[TS] Became a Peach Saint – Chapter 178

Boom─bang─bang─bang─!!

Namgung Myung, kicked by a foot, smashes through the surrounding stalls as he flies away.

“No! My medicine!”

Cutting through the thick dust, I chase after him and find Namgung Myung lying unconscious, foaming at the mouth, his limbs broken like candy sticks.

Rummaging through Namgung Myung’s clothes, I find a small wooden box.

Luckily, it’s just a bit dusty but otherwise intact.

Click.

Opening the box, a refreshing fragrance bursts out from the blue elixir inside.

It’s not as good as the Great Return Pill I sniffed last time, but it still looks pretty decent.

“Phew.”

After checking the medicine, I realize all eyes are on me.

Dragging the unconscious Namgung Myung toward the unarmed area, the crowd parts to make way.

“Th-th-th… what was it again? Anyway, that elixir is mine now! Any young hero who wants it…”

“Ahem!”

Even in this chaos, Daeju Uncle gives me a knowing look.

I have no idea when he got here, but his speed is insane.

“Young hero, hurry and climb up!”

The crowd’s gaze shifts to the elixir in my right hand.

I don’t know exactly what it is, but I can tell there’s greed dripping from their eyes.

“Is there no one? If anyone tries to climb down, I’ll crush their wrists! Really, no one?”

Daeju Uncle had warned me countless times that this world runs on the logic of strength.

Seeing the greed in people’s eyes, it’s clear that if I let this slide, blood will be spilled again.

“Last chance. Really, no one?”

The crowd’s eyes dart between the crumpled Namgung Myung at my feet and the elixir.

After a while, no challengers step up to the unarmed area.

Then, I notice someone in the crowd seriously contemplating raising their hand.

“If anyone dares to climb up later, I’ll pluck out their eyeballs and shove them into the Punglim Three Brothers’ assholes. Oh! You, sir, you raised your hand, right?”

“Uh… are you talking about me?”

“Yep. You. You raised your hand.”

“Well… I was just curious about who the Punglim Three Brothers are…”

“Right when I got here, there were three guys causing trouble at the entrance. They’re the Punglim Three Brothers. I broke their limbs.”

The spectator who raised his hand slowly lowers it again.

Seems like the issue is resolved.

“Baekseol, I got Grandfather’s medicine.”

“Great!”

“Hehe, I’m happy too.”

While showing off the medicine to Baekseol, Daeju Uncle approaches.

“Han So-jeo. Weren’t you going to take the Heavenly Heart Dragon Elixir yourself?”

“Yep. I’m giving it to my grandfather because he’s not feeling well.”

Hearing this, Daeju Uncle strokes his short beard.

“By any chance, is your grandfather a martial artist?”

“Nope. Just an ordinary person.”

“Then it’s impossible. The Heavenly Heart Dragon Elixir is a prized elixir of the Namgung family. If an ordinary person takes it, the medicinal energy will be too strong, and their body will melt.”

“Ah…”

Click.

Opening the box, the medicinal fragrance spreads again.

I guess I didn’t think this through.

Even regular ginseng can have severe side effects if taken by someone who can’t handle it.

Let alone something called a “spiritual elixir” in this world.

“Han So-jeo, what will you do with Namgung Myung?”

─Thud, thud.

“Hoo─”

Namgung Myung, lying on the ground with his entire body shattered, breathes weakly.

Seeing him still alive in this state, I’d call him a zombie rather than a martial artist.

“Why is he so weak? Even when you let him hit you, Uncle, it wasn’t this bad.”

“It’s not that Namgung Myung is weak, it’s that your strength is absurd…”

“Huh?”

When I snap my fingers, Daeju Uncle’s expression changes instantly.

“Like a golden-armored warrior, so splendid.”

People here are basically glass cannons. No defense, all offense.

They don’t wear armor because they think they can kill each other with just a touch.

Crazy.

If the residents saw this, their blood pressure would have shot up.

“So, what are you going to do?”

“Whew—let’s save him, I guess.”

“Good thinking. There’s nothing to gain by making enemies with the Namgung family.”

He was the kind of guy who rolled his eyes in a creepy way, but it was a familiar sight anyway.

I can’t judge based on a quick glance, but if Daeju Uncle says so, it should be fine to let him live.

“But can you really do it? It’s almost embarrassing to even call him a person at this point.”

He was just standing there dazed until the low kick was about to hit, so he definitely held back at the last moment.

And yet, it’s come to this.

“I’ve never tried to save someone this broken before. I’ll give it a shot.”

His broken shin dangles, the bone tearing through the flesh, and blood is everywhere.

