Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

*Wheeeeng!*

“Stay calm. You’ve been hunted and had your honey taken, haven’t you? I’m not bringing you here to cause trouble. I’m leading you to a safe place where you can raise your young in peace.”

The scent of mugwort had kept the queen bee subdued through the night, but at the first light of day, she began to thrash about.

Her power was formidable, so I had to bind her carefully with a rope, making sure not to harm her wings, wrapping her up like a caterpillar.

“Do you believe she can comprehend you?”

My sister, who had retreated a few steps, asked. Even though the O-Gongs had adjusted, it appeared the bees were still somewhat overwhelming for her.

The queen bee repeatedly flicked her long tongue, a sight that was both unsettling and bizarre.

In another context, it might have been endearing.

“The O-Gongs, being lower-tiered, can understand, so the Golden-Fur Bee King, an intermediate-tier venomous creature, certainly should. Bees are communal insects. Their comprehension should be greater.”

I replied with assurance, though the truth is that centipedes and bees lack vocal cords and cannot hear human speech. They perceive through vibrations, and bees use their sensitive body hairs to detect sound.

Nevertheless, if the lower-tier O-Gongs could understand human words, a superior being like the Golden-Fur Bee King must also possess that ability.

In my previous life, bees, despite their simplistic brains, were capable of remembering patterns, scents, and even human faces, marking them as intelligent insects. They are renowned for their acute sense of smell, able to detect illnesses, narcotics, and explosives.

“Bees interpret pheromones. It is these chemical signals that trigger their aggressive behavior,” I elaborated.

“Pheromones?”

“Indeed. Pheromones are chemical messages animals use to communicate. Bees employ them to express feelings such as affection, hostility, or tranquility. They communicate very efficiently this way.”

“I understand… so it’s not merely the flowers, but these pheromones that provoke them?”

“Precisely,” I affirmed. “The fragrance from the Hamsuhwa and Bacha fruit contains the pheromone isoamyl acetate, which is the specific compound that incites bees to attack.”

My sister, still fascinated, started to grasp the concept.

“How remarkable,” she said, then addressed the O-Gongs. “Alright, you look after them; I will manage the others.”

“Very well. Go to your mother, little ones,” I told the O-Gongs, passing them to my sister.

Even while bound, the queen bee ceased her struggles the moment she noticed the O-Gongs. She became completely still, like a toy whose battery had died.

“She has become very calm all of a sudden,” observed the Deputy Commander, Gu Pae, noting the queen bee’s odd stillness.

I first considered if the queen might be hungry, but I recalled she had eaten a great deal of honey before we prompted the migration. Her stomach was full.

“Maybe she is simply exhausted,” I murmured, peering at her closely.

Through her multifaceted eyes, I watched the O-Gongs move from my sister to her, their antennae making contact.

*Tzzr…*

*Wheeeeng!*

The two venomous beings communicated for a short while, exchanging peculiar noises. When their interaction concluded, the O-Gong turned to face my sister, its antennae gently touching her forehead.

I opted to let my sister manage the O-Gongs while I took a break, feeling the fatigue from our midnight flight from the Golden-Fur Bees.

I hadn’t done the running myself—being incapable of light-body techniques—I was transported by the Deputy Commander and his men.

I determined that upon our return, I would request the Deputy Commander instruct me in light-body techniques. Throwing knives were of little use in circumstances like these.

“We ought to rest here for a time,” I proposed.

“Understood, So-ryong,” the Deputy Commander answered.

“We must station lookouts to guard against any dangers approaching from our back trail.”

“A sound plan,” I concurred.

After ensuring the queen bee had water, I lay down to sleep, but just as I was drifting off, I heard the Deputy Commander’s voice, sharp with alarm.

“So-ryong! Awaken!”

He hoisted me up swiftly. I could tell I hadn’t been asleep long, as the deep weariness was still upon me.

“What is it?” I asked, blinking sleep from my eyes.

“Look up there!”

Rubbing my eyes, I looked where the Deputy Commander was pointing. Through the misty air, a yellow cloud was drawing nearer.

“Already!?”

My thoughts sharpened instantly as understanding dawned.

It was only just past noon, yet the Golden-Fur Bees had already found us.

We had no option but to pack our gear hastily and resume our flight.

The one advantage was that the bees were not as swift as they appeared. While honeybees can be quick in short dashes, they maintain a speed of only about 20 kilometers per hour over longer distances. Being laden with honey would slow them down further.

