[TS] Became a Peach Saint – Chapter 181

“Grandfather Cheonma, even if the Young Master is your bloodline, why did the others come too?”

“Child, this is a very important matter. The future of the Divine Teaching is at stake, so shouldn’t we also take a look?”

At Grandfather Gunsa’s words, the others nodded in agreement.

Seeing Cheonma furrow his brows, it seems like his words were just smooth talk.

“Did you all just come to watch the show?”

“Ahem.”

*Creak.*

As the door opened, a large room filled with thick smoke was revealed.

Though the smoke makes it hard to see, this one room seems bigger than my entire house.

“If a room is this big, it feels like it could drive you crazy.”

“As the Young Master of the Divine Teaching, it’s only fitting to use a room like this.”

There’s a limit to how big something should be. Claiming a 100-pyeong building with no partitions as one room is just ridiculous.

“Hmm. First, can you turn off this strong incense? And open the windows to let the smoke out.”

As soon as the door opened, the scent hit my nose.

It’s so strong it feels like a smoke grenade went off.

When Cheonma gestured, a disciple quickly extinguished the incense.

Then, a rotten smell instantly filled the room.

“It’s enough to make even a corpse leave.”

At Grandfather Dokma’s words, Cheonma furrowed his brows again.

Walking further into the room, the patient in question was lying on the bed.

“Isn’t this a Jiangshi (zombie) at this point?”

His appearance is beyond words.

His body is covered in rashes and scabs, and blood is constantly flowing from his nose.

His fingers and toes are already blackened and rotting, showing signs of necrosis.

Now I understand why they said his body is melting.

He looks more like a breathing corpse.

“How did you keep him alive?”

“We used the Medical Hall. We poured so much money into it that the Cheonma Shin Guild’s finances are shaky.”

Everyone nodded as if Grandfather Dokma’s words were true.

“Grandfather Cheonma, are you asking me to save him now?”

I’m curious how he’s even alive at this point.

“Will it be difficult?”

Cheonma, the leader of the Manma and a figure of terror in this world, spoke in a weak voice.

Hearing him like this makes me feel sorry for him.

“*Sigh*, just a moment. How long has it been like this?”

“About five years.”

Looking at the Young Master lying there, I still can’t make sense of the situation.

Grandfather Dokma next to me is just silently watching without any reaction.

I can’t be sure, but it’s probably not poison.

The martial artists of this world react extremely sensitively to poison.

He said so. So, when the Young Master fell down, he must have been the first to check for poison.

─Chik, chik.

“Hoo─”

The smell of cigarettes actually feels refreshing because of the surrounding stench.

Baekseol, who had buried her face in her hair, had already retreated into her pocket long ago.

“How was his private life?”

“Private life?”

“He looks like he has AIDS or something.”

“AIDS? No way, did you figure out the disease name?”

His lips are crushed like they’ve been ground in a mortar, and ulcers have exposed his flesh in various places.

For someone who was originally fine to rot and crumble like this, it means his immune system has been completely wrecked.

“There are germs in the world that are invisible to the human eye. Those little guys make people sick. But humans have an incredible self-defense ability beyond imagination.”

“Invisible to the human eye? Then, what happened to Jinmyeong?”

“If someone who was fine ended up like this, it means their immune system, or self-defense ability, has disappeared. Otherwise, someone who was fine wouldn’t collapse so completely like this.”

“····This old man lacks education and can’t understand Shin Yi’s words. All I can do is kill people and dominate, how futile life is.”

“Hoo─ Why are you getting sentimental all of a sudden? Everyone has their strengths. Grandfather kills, and I occasionally save.”

It’s still not certain.

Even if it’s a contagious disease, unless they’re biting and sucking on each other, the transmission rate of AIDS drops to below a decimal point.

But according to Grandfather Cheonma, all the doctors and caregivers who had long taken care of the Young Master had their bodies melted away.

“So, how was this person’s private life?”

“I can’t grasp the intention of your question.”

“The AIDS I mentioned is a sexually transmitted disease.”

Grandfather Cheonma, who had been making eye contact, nodded as if he understood.

“I haven’t observed all of a grown man’s private life, but what’s certain is that most of his life was spent on training.”

“Hmm·····. I see.”

“Jinsal.”

“Give your command.”

“Whoa, you scared me.”

I thought it would just end with him saying he lived diligently, but suddenly, someone dressed head-to-toe in black popped out from the side.

“Report every detail of the Young Master’s private life to Shin Yi without missing a thing.”

“He wakes up at the hour of the Rabbit (5-7 AM) and continues morning training until the very end, has breakfast at the hour of the Dragon (7-9 AM)····.”

