"Let's Be Friends! But You Have to Speak Casually, Okay?"
To think my wish would come true so easily.
Wang Gak-yeon was bewildered.
"What? Uh, okay! Got it."
She nodded and added, "About what we talked about earlier, don't tell my dad..."
"Sure. It's a secret. I'll just be one of your many friends."
Only then did Wang Gak-yeon's expression turn serious.
"No, it's not like that. You're special. You'll always be a special friend to me."
Jin Cheon-hee thought, 'Why do kids who grow up too fast make my heart ache like this?'
Sometimes, when consulting in pediatrics, such things happen.
It's okay when a child cries because the shot hurts, but when they look at their dad and say, 'I took the shot well.
It didn't hurt at all.'
'Yeah, it's not because of you, but it feels like it is, doesn't it?'
Jin Cheon-hee held back from patting her head.
Since he was in a child's body himself, patting the head of a kid of the same height would just look silly.
Jin Cheon-hee said, "Then, shall we go out and play?"
"Can we?"
"Yeah. Skipping a day like this won't cause any trouble. I've checked your pulse, so I guarantee it."
At those words, Wang Gak-yeon's face brightened.
But only for a moment...
"Uh, how do we play?"
"First, you can't use your inner power."
"Of course not. I'm not fully recovered yet."
"That's not the issue. Even when you're fully recovered, you absolutely can't."
Wang Gak-yeon quickly understood the meaning of those words and nodded.
"Right. Using martial arts to bully commoners is something only the unscrupulous of the unorthodox sects would do."
Perhaps because she had heard stories of heroes since she was a toddler, it was ingrained in her brain.
Jin Cheon-hee thought to himself, 'Someone from the orthodox sects oppressed you.
Commoners are at least adults, but you, little one... sigh.'
Anyway, these are stories to think about when she grows up.
Whether she forgets her current resentment by then is entirely her choice.
This was all Jin Cheon-hee could say to her.
"As for what to play, let's follow the rules of the neighborhood. They must have something they do for fun."
Jin Cheon-hee stood up.
"Let's go."
"Hehehe."
Wang Gak-yeon's lips curled into a smile.
She had made a friend for the first time.
Her wish had come true.
For the young her, it was a joy far greater than having all her meridians unblocked.
006. Four Pillars
Days passed.
Gung-gwi joined the medical pavilion, and Wang Gak-yeon was still a patient.
Winter began to settle in earnestly.
The nights in the mountains were long and even darker.
Occasionally, the cries of wild animals echoed from afar.
Sometimes, human screams could be heard too.
But whether they were truly human or the cries of monsters was something the old medical pavilion master told the young Jin Cheon-hee was unknown.
As the days grew shorter, more wounds began to appear on the hands.
The skin, exposed to the harsh winds that felt like cuts from a knife, turned red.
Jin Cheon-hee, regardless, continued to devote himself endlessly to training.
"They said once you reach a certain level in the Five Elements Mind Technique, this won't be a problem."
Indeed, the medical pavilion masters of Baekrin Medical Pavilion looked 10 or 20 years younger even as they aged.
Among the three great medical pavilions under heaven, the masters of Baekrin Medical Pavilion were known for their appearance, with some even boasting that they were unparalleled in the world.
Of course, their skills were also unparalleled, needless to say.
In the deepening winter, time bloomed and withered like petals repeatedly.
"It's already been several months since I came to this world."
Jin Cheon-hee opened his eyes to the cold dawn air.
It was snowing outside.
The mountain range where Baekrin Medical Pavilion was located was a place where snow fell heavily throughout the winter.
This was because the northwesterly winds clashed with the mountain range, causing snow to fall.
Jin Cheon-hee learned this from looking at the map of this continent, but interestingly, the people here already knew this fact.
Although not in the same way as on Earth, they interpreted it through the principles of yin and yang, reaching a similar conclusion, which was quite fascinating.
Fortunately, being in a hot spring basin meant it wasn't as cold as other mountains.
"Two hours of sleep a day, huh."
Jin Cheon-hee's sleep schedule was from 10 PM to 2 AM, totaling 4 hours.
It was also the time when growth hormones were released.
Somehow, his master knew this and made sure Jin Cheon-hee went to bed by 10 PM.
And waking up at 2 AM was Jin Cheon-hee's own choice.
Thanks to the inner energy filled in his dantian, even 4 hours of sleep felt as refreshing as 10 hours.
"So this is what the vessel Master talked about."
After thoroughly mastering the foundational Five Elements True Energy, he began to build his body.
For an ordinary person, it would have been tedious and they would have given up.
But by filling the vessel with the Five Elements Mind Technique, the synergy was tremendous.
Jin Cheon-hee slowly did exercises in his room.
It wasn't some grand qi exercise or Tai Chi.
It was Pilates.
He had been doing it every morning since his previous life.
Stretching was good for muscle relaxation and improving blood flow.
It also had the effect of awakening muscles that weren't usually used.
In fact, more than anything, in his previous life, he had twisted his back and pelvis due to poor posture, and before it led to surgery, he tried to fix it, which became a habit.
Then, seated meditation.
Jin Cheon-hee closed his eyes and slowly regulated his breathing.
