Chapter 10
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: The Hoarded Herb
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The script from earlier was, by anyone's standards, strange.
A ruffian from the underworld, moved to change by a few words from a young boy?
But everyone went along with it, albeit bewildered, because there was no other explanation.
It was certainly more convincing than the idea that a young boy, Wi Ji-cheon, had beaten and threatened an underworld master like Jang Sam.
Wi Ji-cheon confessed frankly.
"I used my martial arts to subdue Master Jang Sam and make him cooperate with our Medical Immortal Medical House."
"!!"
I should be somewhat honest with my family.
He wanted to maintain secrecy to avoid unnecessary attention while his strength was still insufficient.
Unwanted attention would undoubtedly attract jackals.
Or it could provoke the enemies from his past life into moving faster.
In that respect, it didn't matter if his family knew.
They weren't the type to spread rumors.
And they'll be understanding even if I suddenly seem different.
However, he couldn't tell them about his regression, so he concocted a suitable story.
"You? Martial arts? Since when did you learn martial arts?"
"Didn't we all learn the Medical Immortal Sword Arts when we were young? Unlike you, brother, who gave up quickly, I've been practicing secretly. I happen to have a talent for it and have achieved a considerable level of mastery."
"Ha?"
Wi Ji-gang's eyes narrowed.
Then.
Thwack!
"Ouch!"
"Where do you get off lying like that?! What martial arts?! I've never even seen you go for a run, let alone train!"
"Well... secretly... I'm a martial arts genius..."
"Hmph! Still spouting nonsense. If what you say is true, then show me these great martial arts of yours! To beat Master Jang Sam, you must at least be at the Body Energy stage."
Wi Ji-cheon pouted and held out his hand.
Body Energy stage? Please. I may not look it, but I was an absolute master who reached the peak of the Transformation Realm.
He was about to show them by lightly coating the edge of his hand with sword energy.
Huh? But right now, the only thing I've learned is the Blood Immortal Demonic Arts, isn't it?
In this life, he planned to learn proper righteous path martial arts through the Heavenly Immortal Divine Arts, but not yet.
No matter what, he couldn't show his family the blood-red demonic arts.
"...You might not know this, brother, but things like Body Energy or sword energy aren't what's important in martial arts. For a master, what truly matters is enlightenment..."
Thwack!
Another flick landed on his head.
"Enlightenment, my foot."
"..."
"Forget it. I suspected you might have had an accomplice helping you. Seeing you spout such nonsense, I guess it was just a wild guess."
Wi Ji-cheon rubbed his head.
Well, it's better that it passes like this.
But still.
What is this feeling of being wronged...?
"But Master Jang Sam really was... I'm actually a martial arts genius..."
"Tsk!"
"..."
This is so infuriating! I'm going to learn some righteous path martial arts as soon as possible and show my family!
Just then, Wi Ji-gang sighed.
"Be careful for the time being. Things are about to get noisy for the family as it is."
"Is something wrong?"
"Uncle will be arriving soon."
"!!"
Wi Ji-cheon's expression stiffened as well.
Uncle.
A word that signified another storm was about to hit the Medical Immortal Medical House.
Martial sects are usually structured in a certain way.
The Inner Hall and the Outer Hall.
The Inner Hall is the organization that handles the sect's internal affairs, while the Outer Hall manages external matters.
Medical houses had a similar structure, but with slightly different roles.
The Inner Hall was responsible for treating patients.
Within the Medical Immortal Medical House's Inner Hall were the Hall of Healing, which handled treatments, and the Hall of Medicine, which prepared remedies.
The Outer Hall, on the other hand, handled various external tasks and supported the physicians in treating patients.
His uncle, Wi Ji-mu, was the master of this Outer Hall.
'The five viscera are robust and in harmony with the blood vessels, the muscles are relaxed, the skin is firm, dignity is maintained, and respiration is gentle. The qi flows smoothly, the six fu-organs digest grains, and the bodily fluids are all as they should be.'
Wi Ji-cheon flipped through the medical text, absorbing its contents with ease.
Unlike before, the content of the medical texts is sinking right in. If it had been like this back then, I would've been called a genius.
Having glimpsed the Profound Realm and understood the principles of all creation, it was only natural that the medical texts felt different to him.
Since he understood the material so well, it was even becoming fun!
At this rate, am I going to take first place in the Nanyang Medical Examination Ceremony?
In the current golden age of medicine, numerous medical houses had been established.
This phenomenon gave rise to a problem: the proliferation of quacks.
As unskilled charlatans caused all sorts of harm to patients, the Medical Alliance, an organization founded by Star-ranked and higher medical houses, devised a solution.
It was a qualification exam: the Medical Examination Ceremony.
Only by passing the examination could one become an 'apprentice physician' and be allowed to see patients.
The exam wasn't held at a central Medical Alliance location.
It wasn't a state examination; it was impossible to gather all aspiring physicians from across the vast continent.
Instead, medical houses in neighboring regions gathered to administer their own exams.
In other words, Wi Ji-cheon was scheduled to take the exam with apprentices from other medical houses in the Nanyang region.
Everyone will be so surprised if I pass with top honors, won't they? In my past life, I failed five times before finally giving up.
