Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 226

Chapter 226
In a swift motion, I grabbed the oar that had been momentarily laid aside and lifted the largest of the floating fish onto its surface.

A chorus of sharp intakes of breath followed, everyone’s eyes widening in alarm. Grandmother Sang-woo, Sister Seol, and Hwa-eun all cried out in hushed, panicked voices, horrified by my sudden act—for I had just placed a fish they believed to be poisoned onto the oar.

“Young Master, you promised to heed my words! Set that down immediately! That thing is toxic! The Lake Spirit’s venom can contaminate the air for ten paces around it!”

“Ryong! It’s poison! Drop it, now!”

“So-ryong, please put it down! We don’t even understand the nature of this toxin yet!”

They were all clearly terrified I would be afflicted, but I felt no such fear. However I considered it, this was not a poison. I wracked my memory and could recall no venom that behaved in this manner.

[Everyone, please, there’s no cause for such alarm. I am almost certain this is not poison.]
[Not poison?]
[Not poison?!]
[W-what do you mean? People have died from this!]

Under the moonlight, the faces of Grandmother Sang-woo, Hwa-eun, and Sister Seol were etched with pure disbelief. I needed to make one final confirmation, but I was sure—this was no poison. Hwa-eun, likely stunned by my action, hadn’t reasoned it out yet, but a small prompt would lead her there.

I smiled slightly and posed a question to her.
[I will verify it, but I am certain—this is not a poison.]
[S-So-ryong, wh-why would you say that?]
[Hwa-eun, answer this for me. If Ho-ye had discharged a venom into this lake, what would have occurred?]
[What? Well, a dense poison would sink, a lighter one would rise and spread like oil, or perhaps… it would just diffuse slowly…!]

As she spoke, her eyes began to move rapidly, and she turned to look at me—then let out a soft gasp as understanding dawned.
[Oh—oh! I see! You’re correct! It isn’t poison! Yes, of course! Why didn’t I think of that?!]
[So, Hwa-eun, are you now convinced it’s not poison?]

As anticipated, just a small hint was all Hwa-eun required. Anyone who could work with such clues would know this, particularly a member of the Tang Clan. For generations, the Tang Clan had developed poisons in every form—powders, liquids—and meticulously studied their dispersion in different environments. Failing to recognize something this fundamental would be unthinkable for one of them.

[Precisely. The reason no poison was found in the victims is straightforward—there never was any poison to find.]
[That’s right. There is no poisoning because no poison exists.]

Just as Hwa-eun stated, this could not possibly be poison. If Ho-ye had released its venom into the water, the fish would not have reacted as they did, floating up so suddenly. We witnessed Ho-ye briefly surface, only to be startled by the sound of our boat scraping the cliff and dive back down. At that exact moment, fish near Seol’s net began leaping from the water.

Which presented the new question—
The diffusion of substances in water refers to how particles travel. But could any known poison permeate over ten meters of water in an instant? Poison and water have different densities and masses. As Hwa-eun noted, some toxins sink, others float, and some gradually disperse in cold lake water. Indeed, poison simply cannot spread that rapidly in a liquid medium. Diffusion moves from areas of high concentration to low; it requires time, even with a potent toxin. It cannot happen immediately.

‘How could any liquid agent travel ten meters instantly to cause poisoning? It defies logic.’
A substance covering ten meters in water in a flash? That would violate the principles of physics. Even the extraordinary venomous creatures I raise in this new life, intelligent as they are, still abide by the natural laws. Their secretions may have unique properties, but they do not overturn the physical nature of liquids.

To calm everyone’s fears and satisfy their curiosity, I offered the fish on the oar to Hwa-eun.
[Can you examine this to confirm the absence of poison?]
[Of course!]

As I presented the large, unnaturally stiff fish, Hwa-eun gave a quick nod, producing silver needles, golden needles, and testing agents from her sleeve. She applied them to the fish’s surface and immersed them in her solutions. After a short wait, she checked the results and, as predicted, smiled.

