Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 486

Chapter 486
What had begun as a practice duel concluded on an almost amicable note—until it very nearly turned into a slaughter.

“Chang-ryong! You did it!”
“Geombong! I did it!”

Overwhelmed by Elder Merciless Sword’s acceptance of Chang-ryong, Geombong surged forward to seize his hands—an action that almost resulted in her fist crashing through his skull.

She recoiled at the last second, managing only to clutch his hands because her initial impulse had been to embrace him.

“…Geombong?”
“Ah! M-My apologies, Master.”

Elder Merciless Sword had given his blessing to their courtship—but physical contact was evidently a step too far.

The hand gripping his sword quivered, shaking with pure rage.
Had Geombong actually completed that hug, the elder’s blade might have truly found its way into Chang-ryong’s head.

Having reached the Fire Realm, I could now perceive Willforce—the concentrated will of martial masters.
And within that mental plane, the sword trembling in Elder Merciless Sword’s grasp was already buried deep in Chang-ryong’s skull.

‘Such an intense Willforce…’
—Grind.

“Wouldn’t you say things are moving a bit too swiftly?”
“F-Forgive me, Elder.”

His teeth clenched, the elder’s meaning was unmistakable: “Isn’t this relationship advancing far too quickly?”

He seemed genuinely concerned that his treasured disciple’s hands might be sullied by Chang-ryong’s mere touch—but there was a crucial fact Elder Merciless Sword was unaware of.

Our vessel, not counting the crew, offered private quarters to almost every passenger.
It was a large ship, with cabins to spare. Throughout the voyage, Chang-ryong and Geombong had essentially been living together.
Yes, they maintained separate rooms in principle, but they would retire to their own at night only to be discovered in the other’s by morning—or be seen slipping out at first light.

In a Confucian society, such behavior was disgraceful. But as the owner of the ship, I refrained from lecturing them like a stern patriarch.
Furthermore, even Hwa-eun slept in the same chamber as her “children” every night—so who were we to judge?
This was why every member of the Three Peaks of the Five Dragons held their own private theories about how intimate the couple had truly become.

Penetration.
Wagers were even circulating on whether Chang-ryong had successfully “pierced” Geombong with his “spear.”
They had been visiting each other’s rooms for days on end. If nothing had occurred, he was either ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Ji-ryong or not a man at all.

‘Surely not…’
And if that secret were ever exposed, would the elder shatter Chang-ryong’s “spear” for daring to stab Geombong?
In truth, the consequences would likely be far more severe.

I was entertaining these very thoughts when the next inquiry arrived.
“Geombong, to seize his hands so brazenly… don’t tell me!?”
“…”

Geombong stood motionless, struck silent.
Elder Merciless Sword’s icy gaze fixed upon Chang-ryong.
If this interrogation continued, Chang-ryong was a dead man.

Thankfully, the heavens appeared to intervene on his behalf—at that precise moment, the prisoners were delivered.

“Master! We have apprehended the scoundrels who dared to defame our benefactor!”

Disciples of the Dianchang Sect hauled two hooded figures before the Sect Leader’s office and came to a halt.
The questioning of Chang-ryong and Geombong was promptly put on hold.
There were now more fitting subjects to interrogate.

“We will discuss this later. Geombong, we will resume that talk for the time being.”
“Y-Yes, Master.”
“Excellent work, Seonhak. Seat them!”
“At once, sir!”

The two men were bound together like fish strung up to dry.
Once their hoods were lifted and gags removed, they immediately began shrieking for mercy the moment they saw the training ground.

“P-Please, let us live!”
“We beg you! Why are we being persecuted? We have no quarrel with the Dianchang Sect!”

The two men yelled in protest, claiming they had done nothing to deserve being brought here.

Hearing this, Elder Merciless Sword inquired with a cold tone.
“You state you have committed no offense against our Dianchang Sect?”

The fire braziers flanking him flickered, washing his face in a hellish red light. He resembled Yama, the King of Hell.
The two men faltered for a second under his gaze—then nodded vigorously.

“A-Absolutely!”
“Without a doubt!”

But the elder pressed further.
“Would you wager your lives on that?”
“…”

Hearing the word “lives,” their eyes flickered with uncertainty. They gulped nervously before answering.

