Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

The Five Poison Clan—a name spoken with hatred and fear.

The Tang Clan and the Beast Palace had destroyed them a century ago, wiping them from existence.

Or so they had believed.

‘The Five Poison Clan... That’s the origin of Five Poison Returning to the Origin Art, the foundation of my martial arts. Grandfather mentioned them before, but... I never thought they would still be alive.’

I turned to Grandfather, stunned by the revelation.

Then—

A suffocating killing intent exploded beside me.

“Their vile hands still crawl in the shadows?!”

The Beast Palace Lord, Meng Hu, was seething. His killing aura was so dense it made my hair stand on end.

”Father! P-Please calm down! We have guests here!”

Even Seolpyo, his daughter, had to intervene, barely managing to restrain him.

Meng Hu clenched his teeth, then turned to the dead Queen Demon Ant and growled.

Crunch.His jaw tightened so hard I could hear his teeth grinding. ”If this was the doing of the Five Poison Clan... then they must have used our Beast Berserk Submersion Technique.”

”The Beast Berserk... what?”

The Tang Clan warriors, including Grandfather, looked at Meng Hu in confusion.

Seolpyo took the opportunity to explain.

”It’s a technique that forcibly unleashes a beast’s latent strength, driving it into a temporary frenzy. However, after using it, the beast will collapse for days, and in some cases, it might even die. That’s why it’s only used as a last resort for survival.”

Grandfather stroked his beard, deep in thought.

”Then they must have modified it, combined it with the Tang Clan’s golden needles and poisons, and used it to drive the Queen Demon Ant into madness.”

I cautiously voiced my own thoughts.

”I think... they made her eat endlessly and lay eggs without stopping. Ants never eat their own kind, but when we found her, she was devouring her own children.”

Gasps filled the room.

”What?!”

”The Queen was eating her own children?”

”Unbelievable!”

Even the Beast Palace warriors, who had faced all kinds of horrors, were taken aback.

They had assumed the Queen had been eating random corpses, but they hadn’t realized they were her own offspring.

I nodded grimly.

”Yes. Every ant in her colony was born from her.”

Seolpyo’s eyes widened in horror.

”That’s... monstrous!”

”Such an atrocity!”

”To force a mother to eat her own children...!”

I had thought they would be disturbed, but their fury was beyond my expectations.

Later, when we moved to the Beast Palace’s main hall, they explained why.

”The Tang Clan may not know this, but the true reason the Beast Palace decided to exterminate the Five Poison Clan wasn’t just their martial arts.”

Meng Hu’s voice was heavy with disgust.

”We are a sect that lives in harmony with beasts. We welcome those from Yunnan’s minority tribes, take in sons-in-law, and even send our daughters to marry into their clans. We are lenient, as long as one keeps their oath.”

”What kind of oath?”

”That they will not pass down their martial arts to the next generation. As long as they keep their knowledge to themselves, we do not interfere. In fact, if they create something new using our techniques, we even acknowledge it as their own.

That was how the Five Poison Clan was able to establish themselves in Yunnan in the first place.”

I nodded.

That did sound like the Beast Palace.

They were far more lenient than the Tang Clan.

”So what changed?”

”They broke our forbidden law.”

Meng Hu’s voice turned dark.

”They committed acts of unforgivable cruelty against the very creatures they raised.”

My heart sank.

”What... did they do?”

”They dissolved their own animals into elixirs.

They used drugs to turn them into mindless corpses that obeyed commands like zombies.

They even fed the young to their own mothers to ‘strengthen’ them.

We could not stand by and allow such horror to continue.”

My blood ran cold.

They melted their own animals?

That was like taking Bin-ah, Cho, Hyang, or Bini, grinding them into a potion, and drinking them.

It made my stomach churn.

The Five Poison Clan had turned devotion into cannibalism.

Meng Hu’s explanation was why they had reacted with such outrage when I said the Queen Ant had eaten her own children.

It wasn’t just about cruelty.

It was an abomination.

Even in some human cultures, such acts were forbidden—like the way Islamic law prohibits boiling a calf in its mother’s milk.

Some taboos were universal.

”A century ago, we swore we would never allow them to rise again,” Meng Hu muttered, voice grave.

