Chapter 43
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: The Fake Doctor
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An arrow grazed past Jang Sam's forehead.
If that demon's warning had been even a fraction of a second late, he might have lost his life.
This wasn't the first or second time.
Of course, that demon bastard has never actually been late with his warnings.
Whenever they encountered a mechanism, the bastard would grasp its every detail in a single glance.
Perhaps because he was a demon, his skill at assessing them was uncanny.
And then,
-Sir Jang Sam. I think you should enter from the left. But watch your lower body. Be careful not to get hurt!
He would send Jang Sam in.
Am I your damn chess piece?!
The Good luck, and Be careful, he added at the end only fueled Jang Sam's anger.
What was even more infuriating,
Give me more details, damn it!
Mechanisms often had a dual structure: an obvious trap on the surface and a real one hidden behind it.
For instance, he would use his lightness technique to evade a collapsing floor, only for arrows to fly from the direction he dodged toward.
The demon bastard would only tell Jang Sam about these secret traps right before or right after they were triggered.
When he complained via telepathy,
-I'm doing this for your own good.
-...What did you say?
-I'm giving you a chance to train your martial arts. A training opportunity where one mistake could cost you your life doesn't come easily, does it? You need to break through to the peak level quickly, right?
You call that a reason?!
What was even more infuriating was that it was actually helping.
If he overcame these life-threatening situations about a hundred more times, he might really reach the peak level...
My life would be gone long before that!
Despite his grumbling, compared to before he met Wi Ji-cheon, Jang Sam's martial skills had improved by leaps and bounds.
Even within the same first-rate or peak realm, skill levels varied drastically depending on proficiency.
It was usually expressed in four stages: Entry, Middle, High, and Extreme.
When one first entered the realm, it was Entry.
Once proficient, Middle.
Upon perfection, High.
And when one was halfway to the next realm, Extreme.
Jang Sam had been between the Middle and High stages of the first-rate realm. To be precise, he was at the High stage, but closer to Middle.
But now, he was on the verge of the peak realm.
He had unwittingly reached the Extreme stage of the first-rate realm.
Once I reach the peak, I'll teach that demon bastard a lesson!
And so, he continued to break through the mechanisms, following Wi Ji-cheon's orders.
An arrow flew at him.
From the front.
Hmph, a trap like this! It can't even touch a single hair on the great Jang Sam!
The moment he tried to twist his body to the left.
Sir Jang Sam, go lower!!
?!
An incomprehensible command.
However, Jang Sam's body, conditioned by Wi Ji-cheon's orders, faithfully obeyed.
Fwoosh!
It grazed past Jang Sam's shoulder by a hair's breadth.
A chill ran down Jang Sam's spine.
What? Why?
The trap's trajectory was different from what he had seen with his own eyes.
It was a subtle difference.
But one that could cost him his life in a moment of carelessness.
Did I see something that wasn't there?
Just then, Wi Ji-cheon sighed and gave him the answer.
It's Bewitching Poison.
As they broke through the mechanisms, Wi Ji-cheon had been puzzled.
Contrary to his expectations, the difficulty of the mechanisms wasn't that high.
A few first-rate masters could easily overcome them by working together.
So why had so many people died?
Among the corpses, there was a significant number of first-rate masters.
The cause of death was especially puzzling.
Given the victims' skill levels, they had fallen for traps they should have easily avoided.
There must be a reason.
Finally, seeing Jang Sam's strange behavior, he understood the cause.
Bewitching Poison?
It's a poison that causes hallucinations. Depending on how it's used, it can also confuse the body's five senses.
He examined Jang Sam's body.
There were no signs of poisoning.
It wasn't that Wi Ji-cheon's guess was wrong, but that the amount was so minuscule it left no trace on the body.
It was just enough to momentarily disrupt one's senses.
It was barely enough to be called Bewitching Poison, but in a real-life situation, especially while navigating traps like these, it was fatal.
This isn't the Sword Sovereign's test. Someone secretly tampered with it, deliberately trying to cause a disaster.
One candidate naturally came to mind.
The Blood Cult.
Evidence? None.
They say that whenever an unexplained bloodbath occurs in the Martial World, if you guess the Blood Cult is the culprit, you'll be right half the time.
Of course, the Blood Cult claimed such prejudice was unfair, but this time, Wi Ji-cheon's guess was correct.
But how was the poison spread?
Beside him, Dan Yeo offered a simple answer.
If this is poison, then the person who spread it must be up ahead.
Junior Sister Dan Yeo?
Didn't they just spread it as they walked, so the people following behind would get poisoned? The wind in the cave is blowing from the front towards the back, too.
It was a plausible theory.
Since the group was moving together in one direction, if someone at the front scattered poison into the air as they went, those behind them would inevitably be continuously poisoned.
It must be a dissipating poison that vanishes in the air, which would also explain why the concentration is weaker back here where we are.
I didn't know you knew so much about poisons, Junior Sister Dan Yeo.
I-It's basic knowledge for a physician, you know? It's not like I have any personal experience administering this kind of poison! I definitely didn't secretly poison my older brothers just because they annoyed me! Really!