The time for inhaling and exhaling gradually lengthened, became distant, and faded.
The boy felt the true energy between heaven and earth.
As he awakened his senses, he realized several times that this was not Earth.
This world was filled with the principles of the Five Elements and yin and yang.
As the old medical pavilion master said, the screams heard from the mountains might not be human but could be from monsters.
Because such beings really existed in this world.
Just as there were immortals and spiritual beings, there were also their opposites.
However, talking about them was avoided because 'they' might really hear it.
It's one of the long-standing superstitions of the elders.
"Well, there are stories in martial arts novels where the protagonist, after unifying the world, fights monsters or immortals."
When a novel does well, and the publisher begs the author not to finish it, and the author, thinking they might as well pay off their mortgage, often introduces such characters.
But Jin Cheon-hee found it surprisingly interesting and kept reading, even while complaining.
Indeed, strong enemies are always welcome when they appear.
"When it comes to immortals, Zhang Sanfeng always appears to have a showdown with the protagonist or passes on his insights."
Zhang Sanfeng.
He could be considered the representative immortal in martial arts novels.
Depending on the novel, when it becomes a long epic martial arts series with an enormous number of volumes, he sometimes becomes a power gauge.
"This novel also has monsters, doesn't it?"
Being a long series, monsters appear.
But it's much later in the novel.
Jin Cheon-hee began to slowly gather his energy.
Then, he suddenly sensed a strange energy from afar.
"Huh?"
A black dot, like a speck, was emitting a powerful energy wave, moving far away over the mountain.
The overwhelming yet subtle energy was enough to give him goosebumps.
He couldn't see who was exuding it as they ran.
Normally, it would have been impossible for Jin Cheon-hee to sense such a thing.
"What is this? Did the Five Elements Mind Technique have such an effect? I've never heard Master mention it."
Maybe he was mistaken.
Jin Cheon-hee concluded that himself.
"Yeah. How could a beginner like me sense that?"
If someone who had just learned could sense it, Jin Cheon-hee thought anyone in the medical pavilion would have sensed it first.
Once he felt the black dot completely disappear, Jin Cheon-hee slowly opened his eyes.
Two hours.
In modern time, it meant he had spent a full four hours on morning energy cultivation.
Now his inner power was quite substantial.
He felt at least 15 years' worth of energy in his lower abdomen.
"The medicinal power of the Heavenly Song Pill has been completely absorbed into my inner power."
It was a spiritual medicine he received from Gongson Hyun.
In fact, if he were greedy, he could accumulate even more inner power, but impurities would only hinder the energy cultivation of the Five Elements Mind Technique.
He absorbed only the purest wood energy and burned away the rest without hesitation.
Along with consuming various medicinal herbs and spiritual medicines, he continued energy cultivation without missing a single day.
Moreover, he was training not only seated meditation but also the Five Elements Mind Technique, so the speed at which his inner power accumulated was unimaginable.
In half a year, he had gained 15 years' worth of inner power, defying the common sense of the martial world.
It was something that would have been impossible without the help of spiritual medicine.
"Today's energy cultivation is done!"
6 AM, which in martial world terms was the hour of the rabbit (5 AM to 7 AM).
At 6 AM, Baekrin Medical Pavilion began to awaken.
The bell rang from the medical pavilion hall.
The heavy bell sound shook the bamboo forest, shaking off the cold from every corner.
Servants woke up to start their work in the medical pavilion, and the medical pavilion masters finished their morning energy cultivation and began their duties.
Since the medical pavilion masters also needed to cultivate inner power for treatment, morning energy cultivation was essential.
"Today is the day I'm officially appointed as a medical pavilion master."
Skipping the trainee stage.
It was beyond exceptional, almost unbelievable.
However, that trainee had saved a patient that even Baekrin Medical Immortal Jegal Lin couldn't save at the branch of Unryong Escort Agency, and had saved Gung-gwi's daughter, whom Baekrin Medical Immortal Jegal Lin had given up on.
Therefore, today, a formal meeting would begin to discuss Jin Cheon-hee's position.
As a result, the four great masters of Baekrin Medical Pavilion gathered in one place.
The atmosphere in the medical pavilion was heavy.
The four masters who moved Baekrin Medical Pavilion sat in their seats like the star points on a Go board.
Then, the direct disciples who served each master sat on either side as the stones.
Jin Cheon-hee, guided by Yoo Ho, sat at the very end.
It was the position of Jin Cheon-hee, who had just entered the medical pavilion and had not yet been assigned an official seat.
In the cool air, no one dared to greet Jin Cheon-hee.
But only one person, an elderly woman with a kind face, gave Jin Cheon-hee a nod.
She was Manpagok, the one in charge of the medicinal herbs department.
With her unique name, she often gave Jin Cheon-hee honey-soaked bellflowers, dried persimmons, and various other things.
She was well-liked and had no enemies within the medical pavilion.
With a generous and large build, her voice was deep and hearty.
As an expert in medicinal herbs and quick with calculations, she had strong connections with merchants, easily obtaining herbs that couldn't be found in other medical pavilions.
Finally, the door opened, and Master walked in.
With his long silver hair neatly tied, Master looked taller than usual.
"Originally, he was already quite large, but now he even exudes an aura of intimidation."