Chapter 110
Chapter 110
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 110
Chapter Title: Guangdong Province
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Wandering aimlessly through Guangdong while the plague raged was out of the question. Dang Mujin and his group stayed in Qingyuan City, listening closely to what people had to say.
Most folks in Qingyuan knew nothing about the fake Strange Physician, but every now and then, someone claimed to have met him.
"Strange Physician? Yeah, I've met him. My foot wound was infected, and my whole leg was throbbing. He treated it for me."
"What kind of treatment?"
"Let me think... He gave me some dried herbs, washed some seaweed with well water, and stuck it on my foot and the swollen red skin. Oh, and he told me to eat ginger-heavy dishes."
"Did he give you any decoctions or ointments?"
"Decoctions? Nah, nothing like that."
"...Did it work?"
"Yeah, pretty well. By the next evening, it was better. Gone in less than three days."
Dang Mujin's left eyebrow arched skeptically.
It was a relief that it had some effect, but that wasn't proper physician work.
Just handing over dried herbs like that, and slapping on seaweed—a bizarre method.
Of course, not everyone who met the fake Strange Physician saw results.
"Yeah, I met him too. Ugly-looking bastard. I had high hopes since he was supposed to be some famous doctor, but no real effect."
"Hmm."
"But it wasn't all bad."
"You said it had no effect."
"When I complained, he refunded me without a fuss. For a quack, that's decent."
They met several more people who knew of the fake Strange Physician. Half said it helped a little; the other half said it didn't.
He clearly wasn't all that skilled.
Then, one middle-aged man erupted in fury at the mere mention of the name.
"What? You know the Strange Physician?"
"No, not personally. I'm looking for him on business."
"Too bad. If I catch that son of a bitch, I'll cleave his head with a sickle."
"What happened?"
The man spat it out through gritted teeth.
"He stole the nacre-inlaid copper mirror I gave my eldest daughter and sold it!"
Surprisingly, it had nothing to do with treatment. Dang Mujin asked for details.
"Could you tell me more?"
"When my daughter married into a village over the hills, I splurged on a copper mirror for her. I'd been worried sick hearing about the plague there, and then recently I spotted that mirror. I asked the peddler where he got it, and he said from some guy called the Strange Physician."
"Wasn't it just something similar?"
"You think nacre-inlaid mirrors are common? Besides, I picked it out myself. No mistaking it."
"I see."
"Anyway, that bastard. If I run into him..."
The man piled on curses, then added as if it just occurred to him.
"Definitely no mistake, though. Others have had the same thing happen. Go ask those folks over there."
Dang Mujin's group approached the people the man pointed out and heard much the same story.
Items given to others, familiar neighbor goods, or things left behind in the chaos—all traced back through various channels to the Strange Physician. Everyone was furious.
"He pretends to be a doctor, but he's just a thief. Sneaks into empty houses or the homes of the dead and hawks the loot. Hope he catches the plague or gets run through and drops dead, but scum like that always have nine lives."
Dang Mujin went back to those who'd met the Strange Physician and asked where they'd seen him. Most sightings were near Dongguan, a few days south.
Namgung Myeong asked Dang Mujin.
"Head to Dongguan?"
"Have to."
"What about the plague?"
Martial artists rarely fell ill. Namgung Myeong far surpassed average, and Dang Mujin had solid skill plus poison resistance—no fear there.
The issue was Dan Seoryeong. She knew only basic internal arts and lightness skill—barely healthier than a commoner.
Catching Dang Mujin's concern, Dan Seoryeong jumped in.
"I'll be fine. Never been sickly as a kid."
"No guarantee it'll stay that way."
"So, you're leaving me behind? At least pretend to mull it over."
Dan Seoryeong wasn't one to push pride over reason. If the logic held, she'd follow without complaint.
That made Dang Mujin think colder still.
Plagues spread in many ways: person-to-person, tainted standing water like wells or ponds, or via wild beasts.
But locals said solitary herbalists and hunters stayed healthy.
Multiple villages with separate wells all got hit, pointing to person-to-person spread.
'Should be manageable.'
Even if trouble hit, Dang Mujin could expel minor evil qi. He wanted to stick with Dan Seoryeong anyway.
He laid down the law.
