Chapter 78: Myriad Poison Hall

After the Devouring Demonic Monarch died, the other demonic practitioners who had attacked us took their own lives.

Just like the Devouring Demonic Monarch, they discarded anything that could prove they were demonic practitioners of the Demonic Cult and threw away their lives like trash.

They were crazy bastards who smashed their own heads.

It was human nature to hesitate to inflict even a small wound on one’s own body. Crushing one’s own head was not something that could be done with ordinary resolve.

“They’re absolutely insane.”

Baek Mu-ho also clicked his tongue.

This was the Demonic Cult.

Such bastards were the enemy, and they were the ones we had to fight.

“At least this is what we managed to salvage.”

Although they were venomous enough to smash their own heads, they did not have the ability to incinerate their entire bodies.

Some managed to swallow a strange poison that turned even their corpses into a handful of bloody water, but a few left their bodies behind.

There were tattoos on the corpses; in cases where a tattoo was on the arm, the arm was cut off, and when it was on the chest, the skin where the tattoo was located was peeled off.

“It’s a bit eerie, man.”

“……I can’t deny that.”

Cutting up corpses and tearing off human skin just to show proof that the Demonic Cult was plotting in Sichuan and that we had beaten those cultist bastards.

Wondering about the deep wisdom of an elder, I asked Elder Cheong-pung, and the response I got was spectacular.

“Do not worry. I will take care of all the resulting byproducts. So you boys do not have to feel particularly squeamish about it.”

Elder Cheong-pung said he would take the initiative and shoulder all of it himself.

Regarding that, Baek Mu-ho grumbled, calling it ‘a highly advanced backhanded threat’ and ‘a strategy of Zhuge Liang,’ yet he still packed up a piece (?) of it.

Even in my eyes, it seemed like we had been played, but in any case, we took what we needed to take.

***

Fortunately, there were no more attacks.

If the Demonic Cult bastards had spread rumors around, the unorthodox sects would have jumped at us this time, seeking a bloodbath, but no such thing happened.

It seemed that the Demonic Cult had intended to eliminate us quietly.

[You benefited from it.]

“Yes.”

Yet, it could not be dismissed as a foolish decision. If the Demonic Cult’s scheme had worked properly, it would have become an unprecedented dagger tearing through Sichuan.

To be precise, it had to be called good luck. If another master of the Demonic Monarch level, rather than the Devouring Demonic Monarch, had stepped forward, the outcome would have been different from now.

“Neither the unorthodox sects nor the Demonic Cult have any easy opponents. It would be convenient if there were plenty of fools who don’t know how to use their brains.”

[You do not live in this world alone. If you try to get a free ride too much, you will get into trouble.]

“Hearing Master say that is quite terrifying.”

Considering how much of a free ride I had gotten thanks to my masters, what kind of trouble would I end up in?

Oh boy.

Suddenly, the words of the unorthodox master I had met at the slaughterhouse came to mind.

“Hehehe. Look here, orthodox greenhorn. If we were just idiots running wild with nothing but strength, we wouldn’t have been able to compete for supremacy here in Sichuan.”

This was the utterly unwelcome reason why the unorthodox sects and the Demonic Cult had been able to maintain their power for so long.

As my thoughts reached that point, I suddenly frowned at a fact that crossed my mind.

‘Shouldn’t this kind of worry be done by the higher-ups? Why is an innocent (?), gentle (?), and fresh-faced (?) greenhorn racking his brains over this?’

I felt somewhat wronged.

Why did it turn out like this?

“……”

“……Why? What?”

“No, I just got a somewhat unpleasant feeling. You’ve always had that kind of tendency anyway.”

Baek Mu-ho, who was glaring at me with half-closed eyes, casually threw out harsh words.

Considering it could be seen as a sign of how close we were, indeed, he deserved to be called a childhood friend.

“And you’re still talking to yourself.”