Grandfather, standing beside him, nodded.

”Their legacy should have ended. But if they have returned, it means our work was unfinished.”

The Tang Clan and Beast Palace had destroyed the Five Poison Clan once.

Now, they would do it again.

***

The Demon Ant Swarm—the work of the Five Poison Clan.

We reached a final conclusion:

This entire crisis had been planned.

Someone had captured the Demon Ants of Venomous Valley, forcing them into unnatural breeding and expansion.

The valley’s geography made it impossible for them to spread naturally—so they were deliberately driven toward the Beast Palace.

The Five Poison Clan’s true target was the Beast Palace.

But if they had returned, then it was only a matter of time before the Tang Clan was attacked too.

Both sects were in danger.

And so—

Grandfather and Meng Hu renewed their ancient alliance.

”I stand as the acting head of the Tang Clan,” Grandfather declared. ”And I swear, we will stand beside the Beast Palace in this fight.”

”The oath from a hundred years ago has not yet ended,” Meng Hu agreed. ”The Beast Palace will stand with the Tang Clan, as we did before.”

With one handshake, the Tang Clan and Beast Palace were allies once again.

And with that matter settled, they turned their attention to...

Me.

”You saved our sect from annihilation,” Meng Hu said. ”Name your reward. Whatever you desire, we shall grant it.”

A blank check.

‘Damn. This region really loves its grand gestures.’

I mulled over my options.

Then—

A voice echoed in my mind.

[So-ryong, ask for information about Five Poison Returning to the Origin Art and your centipedes. The Beast Palace Lord would never refuse after what you’ve done.]

‘Ah—right! Cho!’

I suddenly remembered—

When I first realized that Cho could understand my words, I had wondered if the Beast Palace held knowledge on creatures like him.

Back then, Grandfather had dismissed my curiosity, saying,

”Save the Beast Palace first. Then maybe they’ll be willing to answer you.”

Well—

I had saved them.

So I might as well cash in.

I nodded subtly toward Grandfather, then looked at Meng Hu and spoke carefully.

”There is one thing I wish to ask... but I do not know if it is possible.”

Meng Hu laughed.

”You saved my people! What could be impossible? Name it, and it shall be done!”

I hesitated for a moment—

Then, I reached into my robes.

‘Cho, come out.’

Slither.From the warmth of my chest, Cho uncoiled and slithered forward, slowly emerging onto the table. Tsrrt?As Cho coiled on the table, tilting its head as if to ask why I had called it out, I gave it a simple command. I had three signature tricks I called Cho’s Three Classic Moves.

First, circling the table.

Second, crawling up one of my arms, then crossing over to the other.

Finally, climbing onto my head and peeking out cutely.

Tsrut?Cho flicked its antennae, then executed the routine perfectly. The instant it finished—

“Y-You don’t mean...!?”

“That movement—!?”

Both Meng Hu and Seolpyo exclaimed in shock.

Their reactions told me all I needed to know.

I nodded.

”Yes, unlike the other members of the Tang Clan, I have trained in an art left behind by the Five Poison Clan—Five Poison Returning to the Origin Art.

And because of that, I accepted this centipede’s venom into my body, allowing me to form a connection with it.”

Meng Hu’s eyes darkened.

”So... it contained the Wild Beast Mind Art all along? I was told the Tang Clan examined the Five Poison Clan’s martial arts before the division, but...”

The Beast Palace Lord stroked his beard, deep in thought.

I didn’t want to press my luck, but this was the best chance I’d ever get.

”So, I wanted to ask... how this bond formed. And whether it could extend to my other creatures as well.”

Meng Hu exchanged glances with Seolpyo before giving me a serious, heavy look.

”You recall that I said we are not stingy with martial arts, correct?”

”Yes, of course, Palace Lord.”

Meng Hu nodded solemnly.

”But there is one exception.

That exception...

Is the Wild Beast Mind Art.”

My stomach sank.

”The greatest secret of the Beast Palace.

It allows us to share our hearts with beasts.

And it is strictly forbidden to be passed beyond our direct lineage.”

For a moment, I was too stunned to speak.

If this art was that restricted, then...

