The Refusal of Healing
One stormy night, an incident unfolded right at the Murim Alliance headquarters gate.
It was more than enough to catch the eyes of the Fist King, who had just finished his training duties and was wandering aimlessly around the back courtyard.
Without anyone noticing, the Fist King stepped right into the middle of the gathering.
He hadn’t arrived in time when the first incident occurred and hadn’t seen the full situation unfold, but there was one certainty.
*This… this guy is Ugiwan’s son…*
Ugiwan, his drinking buddy who treated him well and shared cups of alcohol together in the back courtyard, was right there among them.
He couldn’t bring himself to speak to the man sobbing over the loss of his son, so he stood by and watched.
Physician Cha’s completely meaningless action had somehow created a miracle.
*I thought his breathing had stopped and the kid was dead and beyond help…*
Even until Yuseong arrived, it was Physician Cha’s desperate efforts that kept U Jin-myeong’s life from slipping away.
Yuseong…
Needless to say, he was at his absolute best.
“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!!”
“Healer-nim must truly be a being from another world! How… how did you save someone who was already dead?”
“You there, do you even realize this is the first time anyone’s seen something like this? I’ve known Healer-nim since the old days in Luoyang, and on that very first day you were already incredible. I witnessed with my own two eyes just now what Physician Cha did… how you brought that person back to life!”
“Wow… you saw the exact moment? Can you tell me in detail?”
“Huh. After a drink, it might all come spilling out.”
“Of course, I’ll buy.”
While the crowd around them erupted in noise, the Fist King gazed at Ugiwan’s son, U Jin-myeong.
*His meridians severed…*
Unlike the Nine Yin Severed Meridians, which only affect women, the Nine Yang Severed Meridians affect only men.
Their innate Yang energy was simply too vast for the human body to endure.
They shared a common trait with the Nine Yin Severed Meridians—exceptional talent.
And if they could somehow be healed, the reward would be enormous.
A boy who would have been short-lived by fifteen or twenty once his nine vital points were severed was clearly the case with Yuseong.
As long as they received treatment, everything would be fine going forward.
*And they said nine points were healed. It looks like ongoing treatment will be needed…*
Yuseong remembered Ugiwan speaking about his son while they drank together.
He was born with heavenly bones, but he just couldn’t cultivate internal energy.
Instead, he inherited his father’s sharp mind and would become an outstanding martial artist.
If the severed points had burned away and he simply couldn’t practice martial arts…
*I need to talk to Healer-nim.*
***
The commotion of the night ended with U Jin-myeong waking up and thanking Yuseong for saving him.
Ugiwan hugged his son tightly and returned home, and everyone else dispersed.
Yuseong also headed back to the clinic.
He still had duties to perform.
But…
“Healer-nim, I owe you so much. Thank you for treating me.”
“I’m the one who should thank you!”
After treating two seriously injured men and visiting the Murim Alliance headquarters gate, they were waiting there, ready to express their gratitude as soon as they woke.
One martial artist with a troubled expression, and the other a sword artist named Han Bu-geom, smiling brightly.
*Smiling?*
He was furious.
It was because of people like these that Ugiwan’s son almost died, wasn’t it?
If Physician Cha hadn’t been there, and if U Jin-myeong’s injuries had been in the wrong area, that boy would have truly died.
Of course, the two of them had no idea about that.
“Martial artist-nim.”
His voice was unusually calm.
Yet he answered with that same bright smile.
“Yes, Healer-nim!”
“Why are you smiling?”
He could guess what was coming.
“Just… I don’t even know how I’m still alive… Thank you for saving my life… It’s also a joy to see you again, Healer-nim. You healed my eyes too, didn’t you?”
This guy?
It seemed as if he was avoiding the gaze, yet he must not have known what the martial artists who brought him here had revealed while he was unconscious.
That was why he was acting so shamelessly, pretending not to know.
***
There were few people in the Murim world who wielded spears.
In particular, Han Bu-geom, who had taken up the spear because his family’s martial art was spear technique.
Without a suitable person to seek advice from, his strength had stagnated.
Then, one day.
He gained a realization that pushed his skill forward.
“Aaah!”
Right then, he had his left eye sliced by the Heavenly Demon Sword Demon who had invaded the Sichuan branch of the Murim Alliance.
The Sword Demon’s blade had been aimed straight for Han Bu-geom’s left face, but at the moment it nearly split his face in half, Han Bu-geom managed to survive thanks to his slow-motion perception.
But the price was his left eye becoming blind, which Yuseong later healed.
As he trained with his restored eye, he felt…
*Huh…?*
Han Bu-geom realized his stagnant martial strength had advanced.
Through meditation, he identified the cause.
“From the brink of death, I unconsciously gained a realization…”
His eye had been taken, but the mystery contained in the Sword Demon’s casual swing of the blade was far from small.
Han Bu-geom, who had deflected it with minimal damage, had made considerable progress without realizing it.
*This is it!*
He slammed his knee on the ground.
The means to dramatically advance one’s stagnant martial strength was right there at the Murim Alliance headquarters.
He submitted an application to join the headquarters.
There were countless competitors, but he was lucky enough to slip into a small group and reach the headquarters…
He approached a peer of similar strength and proposed.
“Do you want to spar with me?”
“Oh, a peak master who wields a spear? That’ll be a great experience. Since we don’t know each other’s martial arts well yet, how about using wooden spears and wooden swords?”
