The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 262

신마의선 (262)

Having entered the Moryong Clan, Cho Ak-ryang immediately began searching for Je Gal-yeon.

He was determined not to let Beom Gye-wi have Je Gal-yeon.

Fortunately, Beom Gye-wi was preoccupied with chasing after the fleeing Mucheon Troops.

He had to seize this opportunity while that bastard was distracted.

Warriors guarded the inner quarters of the Moryong Clan, but none dared to stand in Cho Ak-ryang’s way.

Even Moryong Geuk, the Clan Lord, had witnessed the Moryong Clan’s elite Mucheon Troops being torn apart without putting up a proper fight.

“Where is Je Gal-yeon?”

After exchanging glances at Cho Ak-ryang’s question, the Moryong Clan warriors, their will to fight broken, readily pointed in one direction.

Cho Ak-ryang frowned as he passed through Wol-dong Gate and headed towards the back garden.

“Please, spare us.”

“We know nothing. Please, have mercy.”

The maids were prostrating on the ground, trembling with fear.

As he was about to move on, leaving them behind,

Cho Ak-ryang’s eyes lit up.

Unlike the other maids, one particularly pale neck caught his eye.

‘Come to think of it?’

Upon closer inspection, unlike the rough and chapped hands of the other maids, she possessed delicate and slender hands.

Cho Ak-ryang let out a burst of laughter, dumbfounded.

“Han Shin [a famous general from the Han Dynasty] endured the humiliation of crawling between someone’s legs to secure his future, yet how can the leader of the Murim Alliance resort to such pathetic tactics to overcome a crisis?”

Je Gal-yeon, hiding among the servants, flinched at those words.

It was then that a sweet fragrance brushed past Cho Ak-ryang’s nose.

‘This is?’

Startled, Cho Ak-ryang covered his nose with his sleeve and stepped back.

“You used Hadok! [a type of poison]”

At that moment.

Thud.

The maids of the Moryong Clan collapsed powerlessly all at once.

Their eyes wide open, they were no longer of this world.

“There’s no other way.”

Je Gal-yeon slowly rose from among the dead maids.

“It’s Shinseonpae (神仙廢) [Godly Immortal Demise].”

With those words, Je Gal-yeon gave Cho Ak-ryang a meaningful smile.

“Like most deadly poisons, by the time you realize it, you’re already poisoned. You’re no exception.”

Cho Ak-ryang glared at Je Gal-yeon with blazing eyes.

However, Je Gal-yeon calmly met his gaze and spoke again.

“The saying ‘negligence invites defeat’ isn’t just for show. What will kill you isn’t the deadly poison. It’s the carelessness that has taken root in you at this final moment.”

Once poisoned, there was no way to escape Shinseonpae.

A type of Sangongdok (散功毒) [Qi-dispersing poison], Shinseonpae, along with Hakjeonghong (鶴頂紅) [Red Crown Crane Poison] and Busidok (腐屍毒) [Corpse Rot Poison], was classified as an absolutely forbidden poison, and its use was taboo.

Because there was no antidote.

“How could you possibly?”

Je Gal-yeon smiled brightly at Cho Ak-ryang’s question.

“It’s been over three hundred years since Shinseonpae appeared in Gangho [the martial arts world]. There’s no way the Tang Clan would leave a poison that’s so dangerous even to themselves unattended, right? Other poisons haven’t been successful yet, but they recently succeeded in creating an antidote for Shinseonpae. Tang Ryung gave it to me along with Shinseonpae as a gift for courtship.”

“To sacrifice innocent civilians for your own life… you’re incorrigibly wicked.”

Je Gal-yeon smiled brightly at Cho Ak-ryang’s rebuke.

“I don’t think you’re one to talk, considering you’re called the Blood Hand Lord?”

“You will never die peacefully.”

“I don’t think you’re one to talk, considering you’re about to die first.”

Je Gal-yeon, who was throwing taunts, suddenly felt a strange sensation.

It was because Cho Ak-ryang looked too fine, even though it was already past the time he should have collapsed.

It was then that Cho Ak-ryang, seeing Je Gal-yeon’s bewilderment, opened his mouth.

“Once again, Doctor Dan’s prediction is spot on.”

“……?”

Cho Ak-ryang took something out of his pocket and showed it to the puzzled Je Gal-yeon.

“That’s?”

Je Gal-yeon’s eyes shook violently.

A bead in Cho Ak-ryang’s hand.

It was the Pidokju (避毒珠) [Poison-Avoiding Bead].

“Doctor Dan told me to bring this with me, just in case, since I was close to Tang Ryung.”

