Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

Since the Kunlun Sect elder had rushed the introductions, Ji-ryong, feeling guilty for missing the timing to introduce me first, slightly bowed his head toward me.

As the leader of this group, I should have been introduced first, but because of the elder’s impatience, the moment had passed.

“I was just about to bring that up. There’s someone I’d like to introduce.”

“Hmm? Introduce someone?”

At the Kunlun elder’s question, Ji-ryong gestured toward our side and began introducing us one by one.

“This here is our leader, So-ryong, the heir of the Beast Palace. He is also the son-in-law of the Tang Clan and husband to the clan’s lady. Additionally, this is Elder Seolpyo from the Beast Palace.”

“What? The Beast Palace and Tang Clan are here as well? I thought only the Martial Alliance had come!”

The elder of Kunlun Sect was visibly taken aback upon hearing our backgrounds.

As expected, Sister Seol, ever the fiery one, stepped forward and offered a polite bow.

I hadn’t had the best first impression of him, but there was no helping it.

As I always said, greetings were a necessity.

“I am So-ryong, son of the Lord of the Beast Palace and son-in-law of the Tang Clan.”

“I am Tang Hwa-eun, daughter of the Tang Clan, greeting Elder Ji-ryong.”

“I am Elder Seolpyo of the Beast Palace. My father is the lord of the palace.”

After our greetings, the Kunlun elder’s face lit up with joy, and he returned the gesture with a respectful bow.

“Oh! The Tang Clan and the Beast Palace? We have always had a strong bond with them, and to think you would come all the way to Qinghai to aid us... On behalf of Kunlun Sect, I express my deepest gratitude.”

Though his first impression wasn’t great due to Hyang’s reaction, at least he was polite.

After our introductions, Ji-ryong gestured toward Cho and Bini and began explaining.

“And those creatures are spiritual beasts raised by the Tang Clan, so you need not worry.”

“The Tang Clan raises spiritual beasts?”

“Yes, in a way.”

“Haha, I had heard that the Tang Clan raises venomous creatures, but now even spiritual beasts?”

The Kunlun elder squinted at Cho and Bini, scrutinizing them carefully.

A moment later, his expression shifted to one of concern.

“But... they don’t harm people or devour livestock, do they? There’s been some trouble in the village lately, so before we let you in...”

What did this guy just say?!

My daughters—my daughters!—being compared to wild beasts?

The frustration made a vein twitch on my temple.

His first impression had already been bad, and now he was asking this?

Still, it was understandable.

For ordinary people, seeing a giant centipede would naturally invoke fear.

This world desperately needs to change its perception of venomous creatures.

I resolved myself—I would spread the culture of venomous beast companions throughout Zhongyuan.

“These children have been with me since birth. They are like daughters to me. You can consider them no different from the sheep grazing in those fields.

Moreover, as spiritual beasts, they do not need to consume food, and they are intelligent enough never to attack without reason.”

“Daughters...? That massive centipede is your daughter?”

Even after my explanation, he still looked doubtful.

So, I did what needed to be done.

I called them forward to greet him directly.

At times like these, nothing worked better than manners.

Seeing a six-to-seven-meter-long centipede politely bowing would convince anyone.

Because it was adorable.

“Cho, Bini, come greet the elder properly.”

Obediently, Cho and Bini stepped forward, positioned themselves on either side of me, and bowed slightly.

”Chorit.”

”Choru.”

As expected from well-raised daughters—impeccable etiquette.

The Kunlun elder widened his eyes in shock.

His disciples wore similar expressions of disbelief.

“They... they understand human speech and can even bow? Are they not practically human?”

Not just bowing—my children were better than most people.

In my past life, I’d often heard pet owners say, “Dogs are better than humans.”

I now understood them completely.

My children are far better than most people.

“Yes, so you need not worry.”

“...Very well. If the Tang Clan’s heir says so, then I shall trust you.

Now, let’s go inside—I would like to hear more details about the Blood Cult.”

“Understood.”

There was a brief commotion at the village entrance over whether Cho and Bini could enter.

