The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 87

Gadu-dal tapped the floor with his toes.

Whoosh!

A mound of dirt erupted in front of Dan-ak-seon.

However, Dan-ak-seon responded with unexpected composure.

He was already accustomed to the tactic of throwing dirt, a lesson learned from his duel with Neung So-mil.

He had long overcome similar tricks through numerous practices and studies.

Closing his eyes, Dan-ak-seon slightly raised his upper body to avoid the dirt and closed the distance.

Then, he reached out to grab Gadu-dal’s leg.

Or, he tried to grab it.

“……!”

Dan-ak-seon suddenly lost his balance and collapsed to the ground.

The moment he took a step to grab his opponent, a sharp pain pierced his sole.

Gadu-dal seized the opportunity and rushed in.

Dan-ak-seon hurriedly tried to counterattack, but the momentum had already shifted.

Before he could even properly exchange blows, Gadu-dal’s hand blade was already on Dan-ak-seon’s neck.

Dan-ak-seon wore a bitter smile.

“I lost.”

Dan-ak-seon, who readily admitted defeat, lowered his head to examine his foot.

“Already…….”

Dan-ak-seon couldn’t finish his sentence.

Because he found a sharp iron tribulus [a small, spiked weapon designed to puncture feet] embedded in the sole of his foot.

A caltrop with iron pieces connected in a rhombus shape, ensuring one sharp end always pointed upwards, no matter how it was placed.

From the beginning, kicking up the dirt was a ruse to secretly scatter these.

“No one can match you when it comes to underhandedness, Uncle.”

Gadu-dal smiled awkwardly at Dan-ak-seon’s compliment.

It was then that Cho-ak-ryang, who had been watching the duel from afar, spoke up.

“You must consider all variables in any situation. Especially in a life-or-death battle.”

Cho-ak-ryang picked up a tribulus rolling on the floor.

“Never forget. It is not the strong who survive, but the survivors who are strong.”

“Yes. I will keep that in mind.”

Dan-ak-seon nodded with a smile and bowed his head towards Gadu-dal.

“Thank you for your valuable lesson.”

“Oh? Uh……. Okay.”

Gadu-dal nodded awkwardly with a smile.

That afternoon.

After a simple meal, Dan-ak-seon began treating the three.

Dan-ak-seon inserting needles into the crown of Beom Gye-wi’s head while he was doing a handstand, and Beom Gye-wi nonchalantly exposing his Baihui acupoint [a vital pressure point on the crown of the head], a fatal blood point.

It was such a natural scene, as if it were an ordinary routine.

Gadu-dal, who was sitting far away watching the scene, couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.

For the infamous Mangsan Choja to expose his body so defenselessly!

He wouldn’t have believed it if he hadn’t heard that Dan-ak-seon was the son of a divine doctor and a demonic doctor.

Gadu-dal’s mouth was itching to talk.

But even if he went around telling people, he doubted anyone would believe him.

Then, at one moment.

‘What’s that?’

Gadu-dal began to cast a strange gaze.

He licked his lips to calm his racing heart.

But once the desire started to rise, it didn’t subside easily.

His chronic illness that no doctor in the world could cure.

His kleptomania had relapsed.

His gaze, fixed on Dan-ak-seon’s hands, wouldn’t let up.

The two types of needles, creating a clear contrast of black and white, were undoubtedly the Seonang Needles, the divine object of the divine doctor, and the Maryeong Needles, the divine object of the demonic doctor.

Tortured by unbearable temptation, Gadu-dal suddenly felt a strange sensation and turned his gaze.

And soon, his heart sank.

Because he met Beom Gye-wi’s gaze, who was staring intently at him.

“Why do you have that look in your eyes?”

Gadu-dal broke out in a cold sweat at Beom Gye-wi’s words.

“Huh? Haha, it’s nothing.”

“It’s not a ‘nothing’ look.”

“I never thought I would get to see the divine and demonic arts of the legendary two doctors like this. I’m just amazed.”

Gadu-dal hurriedly made excuses.

Fortunately, it seemed to work, and Beom Gye-wi soon averted his gaze.

After taking a moment to calm his surprised heart.

‘To think those monsters would be secretly raising a disciple.’

A common disciple.