Cho Ak-ryang, approaching with a chilling gaze, grabbed Je Gal-yeon by the neck.

Thwack.

“Ugh!”

Je Gal-yeon, caught in Cho Ak-ryang’s grip, began to struggle.

“W-wait a minute…”

Je Gal-yeon barely managed to open her mouth and plead, but all that came back was a chilling voice.

“It’s a pity that I can’t kill you in this place. But…”

Cho Ak-ryang raised his other hand and ran it down Je Gal-yeon’s shoulder and arm.

Crack.

With a gruesome sound, Je Gal-yeon’s shoulder bone and arm shattered into pieces from the inside.

“Aaaaaaagh!”

It was right after that that a desperate scream echoed through the hall.

Je Gal-yeon’s face turned as white as a sheet from the terrible pain that belatedly struck her.

“You have to pay the price for bothering our Doctor Dan all this time.”

Cho Ak-ryang struck a pressure point near Je Gal-yeon’s jaw.

Sweat poured down Je Gal-yeon’s face like rain, unable to even scream.

Cho Ak-ryang grabbed her by the neck and moved.

Cho Ak-ryang, who left the Moryong Clan as it was, threw Je Gal-yeon away.

Thud.

Je Gal-yeon, sprawled on the floor, was on the verge of fainting from the overwhelming pain.

But she couldn’t.

It was because of Hong Jeok-mun, who was looking down at her with colder eyes than ever before.

“It seems like the Beggars’ Union should take care of the finishing touches.”

“Thank you.”

Hong Jeok-mun bowed his head with sincerity at Cho Ak-ryang’s words.

But it was then.

“Waaaait!”

Boom!

Along with a thunderous shout, there was a huge figure falling like a meteor in the hall.

It was Beom Gye-wi.

Je Gal-yeon shuddered at the sight of Beom Gye-wi, covered in blood and grinning.

Regardless,

Beom Gye-wi strode towards Je Gal-yeon.

“Even if I hand you over, I have to get back the debt for bothering our Doctor Dan.”

“I already…”

Crack.

Before Cho Ak-ryang could finish speaking, Beom Gye-wi had already stepped on Je Gal-yeon’s legs and crushed them.

“…got it back.”

“Huh? You should have said so sooner.”

Cho Ak-ryang smiled bitterly.

Beom Gye-wi kicked Je Gal-yeon, who had lost her mind and fainted from the continuous pain and shock, and rolled her in front of Hong Jeok-mun.

“I paid off my debt to the Beggars’ Union with this? We’re not beggars anymore!”

Cho Ak-ryang also nodded.

“I’m also returning the position of Cheong-ui Bin-gaek (淸衣賓客) [Guest in Clean Clothes, an honorary title in the Beggars’ Union].”

Hong Jeok-mun smiled and shook his head.

“Once a member of the Beggars’ Union, always a member of the Beggars’ Union.”

“What? Where does that come from?”

Hong Jeok-mun continued, facing Beom Gye-wi, who was getting angry.

“It’s what Chief Yi Rip said, not me. If you want to argue, argue with him.”

“How can I argue with a dead person!”

Hong Jeok-mun gave a troubled smile to Beom Gye-wi, who was grumbling.

After a while.

His eyes, looking at Je Gal-yeon wriggling under his feet, were colder than ever.

“I swear, I will never allow you to have a comfortable death, where your head is cut off in one go, or your heart is pierced by a sword in one strike… I will make you realize with your own body that there are things in this Gangho that are more terrible than death.”

Hong Jeok-mun, looking down at Je Gal-yeon with cold eyes, shouted to the Beggars’ Union members.

“We’re going back to Gaebong [Beggars’ Union Headquarters].”

The beggars of the Beggars’ Union left like a receding tide, leaving behind the Moryong Clan, where a scene of hell was unfolding.

“Let’s go too.”

At Cho Ak-ryang’s words, Beom Gye-wi grinned and nodded.

“It’s going to be quiet now. It feels like a thorn has been pulled out.”

* * *

The destruction of the Moryong Clan, which came to be known as the Yonyang Bloodshed.

After that, it took only about a month for the dissolution of the Murim Alliance to be officially announced.

This was because the conspiracy that Je Gal-yeon had been plotting behind the scenes was revealed in broad daylight, and her misdeeds were exposed one by one.

The Murim [martial arts world] was furious at the collusion between the Moryong Clan and Je Gal-yeon, and other clans also refrained from external activities and took a self-restrained attitude.

In particular, the Je Gal Clan’s Lord himself visited the Beggars’ Union to mourn Yi Rip’s death and apologize, while offering huge compensation and officially declaring that Je Gal-yeon had severed ties with their clan.

