“Urgh…!”

“We’re almost done, Your Highness. It will end soon.”

“Didn’t you… say that! Before!”

Yes, that’s a lie.

Still, since this is no ordinary painful procedure, he’s inserting the needles while coaxing and soothing.

Even with the emperor’s superhuman endurance that surpasses ordinary people, receiving purification cleansing as an adult.

It must be pain bordering on torture.

Well, it’s better than saying there’s still a long way to go.

The physician inserted needles while routinely saying, “It’s almost over. It’s going well. Not much left.”

“And my younger siblings have grown up so well. I knew they were growing well, but seeing their martial arts achievements, they’re all such geniuses.”

“You… care for… your siblings… a lot… ugh!”

“Yes. They’re my pride. Come to think of it, my older brother sent a gift and a letter. I heard it arrived at the medical hall’s main branch, so I plan to open it as soon as I return.”

“…”

“I know you’re in too much pain to speak. Just listen.”

Jin Cheonhee continued moving his hands.

“Hmm, and I made dakgalbi on the way here, and the escort agents’ reactions were amazing. Would you like me to make some for you too, His Imperial Highness Eun?”

“Are you trying to tempt me with food?”

“Well, you’ll be extremely hungry after the purification cleansing. Just let me know what you want. I’ll make anything for you. Hahaha!”

“You’re saying all sorts of things while piercing the imperial body with needles.”

“Well, we’re almost done.”

Yes, this time it’s true~

Jin Cheonhee inserted the final golden needle into the prince’s solar plexus.

Stab!

“Urrrgh!”

“Hmm, painful, isn’t it? Let’s endure for just one quarter-hour.”

His Imperial Highness Eun finally cursed.

Oh, but he still won’t tell me to stop.

No matter how necessary the purification cleansing, the person is still a prince, or rather, His Majesty.

If he told Jin Cheonhee to stop, Jin Cheonhee would have to stop immediately.

However, His Imperial Highness Eun never once said to stop.

After a quarter-hour, Jin Cheonhee removed the inserted needles.

Black impure fluid began to flow from the needle marks.

Evidence that the purification cleansing has been properly completed. But there’s more waste than expected? I thought people in the imperial palace would eat only good things. I guess it’s due to stress and irregular eating habits.

Well, it would be strange if his insides were clean while plotting with the emperor’s first and novice second confidants about whose neck to cut off next within the palace.

Well, it must have been tough.

The purification cleansing was complete.

Jin Cheonhee asked:

“Your Highness. You need to get into the bathtub. Should I call a servant… oh, there aren’t any. Could the ‘Shadows’ who are secretly guarding you possibly move you?”

“…”

No answer.

He seemed exhausted from the extreme pain.

At that moment, something pitch black appeared from somewhere.

The sensation was similar to when he met the Heavenly Demon.

Though visible to the eyes, there was no sense of presence.

Though the method used was unknown, the essence seemed similar.

The black figure carried the prince toward the bathroom.

Jin Cheonhee wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.

“Phew, so they do help.”

***

His Imperial Highness Eun remained unconscious while immersed in the massive marble bathtub.

Jin Cheonhee added more near-toxic herbs to the water and infused fire energy to boost the qi.

This helped maintain the purified body for a long time.

It’s still difficult to define qi.

Though he had been in this world for quite some time, the more he researched qi, the more unknown elements appeared.

Jin Cheonhee continued to care for His Imperial Highness Eun until he regained consciousness.

“Urgh… is it finally over?”

“Oh, you’re awake.”

“You performed acupuncture that was close to torture. What if I were to hate you for it?”

“I know you won’t.”

Jin Cheonhee’s retinas turned blue.

His Imperial Highness Eun laughed for a while, as if in self-mockery.

“True. I can’t. If I killed you, I would die too.”

“Well… there’s Master who could replace me, but you’d become mortal enemies.”

“Yes. That’s also clear. Finding another physician besides Baek Rin’s adept could be an option, but then there would be few I could trust.”

Jin Cheonhee nodded.

“And you know I didn’t deliberately make it painful! This is an unavoidable part of the treatment!”

“Yes. I know, but it felt like dying.”

It’s the same principle as knowing you need to go to the dentist but it hurts when you go.

Come to think of it, the high cost is similar too.

Just the expenses for His Imperial Highness Eun’s purification cleansing would equal a month’s budget for an average county.

Truly something only possible for an emperor.

“Now you can rest in your room.”

“Will you make dakgalbi?”

So he remembered.

“Yes. I have the ingredients and will grill it deliciously for you. Can you handle spicy food?”

“I don’t particularly avoid any food.”

“Then I’ll make it moderately spicy.”

I’ll just adjust the amount of mala. If it fails, I’ll add cheese.

Cheese is the best for spicy food.

Ah, I want honey-filled rice cakes.

Can’t make those in the Central Plains.

***

Cheese dakgalbi with egg soup.

This time, he stir-fried rice cakes with the dakgalbi.

Accompanying it were paper-thin butter potatoes, sizzled on an iron plate.

Whew, this is to die for. Seriously.

Plain potatoes are already delicious, but butter-coated fried potatoes?

Thinly sliced, sprinkled with a little sugar, and fried directly on an iron plate?

