Inside the dantian, there was more qi than before.
And it was similar to the qi he originally had.
It was from the same sect.
And there was only one person from the same sect who could give her qi.
Wang Gak-yeon realized that her father would never again display the martial prowess he once had.
And for some reason, she herself had become stronger.
"Are you alright? You won't be able to hold a bow again."
Perhaps it was because he used innate qi.
Her father looked older than the last time she saw him.
However, there was a smile on his lips.
"My daughter is alive, what more could I ask for? That's all I wanted."
The master glanced at Jin Cheon-hee.
"Hee-ya, are you okay? It seemed like you wanted to keep this person under you..."
Regular qi could be recovered, but innate qi was different.
It was the life force itself.
He could still use internal energy, but it wouldn't be the same as before.
If he was a supreme expert before, now Gung-gwi would only show the skills of a third-rate warrior.
"Our Cheon-hee is such a kind child, she might feel fulfilled just by saving someone..."
The master had a big misconception about his disciple.
Reading the master's expression, Jin Cheon-hee nodded.
Jin Cheon-hee thought, "He's in a perfect state to be used."
In martial arts novels, there are many villains.
Among them, some have significant roles.
There are a few conditions for that...
A villain with a lot of money? They try to oppress the protagonist and end up getting defeated later.
Depending on whether the protagonist is from a humble background, a wealthy background, or if the genre involves reincarnation, regression, or possession, the way they get defeated varies.
But in any case, getting defeated is a given.
A strong villain? Strong villains always exist in martial arts.
They show tremendous martial prowess in the beginning and eventually become the stepping stones for the protagonist's enlightenment.
It's a self-sacrificing attitude.
Using them as fertilizer, the protagonist fights through life and death, and their sword energy transforms into a sword aura, reaching the realm of sword mastery.
They are like living elixirs.
They provide enlightenment that even the protagonist's master couldn't give.
But that's as far as it goes.
A 'strong villain' defeated by the protagonist is no longer a villain.
They either die, reform, or have their dantian destroyed and never appear again.
"In the end, the best is the weed villain."
No matter how many times you kill them, they come back stronger, sometimes becoming allies, continuing the story.
They are like weeds.
Gung-gwi walks the middle path between a strong villain and a weed villain.
A character that seems annoying yet somewhat cool at times.
In short, 'annoyingly cool.'
In the novel, there's a scene where Gung-gwi loses his family, becomes a villain, goes on a rampage, and exhausts his strength in a fight with the Heavenly Demon.
The enlightenment he gained then was something impossible without being in such a state.
"That's good."
While everyone was sad, Jin Cheon-hee alone smiled with satisfaction.
"Moreover, since he lost his martial arts, he's in a good state to recruit."
Life is the same for everyone.
People who treat you well during tough times are more touching than those who do when things are going well.
Moreover, he was indebted for saving his family.
Considering his nature, he would never forget this favor for the rest of his life.
Gung-gwi continued, "Moreover, my daughter's martial prowess has become stronger than before. As a father, what could be more joyous than this?"
Before being Gung-gwi, he was a parent.
A parent who lived looking only at his child like a fool.
"Let me check your pulse."
When Jegal-rin extended her hand, her daughter, Wang Gak-yeon, who was on the bed, offered her arm.
After checking the pulse for a while, the master spoke.
"All three meridians are open."
At those words, Gung-gwi shouted in surprise, "Are you saying all three meridians?!"
For fifteen days, she had been hovering between life and death, sustaining her body with elixirs, qi, and various great techniques.
She had endured to the last limit in Jegal-rin's mysterious formation and even received her father's innate qi.
She seemed surprised as well, her eyes wide open.
Jegal-rin said, "But it's temporarily open. If left as it is, it will close again."
"Does that mean..."
"From now on, you must practice for ten days, sending internal energy through all the meridians. The medical staff will assist with acupuncture, so if you endure for ten days, you can continue to live with the meridians open."
Internal energy passes through numerous meridians in the body.
Whether qi moves along blood vessels or nerves, Jin Cheon-hee couldn't know.
It's not visible, and there are no medical devices from Earth.
Just seeing the turbid qi being expelled as pure essence after cleansing, he speculates it's closer to blood vessels than nerves.
For a martial artist, having all the meridians open is significant.
It means it's easier to manipulate and accumulate internal energy in the desired form, so even using the same martial arts, the destructive power and application change.
With tears in her eyes, Wang Gak-yeon said, "Thank you... really, thank you. Dad, thank you so much too."
"No, no. This favor started because of this useless father. The ones to thank are these people."
Jegal-rin replied coldly, "It's not something to thank us for. And those who tried to resolve grudges by beating such a young child are the bad ones."
They were people from the orthodox sect.
The master didn't delve into it, but he couldn't understand what was entangled to do such a cruel thing to a child like this.
