Je-won Baek Clan
"Severed Meridians?"
Tang Mujin had never heard of such an illness before. But both Goiyi and Baek Choo-seo, the head of the Je-won Baek Clan, wore grave expressions.
"Is it truly the Severed Meridians I know of?"
"It should be."
Baek Choo-seo glanced at his daughter's face, then lowered his voice and whispered to Goiyi.
"Can Hyang-a survive?"
Goiyi thought for a moment before answering.
"Has Lady Baek ever suffered a seizure?"
"This summer, her body suddenly stiffened and she lost consciousness for three days."
"Only once… Then there is still a chance."
"A chance?"
"With the right medicines, there is more than an eighty percent chance she will live."
In other words, a twenty percent chance of death. But Baek Choo-seo's expression brightened, as if he had glimpsed hope.
Until now, every physician they consulted had only worsened her condition. In recent years, her health had declined so severely that since last year she could not even leave the house.
In this world, countless people die from the smallest of illnesses. With such a grave disease, it was no wonder the thought of her imminent death had crept ever closer.
"Spare no expense, I beg you. Even if I must sell all that I own, I will cover the cost of the medicine."
"Very well."
With that answer from Goiyi, the group departed from the Je-won Baek Clan.
As soon as they stepped out the main gate, Goiyi caught sight of Tang Mujin's troubled face.
"Why that expression?"
"Everyone seemed to know about this Severed Meridians disease—both you and Lord Baek. Only I was ignorant."
Dan Seol-yeong interjected with a smile.
"Don't worry. I didn't know either."
"Oh, really? That makes me feel better…"
Dan Seol-yeong grinned, and Mujin chuckled faintly.
Goiyi, however, looked at the two of them as if they were pitiful and began to explain.
"You needn't blame yourself. Severed Meridians is known only among martial artists, not physicians."
"Martial artists know more about it than doctors?"
"Yes. It's a peculiar illness. It arises when someone is born with an abnormally strong Yin energy that clogs and blocks the blood meridians. There are a few types—Taiyin Meridians, Nine Yin Severed Meridians—but they're all essentially the same. Because it's so rare, ordinary physicians never encounter it, and even if they did, they would never diagnose it correctly."
Tang Mujin reflected.
The only reason he had sensed something strange in Baek Hyang-a was because he had mimicked Goiyi and probed her meridians with his internal energy.
In other words, a physician without inner cultivation would have no way of recognizing Severed Meridians.
"Yesterday, when Physician Seob described her symptoms to you, you asked if perhaps prescriptions like Ijingung-gwi Decoction or Astragalus Turtle Shell Pill might help, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"That was the natural response. Severed Meridians is easily mistaken for other ailments, like extreme cold in the limbs or bloody coughing. But if you treat it like any other illness, the patient will die before the age of twenty."
"But Lord Baek already knew about Severed Meridians."
"He didn't know his daughter had it. He only knew that such a disease existed."
"That still makes no sense. How could martial artists know more about a disease than doctors?"
"That is simply the nature of Severed Meridians. How should I explain it…"
Goiyi paused, then posed a question.
"If you saw a plant you'd never seen before, but it carried tremendous internal energy, what would people call it?"
"An elixir herb."
"And if an animal you'd never seen before carried blazing Yang energy?"
"A spirit beast, perhaps."
"Then what if a human, one who walks on two legs and speaks, carried an overwhelming Yin energy?"
"Uh…"
"Now, who would know more about such a being—martial artists, or physicians?"
It was a cruel but simple explanation.
Seen from a distance, a person suffering from Severed Meridians was no different from an elixir herb or a spirit beast.
"Wait—you don't mean martial artists actually eat people with Severed Meridians, do you?"
"No. There's a far more efficient way to absorb Yin energy. Have you heard of 'Harvesting Yin to Supplement Yang' (Chae-eum Boyang)?"
"Ah."
Surprisingly, even before learning martial arts, Tang Mujin had heard of it.
Like many young men in turbulent years, he had absorbed far too much knowledge in that particular field.
"Long ago, there was a martial artist called Waryong who cultivated an extreme Yang martial art. He believed that Severed Meridians wasn't something to cure, but something he might use practically."
"You mean through Chae-eum Boyang?"
