Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

The Beast Palace Lord and the elders stood frozen as they stared at the blocked escape route.

It wasn’t just the fact that their path had been cut off—it was the sheer horror of seeing the elephants melt away before their eyes that had left them in shock.

To witness a creature as mighty as an elephant—one that even tigers feared—screaming in desperation for help... And then, to see it dissolve into the ground like melting snow...

It was something they had never seen before.

Something they had never even imagined.

So it was only natural that the elders and the Beast Palace Lord, who had gathered near the entrance, could only stare blankly at the horde of demon ants blocking the way.

In that paralyzing moment, they caught sight of Ji-ju climbing the cliff, and the young hero alongside the Tang Clan’s daughter, both looking utterly distressed.

For a brief instant, hope flickered in their eyes at the sight of Ji-ju.

But even if Ji-ju could help them escape, they would have to leave behind all their beasts.

And to the members of the Beast Palace, their animals were like their own children and siblings.

There wouldn’t be many among them willing to abandon their lifelong companions.

Moreover, the young hero and the Tang Clan’s daughter had come here as strangers, risking their own safety just to warn them. How could they ask for more from them?

If more people tried to flee at once, it would slow down the escape, putting even their benefactors in danger.

They had been about to harden their resolve—to accept their fate and let the young hero leave in peace.

But then, the young hero spoke.

And what he said was completely unexpected.

”There’s a way for everyone to survive. Would you like to hear it?”

”Everyone... can survive?”

”Of course.”

At those words, the Beast Palace Lord immediately summoned all the elders back to the Beast Palace Lord’s Hall.

”...That is what he says. What do you all think?”

-Tok. Tok. Tok.

The sound of fingers tapping against the armrest of the chair echoed through the silent hall.

The Beast Palace Lord, Meng Hu, was tapping his chair absentmindedly—a sign of his unease.

”The young hero is indeed righteous... but he is still young. Can we truly entrust our survival to his judgment? If this were any other matter, I would not hesitate, but if this fails, it could mean the complete annihilation of our palace...”

The Great Elder, Cheong Ung, trailed off.

The memory of the demon ants under the moonlight was still fresh in their minds.

The Beast Palace was standing at the brink of destruction.

To follow the plan of a mere youth in such a dire situation—was that not too much of a gamble?

The young hero’s age made it difficult to trust him completely.

And aside from knowing that he was the Tang Clan’s son-in-law, they knew almost nothing about him.

Then, a voice broke the silence.

It was Snow Leopard—Meng Hu’s daughter.

”Palace Lord. No—Father. If this were about regular beasts, perhaps our knowledge would be sufficient. But when it comes to venomous creatures, isn’t it well known that the Tang Clan knows far more than we do?”

”That... is true.”

”When I returned with them, I asked Lady Hwa-eun, the daughter of the Tang Clan’s leader. She told me something unbelievable—that they accepted him as a son-in-law because they recognized his talent in handling venomous creatures.”

Snow Leopard had been the most suspicious of the young hero at first.

But now, she was his biggest advocate.

”The Tang Clan acknowledged his talent in handling venomous creatures?”

They had assumed he was simply an odd young man who happened to carry strange creatures.

But to hear that the Tang Clan had accepted him specifically for his skills—

Meng Hu looked surprised.

Snow Leopard continued, as if recalling something.

”Yes. Lady Hwa-eun referred to him as an... expert? Or something like that.”

”An expert?”

”Yes. It means someone who is extremely skilled in a particular field. From what I’ve heard, he has handled many difficult situations involving venomous creatures. And even if we don’t fully believe that, just looking at the creatures he carries is enough to prove that he knows things we don’t.

So wouldn’t it be worth trusting him this once?

Right now, there’s no one here who knows more about venomous creatures than him.”

If the Tang Clan had accepted him purely for his expertise in venomous creatures, then perhaps... it was worth believing in.

And then, Snow Leopard continued.

”And there’s something else. The young hero had the chance to escape. But instead, he chose to risk his life for us.

Would it really be right to doubt him after that?”

She glanced around at the gathered elders, her voice filled with conviction.

”Have you all forgotten the words we teach our disciples to hold in their hearts?”

”O-a-ban-po... Shang-dap-chin-eun...?”

”Yes. Even crows repay their parents for raising them. How can we doubt the heart of a young hero who is willing to risk his life for us?

He has shown us kindness—it is time for the Beast Palace to return that kindness in full.”

”But... what if he fails...?”

The Great Elder raised his final concern.

But the Beast Palace Lord, Meng Hu, suddenly stood up.

