Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 168

Chapter 168
—Slurp. Slurp.

A cold, slimy feeling on my face pulled me abruptly from sleep.
Something thick and wet was sliding from my right eyebrow, down my cheek, and onto my chest.
When I opened my eyes, the vision in my right eye was hazy, blocked by the viscous fluid.
Instead, I opened my left eye wider and saw a large pink form approaching my face.
—Splat.

Before my senses fully returned, a soft pink mass slapped against my face.
Then came a familiar chirping noise, followed by a sluggish voice I’d never heard before.

—Peep… 『Food…』

‘So this is what Hyang sounds like.’

True to form—the first word she spoke to me was about food.
She must have woken up earlier and started licking my face, already begging for a meal.
This was meant to be a touching moment, the first heart-to-heart exchange through the Wild Beast Heart Art.
And yet, all she cared about was eating.

I chuckled softly at her single-minded focus and replied while wiping the drool from my lips.
If this kept up, my face might really lose a layer of skin.

“Alright, you little food-obsessed rascal. Hold on a moment.”

As I spoke and cleaned Hyang’s saliva away, voices rose around me.

—Hiss! —Hisss! —Hiss!
—Keeek!
—Coo! Coo!

“So-ryong! Did it work? How do you feel? What about your inner energy?”
“So-ryong, you’re awake?!”

Cho, Bini, Yohwa, and all the other poisonous creatures.
Hwa-eun and Seol-noona were there too.

Turning toward the voices, I found a crowd of people and animals gathered around me.
Clearly, everyone had been keeping watch over me, full of concern.

“Yeah, I’m a little stiff, but otherwise fine. How long was I out?”

As I answered Hwa-eun and Seol-noona, I swiftly circulated my inner energy, beginning an internal check.
Now that I was conscious, I needed to assess the second stage of the Five Poisons Returning to the Origin Art.

Focusing on the slow, steady current of my inner energy, I followed it back to my dantian.
Inside, two distinct venomous forces swirled together in perfect balance, rotating like a yin-yang symbol.

When Mandok Shingun taught me the basics of martial arts, he explained that taiji, the supreme ultimate, was akin to wuji, the formless void, yet also the source from which all movement arises.
That meant this condition was stable.

The venom from Cho had already settled in my dantian, and now Hyang’s poison had merged with it flawlessly.
At first, I was concerned—Hyang’s venom consumes inner energy as fuel.
What if I couldn’t handle it?

But thankfully, it had settled smoothly.
There were no ill effects.
The resistance provided by my poison-based martial arts had accepted it as though it were native, making it harmless to me.
Naturally, that made sense—if Hyang could be hurt by her own poison, she would have died long ago.

When I directed the two venoms using the mental formula, a new kind of power flooded through me.
From my dantian, the toxic energy spread through my meridians, reaching all the way to my fingers and toes.
A prickling sensation traveled through my hands as the energy reached my fingertips.

‘So this is the Realm of Dual Venoms? This is unbelievable!’

Before, I hardly had enough inner energy to even consider using palm techniques.
Advanced moves like projecting energy from my palms were far beyond my reach.
But now…
I felt certain I could release a substantial energy blast from my hands.

Finishing my internal inspection, I looked around at my surroundings.
The first thing I noticed was the shelter made of bamboo.
Clearly, I’d been unconscious for some time—someone had built a frame from bamboo and woven reeds into a roof to cover Hyang and me.
They’d gone through the effort to protect us from the harsh sun.
Even with the strong light outside, it was comfortably cool under the shade.

“Ten days, So-ryong.”
“It’s been ten days since that day, So-ryong.”

As soon as I finished my assessment, Seol-noona and Hwa-eun answered my question.
I remembered Seol-noona telling me that when using Wild Beast Heart Art on ordinary creatures, it usually only takes a few hours.
But because Hyang is a spiritual beast, it took ten full days.
Without my realizing, another ten days had slipped by.

I gently moved Hyang aside and stretched, working out the stiffness in my limbs.
This was my third time going through this, so I was accustomed to the hunger and the aching joints by now.
As I stretched, my stiff muscles and joints groaned in protest.