All the bones in his body are broken too.

“He’s just a lump of meat now.”

*Crunch!*

The gruesome sound of bones makes the onlookers shudder.

***

“Phew. Done.”

Even though quite some time has passed, the crowd that stayed to watch bursts into cheers.

“It’s a miracle!”

“Doctor! Please take a look at my child’s condition!”

“My wife is very sick! Please, take a look. I beg you!”

*Whoosh!*

The crowd starts yelling, and the birds, startled, flap their wings and fly away.

—Click, click.

“Whew—”

This is a world where even basic plumbing hasn’t been installed.

To put it nicely, it’s nature-friendly. To put it harshly, it’s so backward it’s practically primitive.

Even in the old Joseon era, the thing that killed the most people wasn’t incurable diseases but the common cold, called “gopul.”

People were considered long-lived if they lived to 50, and even kings, who lived comfortably and well-fed, had an average lifespan of 60.

This place isn’t much different.

“Divine Healer, please save my child!”

“You crazy fool, I asked first!”

“You ungrateful brat! I even lent you money, and this is how you act!?”

The bickering is endless.

Seeing a lump of meat turn back into a person right before their eyes, it’s not hard to understand their reactions.

*Clap clap!*

“Attention!”

The sound of clapping hands instantly quiets the murmuring crowd.

“My child is gasping for breath, hurry!”

“My child is gasping too!”

As soon as the words are out, a man pushes through the crowd.

“Oh, doctor, Divine Healer. My child fell while cutting trees on a slope and is on the brink of death.”

“Can you bring him here?”

“Of course!”

The man disappears as if his butt is on fire.

The injuries are severe, but not enough to kill. Probably internal injuries. Moving someone like that is risky, but as long as they don’t die, it’s fine.

“Doctor, please save my sister too. She’s in a lot of pain!”

This time, it’s a sniffling kid.

“Where does it hurt?”

“Her whole body is red.”

“What does your sister do?”

“Well…”

The kid, who was quick to answer, suddenly goes silent and lowers his head.

『Han So-jeo, that kid’s sister is probably selling her body in a brothel.』

A voice suddenly echoes in my head.

I glance over and see Daeju Uncle giving me a look.

“Bring her. Can you do it?”

“Yes! Thank you! Thank you!”

The sniffling kid quickly disappears too.

If Daeju Uncle is right, it’s probably a sexually transmitted disease.

In this era, STDs are incurable, but in the original world, they’re easy to treat.

If organs or nerves are damaged, I can use healing. If toxins have invaded the cerebrospinal fluid, purification will do the trick.

*Tick.*

The cigarette feels short.

—Click, click.

“Whew—don’t just stand there staring. If you have sick people at home, bring them here. If you’re not sick, at least lay out some mats or something.”

“Y-yes! You people, hurry up and move!”

While the crowd is bustling around, the first…

The patient who fell on the slope I left has come back.

He’s carrying a son much bigger than himself.

I wonder if that’s not unfair.

“Divine Healer, I’ve brought the mat here!”

“Please lay it down here. We’ll place the patient on it.”

As someone else unfolds the mat, the patient’s father carefully lays his son down.

“Phew—”

When I saw the sunken wound, it looked like the broken bone was piercing his internal organs.

Thanks to my bone-setting skills, the position of the broken bone is clear at a glance.

*Snap.*

It’s simple—align the bone and boost regeneration with healing.

As the light from my hand seeps into the woodcutter, even the wounds on his skin fade away.

“Oh my, thank you so much, Divine Healer. Oh my.”

As his son’s furrowed expression turns peaceful, the father holds back tears and bows.

“What do you mean, real Divine Healer? Are there fake ones?”

“Ugh. I almost lost my son after being treated by a quack who just took my money. Thank you. Thank you.”

“Yep. Treatment’s done. That’ll be 50 coins.”

“Huh?”

The man, who had been crying buckets, suddenly looks stunned.

“Is it too expensive?”

“Huh? Oh, no. You saved his life, so it’s too cheap…”

“Alright. Just give me 50 coins.”

“Divine Healer, even the quacks in this village charge more than 50 coins…”

“Ugh, does this village not have health insurance? It’s fine, just give me 50 coins.”

As the man in front of me pulls coins from his pocket, Uncle Daeju brings a large basket.

“Han So-jeo, even the village doctors here take silver coins.”

“Uncle, there’s something called progressive taxation. You charge more to those with fat bellies and less to those struggling.”

“Is there such a law in this world?”

“Our Great Ultimate King Sejong laid the foundation for taxation. So, next!”

