Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 421

Chapter 421After releasing the infant locusts, the four Dragon Fangs who had come with me continued to scour the cave’s interior.
We hoped to discover some remaining documents or materials belonging to the Five Venoms Clan—maybe a critical letter or manuscript—but there was simply nothing to be found.
“It feels excessively tidy, doesn’t it?”
Tssrrrk. 『Dad, I believe we’ve found everything there is. Ranghyang says there isn’t even a hidden room below.』
Even with the children’s assistance, nothing concealed was uncovered. The inside of the cavern was immaculate.
We inspected the whole underground tunnel that linked the temple to the stone wall, yet it was entirely empty—no trace of documents, papers, or scrolls.
Naturally, this didn’t imply the cave was completely vacant. It was partitioned into areas showing evidence of living quarters and breeding apparatus—clear signs of human occupation, scattered remnants, and general disarray.
However, when I stated “nothing,” I meant that not one piece of paper remained.
Aside from the book the squad leader had carried on him, we should have at least discovered logs, experiment records, or supply lists. The absence was deeply suspicious.
Having abandoned the search inside, we moved out of the cave.
Standing at the entrance, Ji-ryong was lost in contemplation before he offered an idea.
“Even with the leaders dead, there could be someone with information. We should question the Five Venoms prisoners we captured to see if any know of a possible hiding spot.”
As he noted, all the crucial individuals were already deceased.
The commander of the Black Venom Unit, his officers, and the squad leaders—all had been eliminated.
Only the deputy squad leader was missing, and based on Lady Cheong-yu’s account, she was not present here.
She had mentioned the deputy was a woman, and there were no women among the dead.
She also stated that only roughly a third of the Black Venom Unit was at this location, implying the remainder were probably at the primary Five Venoms stronghold.
Therefore, we never anticipated obtaining high-level intelligence. We hadn’t even contemplated interrogating the senior ranks.
As Lady Cheong-yu had cautioned, anyone linked to leadership or the combat teams was afflicted with a lethal curse; should they speak anything detrimental to the Five Venoms Clan, their dantian would detonate, killing them immediately.
Yet these powerful curses were not applied to lower-ranking martial artists, which was the very reason we had taken captives.
Ji-ryong was now suggesting we question them.
“I agree. We should proceed.”
The captured Five Venoms fighters had been secured inside a rudimentary wooden enclosure within the cave, their blood pathways sealed.
It was merely a part of the cavern cordoned off with wooden bars.
“It’s pitch black in here. Hyung, can you light a torch?”
“Of course.”
It was so dark we hadn’t yet bothered with a torch. Once the area was illuminated, I addressed the kneeling, restrained prisoners:
“We didn’t find a single piece of paper in this cave. Does anyone here have an explanation for that?”
Only silence answered me.
From the cave entrance, where my hyung and Hyang were positioned, I heard her frustrated voice.
“They aren’t from the Black Venom Unit, so they are physically able to speak. Are they choosing to remain silent even after surrendering?”
Tssrt! 『Dad, shall I try asking them?』
The captured group was comprised of two kinds: Black Venom Unit members, and research warriors who appeared involved in the clan’s internal projects.
Aside from the ones I had previously incapacitated with my spitting cobra technique, a few additional Black Venom Unit men had arrived with their captain.
As we were well aware, any member of the Black Venom Unit would die if they spoke.
But the research warriors had no such limitation—nevertheless, not one of them uttered a word.
They all kept their mouths firmly shut, and I couldn’t suppress a cold smile.
There are numerous methods to persuade someone to talk.
“If none of you wish to speak voluntarily, then I suppose we must introduce you to the effects of the Golden-Crowned Death King’s venom.”
It was time to summon Lady Cheong-yu and employ her venom-induced hypnosis.
If they were concealing anything, her venom would drag it all into the open.
The prisoners began to stir anxiously at the mention of her title.
“Th-The Golden-Crowned Death King?”
“If it’s really that creature…”
Merely hearing the name of one of the Ten Great Venomous Beasts was enough to paralyze them with dread.
I promptly brought forth Cheong-yu—now in her form as the Golden-Crowned Death King—and chose one warrior from the cell who was not from the Black Venom Unit.
