004
He should have prepared slowly, but in his haste, emptying his entire fortune was the root of the problem.
How he was supposed to live from now on, he had no idea.
"Huu......."
"Then let's search for just thirty more minutes."
"Really?"
"Seeing how desperately you are searching, surely there must be some reason, mustn't there?"
"That's correct. Cheonbukseon is a priceless poisonous herb, but it is something important to me."
"Understood. We shall look, then."
"Thank you!"
Hajin decided to place his hopes on this final thirty minutes.
***
Thirty minutes.
A span that could be considered long or short depending on one's perspective.
Wasting time had been Hajin's daily life until now, so why did it flow by so quickly today? The worker searched together with him for another thirty minutes, but in the end, could not find it.
"That's unfortunate."
"It can't be helped."
Hajin spoke calmly, but his insides felt as if they were being torn apart. If he had thought he wouldn't find Cheonbukseon, he would never have invested 100,000 won.
"I'll head down, then."
"...Yes."
Hajin went down, carried on the worker's back as they pushed through the bushes.
***
"Haa......."
All that came out was a sigh.
He once again felt that making a living in this world was no easy feat.
He decided to give up for today; it seemed he would have to set his sights on next month no matter what.
"Hm?"
It was right when he was about to give up. A long, stretched-out black flower caught Hajin's eye.
"Th-there it is!"
"Excuse me?"
"There it is! What I was looking for is there!"
The long, stretched-out black flower was emitting considerable toxicity from its very existence alone.
The worker gazed at it with an expression of wonder as well.
"To think such a medicinal herb existed in this world."
"It's a flower that blooms where animals have died. We just need to dig up the root and take it."
The worker dug up the root for him, and Hajin carefully grasped it in his hand. Of course, because the toxicity was strong, he couldn't simply hold it, and instead wrapped it in white cloth before grasping it.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Have you now accomplished your goal?"
"I have accomplished it."
"That's a relief, then. I too felt uneasy about simply taking the 100,000 won."
Hajin returned home and began the work of drying the herb. It had to be dried in the shade for over a week for its medicinal effects to be fully manifested.
3. Sorimsohwandan
Hajin barely suppressed his trembling heart.
Before his eyes were all the poisonous herbs needed for the Sorimsohwandan.
All ingredients of the Sorimsohwandan consisted of poisonous herbs. When mixed together and the poison was neutralized, they transformed into a peerless miracle medicine under heaven.
However, the manufacturing was the problem from here on. If he manufactured it here as-is, the toxicity could harm the people in the vicinity. The same held true for Hajin himself.
Hajin thought about the manufacturing method.
To manufacture the Sorimsohwandan, one needed internal energy of at least one gapja. Only then could one endure the toxicity.
Though it was called one gapja, the established theory was that one needed at least two gapja.
Currently, Hajin's body had no internal energy whatsoever. Forget one gapja, he didn't even have one year's worth of internal energy. On top of that, the only body part he could use was his right hand. Manufacturing the Sorimsohwandan in such a state was impossible.
"Is there no way?"
He had acquired the ingredients, but there was no way to manufacture them. If he were to manufacture it like this, he would probably die midway from lack of breath.
"Huu......."
Hajin let out a sigh. Even if he had gathered the materials, they were useless if he couldn't fuse them.
While lost in thought, a knocking sound was heard.
Knock, knock.
"Come in."
"It's me."
"Welcome, Ms. Inhye."
"Let's start today energetically too."
"Yes......."
Hajin was feeling an even greater sense of shame than usual today.
Since he couldn't even relieve himself alone, the series of processes of having his diaper changed and his body wiped were unbearably embarrassing.
A sensation as if bugs were crawling all over his body passed, and those processes finally ended.
A smell was spreading. At that moment, Hajin suddenly thought of a good plan.
This place was not the martial world. It was a world of advanced civilization where science and technology had developed to a high degree.
There was no need to hold one's breath in order to neutralize the poison. He thought that he could sufficiently manufacture it without holding one's breath. That was precisely the gas mask.
But he had no money to acquire one. He had exhausted all the remaining balance in his bank account while hiring the worker.
"Ms. Inhye."
"Yes?"
"Please pass me that box over there."
"The box?"
Hajin nodded.
Inside was a single gold ring. It was the only item Hajin hadn't sold yet. Because it was a keepsake left by his parents.
But he needed money to buy a gas mask.
"I'm sorry, but could you take me to a pawn shop?"
"A pawn shop?"
"Please."
"Hm....... I don't know what this is about, but... alright."
Hajin headed to the pawn shop with her.
***
At a pawn shop in Wando, Hajin was able to borrow 100,000 won.
Now he had to acquire a gas mask. But it wasn't enough to buy two high-performance gas masks. One gas mask cost in the range of 100,000 to 200,000 won.
After looking into methods in various ways, Hajin was able to rent two gas masks.
Lee Inhye, who had been watching this process, had an expression that showed she couldn't understand.
"What on earth do you need the gas masks for?"
"I......."
"Why are you doing this?"
"Ms. Inhye, this is a request I am making staking my entire life. Please help me!"
"Wh-what is it?"
"So......."
Hajin told her a modified version of the story about the Sorimsohwandan.
He had to manufacture a medicine that might perhaps enable Hajin to stand up, and in the process, considerable toxins would be discharged. Because of that, he had to work while wearing gas masks, and he wanted Lee Inhye to help him with that.
Having heard all of Hajin's story, Lee Inhye fell into thought.
"As long as the respiratory system is protected, other places will be fine. There will be no abnormalities whatsoever, so please help me."
If Hajin had been able to stand, he would have knelt here if need be. But since he couldn't do that now, he had no choice but to earnestly entreat her.
