The Martial God with Psychic Powers

It was time for the Senior Division students of Mushincheon to begin their field training.

There were many institutions vying for Sunwoo Baek and Jang Woon, but Jang Woon was assigned to the Guardian Hall, where his father worked.
Sunwoo Baek was assigned to the Judicial Hall, and the rest of the students were all placed in core Mushincheon institutions—unlike during their underclassman years.
Yeon Woo Jin was assigned to the Hall of the Medicine King (Yakwangdang).

It wasn’t a random assignment—Yeon Woo Jin had specifically requested it. He wanted firsthand experience with the medical arts.
And, while he was at it, he also intended to learn the process of crafting medicinal pills.
The theory was already in his head.

But theory alone often wasn't enough.
To make up for that lack, he had chosen the Hall of the Medicine King.
The herb storage chamber of the Hall of the Medicine King.

That was the first location for their fieldwork.
The very first thing Yeon Woo Jin did upon arriving was to memorize the names and locations of all the herbs.
The supervisor barked at them to have everything memorized within a single day.

Not just a few—but the names and exact placement of a countless number of herbs.
Anyone else would’ve panicked.
But not Yeon Woo Jin.

In less than an hour, he had committed every single herb’s name and location to memory.
As he casually looked around, he noticed that the other students seemed just as relaxed as he was.
They all moved like they were in their own homes.

Their expressions said it all—they already knew everything.
A few were scrambling—not to memorize the herbs themselves, but their placement.
As he looked around, his eyes met someone else's.
The young man who met his gaze tilted his head curiously and walked over.

“Are you also from the Medical House?”
The one who initiated the conversation.
“No. Are all the people here from the Medical House?”

“Yes. This is the Hall of the Medicine King, after all. Naturally, people connected to the medical field would be assigned here.”
“I see.”
“You don’t look like someone from that background. You were still assigned here?”

“It just kind of turned out that way.”
“I thought so. In that case, now’s not the time to be taking it easy, is it? What the supervisor said wasn’t just bluster. If you fail to memorize everything, you could actually be kicked out.”
“Are you worried about me?”
“Well, we’re colleagues for the time being, aren’t we? We should help each other while we’re here.”

He seemed like a good person.
Yeon Woo Jin smiled and replied,
“I’m Yeon Woo Jin.”

“Oh! So you’re Young Master Yeon. I’m Jin Un Hwi of the Immortal Medicine Guild.”
Jin Un Hwi introduced himself with a clasped-fist salute.
He didn’t ask about Yeon Woo Jin’s family.

“You’re not curious about my background?”
“Haha! I am, but I figured you must have your reasons for not mentioning it.”
“I’m the grandson of the head librarian of the Muryang Archive.”

Even with that reveal, Jin Un Hwi’s expression didn’t change.
If anything, he looked impressed.
“Oh! So you’re the grandson of the one who manages the Muryang Archive.”

There wasn’t even a [N O V E L I G H T] trace of scorn or condescension in his eyes.
From beginning to end, his gaze remained unchanged.
Yeon Woo Jin chuckled softly at that.

“Did I do something wrong?”
“No. I was just happy to meet someone admirable—it made me smile without realizing. I apologize.”
“Haha! By ‘admirable,’ you mean me, I assume?”

“I do.”
“Thank you. I still have a long way to go, so I appreciate the kind view.”
“How old are you?”

“I’m eighteen.”
“Same as me. It’s fate that we met like this—shall we be friends?”
“I’d like that! I didn’t know anyone here, so this works out perfectly.”

Jin Un Hwi accepted the offer without even a hint of hesitation.
“Then let’s speak informally from now on.”
As Yeon Woo Jin dropped to casual speech, Jin Un Hwi looked momentarily flustered.

He’d clearly been well-trained in etiquette.
“Is… is that okay?”
“Of course. We’re friends now.”

At the word friends, Jin Un Hwi smiled.
A pure, unpretentious smile.
Yeon Woo Jin felt good—he felt like he’d met someone decent here.

