If the Great Return Pill of Shaolin Temple is similar to the Thousand-Year Pill, then this White Pine Pill is said to resemble the Small Return Pill of Shaolin Temple.
That's right.
Just this one pill alone is enough to stir up a storm in the martial world.
"Considering her position in the Gongsun family, it might even be considered a small amount... But this is not something you would give to a child with no background. What is the Gongsun family aiming for?"
Baek Lin, also known as Zhuge Lin, smiled bitterly.
She didn't fully believe that it was a mere child who had saved her.
Rather, she thought that Baek Lin was being humble and passing the credit to a child.
It was understandable.
Even Zhuge Lin herself found it hard to believe.
"That's why... The Gongsun family must be aiming for something."
Zhuge Lin thought to herself and then stared intently at the extraordinary boy in front of her.
Outwardly, she showed no sign of it, but inwardly, she laughed.
Everyone was holding their breath, but the boy in front of Zhuge Lin was just rolling his eyes around.
Was he trying to read the room? No, that wasn't it.
That expression was something else entirely.
"A bit of annoyance and frustration? Really..."
What an interesting kid.
That's why she wanted to take Jin Cheon-hee as her disciple even more.
Unaware of what Zhuge Lin was thinking, Jin Cheon-hee was feeling frustrated inside.
"What the hell is going on? What's with that silver pill? Ah, if only they had told me the name of the pill, I could have at least guessed..."
"Um... Excuse me, but what kind of medicine is this? Seeing how everyone is surprised, it must be something precious..."
'I've read enough novels.
Just tell me the name, and I'll figure it out myself.'
With these strange thoughts, Jin Cheon-hee asked.
Then, Baek Lin replied, "It's a good medicine for internal injuries. It will also help with headaches. Your body has been overworked while you were sick, and it has taken a toll. It would be best to take it right away."
'Hey, mister! That's not what I'm asking! If it's good for internal injuries...
Is it some kind of elixir? Judging by the reactions, it must be an elixir...
Ah, whatever.
I'll just take it since they're giving it to me.
A patient should listen to the doctor.'
Just a while ago, he had saved someone, but now he was the patient.
Jin Cheon-hee took the pill and swallowed it in one gulp.
A refreshing fragrance spread in his throat.
At the same time, his head felt a bit dizzy, and he staggered.
"Ah, take this too. It will help you sleep."
A man with narrow eyes handed him a decoction.
Jin Cheon-hee gulped it down. 'This medicine is strong...
Huh...
My eyes are closing...'
As soon as he finished the decoction, Jin Cheon-hee fell into a deep sleep.
"The patient needs to rest, so please everyone, leave."
At his words, the guards nodded.
"He seems even more extraordinary than what I've heard."
"It reminds me of our foolish son, and it's a bit embarrassing."
Some of the guards blushed and scratched the back of their heads.
Baek Lin smiled kindly and sent everyone away.
Empty room.
To ensure no one would disturb them, Yuho closed the curtains.
"Are you really going to take him as your disciple?"
"Yes."
"What if he refuses... No, who would refuse to become the disciple of the renowned Baek Lin? But I'm worried."
"Yes. I'm worried too. What if the child refuses?"
"What do you mean...?"
Yuho clicked his tongue.
The person he served always had a strange side to him.
Yuho thought this time would be no different.
Baek Lin took out a golden needle from his pocket.
"Even so, if I show sincerity, his heart might be moved. Let's begin."
"You're not going to use that precious thing on this kid, are you?"
"Yes."
As soon as he said that, Baek Lin's golden needle pierced Jin Cheon-hee's forehead.
With a dull thud, Jin Cheon-hee's body twitched unconsciously.
Yuho looked at Jin Cheon-hee's body and thought, 'Pitiful or enviable? Since you've caught the master's eye, your life won't be easy anymore.'
He dreamed of becoming a butterfly.
It wasn't like Zhuangzi's dream of a butterfly.
It was a dream of being caught by a madman and having needles stuck all over his body.
On top of that, he was being dipped in fire and ice, and it was almost unbearable. 'Ugh...
Save the butterfly.'
He remembered cursing everything he could.
He just wished this situation would end.
When he woke up from the dream, the ceiling he saw before falling asleep was the same.
The only difference was that he was now naked. 'What is this terrible smell?'
A nauseating stench, like rotting food waste, filled the air.
"Ah, you're awake."
It was Baek Lin. 'Did he stay up all night nursing me? Wait, Baek Lin wouldn't do such simple nursing himself; he would have his servants do it...'
Surely, the renowned Baek Lin wouldn't have personally nursed him.
He must have just come to check on him and happened to be there when he woke up.
That's what Jin Cheon-hee guessed.
When he sat up, something sticky was clinging to his back.
It was a black liquid, very sticky.
It felt more like a dried-up rubber lump than a liquid.
"Huh?"
This seemed to be the source of the terrible smell.
Baek Lin spoke, "Surprisingly, there wasn't much impurity accumulated in your body. Your constitution isn't bad either. Are you feeling any discomfort?"