However, after a word from the Kunlun elder, the village chief and residents had no choice but to relent.

Ji-ryong mentioned that this area was highly influenced by martial sects, meaning that Kunlun Sect practically acted as law enforcement here.

Apparently, law was distant, but fists were close.

“I’ll vouch for them, so have no worries.”

“If the Kunlun elder says so, then of course.”

With that, we were granted entry into the village.

As we walked in, whispers filled the air.

“What are those strange creatures?!”

“That giant centipede—isn’t that an abomination?”

“How bizarre... how unnatural.”

And then, from within my clothes, Hyang’s voice rang out.

”Churut? 『Dad, what does “bizarre” mean?』”

...Wait. You don’t even know what “bizarre” means?!

Judging from her tone, she didn’t know its exact definition but knew it wasn’t a compliment—so she had reacted instinctively.

Which meant I still had a chance.

I quickly reassured her.

‘Bizarre? Oh... um, it’s another way of saying incredibly cute and beautiful!’

”Chorut... 『That doesn’t sound right...』”

Her skeptical tone stabbed me straight in the heart.

‘No, our father-daughter trust...!’

***

This region was mostly red soil, and all the village buildings were constructed from a mixture of grass and clay, giving them a distinct, earthy aesthetic.

Following the Kunlun elder’s lead, we entered a mudbrick building and sat down.

Once seated, I immediately asked,

“Could you explain the situation here in detail?”

“Of course, where should I begin...”

The Kunlun elder stroked his chin, deep in thought.

Then, Taeheo, the younger Kunlun disciple, spoke up from the side.

“Wouldn’t it be best to start four months ago, when the Western traders first arrived?”

“Ah, yes. Taeheo, you’re right.”

The elder nodded in agreement and began explaining.

“...Four months ago, a caravan of Western merchants arrived at Yumen Pass, traveling along the Silk Road.

Instead of taking the usual route through Lanzhou, they entered Qinghai via Dunhuang, planning to travel westward along the river toward Chengdu.”

‘So this really is the Silk Road I learned about in history class?’

Hearing that term brought a strange sense of familiarity.

The elder continued,

“They traveled along the Kunlun foothills and arrived at Deokryeoman. You may not know this, but Deokryeoman is the closest city to Kunlun Sect.”

So, it was within Kunlun Sect’s territory.

I nodded, and the elder resumed.

“The merchant leader arrived in Deokryeoman and sought out Kunlun Sect.

He made a generous donation and asked for our help.

He had lost three camels and two merchants while traveling through Qinghai and requested a search party.

One of the missing persons was a scribe.”

“A scribe?”

“Yes. Given the donation, we couldn’t ignore it.

We immediately dispatched disciples to search the area, but after days of looking, we found no sign of the missing merchants or their camels.

However... we did notice something strange.”

“Something strange?”

Upon hearing that there was something strange, everyone turned their attention to the Kunlun ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) elder.

He nodded and continued,

“Yes, disappearances in the desert are not uncommon. However, they usually happen during sandstorm season. But this time, people went missing even though there were no sandstorms—that was the first strange thing.

Moreover, they disappeared one by one at night, which was even more suspicious.

At first, we suspected grassland bandits. We thought they might have been stealing goods at night, since such incidents had happened before.”

“Grassland bandits?”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Unfamiliar with the term, I tilted my head, and Hwa-eun explained through our shared connection.

[Bandits in the mountains are called mountain bandits, and you’ve already dealt with river bandits before, right? Bandits who operate on these plains are called grassland bandits.]

So it’s another variation of bandits, huh.

This land was full of outlaws due to its lack of proper law enforcement.

If they operated in the mountains, they were mountain bandits.If they raided from the rivers, they were river bandits.And if they roamed the grasslands, they were grassland bandits.I found it ridiculous that bandits had different names depending on their habitat—as if they had elemental attributes or something. Not wanting to interrupt the flow of conversation, I simply nodded as if I had just recalled what grassland bandits were.

“Oh... those grassland bandits.”

The Kunlun elder nodded as well.