“So, the Immortal Medicine Guild—you’re from a healer’s family, huh?”
“Yeah. You’re the first student from a general Senior Division I’ve met.”
“General? Which one are you from?”

“Yakseon Senior Division.”
“Yakseon? The one next to Jungcheon?”
“Yep. That Yakseon. Everyone here is from there.”

“That explains why they were all so relaxed. They probably come here for fieldwork every year.”
“Exactly. So they already know all the herb names and placements. That supervisor earlier was probably talking to the few who didn’t—like the underclassmen and you.”
“No wonder he kept looking right at me.”

“He’s not a bad guy. Still, it’s surprising. Normally, the general Senior Divisions never send anyone here.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s not unheard of, but I haven’t seen it in recent years.”

Makes sense.
The Hall of the Medicine King managed all of Mushincheon’s healers.
Naturally, they’d only want people from related backgrounds.

Outsiders wouldn’t be helpful—only get in the way.
“If I don’t cause trouble, that’s good enough.”
At Yeon Woo Jin’s remark, Jin Un Hwi responded,

“So what? Even if you’re not a healer, it’s still a valuable experience to see what this work is like. And if you pick up some healing techniques along the way, even better.”
“You think I’ll have time for that?”
“Why not? I’ll teach you. Even just learning basic first aid will be useful.”

“Thanks.”
Yeon Woo Jin smiled again.
To which Jin Un Hwi replied,

“Your smile’s really something. I want to be able to smile like that too.”
“What are you talking about? Your smile is great. I think it’s cool.”
“Really? Thanks.”

He grinned happily for a moment—then suddenly blurted out in a panic,
“Oh crap! This isn’t the time to be chatting. I need to hurry up and memorize those herbs and their locations. I’ll help you.”
“No need. I already memorized everything.”

“…What? Y-you’re serious?”
“Yup. If you don’t believe me, test me.”
“O-okay. Where’s baekgangjam?”

“Section 3, shelf 17.”
“Yukgye?”
“Section 7, shelf 3.”

“Gilchogeun?”
“Section 5, shelf 14.”
“Nokgak?”

“Section 2, shelf 16.”
Every answer was correct.
“You actually memorized all of it?”

“Of course.”
“Incredible. What Senior Division are you from again?”
“Baekyeong Senior Division.”

“Oh, Baekyeong! The first full unification in Mushincheon history!”
“Huh? You know about that?”
“Of course I do. Even Jungcheon was in an uproar over it.”

“An uproar? What kind?”
“They said it doesn’t count as a real unification since Jungcheon still exists.”
Just as he’d expected.

“Well, whatever the case, Jungcheon is a special institution. Among the regular Senior Divisions, it was the first true unification.”
“Exactly!”
“Wow! I never thought I’d meet a Baekyeong student here! This is wild!”

Was it really that wild?
“You’re in the literary track?”
“Yeah.”

“Then you probably don’t know how the unification happened.”
Yeon Woo Jin smirked.
Doesn’t know, huh?

He personally led the whole thing.
“Yeah. I don’t really know.”
“Too bad. I really wanted to hear about it.”

“I’ll introduce you to a friend who knows all the details. Ask him.”
“Really? Thanks!”
“You’re that curious? Even though you’re a healer?”

“Before I’m a healer, I’m still your age, aren’t I? Who wouldn’t want to hear about something that epic?”
Fair enough. He was still young—his blood ran hot.
And being a healer didn’t mean being clueless about martial arts.

You had to know a certain amount of martial arts to treat warriors.
Also, to subdue those powerful martial artists for treatment, healers had to train martial arts themselves.
Most martial techniques in the Medical Guilds were developed not to kill—but to restrain.

“If there’s ever anything you’re curious about or don’t understand, just ask me. I’ll help you however I can.”
“Thanks.”
“No need to thank me. We’re friends, remember?”

Jin Un Hwi’s cheerful grin made Yeon Woo Jin laugh along with him.
 
****

The next day.
The physician assigned to supervise the field trainees spoke with a sharp, intimidating look in his eyes.
“I made myself clear yesterday. You were to memorize all the names and locations of the herbs here by today. You did as instructed, yes?”