"We move together for now. But no doing anything I say not to, and speak up at the first sign of feeling off. Got it?"
Dan Seoryeong nodded eagerly.
*
The three headed south. After a day, low-level officials blocked a side path.
"What are you lot?"
"Looking for someone."
"Don't care why. Planning to pass through?"
"Yes."
"You can enter, but no leaving. Even if you're plague-free and beg, no dice. Clear?"
"Crystal."
Dang Mujin's group ignored it entirely.
Officials couldn't seal all of vast Guangdong, and warriors like Dang Mujin or Namgung Myeong could slip past unseen easily.
The officials knew it too—their tone rang perfunctory.
The group pressed south. Fewer people, but the vibe stayed much the same.
Farmers dotted the landscape, as if none had fled home.
In spring or summer, maybe—but now autumn fields bowed heavy with yellowed rice ears.
No farmer leaves then; they'd die before abandoning the harvest.
Their faces looked normal too. Just puzzled at drifters abroad this season. No sick in sight.
But three days further south, the mood shifted.
Yellow rice stood untended; an eerie hush blanketed the villages.
Namgung Myeong checked one nearby, scowled, and returned.
"Can't go in."
"Why?"
"No living. Corpses inside, stench everywhere. Heavy evil qi."
Yet none outside. Confirmed: spreads only person-to-person.
They passed other villages. Same story.
Too far gone to help—only the dying and dead.
Late afternoon, sun still up, the group camped away from a village.
"Village right there, but roughing it? Feels off."
"Better than bedding down with corpses."
Bandits passed now and then, obvious from their look. Chaos made them bold—no hiding.
Yet they eyed Dang Mujin's group like stray dogs and moved on.
"Those guys don't look like fighting."
"Why not? Bandits always sniff around campfires, right?"
"Plenty of empty houses and ghost towns to loot easy. Why tangle with the living? See? Half unarmed."
"True."
Several bandit packs wandered by.
Namgung Myeong and Dan Seoryeong soon ignored them, but Dang Mujin scrutinized each.
'Fake Strange Physician steals from dead villages and sells. Teaming with bandits fits.'
As sunset stretched shadows, a small bandit crew caught his eye.
Barely seven men, one lugging a big pack.
Unusual for bandits, but what gripped Dang Mujin was the limp. Unmistakably awkward gait.
The North Capital Guard's words surfaced.
'Face badly scarred from smallpox, grim mug, poor color. Leg seemed to limp a bit... Explains the Strange Physician moniker.'
Too far for face details, but limping bandits were rare.
Groups shunned them; they hid identities and settled in villages if crippled.
Dang Mujin shot up. Dan Seoryeong asked.
"Where to?"
"That bandit crew has a limper. Could be the fake Strange Physician."
Namgung Myeong stayed seated but tensed.
"Dang Mujin. Be careful."
"Why?"
"Why? You're first-rate. Prime target."
"...Bullshit. Thought you spotted trouble."
"If not first-rate, what's the issue?"
"Fuck off."
Dang Mujin flashed a fist at Namgung Myeong, then strode toward the bandits.
Sunset backlit him, shadow long; they spotted him from afar.
As he neared, they drew weapons tensely. One shouted from distance.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Got questions."
Dang Mujin closed slowly, eyeing the limper's face. The twisted scar matched the North Capital Guard's tale.
Fine lightweight clothes—not bandit rags. A fancy sword at his waist resembled the old Strange Physician's. Even the graying sideburns mimicked.
He'd copied the standout features.
But otherwise, night and day: mean, nasty face; shorter build; slight hunch.
"Don't come closer. Talk from there."
"Got it. You there—with the big pack. You a physician? You look just like this famous doctor I heard about..."
A flicker of ease crossed their faces.
"Yeah! This is the world-renowned peak master and genius physician, Elder Yi Chung the Strange Physician."
Dang Mujin grinned ferociously and launched at them.
Arrow-swift, rock-steady steps.
He plunged into their midst. They swung wildly on reflex, but such clumsy strikes never touched him.
Dang Mujin seized the fake Yi Chung's nape with his right hand and slammed his face into the dirt.
Rage blazed in Dang Mujin's eyes.
"Say it again. Who the fuck are you?"