Doctor’s Rebirth

Chapter 103

Jin Cheon-hee instinctively realized that Tang Ah was an exceptionally strong opponent.

He also knew that this would be a battle on a completely different level from those he had faced so far.

The referee, Phantom Archer, announced:

“Tang Ah of the Sichuan Tang Clan! Weapons: iron whip and throwing knives. Jin Cheon-hee of the White Dragon Medical Pavilion, weapon: Ice Clarity Sword! Now, begin!”

The moment Phantom Archer finished speaking, Jin Cheon-hee used his internal energy.

The surroundings seemed to slow down, as if time itself had decelerated.

Profound Origin Divine Technique.

Thought acceleration.

The Profound Origin Divine Technique, which abnormally develops the brain, increases the speed of thought during combat.

It was thanks to this Profound Origin Divine Technique that Jin Cheon-hee was able to dodge the punches of so many wooden puppets.

‘I just need to somehow deal with what I can’t dodge even if I can see it.’

Of course, accelerated thought didn’t mean invincibility.

Among the attacks launched by the wooden puppets, there were cases that were difficult to respond to even when aware of them.

But if it wasn’t such a case, he could dodge most attacks.

‘This is how I easily won against the Trio Assassin Rats too.’

Although they prided themselves on being able to defeat a peak expert when combined, the fact was that Jin Cheon-hee, who excelled in reading moves, had the upper hand.

‘Throwing knives and a whip, huh. I’ve never experienced what kind of martial art this is. So, shall I start cautiously?’

Jin Cheon-hee lightly initiated the attack.

Taiji Immortal-Destruction Sword.

First form.

Cloud Roaming Finger!

Although it was clearly a thrust, the movement of the hand holding the sword was as soft as a cloud.

At a glance, it looked simple, but there were six hidden variations in the sword.

The moment it touches the opponent’s weapon, the sword form changes to one of these six variations to attack. It wasn’t just about variations. The speed was like an instant.

“Oh, impressive.”

Namgoong Woon, who was watching, exclaimed in admiration.

‘Let’s try this as a jab.’

The moment he thrust his sword, something shot out from Tang Ah’s hand, so fast that even Jin Cheon-hee, in his thought-accelerated state, could barely see it.

‘A snake…?’

It was the whip that had been coiled around her arm inside her clothes.

Clang!

He felt a heavy force.

At that moment, the whip tried to wrap around and tighten on the sword.

Sensing this, Jin Cheon-hee quickly changed his sword form and pulled it out.

“Tch! Usually, this ends things in one move.”

Tang Ah clicked her tongue.

Her whip swished, curling around her body.

Namgoong Woon said,

“Young Miss Tang must be disappointed. To think her first move was blocked by little brother Jin, who’s only been learning martial arts for 2 years.”

“What, 2 years?”

She glared at Jin Cheon-hee in surprise. Hearing this, Namgoong Yeon’s eyes widened too, seemingly shocked.

“That’s what I heard, but is it true? Little brother Jin, is it really just 2 years?”

Jin Cheon-hee didn’t answer.

Instead, he just broke out in a cold sweat.

‘It was just a brief clash, but my wrist is throbbing. So this is what it means to have learned martial arts since before learning to walk.’

He hadn’t expected to feel the power of a major clan so keenly.

‘And that whip. I’ve had no chance to face anything like it. Its unfamiliarity makes it that much stronger.’

Her claim of ending things in one move now felt real.

If it weren’t for the Profound Origin Divine Technique, Jin Cheon-hee would have found it impossible to respond.

She grinned.

“We may be known for throwing knives, but our clan’s other martial arts are no joke either. Today, my Black Flame Dragon, which I’ve unsealed, will be bathed in blood. This is going to be fun. Kukukuk!”

She covered one eye with her hand and laughed maniacally. Watching her, Namgoong Woon spoke with a pitying expression, muttering softly.

“Tang Ah. Why are you accumulating such karma as you grow up? You’ll end up like the other elders in the Tang family…”

“Khah, kuhahahaha!”

She will surely kick her blankets. She will definitely kick her blankets.

Occasionally, she would blame the Tang Clan’s martial arts and pull at her hair, battling the intermittent waves of childhood shame rising within her.

But that was a distant concern for Tang Ah.

Her adolescent brain was currently dominated by hormones and the Tang Clan’s unique internal energy.

Jin Cheon-hee remained calm watching this scene.

‘She doesn’t seem to have lost her mind to demonic arts, is this a side effect of the Tang Clan’s internal energy?’

He had unexpectedly accurately diagnosed Tang Ah.

‘On Earth, kids who want to stop going to pediatrics and switch to general surgery are about this age.’

Children with long-term illnesses continue to receive outpatient care in pediatrics.

When they’re young, they don’t think much of it, but as they grow older, there comes a time when they start feeling embarrassed waiting among little babies in the pediatric ward.

That time usually comes around Tang Ah’s age.

The turbulent teenage years.

That’s when they would forcibly drag their parents to general surgery, embarrassed to be among babies.

‘Come to think of it, there wasn’t a name like Tang Ah in the novel. Is this a childhood name or is she being called by an alias?’

There was a Tang Clan expert who used a whip that appeared in the story. But they were only mentioned by an alias, so it was hard to be sure if it was the same person.

It wasn’t an illustrated novel, and it’s nearly impossible to confirm if it’s the same person from just a few lines.

‘Let’s change our thought process. How was the whip described in the novel?’

Whip.

In reality, it can’t be said to be a weapon with higher lethality compared to swords or spears, but in the martial arts world, it was mentioned that it’s possible to control the whip as if it were alive using internal energy.