“Everyone, employ light-body techniques to flee!”

“Let’s run until we lose them! The Tang Clan warriors must not fall behind!”

“Yes, Deputy Commander!”

The warriors shouted their determined reply, and we swiftly set off toward Tang Clan Mountain.

“Is the Deputy Commander’s plan to simply outrun them?” I pondered, looking back at the pursuing swarm.

From my perch on the Deputy Commander’s back, I spoke softly to the queen bee, pressing her antennae to my forehead.

[It’s alright. I will handle them, and we will evade them.]

The Deputy Commander believed my intention was to escape with just the queen bee, but the reality was, I never intended to flee from them.

The pheromones released by the queen bee would remain potent for roughly a day, and regardless of the distance we covered, the bees would pursue.

Even from kilometers away, bees can detect these pheromones and will follow relentlessly.

When a colony swarms, the worker bees always follow their queen, wherever she may lead.

“Can we get away?” the Deputy Commander asked, glancing back at me with worry.

“Perhaps?”

As I responded, I felt the Deputy Commander’s back grow damp with sweat, his shirt becoming soaked from the strain.

***

“If you continue straight, you will reach Amipa Mountain. The left fork leads to the Guandao and on to Yunnan. This is the crossroads,” explained Yeonsu, the senior disciple of Amipa, pausing briefly at the junction between the path to her sect’s mountain and the road to Yunnan. She had been traveling since Zagon, and the junior disciples had been vocal about their fatigue, particularly those whose martial arts were less developed.

“Ha… We’re nearly at Amipa Mountain. The journey has been difficult enough, and now we are expected to ascend to the Golden Peak? It is beyond my comprehension,” grumbled one of the younger disciples.

“I instructed you all to concentrate on your light-body techniques,” Yeonsu replied, striving for patience.

“But, Master, we are always doing chores for the other disciples. We scarcely have any time for proper training,” another disciple argued.

“Yes, the laundry, fetching tea… When are we supposed to practice martial arts?” added another young disciple, still discontent.

Yeonsu offered a gentle smile, remembering she was much the same not long ago, and calmly counseled them.

“Disciples of other sects and clans work just as hard as we do, yet they still find time to master their arts. If we, who follow the Great Compassionate Buddha, wish to walk that path, must we not exert ourselves even more?”

Despite her reasonable words, the complaints persisted.

“But those other sects and clans have servants to handle such work! And how much effort can they truly know? They are all young masters and ladies, after all…” one of the younger disciples remarked.

Just then, a cloud of dust began to rise in the distance from the Yunnan road. Soon, figures emerged at the crossroads—five or six of them, sprinting toward them with desperate speed.

“Who are these people, running as if demons are at their heels?” Yeonsu wondered aloud.

“Are they fleeing from something?” another disciple asked, perplexed.

As Yeonsu’s eyes tracked the figures, she suddenly identified a familiar face and gasped.

“Is that… Hwa-eun?” she cried out.

“Hwa-eun? You mean Tang Hwa-eun?” a disciple inquired.

The woman running toward them was in disarray, her hair unbound, shoulders dusty, clothes soiled, and strands of hair stuck to her mouth. She looked like someone escaping a catastrophe.

Yeonsu rushed forward to intercept her. “Hwa-eun!”

“Hwa-eun? Master?” Tang Hwa-eun responded, her gaze clouded and disoriented.

“What is happening!? Why do you look as though you are being pursued? Is there trouble?”

Alarmed, Yeonsu demanded an explanation.

“Water… please, water,” Hwa-eun panted.

“Water?” Yeonsu asked, offering her own water flask.

Hwa-eun drank deeply, gulping the water as if she were parched.

Soon, the other disciples offered their water bottles, and Hwa-eun drained them all. After she finished, a man, whom Yeonsu recognized as a deputy leader of the Tang Clan’s Venom Blood Squad, spoke.

“Thank you, Master. There is no trouble… we were merely practicing our light-body techniques.”

“Light-body techniques?” Yeonsu asked, baffled.

“Yes, we’ve been training with great intensity, so… we must appear rather undignified now, don’t we?” the man said with a roguish grin.

“What is that you’re holding?” Yeonsu asked, noticing the odd creature bundled in rope with only its head visible.

The man laughed and swiftly moved the creature behind his back, still smiling like a mischievous boy.

“It is nothing of import, Master. We thank you for the water. We must depart now. Let’s move quickly, Hwa-eun. If we run a little farther, we can rest at sunset,” he said, shepherding the group away.

