Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 244

Chapter 244
Paeng Gyu-seong swept up the brush case at his feet, swinging it hard to knock aside the glint of incoming daggers aimed at the group.
–Ka-clang!
A metallic crash resonated from the brush case as it parried the blades.
The daggers, meant for the Five Dragons, were sent scattering. Yang Seong-hu and Geom-ryong upended the table to shield themselves from the remaining projectiles, which thudded into the wood like a sudden downpour of hail.
–Thud-thud-thud.
“Blade Dragon!”
The cry came from the Five Dragons, who were huddled behind the overturned table.
Without a moment’s pause, Paeng Gyu-seong drove the brush case down onto the table.
“I know!”
–Crash!
The table splintered, and the brush case split apart, releasing a sword, a sabre, and a three-section staff.
Each weapon flew unerringly into the waiting hand of its owner as if guided by an unseen will. These were the arms Blade Dragon had been safeguarding, concealed within everyday objects for a moment such as this.
–Shwing. Shwing. Shwing.
As the weapons were caught, three arrows were already nocked and released from Gungbong’s bow in one fluid motion. Then, a chain weapon shot toward the origin point of the daggers, met almost instantly by a pained cry from the shadows.
“Guh-huk…”
“Gak…!”
Enraged, Blade Dragon Paeng Gyu-seong bellowed and surged toward the door.
“Who goes there!? Who has the audacity to attack us with daggers!?”
He drew his greatsword and burst outside, charging toward the source of the attack.
Yang Seong-hu, Geom-ryong, and Seon-hwa, her spear now assembled, were right behind him.
“What in the… what is this!?”
“This is madness!”
Rushing out, the Five Dragons were confronted by a horde of masked martial artists.
The mountain village, bathed in the light of the setting sun, was swarming with these veiled combatants. They stood on rooftops, in doorways—every conceivable spot was occupied by armed foes.
The fighters, their identities hidden behind full masks, stared silently at the Five Dragons.
Recognizing something in their demeanor, Yang Seong-hu brandished his spear and yelled:
“It can’t be—you scum from the Five Venoms Sect!?”
The masked figures recoiled slightly from the force of his shout.
Then, one among them pointed at the Five Dragons and barked an order:
“Kill them all! They’ve identified us! Leave no one alive!”
At his command, the martial artists surged forward like a tide.
–Klang!
Ji-ryong swatted aside two more flying daggers with his cloth-wrapped hand and shouted to Gungbong:
“Gungbong, the signal!”
They needed to warn the other Sichuan martial artists of the Five Venoms Sect’s ambush without delay.
“Understood!”
He then turned and commanded the Five Dragons and the warriors of the Tang Clan.
“Alert the others in Sichuan! Pull back from the inn, but do it carefully! At these numbers, a direct fight would mean our end!”
“Understood!”
“Right!”
As Ji-ryong’s order echoed, the leader of the Five Venoms Sect shrieked in fury.
“Stop that signal! Do not let them fire it!”
“You’ll find that difficult!”
As the leader screamed, a wave of Five Venoms Sect warriors lunged for Gungbong.
But Paeng Gyu-seong, Geom-ryong, and Seon-hwa plunged into their ranks like wild beasts, violently disrupting their advance.
“Witness the Hunwon Thunder Blade of the Paeng Clan!”
“Cut them down!”
Meanwhile, a single arrow shot high into the darkening sky.
–Fweeeeeee!
The shrill cry of the signal arrow pierced the twilight.
From amidst the enemy, their leader swore and roared at his followers:
“Finish them and retreat before others respond to that signal! Kill every last one!”
–Clang! Sching!
The clash of swords, spears, daggers, and fists filled the air, soon accompanied by the haunting melody of Wolyeong Palace, played on Eumbong’s flute.
–Trillillil. Pweeeeee.
The song of death played, and blood started to seep through the dirt paths of the small mountain village.
***
–Fweeeeeee!
The sharp sound of the signal arrow reverberated across the peaks of Paltaesan as the sun vanished below the horizon.
–Crack.
Blue Dragon crushed the head of a snake in her grip and peered down the mountainside.
“Investigate that! That was not one of our signal flutes.”
Something had clearly occurred in the village below, where their forces were gathered. This was a pivotal moment; any outside disruption was unacceptable. Even a minor incident required inspection, and a signal arrow demanded immediate attention.
“At once, miss!”
The Five Venoms Sect had pursued Sayang based on traces he was believed to have left in the Central Plains, and his recent sighting had all but confirmed it. He was young, but his identity was certain.
Now, they were working to dismantle the protective formations surrounding him. These were defenses Sayang himself had created, and fortunately, his youth meant the formidable Heaven-Earth Twin Barriers were not yet active. Yet, these were still Sayang’s workings.
They had been gradually eroding the formations using venomous fogs and blood rituals, but a sudden external threat could activate all remaining defenses at once, potentially awakening dormant layers.
“Ugh…”
Waiting for the scout’s return, Cheongyu grimaced and raised a hand to her temple. Her fingers grazed the needle buried there.
It was a needle implanted during a mission in Qinghai on her father’s orders, placed by the Tang Clan’s chief communications officer—a needle that must never be disturbed. Her physical wound had closed, but the psychological scar remained.
Her father had cautioned her: premature disturbance could have lethal consequences.