”If he fails, then we will die here alongside him.

But if he succeeds, then not only will we survive—we will gain a benefactor and a hero who saved our palace from annihilation.

Prepare to follow his command!”

”We obey!”

”We will obey!”

As soon as the Beast Palace Lord’s decree was given, the elders rushed out, rallying the warriors of the palace and leading them toward the entrance where the young hero awaited them.

***

”So-ryong, are you sure about this?”

My senior sister, Tang Hwa-eun, asked as she gazed at the brightening sky, her expression filled with worry.

I scratched the back of my head.

To be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure.

I knew, theoretically, that it could work. I remembered the research.

But in my past life, I had never personally tested it before.

”Uh... well...”

Before I could finish, she grabbed my shoulders, pushing me up against the rocky wall.

”So-ryong. Please. Don’t joke. Tell me you’re sure.”

’A wall slam? Oh wow.’

My senior sister’s imposing presence.

But her face was filled with desperate concern.

Seeing her expression, I gave her the answer she wanted.

”I-I’m sure. Don’t worry. Yo-hwa will protect me.”

She was scared—because her husband-to-be was about to risk his life.

Reassuring her was my duty.

As soon as I said those words, Yo-hwa responded from above, clicking her fangs.

-Ksss!

-Chrrrrr!

-Kukku!

Even O-gong and Seokcheok on her shoulder let out energetic cries, as if cheering me on.

My senior sister sighed in frustration.

”I always thought having a talented husband would be nice. But I was wrong!

I never knew it meant I’d have to sit and wait like this!”

She seemed frustrated that there was nothing she could do to help.

I pulled her into a tight embrace.

And in the quiet, she whispered against my chest.

[So-ryong... Don’t you dare get hurt. If you do, I’ll scold you so hard...]

If she scolded me, it would be more like a reward, but I still nodded in agreement.

And at that moment—

The deep, resounding call of the ceremonial ram’s horn rang from the entrance.

-Bwoooooooong!

And then, the sound of the incoming demon ants.

-Chrrrrrrrrrr!

The battle against the army ants... was about to begin.

***

Two days after the elephants fell, as soon as morning broke, the ominous sound of the approaching demon ants filled the air.

-Chrrrrrrrr.

Just as the young hero had predicted, the larger-jawed ants at the front clicked their mandibles as they surged forward.

A quick glance to the side revealed a Beast Palace disciple staring ahead with a face full of fear.

The young man darted his eyes around nervously.

’Is he afraid?’

It was understandable.

They were facing an enemy they had never encountered before, and the news of the elephants’ downfall had spread throughout the palace.

Everyone had always believed that the strongest beast in the world was the elephant.

And now, that belief had been shattered.

However, there was a risk that fear could cause some of them to break formation.

Recognizing this, Meng Hu amplified his voice with inner strength and bellowed:

”Beast Palace disciples, stand your ground like a mountain!”

”Yes, Palace Lord!”

As Meng Hu reinforced their discipline, he turned to check the young hero’s signal.

And then, he saw him.

A boy—far younger than the nervous disciple from earlier—staring ahead with unwavering focus, not taking his eyes off the enemy for even a moment.

A remarkable young hero.

Meng Hu had no idea how skilled he was.

But just by looking at him now, he understood why the Tang Clan had accepted him as their son-in-law.

This was the kind of talent that was truly worth having.

And then, as if synchronized with his thoughts, the sound of the incoming demon ants filled the air.

-Ssssshhhh!

The tide of insects surged closer, reaching about thirty feet from the entrance of the Beast Valley.

They were just about to pour through the bottleneck—

And then, the young hero shouted.

”Now!”

”Now!”

-Whooosh!

The moment the young hero gave the signal, Meng Hu roared, his voice infused with internal energy.

And then, flames erupted.

The fire, ignited at the entrance, quickly climbed the rocky walls of the canyon.

The inferno blocked the tide of demon ants, cutting them off at the entrance to the Beast Valley.

-Whooooosh!

-Screeeeech! Screeeeech!

The demon ants shrieked as they burned.

But the ones further back did not stop.

And the young hero shouted again.

”Send in the water buffalo!”

”Release the buffalo!”

-Thud! Thud! Thud!

-Crunch! Crack!

At his command, a stampede of water buffalo charged into the entrance of the canyon.

The massive beasts trampled over the burning ants, smashing them into paste beneath their hooves.

Following closely behind, the warriors and beasts of the Beast Palace surged forward, cutting down any remaining ants that had survived the initial attack.

”Don’t leave a single one alive!”