“Because I think a lot. If you empty your mind and live without thinking, it might be comfortable since there’s nothing to worry about, but you’re bound to pay the price for it someday.”

Since others would see me as a complete loser talking to himself when I conversed with my masters, I had created an excuse like this, but Baek Mu-ho went out of his way to mention it again.

‘Huh? Is this completely about me?’

Once again, the answer to why I was digging a hole for myself just a moment ago was solved.

It was a strange situation where I was convinced by my own words.

Meanwhile, Baek Mu-ho looked to the side and continued speaking.

“Did you hear that? He’s a guy who has this kind of loser tendency contrary to how he looks. So don’t look at him too strangely.”

The people of the Qingcheng Sect nodded in agreement.

‘Ah.’

Unlike Baek Mu-ho, who knew about my habit of talking to myself, the people of the Qingcheng Sect must have viewed my behavior as strange.

Baek Mu-ho had cleared up that part.

“So you do live with thoughts after all?”

“Why don’t you fix your habit of casually throwing out harsh words first?”

“Look who’s talking.”

I knew he was showing consideration in his own way, but it was still annoying.

While I was thinking about giving him a smack, words completely different from my feelings came from the side.

“You two are really close.”

It was sister Yi Cheong-ryeo, speaking with wonder. I did not know if it was my imagination, but there was a hint of envy in her voice.

Honestly, it was not the kind of thing I wanted to hear right now, but I understood her intention in saying it.

“Since we’ve been together since we were young, we ended up knowing a lot about each other. Because we know each other’s inner thoughts, there’s no need to put on a facade, our words and actions become comfortable, and we can comfortably exchange insults.”

“And hands get thrown a bit too!”

While I was conversing with older sister Yi Cheong-ryeo, Baek Mu-ho’s hand flew in, aiming for the back of my head in a surprise attack.

“My hands were itching anyway!”

There was no way I would fall for that.

Instead, I snatched his wrist and threw him.

“Hmph!”

Baek Mu-ho must have been used to this as well, as he lightly touched the ground with his other hand and performed a cartwheel.

He probably would have stood up again after performing a quite impressive stunt.

Bam!

If only I had not kicked the wrist he used to support himself on the ground.

Crash!

“Ah, damn!”

“I am Yeon, you punk.”

Having suppressed the rebellion by kicking the fallen Baek Mu-ho’s butt as a finishing blow to roll him over, I showed older sister Yi Cheong-ryeo, who was watching in wonder, what a proper relationship between childhood ‘kicking’ friends was like.

“Did that serve as a good reference?”

“No, not at all, absolutely not.”

“Well, everyone is different.”

Yi Cheong-ryeo’s smile lost its energy. It was a forced smile to make herself look as usual.

Yi Do-cheon was the same.

The siblings shared the same emotion. The destination where that shared emotion ultimately headed was where Sagong Pae was.

‘Since they spent their childhood together, they must roughly know his personality and what he is thinking.’

Yi Do-cheon and Yi Cheong-ryeo knew that there was something wrong with Sagong Pae. That was why they were trying their best not to cross the line in a situation like this.

Since the fight with the Devouring Demonic Monarch, Sagong Pae had kept pace with the journey in silence.

Although he seemed downcast due to something like an inferiority complex, in my eyes, something was continuously building up inside him.

When someone has things building up inside, they must release them as quickly as possible. Otherwise, those accumulated things will burst out in one direction or another.

From my standpoint, I only hoped that it would not explode in a bad way wherever I was.

Just by not exposing the certainty I had about Sagong Pae, I was exercising enough patience.

In any case, this atmosphere was not good.

To change the atmosphere, I turned the subject.

“By the way, you said we were almost at the Sichuan Tang Clan, but are we still far?”

Even looking around, I could not see any grand manor that would claim to be one of the Five Great Families.

Considering the reputation of the Sichuan Tang Clan and the scale of their power that I had heard from rumors, there should be a reasonably large manor.

