[My most beloved child. Thanks to you, I was able to protect the peace of this world. This goddess will remember your faithfulness for all eternity.]
A divine light descended from the sky, and with it, the voice of the goddess was heard.
It was the ending scene of Virtual Fantasy, a sight he was sick of seeing.
Baek Yuseong frowned and woke from his sleep.
"This dream again."
Five years had already passed since he was transmigrated into the game and began living as Baek Yuseong of Real Murim.
The dream, which he initially had once a month, had become more and more frequent, and now he was having it every single day.
For Yuseong, who had been transmigrated into Real Murim just for starting Virtual Fantasy, it was a phenomenon he was sick of seeing, but it wasn't as if he could just decide not to dream. It was a frustrating situation.
His frustration had only grown after his consultation with Doctor Yang yesterday.
To be told that not even a Great Luo Immortal, let alone the Medical Saint, could treat his dantian—didn't that mean no one could?
He had started learning medicine with the intention of treating himself, but he couldn't find a way to fix his dantian.
His only option was to be healed by a skilled doctor, but even that had ended in failure.
Despite having chosen all the best top-tier traits, his dantian was broken, forcing him to live as an ordinary person. It was no better than his life back in reality.
He had been dropped into a world where even the simple act of relieving himself was an inconvenience. It wasn't like he possessed some great scientific knowledge, so he desperately wanted to return to the reality outside the game.
"If this really is a game, there must be a clear condition, but how am I supposed to beat the final boss if I can't get my dantian back?"
He had already cleared Virtual Fantasy, so he knew the main story inside and out. If he couldn't be the protagonist, he could at least become a supporting character and help those with potential, but this was a newly released game he had started without any information, leaving him at a complete loss.
Yuseong let out a deep sigh.
"Sigh, what can I do? I have to at least do this job if I want to avoid going to the military twice."
This wasn't the Republic of Korea, but he refused to be dragged into the army again in ancient China.
Now that he could no longer borrow his family's power, this position as a doctor at the Luoyang Medical Center, which would register him as a practitioner of the Murim Alliance, was his only hope.
He had to stick to this place to avoid military service under the Treaty of Non-interference between the Government and the Murim.
It was a world where, for ages, countless people had avoided conscription by registering as practitioners in the Murim Alliance or various Murim sects and noble families.
Having decided to accept his reality, Yuseong took charge of the eleventh consultation room and waited for patients.
If he kept busy treating patients, he could make a lot of money and forget his grim situation.
"..."
But time passed by without a single thing happening.
Occasionally, patients would peer into his consultation room, but after seeing Yuseong, they would stealthily turn and walk away.
'Damn, my worries have become reality.'
He had an inkling this would happen.
To become a doctor, one had to read countless medical texts. The amount of study required was bound to be vast, as treatments differed depending on the patient's constitution, even for the same illness. And it was common sense that placing needles required a great deal of experience.
In the patients' eyes, Yuseong was too young.
***
Doctor Cha, who occupied the tenth consultation room, was inwardly bothered by the new doctor who had taken the room next to his.
Just because several doctors worked in the same medical center didn't mean they all earned the same income.
The Luoyang Medical Center had a system that allowed doctors to focus solely on treating patients without having to worry about other miscellaneous tasks.
And it applied a performance-based system where income differed depending on how many patients each doctor saw.
That was why the appearance of a new competitor made Doctor Cha nervous.
Even though he knew that the people who came to the Luoyang Medical Center, which was skilled but expensive, wouldn't just let any random person treat them.
However.
"Doctor Cha, the room next door is just collecting flies, you know?"
"Is that so? Well, it's hard for everyone at first. It was similar for me, wasn't it?"
"Goodness, Doctor Cha, patients were lining up for you from the very first day, weren't they? I remember it clearly."
"Haha, my memory is getting hazy in my old age, but you remember it well. Anyway, keep me updated on the situation."
After the servant who attended to the tenth consultation room left, Doctor Cha received his next patient with a pleased expression.
'Of course. He'll have a hard time establishing himself. Who would willingly let a young, unproven doctor treat them on the first day?'
Although Yuseong had officially passed the examination to get in, Doctor Cha believed he had passed by a fluke. After all, even he, who had devoted himself to medicine for over 20 years, had barely passed the difficult exam.
Just as Doctor Cha thought, people who showed interest in the newly opened eleventh consultation room quickly lost it.
"Did you hear? A new doctor has arrived. There's no line, so should we go there and check his skills? My shoulders are so stiff, it's hard to wait."
"Tsk, have you even seen the new doctor's face?"
"Huh? Why his face?"
"He's too young. He looks like he's barely twenty. Are you saying you'd let someone like that stick needles in you?"
"Only twenty? Huh, so that's why people were hesitant. They say ten years of study isn't enough for medicine. I don't know how he managed to pass the Luoyang Medical Center's exam. Maybe he passed by a fluke?"
"That's what I'm saying. Didn't Mr. Wang suffer for months after getting acupuncture from a quack doctor a while back? It's better to wait and see what others say before trying him."
"You're right. Well, let me know if you hear he's any good."
***
In the Murim Alliance's Chief Military Strategist's office, a woman in her early twenties was examining a report with a cold gaze.
Her skin was as white as if it had rarely seen the sun, and she was dressed in a calm scholar's robe, wearing a banggeon that her ancestor Zhuge Liang had often worn. She looked like a painting of an intelligent beauty.
However, the dark circles under her eyes slightly detracted from her beauty.
She continuously rubbed her eyelids and touched her head, looking utterly exhausted. Her name was Zhuge Yeongyeong.
After the previous Chief Military Strategist, Sima Byeong, retired, everyone had expected his son, Sima Cheon, to become the new Chief Military Strategist.
