Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 300

Chapter 300
At the very moment the officer was shouting, pressing the messenger for details—
‘So-ryong, did you get every one of them?’
Hwa-eun’s voice reached me through our private mental link.
I had mentioned to her earlier that we were heading out to find the final target, so she had to be burning with curiosity about the result.
She had kept silent throughout the operation, worried her voice might break my concentration, which meant she had been bottling up her questions for hours.
Sensing her anxiety, I replied immediately.
‘Yes, Hwa-eun. The last one was taken care of without any issue.’
‘I’m so glad to hear that. Well done.’
The moment I confirmed we had all the Blood Cult operatives in custody, I felt her profound relief wash over our connection.
Then, her tone softened with concern as she urged me to take a break.
‘So-ryong, you need to get some rest as well. You likely haven’t slept properly in days.’
I truly wished I could—but I had to tell her it wasn’t an option right now.
News had just arrived about a mysterious new sickness appearing in a neighboring village, and we had to plan our next move—whether to dispatch forces or convene a council.
‘I want to, but something else has happened. I’ll have to sleep another time.’
‘Something happened?’
‘Yes. Reports say a strange illness has struck another village nearby.’
‘Wait, it’s not one of the villages where that woman said the other agents were located?’
‘No, Hwa-eun. A completely different one.’
When I informed her that a different village was affected, a hot surge of fury came through the link.
Hwa-eun’s voice was a mental shout, filled with rage.
‘That woman obviously held back information about all the Blood Cult agents in your mental realm! If we hadn’t turned her into an idiot like Cheongwol suggested, So-ryong, you could have walked right into danger again!’
She was absolutely certain the woman had deceived us.
However, the symptoms described by the officer were nothing like those seen in the previous victims of the cult.
There was a chance—a slim one—that this was merely a coincidence. A classic case of a crow cawing and a pear dropping from the tree.
But it was also difficult to write it off as a common sickness.
What the officer reported did not resemble any ordinary malady.
According to him, the entire village was sleeping until well past noon… and they were all experiencing vivid dreams.
It sounded less like an illness and more like they had been pulled into a shared psychic space.
Until now, the effects of the Soul-Stealing Technique had included anemia, migraines, or darkened fingers—not this deep sleep and dreaming.
So I chose to consult Hwa-eun first.
A final diagnosis should come from the Immortals of Medicine and Herbs—but if this was in any way related to the Soul-Stealing Technique, Hwa-eun was the one who would know.
She had been the one to uncover the bulk of its secrets.
And even though the woman’s trustworthiness was now nonexistent, I needed to be certain.
‘Hwa-eun, the officer described something unusual. The symptoms don’t align with blood-loss anemia. Can you tell if this might be Soul-Stealing?’
‘You want my opinion on if it’s the Soul-Stealing Technique? Shouldn’t the Immortal of Medicine or the Immortal of Herbs be the ones to examine it?’
‘It’s just… the symptoms feel wrong for a normal disease.’
‘Wrong? How?’
‘Apparently, the villagers don’t wake up until the sun is nearly overhead—and they are all dreaming in their sleep.’
‘They can’t wake up… and they dream?’
‘That’s right. I need more details, but that’s the gist of it.’
‘…’
Hwa-eun went quiet. She seemed to be turning the information over in her mind.
“Are there any other unusual signs!?”
“Yes, sir!”
“Tch… So some were still left out there? Isn’t that right, young hero?”
The officer, who had been questioning the messenger, turned and called out to me.
Pulled from my conversation with Hwa-eun, I looked up to answer.
“Yes, sir?”
“That woman wasn’t honest with us, was she?”
It was obvious “that woman” referred to the Blood Cult agent.
He appeared to share the suspicion that she had withheld information.
Still, I believed it was premature to draw conclusions.
“I was considering the same thing, sir. But the symptoms are different this time, which makes me question if it’s even Soul-Stealing.”
“Is that so? I also found the symptoms peculiar… But the timing is highly convenient, wouldn’t you agree?”
The situation was indeed suspiciously convenient.
While Hwa-eun was still thinking, I decided it would be wise to get the elder physicians’ perspectives as well.
I proposed we return to the village to seek their counsel.
“We should determine if this is a sickness. I will go discuss it with the Immortal of Medicine and the Immortal of Herbs.”
“Ah, excellent. A sound plan.”

Three days prior, I had rushed off, declaring I was going to apprehend Blood Cult members, and now I was back—half-expecting a reprimand.
But as I walked into the village, the residents welcomed me with radiant smiles.
“Young master, you’re back!”
“Everyone, the young master has returned!”
“Ohhh, young master!”
Their enthusiasm was overwhelming.
I was puzzled by the hearty reception until the reason became clear.
“Young master, we cannot thank you enough. The officers told us everything. They said you were the one who captured the Blood Cult agent living among us.”
“The woman who lost her senses is locked up in the village chief’s storage shed.”
“The Immortals of Medicine and Herbs said if you had been any later, more children could have been harmed. We are so grateful.”
“Thank you, young master!”
They were expressing their gratitude for my role in catching the Blood Cult agent.
‘Well… technically, I did do that.’
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Even if it was a complete accident, I was indeed the one who caught her.
It felt like triggering a trap card inside my own head, but still…
I adopted a modest expression and responded:
“It was nothing. But since you are all so interested, I will at least bestow upon you my title.”
“Huh? Oh, yes! Our hero’s name—of course! You will grant us your title?”
The villagers crowded around, eager.
It seemed a little like I was seeking admiration, but… frankly, I needed the recognition.
This might not be my era, but where I come from, branding is everything.
“If anyone asks who saved you, simply tell them—‘Venomous Beasts Papa of the World.’”
“Venomous Beasts Papa of the… what?”
“???”
“?”
The instant the words left my mouth, a flush of embarrassment made me quicken my pace.
‘Ugh, I genuinely like the name, but it’s somewhat lacking in gravitas, isn’t it…?’

