“I haven't even repaid a tenth of the debt I owe the Divine Physician, and yet you're leaving so suddenly?”
Lady Heo, a peerless beauty who would rank among the finest in all of Sichuan, dabbed at her tear-filled eyes with her sleeve.
“There's no need for repayment. Seeing all of you healthy and well is reward enough for me.”
“But if it weren't for you, my child might never have seen the light of day.”
“That's right!”
“If we'd known you were leaving, we would have done more for you…”
Once one person started crying, even the maids who had been cheerfully saying their farewells began to sniffle.
“We'll miss you!”
“Sob…”
“Please allow us to bow our heads one more time. Thank you.”
Had I really formed connections with this many people?
I had lived under the protection of the Tang Clan of Sichuan for quite a long time now, and as a physician I had naturally met countless people. I had only informed about ten of those I was particularly close to that I would be leaving.
Yet dozens had come to see me off.
“Once you leave, who am I supposed to take my husband's chronic illness to?”
The leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
The great devil who had given me the title Divine Physician and made my name famous across the martial world stood with her arms crossed, pouting.
When we first met, she had terrified me.
But after I treated her husband and became acquainted with them, we had grown close enough to speak almost like old friends.
“You needn't worry about your husband. As I've always said, he'll be perfectly fine if he simply stops those dawn training sessions.”
“I'll remember that. Ah, if you ever return to the Central Plains, be sure to contact the Cult.”
I waved my hands dismissively, but the Heavenly Demon clasped my hand tightly, clearly reluctant to let go.
“Tsk.”
Someone clicked his tongue in disapproval.
The only man in the world who could openly scowl in front of the Heavenly Demon.
The Martial Alliance Leader.
“Young Master Namgung is doing well, I trust?”
I hurriedly stepped between the two.
Neither would cause trouble at a gathering held to see me off, but the two absolute masters who competed for the title of the strongest under heaven were walking natural disasters waiting to happen.
“Of course.”
“Haha, that's wonderful to hear.”
“The boy wished to come personally and pay his respects, but his body still isn't ready to use lightness techniques.”
“Then he absolutely should be resting!”
Unlike the Heavenly Demon's husband, whom I had treated regularly, I had only met the Martial Alliance Leader's son less than a year ago.
His internal injuries had been so severe that his blood and bodily fluids were nearly exhausted. He had barely clung to life.
There was no way I would allow him to travel all this distance just to see me.
“The Martial Alliance will always welcome the Divine Physician.”
“That is truly an honor.”
Since they had all come so far to bid me farewell, I sincerely thanked each and every one of them.
But this couldn't continue forever.
“Take care, everyone! Thank you for everything!”
If I delayed any longer, I might not leave today at all.
I bent at the waist in a perfect ninety-degree bow.
It wasn't exactly proper etiquette in this world.
But so what?
Though I can't believe Master really didn't come. Even if he's upset, I thought he'd at least see me off...
I scanned the crowd one final time.
My master's face was nowhere to be seen.
With lingering regret, I activated my movement technique and departed.
It had already been twenty years since I had suddenly fallen into this world straight out of a martial arts novel.
More than ten of those years had been spent here in Tangjiatuo, the home of the Tang Clan.
All thanks to my master, who had generously given me a place within the clan's medical pavilion.
Tsk. I knew he'd be upset, but still...
He was the only person who knew my hometown wasn't merely some distant land beyond the frontier.
I had expected him to be shocked.
But trying to stop me from leaving?
And insisting that I settle here permanently?
I appreciated the sentiment, but that was impossible.
For twenty years, not a single day had passed when I hadn't longed for my homeland—
South Korea.
It wasn't as though I had been overflowing with patriotism before.
And now, there wasn't a martial artist alive who could truly threaten me.
The people I had met here were precious to me.
My reputation touched the heavens.
Gold and treasures piled up like mountains.
But what good is that? No amount of gold can build an internet network.
I was the sort of person who preferred gaming under a microfiber blanket to lounging in silk robes surrounded by treasure.
