The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 153

Divine Physician of the Demonic World (153)

Neng Suomil immediately sensed that he was the one in charge here.

His gaze and aura were extraordinary.

Neng Suomil began to look around with a relaxed smile.

“What a magnificent view.”

This was not just empty praise.

The tower, bathed in the golden light of the sunset, exuded a mystical atmosphere.

Moreover, the fourth floor of this pavilion was in an exquisite location, offering a panoramic view of the pair of towers, the symbol of Yeongjo Temple.

“Who would have imagined that such a romantic and charming place would be a branch of the Black Dot.”

It was then that a cold, frozen voice cut off Neng Suomil’s words.

“Did ‘that person’ send you?”

Neng Suomil smiled and nodded.

“As you can see.”

Yeop Danyeong reconfirmed the letter in his hand.

—Consider the person who brings this as me.

That was all there was to the cryptic message.

And at the end, the name Beom Gyewi was scribbled messily.

“How do I verify the authenticity of this letter?”

The sight of Neng Suomil smiling gently caused a chilling murderous intent to flow from Yeop Danyeong’s eyes.

“If you can’t prove it…”

“Do I just disappear? Without a trace?”

Yeop Danyeong’s eyebrows twitched.

Neng Suomil sighed softly and met Yeop Danyeong’s gaze.

“Let’s stop with the pointless probing. Since it’s a given, wouldn’t it be better for both of us to finish this quickly and cleanly?”

“…….”

“There’s no need for me to introduce myself, is there? You’ve already figured it out.”

That was true.

The moment Neng Suomil entered the Shanxi branch, Yeop Danyeong recognized him immediately.

The former leader of the Shinso Sect.

But now, he was the head of the Shinma Merchant Guild.

However, the more he investigated his background, the more suspicious things kept popping up.

Being arrested on suspicion of handling information related to the Murim Alliance [a coalition of martial arts clans] and being imprisoned in the brain prison was fine.

But less than a year after escaping from the brain prison and disappearing, he reappeared in Gangho [the martial arts world] as the head of the Shinma Merchant Guild.

The problem was that in the process of his escape, a significant number of the Murim Alliance’s elite were wiped out by a mysterious master.

There were only a handful of masters of that level in the current Gangho.

Realizing this, Yeop Danyeong stopped the investigation.

A red light had turned on in his head.

It was enough to have a tiger suddenly jump out after stirring up a rabbit’s burrow once.

Information obtained from Baek Woonhwi, the Murim Alliance’s inspector.

Providing this to Jangnakbang again had brought a being more terrifying than a natural disaster to this place, hadn’t it?

He never wanted to experience that terrible feeling he had felt back then again.

It was then that Neng Suomil spoke again.

“There’s a simple way to verify the authenticity of that letter.”

“……?”

“Just kill me.”

Neng Suomil continued leisurely.

“Then ‘that person’ will come looking for you next.”

“……!”

Yeop Danyeong’s face contorted.

He was speaking politely and indirectly, but it was clearly a threat.

It was an unbearable insult to him.

But what was even more unbearable was that the threat had worked.

Neng Suomil, facing Yeop Danyeong who was glaring at him as if to devour him, opened his mouth once more.

“Are you really going to miss the opportunity before your eyes?”

“Opportunity?”

Neng Suomil nodded at Yeop Danyeong’s question.

“Isn’t it a better opportunity that I came instead of ‘that person’?”

“Why is this an opportunity?”

“It’s a chance to liquidate the relationship of being dragged around by ‘that person’ and change it into a contractual relationship where we can promote each other’s interests on an equal footing.”

Neng Suomil continued to explain.

“The Shinma Merchant Guild has financial power, and the branch manager has information. And I am someone who values the worth of information more than anyone else.”

Yeop Danyeong’s eyes wavered.

“Does that mean?”

“It means that if this goes well, we can become a source of strength for each other. If trust builds up in the future, the Shinma Merchant Guild may become the branch manager’s patron.”

“You want to be my backer?”

Yeop Danyeong scoffed.