*A wretched thing to do, So-hong. Repaying aid with betrayal—brainwashed or not.*
Feeling the subtle impression of the needle, Cheongyu simmered with anger. She had tried to save him, believing the Tang Clan was cruelly exploiting him, and he had almost been her end. Her memories were hazy, but he had seemed so familiar, so like her… that was why she had reached out. And for that kindness, she now carried a near-fatal injury.
No matter the depth of his conditioning, she could not forgive this.
Then, an unexpected thought occurred to her.
*Wait… like me?*
The notion that their situations were similar struck her suddenly. Cheongyu couldn’t comprehend why she would think that.
So-hong, the Tang Clan’s adopted son-in-law, was merely a victim of their deception. But she—she was the Forbidden Sixth Leaf of the Five Venoms Sect. Their circumstances were entirely different.
Just as Cheongyu tilted her head, puzzled by her own thought—
“Miss? Miss!”
The voice of the Black Serpent Unit’s commander sounded beside her.
Turning, she found him looking at her with a hint of concern.
“Ah… What is it?”
“It’s nothing. You seemed suddenly distant.”
“Ah… yes. I was just… pondering something.”
“I see.”
The Black Serpent commander gave a casual nod, but Cheongyu sensed eyes upon her from behind him.
It was the Yin Shadow Unit of the Five Venoms Sect—silent and spectral. An elite assassination team answering directly to her father. They handled covert missions and killings. Though unsure of their specific orders, Cheongyu looked at their new leader, Blood Talon Snake, and felt a deep unease.
It felt as if he were evaluating her, preparing to consume her entirely.
*Their eyes truly are serpent-like…*
Meeting the gaze of the Yin Shadow warriors briefly before looking away, Cheongyu carefully smoothed her hair back, avoiding the needle.
At that exact moment, as she looked toward the forest below—
A warrior she had dispatched earlier burst from the darkening trees, his face a mask of shock.
“M-Miss, enormous trouble! Somehow, martial artists from the Central Plains have picked up our trail and are in the village downhill!”
“What did you say!?”
“This is a disaster!”
They had used the Blood Cult as a diversion to draw eyes away, and now Central Plains fighters were here? It meant the Blood Cult’s remnants had failed in their task.
Cheongyu pressed the warrior urgently:
“If that signal arrow was launched, it means there are more of them close by, correct?”
“Y-yes, it appears so!”
And then it began.
From multiple directions downhill, the shrill notes of signal whistles started to cry out.
–Keeeeeeek.
–Keek.
High and piercing, like the calls of insects—the distinct sound of the Five Venoms Sect’s signal flutes.
“From the northeast village!”
“And from the west too!”
The flutes were sounding the alarm for enemy contact, just as planned.
Cheongyu turned to the Black Serpent commander.
“Take your unit and disperse toward Sanyang. Sow chaos and misdirect them.”
“What will you do, Miss?”
“I did not come all this way to retreat empty-handed without securing Sayang.”
She could not turn back now, not when he was so close. She had already overcome more than half the defenses.
“I will break the remaining formations and take Sayang with the Yin Shadow Unit. I know I should only act on my father’s command, but this is for the capture. You will support me… will you not?”
She directed this at Blood Talon Snake, who gave a short nod.
“Naturally.”
The Black Serpent commander rallied his lieutenant and sped down the mountain using qinggong. Cheongyu, meanwhile, unleashed a cloud of venom mist and called to the Yin Shadow Unit.
“Advance!”
“Yes, Miss!”
With the venom mist blooming around them, Cheongyu and the Yin Shadow Unit pressed onward into the formation toward Sayang’s location.
***
As night deepened and a quiet fell, the noise of combat from the valley below began to drift up the slope. The clear ring of clashing steel carried on the air.
While mentally tallying her remaining venom mists, Cheongyu heard Blood Talon Snake speak.
“How much further?”
“Nearly there. We’ve passed where the Heaven-Earth Twin Barriers would be. That means we are close.”
Those barriers were the ultimate protection in Sayang’s formation, guarding the very core. Their absence, due to his youth, signified the lair was near.
“And the venom mist?”
“Three remain. It should suffice. But we cannot be certain it will affect what lies ahead.”
“Then your team must be prepared to act.”
“Understood. Miss. You all heard him—stay sharp.”
“Yes, Commander!”
Moving through the darkness, their eyes adjusted for night, Cheongyu’s group continued to dispatch snakes as they advanced.
Then, a pitch-black opening appeared before them—a cave just large enough to enter on hands and knees.
Cheongyu signaled for quiet and retrieved two of her remaining venom orbs from her robe, hurling them into the cave.
–Tssssss.
Smoke poured out as the mist filled the dark space, and instantly, a flood of snakes came pouring forth.
–Hissssss. Hiss.
More than they had ever seen.
Perhaps due to the venom mist, the snakes spilled onto the open ground, convulsing and twisting onto their backs.
When the smoke cleared, Cheongyu scanned the area, searching for any sign of Sayang among the serpents. But she saw nothing that resembled him.
“He’s not here?”
“He is not among these.”
All eyes turned to the cave mouth as Cheongyu approached it with caution.
–Hiss!
–Thump!
–Kkhh!”
“Miss!”
A foul, venomous scent preceded a jet-black snake that erupted from the cave and struck Cheongyu squarely in the chest.
The impact sent her flying backward, into a thicket of bamboo that cracked under her weight.
–Sssssss!
In the moonlight, a small, golden horn gleamed upon the creature’s head.
There was no doubt.
It was a young Sayang.