Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

We quickly descended from the sky and hid in the nearby bushes.

“Graaaah!”

“Gwaaah!”

Just as we ducked into the undergrowth, the three demonic cultivators lunged at the blonde woman like beasts.

It was just like something out of a zombie film.

The difference was, since they were martial artists, they weren’t slow and lumbering—they were fast and nimble.

I quickly messaged Hwa-eun through the private conversation channel.

『Hwa-eun, what do we do?』

My question was basically whether we should help the woman—since she clearly seemed to know something about these demonic cultivators—or if we should take all four of them down.

As expected, maybe reaching the Flower Realm really does make you smarter. Without needing a long explanation, Hwa-eun immediately understood my intention and responded.

『Judging by the fact that she’s trying to ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) subdue mindless demonic cultivators, her goal seems to align with ours. But since she’s using demonic arts, that woman is definitely a remnant of the Demonic Cult. So rather than helping, let’s just wait and see. Even if we need to step in later, it’s better to take down whoever’s left than to jump in now and get caught in a chaotic three-way.』

『Hmm... Got it.』

A suggestion to wait until only one side remains.

Not a bad idea at all.

Though it looked like the woman was trying to deal with the demonic cultivators, judging by what she’d shouted earlier, it seemed like she knew them.

They had lost their minds and wouldn’t be coordinating with her, but still—it was better to let them wear each other down rather than jump into a melee with both the mindless ones and her.

The woman seemed strong enough to handle three demonic cultivators, but we had Hwa-eun on our side, so I wasn’t too worried.

After all, Hwa-eun had reached the Flower Realm.

She’d obviously win, right?

Just as I finished messaging Hwa-eun and turned to watch the woman—

Her cold voice rang out.

“Are you from the orthodox sects? If you back off now, I’ll let you live. Get lost.”

We had suppressed our presence extremely well, yet she still knew we were hiding in the bushes.

More precisely, it seemed she had noticed me.

Hwa-eun’s cultivation level had risen, and her ability to suppress her energy had become much more subtle.

If she wanted, she could sneak up on me and cover my eyes without me even sensing her—so there’s no way the woman detected Hwa-eun.

She was staring directly at my hiding spot.

So it was definitely my presence she had sensed.

Confident enough to shout not just at the charging zombies but at anyone nearby, she radiated the belief she could subdue anything.

Hwa-eun gave me an incredulous look.

『Tch... Arrogant. With that kind of presence, someone might mistake her for the Heavenly Demon.』

『The Heavenly Demon? You mean the cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Sect?』

『Exactly, So-ryong.』

Well, it made sense. Hwa-eun had only recently reached the Flower Realm and was still adjusting to her new body, but even now, there weren’t many in the martial world whose inner power could match hers.

Maybe the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, at most?

Still, the woman’s skill seemed worthy of that level of confidence.

She charged straight through the three demonic cultivators and unleashed dual palms and a single punch.

—Boom! Crack!

Two of the demonic cultivators were sent flying, crashing into massive trees and splintering them. The one who took the punch had a hole blown through his chest and collapsed on the spot.

Scarlet blood spread across the trampled grass.

—Crack.

The woman crushed a twitching demonic cultivator’s throat under her heel, then delivered another clean punch to the chests of the two remaining ones, subduing all three in seconds.

The raw force of it was reminiscent of how Hwa-eun had snapped the neck of a demonic cultivator in a single move earlier.

No way...

It’s not like Flower Realm experts were common. But this power—it had the same overwhelming pressure I felt from Hwa-eun.

It made me wonder: could this woman be a descendant of that very Heavenly Demon who had clashed with the Three Sovereigns fifty years ago and lost?

The woman, having overpowered her enemies with sheer might, now turned to look straight at us.

“I clearly gave you a chance. You refused wine and chose punishment instead. Since you’ve chosen death, don’t blame me.”

Speaking in a rough, manlike tone, she extended a hand and fired a palm strike in our direction.

Hwa-eun instantly leapt out from the bushes and fired a palm strike of her own to intercept it.

—Boom!

The two palm strikes collided. Both the woman and Hwa-eun were pushed back a step.

That meant their palm techniques were evenly matched.

Hwa-eun’s voice rang out, sharp as a blade.

“How dare you! For a mere remnant of the Demonic Cult to spew such arrogant drivel at Tang Hwa-eun of the Tang Clan, here in Sichuan? Unforgivable!”

