Chapter 131
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: The Mysterious Divine Demon Pill
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Hong Jeok-mun watched the reunion with a gentle smile.
Of course, the two of them were still difficult individuals. But Dan Ak-seon's bright, welcoming smile was a pleasant sight to behold.
Not wanting to intrude, Hong Jeok-mun quietly slipped away.
Cho Ak-ryang looked around, a curious expression on his face. The one person who should have been there was nowhere to be seen.
Dan Ak-seon, quick to notice, answered.
“Mister Ga won't be back until this evening. He's been quite busy lately.”
“Why?”
“He said he needed to do some digging for information.”
Cho Ak-ryang frowned.
The reason a thief was busy was obvious. He was undoubtedly gathering intelligence on the Emei Sect.
“More importantly, Doctor Dan! Look at this!”
Beom Gye-wi couldn't care less about Ga Du-dal.
Beom Gye-wi proudly presented a box he had been carrying at his side to Dan Ak-seon.
“This is that Flame Forged Iron!”
“Wow! You really got it?”
“Hahaha! What wouldn't I do for you, Doctor Dan?”
“Thank you. You're amazing, Mister Beom!”
At Dan Ak-seon's praise, Beom Gye-wi's shoulders puffed up with pride.
But as Dan Ak-seon took the box, a puzzled look crossed his face.
The box was far too light for its size.
And just as he suspected.
“Huh?”
Opening the box, Dan Ak-seon looked at Beom Gye-wi with bewildered eyes.
Inside was nothing but a piece of metal, barely the size of a fingernail.
It was fascinating, with its reddish hue and gentle warmth, but the amount was ridiculously small for forging a weapon.
“We stopped by the Mokga Ironworks on the way. They said it would take six months.”
Cho Ak-ryang's explanation helped Dan Ak-seon finally understand the situation.
“Listen, Doctor Dan. Let me tell you how I got this...”
Beom Gye-wi began to explain just how much effort he'd put into obtaining the Flame Forged Iron.
Cho Ak-ryang scoffed at Beom Gye-wi's long, exaggerated tale.
But he didn't step in to rain on his parade.
He knew all too well the excitement Beom Gye-wi felt upon seeing Dan Ak-seon.
Of course, Beom Gye-wi conveniently left out any mention of Byeok Hwa-ryeong in his story.
It was then that Han Seol-hwa, who had been watching silently, suddenly spoke up.
“Did you meet Hwa-ryeong?”
“...!”
Beom Gye-wi flinched and turned his head toward Cho Ak-ryang.
Their eyes met, and Cho Ak-ryang quickly gave him a look. He judged that nothing good would come from telling the truth.
“Well, we resolved it. Right?”
“Hmm, seems so.”
Han Seol-hwa's eyes narrowed.
‘Resolved? What?’
The two looked extremely suspicious as they mumbled with flustered faces, but Beom Gye-wi hastily changed the subject.
“Doctor Dan, is there anything you want to eat? Anything you want to have? I'll buy you...”
As he spoke, a look of confusion appeared on Beom Gye-wi's face.
Beom Gye-wi followed Dan Ak-seon's gaze and turned his head.
About thirty feet away, he saw two middle-aged men talking over a market stall.
“So this is that Divine Demon Pill? The one made by the famous Divine Physician's son.”
Cho Ak-ryang and Beom Gye-wi's eyes met.
“Divine Demon Pill?”
Beom Gye-wi tilted his head and asked Dan Ak-seon.
“Did you sell this, Doctor Dan?”
Dan Ak-seon shook his head, looking flustered.
“No. This is my first time here.”
“Then what is it?”
“I don't know either.”
No matter how he thought about it, no medicine made in Divine Demon Valley had such a name.
The only pills Dan Ak-seon personally prepared were the Sacred Beast Divine Pills and the Restorative Pills, which used cheaper ingredients.
Nor was it the pill Pung Jin-seong made based on the formula for the Sacred Beast Divine Pills. The Azure Yang Pills he made were in short supply even for internal use at his own clinic.
“What? So they're selling fake medicine under your name, Doctor Dan?”
Snorting, Beom Gye-wi rolled up his sleeves.
He looked ready to confront the men at any moment. Cho Ak-ryang stopped the fuming man.
“Wait. Let's hear a bit more.”
Seeing Dan Ak-seon nod, Beom Gye-wi reluctantly stayed put. The middle-aged men continued their conversation, oblivious to the danger they were in.
“Isn't it a fake?”
“Hey, now. I paid a whole twenty nyang for this. How could it be a fake?”
“It just seems suspicious.”
“What's suspicious about it?”
“It sounds exactly like what snake oil salesmen in the market say, doesn't it? That it calms the mind and body even in small doses, and it's remarkably effective for fevers and pain? And you said it can be used on external wounds, too? That it helps new flesh grow when applied to the area.”
“Of course. There's no better all-purpose medicine.”
“A medicine that can be taken internally and used externally... If that's true, isn't it a panacea?”
“Hmph, have you been tricked your whole life? I told you I saw the effects myself last time! Do you think I'd spend all the money I have on this for no reason?”
“And there are no side effects?”
“That's its greatest strength.”
“Hmm.”
“Besides, the physician at Hong's Clinic would never sell a fake.”
“True. He's not the type to commit fraud. His family has run that clinic for five generations.”
“Stop your nonsense. If you're so jealous, you should hurry over to Hong's Clinic yourself. I hear there aren't many Divine Demon Pills left. Once they're all sold, you might have to wait a few months.”
“Really? Then I'd better hurry.”
As the two men were about to leave, Dan Ak-seon approached them.
“Could you show me that medicine?”
“What?”
The middle-aged man's baffled expression turned pale.
He had just met the glare of Beom Gye-wi, who was standing behind Dan Ak-seon.
