“I see it.”

The whisper barely left his lips before Jin Cheon-hee stepped forward.

Thud.

That single step on the snowy field echoed the realization he had found while cutting down the Khan; a movement of absolute leisure amidst the chaos.

An axe, wreathed in heavy Sword Qi, approached with agonizing slowness. Because Jin Cheon-hee moved within a different flow of time, he slipped inside the guard just as the blade began to descend.

Thud.

The second step fell.

Watching the opponent’s eyes widen in slow motion, Jin Cheon-hee’s delicate, jade-like hand gently brushed against the man’s solar plexus.

Whack!

Wudang Supreme Core Martial Art: Ten-Sequenced Brocade Technique.

He felt the ribs give way. Beneath the skin, internal organs tangled and shuddered from the palm force. In a single blow, the opponent’s Qi meridians were shattered, rendering him incapacitated. Yet, within that frozen moment of impact, the opponent’s body was still suspended in mid-air.

The third and final step.

Using the man’s falling weight as a fulcrum, Jin Cheon-hee stomped the ground, leaping a staggering three zhang—nearly nine meters—into the sky.

As Geum Chi-san collapsed and the remaining two masters looked up in horror, they saw Jin Cheon-hee floating solitary in the heavens. He quietly brought his palms together. It was the image of a principal Buddha, his fingertips holding infinite compassion, yet within those hands, a terrifying power began to surge.

Five-Elemental Divine Art, Transcendental Core Martial Art: Five-Elemental Destructions Extremes.

Simultaneously, the Wudang Supreme Core Martial Art: Supreme Unity Scattering Hands unfolded. Patterns of Taiji manifested in the air around him, his hands creating infinite circles of Yin and Yang.

“Surely not the Thousand-Armed Guanyin!?”

The thought struck every martial artist present like a lightning bolt. Even those whose ears still bled from the earlier Sound Art could only stare in awe at the spectacle. Jin Cheon-hee’s countless afterimages created a myriad of Five Elements Annihilations, raining them down like divine judgment.

“What terrifying internal energy is this?! How can he possess such power?!”

The master presumed to be from the Demonic Cult screamed in shock. Desperate, he formed his hands into claws, imbuing them with Sword Qi like the talons of a beast to counter the descending destruction.

But as his claws collided with the Five-Elemental Destructions Extremes, the result was catastrophic. The Five Elements Annihilations were not merely directed at him; they were raining down everywhere.

The area became the epicenter of a calamity.

Ka-boom!

The surroundings were devastated as if hundreds of bombs had detonated at once. Even the buildings in the rear shuddered from the aftermath, saved only by Cheon Woo, who desperately blocked the shockwaves with his Taiji Wisdom Sword.

Eventually, the noise died down, and Jin Cheon-hee descended into a world filled only with dust. As he waved his hand, a gust of wind rose, clearing the gray haze to reveal the three masters writhing on the ground, coughing up blood.

“It was an excellent match.”

“D-Don’t spout… dog shit,” Geum Chi-san stammered, staggering to his feet with bloodshot eyes. “You bastard… surely you haven’t… already reached the Profound Realm? How could…”

“No. I haven’t even stepped into the Profound Realm. I merely… poured out all my power at once. Right now, I have about ten percent of my internal energy left. In other words, I simply detonated ninety percent of my power in a single burst.”

“How is that possible? How on earth…”

At those words, Jin Cheon-hee looked around. He had expected the bystanders to flee, but like Cheon Woo, many spectators had protected themselves and remained to witness the conclusion.

The Gangho is indeed wide, Jin Cheon-hee thought, clicking his tongue softly. Huh? Is that Abbess Abi?

He spotted a familiar face in the crowd just as one of the watching masters spoke up.

“It must be vast and profound internal energy.”

“But can one use it all at once? Surely one would fall into Qi Deviation?”

It was a valid question. No matter how profound one’s internal energy was, it was impossible for a human to expel it all in a single breath. To use an analogy, it was like the relationship between a water tank and a faucet; no matter how much water held in the tank, a narrow faucet limited the flow.

Internal energy was the same. There was a natural limit to the speed at which one could draw power from the dantian.

However, Jin Cheon-hee was somewhat free from that restriction.

“Well, let’s just call it a secret of my sect.”

“Kuh… Surely he obtained part of the Zhuge Clan’s secret arts.”

But Cheon Woo, watching from the sidelines, realized the truth.

Ah… this isn’t because of the Zhuge Clan’s secret arts. Of course, there might be some helpful techniques involved, but ultimately, it’s because he repeats the cycle of exhausting his internal energy to the limit every day.

Treating patients. Running the relief station. His brother had made Cheon Woo do something similar using a Yakseon—a medicine boat. He had been forced to grind medicinal herbs to his limit every single day. At the time, it felt like tedious, painful labor. He hadn’t understood how the act of grinding herbs helped with martial arts.

But now he knew.

Repeatedly squeezing out every last drop of internal energy and then cultivating Qi again in a barren state. To do that, one needed a stable cultivation method to avoid Qi Deviation and must constantly observe oneself to ensure the energy remained ordered.

That could be known while grinding herbs. The moment the internal energy faltered, the finely ground herbs would become rough like barley husks.

Cheon Woo’s eyes narrowed.

But deliberately mentioning a sect secret… is a trap. This is a tactical deception.

All the Unorthodox and Orthodox Path members watching would now be thrown into confusion. Those who had been picking apart the Zhuge Clan’s secret arts—an obsession that had nearly led to the clan’s extermination—would now study them again, likely in a way that was incorrect and infinitely distorted.

