After East Grand Lord Gwang Do Seop Maeng stormed in and out of the dispensary like a whirlwind, the academy's chief physician, Baek Jong Myeong, quickly prepared himself to begin treatment on his patient by getting the acupuncture and moxa ready on the table.
His first treatment step was to insert the acupuncture needles into Cheon Yeo Woon.
His plan, much like the concept in rehabilitative meditation, was to allow the energy and blood flow in his body to begin circulating so that his internal organs might heal.
-What if I get caught by unnaturally recovering too fast?-
If nano machine started auto-recovery, his injuries could be fully treated in less than a day.
Although initially he wasn't really thinking about it much, he was now in a bind as to what he should do next.
*Sighhhh.*
Recovering prematurely would invite too much suspicion, but at the same time, in order to perpetuate the hoax his only option was to go through the normal treatment process. But he knew that doing so would push him too far behind the fierce competition that was currently building up in the academy. Not to mention his sudden transportation to the dispensary left him in the dark regarding what to expect in the next stage, his group number, his dormitory assignment, and many other things.
-Will it be smarter to finish the whole treatment process than to risk people's suspicion? Ha ah. Maybe I should hear from the physician what my prognosis looks like before making any decisions.-
After determining to wait until after hearing what the physician says, Cheon Yeon Woo carefully brought up the question to Doctor Baek Jong Myeong who was getting the acupuncture needles ready.
"Umm, doctor?"
"It's Baek Jong Myeong."
"Excuse me?"
"Rather than calling me just doctor, please add my name to it."
Cheon Yeo Woon felt a sense of relief at Baek Jong Myeong's cheekiness and friendly disposition. It is a fundamental skill of a physician to make the patient feel comfortable. In that regards, Baek Jong Myeong's easygoing and friendly nature gave him a great advantage in the field of medicine.
"Doctor Baek, how serious is my condition right now?"
It wasn't like Cheon Yeo Woon was ignorant to the kind of trauma that was inflicted on him. He himself had given Nano, the nano machine the command to self-mutilate. However, he was curious as to what kind of prognosis the doctor would give him.
Baek Jong Myeong looked down at Cheon Yeo Woon's bluish, pale face and let out a big sigh.
"Sighhh, it's hard to break bad news to a new cadet like you, but it seems like it will be at least fourteen days before you can go into training."
"Excuse me?"
Cheon Yeo Woon's eyes bulged out as he tried to process what he had just heard.
He knew that an internal injury like the one he suffered would take time to heal, but he didn't expect it to take that long of a time. Truthfully, if it were any other average doctor, the treatment would've taken at least a full month to complete, but Baek Jong Myeong being the protégé of the one famously known as "God's Hand," namely Baek Jong Woo, it was possible to cut the treatment time in half.
"Don't be too disappointed."
"But, what training can I really benefit from if I go back into it so late?"
"I don't know how you're going to take this, but I'll at least keep quiet about East Grand Lord coming in here to train you."
"Ah...."
Now that he mentioned it, Baek Jong Myeong was there the whole time when East Grand Lord accepted Cheon Yeo Woon as his disciple. Technically, if this whole affair reached the host, West Grand Lord Yi Hwa Myeong's ears, there probably would be much objection to it, but Baek Jong Myeong was able to sympathize with Cheon Yeo Woon whom he had always regarded with pity.
"It's because you remind me of my past."
There was something about Cheon Yeo Woon that made the doctor feel sick at heart.
Much like Cheon Yeo Woon, Baek Jong Myeong himself had endured a lot of hardships in his life before ultimately becoming a disciple of the Doctor of Misfortune. For that reason, he couldn't help but feel empathy for Cheon Yeo Woon's situation. However, it was unnecessary for him to tell Cheon Yeo Woon his whole life story, so he left it at that.
"...thank you. I will repay this grace in the near future."
With a slight feeling of warm fuzziness inside, Cheon Yeo Woon expressed his gratitude.
"Hey, don't worry about. I don't expect much from you, anyway."
Baek Jong Myeong really wasn't very hopeful about Cheon Yeo Woon's future prospect. Although he did receive a golden opportunity in becoming a disciple of East Grand Lord Seop Maeng—that was it. No matter what East Grand Lord Seop Maeng did to increase Cheon Yeo Woon's chances of success, there was a limit to how high he could go.
-Unfortunately for you, I'm sure all of the other six candidates you are competing against received intensive training from the Elders of their respective clans.-
No doubt being trained by East Grand Lord Seop Maeng who is considered one of the top ten fighters within the faction would expedite Cheon Yeo Woon's skill level, but nevertheless, he was already way too behind the other cadets at this point.