After a considerable amount of time had passed, she opened her mouth.
"I'll help you."
"Thank you!"
Hajin was finally able to manufacture the Sorimsohwandan.
***
In the deep mountains where human presence was rare.
Hajin decided to manufacture the Sorimsohwandan here.
Hajin put on the gas mask. Of course, Inhye wore one too.
Chiiiiik!
An enormous amount of toxins was discharged during the process of melting and synthesizing the herbs.
It was precisely for this reason that over two gapja of internal energy were needed. One had to avoid breathing as much as possible. After taking one breath, one had to breathe minimally and be able to drive out the incoming poison with internal energy.
But with a gas mask, internal energy was unnecessary.
The gas masks Hajin and Inhye were currently wearing were NBC-grade. They had the function of completely blocking toxic gas. As long as they didn't take them off, there was no chance of dying from poisoning.
As the herbs melted and fused, they began to squirm as if they were living creatures. They absorbed the surrounding energy and repeatedly compressed and refined themselves.
When viewed one by one, the poisonous herbs were merely tools for killing, but gathered together and brought into harmony, they created a peerless miracle medicine under heaven.
That poisonous herbs could become medicine depending on their use was the fundamental principle of herbology.
"It's done!"
Finally, Hajin completed the Sorimsohwandan.
It was the result of countless hours and effort.
"Can we take them off now?"
"If possible, let's take them off after going down. Because you never know with these things."
"Alright."
Hajin, who had suffered accidents twice, knew well that safety came first no matter what.
***
Swish!
Hajin was looking down at the sea.
If he opened the terrace, the sea was right there; if there was one part of this house that Hajin liked, it was precisely this.
Would the paralysis really be released if he consumed the Sorimsohwandan? His spine was broken, and modern medicine had given up on him, so he couldn't be certain of success.
But Hajin believed not in modern medicine, but in the medicine he himself had established.
He had combined traditional Chinese medicine and surgical medicine to give birth to a new medicine, and because of that, he had been bestowed with the title of the legendary divine physician.
Of course, thinking about it now, the theories Hajin had established in his previous life probably corresponded to the foundations of modern medicine, or perhaps even more fundamental medical techniques.
He had mastered herbology and was well-versed in traditional Chinese medicine handling acupuncture, moxibustion, and the eight extraordinary meridians, combining it with surgical medicine. He believed that in some aspects, it probably surpassed modern medicine.
"Is it really possible?"
"It will be possible."
"What more can I do to help?"
"No one must enter this room. You must not touch me either. If you do, I will lose my life."
"Hm....... Somehow, it doesn't feel like a trustworthy method."
"It is a method my father taught me."
"If that's the case."
Hajin was only able to persuade her by bringing up his deceased father. Indeed, if he said there was something called the Sorimsohwandan in the martial world and that he would fix his spine using internal energy cultivation methods, the probability of being locked up in a mental hospital immediately was high.
He sat in place and forced himself into the lotus position. Of course, without her help and a structural aid, assuming the lotus position would have been impossible.
And he swallowed the Sorimsohwandan in one gulp.
Kurrrrrrrrrrung!!
The moment he consumed the Sorimsohwandan, an enormous shock shook his body.
Like during its manufacture, the Sorimsohwandan emitted energy and moved on its own. It was like a living dragon sprinting at full power throughout his entire body, but before long, it was blocked by a wall.
Kugugugugung!
It was a meridian completely blocked by turbid energy accumulated until now.
Rather than opening other meridians, Hajin went all-out to open the meridians near his spine.
Kung!
"Keok!"
The acupoints that made him vomit blood were none other than Biryu-hyeol and Wiyu-hyeol. They were acupoints where his spine was broken, but now, the problem no longer lay with the bones. When his spine broke then, the bundles of nerves were severed, leading to his current situation.
If the meridians were reconnected, the nerves would naturally reconnect as well. This was precisely the best scenario Hajin was envisioning.
However, realizing that opening meridians without operating internal energy cultivation methods was a difficult task, Hajin immediately resorted to other means.
He decided to create a dantian first.
Kurrrrrrung!
He decided to use the formulas of the Cheonma Samgyeong.
He had wanted to use orthodox martial arts if possible, but in a situation like now, there was no path other than unorthodox martial arts that could be learned through accelerated means.
Hajin's heart was set on standing up, even if it meant doing so.
The Cheonma Samgyeong was a reversed cultivation martial art. Because it was a martial art that accumulated massive internal energy by circulating internal ki backwards, one had no choice but to endure enormous pain in the beginning.
Kugugugugung!
"Keok!"
He vomited blood once more.
Along with a sensation as if his dantian were tearing, he repeated compression and refinement.
The pure energy of the Sorimsohwandan received the reversed energy and turned turbid, clumping and accumulating in his dantian.
Before long, a small dantian was created.
Hajin sent the remaining energy to the Biryu-hyeol and Wiyu-hyeol.
Kwang!!
Hajin's body swayed.
As expected, connecting a meridian that hadn't been used for a long time—and one that had been completely severed, at that—was no easy task.
Kkwadeudeudeuk!
Hajin clenched his teeth.
'I will do it!'
He couldn't live like this for the rest of his life.
He tried to pierce through two acupoints at once. Dying one way or another was the same anyway.
With the thought that dying was better than living his whole life completely paralyzed, he challenged again.
Kwagwagwagwagwang!!
Peo-eok!
"Keulok!"
Hajin vomited an enormous amount of blood.
At the same time, a refreshing sensation was felt near his spine.
Thud! Thudududuk!!
The severed nerves were connected.
But it didn't seem perfect yet; only about half the nerves were attached, and the meridians between them were also connected thinly.
Thud!
Hajin could endure no longer and collapsed.