However, Zhuge Yeongyeong had competed with Sima Cheon in a battle of wits and succeeded in claiming the position for herself.
The Zhuge family, second to none in the Central Plains when it came to intelligence, had endured a time of humiliation for over a hundred years after losing the Chief Military Strategist position to the Sima family.
And finally, Zhuge Yeongyeong had resolved her family's long-cherished wish. All the family elders praised Zhuge Yeongyeong.
Zhuge Yeongyeong, too, had been happy for a while, having met the expectations of her family's elders.
But.
It wasn't all good.
The elders of the Murim Alliance watched her, the youngest-ever Chief Military Strategist, with a critical eye, and some were just waiting for her to make even a single trivial mistake.
In such a situation, Zhuge Yeongyeong, despite having learned martial arts, had to cut back on sleep to the point of straining her body and devote herself to her work.
"Chief Military Strategist, may I come in?"
"Come in."
When a subordinate from the Military Strategy Department entered, Zhuge Yeongyeong screamed internally.
The subordinate was carrying a huge pile of reports.
"I'm sorry. These are cases the Military Strategy Department has requested to be processed quickly..."
The state of the Murim had been strange lately.
The movements of the Eighteen Waterway Forts of the Yangtze River, the Seventy-two Strongholds of the Green Forest, and other small unorthodox factions were unusual, and there were signs that the Demonic Cult was ending its long silence and resuming its activities.
Because of this, not only Zhuge Yeongyeong but also the various strategists of the Military Strategy Department were all spending their days busy for the sake of peace in the Murim.
She couldn't reprimand her subordinate for no reason when she knew full well the reports were related to that.
"It's fine. Please put them there."
The subordinate placed the new reports on top of the pile of reports that were still left.
Looking at the mountain-like tower of reports, Zhuge Yeongyeong let out a faint sigh. Her subordinate spoke carefully.
"Um, Chief Military Strategist. You don't look well at all. How about going home early for just one day?"
It was a tempting suggestion, but Zhuge Yeongyeong didn't want to give an excuse to those who were just waiting for her to make a mistake.
"It's not that bad. I think I'll stop by the Luoyang Medical Center for a bit. I'll process the reports by the end of today."
***
An hour had passed since the morning consultations began, but Baek Yuseong still hadn't seen a single patient.
Although he had only studied medicine for two years, his medical skills had reached a considerable level.
It was thanks to the trait [Innate Five Senses], which worked even without a dantian.
Unlike skilled doctors who had their own secret techniques, he had learned medicine from books available on the market, so his skills were only faithful to the basics. But he was confident that with just a little more experience, he could become a well-regarded doctor even in the Luoyang Medical Center.
Yuseong resolved to show his skills and get many patients when the opportunity arose.
Just then, it suddenly became noisy outside.
"Eunseon! Eunseon!"
Along with the murmuring of the people waiting for their turn, a man's shout was heard, and Yuseong also rushed out of his consultation room.
In front of the tenth consultation room, people had formed a circle, surrounding two people.
In the center, a girl who looked to be about fifteen or sixteen was clutching her throat, gasping for breath as if she was having trouble breathing. The man who appeared to be her father was shaking her body frantically.
"What's wrong! Can't you breathe?!"
The father called out desperately, but the girl eventually collapsed, her body trembling, and fell backward.
"Everyone, step aside!"
Doctor Cha from the tenth consultation room was the first to rush out.
"Oh, Doctor Cha! Please save my daughter! She suddenly collapsed while we were waiting!"
While he was checking the girl's pulse, the other doctors also rushed out in surprise.
Yuseong also quickly approached the girl.
"What happened? Is it a seizure?"
Doctor Yang asked, but Doctor Cha's expression was dark. After a short while, Doctor Cha spoke.
"Her pulse isn't beating. I'm afraid it's too late."
The ashen-faced father's voice trembled.
"Don't tell me, are you saying my daughter is dead?!"
"Excuse me for a moment."
Doctor Yang asked for permission and checked the girl's pulse, then suddenly shouted at the servants.
"In my consultation room drawer, there is a thin bamboo tube. Bring it quickly!"
The surprised Doctor Cha asked.
"Is her pulse still beating? I was sure it had stopped."
"The pulse has stopped, but I have a secret technique I learned from my master, so I will give it a try. Don't get your hopes up. It's a method that only works on one out of ten people whose pulse has stopped."
"The Medical Saint's secret technique!"
"Ooh!"
The people let out cheers.
Apart from the desperate heart of the girl's father, they were more interested in the Medical Saint's secret technique that Doctor Yang was about to perform.
Yuseong, who had grasped the situation from Doctor Yang and Doctor Cha's conversation and the symptoms the girl had shown at the end, hurriedly reached for the girl's wrist.
"Doctor Yang, I don't know what method you're trying to use, but I think..."
"You brat! How dare a fledgling doctor interfere when Doctor Yang is providing treatment!"
"Doctor Cha, this is a matter of seconds..."
"Hmph! This man is the disciple of the Medical Saint!"
Doctor Yang stopped Doctor Cha and said to Yuseong.
"It's fine. If not for this method, not even my master could save this girl, so you should just watch."
Just then, a servant came running breathlessly, pushed Yuseong aside, and presented the thin bamboo tube.
Doctor Yang quickly opened the girl's mouth, pushed the bamboo tube into her airway, and blew breaths into it.
'So the method worth trying was giving rescue breaths. But for a heart attack, chest compressions are far more important than rescue breaths. It seems the Medical Saint knew that a person doesn't die immediately even if their pulse stops, but he didn't know about chest compressions.'
Doctor Yang blew a few more breaths through the bamboo tube, but there was no effect. Doctor Yang's expression also darkened rapidly.
'Any later and her brain cells will start to die. I have to act now!'