Surviving as a Rival in a Martial Arts Novel

Chapter 2 – Saving the Ailing Sister (02)

*Sob.*

Perhaps it was because of his youth, or maybe it was due to practicing martial arts that his body was robust. After sleeping for a day, the cold was almost gone. Though there was still a bit of a runny nose, there was no headache or trembling, so it seemed fine…

*Sniff.*

And looking at his master, who was coughing due to a cold right in front of him, it appeared that among the trio, I was the healthiest.

“I heard from Seolhwa. You caught a cold while taking care of the feverish Seolhwa… Achoo!”

This was truly a village of patients, a patient village.

“Well, yeah… that’s what happened.”

“I’m really grateful. Honestly, when I was climbing up the mountain, I thought it might already be too late. Still, it’s fortunate that you were there.”

The conversation was genuinely heartwarming.

Although the situation of wiping noses with sleeves wasn’t particularly elegant.

*Argh, in the spin-off where Cheongha doesn’t appear, Seolhwa is usually absent, making you my only family now… In the end, she would say she’ll give everything while chewing on Seolsam and pierce through the acupuncture points, clearing the poisoned channels. Well, still, being happy with something tacky is better than being elegantly sad.*

“How should Seolsam be prepared?”

“First, it needs to be eaten raw, but the problem is Seolhwa’s physical condition.”

To boost Seolhwa’s vitality using Seolsam, one needs to absorb the life force through acupuncture and blood circulation. Even I, with some accumulated internal energy and a healthy body, barely managed to absorb my master’s life force through acupuncture and blood circulation. If Seolhwa, who is currently weak, eats it as is, her body will immediately melt or her blood vessels will burst due to the intense life force.

In other words, the concern is how to feed Seolsam to Seolhwa safely.

“Wouldn’t it be inappropriate to boil something like a chicken?”

I tried to make something like Samgyetang, but it didn’t work.

“Boiling depletes the internal energy. It’s better to consume it raw. Also, doesn’t the efficacy get diluted when impurities are introduced?”

Well, Samgyetang is more for taste than for nourishment.

“If it doesn’t work, I can eat it to restore my vital energy, then continue to inquire about the methods of extracting and refining through Seolhwa…”

But then, all I can do is pee on one foot continuously. If you’re not regularly consuming Seolsam for nourishment, when vital energy is depleted, Seolhwa’s life is at risk.

“Or, you could try feeding her at least a part of it…”

“Sam must be consumed in its entirety to have any meaning.”

“Hmm…”

Already blocked by preconceptions.

“If you knew it would be like this, instead of rushing to get Seolsam, you should have gone to a professional pharmacist.”

Regretting now is pointless. It was something the remaining people had to figure out on their own.

“By the way, Master. What if we simmer it in the fire for a long time, then break it down and slowly feed it?”

“Didn’t I say not to boil it?”

“It’s not boiling; it’s collecting the evaporated state through steam and letting it flow…”

I mentioned it because it reminded me of when I used to cook that red ginseng for a long time, creating a sticky and viscous liquid.

“First, put Seolsam in the pot and seal the lid completely. Then, heat it vigorously over the fire…”

Though what I suggested was just a method seen in a red ginseng advertisement, whether chewed or boiled, there wasn’t much difference in the efficacy of red ginseng.

Basically, what I was saying was to make it seem plausible according to Master’s thoughts, but in the end, it was a suggestion to boil it.

“Got it. Let’s try that method then.”

If one has medical knowledge, they might reject or find it absurd, but since the master didn’t have much of that knowledge, he fell for my plausible words. I then applied a bit of moisture to the pot, closed the lid, and sealed the edges with flour to prevent steam from escaping.

Afterward, I started simmering it over a low flame for a long time.

“Well, it’s said that it’s good to take a tonic when the body feels weak, but… I wonder how effective it really is?”

Of course, in a world where internal energy exists, and there might be an enhancement in the threefold efficacy within my body… Anyway, if I can’t eat it, might as well boil and consume it.