”Uwaaaaaah!”

The fire alone wasn’t enough to stop the ants completely.

The Beast Palace didn’t have an endless supply of oil.

And since the rainy season had only just ended, the conditions weren’t ideal for sustaining a large fire.

So the young hero had made a simple request:

The demon ants relied on hunting parties to lead the charge.

By using the fire to split them apart and eliminating the hunting parties before the flames died out, they could cripple the swarm’s advance.

With the water buffalo crushing the ants and the warriors finishing off the stragglers, the plan worked flawlessly.

The individual ants weren’t particularly strong.

So crushing their hook-shaped mandibles underfoot and smashing them with clubs wasn’t difficult.

As they continued to press forward, the dying fire revealed the full extent of the situation—

Beyond the hill, the endless sea of red ants stretched as far as the eye could see.

”Palace Lord...!”

The disciples who had reached the fire’s edge stared at the overwhelming tide of ants with terror in their eyes.

Meng Hu ordered them at once.

”Retreat to the second entrance! Carry the wounded and injured beasts with you, and throw as many ants as possible into the fire!”

”Yes, Palace Lord!”

Meng Hu, the disciples, and the elders quickly gathered the wounded and tossed the dead ants into the fire before falling back.

And then, as everyone retreated—

The young hero moved forward.

With his back to the retreating warriors, he advanced toward the flames.

Meng Hu, watching closely, saw him smirking fearlessly as he picked up a rock and hurled it into the swarm.

”Come on! Over here! Right here!”

He was taunting them.

The demon ants that had hesitated at the edge of the extinguished fire immediately turned toward him.

Infuriated, they surged forward, chasing after the small figure that had pelted them with stones.

And then—

A surreal scene unfolded before their eyes.

The tiny young hero—leading tens of thousands of red ants—ran like hell, narrowly avoiding being swallowed by the crimson tide behind him.

”Th-This is insane!”

”He’s going to get caught!”

The warriors of the Beast Palace cried out in alarm.

Beside them, the Tang Clan’s young lady clenched her fists, her eyes filled with worry.

-Ssssshhhh!

As the young hero reached the halfway point of the first circuit, the Great Elder wiped the ant fluid off his hands and asked,

”Will his plan actually work?”

”We’ll find out soon enough.”

Then, just as the young hero completed the first bottleneck of the route—

The ants from the main swarm and the ones he had been leading began to merge together.

And at that moment—

He disappeared.

Swallowed whole by the ants.

A scream erupted from beside them.

”So-ryong! So-ryong!”

”That damned kid—!”

Meng Hu nearly leaped forward as well, completely forgetting the young hero’s order not to intervene.

But then—

-WHOOSH!

Something shot up from the swarm.

A thin rope, pulling a figure upward toward the jagged rock at the center of the field.

And as the dust settled—

They saw him.

The young hero, grinning mischievously as he plucked ants off his clothes.

He was dangling from Ji-ju’s web, safe and sound.

And below him—

The ants had begun to spiral.

The ones that had merged into the first bottleneck were now caught in a self-sustaining whirlpool.

They continued moving in circles, faster and faster, unable to break free.

-Sssssshhhhh!

***

”Ow, ow, ow...!”

-Crunch!

I crushed the head of a medium-sized ant that had bitten me and tossed it aside.

-Ksss!

Yo-hwa hissed, clearly angry.

But I sighed.

”You don’t have to say it—I already know senior sister is going to scold me.”

She had told me not to get hurt.

And yet, when I made the full loop through the bottleneck, I had slipped on ant fluid and gotten completely swarmed.

Luckily, I had prepared for this.

I had tied Ji-ju’s web around my waist and placed Cho on Yo-hwa’s shoulder before taking off.

So the moment I got swallowed, Cho signaled Yo-hwa to pull me out.

If not for that, I would’ve been turned into a meatball.

I wasn’t too badly injured thanks to my Iron Turtle Technique, but I still stung all over.

Lying on the rock, I gazed down at the massive vortex below.

A swirling death spiral of army ants, running in endless circles.

Even as more ants flooded in, they got swept up into the motion and couldn’t stop.

Blind army ants relied solely on pheromone trails from their hunting parties to navigate.

But once the hunting party was removed, the remaining workers could only follow the last recorded scent.

And when they were trapped in a circle like this—

It became an ant mill.

Or, if I were to put it in martial arts terms—

A Demon Ant Death Spiral.

They would run until they died of exhaustion.

That was the true horror of an ant mill.

”Rest in peace, you little bastards.”

And with that, I quietly bid farewell to the dying horde.