It seemed to be an unrecorded disciple who only inherited martial arts without being bound by a formal master-disciple relationship.

‘A monster will soon appear in the Murim world [martial arts world].’

Gadu-dal had already realized that Dan-ak-seon’s talent was extraordinary.

‘A storm is about to brew.’

Gadu-dal’s eyes sparkled as he carefully observed Dan-ak-seon.

In particular, he was drawn to Dan-ak-seon’s fast and delicate hand movements.

“……!”

Gadu-dal’s heart began to race once again.

Filled with strange anticipation and excitement, Gadu-dal watched Dan-ak-seon.

Soon, Dan-ak-seon, who had finished the treatment, got up to prepare a meal.

“Why don’t you rest for a bit?”

Gadu-dal, who had approached while casually speaking, squatted next to Dan-ak-seon.

Although he felt the stinging gaze from behind, Gadu-dal calmly opened his mouth.

“Shall I teach you a fun game?”

“A fun game?”

When Dan-ak-seon showed interest, Gadu-dal took something out of his sleeve and placed it on his palm.

It was a small bell.

The bell, made of a transparent material as if carved from crystal, looked extraordinary at first glance.

“It’s a game of taking this. But it mustn’t make a sound.”

Dan-ak-seon reached out and picked up the bell on Gadu-dal’s palm.

Clang.

The bell made a sound.

It was a clear and melodious sound that made you feel good just by listening to it.

After that, Dan-ak-seon tried to move the bell several times.

But the result was the same.

No matter how carefully he moved, the bell rang every time.

“This is too difficult.”

“Then shall we do it the other way around?”

This time, Gadu-dal placed the bell on Dan-ak-seon’s palm.

And slowly picked up the bell.

But surprisingly, this time there was no sound.

“Wow! How did you do that just now?”

Gadu-dal wore a smug smile at Dan-ak-seon’s exclamation.

“This is not about martial arts, but about using your senses. Perhaps I am the only one in the world who can move this bell without making a sound.”

At that, a cold snort flew in.

It was Han Seol-hwa, who had approached unnoticed.

Gadu-dal held out his hand to her, who was giving him a condescending look.

“Senior, would you like to try it too?”

Han Seol-hwa picked up the bell as if it were nothing.

At that moment.

Clang.

Han Seol-hwa’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

This time, she grabbed the bell with even more caution.

But the result was the same.

The bell rang again this time.

“Did you rig it?”

Gadu-dal jumped up at Han Seol-hwa’s accusation.

“Of course not! How dare I…….”

Gadu-dal trailed off, then placed the bell on Dan-ak-seon’s palm this time.

“Try taking it. But if you use internal energy…….”

Before Gadu-dal could finish speaking, Han Seol-hwa reached for the bell.

Her hand was already covered in white frost.

She intended to freeze the bell with cold air to prevent it from making a sound.

But this time, the bell rang before her hand could even touch it.

Gadu-dal said with a bitter smile.

“……That’s what happens.”

“…….”

Han Seol-hwa, her pride hurt, glared at the bell.

“Looks fun?”

Beom Gye-wi, who had approached unnoticed, showed interest.

Cho-ak-ryang also naturally joined in and expressed curiosity.

Beom Gye-wi tried, but of course, he failed.

Cho-ak-ryang, a master of Geumna [a martial art focused on seizing and controlling pressure points] hand techniques, was the same.

At first, it seemed like he would succeed, but a faint sound was heard at the last moment.

“What’s so difficult about this?”

At Beom Gye-wi’s words, Cho-ak-ryang and Han Seol-hwa frowned slightly.

After repeated failures, the masters’ faces were already crumpled.

Seeing their uncomfortable expressions, Gadu-dal quickly turned his head towards Dan-ak-seon, fearing that the blame would fall on him.

“Now, it’s your turn. Would you like to try again?”

Dan-ak-seon nodded at Gadu-dal’s suggestion.

After taking a slow breath to calm himself, Dan-ak-seon stared at the bell.

When his concentration reached its peak.

Dan-ak-seon slowly reached out towards the bell.

It was a movement so slow that it was breathtaking.

“……!”

It was then that everyone except Dan-ak-seon’s eyes widened.

Surprisingly, this time the bell didn’t make a sound.

In particular, Shintu stared at Dan-ak-seon with a strange heat.

