Chapter 111
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 111
Chapter Title: The Serpent's Inner Core
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- Ssssk!
The snake dodged the thin needles as if they were utterly ridiculous.
Tatata-tak!
The dozen or so needles I'd flung embedded themselves in the ground, and the snake charged straight at the flying squirrel.
It seemed utterly disinterested in me, still concealing its presence.
'Ha.'
But did it really think that bulking up its internal energy a bit would let a mere snake slip from my grasp?
The thin needles had been bait from the start.
Having lured the snake along the path I wanted, I hurled a thick needle at its numbing acupoint.
I didn't have the animal acupoints memorized, but by focusing, I could sense where its energy converged.
Shhriiik!
The needle sliced through the air and struck the snake's neck.
- Kieeeek!
The snake thrashed wildly.
Well, "thrashed" might not be the right word without legs, but it twisted its serpentine body every which way, desperately trying to break free.
Of course, I had no intention of killing it.
Even if I'd thrown it hard enough to pierce clean through, it wouldn't die from a hole like that. Needles weren't meant for killing, after all.
But for an ordinary snake—or even an ordinary human, or one who'd barely awakened their qi—hitting the numbing point would have paralyzed it.
Its internal energy was truly deficient compared even to a peak master.
It couldn't wield sword qi or anything like it.
That power hadn't come from proper enlightenment and training.
- Kek! Kweuk...!
Just looking at how aggressively it targeted the flying squirrel made its origins obvious.
This wasn't its first time. It had clearly learned that devouring weaker spirit beasts grew its inner core and made it stronger.
I snatched up the snake with a flick.
'What to do with it.'
Kill it?
Easy enough.
But this wasn't the martial world—this was South Korea, and snake hunting was illegal.
Let it go and fend for itself?
Then it'd just eat the flying squirrel.
'If one has to survive, better the flying squirrel, right?'
...
Was that too human-centric?
But what could I do?
I'm human. The flying squirrel had asked for help. And to my eyes, it looked pitiful.
Letting the snake devour it would just lead to it threatening people soon enough.
And eventually, it'd get killed by humans.
No matter how much earth qi it absorbed while crawling around devouring spirit beasts, it couldn't gather the power to withstand guns and blades.
- Kwaaak!
The snake flailed, trying to bite my hand.
Whoops, can't make a foolish mistake.
I tightened my grip on its neck.
"Hey, do you understand me?"
I tried talking to it.
Of course, it wouldn't reply, "Yes, I do." But since I could communicate with the flying squirrel somehow, maybe this one too?
"If you want to live, spit out your inner core. It's already beyond what you can handle."
I threatened it while squeezing its neck.
"What's the point of eating spirit beasts? You aiming to be the World's Greatest Snake? Right now, you've got two choices: fall into qi deviation and die, or get pierced by human bullets. I don't know what you scavenged to end up like this... but if you've got any brains, make the choice that lets you live."
I gradually increased the pressure.
At first, just enough to hold it; now, right up to the point of crushing it.
"Abandon your greed and go back to being an ordinary snake."
I hoped it understood.
If it resisted to the end, I'd have no choice but to kill it...
- Shhrrk!
The snake exhaled its internal energy.
As if gauging its own power against the strength of my grip.
I was still masking my presence somewhat, so it couldn't get a read.
Hwaaak!
I released all my power.
So it could make a wise decision.
"...".
And moments later.
The snake spat out its inner core and reverted to an ordinary wild snake.
Had my persuasion worked? Or had it simply chosen to abandon its intelligence to escape death?
Either way, the now-ordinary snake slipped naturally from my grasp, leaving the inner core in my hand.
- Kek! Kek-kek!
The flying squirrel was overjoyed.
Pababababat!
It kicked dirt furiously at the now-powerless, feeble snake.
Revenge time?
"It's just an ordinary snake now—let it escape."
- Kek? Kek!
This one definitely understood me.
The flying squirrel immediately stopped tormenting the snake and snuggled up to me like before.
I gave its fur a light stroke, and it rubbed its head against me furiously.
It knew exactly how to act cute.
"How'd you end up all the way from Gyeongju?"
- Kek!
"Looking for a place with good energy?"
- Kweuk!
I had no way to understand the answers.
I stroked its head a few more times, then let it go.
With the snake dealt with, nothing should threaten it now.
Whether it stayed in these mountains or went elsewhere, I hoped it lived well—without running into weird spirit beasts or humans.
"Take care. Let's meet again if fate allows!"
The flying squirrel nodded like a human.
Then it scurried off into the underbrush and vanished.
"Hmm."
Now, in the spot where the flying squirrel had left.
"What to do with this?"
The snake's inner core was still in my hand.
I couldn't give it to the flying squirrel.
Too potent, and its nature far too biased.
Swallowing it might transfer that ferocious temperament.