To reclaim those precious days, I had researched tirelessly.
And finally—
I succeeded.
“Forgive me, Master! I pray that you remain healthy and at peace. This disciple will continue to wish for your well-being, even from distant Korea!”
After bowing toward Tangjiatuo, where my master undoubtedly remained,
I activated the Soul-Returning Grand Art.
I had waited and prepared for this day.
At the moment when the moon vanished completely and yin energy reached its peak, I poured nearly all the internal energy I had accumulated over twenty years into the technique.
Woooooo—
A brilliant light enveloped me.
Exactly the same sight I had witnessed when I was first brought to this world.
A twenty-story building towering into the sky.
Cars moving faster than any lightness technique.
People dressed in nylon and polyester.
A world I had dreamed of for twenty years.
“Huh? Where did you—wait. Yeowon? Why are you still here?”
The hotel room door opened, and fluent Korean struck my ears.
How long had it been since I'd heard my native language?
At the sight of my old friend, tears nearly welled in my eyes.
“Weren't you supposed to leave for Sichuan by train earlier? Don't tell me you missed it?”
“Yeah. Traffic was bad.”
“Oh my god! What are you going to do? Shouldn't you book another train?”
My friend hurriedly pulled out her phone in a panic.
Meanwhile, I wanted to scream with joy.
I had succeeded.
I had truly returned.
Fourth weekend of August.
Beijing, China.
The time and location were perfect down to the last second.
“Forget it. Since this happened, I'll just go back to Korea.”
My name was Han Yeowon.
And my friend was Hwang Seoyoung.
We had come to China during our final summer vacation.
Not simply for tourism.
Both of us were fourth-year students at Korea University's College of Korean Medicine, participating in a clinical training program at a university-affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine hospital.
We had already completed practical training at our own university hospital, but wanted to encounter a wider variety of patients in China.
Though I definitely didn't expect that much variety...
Of course, it wasn't as though I intended to spend the entire trip going only between the hotel and the hospital.
I had always loved wuxia novels.
And among all the martial arts clans, the Sichuan Tang Clan was my favorite.
I also happened to adore spicy food.
Málàtàng. Hot pot.
I was obsessed.
How could someone like me visit China without going to Sichuan?
“What are you talking about? You've been excited about this for months! There'll be another ticket. If not today, then tomorrow.”
Unlike me, Seoyoung cared only about the medical training.
No matter how close we were, she wasn't interested in transferring trains multiple times just to reach Sichuan.
So I had planned to spend the final week of vacation traveling there alone.
Or rather—
I actually had gone.
Twenty years ago, from my perspective.
Only a few hours ago, from everyone else's.
I had left at dawn, arrived in Sichuan, and immediately gotten lost.
Whew...
Even now, recalling that day made my heart race.
As I wandered through an unfamiliar place where I couldn't communicate properly, an old man approached me speaking flawless Korean.
Anyone should have found that suspicious.
But hearing my native language in a foreign land lowered my guard.
I followed him.
The moment I felt something strange as we entered a deserted area, a brilliant white light swallowed me.
As for everything that happened afterward...
Ten entire novels wouldn't be enough to tell the story.
“Forget it. I'm not going to Sichuan. Let's just go home together.”
The destination I had set for the Soul-Returning Grand Art was this very hotel in Beijing, moments before I boarded the train.
I would have preferred to return directly to my home in Korea.
But if something went wrong and created problems with immigration records, it would be troublesome.
Returning to this exact point in time was safer.
“What? You're just giving up and going home?”
Returning home had been my deepest wish for twenty years.
I would never set foot in Sichuan again.
No—
I would never set foot in China again.
I would finish the remainder of university quietly and live a peaceful life.
“Honestly, I was already feeling too tired to go anyway.”
Despite my determination, I merely smiled awkwardly.
“What...? Don't tell me this is because I said I didn't want to fly home alone?”
“Of course not.”
Seoyoung frowned and tilted her head.
My sudden change in attitude clearly confused her.
“Fine. I'll check if there are seats left on today's flight.”