[So-ryong was correct. This fish shows no signs of containing any poison.]

Sister Seol knitted her brows together and asked with a frustrated expression,
[If it’s not poison, then what is it? Why did the fish perish? Why did people die?]
[Th-that… I am not certain…]

Even someone of Hwa-eun’s skill, while recognizing it wasn’t poison, could not identify what it actually was. This was understandable—no one from this time would have encountered it before. Well, perhaps they had, in a roundabout way… because of me.

I gently picked up the fish with my hand and gave it a slight shake.
[Do you know what causes this fish’s body to be so rigid?]
[I don’t.]
[I’m not sure either.]

They both looked at me, perplexed.
[Have you ever witnessed anything similar before?]

I asked again. Sister Seol seemed ready to chide me for being cryptic, but then she paused and murmured,
[You know… it reminds me of that time you seized the candle that was struck by lightning… So-ryong, stop being so indirect and just tell us—]

‘Wait, already? That quickly?’
It was like stumbling upon the answer by accident. Her response was so perfectly aligned with my thoughts, I was genuinely impressed. I smiled, my eyes widening with appreciation.

[Exactly! You’ve got it!]

At my reply, Sister Seol’s eyes grew wide with shock.
[Hm? You mean when you embraced the lightning-struck candle? Wait… are you suggesting this fish was hit by lightning!?]
[Then… are you saying Ho-ye produces lightning!?]
[Ah! Yes, lightning!]

That was the answer. The reason people died so abruptly and the fish rose to the surface—Ho-ye was emitting electricity, much like an electric eel. And not a minor spark, but a significant voltage.

[Yes, that’s right. It appears it discharges electricity—essentially, lightning.]
‘Incredible, Ho-ye is actually an electric salamander…’

One might think aquatic life isn’t my main interest, but any creature dwelling in water falls within my purview. Blue-ringed octopuses and jellyfish are infamous venomous monsters, after all. While my knowledge of most water-dwellers is limited, the electric eel is an exception. It kills with electricity. If that isn’t a form of venom, what is?
‘Yes. Electricity is a type of venom.’

Nodding to myself, everything began to fit together. It all made sense now. In my past life, electric eels could emit up to 900 volts, projecting the current about ten meters. But earlier, Grandmother mentioned Ho-ye’s discharge reached “ten jang”—roughly thirty meters. That implied an immense voltage.

And electricity explained every event so far. Like the tale Grandmother shared: how an ancestor of the Black-Clad Tribe was crossing the lead-covered burial stone, and a sudden event annihilated the pursuing warriors from a rival tribe. Or the peculiar state of the recently discovered corpses. All of it was explained by one word: electricity.

The tribe’s ancestor must have startled Ho-ye while on the lead slab, provoking a defensive electrical discharge. The fishermen, reaching into the water to haul their nets, likely did the same—startling Ho-ye and receiving a shock. Their bodies, leaning over the water… Then, a massive current surged, paralyzing them on the spot and causing them to fall into the lake. Their muscles seizing from the jolt, their lungs frozen—they would have had no opportunity to swim, leading to immediate drowning.

‘Damn it… and now I’m expected to simply leave this behind?’

Even with the mystery solved, a bitter, hollow feeling settled in my chest. Because if I were to classify Ho-ye by the standards of my previous life, no true herpetology enthusiast could possibly resist it.

Electro Giant Salamander.
A massive, electricity-generating salamander!
What young man wouldn’t feel his pulse quicken at a name like that?
But seeing how deeply the shrine maiden’s tribe revered this being…
I supposed I would have to find another way to manage my disappointment.

“Ugh, mister.”
“Yes, young master?”
“You touched its eyes, didn’t you?”
“What? Ah—y-yes, I did!”

At my words, the fisherman immediately began gathering the fish from the water using a net-like tool.
‘I’ll just call it glowfin. Yeah…’
Since Ho-ye had provided it for me, I felt obligated to at least try that one.