“Bite this man and compel him to answer my questions truthfully.”
Shiaa! 『As you command, So-ryong.』
Dawn was arriving. Lady Cheong-yu’s conscious self had withdrawn, and the entity known as the Golden-Crowned Death King Cheong-yu was in control.
As Cheong-yu neared the man, he flinched back and shrieked.
“H-Hiiieek! P-Please, have mercy!”
“Be calm. We are not going to kill you.”
“You claim that, but a bite from the Golden-Crowned Death King is not fatal!?”
Evidently, the research warriors did not fully comprehend Cheong-yu’s capabilities. The mere notion of being bitten by a spiritual beast was terrifying enough.
They likely assumed it meant certain death.
But as a captive, he had no choice. He was going to feel her fangs penetrate his arm regardless of his wishes.
As Cheong-yu moved into the torchlight, her face became visible, and the man stared in stunned recognition.
“Y-Young Lady? Lady Cheong-yu!?”
Other voices chorused from within the cell.
“Did he say… Lady Cheong-yu?”
“Is Lady Cheong-yu truly here?!”
I looked inside. In the gloom, even with their blood paths sealed and only their heads mobile, several of the non-Black Venom warriors had turned to stare.
What is this?
They seemed completely astonished. Perhaps they had not recognized her earlier amidst the confusion with Hwanji and Hwana.
Was it possible they were unaware she had died?
But judging from the earlier comments of the Black Venom captain and others, they definitely knew she was dead—even if they were ignorant of her transformation into the Golden-Crowned Death King.
“But… she died for certain… How can this be—?”
They were struggling to comprehend how someone they knew to be deceased was now standing before them in this shape.
Could it be they never knew she was cultivated on human elixirs? That was a top-secret matter, so it was entirely plausible.
If my intuition was right, this revelation might make them more pliable.
With a frosty demeanor, I spoke:
“Hmph. To detect concern in your voices for Lady Cheong-yu? It turns my stomach.
You people reared her like an animal on human elixirs, planning to extract her Neidan and feed it to your Clan Lord—leaving her to perish a wretched death.”
“W-What are you saying?”
The research warrior looked deeply unsettled. But a dawning realization seemed to strike him, and his expression shifted to one of pure horror.
“D-Don’t tell me! You mean the Young Lady was—?!”
It appeared he had been unaware that Cheong-yu was abducted as a child. His distress began to spread through the other captives.
“No… It’s impossible…”
“What in heaven were they doing…”
“That’s a falsehood! You would actually believe a Central Plains dog!?”
As a Black Venom Unit man attempted to shut them down, I continued, my voice like ice:
“You wish to understand her current state? The Golden-Crowned Death King, taking pity on the girl’s tragic end, retrieved her soul and granted it a new existence in this form.”
The warrior before me became visibly disturbed. Then, finally—his resistance crumbled.
“I… I witnessed something. When the poisonous mist descended earlier, the captains threw items into the furnace at the rear.”
“You are certain you are not lying?”
Tssrrk! 『You are telling the truth, yes?』
Hyang bared her fangs next to me, intensifying the intimidation, but his response did not change.
“Now that I understand the truth of the Young Lady’s fate, I have no cause to deceive you. It was… in the second cavern, the furnace at the back…”
My hyung hurried to the spot and examined it.
“They definitely burned something. The furnace retains warmth.”
That heat indicated the burning had occurred not long ago.
I didn’t believe he was lying—but since Cheong-yu’s venom operated like a truth serum, it could help retrieve any details lost in the panic.
“It is not that I distrust you—I merely wish to ensure no detail is overlooked. Will you permit the use of the Golden-Crowned Death King’s venom? It can sometimes help access forgotten memories.”
“…Very well.”
I had Cheong-yu deliver the venom and then inquired:
“Did you observe anything else?”
“No.”
“Are you completely sure everything you have said is accurate?”
“Yes. I have responded with complete honesty.”
With a vacant stare, he confirmed it all.
The questioning concluded in a somewhat underwhelming fashion.
There were genuinely no documents left behind.
We managed to obtain a few additional minor details about their arrival and activities, but that was the extent of it.
***
Tatak. Tatak.