Clang.

“Ah!”

“Oh no…….”

“Too bad!”

Different exclamations came from the mouths of Cho-ak-ryang, Beom Gye-wi, and Han Seol-hwa.

The bell rang at the last moment, just before success.

“It’s too difficult.”

Gadu-dal licked his lips at Dan-ak-seon’s regretful sigh.

It was his habit when his kleptomania relapsed.

“Your senses are amazing. With a little practice, you’ll be able to do it like me.”

Gadu-dal continued, nonchalantly, towards Dan-ak-seon, who was smiling awkwardly.

“If you succeed in this, I’ll take you to a good place.”

“A good place?”

Dan-ak-seon, who was casting a dubious look, frowned strangely.

“Are you talking about a brothel?”

“Huh?”

Gadu-dal was rather embarrassed by Dan-ak-seon’s question.

The place he had in mind was at most a performance by a troupe of entertainers.

He never expected Dan-ak-seon to mention a brothel.

That’s because he was too young to go to a brothel.

“Have you ever been to a brothel?”

“Yes. I’ve been to a place called Ihwaru with Uncle Beom.”

“Ihwaru? You don’t mean the Ihwaru in Wuhan, do you?”

“Oh? You know that place too, Uncle?”

“…….”

Gadu-dal was speechless with embarrassment.

How could he not know the famous place in Wuhan, which was said to have surpassed Sohang? [referring to famous courtesan houses]

Wuhan had long been more famous among pleasure-seeking libertines for Ihwaru than for the Murim Alliance.

Even he had not yet been there.

He was eager to see how great it was, but he didn’t dare to set foot in Wuhan, where the Murim Alliance was located.

So he had been eagerly waiting for the opportunity to visit the place.

But to think that Ihwaru would be mentioned in Dan-ak-seon’s mouth.

Gadu-dal cleared his throat.

“Ahem. So, how was it?”

He asked shamelessly, but the answer he received was unexpected.

“It wasn’t good.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I was so tired that I was exhausted.”

Gadu-dal chuckled.

“It’s understandable if it was your first time.”

“First time? It’s a familiar thing to me.”

“Familiar?”

“Yes. But it was still hard. Unlike usual, I had to deal with all the courtesans there.”

“……!”

Gadu-dal’s eyes shook violently.

“All the courtesans of Ihwaru……?”

Dan-ak-seon nodded with a bitter smile.

“Thanks to that, I had to stay up all night.”

Gadu-dal turned his head towards Beom Gye-wi with surprised eyes.

It seemed to be true, as he didn’t deny it.

Dan-ak-seon’s eyes weren’t lying either.

‘Amazing guy!’

Although it was actually for treatment, Gadu-dal, who misunderstood this, couldn’t help but admire him.

How virile would one have to be to embrace all the courtesans in one night!

He wondered if No Ae, who had been favored by Empress Dowager Zhao of Qin and was ennobled as Marquis of Changxin, had been reincarnated.

In any case, Gadu-dal, who had discovered another side of Dan-ak-seon, swallowed a satisfied smile.

He thought he was a stuffy guy, but he unexpectedly knew how to enjoy romance.

At this point, the conditions were sufficient.

‘Okay! I’ve decided!’

Gadu-dal, who had made up his mind, handed the bell to Dan-ak-seon.

“Take it.”

“Really?”

Gadu-dal also nodded with a pleased face at Dan-ak-seon’s brightening expression.

“It’s a gift.”

“Thank you.”

“No, I’m the one who’s grateful.”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing…….”

Gadu-dal trailed off and flinched.

Suddenly, the back of his head tingled.

When he turned his head, he saw the three of them staring at him with suspicious eyes.

“The Demonic Shadow is giving a gift?”

Beom Gye-wi echoed Cho-ak-ryang’s words.

“Has anything that went into that guy’s hands ever come out again?”

“…….”

Han Seol-hwa also silently stared at Gadu-dal.

Gadu-dal, who was the target of their uncomfortable gazes, swallowed hard.

At this time, Dan-ak-seon said with a smile.

“Practicing with the bell will also help with placing needles. There’s no better item to train the delicate senses of the fingertips, right?”

Gadu-dal’s eyes sparkled.

“That’s exactly it! It was originally made for that purpose.”