Chapter 149
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 149
Chapter Title: A New Formula and a Closed Door
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“Is that true?”
Having said it himself, Dan Ak-seon blushed slightly, feeling his voice had been too loud.
However, Sa Mu-sim smiled as if he understood and nodded.
“I know. You’ve been very patient all this time.”
Sa Mu-sim spoke again with conviction to the abashed Dan Ak-seon.
“Once the sale of the Poison Dispersion Formula begins, you won’t have to worry about elixirs anymore.”
Dan Ak-seon’s eyes sparkled.
This was coming from none other than Sa Mu-sim.
His trust was even greater because this was the man who had established the Divine Demon Trading Company and built it to this scale in just over a year.
But soon, he let out a sigh with a look of regret.
There was still a problem that needed to be solved to make that happen.
“But the Poison Dispersion Formula can’t be mass-produced.”
As if he had expected this to some extent, Sa Mu-sim asked back.
“Are the medicinal ingredients required for its creation special? Or is the manufacturing process difficult?”
Surprisingly, Dan Ak-seon shook his head.
“No. While it does contain special ingredients, they’re not impossible to obtain. The manufacturing process is also not very difficult compared to other medicines.”
“Then why?”
Dan Ak-seon continued his explanation to the puzzled Sa Mu-sim.
“Like any medicine, the Poison Dispersion Formula has side effects.”
Beom Gye-wi, who had been listening from the side, shouted in alarm.
“But you said it had no side effects last time.”
“I did?”
At Dan Ak-seon’s question, Beom Gye-wi nodded.
“When I asked if taking the Poison Dispersion Formula would make me go bald. You definitely said no.”
“Ah!”
Dan Ak-seon recalled the conversation he had with Beom Gye-wi at the Emei Sect.
“Of course, it doesn’t do that.”
“Then?”
“Because it forcefully increases blood circulation, it can potentially strain the heart. That’s why patients with high blood pressure or the elderly must be cautious when taking it. So, until now, I’ve always used it in conjunction with acupuncture for safety when prescribing the Poison Dispersion Formula.”
Beom Gye-wi grinned.
“Then it’s fine. As long as my hair doesn’t fall out. For such a great medicine, that’s a risk worth taking.”
Han Seol-hwa shot a pathetic look at the beaming Beom Gye-wi.
Sa Mu-sim, on the other hand, couldn’t hide his regretful expression.
“That’s a shame. If the Poison Dispersion Formula could be commercialized, so many people would have been overjoyed…”
At those words, Dan Ak-seon seemed to ponder for a moment before offering a compromise.
“It’s not entirely impossible. We can just lower its efficacy a bit. But it must only be taken once every ten days, and people with pre-existing conditions shouldn't use it.”
At that, Sa Mu-sim’s face lit up.
“In that case, what if we lower the efficacy a little more?”
“What? Lower the efficacy again? Then its effects will drop to the level of a supplement, not a treatment.”
“But it would still have some effect, right?”
“Of course it would have an effect, but…”
Dan Ak-seon, with a vague expression, quickly continued.
“If we do that, the effect will be temporary. Roughly… between one to two hours?”
Sa Mu-sim clapped his hands in delight.
“That’s it. That’s the perfect amount.”
Only then did Dan Ak-seon’s expression brighten as well.
“Alright. It will require a bit of research, then.”
Pung Jin-seong, who had been standing silently, pressed a hand to his forehead.
He had just come out after finishing his research on subdividing the Divine Demon Elixir.
Knowing Dan Ak-seon’s personality, he wouldn’t refuse new research.
Sure enough.
“Then I’ll just finish my meal and head back in.”
At Dan Ak-seon’s words, Pung Jin-seong let out a sigh.
Dan Ak-seon’s tenacity, his need to see things through to the very end when it came to medicine, sometimes felt frightening.
“I shall help as well.”
“Are you sure? You must be very tired…”
At Dan Ak-seon’s concern, Pung Jin-seong forced a smile, hiding his exhausted expression.
“That way, we can finish it even a little bit faster.”
“You don’t have to push yourself too hard.”
Pung Jin-seong let out a hollow laugh.
He wanted to say the exact same thing back to him.
But he couldn’t give up.
While researching with Dan Ak-seon, he had come to realize anew that he still had much to learn.