So, after diligently boiling for about 72 hours, the equivalent of three days, I opened the lid expecting a thick, condensed tonic, but strangely, what came out was a thin and murky broth, much like ox bone soup.

The smell was a fragrant herbal scent, but looking at the color, it was undoubtedly ox bone.

“What is this? Did I put in cow bones?”

“Oh! The efficacy of the triple essence is truly remarkable!”

The master rejoiced at seeing it and brought two pottery vessels. Carefully transferring the contents into them, which had been thoroughly disinfected, he handed one to me.

“One is for you.”

“But, Master…?”

“What does this old man have to do with supplementing now?”

‘Is this also fate?’

Even if it’s only half, it’s the destiny that the triple essence enters Cheongha’s body.

“With it divided like this, even if this body doesn’t cooperate, it should be able to melt and assimilate on its own.”

“Thank you, Master.”

Well, why not? If he’s giving it for free, there’s no need to refuse.

“Now, Cheongha… be cautious and take a sip.”

The master carefully poured the strained triple essence into a drinking vessel and fed it to Cheongha. However, as Cheongha was carefully accepting the cup and sipping, suddenly, she threw the vessel to the ground and knelt on the floor.

“aaargh…!!”

‘Has something gone wrong?’

Is it fate that, just like the destiny of acquiring the Divine Ginseng in my hands, Seolhwa eventually holds the Divine Ginseng and transcends her frailty?

However, contrary to my concerns, from Seolhwa’s body, a white aura emanates. Her appearance, which was feeble until now, disappears completely, and even her black hair turns white, beginning to shine.

‘What on earth have I created?’

“Execution…! Master…! What in the world is this power…!”

I don’t know… What is this… It’s frightening…

* * *

There’s something called constitution.

In my current life, I have a constitution that doesn’t respond well to ginseng. Whether I eat it or not, my body only slightly warms up, and I don’t feel a significant difference. Among my friends, some have constitutions that respond well to ginseng, some get rashes when they eat it, and various other types.

When it comes to Seolhwa’s constitution, it’s not just responding well to ginseng; it’s absorbing it to the extent that a sip of Divine Ginseng transforms her from a frail constitution to a beauty with robust health.

‘Come to think of it… Didn’t Cheongha say something like that in the story?’

Compared to her genius talent, someone like herself was nothing.

If she were alive, she could have easily resolved all these incidents…

‘But that statement was true……’

It’s been a year since the day Seolhwa consumed the Divine Ginseng.

Boowung! Boowung!

Watching Seolhwa wielding a thin Qinggang Sword filled with aura in the air, she looked incredibly impressive, to the point that Cheongha, who had the setting of a martial arts genius, seemed inferior.

‘Some are sipping the Divine Ginseng juice even though it doesn’t suit their taste…’

Since I judged that there was no point in consuming more Divine Ginseng concentrate after my health improved significantly with just one sip, I ended up taking possession of all the remaining concentrate.

Some I offered to my master as a tonic, and the rest I’ve been consistently drinking. As my master slowly performs acupuncture and bloodletting to replenish my inner energy, I feel my inner energy improving in real-time.

It seems that brewing the medicinal herbs properly makes them easier to absorb and stronger, even more so than when I ate them raw and witnessed my master’s death…

But still, it can’t compare to Seolhwa’s growth speed.

So far, I’ve managed to maintain the upper hand, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to stay ahead for long.

“Well… I’m glad I managed to save Seolhwa, but…”

Is she growing too quickly…?

If she continues to grow like this, will she be able to defeat the final boss when they come?

From the perspective of a character who appears and wants to survive until the end, it’s great, but from the author’s perspective, it’s a cunning ability to understand why they were removed so quickly.

Snap!

Finally, I sheathed my sword and contained the energy that was emanating from my whole body, causing my hair, which had been glowing white, to return to its black color.

“How was the execution?”

“It was decent. Not bad.”

“Yes, I’ll strive even harder.”

After drinking the Seolsam concentrated liquid, Seolhwa, who had been weak and frail until then, matured into a full-grown woman in just a year.