“Do you have the ability to do that?”

The scale of the Shinma Merchant Guild that he had grasped was not yet included in the top ten merchant guilds of the Central Plains [the heartland of the martial arts world].

But Neng Suomil pointed out the part he had overlooked.

“It only took a year to achieve the results so far.”

Yeop Danyeong could not deny this point either.

The growth rate of the Shinma Merchant Guild was unprecedented in Murim [martial arts world] history.

“Besides…….”

After pondering something for a moment, Neng Suomil smiled and continued.

“Soon, an amazing item will come into the world. Through this, the Shinma Merchant Guild will expand its power at a rate that cannot be compared to what it has been until now.”

“Item?”

“It’s a pity that I can’t tell you yet because it’s still confidential. But you’ll know soon enough. The entire Central Plains will be shaken.”

Yeop Danyeong’s eyes flashed coldly.

There must be a reason why the other party was making such a confident statement.

“Now, make your choice.”

Neng Suomil, who had seized control of the conversation, pressured Yeop Danyeong with a gentle smile.

“Will you join me in the future? Or……”

At Neng Suomil’s next words, Yeop Danyeong’s shoulders stiffened.

“Will you deal with ‘that person’ directly?”

Yeop Danyeong was silent.

It was truly a checkmate.

There was no choice.

Neng Suomil smiled and took something out of his pocket and placed it on the table.

Clang.

“What is this?”

“It’s the commission fee. If you want to get information, you have to pay the price.”

“What do you take us for!”

Yeop Danyeong burst out with the anger he had been holding back.

Because the pouch was so small that it could barely hold four or five silver ingots.

It would have been better if he hadn’t offered any money at all, as this was an open act of insulting him.

After talking about being on an equal footing and trust, he was trying to use them for a cheap price!

Then, he suddenly felt a strange feeling.

Nowhere in Neng Suomil’s calm eyes and expression could he find contempt or ridicule.

Belatedly, Yeop Danyeong opened the pouch in front of him and checked the contents.

“……!”

Yeop Danyeong’s eyes widened.

Ingots.

There were ten gold ingots, each weighing ten nyang [a traditional unit of weight].

Since one gold nyang was worth fifty silver nyang, this alone was worth more than a hundred silver ingots.

Yeop Danyeong finally replayed Neng Suomil’s words so far.

They were by no means empty words spoken without thinking.

Realizing this, he saw the man in front of him in a new light.

“You certainly know the value of information. We’ll get along quite well.”

Neng Suomil smiled and nodded.

“You’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”

At those words, Yeop Danyeong choked up.

Suffering and injustice that he couldn’t tell anyone.

He wondered if anyone in the world would understand this, but unexpectedly, Neng Suomil’s one word, whom he was meeting for the first time, was comforting.

“In fact, few people understand the branch manager as much as I do. My situation wasn’t much different.”

Neng Suomil explained why he had been arrested by the Murim Alliance.

“I also had to be dragged around by a scary person. So I ended up losing Shinso Sect, which I had built up over a lifetime. Well, what else could I do to survive? I had no choice but to dig into the Murim Alliance as I was told.”

“Well, Senior Beom isn’t someone you can talk to.”

“It’s not ‘that person’.”

“Hmm?”

“It was someone else.”

“No matter how scary that person is, how can he be compared to the one called Mangsan Choja……”

But he quickly shut his mouth at Neng Suomil’s next words.

“Blood Demon Lord.”

“……!”

“In my case, I had to bring information to him.”

Yeop Danyeong stared at Neng Suomil without a word.

Neng Suomil’s appearance, sighing with a bitter look, didn’t seem like someone else’s business.

“He just steals the information I worked so hard to gather as if he’s picking up something he’s left behind……”

“I know. That feeling……”

Yeop Danyeong nodded, feeling a sense of kinship with Neng Suomil, whose situation was not much different from his own, knowing how a widow feels.

“Bad guys.”

Yeop Danyeong, who was muttering without realizing it, suddenly realized what he had done.

What if Neng Suomil passed on these words?

