The Same Road
The human body is threaded with qi, and the meridians are the channels through which that qi flows. If qi is water, the meridians are its waterways — and when a waterway blocks, the water pools. In the early stages of Nine Yin Severed Meridians, the trapped energy can even quicken the mind or sharpen the senses, but pooled water always rots in the end. The true qi stagnating inside Jeong So-ryong was already turning to poison within his own body.
"Nine Yin Severed Meridians."
"H-how did you know?"
"No wonder his presence felt odd for his age. Let me settle the seizure first."
"P-please, I'm begging you!"
Vwoooong!
Jin Cheong-un drove his qi inward, shaving a thin layer from the wall of turbid energy. Shaaaa... A small crack opened in the meridian, and like a thread of water seeping through, the stagnant energy began at last to flow.
"Whew."
Jin Cheong-un slipped his hand away and clicked his lips shut. The taste of blood crept up his throat. My body isn't what it used to be, and yet my hand moved before I even knew it.
Just then, Jeong So-so, who had been fidgeting at his side, finally lost her battle with restraint. "Is he going to be all right?"
"For now."
"Thank you. Thank you so much."
Jeong So-so bowed again and again, the rims of her eyes red.
"It's only a stopgap. No need to thank me like that."
"I'm sorry?"
"It's progressed too far. If this goes on, then..."
Her heart seemed to plummet. That can't be true! She wanted so badly to deny it, but she couldn't bring herself to speak. A condition with no road back. Seizures that came faster and faster. How could she not have known? She had known. Known, and looked away.
"How far along is it?" Her voice shook. "Is it... at the point where I need to prepare myself?"
"No, it's nothing like that."
"Some part of me knew all along. So please, just be honest with me... I'm sorry — what?"
Jin Cheong-un replied with complete indifference. "It's an exceptionally rare illness, but there is a treatment. What's all this about steeling yourself?"
Confusion flooded her face. So what he meant was... our So-ryong's illness can be cured?
She cried out in a scramble. "Please! I'm begging you — cure So-ryong's illness!"
"Hm? Me?"
"I'll repay this debt no matter what it takes. Please!"
"Ah, well, I only know the method. It needs time in more ways than one, and there's a great deal to prepare..."
"Are you saying you can't?"
"No, that's not it, but..."
Jin Cheong-un slipped his gaze away, looking distinctly uncomfortable. Does it have to be me? Honestly, his body was still a wreck and his chores piled mountain-high; going through all that grief for a kid he'd met that very day felt like a bit much. Right. I'll refer them to someone I know. He squeezed his eyes shut. A pity, but charity began at home. And yet...
"Haa... haa..."
The sight of Jeong So-ryong still rasping for breath kept pricking at his eyes. Jin Cheong-un sighed. ...Still. The kid is sick. That's right — the kid was sick. Even if it cost him some sweat, taking it slow would be no problem.
But at that moment, Jeong So-so — who had taken his sigh to mean something rather different — blurted out in haste, "I'm begging you like this! Anything — if it's truly within my power, I'll do anything you ask!"
Jin Cheong-un paused. "Anything?"
"Anything!"
Jeong So-so's eyes brimmed with tears. It was as though a halo glowed behind Jin Cheong-un. Truly, one should never judge a person on first impressions. Perhaps he was a savior sent down by heaven, taking pity on the two of them...
"Oh, then how about selling me the deed to your land?"
...Or perhaps not.
"Wh-why is this conversation headed there...?"
"Well, you know. You did say anything."
Jeong So-so asked, eyes clouded with doubt. "You can cure him. Right?"
"Of course."
"...Fine. If it means curing my brother's illness... there's nothing I can't do."
"Just trust me."
Jin Cheong-un's whole bearing flipped in an instant, and he spoke with eyes gone utterly grave. "I so swear it. I will give my all to curing your brother's illness."
"Ah... yes..."
Jeong So-so answered lukewarmly at the abrupt about-face — then, belatedly, a cold jolt of fear struck her. Is this a swindle? Could this man truly cure the illness? Or had he simply tossed the words out? Can I really trust someone I met for the first time today? And yet no one, not once until now, had named the disease from so brief a glance, nor stilled a seizure in a single stroke — and in truth, her brother looked better at this moment than he had in years. Right. Worst case, if it's all lies, I simply won't sell. There happened to be the matter of the house anyway, so she could watch him up close and keep her doubts alive. It wasn't trust. She only wanted to believe. Because it had all been so... exhausting.