"Yes. Waryong sought out women afflicted with Severed Meridians, and with his handsome looks and eloquence, he repeatedly practiced Chae-eum Boyang. In the end, he became the number-one martial artist under heaven. What's more, most of the women he partnered with survived. Because he absorbed their Yin energy while sharing with them a portion of his Yang energy."
"So the treatment was… that simple?"
"The problem is that martial artists who cultivate such pure, extreme Yang energy are incredibly rare. But there are plenty who covet pure Yin energy, even without Yang cultivation."
A person who practiced blazing Yang arts could absorb Yin and achieve balance, massively increasing their cultivation.
But someone who practiced sinister Yin arts might absorb even more Yin—leaving the patient overwhelmed and dead.
"If word spreads that Lady Baek suffers from Severed Meridians…"
"The demonic sects will come for her. And not only them."
Both Yang cultivators and Yin cultivators would target the Je-won Baek Clan. Baek Choo-seo, with his limited strength, would be powerless to protect his daughter.
It was sheer fortune that the ones he encountered were Tang Mujin and Goiyi—neither of whom practiced blazing Yang or chilling Yin techniques, and neither of whom harbored designs to harm her.
"The medicine you mentioned earlier to Lord Baek—what was that?"
"The fastest, surest cure would be the inner core of the Solar Fire Carp (Taeyang Hwali). But such a spirit beast is rarer than gold itself."
"And the next best option?"
"To gather as many Yang-infused herbs and small elixir herbs as possible and boil them into a medicinal decoction."
There were countless hot-natured herbs: precious ones like deer antler or bezoar, common ones like jujube or ivy.
Goiyi turned to Tang Mujin.
"Go to Physician Seob and borrow two of his largest cauldrons. I'll gather the herbs. You'll have to brew the medicine day and night."
So, even if they could leave Chengdu, he would not be able to leave the cauldrons.
Tang Mujin felt a little depressed.
***
Tang Mujin narrowed his eyes and lifted a bright yellow snake.
"Where do you even find spirit herbs and beasts like these?"
"When it comes to saving a life, methods hardly matter."
Clearly, he had stolen them from somewhere.
While Tang Mujin and Dan Seol-yeong took turns watching the cauldrons, Goiyi roamed about collecting fiery-natured ingredients in a reckless fashion.
Alongside herbs one could buy at apothecaries, like cinnamon and deer antler, he brought back herbs infused with both fire and poison. But poison was no problem, since Tang Mujin could absorb it himself.
Mixed among them were items that weren't really herbs at all, but should have been classified as elixirs or spirit herbs.
That much, Mujin had expected. What he hadn't expected was the method Goiyi used.
To use medicinal herbs like this…
Normally, a decoction was boiled for half an hour to an hour.
If it was boiled longer to reduce it further, it was called a concentrate (jeon).
If it was boiled down even further into a thick porridge, it became eum (飮, drink). If simmered until it was sticky as honey, it became go (膏, paste).
But what Tang Mujin was making now went beyond that.
He created several sticky go lumps, then carefully dissolved them into warm water. Again he simmered it down into a new go, and repeated the process over and over.
Contrary to common belief, boiling medicine for a long time does not always make it better.
Each ingredient had its own boiling time, and if exceeded, its medicinal effect would diminish. That was why decoctions were brewed with ingredients added in stages, not all at once.
But the medicine simmering inside the cauldron overcame that issue in the simplest way possible—by endlessly pouring in more ingredients, enough to overwhelm whatever efficacy was lost.
"Such precious things…"
The potency was overwhelming. Even Tang Mujin, well accustomed to every kind of decoction, felt dizzy just inhaling the fumes for too long.
He tended the fire under the cauldron, watching time pass.
***
Ten days passed with the fire burning under the cauldron.
Not long after Dan seol-yeong, who had stayed up all night, finally went off to sleep, Goiyi appeared and peered inside the cauldron.
"This should be enough."
Inside was a pitch-black lump.
Though it had been simmered in a medicine cauldron, it had solidified like a block of ink. It was neither a pill, nor an elixir, nor a decoction.
Tang Mujin had never made anything like this before. A nameless medicine, crudely condensed from yang-rich herbs.
"Fortunately, treating Severed Meridians isn't as complicated as I feared."
Goiyi frowned.