And eating them with spicy dakgalbi?

This is the beginning of a spicy-sweet hellish triathlon.

His Imperial Highness Eun put a bite in his mouth and made a “hmm!” expression.

“You cook in quite a peculiar way.”

“Honestly, it’s not particularly healthy. But since Your Highness doesn’t need to worry about gaining weight, just eat.”

Since there’s a risk of severe weight loss after purification cleansing, it’s good to eat high-calorie, carbohydrate-rich food.

For dinner, I’ll fry chicken!

If I brush it with my pre-prepared secret soy-garlic sauce, it’ll be killer!

If lunch is spicy-sweet, dinner will be sweet-salty.

“For a late-night snack, I’m planning to make jeon[1] and buchimgae[2] with ingredients sold in this neighborhood.”

He had found something similar to green onions and planned to make yukhoe-jeon[3] and pajeon[4].

Should I make meat patties too?

Without a family, there’s no occasion to celebrate Chuseok or New Year’s.

But as holidays approached, the hospital regularly served bulgogi, jeon, and tteokguk[5].

It was supposedly considerate of doctors who couldn’t meet their families and had to stay in the ER… like hell it was.

Usually, people were too exhausted to taste anything.

The medical staff, dealing with the influx of patients before holidays, would grumble about how they could possibly digest tteokguk with their worn-out bodies and that they were likely to get indigestion.

Jin Cheonhee, who found tteokguk just okay but jeon delicious, would collect all the jeon from his appetite-less comrades.

Jeon is all about the egg taste. The taste of egg on the tongue comes first, then the texture, and lastly the taste of the ingredients.

As he was planning a fusion Korean food(?) trio set, His Imperial Highness Eun said:

“I’ve heard roughly about the Third Prince’s condition from him.”

“Ah, I see.”

“It sounds similar to gu poison.”

Jin Cheonhee knew well what gu poison was.

It was broadly divided into two types.

One involved forcing poisonous insects to eat each other, then using the last survivor as poison.

It was used to produce deadly poisons.

The other type of gu technique was similar to blood gu used by unorthodox sects.

These monstrosities resided in the body and would self-destruct, dissolving organs if a special medicine wasn’t taken periodically.

Evil sects and heterodox sects used this to threaten those they wanted to control.

Ah, indeed. Blood gu should be considered a type of parasite.

A parasite that doesn’t exist in modern Earth.

“By the way, are parasites that dangerous?”

“It depends on the type. The one inside the Third Prince’s stomach is quite dangerous.”

The prince stretched the cheese with his chopsticks.

Right. This is irresistible.

Even an eighty-year-old Taoist who has mastered all worldly matters will still pull on cheese.

“I see. Then what do you plan to do during the remaining time?”

There was quite some time left until the physician delivery from the White Dragon Medical Pavilion branch arrived.

“I thought I’d… learn some shamanism. Could you introduce me?”

“Hmm, good. Is there someone specific you prefer?”

Without hesitation, Jin Cheonhee replied:

“I’d like to learn from that Shamanic Healer you introduced me to initially.”

Though greedy for money, his skills were undeniable.

He was famous in the area for having the most excellent healing skills, befitting his high fees.

***

“My goodness, I’m delighted to see you.”

The Shamanic Healer, still wearing heavy, blinged-out clothes, greeted Jin Cheonhee.

“Um, you may stand.”

He was kneeling with his hands respectfully clasped.

“No, no. Aren’t you the winner of this year’s Dragon Phoenix Gathering? I must show proper respect. Yes, indeed.”

It seemed he had done some background research after Jin Cheonhee left.

Rumors that besides cooking and medical skills, his martial arts were also exceptional, defeating the evil sect’s Young Pavilion Master in the Dragon Phoenix Gathering.

Rumors that he had beheaded one of the Blood Immortal Sect’s Ten Heavenly Commanders, comparable to the world’s top ten masters.

Rumors that, obsessed with medicine, he mercilessly crushed anyone who interfered.

Rumors that he turned troublesome evil sect leaders into dog food for his accompanying dog.

Rumors are naturally distorted, and after being passed from mouth to mouth all the way to the frontier, it was impossible to tell what was true and what was false.

The only certain and common element was that the White-Robed Mad Dragon before him was obsessed with medicine, extremely skilled in martial arts, and would show what’s worse than death if necessary.

Faced with such a person, Shamanic Healer Ratu felt his knees involuntarily bend.

Even if all the warriors he employed attacked en masse, they wouldn’t be able to touch even the hem of the White-Robed Mad Dragon’s clothes.

“There’s no need for such excessive courtesy.”

“I… I appreciate your kindness. But I find this posture comfortable, great hero.”

The past when he threw an iron coin saying “take this and get lost” kept flashing through his mind.

Jin Cheonhee spoke firmly:

“If you keep doing this, I won’t be able to learn shamanism.”

Growl!

Hwanggu was in a bad mood.

The longer they stayed here, the more mealtime would be delayed.

“Y-yes, of course.”

As Hwanggu wrinkled his nose bridge, Ratu reluctantly stood up.

It’s hard for even the bravest heart to withstand a giant wolf growling.

Squeak!

Noe-jin praised Hwanggu for that.

Hwanggu felt a little better.