Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 450

Chapter 450
The instant I learned the queen ant had survived, a wave of elation, as intense as birthday joy, washed over me. As a precaution, I instructed Hyang to verify the ants’ status.

We had just received confirmation they were alive, but the sheer number of deceased ants outside planted a seed of anxiety—could they be suffering from a plague?

My earlier external examination confirmed they weren’t afflicted by surface-level infections common to subterranean ants, like mold or fungus. Such conditions leave obvious markers: bodily perforations, or patches of discoloration and decay on their shells. There were none.

Yet, the sudden, mass die-off and the abandonment of their dead hinted at an illness beyond my knowledge. I needed to be certain.

‘Hyang, are the ants diseased in any way?’
I asked her through our mental connection, all while still holding Hwa-eun.
– Tsrr. 『No, Dad. They all appear to be resting?』
“All of them? Hold on—you mean there’s more than one?”
– Tsrrrr. 『Yes! There are three!』
“Three?!”
‘Is it one queen with two nurse ants or workers?’
My initial thought was a single surviving queen, perhaps accompanied by two attendants.

But Hyang’s next revelation was astounding.
– Tsrut! 『Correct! There are three ants with large, circular stomachs!』
“Is that true?!”
Three ants with distended abdomens—overcome by the news, I unconsciously squeezed Hwa-eun tighter.
“S-So-ryong? But everyone is… Ah… I-I’m so confused… though we are betrothed…”
Hwa-eun was murmuring something, but my mind was completely occupied by the image of the Azure Steel Immortal Ants that Hyang had just conveyed.

If Hyang noted their swollen bellies, the logical conclusion was that all three were queens.
Three queens had endured.
It seemed Azure Steel Immortal Ants resembled termites in their ability to produce multiple reproductive queens.
I didn’t know the precise cause, but the outcome was that all the common ants had perished, leaving only three queens. This was tremendously positive news—reestablishing the colony would be significantly simpler.

A typical queen ant finishes her nuptial flight in spring and then embarks on founding her colony alone.
She finds a spot under a stone, in a tuft of grass, or within a fissure in a wall—anywhere she can start her empire. From nothing, she creates everything.
This means she lays her initial clutch of eggs and raises the first generation of workers completely unaided.
The process can seem brutal to an observer. She lays roughly four eggs, nurtures them briefly, then consumes one, feeds another to her larvae, and sacrifices one to successfully raise the final one into a mature worker. It is a desperate, miraculous struggle for survival.
Gradually, she builds toward a genuine kingdom—but it is a long and arduous endeavor.
Once numbers increase, the colony grows rapidly. However, the beginning is a precarious and slow process.
A single error in raising that first worker, and the entire kingdom perishes before it truly begins.
Therefore, recreating a colony of the size that had died here from a single queen would have taken a very long time. But with three queens? The situation was utterly transformed.
‘It’s unfortunate about the workers, but repopulation will be effortless now.’