If before, she looked like a small animal that I wanted to protect and felt anxious about when she wasn’t in front of me, now she had grown into a voluptuous model-like figure.

Her height hadn’t changed much, but other parts have grown, ahem!

“But more than that, she’s already changed a lot compared to the female lead… If Seolhwa had consumed more Seolsam concentrated liquid… she might have become a strong woman… with distorted inner strength…”

Still, her personality remains timid, just as it was before. It seems that even though her body has become healthier, her personality that has been built up for 16 years doesn’t change so easily.

Swoosh.

There’s not much Seolsam concentrated liquid left that Seolhwa left behind.

Originally, Cheongha had been taking care of her master, who had exhausted all her energy for a year, and after her master passed away, she had performed the funeral and left her hometown as if running away.

And when the deadline for the heart’s fairy tale approached, he would come every year and shed tears, only to casually drink with a woman the next day, calling himself a wanderer.

“Well then, it’s about time I… go out to Jungwon.”

From what I remember, in the beginning, the guys who were knocked down after a fight with Cheongha were the advance team sent by the final boss, and that incident turned them into enemies.

After that, the protagonist, who knew nothing about the world, faced a crisis and saw the female protagonist helping him and decided to join forces. He approached her, thinking of his deceased sister, and got into a fight with the protagonist, telling him to back off. That’s the beginning of the story.

Unexpectedly, the strong protagonist clashed with her and became acquainted as they confronted each other. After that, she appeared as the female protagonist’s follower, helping from behind, and eventually made a heroic sacrifice as she had mentioned before, and left.

“I doubt anything like that will happen since I’ve been possessed.”

Still, I have to move according to the predetermined fate for now, so that there are no variables, and if I use the ultimate martial arts at the critical moment and survive, it will be a happy ending.

Once the protagonist achieves his revenge and whatever else, I’ll be the one to survive. After that, I can meet a good woman and get married.

Gulp.

So, after swallowing the last drop of Seolsam agricultural concentrate, I recovered enough and reported to the mentor who had regained basic health before heading to the martial arts world.

“Mentor, as a disciple of the Bulcho, I plan to go on a journey to the martial arts world to gain more experience.”

Originally, there was no mentor to ask for permission, so I had to leave in sadness as if running away. But now that there is a mentor and a sister, it was necessary to inform them in advance.

Moreover, it was not enough for me and Seolhwa to compete against each other, so the mentor also instructed me to prepare for the martial arts world. And since I was planning to move when Cheongha left for the martial arts world in the original work, I was waiting for an opportunity.

“Even if the specific settings change, we have to stick to the main framework.”

Otherwise, we don’t know when a strange butterfly effect might occur.

“Alright. When are you planning to leave?”

Whether it was because Seolhwa had recovered or because my power had slightly regained, the mentor asked me about my schedule with a relaxed expression, free from worries.

“I’ll leave three days after the snow stops because there will be a heavy snowfall tomorrow.”

The day I left was the day I endured seeing the mentor’s grave being covered in snow and seeing the flowers blooming on Seolhwa’s grave.

“Understood. Then prepare with Seolhwa.”

“Yes… Yes?”

“Why are you acting like this? Were you planning to leave the manuscript here and go?”

“No, yes… of course…”

“hehehehe, so you thought you would leave me here alone, with the execution approaching and my life in danger?”

But Father is perfectly fine here, why would I leave him…

“Besides, I can’t handle the manuscript anymore. Take it with you.”

“If that’s the case, it will be different from what I expected.”

“Why, were you planning to go down and enjoy yourself with a beauty and revelry?”

I didn’t have any such thoughts, but that’s how it is in the original.

To forget the beloved Samae, I indulge myself in alcohol and women, spending wild times.

Then, a woman who became close to me accidentally witnesses a secret organization’s transaction, leading to her kidnapping. I went to save her but tragically found her murdered, and in pursuit of the culprits, I end up killing them. That’s how everything started.

“Anyway, take the manuscript with you. Even if you go alone, the manuscript will carry a sword and track you down.”

No, the story hasn’t even started yet, and it’s already getting complicated?