“Th-this... is for my sick mother.”
Shivering in fear, the man clutched the wooden box containing the so-called Divine Demon Pill to his chest.
Seeing his desperation, Dan Ak-seon sighed.
“Then please tell me where you bought it.”
The two men readily gave him the location of Hong's Clinic and then hastily fled.
Dan Ak-seon immediately headed for the place the man had mentioned.
His brow was deeply furrowed, and his eyes held an unusually stern look, unlike the usual Dan Ak-seon.
It was a rare sight, so Cho Ak-ryang gently asked.
“Are you angry?”
“Yes, very.”
Dan Ak-seon replied with a determined look in his eyes.
“I can forgive other things, but there should never be fake medicine. That's toying with people's lives.”
A short while later, they arrived in front of a building with an old sign that read "Hong's Clinic."
Beom Gye-wi glared at the sign with murderous eyes.
“How dare they make our Doctor Dan angry?”
“Wait a moment.”
Dan Ak-seon stopped Beom Gye-wi, who looked ready to storm into the clinic at any second.
It was because of the people lined up in front of the clinic.
Just then, the closed main gate opened, and a young man walked out.
He then shouted to the crowd gathered like a cloud before the entrance.
“The Divine Demon Pills are all sold out. They won't be back in stock for another month, so please go home.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd gathered in front of the clinic erupted in complaint.
“What kind of nonsense is this?”
“I've been waiting since dawn!”
Ignoring the flood of complaints, the young man shouted again.
“And from now on, the Divine Demon Pills will not be sold to anyone who isn't sick!”
Sighs of disappointment rippled through the crowd.
But it was only for a moment; realizing there was nothing they could do, they began to disperse.
In the end, only the truly ill patients remained in front of the clinic.
“Alright, we will begin consultations in about fifteen minutes.”
As the young man turned to leave after saying this, Dan Ak-seon approached him.
“I'd like to see the physician.”
The young man frowned.
“Wait your turn. Can't you see the people waiting over there?”
“It's an urgent matter.”
“And you think those people have nothing better to do than stand around here?”
The young man turned away as if there was nothing more to say. However, he couldn't go inside. A hand as large as a cauldron lid had seized his head.
“Wh-what is this!”
The young man, finally noticing Beom Gye-wi, cried out in terror.
In that moment, Dan Ak-seon rushed into the clinic.
If the Divine Demon Pills sold here were fake, he had to retrieve them as quickly as possible before people took them.
“Excuse me, are you the physician here?”
Dan Ak-seon asked hurriedly upon spotting a man in his mid-fifties with kind eyes.
“I am.”
“I have something to ask about the Divine Demon Pill.”
The physician stared at Dan Ak-seon for a moment and then frowned. It was clear at a glance that Dan Ak-seon wasn't sick.
“They're already sold out. And even if there were any left, I wouldn't sell them to someone who is healthy.”
“Then may I ask just a few things?”
The physician looked troubled.
The consultations for his patients were already far behind schedule due to the customers who had flocked here since morning.
“As you can see, I'm very busy...”
“I'll help you.”
Before the physician could stop him, Dan Ak-seon scurried over and began to quickly organize the acupuncture needles and other treatment tools.
The physician was startled by his skillful handling.
“I heard the person who made the Divine Demon Pill is the Divine Physician's son. Is that true?”
Caught off guard by Dan Ak-seon's question, the physician nodded.
“That's what I heard, but I've never met him myself.”
“I think you've been deceived.”
“What?”
“Because I've never made a Divine Demon Pill.”
“...?”
Dan Ak-seon spoke again to the blinking physician.
“The Divine Physician of Sacred Hands is my father.”
At those words, suspicion flickered in the middle-aged physician's eyes.
“You're the son of the Divine Physician?”
Faced with his doubtful gaze, Dan Ak-seon took a wooden box from his robes.
“These are the Immortal Reverence Needles.”
The physician of Hong's Clinic did not recognize the Immortal Reverence Needles, the sacred object of the Divine Physician of Sacred Hands. This was only natural, as he had never met the Divine Physician of Sacred Hands.
Dan Ak-seon was flustered.
He couldn't think of any other way to prove his identity at that moment.
Just then, Beom Gye-wi strode into the clinic.
“I'll vouch for our Doctor Dan's identity!”
Beom Gye-wi's voice shook the clinic. It was a booming voice, loud enough to make the roof rafters tremble.
However, this had the opposite effect.
“What is this outrage!”
The physician, pale with fright, cried out in alarm.
Beom Gye-wi's fierce appearance was one thing, but he was also still gripping the young man's head in one hand.
“Who are you to raise your voice, you seller of fake medicine?”
A thick killing intent poured from Beom Gye-wi's eyes.
“What are you talking about? Fake medicine?”
The physician muttered with a look of disbelief.
“As a physician, how could I sell fakes! If you're going to spout such nonsense, get out!”
“But I've never made such a medicine.”
At Dan Ak-seon's sigh, the physician frowned and muttered.
“But it was more effective than any medicine I've ever seen...”
It was then.
“Huh? This is...?”
A strange light appeared in Dan Ak-seon's eyes.
He had been looking around and sniffing the air when he spotted a table next to the medicine cabinet.
Dan Ak-seon went straight there.
He checked the mortar on the table and the finely ground contents within, then took a pinch with his fingers to smell it. Then, he tossed it into his mouth.
“...!”
A look of surprise filled Dan Ak-seon's eyes.
“Is this, by any chance, the Divine Demon Pill?”
At Dan Ak-seon's question, the physician nodded with a flustered expression.
“I set it aside for research.”
“Ahh! What a relief.”
Dan Ak-seon let out a great sigh of relief.
“It wasn't a fake.”