The blonde woman grinned as if excited and hurled another palm strike.

“Oh? So you’re from the Tang Clan? Let’s see if you can back up those words. Here comes fifty percent of my power!”

—KWA-BOOM!

Another pair of palm strikes clashed, and the impact let out a thunderous boom.

Both women slid back three steps.

Then, they launched another volley.

—KWAG-GWANG!

This time, they each slid back five steps.

Matching expressions of battle spirit appeared on both their faces. It seemed they had both decided they’d seen enough of the other’s skill.

They launched toward each other simultaneously.

“To think you’d sneak into Sichuan and sabotage the Tang Clan’s celebration! Die and apologize!”

“Hmph, and that’s all the strength you’ve got?”

A mist of glimmering needles scattered from Hwa-eun’s sleeves and wrapped around her.

Dark inner energy surged from the blonde woman’s body, forming a protective aura.

Their palms collided. Fists struck forward. Kicks crossed, and finger strikes shot out.

A brutal battle unfolded between the two women.

Out of every fight between women I’ve seen—whether in my past life or this one—this was by far the scariest.

Not because of how intense the fighting looked.

But because—

One of those two women is the person I have to live with for the rest of my life.

Marriage is not going to be easy.

***

Filled with rage, Hwa-eun poured every ounce of her fury onto the blonde woman.

It was a perfect match.

Like she meant to grind her into the ground right then and there.

It felt like she was projecting her resentment onto the woman, blaming her for the wedding delay caused by the demonic cultivators.

After all, the appearance of the demonic cultivators had caused the guests to scatter, and the wedding to be postponed. In that sense, they had triggered the whole mess.

Crime: causing the situation.

Sentence: death.

“Kukuku. It’s been a while since I’ve felt this fired up!”

“Shut up and die already!”

The clash between them continued evenly for quite some time, like a flat horizon, and as they shattered trees and boulders around them, Yeondu and Cho had to shield me from the flying debris.

—BOOM!

—Clatter...

Dust clouds billowed from their collision.

As the dust settled, I could see through the bodies of Yeondu and Cho that the two were still at it, locked in fierce combat—and I suddenly thought, Hwa-eun might not be able to win this alone.

‘She might need help.’

Even to a martial arts newbie like me, it was clear they were evenly matched.

So if we wanted to take the woman down, Hwa-eun would need assistance.

『Hwa-eun, should we let Yeondu and Cho help?』

There was no way I could intervene myself. The gap in skill was too vast—I’d be ground into dust in an instant.

If anyone were to assist, it would have to be Yeondu and Cho—Moji and Soji were healers and couldn’t fight directly.

But the opponent was flinging inner energy everywhere.

That kind of energy could hurt even spirit beasts, so we had to be careful. Still, just showing up would put pressure on her, so I asked whether Hwa-eun wanted to bring them in.

Her reply came immediately.

『No! I’ll handle it! I can do it!』

Absolutely not. She insisted on doing it herself.

There was a hint of pride behind her words.

It reminded me of when I used to play fighting games in my past life.

If you met an evenly matched opponent in a one-on-one fighter, you couldn’t back down so easily.

If you lost repeatedly, you’d just quit. If you kept winning, you’d get bored and walk away. But if the wins and losses kept alternating, you couldn’t stop until the other side gave up first.

I didn’t dare get involved and simply reminded her of one important thing—not to kill the woman.

If she died, we’d lose our chance to find out why all these demonic cultivators had suddenly appeared.

『Hwa-eun, whatever happens, don’t kill her. That woman likely knows why these demonic cultivators have flooded into Sichuan.』

『Got it! I’ll only half kill her.』

『No, that’s not—』

But Hwa-eun wasn’t listening.

Whether it was because she’d finally found someone to vent her stress on, or because she was just having fun, she wasn’t hearing a word.

And somehow, both she and the blonde woman had weird little smiles on their faces.

Their match dragged on, still perfectly balanced like a flat sea.

Eventually, after a long series of exchanges, they both stepped back. It seemed like a lull in the action, and they started talking—almost like they were praising each other.

“Phew... To think the Tang Clan has someone your age who’s reached the Flower Realm. Impressive. I acknowledge you.”

“You’re not too bad yourself, for a remnant of the Demonic Cult.”

The two shared grins.

“Now that I’ve crossed hands with you, I’m starting to think the elders were wrong when they said all orthodox sect people are wicked.”