'Did it devour a Millennia Fire Carp or something? How'd it form an inner core like this?'
Even for me, the extreme yang energy was too much.
I could filter it and absorb some, but it didn't align with my martial arts, so efficiency would be low...
Wait. Extreme yang energy?
That reminded me of one person.
* * *
Late at night, long after the clinic had closed.
I turned on the light in the decoction room on the second floor of the clinic building.
If I just said, "Here's a snake's inner core to treat your Nine Yin Severed Meridians—eat up," what would Seol Yuhee say?
No matter our built-up trust, she wouldn't just go, "Okay, got it."
It needed processing.
To look like a proper herbal pill.
But boiling it into a month's worth of medicine?
The condensed energy would dissipate, losing the desired effect.
It had to be taken all at once.
Mixed with cooling herbs to minimize side effects.
So, in secret, I crafted the Snake Core Pill.
* * *
Conveniently, three days later was my regular consultation with Seol Yuhee.
Since joining our clinic, she'd been steadily getting acupuncture from me and taking meds alongside.
That's how the Nine Yin Severed Meridians worked.
Without extreme yang energy to suppress the yin in one go, any treatment was just a band-aid.
I could open her frequently blocked channels and feed her hot herbs to maintain her health to a degree.
But until now, no fundamental cure.
"How's your condition this month? The rainy season must've been rough with all that humidity."
"Haha, yeah. Now that it's passed, it's getting chilly, and the wind's picking up. Tougher than the heat, for sure."
So we'd have these monthly check-ins to prescribe the best meds.
"Let me take your pulse."
Now I had a solid treatment pill—time to try it.
"...Ah."
"What's wrong? Feeling off?"
I laid the groundwork to get her to take the core smoothly.
"Yeah, your pulse is pretty unstable."
"What do we do? Uh, more dosage solve it?"
Sorry for worrying you.
Just bear with it a bit.
Of course, her pulse wasn't much different from usual, but this was the best way to slip in the new pill naturally.
"We need special measures. Let's try a different treatment today. Take the pill, get some chuna, then head home early and rest."
"Huh? Ah... if you say so, Director."
Seol Yuhee's eyes wavered—she'd been flawless in attendance since joining.
No early leaves, no tardies, not even a single vacation day.
Even Jin Minjeong, Gong Nari, and Seo Inae occasionally skipped paid leave.
But Seol Yuhee never missed once.
She must still be traumatized from all the absences before her health improved.
But today was unavoidable.
She needed rest to fully absorb the energy.
"Here, take this first."
Seol Yuhee took the pill without suspicion.
About the size of a circle made by thumb and index finger.
Bigger than average pills, but not suspicious.
"Gasp, did you make this specially for me? Sorry to trouble you...!"
She chewed it as she spoke.
"Drink some water and swallow it all. Soon you'll feel a warm energy spreading."
"Ooh."
Herbal meds don't usually bring heat right away, but since it was me saying it, she didn't question.
Guess some herbs do that.
"Mm, ungh."
"You okay? Heat rising to your head?"
"Ugh...!"
"Lie down quick!"
Less than a minute after swallowing the Snake Core Pill, the reaction hit.
She couldn't respond, but her qi twisted, changing the air in the room.
Even with generous musk to disperse the head-rushing yang, it wasn't enough.
"It's fi...".
"Hurry!"
But it was fine.
This was why I fed her the core right in front of me.
I practically dragged her to the chuna bed and had her lie prone.
Then activated Auto COX—using the bed's flexion to automatically bend and stretch the lumbar.
Whiiing-. Whiiing-.
The bed's lower half started moving up and down.
Of course, this was just procedural. Not treating a disc.
I lightly loosened her trapezius to get things going.
"Ah, Director. Sorry."
"No talking. Close your eyes. Breathe like during acupuncture—draw in the energy, let it out."
"...".
"You're doing great. Just listen, no answers. Spread the pill's energy through your body—relax, no worries. Sleep if you're drowsy."
"Still, ah...".
"Shh."
Her expression said how can I sleep?
I covered her mouth and did standard Rolfing on her back—pressing fascia to realign and restore function.
Then released the pre-prepared sleep incense.
I'd learned nothing of poisons from my master, but glimpsed sleep incense recipes over his shoulder.
Seol Yuhee soon fell asleep.
I stopped the COX and flipped her over.
Tak! Tak! Tak! Tak! Tak!
I tapped acupoints along the Conception Vessel and Governing Vessel, infusing qi.
First, naturally, Baihui.
The excess yang flooding her head—the part Seol Yuhee couldn't handle—vented out through Baihui as toxin, while the purified energy followed my guiding downward.
Yintang, Tiantu, Danzhong, Zhongwan, and finally... the Sea of Qi, Qihai.
There, in her dantian, it began mingling with the massive yin qi that had tormented her all this time.