“Whoa, that’s enough.”

As I waved my hand to stop the endless details of the Young Master’s private life, the words abruptly cut off.

“I said it’s a sexually transmitted disease. Whether this person had sexual intercourse is what’s important. Room affairs, yin-yang unity, mating, that kind of stuff.”

“You don’t know? It’s squishy squishy.”

“Co, copulation… The Young Master is not a beast.”

Jin Sal shakes his head.

It’s hard to believe, but it seems the successor of the Cheonma Shin Guild lived a clean life.

“Ugh.”

As the cigarette burns out, the nasty smell creeps back into my nose.

—Chik, chik.

“Hoo— It’s not like I was spinning my bamboo helicopter around, so why is it like this?”

While checking on the Young Master, the fog that had filled the room starts to settle, maybe because the window I left open let some air in.

“What’s that?”

The eyes of the gathered people follow my finger.

“That’s the Night Light Stone.”

“What’s the Dark Light Stone?”

“Think of it as a rock that lights up dark places. When darkness falls, it glows on its own, so it’s worth more than its weight in gold.”

“Hmm… Is it originally pitch black before it glows?”

“The colors vary, but that one came from the silver light entrusted to the Young Master, so it’s quite precious. It’s also enormous.”

A massive ore, about 1 meter in diameter, was beautifully crafted like an egg and displayed in a corner of the room.

“So, if you just hang that Night Light Stone in a dark place, it will glow?”

The grandfathers all nod in unison.

“Can you put up a shade? I need to take a look.”

As soon as I finish speaking, an attendant pulls down the fabric hanging over the window.

As the room gradually darkens, the egg-shaped ore begins to emit a faint glow.

“Ah, seriously, this isn’t some Night Light nonsense, it’s pitchblende mixed with uranium and fluorite.”

“Uh, huh? What’s that?”

A self-luminous object without an energy source? A thermodynamics professor would grab the back of his neck, and Madame Curie would faint while screaming about preserving high blood pressure.

“That egg-shaped thing is packed with various minerals, including radioactive elements. Those elements undergo nuclear decay over time, which becomes the energy source for the glow. Normally, even high-concentration uranium can’t self-illuminate, but it seems the fluorite is causing the light.”

Fluorine must have come from the fluorite visible in the pitchblende, making it a natural fluorescent material.

That faint glow is likely a combination of the phosphorescence from the fluorite absorbing ultraviolet light and the uranium.

“Nuclear decay? Energy source? Explain it simply.”

“The energy released when radioactive elements undergo nuclear decay is what we call radiation. Here, it’s… um…”

As the silence drags on, all the grandfathers’ eyes focus on me.

“Invisible poison? You could think of it like that. It’s an extreme poison with no form, taste, or smell.”

“Wha, what!?”

“Invisible poison? Child, did you say invisible poison?”

Unlike the shocked Grandfather Cheonma, Grandfather Dokma seems incredibly excited as he approaches.

He’s here.

“Yes. With that ridiculously massive size, high-concentration radiation must have been pouring out. Surviving that for years is actually pretty impressive.”

“Ho ho, Shin Yi’s Invisible Poison of the Sky. I’m glad I stayed alive this long.”

“Grandfather Dokma, you’re not thinking something weird, are you? That thing can’t be handled by humans. It can’t be touched, has no scent, no taste. How do you even plan to deal with it?”

Even in modern times, all we can do is emit or contain a certain amount of radiation. We can’t even fully control the leaking radiation, so we have to wear lead suits and protective gear.

Although technological advancements have raised the safety standards, we’re still far from where we need to be. Let alone freely handling radioactive elements here—it’s like a dream.

“You don’t need me to explain what happens if you get hit by that, right?”

The grandfathers’ gazes naturally turn toward the Young Master.

“Even if the Great Immortal Dae Ra came, his skin would rot, and he’d faint.”

“Ugh.”

No matter how safe natural uranium is, it’s only in extremely small amounts.

Having a massive ore that looks like it weighs hundreds of kilograms sitting right next to your bed and being exposed to radiation for five years—that says it all.

“Grandfather, I’ll treat you now.”

“Please take care of him. He’s the only successor I have in my old age, so I’m even more attached to him.”

“He’s strong too. Not that I’m his substitute, but can I hit him a little when he wakes up?”

“Hit him? Why?”

Grandfather Cheonma sends a look full of questions.

“After receiving so much affection, he’s just lying there making you suffer, isn’t he?”

“Haha. Alright, please take care of it. Hit him hard for me.”

“Yes, leave it to me.”

*Slap!*

[The White Boksa Flower blooms.]