The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 345

‘Damn it!’

The men glanced around, dismay etched on their faces.

They were caught completely off guard, unsure of the how or where.

The real problem was the apparent lack of any escape.

Aside from Bum Gyeowi standing directly before them, warriors from the Hainam Sword Sect had formed a complete encirclement, cutting off all avenues of retreat.

“Shall we deal with these rats now?”

Bum Gyeowi took a step forward, but Byeok Hwa-ryeong stopped him with a gesture.

“It’s alright, Gaga. We can handle it from here.”

Byeok Hwa-ryeong turned and signaled, and the Hainam Sect warriors began to close the distance on the trapped men.

One of the men, seeing this, screamed instinctively.

“Scatter!”

Immediately, the men, who had been posing as merchants, broke formation and sprinted in different directions.

“Stop them!”

At Byeok Hwa-ryeong’s command, the Hainam Sword Sect warriors unsheathed their swords in unison.

The moment they met the encirclement, a chilling murderous intent flared in the eyes of the fleeing men.

“Demonic energy!”

Alarmed cries burst from the Hainam disciples as they sensed the dark energy surging from the men’s bodies.

They had believed they were dealing with mere scouts from some local pirates, but this was far more than they had anticipated.

Just then, a voice cut through the chaos.

“Were you rats from the Demonic Cult?”

Startled, one of the Demonic Cult members whipped around to face the speaker.

He was met with a chilling stare.

Thud.

The Demonic Cult member crumpled to the floor, unconscious from a swift punch delivered by Bum Gyeowi.

And that was only the beginning.

“Two down.”

Thud.

The man who had given the initial order screamed, enraged by the quick defeat of two of his comrades.

“Don’t die for nothing! Take at least one of them with you!”

In that instant, Bum Gyeowi appeared before him.

Thud!

The man collapsed without resistance, a heavy blow to his solar plexus knocking the wind out of him.

In the blink of an eye, Bum Gyeowi had subdued all the Demonic Cult members.

Bum Gyeowi, frowning, surveyed the unconscious men.

“Only two of them have any real martial arts skills?”

He had expected more from the Demonic Cult’s lackeys, but their level was disappointing.

At that moment, Byeok Hwa-ryeong approached Bum Gyeowi.

“Gaga, please leave the rest to us.”

“Don’t worry. That’s exactly what’s going to happen.”

“Yes?”

Byeok Hwa-ryeong looked puzzled.

The Hainam Sword Sect warriors began to pick up the unconscious men.

The plan was to interrogate them and discover the purpose of their infiltration.

But just as they were about to carry them toward the main building, Bum Gyeowi stopped them.

“Not that way.”

“Yes?”

Bum Gyeowi gestured with his chin in another direction.

The Hainam Sect warriors exchanged bewildered glances.

“But that’s the way to the training hall?”

A short while later, two men lying on the cold floor regained consciousness.

Their faces showed confusion as they briefly looked at each other.

They couldn’t believe they were still alive.

Their bodies were stiff and aching, but nothing seemed broken, and they felt no serious internal injuries.

They hadn’t even been tied up or had their pressure points sealed [techniques to immobilize someone].

Then, belatedly realizing they had been left alone in the middle of the wide training hall, the two men scrambled to their feet and began to scan their surroundings.

Sure enough, the Hainam Sword Sect warriors, densely packed on all sides, came into view.

“What on earth is this…?”

As the two men panicked, unsure of what was happening, Bum Gyeowi suddenly spoke.

“The one who wins lives.”

“……?”

While the two men struggled to understand his words, Bum Gyeowi pointed to two Hainam Sect warriors.

“You, and you. Prepare yourselves.”

“Yes? What do you mean?”

“What else? You’re going to fight these guys.”

“Right now?”

The Hainam Sect warrior, bewildered by the sudden sparring match, nodded at Bum Gyeowi.

“If you’ve learned anything so far, you need to see how well it works in a real fight.”

Then, he offered a meaningful smile.

“You know what happens to the one who loses, right?”

The two Hainam Sect warriors, startled, walked to the center of the training hall, tense.

They had learned from experience that Bum Gyeowi’s words were not just empty threats.

On the other hand, the men who had just regained consciousness were dumbfounded.

“Are you making fun of us?”

The man who met Bum Gyeowi’s gaze asked, grinding his teeth.

“Why? Shouldn’t I? You should be grateful. I’m giving you a way to live.”

“What?”

“They say even a cornered rat will bite, right?”

Bum Gyeowi smiled and continued.

“So bite. Then I’ll let you live.”

The two men exchanged glances and nodded.

Since their purpose of infiltrating Hainam Island had already failed, they had few options left.

Even if they were lucky enough to escape, they would still be rats in a trap.

There was nowhere to run on an isolated island surrounded by the sea.

“You’ll regret this.”

Since they were going to die anyway…

“I’ll take one of you to the afterlife with me.”

Hearing those words, Bum Gyeowi picked up a large box and turned it upside down.

A variety of weapons clattered out, scattering across the floor.

The man grabbed a bakhdo [a single-edged sword with a ring-shaped handguard] and walked to the center of the training hall.

The Hainam Sect warrior, who had been waiting there, spoke with a cold expression.

“I am Jongri Chu, a first-generation disciple of the Hainam Sect.”

“I have no name.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the man, refusing to reveal his name, charged straight at Jongri Chu.

Screech.

Jongri Chu was startled by the eerie sound of the wind being torn apart as the man suddenly lunged at him.

