Chapter 52
Chapter 52
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 52. Side Job
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Dao King, who had stepped back expecting things to resolve smoothly, grew flustered as Yuseong's words continued.
It seemed the two had more bad blood than anticipated.
And.
Even without using internal energy and fighting bare-handed, how could his Peak Realm expert son possibly match up against Baek Yuseong, a physician?
He had to stop this now!
Yet Dao King could not intervene.
Having already declared he was leaving it to Yuseong and stepping back, jumping in now would make him look ridiculous.
Dao King's gaze turned toward the Alliance Leader.
-Why is the Medical Pavilion Leader suddenly acting like this? Please talk him down.
With the telepathic message sent, the Alliance Leader would surely handle it well. It wasn't the outcome he wanted either.
However.
-Shouldn't the parties involved resolve it between themselves? That's the proper way, isn't it?
Even the Alliance Leader spouted nonsense.
-No, what are you saying? Are you suggesting we just watch the Medical Pavilion Leader suffer humiliation? I'll discipline my son later, so please stop them now.
A voice drowned out Dao King's urgent telepathic plea.
“Don't tell me you're not confident? As if! Just don't complain later!”
“Of course.”
Paeng Jisan eagerly accepted Yuseong's proposal.
The warriors waiting for treatment at the Medical Pavilion buzzed with murmurs.
A late-stage disciple of the Paeng Family suddenly dueling the Medical Pavilion Leader—what an astonishing spectacle.
From what they overheard, it even involved a woman.
The warriors' hearts burned with excitement.
With the duel between the two now treated as a foregone conclusion, Dao King's vision darkened.
Yuseong was surely about to suffer a major humiliation.
He had caused trouble with the Jin Family Manor back at the Paeng Family, and now at the Murim Academy, he was picking a fight with the Murim Alliance's Medical Pavilion Leader.
'People can't be fixed, they say. I shouldn't have sent him to the Murim Academy. Better to have kept him at home and just trained him in martial arts—at least then he'd have some use!'
He could only sigh.
He had no idea what the Alliance Leader was thinking, and Dao King prayed this incident would end without major repercussions.
And as soon as the duel finished, he resolved to drag Paeng Jisan back to the Paeng Family.
He couldn't let him cause any more trouble.
On the other hand, the Alliance Leader had done his own calculations.
'Paeng Jisan acts impulsively and is hard to control, they say?'
He had been infamous as a wastrel even back in the Paeng Family of Northern Hebei.
He seemed fine at first after entering the Murim Academy, but reports came in multiple times that he had become difficult to manage upon reaching the Peak Realm.
He hadn't caused any major incidents yet, but even the instructors were starting to struggle.
Just as he was wondering whether the Murim Alliance really needed to keep him.
This happened.
And the Alliance Leader knew one piece of information that Dao King did not.
'The Medical Pavilion Leader reached the wall of the Peak Realm at just sixteen? If he fell into qi deviation at seventeen and lost his martial arts, he might have actually attained the Peak Realm by then. Stable orthodox internal energy methods have an extremely low chance of causing qi deviation unless you're already a Peak Realm expert.'
Otherwise, there was no explaining Baek Yuseong's confidence against Paeng Jisan, even without internal energy and relying only on fist and foot techniques.
However.
'Without internal energy, how does the Medical Pavilion Leader plan to overcome the Paeng Family's innate divine strength?'
Baek Yuseong's body was toned enough to pass for an active warrior.
But it was nothing compared to Paeng Jisan's massive build.
Without weapons, the difference in their sizes was undeniably a key factor.
Baek Ri Danu, who had risen to Alliance Leader through martial prowess alone, had been obsessed with martial arts before taking the position, and he watched this bizarre matchup with great interest.
“Let me clarify the terms! If I win, the Medical Pavilion Leader cleanly gives up on Yurin, kneels before me—er, at my feet—and apologizes for his wrongdoing!”
“Nangong Yurin and I have nothing to do with each other, but is that condition acceptable?”
“I saw it with my own eyes! Quit making excuses and decide whether you'll accept!”
“I accept. My condition is the same. If I win, Young Master Paeng apologizes for his rudeness to me and returns to the Paeng Family.”
“Fine! No need to go far—let's do it right here!”
His intent was to humiliate Yuseong in front of Nangong Yurin.
Yuseong did not refuse, and the warriors quickly cleared a space around them.
The Alliance Leader stepped forward naturally.
“Since we're all here, I'll serve as witness. Honor each other's terms with today's duel, and you must never hold any further grudges.”
“Understood.”
Yuseong and Paeng Jisan agreed.
The Alliance Leader called Paeng Jisan and Yuseong forward in turn.
“Then seal your internal energies.”
After striking Paeng Jisan's pressure points to seal his internal energy, the Alliance Leader's hand reached Yuseong.
The Alliance Leader let out a light sigh.
***
Through the wide-open main gate of the Medical Pavilion, numerous patrolling warriors watched the standoff between Paeng Jisan and Baek Yuseong with rapt fascination.
One of them, familiar with Nangong Yurin from joint patrols, asked her—the one covering her face with her hands.