“Kuh…”

Geum Chi-san staggered and fell to one knee. The other two had already fainted.

Jin Cheon-hee looked down at the kneeling giant and smiled, his blue eyes bright and innocent.

“Now then, shall we start treatment, patient-nim? The treatment fee will be… Ah, how about Hangzhou?”

Looking at the Mad Physician smiling amidst the wreckage, Geum Chi-san had only one thought.

A real crazy bastard.

***

“Anyone looking to restore the relief station! We pay cash!”

“…Anyone for the White Qilin Medical Pavilion relief station restoration, come here!”

“I’ll do it!”

“Me too! Me too!”

“I’m Dong Mak, I volunteered last time! Pick me!”

Dong Mak from the slums raised his hand vigorously. The competition was intense, as expected. As soon as the name ‘White Qilin Medical Pavilion’ was mentioned, every hand in the market shot up.

“Of course we should go. The White Qilin Medical Pavilion treats laborers if they get hurt while working.”

“They’ve always been quick with payment, too.”

“I’m hoping to get some leftover Kudzu Root Decoction.”

“Hey, I’m volunteering because I owe a debt of gratitude for them treating my father.”

“True, me too. Ignorant folks like us want to repay them, even in this way.”

By now, there were probably quite a few who would do the work without pay. Still, people didn’t move solely on gratitude. A few men who had followed the Little Divine Physician to fetch water every day had already been officially hired to move water and chop firewood every morning.

“I wonder, if we get officially hired instead of day labor, could our kids get an education? It would be nice if they could learn to read.”

“Hey, do you think that position is easy to get?”

People from the slums gathered like swarming ants. The White Qilin Medical Pavilion warrior barely managed to pass a hiring token to Dong Mak before shouting over the din.

“All positions are filled! The rest of you, please try again next time!”

“Aw, really…”

“Still, they picked more people than usual today.”

“I heard there was a huge martial duel?”

Dong Mak hadn’t known because he was gathering wood at the time, but rumors were already swirling.

“They say the Little Divine Physician fought three masters from the Hao Sect?”

“Was it a tag-team match? Even so, he’d be exhausted…”

“No. They say he took on three at once.”

Amidst the noisy chatter of the laborers, a warrior shouted, bringing order to the chaos.

“Everyone follow in an orderly fashion! There is much work to be done today!”

“Hey, what’s for lunch?”

At that question, Dong Mak’s eyes lit up. There was a separate, tangible benefit to taking jobs from the White Qilin Medical Pavilion.

“I’m not sure… The Young Pavilion Master was boiling a huge pot full of chickens.”

“Is it baekgyetang?”

“Could be Chicken Head Noodle Soup.”

“Anyway, it’s bound to be delicious.”

Usually, when laborers were hired, they were given a few pieces of dry mantou at best, the assumption being that lunch money was included in the day’s pay. But the White Qilin Medical Pavilion’s meals were never meager. Sometimes, the Young Pavilion Master made meals so exquisite one wondered if the ingredients cost more than the daily wages.

“It’s a blessing that the Young Pavilion Master’s hobby is cooking.”

The warrior added, as if suddenly remembering a detail. “Ah, come to think of it, he was putting in a lot of medicinal herbs too.”

“Ooh…!”

“Wait… He fought three masters at once just moments ago, how does he have the energy to cook?”

“Maybe he fought effortlessly?”

“It could have been a Debate of Swords. Rumors tend to be exaggerated.”

“That’s not it. There isn’t just one or two people who heard the Young Pavilion Master’s terrifying Sound Art.”

“Can you do… Sound Arts during a Debate of Swords?”

Finally, the group arrived at the place where the tent should have been. Instead of the structure, they saw the backs of martial artists. They did not wear the uniforms of the White Qilin Medical Pavilion, but those of various other sects. Every one of them emitted such fierce momentum that laborers like Dong Mak involuntarily shrank back.

“Excuse us, let us through.”

The White Qilin Medical Pavilion warrior, seemingly fearless, pushed them aside and entered. The expressions of the martial artists parting to the left and right were grave beyond measure.

Finally, Dong Mak realized why.

A deep crater lay before them, as if a giant had punched the earth itself.

And at the bottom of it, a handsome young man sat in the lotus position. Stuck next to him was a sword with a pure white blade, frost descending around it. In front of the young man stood a one-eyed Unorthodox master, huge as a mountain, standing guard like a sentinel. Behind the young man lay a dog so large one could believe it was a wolf, and a bird of equal majesty.

The White Qilin Medical Pavilion warrior whispered. “Is the Young Pavilion Master organizing his enlightenment? Man, oh man, if I knew this, I would have come a bit later.”

A woman holding a fishing rod approached them calmly.

“It’s fine. We can restore this area later. For now, follow me. There’s plenty of work to do anyway.”

“Squad Leader Man Seon.”

“Mm.”

She channeled internal energy into her voice, the sound sharp enough to chase away the gawking martial artists.

“Is this a spectacle for you all to gawk at—?!”

The martial artists shuffled backward, but it was inevitable that everyone’s gaze lingered on the deep crater. That was how much the young man sitting there resembled a living Buddha.

Dong Mak suddenly felt the young man’s hair fluttering gently, even though no wind was blowing. And then he noticed the bandages tightly wrapped around the physician’s left arm turning purple.

Dong Mak had absolutely no idea what those things meant, but the sight burned itself into his memory.