sa Musim smiled softly at Dan Ahk-seon’s greeting.

“I’ve been well. I think it’s all thanks to the Young Master’s concern.”

“Where’s Uncle Neung? Didn’t he come with you?”

Dan Ahk-seon looked around with a puzzled face.

He couldn’t see Neung Somil, who always moved together like a needle and thread.

“Neung couldn’t come with us because he was managing the Divine Devil Valley and the Murim Alliance. You’ll be able to see him soon, so don’t worry.”

Pungjinseong grabbed the group.

“Come on, come on. Instead of doing this in the middle of the road, let’s move to a place first.”

The inn they arrived at under Pungjinseong’s guidance.

It was quite large, but there were no guests inside, as if they had rented the whole place.

“Huh?”

Dan Ahk-seon was surprised as he inadvertently checked the sign hanging at the entrance of the inn.

“Divine Devil Inn?”

Sa Musim smiled and nodded.

“Yes. We acquired and have been running it for a while now.”

“We?”

“Divine Devil Merchant Group.”

The smile on Sa Musim’s face deepened.

“The Young Master is the owner of that merchant group.”