“No, let’s do a real spar.”
“Hm. Are you prepared to be careful?”
Han Bu-geom flicked his fingers left and right.
“Not that. A spar that goes all-in on life and death. That’s what I want.”
“What? Life-and-death spar?!”
The martial artist shouted in shock.
A life-and-death spar ended only when one of them died.
It was never a method that would come from two Murim Alliance martial artists.
“Life-and-death spar? What are you talking about…?”
Other martial artists nearby heard the noise and rushed over.
Han Bu-geom poured out his thoughts.
“Healer-nim can heal any serious injury, right? So here’s the thing… how about we spar exactly like a real fight? I recently gained a realization from feeling time slow down, and I want to know what happened…”
Realization!
The surrounding martial artists’ attention shot up, and the area fell deathly silent.
*Gulp—*
Only the sound of someone nervously swallowing could be heard.
There were many ways for martial artists to gain realizations.
It could suddenly strike while eating, but it was very rare.
Most often it came through meditation.
Or through sparring or real combat experience.
But the realization gained in a safe spar that posed no threat to life was always minor.
Those who sought higher realms were thirsty for it, and Han Bu-geom seized the moment to speak up.
The process of dodging the Sword Demon’s blade was dramatically described.
“Wow… impossible… I actually experienced the phenomenon of time slowing down.”
“Is that all? My spear technique has advanced dramatically! Maybe with this opportunity I can gain the realization needed to break through to the Transcendence realm.”
“Trans… Transcendence?”
“Yes. Aren’t you at a similar level? It’s better to gain one big realization from sparring once than to swing a sword or spear thousands of times.”
Finally.
“I, I agree. But I won’t kill anyone. I’ll accept wounds and fight fiercely, right?”
“Not exactly. You can even use lethal moves. Just make sure you don’t die instantly. Enough so that you can still go to Healer-nim while breathing. Only then can you gain a realization through desperation, right?”
“…”
Still unable to answer easily.
“Healer-nim’s ability is something you and the others who’ve been here longer would know better.”
Yuseong’s stories flashed through the martial artists’ minds.
How many masters had he treated…
The famous tale of the Cheokma Great Lord, who had nearly lost his life, becoming a Grandmaster thanks to Yuseong.
*Cheokma Great Lord always said he gained his realization because of Healer-nim, didn’t he?*
The martial artist who was being persuaded finally nodded.
And the two martial artists of similar realms fought a fierce spar exactly like a real battle.
“Guh!”
“Waaah!”
Both collapsed with deep sword wounds to the chest and spears through their stomachs, carried straight to Yuseong.
Han Bu-geom, who had fallen from a chest stab, murmured in delirium.
“I… I hit it…”
The martial artists supporting him glowed with excitement.
***
“Are you not laughing because you gained a realization?”
“…What?”
“I heard everything. You said you two sparred a real fight to gain realizations, didn’t you?”
Even if he remembered that other martial artist who had muttered “envy” earlier, he couldn’t let it slide.
Otherwise, this kind of thing would happen again.
The growth of Murim Alliance martial artists was a good thing, but if they were allowed to handle it with this unthinking, arbitrary method, Ugiwan’s son could have died.
He glared at Han Bu-geom on purpose and spoke.
“T-that… what’s wrong? Martial artists naturally dream of advancing their realm, right? Healer-nim would know that too, wouldn’t he? You were a martial artist once, weren’t you? I risked my own life!”
His words started hesitant but grew louder by the end.
His chest puffed out.
“Do you think I’ve been out sightseeing? I just came from treating Ugiwan’s son. Thankfully I succeeded, but if I had arrived a moment later, that boy would have died. If I had killed you while treating that boy, what exactly were you planning?”
“…If it’s Ugiwan’s son… then it’s Ordinary General, right? Principally, his son isn’t a member of the Murim Alliance, is he? Healer-nim treats members of the Murim Alliance, that’s his job.”
“…”
On principle, Han Bu-geom’s point was correct.
But could Yuseong really refuse to treat Ugiwan, who was part of the Murim Alliance, just because his son wasn’t?
“Anyway, I hope Healer-nim pays more attention to your true duties. I’ll come see you again next time.”
The underlying confidence that he would come again and be treated anyway was clear.
And he was the kind of person who would lightly disregard someone else’s life for his own realization.
Yuseong treated patients with holy energy, but basically he enjoyed treating people.
When he saw someone with a sad story, sympathy stirred.
*I had no idea he was like this. After all, I only saw him once in Sichuan.*
When he realized words weren’t getting through, Yuseong shook his head and spoke.
“No. Martial artist-nim will not be treated for this kind of incident in the future.”
Han Bu-geom hadn’t been at the headquarters long since arriving from the Sichuan branch.
He knew Yuseong’s skill but not his status.
If he succeeded in harvesting this realization and reaching the Transcendence realm, he probably wouldn’t be treated this way.
That was why he shouted at Yuseong.
“What? What authority do you have? I’ll officially file a complaint with the Military Affairs Division!”
A thought that came to mind because he liked talking about principles.
The Murim Alliance branch held the authority over the clinic’s operations.
But… he was going to go find the branch?
There, where Deputy Commander Tae Jeong-heon handled the clinic and the one above him, Jegal Yeong-yeong, held higher command?
Yuseong shot back with full mockery.
“Hoh, is that so.”