***
The following day, after reprovisioning, we remained for another three days. Though we couldn’t take them along, we assisted the familiar Ho-ye and compiled notes for the Little Ryongs to study later.

[So-ryong, look over there! There are two of them!]
[Whoa… a mated pair…]

But the more I discovered about them, the more a sense of loss tore at me. It was painful enough that they were electric salamanders—knowing they lived as devoted pairs made it even harder.
‘I truly wish I could take them with me.’

Zzzrip—
They were coiled near the candle. Hwa-eun and I observed them intently. They moved in pairs, always together. Just after dusk, with the moon high, they emerged briefly, swam a short distance, and vanished again. They didn’t hunt from a distance like other spirit beasts. As the shaman grandmother had said, they were remarkably gentle. So sensitive that the faintest noise sent them diving back down, not to be seen again that day.

I longed to observe them for days more—but ultimately, we had to depart. Our intended destination was the volcanic region of Yunnan. We had only informed the Tang Clan we were going to Qinghai, yet we journeyed all the way here—so now we needed to return with all haste. We never received authorization for the Qinghai diversion. The longer we tarried, the greater the trouble we would face.

“Haaah…”
“So-ryong, don’t be so disheartened. This isn’t Sichuan, is it? You can return whenever you wish.”
“She’s right, So-ryong. The Black-Clad Tribe will always welcome you.”

On the day of our departure, the fishmonger woman and the shaman grandmother from the Black-Clad Tribe came to the dock to bid us farewell.
“Ugh… I truly don’t want to go.”
“Haha, it seems you’ve become very fond of them.”
“I have. Please remain well, both of you. I will return before long.”
“Yes, So-ryong. Journey safely.”

I offered a final wave as our boat pulled away from the dock, the figures of the shaman and the Black-Clad woman gradually receding. Then, just as we started to navigate out of the lake’s distant channel—
One of the boatmen, who had been inside amusing the children, suddenly rushed onto the deck.

“So-ryong! You must come out here—immediately!”
“What?”

His tone was urgent—something was clearly amiss. I hurried out onto the deck and heard voices yelling.
“So-ryong! So-ryong!”

Turning toward the shouts, I saw it—
A boat filled with Black-Clad tribespeople, rowing with all their might, was chasing after us.
And standing at the prow was the shaman grandmother.
Her voice was desperate. I swiftly commanded the helmsman,

“Can you halt the boat?”
“Understood, So-ryong! Lower the sails and drop the anchor stone!”
“Yes, helmsman!”

—Thunk!
At his order, the sails were lowered and the anchor stone released.
Our vessel slowed to a stop as the other boat drew alongside.
Then came the grandmother’s distressed plea:

“So-So-ryong, please, you must aid us!”
“What? What has happened?”

I was confused by her sudden appeal, but she continued urgently.
“The Seochang magistrate has called for three military ships! He declared that if anything in that lake is killing people, it must be hunted down and destroyed—!”
“What!?”

Those creatures meant no harm…
But with so many lives lost, the magistrate had evidently summoned the army.
He had sought our help before, but when we provided no definitive answer, he must have resolved to send soldiers instead.

“This is a disaster!”
Until now, the Black-Clad Tribe had succeeded in keeping the secret—
But with military vessels involved, locating the creatures would not be difficult.
This was truly dire.

Then the grandmother looked directly into my eyes, her voice shaking with urgency.
“So-ryong, did you not once say… you were establishing a place where venomous and spirit creatures could live safe from harm? A refuge… a Poison Garden?”
“Y-yes, I did say that…”

I had mentioned something similar when introducing the children.
Then came the request I could not refuse.

“In that case… please take our Spirit into that sanctuary you pledged—into the Poison Garden meant for venomous and spirit creatures!”

Truly… the magistrate of Seochang was far too virtuous for this world.