“Ugh… Every time this happens, my body feels completely broken.”
“Are you alright, So-ryong?”
“Yeah, I’ve been through it enough. I’m growing used to it.”

Just as I was about to finish stretching—
Something fell from my hands.
—Thud. Thump.

I heard something drop.
Surprised, I bent down to look at the ground by my feet.
There on the mixture of ash and soil, several clear, jagged pieces were scattered.

‘What in the world is this?’

It had definitely fallen from me.
But I didn’t recognize it.
I reached out to pick one up—

The instant my fingers touched the ground, a strange feeling ran through them.
Something wasn’t right.
My sense of touch was muffled, a peculiar numbness lingering at my fingertips.

I lifted the fragment, looking at it closely.
The more I examined it, the more it looked like…
“A fingernail?”
“A fingernail?”

Not a piece that had been trimmed.
It was as though my entire nail had come off in one piece.

Seol-noona and I shared a look of confusion.
Then, Hwa-eun’s startled voice reached my ears.

“So-ryong! Your nails…!”

At her cry, I turned my hands over—
My nails were missing.
All ten of them.
The odd feeling in my fingertips suddenly made sense.
That sound I heard earlier?
It wasn’t just something falling from my body.
It was my fingernails.

“W-Why did my nails fall off?!”

Shocked, I turned toward Hwa-eun and Seol-noona.
Hwa-eun hurried over, taking my hand and examining it closely.
Staring at the spots where my nails had been, she murmured, puzzled.

“This is strange… Your nails came off, but new ones are already growing back. Why would that happen?”

Hearing this, I also looked at my fingertips.
Sure enough, under where the nails had detached, new ones were already emerging.

Seol-noona, standing beside her, also wore a frown of confusion.
“This isn’t like the rebirth of bone reforging… Losing and regrowing nails is too specific. It must be related to martial arts… But it doesn’t seem to come from Wild Beast Heart Art. That art affects the mind, not the body.”

Hwa-eun’s words led Seol-noona to suspect that the cause wasn’t Wild Beast Heart Art, but rather the poison cultivation.

“Think carefully, Hwa-eun. If it’s not Wild Beast Heart Art, it must be due to the Five Poisons Returning to the Origin Art.”

Hwa-eun’s brow furrowed as she pondered deeply.
“I… I don’t know. I haven’t practiced the Five Poisons Returning to the Origin Art myself, so I can’t be certain. We should ask my grandfather or my father.”

Still concerned, she gently held my hand again and asked,
“So-ryong, did you notice anything else unusual about your body?”
“Huh? No, nothing else seemed out of place.”

Hwa-eun looked deeply worried, but when I checked my internal condition earlier, everything felt normal.
I could only shrug.

Just then—
—Peep!

Hyang’s impatient cry came from below.
She had waited long enough and was now insisting on food.

“Alright, alright. Let’s go find something to eat.”

Other than my nails falling out, nothing seemed seriously wrong.
And since my condition had already delayed our group’s travel for ten full days, it was best to get moving.
Not to mention, Hyang hadn’t eaten in ten days—feeding her was urgent.

“My nails are the only change. I’ll ask Grandfather once we return. For now, let’s go down the mountain and feed Hyang.”

I picked up Hyang, ready to move, but she began clambering up my shoulder, trying to reach my head.
Her short legs made it a struggle to climb, and I smiled at the sight before giving her a boost.
Her small limbs waved as she tried to get a firm hold—adorable.

Since reaching adulthood, Hyang had become a bit smaller, so she now rested comfortably on my head like a hat.
I could feel her soft belly against my scalp, her weight resting like a cushioned helmet.
But because her belly was warm and soft, I grinned and said,

“Alright! Let’s go!”

Just as I took my first step down the mountain—
—Grab.

Two hands came down on my shoulders.
Slowly, I turned my head.
Hwa-eun and Seol-noona stood there, their expressions stern.

“So-ryong, didn’t we have something to discuss?”
“So-ryong, didn’t I say we needed to talk after you recovered?”