In fact, Jin Cheon-hee couldn't quite imagine it.
Maybe that's why Gung-gwi went mad.
The patient in front of him was a child around Jin Cheon-hee's age.
Gung-gwi bowed deeply again.
"I don't know how to repay this favor."
His daughter, still not fully recovered, tried to get up from the bed to bow deeply with her father.
Jegal-rin, surprised, stopped her.
"You shouldn't move yet."
"But..."
"It's okay. In fact, I didn't do much."
He looked at Jin Cheon-hee.
Wang Gak-yeon said, "Actually, I heard from my dad. If it weren't for Jin So-hyeop, I would have already died. And..."
She hesitated for a moment.
Gung-gwi's expression wasn't good.
Jin Cheon-hee asked, "Are you okay?"
She nodded and smiled brightly.
"Yes. Dad is just dad. I'll fulfill the chivalrous deeds he couldn't. Haha!"
With eyes red from tears, she laughed heartily.
She continued, "I knew it. Dad is a fool who knows only one thing and not the other. I always thought I should learn martial arts diligently just in case. So I trained a lot."
Jegal-rin nodded.
"Yes. The fact that your body could endure that time, and that your meridians were opened, is all because you put in more effort than others at your age."
Even luck requires effort to grasp.
Wang Gak-yeon said to her father, "So don't cry. It's okay. I'm alive and well, right? Dad, I'm okay now."
"..."
Gung-gwi didn't answer.
He couldn't answer.
He just hugged his daughter.
Jin Cheon-hee thought, "To be so composed in this situation, she might be called a master or a sage in the future."
A great tree is recognized from its sprout, and her capacity is already extraordinary.
The fact that she fought and survived against adult villains presumed to be from the orthodox sect in her first real battle means she's not an ordinary person.
If so, that's a good thing too.
She's around Jin Cheon-hee's age, and if she grows up like this, she'll often be talked about among the martial artists.
"Two birds with one stone."
With one good deed, he gained the favor of Gung-gwi and a future master.
Jin Cheon-hee asked innocently, "Um... so everything is resolved, right?"
Of course not.
The next problem remained.
It was time to collect after laying the groundwork.
As expected, Gung-gwi's expression darkened.
"He took the bait. Shall I reel it in?"
His hands itched.
Jin Cheon-hee felt like Jiang Taigong as he pulled the line.
Since it wasn't something to say in front of the patient, Jin Cheon-hee went outside with Gung-gwi Wang Chae-baek.
His master, Jegal-rin, went inside, as he still needed rest.
Saying the evening wind was cold.
In fact, it meant leaving the next part to Jin Cheon-hee.
"Honestly, I don't know what to do next, Jin So-hyeop."
Even if he wanted revenge, he no longer had the power to achieve it.
Even if he wanted to go out to work, he was likely to die miserably because of the grudges he had accumulated.
The adult and child walked through the bamboo forest of the medical pavilion.
"I've heard that medical pavilions always have lush bamboo groves, but the bamboo grove of Baeklin Medical Pavilion is particularly beautiful."
Bamboo is an indispensable material for medical pavilions.
The roots are used as medicine, the sap is used to mature herbs, and the body becomes bamboo slips, saving expensive paper.
It's also perfect for making boxes to store pills.
The leaves are used as tea leaves, and the bamboo shoots are finely chopped, boiled until soft, and added to patient meals.
Bamboo doesn't require much soil and grows well with just rain, so medical pavilions always have lush bamboo groves.
"Don't medical halls also create bamboo groves these days?"
"They do, but they can't compare to a medical pavilion."
When the wind blew, the bamboo swayed, and the sound of leaves brushing against each other sounded like rain.
Another advantage of a bamboo forest is that sounds don't travel far.
In a completely quiet place, one could focus on hearing, but a bamboo forest is quiet yet filled with sound.
Moreover, if someone approaches, you can notice it immediately, making it perfect for secret conversations.
For a medical pavilion that often deals with the secrets of the martial world, it was very important.
"Looking closely, the bamboo seems to be arranged like a formation."
It was a forest created by Jegal-rin, a master of mysterious formations.
It was obvious that there was a principle that ordinary people wouldn't know.
When they reached the middle of the bamboo forest, Gung-gwi Wang Chae-baek spoke.
"I've seen many first-rate warriors become third-rate warriors after receiving countless requests from the martial world. I've also seen their endings. It's something I've prepared for."
He spoke calmly.
The wind blew through the bamboo forest again.
The sound of rain came rushing in.
He continued, "Thanks to your favor, Jin So-hyeop, my situation is somewhat better. My daughter, Gak-yeon, has overcome a wall at such a young age. As a parent, what greater joy is there than seeing your child surpass you?"
A small smile appeared on his lips.
It was the expression of someone who had accepted death.