The Traces of the Jiangshi
With a single wave of his hand, Baek Yuseong’s incomplete body miraculously mended. Every horrifying wound on the corpse-like corpse had vanished, leaving not a trace.
Jeong Rip was stunned.
“What? Without even using a single needle…”
The areas where he had roughly applied pressure to stop the bleeding now healed completely. The shoulder that had been torn away and the severed wrist on the sword both knit back together naturally, as if nothing had ever happened.
“Ah, my strength has grown a bit in the meantime, you see.”
Jeong Rip had left the Murim Alliance long before Yuseong even learned the full restoration skill. And with divine power still insufficient, he had always needed to rely on needles. If he had been wandering the world and truly unaware of Yuseong’s existence until now, his shock was understandable.
Yuseong greeted him a little later.
And then he turned the conversation to the unmoving corpse before them.
“May I ask how you came to be injured like this?”
He pointed at the empty arm.
“That… I suppose I should make my report first. I’ll speak further after that.”
“Ah, very well.”
Jeong Rip entrusted the corpse to Yuseong and left the clinic.
No matter how close they were, he had procedures to attend to.
Yuseong called Jang Chil and instructed him to move the corpse to the side room.
Just as a few servants entered and grabbed the corpse’s shoulders and legs.
“Leave it… I can manage walking on my own.”
“Eh? You’re awake?”
Yuseong’s eyes met the corpse’s. They were empty, hollow. He could feel how deeply his heart had been shattered.
Yuseong had not mentioned the full restoration skill to anyone.
Everything has its own time.
Just like how fixing a lost eye is one thing, restoring a severed limb is entirely another.
He had decided it would be wiser to reveal it only after mastering the skill.
That was why he had hesitated to ask the corpse about it.
“It seems you are the disciple of the Divine Physician that Jeong Rip mentioned. I thank you for saving my life. I truly believed I would die right then…”
“No, Master. I, too, have long wished to meet you after hearing of your reputation.”
It was a simple bow in response to the formal greeting.
“Hahah! Fuha… huha… the corpse king…”
The corpse let out a great laugh, followed by a low murmur. The sound echoed hollowly through the room.
Yuseong and the servants stood frozen, unsure what to do.
“…I’m sorry. I need a moment to rest.”
“Ah, then you can rest in the side room for a while. I’ll join you shortly.”
“…Very well.”
The corpse rose on his own and followed the servants out of the room.
Even though his body had fully recovered, he moved with a slight limp.
Yuseong watched him leave, then glanced at the empty right shoulder socket, before lifting his own healed left arm to inspect the smooth wrist.
“…”
His heart ached, and Yuseong felt a wave of melancholy.
Even when he, a Peak Master, had lost his dantian, the despair he felt was profound.
He had wandered, and only after a long time did he begin learning medicine in hopes of self-healing.
“I had even some hope before meeting Physician Yang.”
Yet.
A Transcendent Master, and one called the corpse king at that, had lost both arms. How enormous must the sense of loss have been?
Normally, when hope is gone, it is only natural.
What Yuseong knew of the corpse king was little more than his basic background.
His name was Bukgung Myeong.
He was a Peak Master of the right path who had no particular sect affiliation, according to what Yuseong had heard.
“He doesn’t seem to be very active. So I know almost nothing.”
Still, if the corpse king gave up on life, it would be a great loss to the right path.
Yuseong should talk to him and offer some hope.
“Please send in the next patient.”
***
The work at the clinic had been completed.
Yuseong had wanted to rest briefly and meet the corpse king, but he heard that the Murim Alliance leaders were visiting to see him.
He finished treating the remaining patients.
Jang Chil reported.
“He’s still waiting, as if he wants to properly thank you, Young Master.”
“Ah, I’ll head over right away.”
Yuseong moved to the adjacent treatment room.
“May I enter for a moment, Master?”
“Of course, come in. This is not the space of the Divine Physician.”
His voice was calm, unlike the vacant look he had shown earlier.
“Has he calmed his mind in the meantime?”
Indeed, a Transcendent Master would naturally have a different temperament from ordinary people. He had not expected him to overcome the loss of both arms so swiftly.
Yuseong opened the door and saw the corpse king sitting in the lotus position in the center.
He first studied the man’s eyes. When the heart is dead, it shows in the eyes.