“W-We did peddle some questionable remedies, but… that hardly seems a reason for the Dianchang Sect to drag us here and treat us this way.”
“Yes! Many others sell medicines besides us!”

They maintained that selling medicine was insufficient grounds for their arrest.

Elder Merciless Sword shot a glance in my direction.
“One should not leap to conclusions. As they stated, they did not directly harm our Dianchang Sect… but they have offended our Sect’s benefactor.”

“Your benefactor?”
“Wh-What do you mean?”

The two men were visibly shaken now.

Then the elder turned to me and asked:
“Would you prefer to conduct the interrogation yourself?”
“I believe I will.”

I decided it was better to handle this personally rather than delegate.
I stepped up and positioned myself before the captives.

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, gentlemen.”
“Wh-Who are you?”
“Me? I am the proprietor of that questionable medicine.”
“The proprietor?”

They were initially bewildered—but when I declared myself its source, they flinched and froze solid.
They scrambled to piece it together—and then their faces contorted in sheer terror as they both cried out simultaneously:

“W-Wait! You’re from the Tang Clan!?”

These scoundrels knew precisely what sort of fake medicine they had been distributing.

“It is Tong—as in connection. I am the individual who formulated that vile medicine. The son of the Beast Palace, and son-in-law of the Sacheon Tang Clan. My name is So-ryong.”

As I declared the true answer and gave my name, the two men went as white as ghosts.
Smiling, I asked,

“Would you be so kind as to inform me where you obtained that filthy medicine?”
“…”

They exchanged a look, their expressions plainly screaming, ‘We’re finished. What do we do?’

When they didn’t answer immediately, Elder Merciless Sword turned to his youngest disciple, Seonhak, and issued a command—a clear instruction to prepare for torture.

“It has been too long since our disciples last practiced piercing a man. Make the preparations.”
“Yes, Master.”

Were they intending to use these two as training dummies?
Stating an intent to “pierce two men” could be dangerously misinterpreted—and the instant those words were spoken, a torrent of confession poured forth.

“Aaaah! We just met in the jungle on the set day to trade, we don’t know anything else! We only received the goods and sold them!”
“Th-That’s right! It’s the truth!”

As Seonhak approached them with a sword in hand, their mouths flew open.
It was the identical story I’d already heard from the Dianchang Sect disciples prior to their arrival: they professed to know nothing about the medicine’s originators.

Just as Seonhak’s sword made contact with one man’s thigh, I addressed Elder Merciless Sword:

“Elder, there is no need for bloodshed. Even the most devout warrior of the Blood Cult or a venom-brained puppet of the Five Venoms Sect would be compelled to talk using a certain technique I perfected.”

Truthfully, there was no requirement to probe their flesh for answers.
I possessed a method with a perfect success rate.

“Oh? You have a superior alternative?”
“Naturally.”

I replied with assurance and swiftly focused my mind.
Soon, I detected the presence of the children all around us.

Although it was winter, Yunnan’s climate was mild, so the children had not hibernated and were concealed everywhere.
And since it was night, some were already awake.

Before calling them, I sought Elder Merciless Sword’s cooperation.
“Elder, could you please instruct your disciples to stay perfectly still and not move an inch?”
“My disciples?”
“Yes.”
“Understood. You all heard him. Remain motionless—do not twitch a single muscle.”
“Yes!”

I had taken this precaution to ensure none of the children would be trampled when I summoned them.

Then, I concentrated my will and called to them.
‘Children, come to me.’
—Skitter, skitter.

Voices resonated in my head.
Soon, from fractures in the stone walls and various crevices, centipedes started to stream out.
The warm environment of Yunnan meant there were many of them.

‘A Lithobius—a type of stone centipede. That’s a Tygarrup, a soil centipede. Oh! A Scolopendra as well—one of the large ones.
Wow, is that a Mecistocephalus? There’s a Bothropolys too? Goodness, even a Cermatobius is present. Yes, this is undoubtedly Yunnan.’

Stone centipedes, soil centipedes, giant centipedes—Yunnan hosted them all.
Just as I was marveling at the diversity, astonished exclamations broke out around us.