"Not at all. In fact, my body feels incredibly light. Ah, please, lower your speech. I'm just a child, and if you keep using honorifics, I won't know how to act."
At his words, Baek Lin smiled slightly.
That alone made the room feel much brighter. 'So this is what they mean by a beauty that can light up a room.'
It was amazing how someone could be so beautiful.
"Then I'll speak casually."
"Yes, please do. But what do you mean by impurities? Wasn't this for internal injuries?"
"While treating you, I also performed a cleansing of your meridians. Since you'll be learning martial arts in the future, it's good to have that done."
'Meridian cleansing!?'
Meridian cleansing.
It was a staple in martial arts novels.
A technique that uses qi and medical treatment to cleanse the body of all impurities. 'What...
So I just had my blood vessels cleaned?'
Even in modern times, there are many vascular diseases.
A common one is high cholesterol levels and the buildup of impurities in the blood vessels.
This can lead to venous diseases like myocardial infarction.
Even strokes are related to vascular diseases.
Having clean blood vessels is, of course, good for health.
And in martial arts novels, receiving a meridian cleansing means... 'It's great for learning martial arts...
Wait? Didn't he just say that I'll be learning martial arts in the future? Who decided that?'
Jin Cheon-hee was confused by all these thoughts. 'But if it's Baek Lin performing the meridian cleansing, it must be more special than what ordinary martial families do.
Why would he do that for me?'
Moreover, Baek Lin was talking about the meridian cleansing as if it were just a post-treatment nutrient drip.
"First, you should wash up. Yuho!"
The grand bathhouse of the Yunlong Escort Agency.
As expected of a place that controls the Yangtze River, even the branch was quite luxurious.
Normally, it would have been used by the guards, but following Baek Lin's words, they gave him the best spot.
Various medicinal herbs floated in the large bath.
Yuho helped Jin Cheon-hee bathe and asked a few questions.
Where he lived, who his parents were, if he had ever joined any sect. 'If I say I died and reincarnated, they'll think I'm crazy.'
In the end, every time he was asked, he could only reply, "Ah, my headache..."
When he woke up in this body, there were already signs of a head injury, so it was better to pretend to have partial amnesia.
Of course, the probability of actually getting amnesia from being hit is much lower than just dying.
But. 'If I say I don't remember, what can they do?'
Even though the body was that of an innocent young boy, the mind inside was that of a middle-aged man who had been through a lot.
With the innocent expression of a child, he managed to dodge the questions, and eventually, Yuho gave up on probing.
Finally, when he entered the bath, Yuho told him to call when he was done and left. 'That servant is quite persistent.
Well, if I were in his shoes, I'd be curious too about some random kid who received Baek Lin's meridian cleansing...'
Splash— As Jin Cheon-hee moved, the water rippled gently. 'Ah, this is a child's body.'
In his past life, he died saving someone.
Now, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he lived because he saved someone. 'How ironic.
So ironic.'
The funny thing was, even in this situation, he wondered if that child he had shielded in front of the rebel's gun had survived.
Since he had already given his life, he hoped it wasn't in vain.
Why save someone? Why go to such lengths to save someone? Why didn't I just leave them in the mountains? If I had arrived at a den of thieves or wolves instead of the Yunlong Escort Agency, I would have died. 'I don't know.
I really don't know, Director.'
If there was anyone close to a father figure, it would be the director of the orphanage.
Even while cursing, his body always moved first.
He sorted through the events of his past life, which felt like just yesterday.
It was a life without family, relatives, or loved ones.
The only one who could truly mourn Jin Cheon-hee was Jin Cheon-hee himself.
It was a damn life.
But it was also a life where he had done his best.
'Come to think of it, that novel didn't have an author.' It was just in his purchase list, and there was no author or publisher listed.
At the time, he didn't think much of it.
He wasn't the type to pay attention to such details.
Putting that thought aside, he returned to reality. 'What should I do now?'
He had only his body in this world.
From what Yuho said, the people who might know about this body had already died in a bandit attack.
The only thing people knew was that he was an orphan.
And that he was heading to Xuzhou. 'Xuzhou...
Xuzhou...'
It was a familiar name.
It had been mentioned several times in the book. 'Ah, it's where the Demon Sect's branch is hidden.'
The protagonist, Heavenly Demon Yeo Ha-ryun, joins the Demon Sect through Xuzhou.
There, he undergoes harsh trials and humiliations to grow.
The Demon Sect is a place where strength is justice.
If you become a minor sect leader, you are given the Blood Demon Pill.
Taking the Blood Demon Pill causes your martial arts and internal energy to skyrocket, and your body becomes suitable for learning the Heavenly Demon Art.
However, those who take the Blood Demon Pill cannot live past their twenties.
There is only one way to survive.
You must absorb the internal energy and innate qi of someone who has also taken the Blood Demon Pill and learned the Heavenly Demon Art.
In other words, you must kill and devour each other.