The Sichuan Tang Clan also took similar steps.

The Tang Clan’s Lord, who had ousted Tang Ryung, the Tang Clan’s Taju [clan leader’s successor], sent letters to the Gu Pa [Nine Great Sects] and Muwi [Demonic Faction], promising apologies and compensation.

They also announced the closure of the clan for the next five years, along with the Hwangbo Clan.

Meanwhile, amid the atmosphere of mourning for Namgung Baek’s death, who had died together with No Dan-yang, the Beggars’ Union sent envoys to the Namgung Clan to express their condolences and gratitude.

In addition, with the addition of the Nine Great Sects and Dan Ak-seon’s condolences, who shared the same purpose as the Beggars’ Union, the Namgung Clan regained its honor and regained its position as one of the Five Great Clans.

And only then did the beggars of the Beggars’ Union take off their mourning clothes.

The Murim, swept away by such great scars, began to regain stability.

It was around that time that Dan Ak-seon’s reputation grew.

This was because it was revealed that Dan Ak-seon had resolved the chaos caused by Je Gal-yeon.

In addition, rumors spread about the martial arts competition that took place in the Hwasan Sect, making him even more famous as a person who combined both literary and martial arts.

Without exception, gossips began to talk about the Shinma Uiseon [Divine Devil Doctor], and even wandering musicians and Gagi (歌妓) [female entertainers] in brothels made songs based on Dan Ak-seon’s story.

But there was one thing they all agreed on.

―The one and only person who unites the Orthodox and the Demonic.

Not to mention the friendship between the Nine Great Sects, including the Shaolin and Hwasan Sects, and the Beggars’ Union, three of the Five Great Masters were already supporting Dan Ak-seon.

With this incident, the influential families of the Central Plains, including the Five Great Clans, had no choice but to be mindful of Dan Ak-seon.

Above all, the masters of the Demonic Faction, who had gathered in Muwi, which had been declared forbidden, followed Dan Ak-seon as if their lives depended on it.

In addition, with the addition of his identity as a doctor and the knowledge of his past good deeds, Dan Ak-seon had become regarded as a symbol of protecting the peace of the Murim.

“You’ve worked hard all this time.”

Ak Ho-gun respectfully clasped his hands at the smile Dan Ak-seon gave him.

“I’ve been in your debt a lot.”

It was when Ak Ho-gun, who was finally leaving Muwi, was enjoying his carefree mood.

“That’s good. A guy who did nothing but eat rice.”

“Leave him alone. Would he have wanted to do that? It is said that a lack of ability is not to be blamed.”

Ak Ho-gun frowned at Beom Gye-wi and Cho Ak-ryang’s taunts.

But unlike before, he couldn’t act out now.

They were the Shinma Samjon [Three Divine Devils], who possessed different dimensions of martial arts that he could not dare to do anything about.

In addition, he couldn’t get angry in front of Dan Ak-seon.

Even Ak Ho-gun, the leader of the Thirty Thousand Green Forest Bandits, could no longer treat Dan Ak-seon carelessly due to his already high status.

However, the voices of his subordinates grumbling from behind eventually reached their limit of patience.

“Ah. I don’t want to go…”

“Can’t we just stay here?”

The Green Forest Bandits, who were satisfied with their life in Muwi, were very sorry to leave this place.

“These guys?”

The Chaejus [bandit leaders] flinched at Ak Ho-gun’s fierce eyes.

No matter how scary the tiger in the back mountain is, the wolf in front of them is scarier.

Leaving behind the Chaejus, who were sweating and trying to discipline their subordinates, Ak Ho-gun bowed his head to Dan Ak-seon and the Shinma Samjon.

“Then I’ll be on my way.”

“Don’t forget your promise.”

Ak Ho-gun nodded at Dan Ak-seon’s words.

“From now on, those related to Muwi will receive the protection of the Green Forest at any time.”

“And one more thing.”

Ak Ho-gun inwardly clicked his tongue and sighed.

“For the next ten years, I will not touch the goods of the Namgung Clan’s security agency.”

Dan Ak-seon nodded with a satisfied expression.

“Thank you. I believe you will keep your promise.”

Putting aside the words that he would be a son of a bitch if he said one thing and did another, Ak Ho-gun had clearly witnessed with his own eyes what would happen if he became an enemy of Dan Ak-seon.

In particular, he never wanted to get involved with those monsters around Dan Ak-seon again.

Shortly after, Ak Ho-gun left Muwi with his subordinates.

Many of the Green Forest Bandits looked back several times, as if they were sorry until the end.

And among them were some of the Chaejus who had urged their subordinates.

In that way, the Murim seemed to have regained peace again.