Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

The weight pressing down on my shoulders and waist was undeniable.

I stood still for a moment, lost in thought, but I had to get moving. If I hesitated any longer, we wouldn’t leave today.

Behind me, Grandfather Mandok Shingun and the Venom Blood Squad were lined up, waiting.

“…Hey, guys?”

— Gukku?

— Tssrrt?

— Ksssh?

In response, I heard their casual cries, as if wondering why I had called them.

Watching their nonchalant behavior, I smacked my forehead loud enough for the sound to echo.

— Smack!

“No, I mean… You have to let go so Dad can leave…”

And just like that, I found myself pouting again at their antics.

We had spent the past few days preparing for the expedition. Our first stop was Kunming, a city in Yunnan, and from there, we would head deep into the Yunnan jungles to a place called Ainei Mountain.

“Did you say… Venomous Creatures Valley!?”

“That’s right. Venomous Creatures Valley.”

‘Wait, what? There’s actually a place with a name that sounds like paradise?’

The records in the Tang Clan’s archives described the area as a forest of bizarre rock formations, with Venomous Creatures Valley at its center. The valley was said to be teeming with mysterious venomous insects and snakes.

”The venomous creatures of Ainei Mountain are most peculiar. Among them, the greatest can be found near the lake at the heart of Venomous Creatures Valley…”

There was no way I could ignore a place like that.

To someone like Spicy Fabre, ”paradise” and ”Venomous Creatures Valley” were practically synonymous.

That’s why I had already made arrangements at the Venomous Creatures Garden—drying the surplus crickets and mealworms to be used as snacks and side dishes.

Though some people were reluctant to stay behind, half of the Venom Blood Squad remained at the Tang Clan to oversee the garden. Managing the creatures required at least that many people.

The one in charge was Deputy Commander Song Na-ok.

The reason I appointed a woman as soon as she joined? Well, the squad needed a leader to give orders, and it would’ve been inconvenient if she didn’t have an official title.

Once the preparations were complete, I gathered O-Gong, Seok-cheok, and Yo-hwa the day before departure to explain things.

I had to make sure they didn’t go looking for me while I was gone.

“Dad has some business outside and will be away for a few days. So, you need to stay home and listen to Mom, okay? Cho, take care of your siblings. Hyang, don’t cause trouble for Mom. Bini, even if you miss me, just hold out for a few days.

Seol and Bing, you two listen to your elder sister.”

— Tssssrrr…

— Gukku!?

O-Gong and the others, who were always attached to me, let out weak cries, while Seol and Bing asked in alarm.

Since O-Gong already knew the situation, I figured Seol and Bing were just surprised. I gave them a simple explanation.

“I’m going to bring back some friends. Wouldn’t it be nice for you all to have more friends? I’ll be back soon, so be good and listen to Mom and your elder sister, okay?”

— Tssssrrr…

— Gukku…

After another round of reassurance, the O-Gong group and Seol and Bing reluctantly responded.

Convincing those five was easy.

But then, I heard a questioning hiss—Yo-hwa, as if asking, “What about me?”

— Ksssh?

“The men in the Venom Blood Squad will come every morning to provide you with yang energy. So don’t worry, just…”

— Ksssissh!

Before I could even finish, Yo-hwa’s fake body, in the form of my beloved elder sister, crossed her arms with a scornful look.

A perfectly cold expression. My favorite.

A sound that clearly meant no way.

I knew exactly why.

Yo-hwa didn’t consume yang energy daily—only occasionally. And ever since coming to the Tang Clan, she had refused to take it from anyone but me.

According to my father-in-law and Grandfather Mandok Shingun, the clan records said that Face-Snatching Spiders would hang their victims on trees and drain them of yang energy until they died. But strangely enough, Yo-hwa was picky—she only consumed yang energy from a single person.

Only when truly starving would she take from others.

I pleaded with her desperately.

“Can’t you make an exception, Yo-hwa? I really have to go. Just this once, I’m asking you.”

Even in my past life, traveling was a rare luxury.

The insects, reptiles, and amphibians I cared for didn’t need to be fed every day, but long trips were impossible.

When I hit a million subscribers and traveled abroad, I had to find someone to take care of my animals before I could leave.

And even now, things weren’t that different.

Back then, I just needed to hire someone to feed them and clean their enclosures. Now, I had to beg intelligent creatures for permission.