Fortunately, his gaze was clear and bright, nothing like before.
It seemed he had no empty thoughts.
Yuseong spoke cautiously.
“How is your body?”
“Ah, you mean this?”
With a flick, the left arm rose naturally.
As if he had been reaching for both arms, the right side only lifted slightly at the shoulder.
What words to say?
“Don’t look at me like that. It’s all because I was lacking. In the martial world, many have become crippled because I fell into the path of evil. Of course, they were all villains who committed great crimes… but I was simply weak and joined them.”
“…”
“Heh heh, it’s fine. Anyway, I was distracted earlier and couldn’t thank you properly. Thank you once more. If it weren’t for you, I would be meeting the Yama King right now.”
Indeed.
Right after Yuseong healed his body, there was hardly any rise in divine power. During treatment, divine power had surged properly.
It seemed the corpse king’s distraction was true.
Yuseong now wanted to know what had happened to him.
Recently, many right path masters had been mysteriously attacked.
“If it’s not too much trouble, could I hear what happened?”
“Of course.”
He paused a moment, then began.
The corpse king said he was the master of an ancient lineage sect, and he had received disciples with exceptional talent as instructed by his deceased master.
“While I was secluded and teaching my disciples, they struck.”
“…”
The corpse king’s gaze drifted into emptiness.
“They were terrifying. Besides the disciples, there were also servants. In an instant, they killed them all… and…”
His face twisted with pain as he barely managed to speak.
“Even my disciples… I killed my disciples whom I had loved like sons.”
When speaking of the disciples, raw grief filled his voice.
It was not just words. He had truly loved them like sons.
Just how powerful had those so-called invaders been for the corpse king to fall so easily?
The answer came soon.
“One Transcendent Master and five Peak Masters invaded. They severely injured some, but I was overwhelmed by their combined assault. If Jeong Rip hadn’t come to save me, I would have died on the spot.”
It was said that five Peak Masters sacrificing themselves could still allow a Transcendent Master to fight to the death.
With an additional Transcendent Master, it was clear why the corpse king’s condition was so grave.
“Were they indeed the demonic cult?”
Or had they created a new generation after exposing the actions of known Transcendent Masters to the right path?
The corpse king shook his head.
“Not demonic arts. I was secluded and unaware of the world’s changes, but I can recognize demonic arts when I see them.”
“Then… you don’t know their identity?”
“Not exactly. But I do know they were from a specific force. They were thorough in their obedience to the higher-ups. The Peak Masters… they felt almost inhuman.”
He shuddered as if recalling a horrific memory.
He spoke of several more things, but gained no further insights.
Yuseong finally asked the question he truly wanted to know.
“Then, what will you do from now on?”
He could heal the corpse king with the full restoration skill once he mastered it. Depending on his attitude, he would decide whether to reveal the secret early.
“…Where else would I go now? I plan to stay here and eat what is offered.”
The next day.
Through Jegal Yeong-yeong, Yuseong learned more about the corpse king’s situation.
“Eating what is offered? He wants to borrow her experience. She has agreed to serve as a martial arts instructor. Her experience will remain, so…”
Even without demonstrating martial arts due to his arm issue, as a Transcendent Master, he could offer valuable insights to help the Murim Alliance.
“But why do you ask?”
“No reason.”
He had not yet revealed the existence of the body regeneration skill to Jegal Yeong-yeong either.
***
He may not have been affiliated with the Murim Alliance, but the corpse king still sided with the right path in emergencies.
One of the roles of the Murim Alliance was to avenge its fallen.
That way, other masters would surely cooperate with the Murim Alliance at any time.
Soon, the Murim Alliance dispatched an investigation team to the corpse king’s residence.
The team leader was Elder Cheonun.
When he arrived at the corpse king’s dwelling, after finishing the investigation, he asked the messenger who had come to report.
“Did you find anything?”
“Yes, we found no traces of demonic arts… but please look at this.”
The messenger held out a human arm. The elbow had been blown off, and from that point, it was severed.
Elder Cheonun momentarily thought it was the corpse king’s arm and was startled.
But the arm had different parts and strange characteristics.
Even after several days since the investigation team was sent, it had not rotted at all and faintly glowed with a blue light.
Combined with the testimony that it did not feel human, one possibility arose.
Elder Cheonun, his face paling, let out a groan.
“Jiangshi…!”