“O-O-gong?!”
“Why are O-gong appearing so suddenly?!”
“They are here at my call. Please be extremely careful not to move and inadvertently end a life.”

As centipedes of assorted sizes emerged and scuttled toward me, the Dianchang Sect disciples recoiled in alarm.
I lowered my palm and allowed several to climb onto it—at which point the disciples’ faces lost all color.

“How can a human command O-gong in such a way?!”
“Astounding…”

Soon, a full meter-wide circle around me was teeming with them.
I led them forward and stood before the two men.

“I require specific details about who manufactured that medicine—but I have a suspicion you are being deceitful. So I will investigate personally. Feel free to continue concealing the truth.”

I continued with a cheerful smile:
“You are likely curious about what I intend to do with these children. But if you are picturing a stereotypical torture where you are bitten and endure agony, you are greatly mistaken. People invariably assume that when I produce them—but I do not engage in such primitive acts.”

“No, I am merely going to create a pleasant, snug refuge for my dear children. O-gong adore dark spaces, you see.”

To prevent them from flailing and crushing any centipedes, I instantly sealed their pressure points—leaving only their necks mobile.

—Tap.
I then snapped my fingers and issued the command.
‘Ascend.’

The centipedes commenced their climb up the legs of the kneeling men.
Screams broke out instantly.

“Aaaah! We truly don’t know!”
“We swear! It’s the truth!”

As the centipedes advanced past their knees, hips, and chests, swarming over their necks, even the Dianchang disciples shivered with revulsion.

The moment I had been anticipating arrived when one centipede reached a man’s mouth.
“We—we really don’t know! But we can tell you the meeting spot! We can tell you where we purchased it!”

A man had approached them out of the blue one day, proposing they sell a wonderful medicine, and they had merely met him routinely in the jungle to procure it—that was all.

As ever, my technique had not faltered.
It was only to be expected—everyone possesses some fear of insects.

Disciples of the Dianchang Sect and warriors from the Venom Elimination Unit were sent forthwith to the revealed location.

***

Subsequently…
Despite sending them to the new location, we learned the following day that the dealers had failed to appear.
Even though the capture had been executed covertly, it seemed news had leaked—as not one of the counterfeit medicine producers came to the meeting point.

Inside the Sect Leader’s office—
I questioned the perplexing outcome.

“Is it possible they were alerted?”
“Impossible. We moved under cover of darkness and set a hidden ambush.”
“Then perhaps they are lying low out of prudence?”
“It is peculiar. Our Dianchang disciples did not act directly—we employed sympathetic locals from Dali to express a desire to buy medicine and monitor their activities.”
“Additionally, those two were not the sole vendors. We had others under surveillance. We specifically detained these two because they were drifters—no family in Dali, no ties. If they vanished, no one would notice.”
“Hmm. What, then, occurred?”

I was still pondering, my head tilted, when Elder Merciless Sword turned to the two men and snarled,

“If you value your lives, explain what is happening!”
“Eek!”

One of them suddenly brightened as if recalling something.
“Ah! Th-The man mentioned last time that they were short on ingredients! He said we might have to wait a little longer for the next transaction! So they will absolutely be there next time!”

Damn—he should have disclosed that sooner.
The leader of the Venom Elimination Unit, furious over the wasted effort, struck both of them on the head.

—Thwack! Smack!
“Ugh!”

As they moaned and squirmed on the floor, Elder Merciless Sword demanded,
“When, then, is the next meeting?”
“Th-Three days from now!”
“Then we must dispatch disciples once more.”

Elder Merciless Sword seemed ready to command another ambush to apprehend the next contact—but I moved forward and proposed a different strategy.

“This time, I will go personally.”

For I now realized something: if we merely captured another middleman and questioned him, we risked setbacks—setbacks that could enable the manufacturers to flee.
But if we released the middleman and simply shadowed him, we might locate their entire operation in one stroke.
Moreover, with Jeokwol providing aerial surveillance in her cloaking form, detection was impossible.

‘Just wait, you bastards. So-ryong is coming for you himself.’
First, I needed to return to the ship and bring Jeokwol and a few of the children along.