“I feel the same. I was told all demonic cultivators were murderous monsters. But the aura coming off you isn’t some petty bloodlust.”

“Looks like you felt my Willforce.”

“Willforce?”

“The intent infused in my martial arts. Yours was impressive too. You protect? Seems you’re like me, trying to defend your sect.”

“Kuh... Khem.”

As they spoke, Hwa-eun glanced at me and blushed.

I had no idea what they were talking about or why she was reacting like that, but the two of them—clearly both Flower Realm masters—seemed to be gaining something from each other.

Then their eyes lit up with excitement again.

“Shall we go again?”

“Gladly.”

Just as Hwa-eun clenched her fist to resume the fight—

A sharp sound rang out.

—Beeeep.

It sounded like a signal tone. At the sound, the blonde woman apologized.

“Tch... So you’re Tang Hwa-eun of the Tang Clan, huh? I’m Gun Hye-rin, heir to the Heavenly Demon Cult. Shame to end it while it was getting fun, but I have something to take care of. Let’s postpone this battle for next time.”

“W-What? The heir!?”

I’d heard it before—“demonic cultivator” refers to those who practice demonic arts, and most of them are affiliated with the Heavenly Demon Cult, a cult-like sect on the fringes of the Central Plains.

So she was their successor.

Which meant she wasn’t just some leftover remnant of the Demonic Cult—she was their next leader.

Hwa-eun’s eyes widened in surprise as she asked again.

“You’re the successor to the Demonic Cult—the next leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult?”

“That’s right. Not that I’ll make it in this state.”

“...?”

“Well, anyway. Let’s meet again if we get the chance. I’ll remember the name Tang Hwa-eun.”

Just as she turned to leave—

I rushed out and called to her.

“Wait! I have something to ask!”

Hwa-eun, perhaps feeling relieved from the fight, had forgotten—but I hadn’t. We needed to hear why the demonic cultivators were showing up here.

The woman turned, looking thoroughly uninterested.

“I’m not so idle that I answer questions from the weak.”

“...What?”

‘Did she really just diss me to my face for being weak?’

Grandpa always said people from the Demonic Cult had garbage personalities, and now I understood why.

Then I heard Hwa-eun’s voice in my mind.

『So-ryong, don’t take it personally. It’s not meant to insult you. People from the Demonic Cult revere martial strength to an extreme degree. They don’t respect those who aren’t strong. I’ll handle the talking.』

『Understood.』

So basically: standard Demonic Cult personality. Don’t take it to heart.

“I’ll ask the question, then. Please answer me.”

Since Hwa-eun wasn’t weak, she was worthy of an answer.

Gun Hye-rin hesitated for a moment—after all, she had said she’d remember her name—and then replied.

“Fine. But I’m in a hurry. Just one question.”

So, she would only answer one.

Hwa-eun pointed to the demonic cultivators half-buried in the dirt from their fight.

“Why did those demonic cultivators attack Sichuan?”

But it seemed she wouldn’t give a full answer. A hint of apology crossed her face.

“It’s a matter of our cult, so I can’t go into detail. Just know that I came to clean them up and punish the ones responsible for causing all this.”

So it was just like she said when she arrived—she came to deal with the demonic cultivators.

That answer wasn’t enough for us, so Hwa-eun made an offer.

“If you came to eliminate the mindless demonic cultivators, we can help. In return, can you tell us a bit more?”

“Help? That’s unnecessary—I can handle them alone...”

“You’re hunting them, right? But we have a way to find them.”

“You can find demonic cultivators?”

Gun Hye-rin tilted her head in curiosity, so I called the kids over.

“Come on out, you guys.”

“You mean there were others hiding? I didn’t even feel a thing. Wait... spirit beasts!?”

Seeing the kids, Gun Hye-rin was visibly shocked.

Yeondu wrapped around me and asked softly:

—Shaa. 『Lord So-ryong, she seems dangerous. Shall I protect you?』

“No, it’s fine.”

Yeondu had asked if she should stay close and protect me—but then—

Gun Hye-rin suddenly shouted in surprise.

“C-Could it be?! Can you control spirit beasts... or even speak to snakes!?”

Looks like the fallen Demonic Cult hadn’t kept up with Central Plains intel—she had no idea I was the famed Venom Master of the Martial World.

I replied coldly.

“As a weakling, I have no right to answer a strong one’s question.”

“...What?”

Yeah. I’m a petty bastard.