Chapter 59 - Spiritual Medicines Have Owners. (Last Free Chapter)
Whiiiiiing—
Dust rose like a cloud, engulfing the oxcart.
The children yelped in surprise as the sudden fierce wind whipped the dirt toward them, huddling tight against the cart.
“Waaah!”
Jin Muhon lightly flicked his sleeve—whoosh.
The dust cloud bearing down on the cart scattered as if by magic.
The children’s eyes went wide, and they clapped in delight.
“Wow! It’s gone!”
“Did the family head do that?”
Behind the chattering kids stood Muheo, his eyes bulging.
Jin Muhon sighed inwardly.
Muheo’s finger trembled as he pointed at him.
“Tr… trans… transfor…!”
Jin Muhon shook his head firmly.
“No.”
Muheo stomped the ground—thud—and raised his voice.
“You look at least ten years younger! Your skin’s smoother, and even your aura’s different! How else do you explain it if not shedding mortality!”
Muheo bellowed without a care for the onlookers.
Not just the kids—even the people of Unbong County craned their necks, wondering what was going on.
Anyone else would’ve been shut down instantly, but Jin Muhon knew Muheo’s obsession all too well.
Just look at those mad, gleaming eyes right now.
Jin Muhon turned his gaze to the distant rear mountains and spoke.
“Yunam’s water must’ve been good for my skin. That’s all.”
“...What?”
“Old man, you should visit Yunam sometime. The weather’s warm, and the faint poison mist might just stimulate you.”
“Who’re you calling a fool!... You... know...?”
Muheo’s bellow faded into a murmur.
Then—whoosh—he unleashed his lightness skill, landing right beside Jin Muhon.
Neigh—!
The horse Jin Muhon rode reared up in fright, front hooves kicking.
Jin Muhon pressed it down with Thousand-Jin Drop, calming it.
“Whoa. Easy. It’s fine.”
“Was that just now... the secret to shedding mortality?”
Muheo lowered his voice, eyes sparkling.
Jin Muhon clicked his tongue and looked down at him.
“You’ll spook the horse. Let’s talk at home.”
“Jin family head!”
Muheo grabbed the reins tight.
Jin Baek bristled, stepping forward, but Yeon Jeokhwa held up a hand to stop him.
“Tell me. Does that mean... the path to shedding mortality lies in Yunam?”
“......”
Shedding mortality.
Jin Muhon’s transformation had been a stroke of impossible luck, layers of conditions aligning perfectly.
Cloud Peak Demon Sea, Dual Intent Divine Art, and the spiritual medicine called Ghost Flower.
A convergence unlikely to repeat in this world.
Still, I did shed mortality in Yunam.
Jin Muhon nodded faintly without a word.
Muheo’s face lit up visibly.
“I knew it! There was a way! There was! Ha ha ha ha!”
Muheo threw his head back and laughed heartily at the sky.
A single tear glistened at the corner of his foolish eyes.
Jin Baek glanced at Yeon Jeokhwa and whispered.
“What the hell’s with that old geezer?”
“He’s got one of those.”
Yeon Jeokhwa twirled a finger by her temple.
“Ah.”
Jin Baek nodded as if it all made sense now.
Muheo raised both arms to the heavens.
“Primordial Heavenly Lord! I thank thee!!”
The legend of shedding mortality, passed down only in tales from beyond the clouds.
But he’d witnessed it firsthand.
Knowing his dream wasn’t delusion was enough to make Muheo tremble with joy.
***
The crumbling Jin estate, once deserted, now bustled with visitors.
Oepari and Ha Chonggwan had hired help to maintain it, but Han Sowol’s role was key.
She’d fulfilled her promise to treat Jin Hayeon’s hair loss, but Jin Muhon’s sudden departure made her miss her chance to leave.
She could’ve gone anytime, yet she stayed, citing unfinished farewells.
Word spread after she treated a few locals, and soon patients from nearby villages sought the famed physician at the Jin estate.