Thankfully, she didn't argue further.
Since I'd already missed the train, there was little point in leaving me behind.
Besides, she seemed happy enough to have company during the long flight.
After navigating the complicated boarding procedures, we finally boarded the plane.
“Wow~ It's a relief there were seats available.”
I collapsed into my window seat.
Gathering the remnants of internal energy still lingering in my dantian was surprisingly exhausting.
“Seriously.”
“You're really okay with the ticket price?”
Seoyoung asked cautiously.
The old me would have panicked at paying full-price airfare on the day of departure.
The current me?
A few hundred thousand won meant nothing.
“Don't worry about it. It's not like I intended to miss the train.”
As she'd said, finding available seats was fortunate enough.
My bank account could wait until I got home.
A moment later, the announcement came over the speakers.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard Korean Air Flight 875 bound for Incheon International Airport. We will be departing shortly. Please turn off all electronic devices.”
I couldn't use my phone immediately after returning.
It hurt my soul.
“What should I do first when I get back to Korea?”
Still, in just a few hours I'd finally be home.
“Classes start right away. It's not like you'll have time for anything.”
“Kimchi stew first, obviously. Then hamburgers. Spaghetti. Oh—and tempura udon!”
Seoyoung tried to dampen my excitement.
It didn't work.
Since I couldn't use my phone, I turned on the entertainment screen attached to the seat in front of me.
The graphics looked ancient.
But after twenty years of digital detox, they felt revolutionary.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
I gleefully blasted enemy fighter jets while chatting with Seoyoung.
About an hour later—
“Are there any medical professionals among the passengers?”
The flight attendant's urgent announcement made me jump to my feet automatically.
“Yes!”
It was a habit forged on battlefields where every second mattered and every life counted.
“Huh?”
A startled Seoyoung looked up from her drowsy state.
“Han Yeowon, what are you doing?”
Only then did reality catch up with me.
I'm not the Divine Physician anymore!
Right...
What was I doing?
By the time I realized my mistake, the flight attendant was already approaching.
It wasn't that I feared encountering a patient I couldn't treat.
I couldn't cure every illness in existence.
But I possessed the confidence that if I couldn't save someone, neither could anyone else.
The real problem was my license.
I've treated every bizarre illness imaginable, yet here I'm technically an unlicensed practitioner.
As a student in modern society, performing medical treatment recklessly could lead to serious legal trouble.
“There's another doctor over here!”
At that moment, someone in the rear cabin raised a hand.
Thankfully, there was another medical professional aboard.
I secretly sighed in relief.
“Could both of you come forward, please?”
Feeling considerably more relaxed, I headed toward the patient.
Seoyoung followed anxiously behind.
To be fair, setting aside my twenty years in the martial world, my real-world clinical experience amounted to little more than a handful of volunteer medical missions.
Her nervousness was understandable.
“Huff... Huff...”
At the very front of the aircraft, in the open area before business class, a man in his early thirties wearing a tailored suit struggled to breathe.
“A-Are you doctors?”
Clutching his chest in agony, he looked at us as though we were saviors.
“Yes.”
The answer came not from me, but from the other physician.
A middle-aged man whose lined face carried the weight of experience.
He radiated confidence.
“How many years have you been practicing?”
Instead of taking the patient's hand, he turned to me.
Given appearances alone, his seniority vastly exceeded mine.
The implication was obvious.
He intended to handle the case himself.
Looks like he's always wanted a chance to answer an in-flight doctor call.
That suited me just fine.
“I'm still—mmph!”
I quickly covered Seoyoung's mouth before she could blurt out that we were students.
Then I bowed politely.
“I graduated not long ago. Please, go ahead.”
No need to create unnecessary complications.
Or make the patient nervous.
“Very well.”
His tone was arrogant, almost dismissive.
Still, plenty of martial arts masters had spoken the same way while teaching me.
Attitude and skill weren't necessarily related.
So I listened carefully to his examination.
...
And within moments, my lips twitched.
The diagnosis...
No.
This should not be heading in that direction.
