Chapter 91
Chapter 91
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Heart Ailment
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Returning to the Dang Clinic, I explained the situation, and Father took it in stride without much fuss.
But Dan Seolyeong was a different story.
"What? I have to wait again? What kind of help are you going off to give?"
Dan Seolyeong had quickly grasped what kind of person Ha Ryeong was. She even had a perfect comparison: the divine monk of Shaolin Temple.
She knew it was hard to refuse when someone with authority rivaling a divine monk asked Dang Mujin for help.
Still, understanding something rationally was one thing—emotional dissatisfaction was entirely another.
Dan Seolyeong had a fairly laid-back and straightforward personality, but she couldn't easily hide her feelings of disappointment.
"We already waited months after first coming to Chengdu, then over a month more after you got trapped underground at Emei Sect. And now again?"
"Uh... yeah, that's how it turned out."
"That's just...! No, fine. First, tell me the whole story. What exactly are you going for?"
"Probably something medical. She wants me to pick up where the old man left off."
Dan Seolyeong grew a bit cautious. She knew the strange physician was Dang Mujin's reverse scale.
"Who's sick?"
"Didn't hear that part. But it's not like she's asking me to tend to a few people with minor ailments. Either a lot of patients or someone with a serious condition. Or maybe both."
"Where?"
"Probably Zhongjing."
Dan Seolyeong fell silent for a long stretch. She seemed to be gauging how long it would take for Dang Mujin to finish and return.
Dang Mujin made a casual suggestion.
"It won't wrap up in a day or two, so how about heading to Dokang Stream to check out the waterwheels?"
When they left Mount Song, Dan Seolyeong had said she wanted to see the waterwheels at Dokang Stream if they came to Sichuan.
And as far as Dang Mujin knew, she still hadn't gone.
Instead of nodding, Dan Seolyeong glared at him.
"You think I really came all the way to Sichuan just to see some waterwheels? I only came because it's your hometown!"
At her blunt words, Father, who had been listening from the side, smiled in satisfaction, while Namgung Myeong let out a soft whistle.
But Dang Mujin and Dan Seolyeong pressed on with their conversation, unperturbed.
"I figured as much... but you must still be interested in the waterwheels."
"I am interested. Just not thinking of going right now."
"Then what do you plan to do?"
"I'll go with you to Zhongjing."
As long as they could be together, Dan Seolyeong didn't care if it was Chengdu or Zhongjing.
Dang Mujin pondered for a moment but soon nodded. He wanted to be with her just as much.
"Sounds good."
But opposition came immediately from right beside them. It was Namgung Myeong.
"No. You shouldn't come along this time."
Dan Seolyeong shot back with a pout.
"Why not?"
"Dang Mujin's condition still isn't stable. Even if I'm managing him, I can't watch him every single second. What if something happens in that brief gap?"
Those words sent a surge of anxiety through Dang Mujin.
What if he lost control for a moment and swung his sword at Dan Seolyeong? He didn't even want to imagine it.
But Dan Seolyeong didn't back down easily.
"That'll be the case forever, won't it? Does that mean I have to stay away from Mujin my whole life?"
"No. Once this job is done and we get back, his condition might improve."
"You have some method?"
"Yes."
As Dan Seolyeong hesitated, unable to decide easily, Father, who had been listening, chimed in.
"Seolyeong, it's not that you're uncomfortable here, right?"
Father didn't mind Dang Mujin traveling elsewhere much, but Dan Seolyeong still seemed worried.
In the end, Dan Seolyeong decided to stay in Chengdu.
*
Dang Mujin and Namgung Myeong headed straight for Zhongjing.
It had only been a few months since wandering the Central Plains and returning to Sichuan, but it felt like ages since they'd left the province.
They arrived in Zhongjing a bit early and made straight for the Ascension Pavilion without hesitation.
The pavilion master, unlike before, greeted Dang Mujin with a tense expression.
"It's been a while. You look much better. What brings you here...?"
"Please contact Elder Ha."
Dang Mujin and Namgung Myeong headed to a private room on the third floor.
With Ha Ryeong involved, the pavilion master was sure to prepare the best spot—no need to hold back.
They ate at the Ascension Pavilion while waiting for Ha Ryeong, and she appeared just as they finished their meal.
She hadn't brought along the Red-Faced Old Beggar or the Zhang Merchant Guild Leader this time.
"You came sooner than expected. I thought it'd take a few more days."
"If it's something that has to be done anyway, better to wrap it up quick. So, what is it you need me for?"
"Take care of some patients."
Exactly as anticipated. Dang Mujin nodded.
"Got it. Where do I go?"
The last time they'd met in Zhongjing, Ha Ryeong had said she led the Lower Alley Sect in caring for the poor.
So the patients she wanted tended were most likely Lower Alley Sect members in Zhongjing. A single room or inn where they could gather people would suffice.
But Ha Ryeong said something unexpected.
"Go to Mount Laojun."
"Pardon?"
"Head northeast from here, cross into Hubei Province, and you'll find Mount Laojun."
Namgung Myeong seemed to be hearing the name for the first time, but Dang Mujin knew it. He was just surprised by the unexpected location.
Among physicians and herb gatherers, Mount Laojun was famous.
Physicians revered Shennong, the Flame Emperor among the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, as the greatest. Legend held that he had tasted every herb and poison in the world, cataloging their effects.
Mount Laojun was said to be where the Flame Emperor Shennong had resided and practiced medicine.
That's why it was renowned for its abundance of high-quality herbs.
While common wild aralia might fetch thirty coppers a bundle elsewhere, the same from Mount Laojun could easily bring eighty.
One might think herb gatherers would pass off common herbs as Mount Laojun stock, but such cheats were rare. The appearance was the same, but the potency differed vastly.