“Right here, lie down.”
Jin Baek and Jin Jaryeong lay on the bed, faces tense.
Han Sowol sat beside them, taking their pulses one by one.
“Hmm...”
“Sister! How is it?”
Jin Hayeon asked anxiously.
Han Sowol, eyes closed, felt their pulses, then quietly brought a finger to her lips.
“Hmm...”
An incomprehensible groan escaped her.
Not just the patients—Jin Muhon and Muheo, now absolute masters; Yeon Jeokhwa and Jin Hayeon—all stared at her tense lips.
“Hooo...”
Han Sowol exhaled deeply and shook her head.
Jin Baek and Jin Jaryeong’s faces paled to ashen.
Jin Muhon asked in a low voice.
“Hard... to heal?”
“Hooo...”
Han Sowol shook her head again.
“No. It can be healed.”
“Good. Even a master physician can’t fix something this severe... Huh? What’d you say?”
“It’s difficult, but healable.”
“......”
Han Sowol spoke deliberately, word by word, her face grave.
Jin Hayeon, on edge, shrieked.
“No! Sister! Why say good news so seriously! You nearly stopped my heart!”
“Hoo... It can be healed, but the path is arduous.”
Han Sowol slowly opened her eyes and met Jin Muhon’s gaze.
“How arduous?”
“Their limb meridians are severed, bones shattered and misaligned. As is, they’ll never use their limbs again.”
“Mm. Makes sense.”
“The malformed meridians must be cut one by one, the crooked bones rebroken. Then slowly realigned to original positions. They might go mad from pain before treatment ends.”
Han Sowol explained gravely.
“Heh heh heh.”
“...?”
A chuckling soon followed.
Han Sowol followed the sound downward.
Skinny Jin Baek grinned. Even sharp-eyed Jin Jaryeong.
Han Sowol blinked her large eyes at them.
“Aren’t you... afraid?”
“Afraid? Heh heh. Of that treatment?”
Jin Baek chuckled back.
Somehow, his laugh stung her pride.
She’d worried and built suspense, after all.
“I’ll tear flesh, rip muscles strand by strand! Rebreak the bad bones! Torture worse than any! And you’re not afraid?”
“Physician.”
“Yes!”
Patients insincere about treatment were harder to heal than any disease.
To Han Sowol, they seemed resigned to their state.
“Our big brother said so.”
“Big brother? Who’s that?”
“Right there.”
Jin Baek jerked his chin at Jin Muhon.
Han Sowol’s eyes widened, flicking between Jin Muhon and Jin Baek.
“So... the patient...?”
“Right. I’m Jin Baek. That’s Jin Jaryeong. We’re all big brother’s little bros.”
“......!”
Han Sowol covered her mouth, frantically reviewing if she’d slipped.
As everyone stared puzzled, Yeon Jeokhwa patted her hand.
“It’s fine. Continue.”
Han Sowol blinked at Yeon Jeokhwa.
Jin Baek went on.
“Big brother said you’re a true master physician. That you’d surely fix our limbs.”
“......!”
Han Sowol’s moist eyes turned to Jin Muhon.
“So we can endure any pain. Big brother trusts you, so we do too.”
“...May I check your pulse again?”
“As much as you like.”
Han Sowol gripped Jin Baek’s wrist once more.
“Hmm...”
Jin Hayeon cut in immediately at the groan.
“Sister, stop that and just say it straight! My heart jumps every time!”
“Fine, I’m not doing it on purpose.”
Han Sowol released Jin Baek’s wrist and locked eyes with Jin Muhon.
“I’ve heard supreme masters can infuse inner energy into others. Family head, did you transmit energy to the young masters—er, your brothers?”
Jin Muhon nodded.
“Yes. Their injuries were dire, so I soothed their internal wounds as a stopgap.”
“When was that?”
“Nearly a month ago. Why?”
“Hmm. I had a feeling.”
“...?”