Would I be forced to give up my knowledge?

I suddenly felt like cursing Grandfather.

‘Old man, you could’ve given me a damn warning before I spoke up...!’

Then—

Meng Hu’s next words caught me off guard.

”Boy, you are the Tang Clan’s son-in-law, yes?”

I blinked.

”...Yes?”

His next question was even stranger.

”Then, do you have a birth family?”

I frowned, confused by the sudden shift in topic.

“I am an orphan. I have no ties to any family.”

Clap!A sharp applause rang through the hall. I turned my head—

Seolpyo was grinning as she clapped her hands.

”Perfect! Absolutely perfect!”

‘...What the hell is happening?’

Then I noticed Meng Hu’s expression—

Satisfied.

”Your name is So-ryong, yes?”

”Uh... yes?”

Meng Hu nodded firmly.

”Then it’s settled! Your name is already fitting, so no need for changes.

And given how much you cherish your creatures, you are more suited to the Beast Palace than anyone else.”

‘Hold on. What are you two planning—’

Then Meng Hu suddenly spoke the last thing I expected to hear.

”So-ryong, how about...

Becoming my son?”

I nearly choked on air.

”W-What?!”

Meng Hu laughed.

”If you become my adopted son, you will be allowed to inherit all of our Beast Palace’s martial arts—including the Wild Beast Mind Art.

Furthermore, since the Five Poison Clan has reappeared, the Tang Clan and Beast Palace must strengthen our ties.

You will serve as the bridge between our two factions!”

”W-Wait, wait, wait—adoption?!”

Before I could even process it, Seolpyo beamed and grabbed my hands.

“I think it’s a fantastic idea!

I’ve always wanted a younger brother to spoil!”

I turned to Grandfather and Hwa-eun in desperation.

Both of them looked just as shocked.

“Great Poison God, what do you think?” Meng Hu asked. “Two hundred years ago, we failed to solidify our ties. But if we correct that mistake now, we can ensure true unity between our factions.”

Grandfather rubbed his chin.

”As long as he remains son-in-law of the Tang Clan...

I see no harm in it.”

”Then it’s up to you, boy!” Meng Hu declared.

”So-ryong, what do you say?”

I hesitated—

But then Meng Hu and Seolpyo started listing benefits.

”If you become my son, you’ll be able to bond with all three of your centipedes—not just one.

In fact, I will personally help you extend it to your other creatures as well!”

Seolpyo chimed in eagerly.

”Plus! I’ve always wanted a younger sibling to talk about my creatures with!

And if any of our beasts have babies, we can share them!”

The two of them kept going.

I was still struggling to process the situation when they suddenly started whispering to each other.

”Is this not enough to convince him?”

”Hmm... maybe we need something more tempting?”

Then—

Seolpyo’s eyes lit up.

“Father! What about Bi Sa!?”

Meng Hu clapped his hands.

”Yes! The Flying Serpent!”

‘...Flying what?’

Seeing my confusion, Seolpyo explained excitedly.

”In the deepest parts of the jungle, there is a legendary snake called Bi Sa! It can fly through the air!

Since you love venomous creatures, doesn’t that sound amazing?

If you agree to become my little brother, I’ll personally help you catch one!”

Before I could respond, Grandfather’s expression darkened.

”Wait.

When you say ‘Bi Sa’...

Do you mean a green, vine-colored snake with two horns on its head?!”

Seolpyo’s eyes widened.

”Yes! You’ve heard of it?!”

Grandfather turned to me, his expression dead serious.

”So-ryong.

Beneath the Ten Great Venomous Beasts, there exists the Twenty-Four Venomous Subspecies—a list of high-grade poisonous creatures.

And among them...

There is one that reigns supreme.”

I swallowed.

”What is it called?”

Grandfather’s voice rang solemnly.

”The Flying Heavenly Divine Serpent.”

”...The what?”

Even the name was overwhelming.

Something that flew through the sky... and had a name like Flying Heavenly Divine Serpent?

I turned back to Meng Hu and Seolpyo.

Then—

Without a single ounce of hesitation—

I bowed deeply.

”So-ryong greets his father and sister!”

‘There was no way I could pass this up.’