I thought they might have forgotten.
I hoped they had forgotten.
But it looked like I wouldn’t escape this one.

“Ah… Ha-ha… A talk… Y-yes… We should… talk…”

I wondered if I could reinforce my back with inner energy—and quickly.

***

Fortunately, I was saved from the coming lecture.
Just when I thought I’d be trapped in a long, private conversation with Hwa-eun and Seol-noona, Hyang came to my rescue.
Her hunger-fueled anger intensified, and we had no choice but to hurry down the mountain.
She even started sparking flames on top of my head, radiating pure fury.
‘Anyone between me and food is my enemy.’
That was the vibe she was giving off.

—PEEP!
“Y-Yes, Hyang, I understand. Let’s go. We should, uh, have that discussion later… Hyang seems really agitated right now.”
“Sigh… So-ryong, don’t believe this is finished. I will speak with you later.”
“So-ryong, we’ll talk tonight. In private.”
“O-Of course.”

And so, after ten days, we finally returned to Lee Tae’s riverside village.
The settlement had changed a lot since the fight against the bedbugs.
A number of the burned houses had been reconstructed, and the Murim Alliance’s ships that were previously moored here had departed.
According to Hwa-eun, matters here were settled, and since they needed to deliver Boheoldan to the Murim Alliance, they left as soon as they could.
Naturally, they took Ji-ryong’s report with them.

“So-ryong, are you well?”
“How is your body holding up?”
“Sir, are you alright?”

As soon as we boarded the ship, Ji-ryong and the Three Dragons and Two Phoenixes greeted us.
Since they had decided to journey with us to the Tang Clan, they had been waiting on our vessel.

“My apologies for making you worry. I’m fine now, so please don’t trouble yourselves.”

Just as I finished my polite reply—
—PEEEP!

An angry screech came from above.
“Oh, right, I need to feed her first. Let’s talk after I handle this.”
“Hah… When I saw her sleeping peacefully on the mountain, I thought she was calm, but she’s quite intense.”

Clearly, feeding Hyang came before anything else.
I signaled to Lee Tae.

“Lee Tae, could you cut some reeds and light a fire? Hyang needs to eat.”
“Understood, sir. Just a moment.”

Soon, a large fire was burning, and Hyang, fully satisfied, toddled over to me, nudging my leg.
“Ready to go now?”
—Squeak.

I put her back on my head, where she immediately began dozing off, her stomach full.

Inside the ship, Ji-ryong, Geom-ryong, and Kwon-ryong came over, patting my shoulder.
“You’re finally back, little brother!”
“Yeah… It seems I set our schedule back a bit. We should depart right away.”

Since the ship was fully repaired, I proposed leaving for the Tang Clan immediately.
But the two older warriors just grinned.

“Well, leaving today or tomorrow doesn’t make much difference, does it?”
“True. Right now, there’s something much more important.”

I frowned, confused by their casual manner.
Then, they both said at once,

“You’re probably wondering what we mean. After seeing your amazing skill ten days ago, we realized something.”
“What?”
“When you fell from the sky into that roaring fire, your martial ability was extraordinary. With power like that, how can we let you go without a proper warrior’s nickname?”
“A nickname…?”
“That’s right. We noticed you don’t have a martial title yet, do you?”

I blinked.
So they were so amazed by my dramatic fall from the sky that they wanted to grant me a martial name?
Considering these two were Kwon-ryong and Geom-ryong, respected fighters, I was actually curious.
If they were giving me a title, it had to be impressive.

Thrilled, I replied, “If you two are offering a title, I’ll accept it gladly!”

The two exchanged smirks before turning to me with broad, pleased smiles.
Then, simultaneously, they announced:

“How about the Mad Dragon of the Tang Clan?”

I froze.
The Mad Dragon of the Tang Clan?
That would essentially mean—
“The Tang Clan’s Lunatic.”

‘You’ve got to be joking?!’

Then again…
These were the same two who gave Ji-ryong the name Wall-Kisser just because he once walked into a wall.
Expecting something dignified from them was my own error.