“Yurin, I knew Young Master Paeng was chasing you, but when did things start with the Medical Pavilion Leader…?”
“Absolutely not! It's a condition he unilaterally imposed.”
“Hmm, really nothing between you two? Then why would Young Master Paeng make that wager?”
“I don't know either…”
Nangong Yurin wanted to flee from the embarrassment but couldn't leave her patrol post.
Only.
'Why did the Medical Pavilion Master accept such an absurd bet?'
The Paeng Family of Northern Hebei was renowned throughout the world for their saber arts.
But a prestigious martial house like the Paeng Family naturally possessed various self-defense arts beyond saber techniques.
Their fist methods, based on innate divine strength, also enjoyed considerable fame.
Even without internal energy, it was absolutely not an opponent a physician's body could defeat.
And that thought.
Was shared by everyone present except the Alliance Leader.
***
Jong Hakjin moved quickly.
Yuseong liked him because he could judge situations appropriately on his own.
First, he rushed to the warriors next in line after Dao King for treatment.
Fortunately, there were no urgent patients where every moment counted.
“You must know the situation. Would it be possible to delay your treatments a bit? They might even have to be postponed until tomorrow.”
“Of course. Can't miss a show like this.”
“Same here.”
They were warriors too.
They had dashed out at the tantalizing prospect of Paeng Jisan and the Medical Pavilion Leader dueling without internal energy.
There might be nothing to learn, but such fights were always the most entertaining.
Not a battle to the death, but a duel with rules.
As various preparations were made.
Having checked with all the other warriors as well, Jong Hakjin habitually scratched the large mole beside his nose.
Even Jong Hakjin thought Yuseong would end up apologizing to Paeng Jisan.
But losing to him would not be a stain.
If anything, Paeng Jisan—far superior in skill—might even face criticism for forcing an unreasonable duel.
He thought simply.
Jong Hakjin's dilemma lay elsewhere.
'Should I? Or not?'
He desperately wanted to pursue his main side hustle.
He recalled the Murim Alliance and Medical Pavilion rulebooks once more.
He had focused on that section from the moment he received them, so he was certain.
No problem at all.
It might be a loophole, or perhaps there was no precedent.
'I'll try it this time, and if it doesn't work, I'll drop it. It's definitely not in the rules.'
The fact that Yuseong trusted and valued his competence also emboldened him.
'Even if I get a warning, as long as I don't get fired.'
He hurried into the Medical Pavilion, pulled out a wooden board and paper from his personal bundle, and wrote down two names.
Baek Yuseong, Paeng Jisan.
Jong Hakjin first approached the warriors on patrol duty.
“Warriors, care to join a bet? There's a little pool going on who will win.”
“A bet? I'm on duty.”
“It's a special situation, isn't it? And I believe as long as you don't leave your post…”
“Hmm, true enough.”
The warrior showed interest at the word “bet” but quickly cooled.
“But isn't this too one-sided? Who's betting on the Medical Pavilion Leader?”
“Ugh…”
Jong Hakjin cautiously placed a small amount on Yuseong.
There might be some betting against the odds somewhere, but the pool needed to start for him to collect any fees.
It was a kind of investment.
He had made plenty from the Medical Pavilion exam thanks to Yuseong before.
“I'll start.”
Only then did the warrior show interest.
“Then I'll put a little on. On Young Master Paeng.”
“Me too, on Young Master Paeng.”
“Same.”
Before long, the betting board reached Nangong Yurin.
“...”
To her, unfamiliar with such things, the odds were clearly skewed toward Paeng Jisan.
Yuseong's side looked so pitiful it stirred her sympathy.
But she couldn't join in.
Ridiculous as it was, one of the bet's conditions involved her directly.
“I'm not interested.”
“Come on, just a little?”
“Yeah, they say the side with more money bet on it tends to win.”
“Oh, I've heard that too. Think of it as cheering—putting something down isn't bad. It'll give him real strength.”
Several warriors chimed in agreement.
Nangong Yurin fell into thought.
She didn't fully believe them, but cheering wasn't so bad.
She desperately wanted Paeng Jisan to stop staring at her.
If Baek Yuseong won, Paeng Jisan had to leave the Murim Academy.
'Will my support help the Medical Pavilion Master?'
While she agonized, the warriors exchanged knowing smirks.
She had her innocent side.
Nangong Yurin fiddled with her money pouch.
'Alright, I'll bet. It's just cheering.'
If Yuseong won, it would be the best outcome.
Ignoring others' eyes for the moment, she focused solely on getting Paeng Jisan to leave.
Nangong Yurin's silk money pouch landed atop Yuseong's name.
“The whole thing?”
Jong Hakjin opened the pouch to check.
Nangong Yurin always carried plenty of money in case of emergencies.
As the successor of one of the Five Great Families, the hegemon of Anhui Province, and a direct descendant of the Nangong Family that merchants lined up to court.
Her idea of “plenty” differed greatly from others.
Jong Hakjin's eyes widened as he peered inside the pouch.
Golden!
It contained gold pieces.
Having expected a small pool due to the one-sided matchup, Jong Hakjin was completely wrong.
The odds for those betting on Paeng Jisan's victory soared to pierce the heavens.