‘This is harder than in my past life. At least back then, I didn’t need their approval. Even getting permission from my elder sister—my destined wife—wasn’t this difficult…’

In the end, after pleading like my life depended on it, Yo-hwa finally agreed.

Turns out, she loved being hugged in her fake body form.

At first, she adamantly refused, but when I hugged her fake body in desperation, she blushed and relented.

“Yo-hwa, please, I’m begging you.”

— K-Kssh!

Her cry meant Fine! Just let go already!

After that chaotic scene, I finally got permission to leave.

And now, today, as I was about to depart with the expedition, they showed up, supposedly to see me off.

But as we reached the Nine-Tiered Gates, they suddenly clung to me again.

— Tssrrrt!

— Ksssh!

— Gukku!

Just as I was about to step outside, Seol, Bing, and O-Gong lunged at me, each trying to secure their spot.

O-Gong and Seok-cheok were usually rivals, constantly fighting for my or my elder sister’s shoulders. But today, they cooperated—O-Gong took my right shoulder, and Seok-cheok settled on my left.

And behind me, Yo-hwa wrapped her arms around me in an embrace.

At first, I thought they were just saying goodbye.

I figured they wanted to give me a proper sendoff since we’d be apart for a while.

“The kids must be sad, So-ryong.”

Grandfather, the Venom Blood Squad, and the Venom Blood Squad warriors all smiled warmly.

But even after giving them plenty of time to say their goodbyes, they still wouldn’t let go.

“…Guys? No, really, you have to let go so Dad can leave…”

When I pleaded again, Yo-hwa suddenly lifted me onto her back in a princess carry and took the lead.

— Kssh!

Pointing across the river, she made it clear she would be leading the expedition.

My elder sister looked startled.

“So-ryong… I think they’re coming with you.”

“N-No way. I explained everything! They understood, right?”

I turned my head to check, and all of them nodded in unison.

‘Wait… No way! Are you seriously saying you’re coming on Dad’s business trip?’

It seemed these guys really were coming along.

***

No matter how much I tried to persuade them, I couldn’t shake the kids off. In the end, I had no choice but to take them with me.

That meant we had to adjust our expedition’s itinerary and members. But bringing everyone wasn’t an option.

The others weren’t a problem, but Yo-hwa was.

The others could either hide inside my robes or be stored in the special containers we used for venomous creatures. But Yo-hwa?

I couldn’t exactly smuggle a giant spider with a human torso around.

Walking around with her would inevitably attract attention.

Actually, it wouldn’t just attract attention.

According to my elder sister, the people in this region had a deep-rooted fear of supernatural creatures. Folktales about demons and monsters were widespread, meaning they might immediately assume Yo-hwa was some kind of yokai.

Even the legends about O-Gong turning into a dragon came from that very superstition. If things went badly, people might form a hunting party to exterminate her.

As an Inmyeon Jiju (Face-Snatching Spider), Yo-hwa was a particularly notorious creature in these myths. If we weren’t careful, we could even be detained by the local authorities for disturbing public order.

So, once again, I had to plead with Yo-hwa.

”Yo-hwa, I can hide the others in my robes, but you’re too big. If we take you with us, people will panic.

Of course, I want to bring you. How could I not want my beautiful Yo-hwa with me? But according to Hwa-eun, people might think you’re a monster and throw rocks at you.

Just the thought of someone throwing rocks at you makes me so sick I feel dizzy.”

Even if it hurt her feelings, I had no choice but to explain the situation clearly.

Yo-hwa listened quietly, then turned her fake body—the one that looked like my elder sister—toward herself, as if inspecting it.

‘Wait… can she see herself?’

I had assumed her eyes were just vestigial organs, but maybe that wasn’t the case.

Just when I thought she might be convinced—

— Tssssrrr…

A strange sound, like something being erased.

Then, Yo-hwa’s entire body vanished.

“…Huh!?”

Only her fake body, her pedipalps disguised as my elder sister, remained.

”W-what!? Yo-hwa, what did you do!? Where’s your beautiful body!?”

Her magnificent, enormous spider form was gone in an instant.

I ran to where she had been and reached out with my hands—only to feel the soft, fuzzy texture of her fur beneath my fingertips.

Thank goodness. She hadn’t actually disappeared.

She had simply turned invisible.

“Damn, that scared me… But wait, Yo-hwa, you can hide your body like this!?”

From my perspective, it looked as if her lower half had completely vanished, leaving only her upper human-like body floating in midair.