*Clink.*

As the woodcutter’s father puts money in the basket, a little kid brings his sister.

“I told you I’m fine. And we don’t even have enough money for food, let alone a doctor.”

“Sis, it’s okay. The Divine Healer said he’ll treat you.”

“But money’s the problem…”

“Phew— enough chit-chat, hurry up.”

As the little kid’s sister makes eye contact, she approaches with a reluctant expression.

“I’m busy, so sit down quickly.”

The woman, who reluctantly sits down, has a red rash on her neck.

It’s probably spread all over her body.

“Bakery…”

There are too many people around.

“Just kidding, roll up your sleeve.”

As the woman rolls up her sleeve, her arm is covered in red rashes.

The onlookers gasp and take a step back.

“It’ll sting a bit.”

“…Doctor. I have syphilis. Who can cure an incurable disease with acupuncture?”

“One shot is all it takes, don’t worry.”

It’s the military penicillin shot Grandpa gave me before.

The solution in the syringe quickly disappears into her arm.

Even the so-called incurable STDs in this village are cured with one muscle antibiotic shot.

“Take two of these a day. One in the morning, one at night.”

The woman, still looking reluctant, takes the amoxicillin pills. That’ll clean up everything from staphylococcus to salmonella.

Especially useful in this world where people drink contaminated water without proper sanitation.

I never thought the toxicology knowledge I studied to clear Hongmun and the tutorial would come in handy here.

“Close your eyes.”

The woman, who couldn’t keep up with the situation, closes her eyes.

‘Purify.’

As the light from my hand seeps into her, the rashes on her skin vanish instantly.

“Done.”

The woman slowly opens her eyes, touches her arm, and tears start falling.

“…Thank you, Doctor. Sob… Thank you. Thank you.”

She bows so deeply it looks like her neck might break.

“It’s fine.”

“Yo. 50 nyang coins.”

“….Huh?”

The woman, who had been nodding off, froze in that position.

“Ah, geez. The treatment fee is 50 nyang coins. There are patients waiting behind you, so hurry up and put the money in the basket and leave.”

As the woman put the money in the basket and walked away, a man with a chubby chin and belly, who had been watching from the front, pushed aside a child and approached.

He looked like he was having trouble breathing.

Seems like maintaining his appearance costs a fortune.

“You’re a goldfish.”

“…..?”

“Hand over the money if you don’t wanna get beat up, punk.”

***

*Thud!*

A man hurriedly opened the door and entered. Inside, an old man sipping tea turned his gaze toward him.

“Ma-Master!”

“Ho-ho. The famously slow-moving strategist, barging in like a reckless child. What’s the matter?”

“This is no time for that! Shin Yi has appeared in Hefei!”

Despite the strategist’s urgent words, the old man with a white beard, known as the Master, remained indifferent.

“Which Shin Yi are you talking about? These days, everyone with a bit of fame calls themselves Shin Yi. It’s ridiculous.”

“Ah, come on! A beggar sent a Red Sparrow message!”

Hearing this, the Master was so shocked that he spilled the tea he was holding.

“And it’s marked as urgent! They say he’s healing everything—external injuries, internal injuries, even syphilis!”

“Wha-what!?”

The beggar group, known as the Information Organization, spreads and gathers information throughout the martial world.

In the martial world, there may be no ants, but there are always beggars.

To quickly transmit information, the Information Organization uses birds, categorized by color and species.

From the common carrier pigeon for light information to the rare and expensive Red Sparrow, which is almost never used due to its high cost.

Carrier pigeons are cheap compared to Red Sparrows. On the other hand, hawks, at the top of the food chain, are hard to train.

These hawks have colored cloth tied to their legs to indicate the urgency of the message. The Red Sparrow message the strategist received was marked with red cloth, used only in wartime.

“Strategist! What are you doing here in such a critical situation!?”

‘I came here because it’s urgent. Who else would deal with this senile old man?’

The strategist was dumbfounded as he watched the Master suddenly lose his temper.

“By the way, they say his personality is quite eccentric.”

“Geniuses are always eccentric. Haven’t you seen me? We need to snatch Shin Yi before anyone else does, so hurry up!”

The strategist vowed that if Shin Yi came, he’d get his high blood pressure treated first.

“Ah, I want to retire.”

‘I’ll hurry, Master!’

“….Strategist?”

***

“Are you planning to move personally, Grand Elder?”

“That’s right.”

“Hoo, if the Blood Demon moves, the martial world will be in for a storm.”

“Kekeke, the child has already stirred up enough trouble.”

***

“It’s a carrot.”

“Carrot!”

“Eat up, our little Pposiraegi.”

“Shake it!”