Just as I smiled in relief at Hyang’s report, I sensed it.
A stare.
Assuming it was Hwa-eun looking up, I glanced down—but her eyes were shut, and she was nestled firmly against me.
Where then…?
I turned and saw the Dragon Fangs, Hu-gae, and Jaheo nearby, casting embarrassed looks in our direction.
The chamber’s light was dim, but it was enough to see their flushed faces clearly.
“S-So-ryong…”
Brother Gwiseong offered an uncomfortable smile the moment our eyes met.
Then, from behind me, I heard Sister Seol’s voice, laced with disbelief.
“Really… what are you two doing? So-ryong, Hwa-eun?”
Startled, Hwa-eun pushed away from me and muttered sheepishly,
“I-It’s not… So-ryong just suddenly…”
“Me?!”
I stared at her in surprise, and she responded with a slow, apologetic nod.
Of course… I had embraced her abruptly when I heard about the queens.
It was a slight misunderstanding.
‘Well… fantastic.’
“So-ryong is every bit a man, isn’t he? And this isn’t his first time, is it?”
“To hold a lady so openly, without a care for onlookers—and after seeming so mild-mannered. A genuine man, no doubt. Hah! To witness the mighty Poison Flower so flustered… We have much to learn from you, So-ryong.”
The good-natured ribbing from Authority Dragon and Sword Dragon hyungs continued, but since Hwa-eun was so mortified, I steered the conversation elsewhere.
“Haha… R-Right, then—did everyone finish checking that area?”
I indicated the fallen pillar where the group had been gathered earlier.
Brother answered immediately, as if he’d been anticipating my question.
“Ah! Yes. So-ryong, we were waiting for you.”
“Waiting for me? Since when?”
“From the moment you took hold of Poison Flower’s waist and she dissolved into your arms as if her meridians had been touched.”
“The mythical Submission Point for Women! Wahaha! How do you even execute that, So-ryong?”
“Now, now. You can’t just ask for secret techniques like that.”
“My apologies. My curiosity overcame me…”
Once more, the teasing from Authority Dragon and Sword Dragon began.
I looked at Hwa-eun. Her face was deep red as she sent a mental message.
[I… I have no regrets.]
If she had no regrets, then neither did I.
I resolved to address the reason they claimed to be waiting.
Even if it was impulsive… I didn’t regret it either.
“So, Brother. Why were you waiting?”
“Ah, yes. We discovered a technique carved on the pillar. To proceed through this gate, one must learn the form and execute it before that stone door.”
“Ah. I recall you mentioning it—the final trial combines all three tests into one technique?”
“Precisely.”
He had said that earlier.
One technique. Three trials simultaneously.
“The first form of Master Hwamu-jin’s Flame Martial Blade Art is a vertical chop, a horizontal sweep, and a lunge. Performing them flawlessly before the door will cause it to open.”
“In that case, Brother, you must learn it quickly and open the door.”
“You—you’re permitting me!?”
He asked, his voice brimming with excitement.
So that was the reason for his hesitation—he wanted permission to study the technique inscribed on the pillar.
It all became clear.
Before we entered, we had agreed all spoils from this tomb would be mine.
But if opening the door required that specific sword form, then Big Brother was the only one among us capable of performing it.
He was, after all, our sole blade specialist.
To reach the ants swiftly, we needed him to open this path without delay. I smiled and nodded.
“You’re the only one who can open that door, Brother. Naturally, you should learn it.”
My approval made him radiant with happiness.
“Understood! This art doesn’t typically employ thrusts, so I’ll need to practice that, but my vertical and horizontal cuts have been drilled daily! I’ll have that door open in a flash!”
“I believe in you, Brother.”
Brimming with zeal, Big Brother hurried to the pillar, studied it for a moment, and began practicing with his blade.
Watching him, I turned to Sword Dragon.
“But doesn’t mastering a form require time? Will this not take a while?”
As dedicated as Big Brother was, martial arts aren’t perfected instantly.
“Ah, no need for concern. The pillar’s inscription suggested this isn’t a test of perfecting the form, but of the foundational skill one has cultivated thus far. That is likely why the first form is composed of basic movements.”
“Ahh, I understand.”
“You know Blade Dragon’s nature. He never neglects his practice. Wait—is it appropriate to call him a ‘training fanatic’ in your presence, So-ryong?”
“It’s fine. I take it as a compliment.”
It was true. Big Brother Do-ryong was relentless in his martial training. The man was a consummate devotee of practice.
Soon, the sound of his swinging blade filled the chamber.
– Bwoong! Bwoooong.
***
After two full hours of diligent practice, Big Brother positioned himself before the door.
– Gulp.
I heard him swallow nervously.
This was the decisive moment: would the vertical chop, horizontal sweep, and lunge he had practiced his entire life meet Master Hwamu-jin’s approval?
The entire group watched, breathless.
Big Brother closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and unsheathed his sword.
– Srrrng.
Facing the stone door, he settled into his stance, gathering his ki.
His voice was clear and firm as he announced the name of the first form:
“Flame Martial Blade Art, First Form! Threefold Heaven-Piercing Blade!”
His large blade cut horizontally across the face of the door with a sharp hiss, then descended from above in a vertical slash.
– Sshhk. Sshhk. CRACK.
Finally, he executed a clean, powerful thrust.
Though it was his first attempt at the complete technique, the lifetime of foundational practice made it appear remarkably whole and formidable.
I was deeply impressed.
‘Incredible…’
Yet, after he completed the final motion, nothing occurred for a long moment.
If he had succeeded, the door should have opened—but there was no reaction.
A look of deep disappointment crossed Big Brother’s face.
“Did I… fail?”
“Nonsense, nobody succeeds on the first attempt. This tomb is 300 years old—we should try again.”
“Gwiseong is right. The form was impeccable. The mechanism is probably just stiff with age.”
“Please, try again, Brother.”
Everyone offered encouragement, fearing he would be disheartened—when abruptly…
The stone door shuddered faintly… and then began to grind open.
– Drrrrrrr…
It opened with a slow, grating noise.
“Ohh! Just as expected, Blade Dragon. The mechanism was simply aged and slow.”
“I never doubted it! Master Hwamu-jin himself validates your skill.”
“Heh…”
As congratulations were offered, Big Brother stood there, proud and joyful—until suddenly, from the lower right corner of the door, Hyang poked her head out and cheerfully announced.
– Tsrrrrr. 『Ahaha! Dad, I found out how to open it. I pushed this thing on the wall here and it opened! Hyang helped, yes?』
Thankfully, she communicated this mentally, so only I heard.
***
“Forward! Let’s go, So-ryong!”
“Right behind you, Brother!”
The door was open. We moved inward, following a path littered with Azure Steel Immortal Ant carcasses that served as a macabre guide.
Further in, more dead ants were scattered.
The trail led to a corpse seated in meditation—and just beyond, a low ceiling from which ants dangled like glittering gems.
I sprinted past the corpse straight toward the ants.
But the moment I saw their outlines, a scream caught in my throat—and upon seeing them clearly, I exclaimed in pure astonishment.
‘What in the world!? Wait—what!?’
Their stomachs were indeed swollen—but not at all like any queen ant I had imagined.
Then came the shocked exclamations from those behind me.
“This—what happened here…? The blade is shattered, and the Azure Steel tablet recording the martial arts… the ants have devoured it…”
“And this shallow basin—it seems it once contained Air-Crystal Stone Milk. But where… where could it have gone?”
Hearing that, I had a very strong suspicion about the fate of that Air-Crystal Stone Milk.