Now I finally understood why people who had their yang energy drained by Yo-hwa back at the Namgung estate had reported seeing a celestial maiden.

At the time, I thought they were just hallucinating.

But if they had seen a beautiful woman floating slightly above the ground… yeah, that definitely looked like a celestial maiden.

”You guys are full of surprises.”

I exhaled deeply to calm my racing heart.

— Tssrrt?

Yo-hwa folded her arms and tilted her chin up, as if to say, Satisfied now?

She had pulled out a trump card to prove her determination to come along.

I had no choice but to nod.

It was clear that nothing was going to stop her from following me.

”Fine… Let’s go.”

***

Two Days Later

In the end, my elder sister had to join the expedition.

There was no one else to look after the kids, and since they were all coming along, she had no choice but to follow.

It was impossible for me to handle all of them alone, so her participation was mandatory.

”I suppose I have no choice but to go,” she sighed.

”It seems that way, Hwa-eun.”

She gathered the children in front of her and spoke firmly.

”You refused to listen to your mother and instead clung to your father. That means you must behave during this journey. Do you understand?”

I scratched my head apologetically.

The kids, looking properly chastised, nodded obediently.

— Tssrrr…

— Gukku!

And so, with half of the Venom Blood Squad, half of the Venom Blood Unit, Grandfather Mandok Shingun, my sister, and our venomous companions, we set off for Yunnan.

My heart pounded with excitement.

We were going to capture a ton of venomous creatures.

Our first stop was Panzhihua, a village at the Sichuan-Yunnan border where I had previously acquired the Golden Wasp Kings.

From there, we would travel through Yunnan’s largest city, Kunming, and finally reach our destination: Ainei Mountain.

With quickened steps, we passed through Sichuan’s capital and then the area near Emei Mountain.

That was when we encountered something unexpected.

A checkpoint had been set up along the official road.

As we approached, a group of nuns from the Emei Sect stepped forward.

“Aren’t you from the Sichuan Tang Clan? Oh my, Mandok Shingun himself!?”

The nuns were visibly surprised by our appearance.

I had wondered why a checkpoint had been set up, but it turned out that after the resurgence of the Blood Cult, sects had started conducting roadside inspections.

Emei Sect had set up their checkpoint near the road leading to the Orthodox Martial Arts Sects.

“We are traveling to Yunnan on business. May we pass?” Grandfather Mandok Shingun asked.

“Of course, Mandok Shingun Elder,” the nun in charge immediately replied.

With a reputation as a powerful figure in the Central Plains, Grandfather naturally received a free pass.

However, just as we were about to walk through the checkpoint—

The head nun gasped loudly.

“W-wait! That’s Lingkong Xudao! Has the Poison Flower mastered an advanced Qinggong technique!?”

The checkpoint guards and the other nuns all turned to stare in shock.

I blinked, confused—until I followed their gaze.

They were looking at Yo-hwa.

Or rather, Yo-hwa’s fake sister form.

Because her massive spider body was invisible, it really did look like my elder sister was floating slightly above the ground.

And since my sister was dressed in men’s martial robes and had her face completely covered with a veil, the nuns had mistaken her for a male martial artist using high-level Qinggong.

Later, Grandfather explained that Lingkong Xudao was a legendary Qinggong technique—the final stage of land-based flight.

Floating in midair, appearing ghostly and weightless—it was no wonder they were shocked.

Although we had a few similar misunderstandings along the way, we still managed to reach Yunnan without much trouble.

Eventually, we arrived at a place near Yimen—the gateway to Ainei Mountain.

“That must be Ainei Mountain. I can’t wait to see Venomous Creatures Valley.”

I gazed ahead, heart pounding with anticipation.

If Venomous Creatures Valley was real, then that place was heaven for me.

But as soon as we arrived in Yimen, something felt… off.

The moment we entered the area, the usual sounds of nature—crickets chirping at night, cicadas buzzing during the day, birds singing, even the distant cries of animals—were completely absent.

Even though I had been collecting insect specimens along the way, I suddenly couldn’t find a single bug.

There were no creatures under rocks, between cracks in the cliffs, or in the trees.

It was as if something had completely sterilized the area.

“How strange… This feels exactly like when we went to catch the Blue-Spotted Centipede,” Grandfather murmured.

Gu Pae and the Venom Blood Squad Leader exchanged grim looks.

But to me, that wasn’t bad news.

‘No, no, this isn’t a problem—this is fantastic news!’