"I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused you today. I never dreamed you were a physician..." Jeong So-so bowed her head.
"Physician?"
"...?"
"I never said I was a physician."
Jeong So-so blinked. "You're... not?"
"I've seen plenty of patients in my day, but no, I'm no physician."
"If you're not a physician, then how exactly did you see patients?"
"Let's say I was on the side that made patients rather than cured them... Extremes do meet, so you could call it roughly the same trade. Hmm."
What kind of insane nonsense was that? Jeong So-so flared up for an instant, then barely managed to steady herself. F-fine. Let's just hear him out. Wasn't this a rare illness even physicians couldn't cure? Come to think of it, a few of them had once suggested inviting a master from the jianghu to try.
"Um... may I ask just one thing?"
"Ask anything you like."
"What would the treatment... involve?"
Jin Cheong-un answered as though it were nothing at all. "There are several methods, but one is the best and most certain of them all." And then, with a face full of confidence, he declared, "You learn martial arts."
"Martial... arts?"
"The thing is, I actually came to Yinghua Village to open a martial arts academy. Study the arts I teach, and the body's wastes are flushed out, the skin improves, and the mind grows sharper. Wonderful effects, really."
I've heard this pitch somewhere before. It was word for word the patter of the quacks who wandered from village to village hawking strange medicines.
"And, well, it feels strange to say it with my own mouth, but I was once a truly formidable master — the kind only those in the know knew about."
"..."
"You may or may not have heard of the Martial Alliance. I crossed blades with the Alliance Leader there. Shared his table. Did it all, really. The point is, I'm a man capable enough that you can trust me. That's the gist."
"..."
"Learning martial arts and curing the body, from a man like this. Two birds with one stone — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, shall we say. Chances like this don't come around often."
"..."
Silence stretched. Jeong So-so pressed her lips into a tight line and exhaled slowly. Then—
"Now, it's best to keep everything nice and certain, so shall we draw up a contract?"
"Um..."
"Come to think of it, you'd be student number one, wouldn't you? In that case, I'll make a special exception and waive the tuition... Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Y-you—!"
At his unrelenting patter her face flushed so red it seemed it might burst on the spot — and burst it did. "Why, you—! Con artist!!"
The next day.
Jin Cheong-un had taken to the street early in the morning, and now he glanced back over his shoulder. "Why do you keep following me?"
Jeong So-so flinched and smiled awkwardly. "I-I thought you might need directions..."
"..."
The previous night, after a calm conversation, the misunderstanding had been cleared up. Granted, it had taken a good two hours, and there had been a certain amount of commotion, but it had been, technically, a calm conversation. Honestly, she did feel a little wronged. Anyone would have taken him for a con artist. Still, he'd said nothing more after her apology — perhaps he was secretly the broad-minded type...
"Con artist?"
"..."
"I don't know what's so appealing about trailing after a con artist. What if you take a blow to the back of the head one of these days?"
Nope. He holds grudges.
"I said I was sorry..."
"I heard you. Now go see to your errands. You think I'd get lost in my own hometown?"
"You said yourself it's been ages since you returned! What if you do get lost? I feel terrible, so let me at least guide you! No — let me do it!!"
Jin Cheong-un turned his head away without a word of reply. He's only saying that, but he's gotten over it... right? Jeong So-so was quietly relieved. There had been a small misunderstanding, but no matter how she looked at him, he didn't seem like a bad man. He had risen before dawn that very morning to check on her brother, after all. Perhaps he really was someone she could trust.
"Ask me anything! There's nothing about Yinghua Village I don't know!"
"Really, now?"
"Of course!"
"Then is there anywhere around here that sells liquor?"
Jeong So-so faltered. "...The tavern over there should be open even at this hour, but why would you need—"
Before she could finish, Jin Cheong-un darted off and came back with two bottles in hand. Glug, glug, glug, glug.
"Kuuhh. Now that's the stuff."
"..."
"So this is what midday drinking tastes like. To think I never knew how good it was..."