Any physician fooled by that wasn't fit to practice.
Yet even knowing the herbs were superior, gatherers avoided Mount Laojun.
Its treacherous terrain and poor soil made it unfit for farming, with no decent villages nearby.
Even if one trekked days to reach it, harvesting meant clinging to precarious cliffs.
And to sell, you'd hike back out three or five days with a heavy load. Better to gather common herbs from nearby mountains for more profit.
"People to treat on Mount Laojun...? I mean, are there even people living there?"
"Yes. It's sparsely populated, but not uninhabited. There's a hidden village unknown to the outside. Go there and treat the people."
"I figured it'd be patients in Zhongjing."
"Zhongjing isn't some small town. Plenty of patients, but just as many physicians. Mount Laojun's different. Without sending someone like this, no healer's foot ever touches it."
Rewarding work, but one question lingered.
"Why Mount Laojun specifically? Plenty of villages need physicians elsewhere."
"No need to know that far. And I have a request."
"What is it?"
"Don't mention my name there."
"Then what do I say? Sent by the Red-Faced Old Beggar?"
Ha Ryeong shook her head.
"No, that's even worse. Best not to say anyone sent you. Just claim you were passing by and stopped in. If you must name-drop, Yi Chung's fine."
"Understood."
"I'll note the exact location and have it delivered. Rest a day or two, then go. Plenty of travel funds too—no worries there."
Ha Ryeong stood, stared intently at Dang Mujin, then gave a faint smile.
She looked not like a fiery martial arts expert, but just an ordinary girl.
*
Dang Mujin toured Zhongjing's herb shops, stocking up on top-quality medicinals.
Mount Laojun herbs were great, but he couldn't rely solely on them for treatment. Processing them on-site would take too much time anyway.
On the morning of the third day in Zhongjing, Dang Mujin and Namgung Myeong set off for Mount Laojun. No urgency, so their pace was unhurried.
Three days into the journey, they reached a fairly large village. At least a thousand residents, by the look.
But the people's expressions were grim. Strange place.
They checked into an inn, dropped their gear, and lounged about.
Amid idle chatter, Namgung Myeong brought up Dang Mujin's heart demon.
"Even physicians don't know how to cure heart demons, right?"
"Right. Thanks to the old man, I can handle martial artists' conditions decently, but he never taught me about heart demons."
"I see."
Namgung Myeong pondered long, then shared his own story.
"Back at Emei Sect, when they explained heart demons, it rang a bell."
"What?"
"Sichuan's a borderland, so it rarely gets dragged into wars, right? Whether national conflicts or the Orthodox-Demonic Great War or Orthodox-Demonic clashes."
Most Sichuan folk might bristle inwardly at that. They hated being called backwater hicks or outsiders.
But Dang Mujin nodded calmly. Traveling the Central Plains had broadened his view.
Besides, he figured peaceful villagers beat war-torn city dwellers any day.
"Probably."
"But where I grew up—in the Huadong or Huazhong regions—it's different. Wars, rebellions, troubles always snag those areas."
Namgung Myeong gathered his thoughts and explained slowly.
"Such events force many to wield blades, and sure enough, some show symptoms like yours. Our family elders called it heart ailment. I've had it myself."
Dang Mujin stared at Namgung Myeong.
As far as he knew, the most recent war wasn't national but the Orthodox-Demonic Great War.
Over fifteen years ago. Dang Mujin and Namgung Myeong had been maybe five or six.
"You're not saying you got caught in the Great War at five, right?"
"Of course not. Heart ailment doesn't require war. I got mine around seven."
Namgung Myeong recounted from memory.
"That's when I started sword training. Practicing with toy blades, watching clan warriors spar in my spare time. Fun stuff. One day, a warrior's blade snapped mid-spar and flew my way. I still remember that moment."
He lifted the hair above his left ear. A faint, long scar.
"The fragment flew straight for my eye. If my uncle hadn't saved me, I'd have lost it young. Or more—inner-force-charged shard to the head? I'd have died nine times out of ten."
Dang Mujin asked.
"So what happened?"
"Didn't die, but heart ailment hit. Loved playing with swords before, but suddenly just looking made me dizzy, stomach churning. Passed out watching spars once."
"Not anymore, though."
"I'm cured."
"How? What medicine?"
"Heart ailment isn't treated with drugs. It's actions and experience."
Dang Mujin eyed him with keen interest.
To a physician who treated illness with medicine, this was brand new.
"Actions and experience? How?"
"Two stages. First cures half; second cures half of what's left."
"Not everyone fully recovers, huh."
"Yeah. If that's the case, count it lucky. Some worsen after trying treatment."
"Hmm."
Like虚勞病. Same symptoms, same meds—some recover, some don't. Some even aggravate.
Namgung Myeong stood, arms crossed, speaking gravely.
"I held off treating your heart demon directly because I worried it'd worsen things."
"And now?"
"Explaining so you can choose."
Nod here, and Namgung Myeong would start immediately.
But Dang Mujin felt not fear, but curiosity.
Physicians treat others often, get treated rarely. Especially odd ailments.
Plus, at his young age, he brimmed with confidence.
"No issue. Tell me how it works."
"Could go wrong. Sure?"
"Worst case, hole up underground at Emei and train Abstinence Fist or whatever. Father's got all the medical texts anyway—no lineage lost."
"...Start now?"
"Yeah."
Deeming his resolve firm, Namgung Myeong rummaged his bundle.
For some reason, it held a mask and night clothes.
"My father made heart-ailment me watch spars. All day."
Donning night clothes and mask, Namgung Myeong faced Dang Mujin.
"First stage of heart ailment treatment: acclimation."
Dang Mujin eyed him dubiously.
Then, unwittingly, he unleashed a killing-intent-filled thrust.