Still, since they would need a fair amount of daily necessities to support such a large workforce, I guessed it would be somewhere in this large village we were currently passing through.

“Ah, that’s……”

Sister Yi Cheong-ryeo gave a slightly embarrassed smile. Her expression was lighter than the depressed mood from earlier, but that expression troubled me a bit.

How should I put it, it felt like she did not want to point out my mistake.

In the meantime, Elder Cheong-pung, who was walking ahead, slipped in.

“Say, Young Hero Yeon.”

“Yes.”

“What do you think the surname of the person tending the garden over there is?”

He pointed to a villager who was just passing by and asked.

“……Is it Tang?”

“That’s right.”

“Wow……”

I had doubts, but indeed.

“This is the Sichuan Tang Clan.”

We had already arrived at the Sichuan Tang Clan.

***

Only after walking for quite a long time did boundaries that could be called a manor finally begin to show. Recalling the approximate number estimated from what I had looked around so far, I clicked my tongue.

‘At this rate, it’s nearly ten thousand. Of course, they don’t all seem to be martial artists who have deeply trained in martial arts, but to think this is the number a single Martial World faction can possess……’

In the case of small-scale sects, it is common to have only five or six members. Some places even boast a single-disciple inheritance.

In the actual Martial World, a sect with about thirty disciples is treated as having quite a decent scale.

One might say that it is too small, but just solving the food, clothing, and shelter of that many people makes one’s back bend.

Truly.

‘If they were to live a life of hunger and nakedness, why would they stay in a sect? They would have left to become independent or thrown it all away to plow fields instead.’

Since they were healthy humans who practiced martial arts, their food expenses were no joke. Considering that other incidental needs had to be taken care of besides food, clothing, and shelter, thirty was not an easy number.

Even the Wudang Sect, one of the Nine Great Sects, has less than a thousand disciples staying at their main headquarters in total.

Thus, this number was truly spectacular.

[If they bring in matrilocal husbands without letting their daughters marry out to other families because they are reluctant to let the family’s secret teachings leak, then it is only natural for it to turn out like this.]

The men would naturally form families within the Tang Clan, and the women, even if they married, would take in matrilocal husbands to settle down and live in the Tang Clan just like the men.

Elder Cheong-pung said that since the women also had no intention of marrying out, they practiced martial arts, and there were quite a few masters among them.

If hundreds of years passed in such a way, this level of prosperity was understandable.

[Since poison is something that cannot be left out in the Tang Clan. Unlike martial arts, which cannot be built up in a single day, poison can be replicated by anyone as long as they have the methods and materials.]

“That makes sense.”

It was convincing. Considering the specificity of the Sichuan Tang Clan, it was inevitable for it to take this form.

Once again, I could realize one of the reasons why the name ‘Tang Clan’ could not be ignored in Sichuan.

In addition, I was certain that if the Sichuan Tang Clan moved, it would definitely be of immense help in preventing the major battle to come.

By the time we reached the boundary of the grand manor, a man dressed in green robes approached.

“Are you not Elder Cheong-pung of the Qingcheng Sect? What brings you here?”

Although he clasped his fists and showed polite behavior, it felt as if he was somewhat on edge.

‘He’s sensitive.’

Come to think of it, it had been said that the Sichuan Tang Clan borrowed the Great Luo Divine Pill, the treasure of the Qingcheng Sect.

This meant that the Sichuan Tang Clan was in debt to the Qingcheng Sect. It was also a sign that a place like the Sichuan Tang Clan was in such an urgent situation that they had to reach out to another place.

Normally, they would have shown a generous attitude, but looking at the reaction of that man, it seemed they did not even have such leisure.

‘After all, the sicker one is, the more sensitive they become.’

If they were as sensitive as they could get, Elder Cheong-pung’s visit might look like a debt collector coming to demand payment. Looking at it more cynically, it could feel like, ‘Do you look down on us just because we owe you a debt?’