Baek Jong Myeong contemplated whether or not he should mention this truth to Cheon Yeo Woon, but he knew that telling him would only provoke the young boy, which would only produce hot energy in his body and delay his treatment progress.
"Alright! I'm going to put the needles in now, so try not to move too much."
Cheon Yeo Woon lowered his slightly propped-up body back on the bed and lie there motionlessly like a corpse.
-Wow, the kid's got more muscles than it looked like. Impressive.-
To his knowledge, Cheon Yeo Woon was restricted his whole life from any kind of martial arts training, though based off his developed muscles it was hard to believe that.
-I guess he was just mainly kept from training his inner power.-
It wouldn't be strange if he had just conditioned himself physically. After doing some self-talk, Baek Jong Myeong picked up a medium-sized needle to insert it into the acupuncture point of Cheon Yeo Woon's upper abdomen.
Suddenly, Nano's voice rang out in Cheon Yeo Woon's head.
[A metal needle is about to injure the user's body via a puncture through the upper abdomen.
Initiating emergency defense mode.]
-No wait. Don't. The metal needle is being inserted by a doctor.-
[At the user's command, suspending emergency defense mode.]
-Don't tell me you can't differentiate between a real threat and treatment from a doctor?-
Cheon Yeo Woon asked in bewilderment at Nano's uncharacteristic blunder.
[If you don't inform me that it's a form of treatment, I can't help but assess the situation as a threat to my lord and in the slight chance, I will initiate emergency defense mode.]
-Okay, I understand. Unless I specifically inform you that it's an attack, try not to respond from now on.-
[Yes, my lord.]
Nano machine was programmed to always make the user's safety a top priority. As much as Cheon Yeo Woon was at point completely ignorant to the nano machine's functions and characteristics, he was slowly becoming more acquainted with her overall 'modus operandi.'
*Pook!*
Meanwhile, with very swift motions Baek Jong Myeong systematically inserted six needles into Cheon Yeo Woon, starting from the region right below his left chest to the lower navel below his belly button. Unlike the customary sting one feels from acupuncture needles, his stomach began to feel warm and comfortable.
[I have found a diagrammatic chart and information in the database regarding the body's meridian system.
The six needles that are placed in your body's jungwon, gogweol, jwagimun and jwayangmun, gokji, cheonchu and gihae meridians are activating your stomach's energy to promote healing.]
-Ho oh!-
Cheon Yeo Woon actually knew what Nano was talking about thanks to the book that was transferred into his brain back at home. Although he had never had much interest in medicine, he was fascinated at the thought that our bodies can be treated by inserting needles into it which then activates the active circulation of energy and blood.
"Along with the acupuncture needles I'm going to apply moxibustion on you, so maybe you should knock out for a couple of hours."
The doctor recommended him to take a nap. Perhaps Cheon Yeo Woon's constant gaze was making him feel a little uncomfortable.
"Okay, doctor," he answered, but because of Nano's real-time explanation about what was going on inside his body, he couldn't readily fall asleep.
Suddenly, out of the blue, Cheon Yeo Woon was hit with a brilliant idea.
-Nano, is there way to make it seem like I'm not fully recovered after my treatment even though I am?-
[I am not quite understanding what my lord's question.]
"So, what I'm trying to say is... after my treatment, when I get a check I'm going get a clean bill of health, right? Problem is, if I recover too fast then it's going to look really suspicious. So, next time the doctor does a pulse diagnosis on me, is there a way to feign the injury again?"
[After full auto-recovery, when the physician performs a pulse diagnosis on you I can temporarily alter your pulse rate to simulate pre-recovery conditions.]
Cheon Yeo Woon thought it wouldn't hurt to ask, but when he actually got the answer he was looking for, it gave him hope. Now, there was no reason for him to not be healed right away. If he could just pull the wool over Doctor Baek's eyes for another fourteen days, it would be a prime opportunity from him to use that time to build his inner power under East Grand Lord Seop Maeng's training.
Alright! Then keep running auto-recovery mode and only alter my pulse when the doctor comes to do a check-up on me.
As such, Cheon Yeo Woon slowly got more familiar with the nano machine's operating style and was learning to utilize her more effectively based on the moment by moment needs. After about two hours, both the auto-recovery on his internal organs and blood regeneration were complete. Consequently, later that night he was able to sleep that without any pain.