“Yes, sir!”
“Good. Then let’s begin the test. One at a time, step forward.”
The physician called each student up and showed them herbs, asking for their names and storage locations.

The students, having studied medical arts, passed through easily—and before long, it was Yeon Woo Jin’s turn.
The physician looked at Yeon Woo Jin with clear displeasure.
Among all the students assigned to the Hall of the Medicine King, he was the only one from a general Senior Division.

The physician didn’t like that one bit.
He’d asked several times if there hadn’t been some kind of mistake.
But the Hall of Recruitment insisted the assignment was accurate.

Sometimes, when they were short on people, students from general Senior Divisions got sent here—but this time, there was no such shortage, which made it all the more strange.
Managing students trained in medical arts was already enough of a headache—and now they had to manage someone who knew nothing about it?
He decided to find some excuse to kick him out.

If he did, the Hall of Recruitment would reassign him somewhere else.
It was unfortunate for the boy, who probably had no idea why he’d been assigned here—but it couldn’t be helped.
No—in fact, it might be better for him to be sent somewhere more suitable.

With that self-justification in mind, the physician began treating Yeon Woo Jin coldly.
But then…
He answered every single question correctly.

What? This isn’t going how I planned.
Even when asked about rare herbs, he answered flawlessly.
He even knew the proper pairings and incompatibilities, down to detailed combination techniques.

Whatever the physician asked, the answers flowed out of his mouth like water.
As if he were reading straight from an open book in front of him.
“You… are you really a general Senior Division student?”

“Yes, sir, that’s correct.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. I’m from Baekyeong Senior Division.”

“Baekyeong!”
At the mention of Baekyeong, the surrounding students began murmuring.
“I knew which division you came from. I just had to ask again because I couldn’t believe it.”

There was no point in pressing further.
This brat… must have a gift for memorization. Fine, then. Just you wait. I’ll make sure you’re kicked out before this is over.
 

****
That evening.
The physician sat reviewing Yeon Woo Jin’s records.

“A genius who’s never once lost his top ranking since the underclassman years.”
No wonder he’d answered so smoothly.
If he was this sharp, he should’ve been assigned to the Military Division.

Why in the world was he sent to the Hall of the Medicine King?
How could he get rid of this boy?
The physician fell into thought.

Then, an idea struck.
“Perfect. I’ll tell him to fetch water for decocting herbs.”
He grinned slyly.

A general Senior Division student won’t understand the importance of water selection in decocting. He’ll probably just scoop it from a stream or a well.
Later, if anything was brought up, he’d insist he gave clear instructions.
Then he’d scold the boy for not listening and claim he was making excuses—and finally say someone like him wasn’t needed.

Perfect plan.
Good. I’ll do it first thing tomorrow.
But before that, he needed to separate him from the Yakseon students.

From what he’d seen today, the kid was already getting friendly with them thanks to his smooth personality.
If they stuck together, the Yakseon students might warn him about water selection, so he had to isolate him and assign the task separately.
Knowing how to choose the right water was the most basic lesson for anyone studying medical arts.

The physician looked forward to tomorrow.
 
****

The next morning, before the sun had fully risen.
As planned, the physician ordered Yeon Woo Jin to fetch water for decocting herbs.
And without a word of explanation about which water or how to get it, he turned and walked away.

Yeon Woo Jin immediately headed to the decoction station and checked what herbs needed to be prepared that day.
After studying them for a long moment, he went outside and tasted the water in one of the storage jars.
Nodding to himself, he picked up a yoke and water buckets and walked out.

“Let’s see… I need five types of water today. First is Hancheonsu—Cold Spring Water. Of course, I’ll have to fetch it from that place.”
He grinned and vanished on the spot.
When he reappeared, it was in Bukhae (North Sea)—the far northern region where blizzards howled and the climate was brutal.

Even in North Sea, he went to the clearest, cleanest source of water and filled his buckets.
Then he returned and poured it into the jar labeled for Hancheonsu.
In an instant, the container was full.

But just then, he realized something.
Wait—he’s going to ask where I got this water from. I can’t exactly say I went to North Sea.