Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang Novel - Chapter 510

Chapter 510
As we flew downriver through the air, the moment we had dreaded finally came to pass.
Yeondu began to waver from sheer fatigue.
Although Yeondu was older than Cho, perhaps because of the distinction between a Ten Great Poison Beast and a Twenty-Four Poison Branch Beast, it was Yeondu’s energy that failed first. Her body sagged, and her pouch grazed the water’s surface, making Seomi and Byeogi cry out in fear.

–SPLASH!
–“Whyyeee! Whyyy!”
–Shaaa. 『M-My apologies…』

Yeondu swiftly corrected herself and rose higher, but shortly after, Cho also began to falter, dipping low enough to touch the water.
It appeared the distinction between them was irrelevant after all.
This was utter exhaustion.

–Splash!
–“Whyyeee! Whyyy!”

Seomi and Byeogi shrieked in panic once more.
But Cho was so far gone she couldn’t even muster an apology. She was in a complete daze.
I looked between them, my heart sore. Yeondu’s eyes were glazed over, and Cho’s antennae hung slack.
We needed to land and rest right away—but if they set down now, they would never get airborne again.
It was like mountain climbing: stopping to rest when pushed to your absolute limit makes it ten times harder to start moving again. Their bodies and minds were at the edge. If they rested now, they would shut down entirely.

I urgently reached out to Hwanji and Hwana, whom I had called for earlier.
‘Hwanji, Hwana! Where are you!?’
Their replies came almost immediately.
–Shua. 『We are present, Master So-ryong!』
–Shii. 『Right here!』
‘Where is “here”?!’
Just saying “here” was useless—how was I supposed to know where that was?
But then it struck me—they weren’t human, so they likely had no concept of landmarks.
Snakes wouldn’t use things like towns for navigation.
As I was struggling to figure out how to locate them—
–Splash!
I heard the pouch skim the water again and looked down.
From below, two enormous snake heads broke the current and emerged from the water like periscopes.
The water peeled back—one head white, the other red.
They greeted me with bright voices.
–Shua. 『Naturally, we are here.』
–Shii. 『Hwanji and Hwana, present and accounted for!』
The two had clearly already arrived and were following us.
I had never been so relieved to see anyone in all my life.
Now I understood the saying about feeling the joy of meeting one’s forebears in the afterlife.
I wanted to hug them and cover them in kisses.
“Kids!”
I cried out emotionally, overwhelmed with relief. The two smiled at me, their expressions full of concern for their younger siblings.
–Shua. 『First, put the little ones on our heads.』
–Shii. 『Yes, Master So-ryong.』
“Alright, understood. Kids! Wake up—Hwanji and Hwana are here!”
I tried to tell Yeondu and Cho to rouse themselves because help had arrived, but Cho was too far gone to tell “sister” from “mother” anymore.
–Shaaa? 『S-Sister?』
–Tzrrr… 『M-Mother…』
They had done more than enough. They could finally stop.
“You’ve done wonderfully. Let’s go down now.”
I softly urged them to descend, and gradually, they began to lose height.
But they couldn’t get low enough by themselves.
They were too exhausted to control the descent properly—their last shred of consciousness was warning them not to drop too fast.
“You have to go lower!”
I shouted again, trying to shock them into action, but their bodies were already lifeless. They were flying purely on instinct.
I had to push down on their heads to force them lower.
As their pouches drew level with Hwanji and Hwana’s mouths, the two snakes clamped onto the pouch straps with their teeth.
They tugged firmly, lowering them further, and finally guided Cho and Yeondu onto their heads.
The instant their bellies made contact with the snakes’ heads, they shuddered—then went completely limp, falling into a deep sleep.
It was as if their minds finally switched off the moment they felt something solid beneath them.
–Shuaaa. 『Oh dear, look at them… they must be utterly spent.』
–Shii. 『Absolutely.』
Hwanji and Hwana gazed down with pity at the two sleeping creatures.
I felt terrible too—but there was no time to linger.
“We must move as quickly as we can. If we are late, we are finished.”
–Shuaaa. 『We understand, Master So-ryong!』
–Shii. 『On our way!』
The gigantic two-headed snakes raced over the river at tremendous speed. Now and then, fishermen or ferry operators spotted them—and screamed.
“Hiieeek!”
“Sna-snakes?!”
Normally, we would travel discreetly to avoid being seen—but not this time.
If the threadworms reached the Lancang River, it would become a deadly flow.
If that occurred, the Mekong River—the vital artery of Southeast Asia—would be destroyed.
So I yelled at them to pay no attention to anything else and just race downstream, fast.
We were critically short on time.
If the threadworms broke free, it could mean the end of Southeast Asia’s historical continuity.
“Ignore everything else—just run!”
–Shuaaa. 『Yes, Master So-ryong! This is enjoyable!』
–Shii. 『Kyaaa! How thrilling!』
Their happy voices carried to me from behind.
I was filled with panic—but Hwanji and Hwana were simply having a wonderful time, delighting in the speed.