“It is the Green Dragon Squad Leader. Hahaha, since someone reasonable has come out, we won’t have to beat around the bush.”

He recognized the other party and elevated his status. Few people dislike words that begin with respect.

Although the sensitivity was visible even to my eyes, Elder Cheong-pung approached warmly as if he had seen nothing.

Dark colors are bound to stand out more in a bright place. Only then did the man called the Green Dragon Squad Leader clear his throat in embarrassment and compose himself. The sharp look in his eyes soon softened.

“I was very surprised because you arrived suddenly without any notice.”

“We formed a good connection in the Qingcheng Sect, and since I thought it would be helpful to the Sichuan Tang Clan, we came here.”

“What do you mean by that……?”

The Green Dragon Squad Leader’s eyes, which had softened, sharpened again. The words about being helpful to the Sichuan Tang Clan seemed to have provoked him.

He probably thought that they only bowed their heads because it was the Qingcheng Sect, but would they receive help from random nobodies no matter how urgent it was?

‘Geez. He’s a gentleman whose changes of mind are truly volatile.’

Perhaps because I was standing a step back, there was a lot to see. Setting aside the rapidly changing state of mind of the man called the Green Dragon Squad Leader, warning bells rang in my mind as I estimated the inner thoughts that forced him to change like that.

‘It seems their pride is hurt much more than I thought. He won’t be the only one like that. I must be careful.’

If you step on the tail of a venomous snake that is fully riled up, it is only natural to get bitten. Although it is common for fools who cannot come to their senses even after being bitten to fool around and go to the afterlife, I was no fool.

“By any chance, have you heard the news that a divine physician has appeared in Sichuan recently?”

“……I have not heard of it yet.”

“Then you will know now.”

Elder Cheong-pung made a playful smile and gestured to me.

“Greet him. He is the Young Heavenly Dragon, who is the foremost among the orthodox rising generation recently, and a divine physician who inherited the legacy of Hua Tuo. You must not look down on him just because he is young.”

At Elder Cheong-pung’s words, the Green Dragon Squad Leader, who had been taking a posture of subtly judging status, had his mouth drop open as he looked back and forth between my face and Elder Cheong-pung’s.

‘Huh?’

But it was not the reaction I had expected.

The alias Young Heavenly Dragon had been making quite a name for itself recently, but it was not to the extent of being compared to the Sichuan Tang Clan.

‘It feels like he is paying more attention to the alias Young Heavenly Dragon than to the statement of inheriting Hua Tuo’s legacy?’

I naturally thought he would place weight on the status of being Hua Tuo’s disciple. However, looking at the Green Dragon Squad Leader’s reaction, he seemed to pay more attention to the alias Young Heavenly Dragon instead.

“Co-Could it be that in Shaolin recently……”

‘Why Shaolin?’

At the foundation of my obtaining the alias of Young Heavenly Dragon, my achievements in Shaolin occupied a large proportion.

Was that something to stutter about?

“It seems you have heard it too. It is hard to believe, but I consider it to be true. I have witnessed it myself as well.”

“……”

It seemed that there was something the high-ranking folks had whispered about.

“Although I am an honorary disciple of Shaolin, that is not something so surprising.”

At this point, I was to the point of being curious about what words had been exchanged.

Anyway, setting aside that part to find out gradually, since Elder Cheong-pung set up the status I should put forward here in the Tang Clan, I decided to ride on the stage that had been set.

“I am Yeon Cheong-un, an honorary disciple of Shaolin.”

Since it was true that I was an honorary disciple of Shaolin for now.

I did not like to brag by relying on empty fame, but it was better than being ignored.

“Heh! The rumor was true.”

Looking at the Green Dragon Squad Leader’s reaction, it became certain.

The Green Dragon Squad Leader was placing more weight on the connection between Shaolin and me.