Wi Ji-cheon now knew that Dan Yeo had, in fact, poisoned her brothers at the Flower Center Medical House when they mistreated her.
...If I annoy Junior Sister Dan Yeo, will I be targeted with poison too?
In any case, Wi Ji-cheon pondered again.
That's strange. If someone was spreading poison from the front, it's impossible that no one around them would have noticed.
Even if they secretly scattered minuscule amounts, they could only get away with it once or twice.
Judging by the traces of the disaster, they must have been spreading the poison continuously.
How is something like this possible?
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
There was!
A person who could do such a thing!
Sir Jang Sam, please shout ahead that the Blood Cult has appeared.
Shout... you say?
Yes, we've come far enough that the group at the front should be close enough to hear.
-The Blood Cult has appeared!
-The Blood Cult has appear...!!
-...appeared...!!
Due to the narrow cave, the echoes were fierce.
A moment later, these echoes returned from up ahead.
-What? Who appeared?
-They said the demons of the Blood Cult have appeared!!
-The leader of the Blood Cult!!
-The Demonic Cult and the Blood Cult have joined forces with a horde of demons!!!
The echoes resounded chaotically, the message getting distorted in real-time. As they waited, presences appeared from up ahead.
Masters from Huashan, Zhongnan, and the Beggars' Sect had arrived!
If the Blood Cult had truly appeared, exploring the tomb would be the least of their worries.
And you are?
A man in his thirties at the front asked, looking puzzled.
Because it wasn't the Blood Cult, but a strange group of four.
Ah, allow this Hong-gae to explain, Daoist Hyeon-un. That young boy is the junior physician Wi Ji-cheon, also known as the Medical Immortal Sword of Nanyang. The middle-aged man next to him is Sir Jang Sam, the Hegemon of Nanyang's Underworld. Unlike his fierce appearance, he is a rare man of the underworld who possesses a strong sense of justice. The rest are disciples of the Medical Immortal Medical House.
The Medical Immortal Sword of Nanyang? Cheong-song, is he the physician you were indebted to recently?
Yes, Martial Uncle. That boy is indeed the physician who saved this foolish nephew's life.
The gazes of Hyeon-un and the others from Huashan and Zhongnan softened.
I am Hyeon-un, the Plum Blossom Swordsman of Huashan. Thank you for saving my nephew's life.
Not at all. I only did what I was supposed to do.
Seeing the profound light in your eyes, I can tell the greatness of the Medical Immortal Medical House. I should thank you properly, but please understand the circumstances. What is this about the Blood Cult appearing?
Are you aware that Bewitching Poison has been spread throughout this tomb?
I am. Amitabha. Regrettably, many of our fellow martial artists have lost their lives because of the Bewitching Poison. I cannot fathom why the Sword Sovereign would resort to such a wicked scheme.
The Bewitching Poison is not a trap set by the Sword Sovereign.
What do you mean?
Daoist, have you seen any device in this tomb that disperses poison?
I have not... Isn't it just well hidden?
The Sword Sovereign was a sword fanatic who never touched poison in his entire life. Isn't it strange that he would use a petty trick like Bewitching Poison?
That may be true, but who else could have spread the poison? If there was a culprit spreading it, we would surely have noticed.
There is one person here. Someone who can spread the poison without arousing anyone's suspicion.
...What?
Wi Ji-cheon shifted his gaze.
Towards the one traveling with the masters of Huashan, Zhongnan, and the Beggars' Sect.
The martial doctor.
For reference, two martial doctors had initially entered the tomb, but one died near the entrance, leaving only that one alive.
That martial doctor is the culprit who spread the poison.
!!
That was it.
A martial doctor could spread poison without any suspicion.
All they had to do was scatter the poison while pretending to handle medicine to treat patients.
One of the two martial doctors must have been real, and the other a fake in disguise. They must have killed the real one at the tomb's entrance before he could notice anything.
Everyone reacted with disbelief.
He had suddenly accused a doctor from a Star-ranked Medical House of being the culprit.
The martial doctor let out a dry laugh.
How amusing. A mere nobody from a Fragrance-ranked Medical House.
What does it mean for Clear Yang, Turbid Yin, Earth Qi, and Heaven Qi to maintain their normal flow? As a renowned doctor from a Star-ranked House, you must surely know something this basic, right?
The martial doctor was struck dumb.
I specialize in external injuries...
Then how should one treat the Large Intestine Meridian of the Hand in the case of a piercing wound to the Quepen point?
That... is a secret technique of our Shaanxi Medical House, I cannot reveal it to an outsider.
Then why did you treat the patient with the injured Quepen point that way earlier? You pressed the Tianjing and Jugu points. Is that the secret technique of the Shaanxi Medical House?
Dan Yeo chimed in from the side.
Wow. Are you trying to kill someone? Pressing the Tianjing and Jugu points for a Quepen injury? If one of my junior brothers did that, I'd have broken his fingers. Right, Junior Brother A-seop?
Y-Yes! What Senior Brother and Senior Sister said is correct!
The atmosphere in the area grew cold.
The figures from Huashan, Zhongnan, and the Beggars' Sect stared at the martial doctor, whose face had turned bright red.