She would put off deciding whether he was trustworthy a little longer.
The two walked on in silence for a while. Jeong So-so, gauging his mood, ventured carefully, "That said — I was surprised to hear you came to open a martial arts academy."
"Why?"
"The truth is... I used to attend one myself, when I was little. Later on, my family even ran it."
A wistful look settled over Jeong So-so's face. It was all from so young an age that the memories had gone hazy, yet even now, looking back on those days brought nothing but happiness.
"Back then?"
"When I was very small, all the students left. My father, who was the academy's instructor, stayed behind and kept it alive..." Jeong So-so's expression clouded at that point, then brightened again as she went on. "Anyway, it's closed for the time being. I just come by to clean it now and then."
"..."
"But someday, once the debts are all repaid and So-ryong's health recovers... I'll revive the academy myself." She clenched her fist. "Actually, it's not even officially closed right now. There simply aren't any students."
"Hm."
"What is it?"
"If there are no students, isn't that just... closed?"
"No, that's..." Jeong So-so's mouth opened and shut, words failing her.
Meanwhile, Jin Cheong-un's eyes had narrowed without his noticing. So she was the one keeping it running. He had wondered why only two children lived in that house; apparently there was a story behind it. "So that's why you trained the external arts, then?"
"You really did notice everything." Jeong So-so gave a wry smile. "I barely remember it... I was three? Four, maybe? I learned from the instructors who were at the academy before it went under. They all absolutely adored me, you know."
"Hmm."
At his indifferent expression, Jeong So-so asked carefully, "Why? What is it?"
"Your family's circumstances are bad enough, and yet at so young an age you're holding onto an academy for the sake of one fleeting memory. I wondered whether there was some other reason."
Jeong So-so answered without a moment's hesitation. "Because it's my school."
"..."
"Do I need another reason?"
For a moment, Jin Cheong-un found himself at a loss for words. Because it was her school. ...Right. That was reason enough.
"I still believe. That the ones who left will come back someday. And even if they don't, I'll raise it back up with my own hands, one way or another."
It was an unbending voice, far too upright for her years. But the bitterness soon returned to Jeong So-so's face. "It's a little laughable, isn't it? The family's falling to pieces, I hardly know any martial arts, and here I am promising to revive the academy." As she spoke, she turned to look at him — and stopped short.
On Jin Cheong-un's face was a gravity she had never once seen there.
"I'm in much the same position. Laughable, my foot."
"I'm sorry?"
"I came here vowing to raise a ruined academy of my own. You're better than I am. I threw all of that away and lived."
The words carried an inexplicable regret, and Jeong So-so fell silent. What kind of past does he have? And wait — so "opening an academy" meant reopening one, not founding a new one? Was this what they called kindred spirits, fellow sufferers finding each other? Suddenly he felt like someone she'd known for years — familiar, close.
Jeong So-so smiled sheepishly. "Now that I think of it, it's uncanny how much we have in common."
"Tell me about it."
From losing the house and the land, all the way to the academy — how could two people be this alike? Jin Cheong-un and Jeong So-so chuckled.
"..."
"..."
And then, almost in unison, both clamped their mouths shut. In that same instant, the two of them were thinking the identical thought. But... isn't this a little too similar, even for a coincidence?
A short while later, the two came to a halt before a fork in the road.
"This used to be a single road...?"
"See? Didn't I tell you you'd need a guide? Tell me roughly what you remember, and[req_a02ec3fa] [glm-5.3-flash] **Request exceeded 570s limit** - Your prompt took too long to process, likely due to a large context window or heavy reasoning required by the AI provider. How to fix: - **Send "continue"** to resume from where the model stopped (works for most timeouts). - **Start a new session/chat** to clear accumulated context and reset the timer. - Shorten your prompt or split it into smaller parts. - Avoid repeatedly retrying the exact same request to prevent continuous timeouts. **Billing:** - This request still counts as a request and is billed based on its input (minimum 1,000 prompt / 1,000 completion / 1,000 cached tokens). - Do not resend the same request — it will keep failing and keep consuming your quota. **Recommended tools:** - These responses are optimized for opencode, Claude Code, and Codex. - If you are using a non-standard client and keep hitting errors, switch to one of the supported tools above.