But Neng Suomil pretended not to hear and asked back.

“What did you say just now?”

“…….”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t hear you because I was distracted for a moment.”

“……Thank you.”

Neng Suomil smiled and held out his hand.

“Let’s work together well.”

Yeop Danyeong shook his hand.

“Let’s do that.”

It was the moment when a new relationship of trust was built based on a sense of solidarity with each other.

The process was not easy, but Neng Suomil finally succeeded in winning Yeop Danyeong’s heart.

* * *

The Danak Seon party, who had found a nearby restaurant for a meal, ordered several dishes and chatted.

While continuing the conversation in a consistently friendly atmosphere, the food came out.

Beom Gyewi suddenly looked at Danak Seon with a puzzled expression.

Because Danak Seon had placed chopsticks on the empty seat.

“Is there someone else coming?”

At Beom Gyewi’s question, Danak Seon smiled shyly.

“Just in case.”

“……?”

“You never know when Head Neng will come back.”

At those words, Beom Gyewi’s heart ached.

It was a trivial act, but Danak Seon’s thoughtfulness in preparing a place for the departed to return was very admirable and lovely.

As they were eating.

“Huh?”

Danak Seon suddenly turned her head and cast her gaze out the window.

“Why?”

At Cho Akryang’s question, Danak Seon tilted her head.

“I thought I felt Head Neng’s presence.”

Cho Akryang, who turned his head following Danak Seon’s gaze, smiled slightly.

“It must be your imagination.”

Beom Gyewi also smiled and nodded.

“Yeah. If he was nearby, there’s no way we wouldn’t know.”

Unless he was a master of stealth techniques, he couldn’t escape the senses of the two.

“I guess so. That’s strange.”

Danak Seon nodded and continued eating.

But after a while, she raised her head again.

At the same time, a strange light appeared in Han Seolhwa’s eyes.

“I don’t think it’s my imagination?”

“Huh?”

“Hmm?”

At those words, Cho Akryang and Beom Gyewi also belatedly cast their gazes out the window.

Sure enough.

A faint presence approaching from afar was felt.

A familiar feeling of energy.

It was Neng Suomil.

Han Seolhwa scolded the two who were flustered.

“Amateurs.”

Cho Akryang and Beom Gyewi’s faces contorted with embarrassment.

But that was only for a moment.

“But how did Doctor Dan know he was coming?”

At Cho Akryang’s question, Beom Gyewi also tilted his head.

“I know, right? Especially since he’s so far away.”

After a little time, Neng Suomil’s figure, running quickly from a distant place, came into view.

But the strange thing happened after that.

Neng Suomil went straight to the restaurant where the Danak Seon party was staying.

“I found you!”

Neng Suomil shouted, panting with his breath reaching his chin.

On the other hand, Cho Akryang couldn’t hide his doubts.

“How did you know we were here?”

“Huh? I don’t know?”

Neng Suomil answered with a flustered expression at the sight of the two people questioning him with their eyes.

“I just felt like you would be here?”

He hadn’t thought deeply about it, so he couldn’t explain the reason, but for some reason, he felt like Danak Seon would be here.

If so, the other three would naturally be together.

On the other hand, Cho Akryang couldn’t hide his suspicion.

Out of so many places, he had accurately pinpointed this place.

It was too coincidental to be a simple coincidence.

Especially since he had never given them any prior notice.

“Have some water first.”

Danak Seon handed Neng Suomil some tea that had cooled appropriately.

“Thank you, Master Gok.”

Neng Suomil, with a grateful face, took it and gulped down the tea.

Clunk.

Neng Suomil, who put down the teacup, took a long breath.

“I feel like I can live now. I ran non-stop from Shanxi to here for half a day.”

Surprise appeared in Cho Akryang’s eyes.

“You covered that distance in half a day?”

Come to think of it, the speed at which he was running just now had become faster than before.

‘Wait?’

Cho Akryang stared intently at Neng Suomil.

‘Come to think of it, this guy had also learned Wihwa Divine Art [a powerful movement technique]?’