"Not complicated, no—but it's not a method any ordinary person could use. The herbs and elixirs that went into this one dose alone… and since it must be taken continuously until the condition is cured, only someone with immense wealth could even attempt it."
"I suppose that's true."
Martial brilliance perishes when the genius who forged it dies, but the wealth earned by a genius does not vanish overnight. Baek Hyang-a was, in a sense, being saved by her grandfather's legacy.
Goiyi clapped Tang Mujin lightly on the shoulder.
"Pack the medicine. Since we've made it, let's deliver it now."
***
Together, they arrived at the House of Je-won Baek and knocked several times at the main gate.
No one came to greet them. The estate was large, and servants were few—hardly surprising.
"We're coming in…"
Fortunately, the gate was unlocked. Tang Mujin and Goiyi walked toward the main hall.
But even near the hall, no one appeared.
Tang Mujin called toward the interior.
"Lord Baek, are you inside?"
No answer. The family head seemed to be absent.
Tang Mujin itched to deliver the medicine directly to the young lady, but barging into a woman's quarters uninvited could stir ugly rumors.
With no choice, the two wandered about the hall's vicinity.
It was then they sensed movement behind the main hall—Lord Baek choo-seo practicing his fists.
His movements looked clumsy, weak enough that Tang Mujin felt he could easily defeat him if they clashed. He turned his gaze away, but Goiyi continued to watch intently.
Tang Mujin nudged him in the ribs. Watching another man's cultivation was a serious breach of conduct.
"Old man, you can't just spy on someone's training. Let's go wait back at the hall."
"No. That form looks strangely familiar."
"Didn't you say Je-won Baek techniques had no special features? Maybe it just looks familiar because it's so common."
"No, that's not it… Hm."
They returned to wait at the front of the hall. After a while, Lord Baek emerged, wiping sweat from his brow.
He even seemed slightly surprised, as if he had completely forgotten their visit.
"Ah, you're here. It took longer than I expected."
"That only means the medicine will be all the more effective."
When Goiyi opened the bundle, a small bowl of medicine was revealed. Its dizzying aroma spread thickly through the air.
"Let's administer it right away and observe the effects."
At that suggestion, Lord Baek hesitated, then spoke with an awkward smile.
"My apologies for not saying sooner. The medicine is no longer needed."
Tang Mujin and Goiyi's expressions darkened. If Dan seol-yeong had been there, hers would have been no different.
Lord Baek quickly waved his hands.
"Of course I don't mean to shirk payment."
"The money is important, yes—but there's something far more important. How do you intend to treat Lady Baek's Severed Meridians?"
"In Luoyang, there is a family called the Sama Clan. Among martial circles, they are known for the Hongyeom Divine Energy Art (Hongyeom Shingigong). Fortunately, we have come to a good arrangement with them, so there is no need for this medicine."
"Ah."
So, they intended to heal her by marrying into a clan that had mastered Yang energy.
Aside from the haste of the marriage, it wasn't a bad choice. Rather than scattering Baek Hyang-a's Yin energy, it would be better to put it to use.
And if, in the process, the declining Baek family could also gain an alliance with a powerful house, so much the better.
All things considered, everything seemed neatly resolved—except that Tang Mujin's party had gone to great trouble for nothing. At least they would still be paid, and Baek Hyang-a's condition would be cured.
"And this medicine?"
"I see no use for it. Dispose of it however you please."
"…Understood."
Lord Baek summoned the same old steward as before to settle the payment. Tang Mujin and Goiyi pocketed the hefty gold pieces and left the estate.
Tang Mujin's mood was bright once outside. He had no particular plan for the gold, but having it in hand was satisfying enough.
But Goiyi still looked troubled.
"What's wrong?"
"The fist technique the family head was practicing… it bothers me."
"What about it?"
"It wasn't Je-won Baek's fist art. It looked like Yeomhwa Essence Fist (Yeomhwa Jeongkwon)."
Tang Mujin had never heard the name. His knowledge of martial arts was limited anyway.
"What does it matter what he's practicing? Maybe he just picked up a manual somewhere."
"Yeomhwa Essence Fist is a widely known training art. Not suited for combat, but it assists with cultivation."
"Then it's not stolen. So what's the problem?"
"The problem is… Yeomhwa Essence Fist only aids the cultivation of arts in the Yeolyang lineage. But the Je-won Baek clan's inner art is not Yeolyang."