In fact, among the top ten experts in the martial world, there was a martial arts master known as the Blood Whip Queen.

He was one of the ten strongest in the world, a master of whip techniques.

‘I’m not sure if this is Tang Ah.’

Anyway, the whip was that powerful of a weapon.

Moreover, if Tang Ah was the Blood Whip Queen, then Jin Cheon-hee was facing one of the future top ten experts in the world.

‘I don’t have much experience dueling with anyone using martial arts to begin with, but this is quite tricky, isn’t it? In the end, I can only rely on the Profound Origin Divine Technique.’

The second effect of the Profound Origin Divine Technique.

It was overwhelming memory.

With it, he could quickly recall the contents of books and remember the opponent’s attack patterns to immediately counter them impromptu.

This is why the Zhuge family members throughout history could quickly create martial arts breaking techniques.

‘Should I try to buy some time first!’

Jin Cheon-hee pulled back his sword and took a defensive stance.

“You’re not coming? Then I’ll go!”

Tang Ah went on the offensive.

Jin Cheon-hee began to block and parry each of Tang Ah’s attacks.

Throwing knives came between Tang Ah’s attacks.

Clang-

Every time he blocked them, exclamations of admiration burst from the onlookers.

And from her mouth came a poisonous mist.

It was a paralyzing poison.

‘This is something I can’t dodge even if I know about it, isn’t it?’

He recalled the attacks of the wooden puppets.

If he dodges the iron whip, he’ll be hit by the throwing knives, and if he blocks, he’ll be hit by the poisonous mist.

While circulating the Five-Elemental Divine Technique to detoxify, the renowned Tang family’s poison was much more complex than Jin Cheon-hee had anticipated.

‘Then, should I attack?’

Jin Cheon-hee switched the hand holding his sword. He changed from a purely defensive state to the offensive.

Tang Ah didn’t expect this either, her eyes widening.

He succeeded in deflecting her iron whip and was about to send his sword towards her throat.

If he could thrust in like this, it would be over.

He thought his master would intervene before the fatal blow, but his master was just watching silently with a faint smile.

‘Master…?’

At that moment, Jin Cheon-hee’s arm wouldn’t move.

‘Huh?’

His body creaked. His nerves weren’t responding. And his stiffened body, no longer obeying Jin Cheon-hee’s will, stopped.

The lack of any sensation made it feel like someone else’s body.

In front of him, Tang Ah chuckled.

“Has the darkness of our clan finally started to consume the Little White Dragon? That took a while.”

‘Poison? Was circulating my energy not enough to detoxify?’

As his body stiffened up like that, he heard his master’s voice.

“There’s nothing to be disappointed about. To last for hundreds of seconds against a later-stage seed of the Tang Clan with just two years of training. And in your first duel, no less.”

Along with those proud words, Tang Ah’s iron whip struck Jin Cheon-hee hard.

“Roar, my Black Flame Dragon!”

Whack!

Jin Cheon-hee’s body flew up.

Tang Ah, who had won, screamed in anger.

“Kuaaak! This is just two years?”

Jin Cheon-hee’s last sword move had made her heart sink.

If the Tang Clan’s paralyzing poison had been slower, she would have been the one to lose.

“Huk, heuk…”

Tang Ah breathed heavily.

“It’s not really two years, is it, Divine Doctor Baek Rin Rin?”

At those words, Zhuge Rin smiled slyly.

“It is indeed two years. His real combat experience is probably only about two instances. The first was when he fled through the black-clothed men to save the previous leader of the Beggar’s Sect. The second was his martial world journey facing the minions of the Hao Sect.”

When the truth came out of Divine Doctor Baek Rin’s mouth, everyone was shocked.

Even Namgoong Woon, who had first mentioned the two years, opened his mouth.

“I knew, but I didn’t realize it was to this extent. So this is essentially his first duel of this kind?”

Jin Cheon-hee got up.

It seemed he had fully detoxified the paralyzing poison in that time.

Seeing this, Tang Ah was even more surprised.

“I used enough to knock out an elephant, how did he detoxify it in that time?”

Namgoong Woon said,

“It is strange. Even if we assume his internal energy was resolved with elixirs, his sword techniques and judgment don’t seem like those of someone fighting for the first time…”

Jin Cheon-hee said,

“I lost, Master.”

“Didn’t I tell you? It would be a good experience. Hohoho.”

Jin Cheon-hee scratched his head.

“I think you’re right about that. Though it’s disappointing to lose.”

So he had thought of winning.

Tang Ah thought it was truly fortunate that she hadn’t gone easy on Jin Cheon-hee.

If she had lost here, it would have been such a disgrace that the Tang family would have called her back for closed-door training.

On the other hand, Jin Cheon-hee felt his mind clearing.

‘Ah, the wooden puppets! I’ve found the answer.’

How to deal with something you can see but can’t dodge.

Jin Cheon-hee repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fist.

A brief realization thrillingly struck his spine. Jin Cheon-hee memorized this feeling completely with the Profound Origin Divine Technique.

His master said to Jin Cheon-hee,

“You’ve found some kind of breakthrough, haven’t you?”

“Yes!”

“If you want to train your external techniques, Yoo Ho will have to suffer a bit.”

Jin Cheon-hee knew the meaning of those words.

‘Now I won’t get beaten up by wooden puppets like before!’

True to those words, Jin Cheon-hee became able to safely avoid the combined attacks of the wooden puppets, and succeeded in destroying all three with a real sword.

Yoo Ho worked hard to repair and improve the wooden puppets again.

External techniques grow by getting hit.

This situation of having to beat Jin Cheon-hee aligned with his interests.