Three days had elapsed since the fight.
Outside the cave, beneath the dimming evening sky, a campfire snapped and popped—a modest meal that seemed like a banquet due to the plentiful deer meat, just as it had the previous day.
To be more accurate, it was only termed a “feast” because of the meat’s abundance. In truth, it was a very basic supper.
“I’m starting to long for that strange food the villagers provided us.”
“I’ve also had my fill of this.”
“Agreed. It brings back memories of Qinghai.”
Our rice had been exhausted long ago, and our sole sustenance now was the deer we hunted after departing the village. The members of the Dragon Fangs and Seol-nui Hwa-eun all shared the same fatigued look as they worked their way through another helping of venison.
However, two individuals never tired of meat.
Hu-gae and the interpreter.
As their status was that of beggars, they were perfectly satisfied with a daily ration of meat.
“Ah, this meat is fantastic! You’re all just spoiled from having full stomachs, that’s your problem,” Hu-gae declared, ripping into a deer leg and sucking the grease from his fingers, completely indifferent to the irritated glances from the others.
Once he had eaten his fill, he gestured with his chin toward the back of the cave.
“So, now that the questioning is finished, what’s the plan for them?”
We had taken fourteen Five Venoms Clan warriors prisoner.
As we knew, five were from the Black Venom Unit; the rest seemed to be more aligned with research personnel.
The interrogation process had continued until lunchtime earlier that day.
After learning about Lady Cheong-yu’s ordeal, the non-Black Venom warriors had become unexpectedly helpful.
While we failed to uncover any physical evidence, we had still hoped to gather intelligence on the Five Venoms Clan’s future intentions using Cheong-yu’s venom.
But, much like with the documents, we learned very little.
Following their assimilation of the Blood Cult, the Five Venoms Clan had restructured into a tightly compartmentalized operation. The warriors knew nothing beyond the specific orders they themselves had been given.
Even after sifting through their memories, that was all we acquired.
Nonetheless, with the interrogations complete, our work here was largely concluded.
All that remained was to accompany Tenzin to the Podarlap Palace, our intended next destination—and now, the final decision was what to do with the captives.
“Taking them with us should be manageable. They are already influenced by the Golden-Crowned Death King’s venom. However… provisions could become a problem,” my hyung observed.
They weren’t in a continuous trance, but the venom had made them suggestible. Moving them wouldn’t be hard—but feeding them would be.
Our group already numbered eleven: myself, Hwa-eun, Seol-nui, half the Dragon Fangs, Monk Jaheo, Hu-gae, the interpreter, and Tenzin.
Adding the fourteen prisoners would bring our total to nearly thirty people.
Sustaining a group that size on the road was a significant challenge.
“The village we previously stayed in did not appear particularly prosperous. If we intend to prepare dried deer meat for the trip, we would need at least a month to do so,” Monk Jaheo stated.
“Furthermore, our next destination is Podarlap Palace. I feel it is inappropriate to bring those individuals there. Tenzin may be able to provide context, but it seems wrong to haul those criminals into such a place…” Eunbong said.
She had a valid point. Podarlap Palace was renowned for its profound contempt for martial artists from the Central Plains.
They were only accepting us because they believed I was a Buddha reborn. Arriving at such a holy site with a group of shackled prisoners would be… uncomfortable.
“There is no cause for concern on that matter,” Tenzin said serenely. “The Heavenly Master captured them while enacting righteous punishment.”
He seemed to suspect I might detour to the Central Plains merely to dispose of them and was assuring us it was unnecessary. Yet, his tone carried a faint undercurrent of anxiety.
Then, Lady Cheong-yu’s voice resonated in my mind.
Shiaa. 『What if we simply released them?』
“Release them?”
Everyone turned to look at us.
Cheong-yu elaborated on her idea.
Ssshh. 『These internal warriors have not been part of the Five Venoms Clan for long. Most joined due to a personal debt of gratitude or were recruited through emotional connections. That explains their shock upon hearing my story.
So… I was considering—perhaps we could set them free and utilize them as informants?』
“Informants?”
Spies, she meant.
They had inserted spies within our ranks—so why shouldn’t we reciprocate?
It was… a compelling proposition.