***
Roughly two hours later, the dock of the Beast Palace became visible up ahead.
But there was no time to halt there.
Our goal was farther downstream—at the point where a tributary met the river, near the border.
“Keep going past it!”
–Shua. 『Yes, sir!』
–Shii! 『Understood!』
The Beast Palace was almost deserted, the majority of its fighters already dispatched. We sped past and continued toward the border.
From this point, the border was approximately thirty minutes away.
I was too nervous to ask for status reports and could only stare ahead.
Riding on Hwanji and Hwana past the Beast Palace, we continued on for some time.
Finally, the tributary that led to the border came into sight.
“There! This is it!”
Approaching the mouth of the tributary, I saw our boat moored there.
But Geumdo was not visible—which meant he had probably been called upon to help stem the flow as well.
I had instructed them to use Geumdo if the situation became desperate.
“Just as I thought, they had to use Geumdo too.”
Only a handful of boatmen were left; the children were absent.
–Plip. Plip-plip.
As we passed the boat, rain began to fall.
Just as Hwa-eun had predicted—it was raining here.
When we reached the mouth of the tributary, Geumdo’s huge form was there, positioned sideways to obstruct the waterway.
His golden shell shone in my view.
As I had suspected—they had used him in a rush to block the current.
Water was rushing through the spaces between Geumdo’s head and tail.
Just as we were about to pass over Geumdo’s tail on Hwanji and Hwana’s heads, I spotted a group of warriors impaling threadworms on the net with long bamboo poles.
Baby Poison Larvae were stuck on them like candied fruit—there were too many to spear any more, and the warriors stood motionless, not knowing what to do next.
And at the front—
Yo-hwa was straining to keep the net intact, gripping it with her legs, unable to spin any more web.
In her state, anyone else would have surrendered—but we had an agreement, and she was struggling to honor it, holding onto the web with everything she had.
Yo-hwa, that girl! She’s impossible—except for how she loves her brother far too much!
My throat tight with feeling, I yelled to Hwanji and Hwana.
“Yo-hwa! You two, put me down beside her!”
Hwanji and Hwana swiftly turned and set me down next to Yo-hwa.
–Ksssh! 『Brother!』
Yo-hwa, still clinging to the web, called out happily the instant she saw me—and I quickly put a finger into her spider mouth.
“Here, Yo-hwa—eat!”
–Kishishi! 『Yes, Brother!』
At the same time, I called to Seomi and Byeogi.
This area needed to be secured first.
“Seomi! Byeogi! If you use too much force with your electric shock here, you might injure people! Target the threadworms directly!”
–“Whyyy! Whyyy!”
The moment I released them in front of Yo-hwa’s net, they dashed through the masses, using precise shocks to flip Poison Larvae onto their backs.
Thinking about it, no natural predator was better suited to these creatures than Seomi and Byeogi.
Their bodies were covered in a sticky substance that stopped the threadworms from attaching, and they were quick and nimble enough to administer focused electric shocks.
I intended to get Yo-hwa stable and then press onward—but suddenly, I felt energy draining rapidly from my fingers.
The kind of draining fatigue I had only felt two or three times with Hwa-eun hit me all at once.
‘Wow… this is intense.’
Yo-hwa had never drained me this severely before—it was a shock.
Only then did I understand how much she had been restraining herself until now.
And with that exhaustion came the unavoidable: the Sage’s Time.
My thoughts became instantly clear, sharp, and completely logical.
In this state, I could likely work out calculus or factor polynomials in my head without a second thought.
‘How can I be entering Sage’s Time… when I haven’t done a thing!?’
Astonished that this was happening despite having done nothing, I spoke to Yo-hwa.
“Yo-hwa, you’re full now, right? The situation is worse further in—I need to go there next. Can you handle things here now?”
–Ksssh! 『I am full, Brother. Do not worry about this area. Have faith in Yo-hwa!』
–FWOOM!
After telling me to trust her, she instantly started shooting webs in all directions.
With the net firm again, and Seomi and Byeogi flipping Poison Larvae with their shocks, this zone was now secure.
Then it happened.
From on top of Hwanji and Hwana’s heads, Cho stirred, her antennae quivering as she awoke.
–Tzzrrr 『F-Father…』
“Cho, are you awake? You can sleep longer.”
It would have been best to have at least one of them flying again, but I couldn’t demand it.
They had flown non-stop for two and a half days.
That’s why I told her to rest more—but Cho shook her head and rose.
–Tzzrt. 『Cho is fine, Father.』
She coiled around me and lifted into the air.
I was concerned, but at this stage, she wouldn’t heed reason anyway.
This area would soon be manageable—so I would have to rely on her strength a little while longer.
I called out to Seomi and Byeogi.
“Let’s go, you two!”
–“Whyyy! Whyyy!”
They replied like screaming alarms.
Then I also shouted to the people close by.
“Everyone! Get away from the water! You don’t need to hold your posts any longer—just retreat from the riverbank! Now!”
I also called out to Hwa-eun and Gun Hye-rin, who I knew must be nearby.
『Everyone, out of the water! Move away from the shore!』
“So-ryong! You made it!”
“You’re here, Master!”
Hwa-eun’s joyful exclamation was swiftly followed by Gun Hye-rin addressing me as “Master.”
She wasn’t even a registered companion, yet she used that term. It must be an effect of the Registration.
They say that continued registration makes affection for the registrant increase very quickly.
If I commented on it, she would only get mad—so I let it be and directed Seomi and Byeogi’s path from above.
“You two! Three large ones up ahead!”
Whatever had transpired, there were now multiple large ones. Near Gun Hye-rin, whose body was moving through the air, the remnants of threadworms were jerking and starting to regenerate.
But as Seomi and Byeogi cut through the water like fish, every threadworm in their way turned belly-up.
Their nervous systems were completely disabled—no rigor mortis, just limp forms drifting in the water.
“You two! Now let’s move upstream!”
Wherever the two Ho-ye went, threadworms turned over and floated lifelessly to the surface, one after another in an endless procession.