***

The elders were residing in the annex of the village chief’s home.
“So-ryong, you’ve returned? Did it go well?”
“Are you unharmed?”
Entering the chief’s house, I braced for a slight scolding—but instead, they both regarded me with kind warmth.
Feeling relieved, I promptly summarized what we had achieved.
“Yes. Working alongside the Dragon Fangs and this officer, we apprehended every Blood Cult agent hiding in the vicinity.”
“Ohh. You’ve done excellent work.”
“We attended to the most severe cases and have also prepared shipments of Boheoldan for the other villages.”
“Thanks to you, So-ryong, this matter has been concluded tidily.”
“Indeed. It is uncommon for a village plague scare to be resolved so neatly. You have labored hard. And, naturally, the best result is when it turns out not to be a true plague at all.”
I was curious why they seemed so content, but then I understood—
From their point of view, it was much preferable that the crisis wasn’t a complex disease requiring treatment, but a more straightforward affair.
And to be fair, that was perfectly logical for healers.
“I thank you both for your diligent work as well.”
“Well, compounding Boheoldan is straightforward enough. Not truly laborious. So, is that the conclusion of it?”
“Well, the fact is…”
“Hmm, does that seem a little too straightforward?”
“Hey, what kind of foolish remark is that, disciple? Are you suggesting you hope another village suffers an outbreak?”
“No, no. I merely meant it was resolved rather neatly, master.”
After his ill-considered comment, the Immortal of Herbs earned a rebuke from the Immortal of Medicine and sheepishly began stroking his beard.
Worried that speaking now would get him into deeper trouble, I paused.
Then the Immortal of Medicine looked at me and inquired:
“What is it? You have something to add?”
I shot a glance at the Immortal of Herbs, then scratched my head as I spoke.
This wasn’t my intention.
It was simply a case of bad timing.
“Well… we’ve received word of a different sickness appearing in another village…”
The Immortal of Medicine immediately directed a sharp look at the Immortal of Herbs.
He slapped his own mouth in remorse and muttered:
“My mouth is jinxed…”
After delivering a few more audible smacks to his lips, the Immortal of Medicine asked for details.
“A different sickness? What are the symptoms?”
I nodded to the officer, who respectfully bowed his head and delivered the report.
“A subordinate just brought word that in a village close by, the inhabitants cannot be roused until the sun is at its peak.”
“They cannot awaken?”
“That is correct, sir. And they speak of having peculiar dreams.”
“Peculiar dreams?”
“The content differs; some report visions of departed parents, others of past loves… things of that nature.”
“They dream? And fail to wake up?”
The two elders frowned, their expressions puzzled.
They then began deliberating on known ailments that could produce such symptoms.
“The entire village? How odd. It cannot be somnambulism…”
“If no one is waking up, we must consider it contagious.”
“A sleeping sickness, is it? That is a novel one…”
And just then, Hwa-eun’s voice sounded in my mind once more.
‘So-ryong, I believe there is a strong possibility this is the Soul-Stealing Technique. That woman once let slip—just briefly—that an expert in the technique could access numerous minds simultaneously or project illusions onto a whole group.
Recall, she said she was the vice leader of the Blood Shade Unit, but she never disclosed the location of the true leader, correct?
If this is the handiwork of the Blood Shade Unit’s leader, it would fit perfectly.
It is somewhat odd for a figure of such high rank to undertake something so bold and conspicuous, however.’
Now that I reflected on it, she had indeed said nothing about where the Blood Shade Unit’s leader might be.
She had insisted she only had ten subordinates on this mission, but her word was now utterly worthless.
And if this was the work of the Blood Shade leader, then Hwa-eun’s hypothesis held weight.
The dreaming could be a form of mass hallucination—and the inability to wake might be a side effect of being drawn into a psychic plane.
‘So, you think it’s feasible?’
‘Yes. I cannot be completely sure, however.’
Right away, I relayed the exchange to the elders and the officer, presenting it as information the Blood Cult woman had given me.
“The leader of the Blood Shade Unit?”
“Yes. During our mental exchange, she mentioned that a master of the Soul-Stealing Technique could invade multiple minds at once, or project visions. I cannot be certain, but it seems plausible.”
I omitted the mental combat, framing it merely as a conversation during a brief psychic interrogation.
After listening, the two elders nodded.
“But it could still be an actual disease?”
“Yes. That is also a possibility.”
“Then the sole method to confirm if it is the Blood Cult or a sickness is to investigate personally. If it is something else, the situation could be grave.”
“I concur, master.”
It seemed we had no alternative but to go and see. But since this could be perilous, I voiced my worry.
“It may be dangerous. Are you both going to be all right?”
The two of them merely smiled and said:
“So-ryong, you are concerned because you have never witnessed our martial prowess, is that it, senior brother?”
“Haha! That must be the reason. The younger martial generation is unaware of our actual capabilities.”
The two of them laughed heartily, then their eyes narrowed, their gazes turning abruptly keen.
“So-ryong, have you any notion how perilous it is to face two premier medical masters—one who can consume an Exploding Qi Pill to amplify his inner energy, and another who can heal them both during the fray?”
“We may not defeat a stronger opponent, but we most certainly will not be defeated.”
‘Wait… so you’re saying you’ll use stimulants and then heal each other while fighting?’
It appears that martial medicine in Murim is ruthlessly pragmatic—but then again, that makes them tremendously reassuring as allies.
And as everyone knows—being the most overpowered character in a game is the ultimate compliment.