Most importantly, he couldn’t just stand by and watch the still-young Dan Ak-seon bury himself in research alone.
At least here, he was the only one who could help him.
“What wouldn’t I do if it helps the Valley Lord?”
At Pung Jin-seong’s sincere words, Dan Ak-seon gave him a look of gratitude.
Then, as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he turned his head towards Sa Mu-sim.
“But please keep this in mind. Even as a supplement, it requires special care when taking it. You absolutely must not sell it to just anyone.”
Sa Mu-sim smiled and nodded.
He had already formulated a plan from the moment he first heard about the Poison Dispersion Formula from Beom Gye-wi.
“Do not worry. We will put a warning on the medicine itself and sell it only through physicians. Furthermore, to prevent counterfeit drugs from flooding the market, we will record sales through a separate ledger. We’ll be able to check which physician sold it to whom.”
Dan Ak-seon smiled and nodded.
In that field, Sa Mu-sim was an expert no one could match.
Moreover, Sa Mu-sim was painting an even bigger picture.
“It will cause an uproar in the Western Regions as well.”
Dan Ak-seon wore a surprised expression.
“You’re going to sell it in the Western Regions too?”
“It will probably become our Divine Demon Trading Company’s best-selling flagship product.”
He could guarantee that the moment the existence of the Poison Dispersion Formula became known, merchants from the Western Regions would be falling over themselves, their eyes ablaze, to establish trade with the Divine Demon Trading Company.
Sa Mu-sim smiled warmly and looked at Dan Ak-seon.
“It seems we’ll have to expand the medicinal herb warehouse. No, on second thought, it might not be a bad idea to add a separate warehouse to store only the elixirs.”
At those words, Dan Ak-seon showed his firm resolve.
“I’ll definitely make it a success!”
After hastily finishing his meal, Dan Ak-seon headed straight to his room.
Seeing this, Sa Mu-sim smiled wistfully.
“It seems he was really holding himself back.”
Cho Ak-ryang nodded and seconded his words.
“Indeed. Elixirs were the only thing that desireless child ever coveted.”
Han Seol-hwa, recalling how Dan Ak-seon never failed to visit apothecaries during their travels across the Central Plains, showed a look of sympathy.
“Then I shall also be on my way.”
Pung Jin-seong, having roughly finished his meal, rose from his seat.
Just then, a large hand was placed on his shoulder.
“Good luck, Family Head Pung.”
“…?”
Pung Jin-seong met Beom Gye-wi’s gaze, looking puzzled for a moment before his eyes widened in surprise.
Beom Gye-wi’s gaze was that intense.
Beom Gye-wi wore a satisfied expression as Pung Jin-seong dazedly nodded. Then, he shouted loudly towards Dan Ak-seon.
“Physician Dan, I’m cheering for you! If you ever need a test subject, call me. I’ll come running anytime!”
* * *
Dan Ak-seon, who had been holed up in his room without showing his face, reappeared exactly fifteen days later.
Sa Mu-sim was shocked when he saw Dan Ak-seon, whose eyes were sunken and hollow.
His haggard face was one thing, but he was staggering as if he would collapse at any moment.
And yet, Dan Ak-seon was smiling.
“Hehe. I did it.”
Dan Ak-seon handed Sa Mu-sim a piece of paper with the new recipe for the Poison Dispersion Formula written on it.
“You’ve worked very hard.”
Dan Ak-seon nodded at Sa Mu-sim’s words and sat down in a chair as if collapsing. Then, he immediately rested his arms on the table and buried his face in them.
Seeing Dan Ak-seon fall asleep, letting out soft snores almost instantly, Sa Mu-sim felt a pang of pity.
‘I didn’t want him to achieve results by pushing himself this hard…’
Perhaps he had read his expression.
“Who could possibly stop that stubbornness?”
Pung Jin-seong, who had walked out a moment later, shook his head from side to side.
“You’ve worked hard.”
At Sa Mu-sim’s words, Pung Jin-seong smiled wistfully.
“What did I do? The Valley Lord solved most of the problems himself.”
“Just being by his side was a great help.”
Those words were true.
In reality, Dan Ak-seon had barely stepped outside.
He had clung to his research, forgetting even to sleep, to the point that Pung Jin-seong had to bring him his meals.