Thinking that far, Wi Ji-cheon let out a soft sigh.
His studies for the examination were going smoothly, but there was another problem.
"-...And that's why our family is failing!!!"
"-You, you brat!!"
"-Get a grip, brother! Can't you see the family is on the verge of ruin?!"
Crash!!
A loud commotion came from outside.
It was a fight between Wi Ji-seon and his uncle, Wi Ji-mu.
"My, their fighting seems especially bad today."
"Do you know why Uncle is acting like that?"
"How would I know? It's probably about money again, as usual."
Wi Ji-cheon nodded.
In a way, Uncle Wi Ji-mu has the toughest job in the family.
His uncle, Wi Ji-mu, was the master of the Outer Hall and the general manager.
He was in charge of the family's finances.
Whenever money had to be spent, he would have a neurotic fit.
"-Damn it, I'm always the bad guy! You go on and play the saint all by yourself, brother! I'm leaving this suffocating family!"
"-You brat, Mu!!"
Wi Ji-cheon quietly closed his book.
"I suppose I'll have to pause my studies for a bit."
"...How many hours has it been since you started studying for you to be closing your book already?"
"Hush. A cheetah never rushes. If a game-changer like me went all out, it would be too pitiful for the other competitors in the examination, so it's better to study at a leisurely pace."
He opened the door and went outside, where a familiar face came into view.
A ruddy face.
A round bald spot on his head.
Wi Ji-cheon smiled faintly.
"Uncle."
"...Cheon?"
Wi Ji-mu, who had been fuming, stopped short when he saw Wi Ji-cheon.
"Things were chaotic earlier, so I couldn't greet you properly. I heard you returned from a long journey to acquire medicinal herbs. I'm glad you've returned safely."
"Hey, are you really Cheon? Why have you suddenly become so mature? I heard the shock of soiling your pants made you grow up, and it seems it was true."
"..."
Various rumors had circulated about Wi Ji-cheon's sudden change, and this 'shock theory' was one of them.
I'm going to find whoever started that rumor and make them pay.
Wi Ji-cheon ground his teeth inwardly but gave a bright smile.
"It seems you had an argument with Father."
"Argument, my foot! I'm always the bad guy, and he's always the good one. Forget it! I'm leaving this family for good! You live well and prosper!"
Wi Ji-mu started fuming again and turned his back with a huff.
From his past memories, Wi Ji-cheon knew how to handle his uncle in these situations.
"Uncle, where are you going? You know the Medical Immortal Medical House can't function without you, don't you?"
"Can't function! Hmph! You'll only realize how important I am when I'm gone!"
"Everyone knows. Father has said many times how grateful he is to you, that if it weren't for you, the Medical Immortal Medical House would have gone bankrupt long ago."
"...My brother said that?"
Wi Ji-mu's ears perked up.
It worked.
He's such an easy uncle to handle.
He was hot-tempered, but also simple and kind.
He cared for the family more than anyone.
Just looking at his round bald spot was enough to tell how much Wi Ji-mu had dedicated himself to the family.
"Was there a specific reason for your fight?"
"I can't get any coptis root."
"What?"
"...Don't tell me you don't know what coptis root is. The examination is just around the corner, and you don't even know the absolute basics of herbology?"
"...I'm studying."
A cheetah is naturally unhurried.
Wi Ji-cheon grumbled inwardly.
"Summer is coming, and a large-scale dysentery outbreak is bound to happen. It's a necessary herb for treating it. I've looked everywhere, but I can't find any."
"That's strange."
The Medical Immortal Medical House, which primarily treated commoners, used the cheapest herbs possible.
Cheap meant it was also easy to acquire.
"Someone anticipated the outbreak and hoarded the supply."
"!!"
Wi Ji-cheon frowned.
"Who?"
"The Namjung Apothecary."
Again.
It was an apothecary run by the Namjung Medical House.
It was a vile act, but hoarding was a common occurrence in any field.
"Can't you get it from somewhere other than Nanyang?"
"I've already checked all the nearby areas. The Namjung Medical House and the surrounding apothecaries have colluded, so the supply of coptis root has completely dried up around here."
"What about the nearby major cities, like Xi'an or Kaifeng?"
"How in the world are we supposed to get there and back in time?"
Ah.
By the standards of martial artists who used light-body techniques, Xi'an and Kaifeng weren't far.
However, even Kaifeng, located in the same Henan province, was over a thousand li away.
It was a distance that would take more than ten days to walk one way.
"And what about the time it takes to find the herb? Coptis root is probably scarce in Kaifeng too because of the dysentery. Would they be willing to trade easily with outsiders like us? Even if we were lucky enough to get some, what about transporting it back to Nanyang? We'd have to find a covered wagon to protect it from the elements and hire armed escorts to fend off bandits. By the time we manage all that, the outbreak will have already swept through Nanyang."
In the end, they had to get the medicine from the Namjung Medical House.
We keep getting entangled with them in the worst ways.
"So we'll have to 'negotiate' with the Namjung Medical House."
"They'll try to rip us off big time."
"I wonder. We'll have to see who's getting ripped off."
"Hm?"
Wi Ji-cheon thought, his gaze turning grim.
I'll have to make them pay for last time, too.