The party, now revitalized, sped off using their light-body techniques, vanishing swiftly into the distance.

Yeonsu and her disciples stood in astonished silence, trying to make sense of what they had just seen. The Tang Clan disciples had been practicing their light-body techniques with such fervor that they were coated in dust and on the brink of collapse.

“I believed the tales about Tang Hwa-eun were overstated,” one disciple confessed, “but to witness her in such a state… I had no idea the training was so severe.”

“I also thought Master Yeonsu was exaggerating, but now I see… I apologize, Master,” another disciple said remorsefully.

Yeonsu smiled softly, feeling compassion for her junior disciples. As they contemplated the sight of the esteemed Tang Hwa-eun in such a bedraggled condition, she took it as a teaching moment.

Witnessing Tang Hwa-eun, once celebrated as one of the Three Wonders of the Martial World, in such a state served as a powerful reminder of the Buddha’s lessons—the necessity of ceaseless effort and discipline. Yeonsu quietly brought her hands together and bowed in the direction the Tang Clan had gone.

“Amitabha.”

As Yeonsu and her disciples collected themselves, the golden haze advancing from the Yunnan direction began to disperse, and the Tang Clan’s warriors pressed on with their pursuit.

***

“I-I am sorry, So-ryong… I believe this is my limit… Kuaah… Kuaah…”

The Deputy Commander stumbled and fell into the underbrush, his body finally succumbing to utter exhaustion.

Shortly after, he lost consciousness entirely, lying motionless on the ground.

Farther back along the path, the Deputy had already collapsed. The exhilarating chase between the Golden-Fur Bee King and our group was reaching its conclusion, with only a short span remaining until we arrived at Tang Clan Mountain.

“I must keep going…”

“I-I can make it!”

I declared this, prepared to run on my own power, but my sister, her eyes glassy with fatigue, gave a weak shake of her head. She had been operating on sheer will for the past two days, her mind barely present, and my words did not seem to register.

Despite this, she mustered the last dregs of her strength, holding onto my waist as we pressed forward.

But by the time we forded the river and reached the Gujin Gate, my sister fell, just as the other Tang Clan warriors had.

*Thud.*

“Miss!”

*Squeal! Squeal! Squeal!*

The guards stationed at the Gujin Gate, alarmed by my sister’s state, signaled to one another. Soon, the master and the legendary Tang Mu-seong, the Heavenly Poison Deity, emerged from the gate, their faces filled with concern.

The three calls were a special alert from the Tang Clan’s direct lineage.

“Hwa-eun! What has occurred!?”

“Hwa-eun! So-ryong, what is the meaning of this?”

Both the master, who was cradling my sister, and my grandfather, who was shaking me anxiously, demanded answers.

I hurriedly explained, attempting to calm their fears.

“She has been overexerting herself, running for days with minimal rest, honing her light-body techniques. She is merely exhausted. But there is no time to lose! We must proceed to the training grounds at once!”

“The training grounds? Why there?”

“Why the training grounds?”

Instead of answering directly, I produced the bound queen bee and presented her to them.

“This is the Golden-Fur Bee Queen. The rest of the swarm will be here shortly, so we must go to the training grounds!”

“What!?”

“You were told to gather honey, and you have brought back the Golden-Fur Bee Queen!?”

“Ha ha! So-ryong, you are truly destined for greatness!”

While the master’s expression was one of shock, my grandfather beamed with a wide, proud grin, clearly delighted by this unforeseen outcome.

Without delay, they hurried me toward the training grounds, the same place I had previously practiced with my throwing knives.

My goal was the ancient tree, which had been dead for hundreds of years, though it had not fully rotted away.

Reaching the hollow of the ancient tree, I freed the queen bee and addressed her.

“This is where you will live now.”

The queen bee, after being confined for so long, seemed uneasy initially. After a series of rapid movements, she inspected the interior and exterior of the ancient tree. Seemingly content, she tapped my head with her antennae.

The queen bee then flew directly into the hollow of the ancient tree and settled inside.

Simultaneously, I heard the characteristic sound of beating wings above us.

We quickly stepped aside as a swarm of bees, trailing all the way from Yunnan’s border, poured into the tree’s hollow like a golden hurricane.

*Whoooom. Whoooom.*

*Swoooosh!*

The Golden-Fur Bee Queen had been successfully secured.

‘Sweet victory.’