“It’s a good thing the others aren’t here.”
Pung Jin-seong gave a slight nod in agreement with Sa Mu-sim’s words.
Not to mention Cho Ak-ryang and Han Seol-hwa, but also Beom Gye-wi, who had been eagerly awaiting the research results.
Above all, they doted on Dan Ak-seon, so he would not have been able to avoid their sharp glares.
“Ah, they say Adu and his siblings are adjusting well.”
At the news from Sa Mu-sim, Pung Jin-seong’s eyes showed relief.
He had been secretly wondering about them.
“He’s a clever boy. And good-hearted.”
Adu, who remained untainted by the hardships of the world despite having lived on the streets for so long.
Pung Jin-seong smiled warmly as he recalled the boy’s clear eyes.
Sa Mu-sim spoke to him with concern.
“Family Head, you should go and rest too. Your face is… quite a mess.”
Pung Jin-seong’s complexion was not much different from Dan Ak-seon’s.
His haggard and pale face looked so precarious, as if he might collapse at any moment.
It was then.
“Heh…”
Dan Ak-seon, sleeping with his head down, smiled faintly, an expression of pure happiness on his face.
“He must be having a good dream.”
At Sa Mu-sim’s words, Pung Jin-seong let out a hearty laugh.
“I can guess what kind of dream it is.”
It was probably a dream of looking around a warehouse filled to the brim with elixirs.
“Or maybe he’s swimming in a sea of elixirs.”
Their eyes met, and the two men laughed quietly.
* * *
Ten days later.
After recovering his strength by staying at an inn for a while, Dan Ak-seon and his companions headed for Mount Kongtong.
“So this is where Guangchengzi trained.”
Dan Ak-seon let out a sound of admiration as he took in the overlapping peaks and dizzying cliffs.
Guangchengzi was an immortal from the high antiquity of Chinese legends, famous enough to be mentioned in the Zhuangzi and at the very beginning of the Biographies of Immortals.
This mountain, where the one said to have taught the Yellow Emperor—one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors—resided, boasted just as long a history.
There was a reason it was called the number one mountain of Daoism.
After climbing a rugged path and entering a flat area, the scenery changed in an instant.
The lush surrounding vegetation and the bizarre rock formations dotting the area created a cozy landscape.
Dan Ak-seon had already toured many of the famous mountains of the Central Plains.
But Mount Kongtong possessed a unique charm different from any other mountain.
A mountain range that had both the grandeur of the northern mountains above and the elegance of the southern mountains below.
That in itself created a special feeling.
“From here, you and the witch go alone.”
Beom Gye-wi wore an awkward expression as he spoke to the puzzled Dan Ak-seon.
“Me and Brother Cho have a pretty bad history with those guys.”
“Ah!”
Dan Ak-seon quickly guessed the reason.
The martial art that symbolized the Kongtong Sect was the Demon-Subduing Sword Arts.
As the name, which meant ‘to make demons submit,’ suggested, the Kongtong Sect was a place that took the lead in eradicating evil and unorthodox factions more than any other school.
Naturally, Cho Ak-ryang and Beom Gye-wi were beings they rejected, and there was no small amount of resentment built up over time.
The number of Kongtong disciples killed or injured by the two was not small either.
They weren’t thick-skinned enough to enter their mountain gate as if nothing had ever happened.
“I understand. I’ll get the signature on the joint petition and come right back.”
“Alright. We’ll be waiting at a tavern in the village below.”
At Beom Gye-wi’s words, Dan Ak-seon smiled and nodded.
In the end, only Dan Ak-seon and Han Seol-hwa headed for the Kongtong Sect, and after walking for a while, the mountain gate came into view.
A moment later, upon reaching the gate, they came face to face with a person who was waiting for them.
Was he in his mid-fifties?
He was a middle-aged Daoist priest who seemed to be of a rather high rank.
At first, they naturally thought he was there to greet them.
They had heard through the Beggar’s Sect that its leader, I Rip, had given the Kongtong Sect a heads-up.
Just in case, they had also sent a visitor’s pass three days prior.
But the middle-aged Daoist, who introduced himself as Hyeongong, said something unexpected.
“Due to an internal matter, the sect is not receiving any guests for the time being.”