“So, we hunted them down and interrogated them to see if they were responsible. But none of them had attacked the Western merchants.”

“What happened after that?”

“The leader of the merchant caravan... grew impatient.

In the end, he decided to continue to Zhongyuan. However, he asked us to recover the bodies if we ever found them.”

It seemed he had already given up hope that the missing people were alive.

“After he left, Kunlun Sect could not simply ignore the matter.

So, we expanded our search radius beyond where the Western merchants had disappeared and began asking around.

That’s when we started hearing from nomadic tribes—they too had people going missing.”

As the search area grew, reports from nomadic families increased.

“We realized something was seriously wrong.

So, we requested Qingcheng Sect’s best trackers to help us.

However, because it was the desert, even they struggled to find any traces.”

At that point, the story aligned with what we already knew—because we had heard this part from the leader of Qingcheng Sect.

“I see. We heard the later parts of this story from Qingcheng Sect’s leader.

Now, it seems we need to explain why we came here.

And that all starts with the Blood Cult...”

Once the elder finished his story, we explained our reasons for coming to Qinghai in detail.

Although Ji-ryong had already given them a rough explanation, they had asked for the full story.

So we told them everything—how Five Venoms Clan had allied with Blood Cult, and how those bastards were up to something in this area.

“...And that’s the situation.”

“So, the Five Venoms Clan has allied with Blood Cult, and those venomous bastards are doing something in Qinghai...

And you believe this is connected to the disappearances?”

“Yes. The people of Five Venoms Clan are notorious for their cruelty—they wouldn’t hesitate to feed humans to spiritual or venomous creatures.

As someone who raises spiritual beasts, I suspect they might be raising some enormous venomous creature in the desert.

Something big enough to devour camels and people.”

“Hmph! Such monsters in human skin...”

The Kunlun elder clenched his fists in rage.

After venting his anger, he turned back to me, his expression more cautious.

“...Do you have any idea what kind of spiritual beast or venomous creature it might be?”

“Not yet. But we plan to find out.”

“...Hmm. I apologize for asking this right after meeting you, but...

How long will it take you to track them down?”

“Why do you ask?”

The elder’s tone had grown urgent.

He turned his gaze toward the outskirts of the village and continued.

“It’s no longer just camels disappearing.

Now, even the sheep of the nomadic tribes have started vanishing in recent days.

Because of that, almost every major city in northern Qinghai is now flooded with nomads.

You saw the sheep outside, didn’t you? They’ve gathered near villages and towns instead of grazing freely.”

I recalled what I had seen on our way here.

At first, the sheep had seemed scattered across the plains.

But upon reaching the village, I had noticed a massive number of them.

“So that’s why there were so many sheep near the village...”

For nomads, sheep were not just livestock—they were wealth and food.

This was a serious crisis for them.

‘So he’s telling us we need to hurry.’

We still didn’t know what exactly was devouring camels and humans, but if the Five Venoms Clan was involved, it was highly likely to be a venomous creature.

And since it was in the desert, there weren’t many possible culprits.

There weren’t many venomous creatures that could survive in such an extreme environment.

I nodded in understanding and replied.

“We’ll move as quickly as possible.

This is my area of expertise, after all.”

“Expertise?”

The elder tilted his head, curious about my words.

Before I could answer, Hwa-eun spoke up with a smile.

“The word expert refers to someone who specializes in a particular field.

So-ryong has extensive knowledge of venomous creatures, even within the Tang Clan.

If this incident is caused by a venomous beast, So-ryong will solve it.”

“Yes! My brother will definitely take care of it.”

Sister Seol and Hwa-eun beamed with confidence as they spoke about me.

Seeing their expressions, I realized—

It was finally time for me to get serious as a venomous beast expert.

‘Just you wait, Five Venoms Clan! Let’s see which one of your little pets I’ll be dissecting first.’

Now that introductions were over, it was time to analyze the situation and narrow down the list of possible creatures.

I might not know exactly what we were dealing with yet, but soon enough—

It would be in the palm of my hand.