He hadn’t expected his opponent to use a killing move right from the start.

‘Strong!’

Perhaps to conceal his true skills, the opponent was only using the basic Three Talents Swordplay [a fundamental sword technique].

However, the experience behind the moves was not something to be taken lightly.

The two men’s figures blurred as they exchanged blows with lightning speed.

Clang, clang, clang.

Blue sparks flew as the sword and bakhdo clashed.

But after the initial exchange, their weapons never met again.

Only the lightning-like movements, each aiming for the other’s weaknesses and fatal points between the flashing blades, made it difficult to follow the action.

A dangerous close combat where the outcome would be decided the moment one of them made a mistake.

The two men did not back down an inch.

The situation remained precarious, as if one of them would vomit blood and collapse at any moment.

But this did not last long.

Clang!

With a sharp impact, Jongri Chu’s figure slid backward.

He had blocked the sword aimed at his side, but he had been unable to fully deflect the force of the blow.

Moreover, the opponent did not give Jongri Chu a chance to recover his stance.

Jongri Chu swung his sword like a whip at the opponent, who was closing the distance even further.

At the same time, a dazzling display of sword light bloomed, densely filling the space in front of the opponent.

It was the Azure Wave Tides (蒼波滔滔) [a powerful sword technique], the life-saving ultimate move of the Thirty-Six Swords of the South Sea.

Immediately after that, Jongri Chu inwardly exclaimed in astonishment.

He had naturally expected the opponent to retreat or try a different approach at this point, but instead, the opponent closed the distance even more, as if throwing his entire body into the storm of sword energy.

Moreover, his hand was empty, with no sign of the sword he had been holding.

Jongri Chu couldn’t help but feel bewildered by the opponent’s unexpected response.

Certainly, the man in front of him possessed considerable skill.

In fact, it was rare for him to be forced into such a defensive position.

Still.

To recklessly charge in like this just because he had gained a slight advantage was foolish.

At that moment, something unbelievable happened.

The man’s hand, which should have been torn to shreds by the sword energy, was instead tearing through it.

The net of sword energy, which had seemed so formidable, was easily pierced, and Jongri Chu was inwardly flustered.

But only for a moment.

The moment he belatedly noticed the crimson haze swirling around the opponent’s hand, his heart sank.

‘Crimson Jade Hand!’

He swallowed a cry of astonishment as he faced the Demonic Cult’s most renowned martial art right before his eyes.

And the reaction was much the same for the Hainam Sect warriors gathered in the training hall.

“Be careful!”

Urgent cries erupted from all directions.

Jongri Chu’s eyes turned cold.

Even in the midst of all this, the opponent’s hand continued to reach for his vital point.

However, he had no reason to hold back.

If the opponent was a tool of the Demonic Cult, there was no need to show mercy.

From this point on, he would respond with killing moves without hesitation.

The sword held in Jongri Chu’s hand seemed to writhe once in the air.

Flash.

The sword, changing its trajectory in an instant, sliced open the opponent’s chest.

It seemed as if the man would be sent flying, spraying blood from the timely counterattack.

But at that moment, an anomaly occurred.

Clang!

The opponent deflected the sword aimed at his solar plexus with the back of his hand.

Then, he unleashed three consecutive punches like lightning.

At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary move.

However, Jongri Chu’s face turned pale.

“……!”

He tried to defend himself in a hurry, but it was useless.

Bang!

The trajectory of the sword was deflected by the opponent’s first punch.

It was the first setback he had experienced since he had started wielding a sword.

Moreover, that was not the end of it.

Clang!

He almost dropped his sword from the second punch.

Thwack!

His balance was broken as he was struck on the shoulder by the third punch, leaving his chest open and defenseless.

Moreover, the opponent was unhesitatingly pushing his hand into that empty space.

Just before the hand with the swirling crimson haze touched his chest, Jongri Chu became calm, even to the point of finding it strange.

‘Familiar.’

His body reacted automatically, not his mind.

Compared to the threat he had felt from Bum Gyeowi, the current crisis was not even worthy of being called fear.

The moment he recognized that, a flash of light flickered in Jongri Chu’s eyes.

At the same time, a streak of faint light flashed and disappeared.

That light severed the connection between the two men in an instant, and even severed the opponent’s breath.

Thud.

The man’s figure crashed violently to the floor, still carrying the momentum of his charge.

“Hah, hah……”

Jongri Chu belatedly took a ragged breath and stared at the opponent who had collapsed to the floor, vomiting blood.

An opponent he would not have been able to defeat in the past.

But the winner of this life-or-death duel was himself.

‘I’ve grown.’

Not only himself, but all the disciples who had watched this would have realized it.

As he confirmed that the time, which he didn’t know whether it was torment or training, had indeed been training, he felt tears welling up.

Just as he was about to indulge in the feeling of victory, Bum Gyeowi’s sudden rebuke broke the silence.

Bum Gyeowi was frowning, as if he was very displeased.

“To kill such a weakling instead of subduing him easily!”

“Yes?”

Jongri Chu’s face turned pale at Bum Gyeowi’s subsequent words.

“Starting today, it’s special training again! Everyone, gather!”

“……”

Jongri Chu felt deeply wronged.

But the person who felt even more wronged than him was someone else.

“……?”

Jongri Chu suddenly felt gazes flying in from all directions and looked around.

Then, he flinched without realizing it.

The eyes of his fellow disciples, which had been filled with concern and support just a moment ago, were now glaring at him as if they were going to devour him.