Everyone eyed Han Sowol curiously.
She stared solely at Jin Muhon and spoke.
“Traces of inner energy remain in your brothers’ meridians.”
“Huh?”
“What? Impossible—I have no dantian.”
Han Sowol nodded.
“Exactly. No dantian, yet how does energy from a month ago still circulate in their meridians?”
“......”
Jin Muhon glanced at his own hand unwittingly.
***
That evening, a grand feast unfolded.
Ha Chonggwan, hearing Jin Muhon had returned, summoned the finest dishes from master chefs.
Jin family folk laughed and chatted, celebrating the reunion after months and welcoming new members.
Jin Hayeon, worn from daily training, beamed for the first time in ages.
Han Sowol sat by Jin Muhon, chattering nonstop about recent events.
Chuk Sa-hwan, hearing of Chukang from Yeon Jeokhwa, smiled inwardly.
Yeon Jeokhwa, Jin Baek, and Jin Jaryeong—new to the family—struggled to adapt to the warmth they’d never known.
The banquet stretched late, ending only when Jin Hayeon began nodding off.
Hoot—hoot—hoot—
As all retired, silence fell over the lively estate.
Jin Muhon climbed to the roof alone, listening to mountain birds from the rear hills.
Thud.
Muheo arrived as if by appointment.
“Jin family head. Moon-gazing without even wine again?”
Muheo plopped down beside him.
Jin Muhon recalled the night before leaving for Yunam.
He’d talked with Muheo then too, before heading far to save his subordinates.
Without Muheo, his captains might’ve ended up in hell by now.
“Old man. Thanks.”
“Huh? For what?”
Muheo blinked at the sudden gratitude.
Jin Muhon gazed at the moon, cup in hand—from Muheo.
“Everything.”
“Hmm. Hearing thanks from the great Jin family head? Sun rising in the west tomorrow? Heh heh heh.”
Muheo chuckled happily, raising his cup.
“But family head. You got a spiritual medicine in Yunam, right? That’s why you said the path lies there? One unique to Yunam.”
“......”
So that’s why he’d been so quiet at the feast.
Muheo had puzzled it out, linking shedding mortality to Yunam.
Jin Muhon nodded.
“Poison Dragon Valley. Leaves transparent, stem bone-white, pistil blood-red.”
“Poison Dragon Valley... Sounds familiar...”
“Got one by chance, but that was it. Meant to save it for you, but it melted the moment I picked it.”
“Ah...!”
Jin Muhon spoke truth here, as it had truly happened.
“Can’t be helped. Heaven-sent spiritual medicines have owners. It was yours—the Jin family head’s share.”
“......”
Muheo accepted it without much regret, unusually.
“So mine’s out there somewhere in Yunam. Once Hayeon’s foundation’s set, I’ll head there.”
“...You’ll find it.”
“Yep! Seeing you succeed gives me confidence. Definitely! Some elixir’s waiting for me in Yunam!”
“......”
Hot passion blazed beside him.
Jin Muhon couldn’t tear his eyes from the moon.
“Hmm. Ahem.”
If only he’d rage madly—then Jin Muhon’s heart might ease.
But seeing Muheo’s expectant face stirred unease in his chest.
“Oh, right. Old man. Ever heard the name Dan Ri-ye?”
To change the subject, he tossed it out casually, without hope.
But Muheo’s eyes widened, staring at him.
“Huh? Dan Ri-ye? How do you know that name? He dropped it when entering the martial world.”
“...?”
Jin Muhon’s eyes widened at Muheo.
Muheo blinked back.
“You... know Dan Ri-ye?”
“Yeah. That was the Four Emperors Alliance leader’s boyhood name. Didn’t you know?”
“......”
As expected—Dan Ri-ye was the Four Emperors leader.
But a question arose.
“How do you know that name?”
Muheo smiled bitterly.
“How could I not? He was my close friend in youth.”
“...What?”
Jin Muhon’s mouth slowly fell open.