Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

‘What Moji and Soji expelled must be the residual energy of what they consumed—one filled with a mystical energy, and the other brimming with murky, turbid qi. Looks like a buildup of foul essence.’

When I answered Hwa-eun’s question, she looked at me with wide eyes.

Then, in a startled voice, she asked,

‘Wait—does that mean one is a spiritual elixir, and the other... a demonic pill?’

‘Spiritual and demonic elixirs?’

‘Yes! Moji and Soji have helped us recover internal energy before, right? So one of them would naturally be a spiritual elixir. And the one full of turbid qi must be soaked in demonic energy. That makes it a demonic pill—madan!’

For an ordinary martial artist, the demonic one would be as good as poison, but if any dark practitioners—those who harness demonic energy—caught wind of this, it’d be a treasure they’d kill for.

At her explanation, this time it was my eyes that widened.

I’d heard of martial artists who deliberately used turbid qi that others tried so hard to expel from their bodies, though such qi was said to be so explosive in nature that only those with a bloodthirsty or violent disposition could endure it.

Basically, they turned into full-blown psychopaths of the martial world.

That’s why any practitioner of demonic arts was usually hunted down and exterminated.

But to those types, this would be a priceless treasure.

No matter how I looked at it, this thing was dangerous.

‘Then I guess the first thing is to hide it... and keep quiet. Ji-ryong and Eunbong probably don’t know what they saw... Let’s focus on concealment for now.’

Even if Sister Seol didn’t say anything, it was obvious she’d be curious soon enough. Ji-ryong and Eunbong may have seen it too, but they wouldn’t know exactly what it was.

Trying to silence them might just make them more suspicious, so for now, I clenched my fist tightly around both orbs.

‘That’s probably for the best, So-ryong. But what about these? If anyone gets close, they’ll sense them immediately.’

Hwa-eun was right—hiding these needed to be the priority.

After a brief pause to think, I ran off and grabbed a pair of chopsticks.

Then I opened a drawer in my cabin and took out the wooden box I’d received from the head of the venom sect in Qinghai, the same time I received my official seal.

‘You’re putting them in that box, So-ryong?’

‘Yes, Hwa-eun. I’m going to store them here.’

This box may not look like much, but it was meant to store spiritual elixirs and could effectively conceal their energy.

But then Hwa-eun’s concerned voice reached me.

‘It might not be a good idea to keep them together...’

‘Why not?’

‘Because their energies are opposites. They might interfere with each other, or worse—corrupt each other.’

‘Ah, I see.’

Right—just like venomous creatures of opposing types could kill one another when kept together, a spiritual pill and a demonic one stored together might destroy each other.

So I’d have to store them separately.

I turned to Yoha, who was still watching Moji and Soji from a distance, and asked,

[Yoha, can you wrap this one in silk for me?]

–Kiiit.

Without hesitation, she took the glowing elixir from my hand and began wrapping it in silk.

White silk threads flowed from Yoha’s lower body.

She spun the thread rapidly, coiling it again and again around the spiritual elixir until it was about the size of a marble, similar to a green silk silkworm cocoon.

A few dozen turns later, it was done—and the energy was completely concealed.

It had been a last-minute idea, but it worked.

Now, even if someone touched it, they wouldn’t be able to tell there was an elixir inside.

Yoha’s silk wasn’t something that could be easily broken by anyone except the one who made it.

–Kiiit.

[It’s finished? Thank you, Yoha.]

She carefully handed me the two silk-wrapped orbs.

As I accepted them, a clear ringing sound echoed softly in my hands.

–Tiiing.

The spiritual elixirs vibrated faintly, letting out a crystal-clear chime.

‘What the...? Is that from Yoha’s silk? Or are the two resonating with each other?’

I had intended to hide them quietly, but now even sound was escaping.

Just as I was wondering what to do, my eyes caught the red thread around Yoha’s ankle.

Then it hit me—there was a place safer than anywhere else.

‘That’s it!’

[Yoha, could you hold onto this for a while?]

–Kishaa.

[Could you tie it to that red thread on your ankle? Like a little bell.]

She looked at the orbs in my hand, then at her own ankle.

I lifted one of the silk-wrapped orbs and held it close to her ankle’s red thread.

[Don’t you think it’d look pretty like this?]

She tilted her head, clearly pleased, then took the orb, gently ran it through her fingers, and pressed it to her ankle.

She didn’t tie it, but Yoha’s silk acted like glue—the orb stuck firmly.

–Tiiing. Tiiing.

From then on, every time Yoha moved her foot, the orb let out a clear, tinkling chime.

If a thread beast like Yoha was guarding it herself, no one—not even a top-tier master—would dare lay a hand on it.

This wasn’t like putting a bell on a cat. In this case, trying to take the bell off the predator would be a death sentence.

With the spiritual elixir secure, it was time to deal with the demonic one.

[Yoha, could you make a small pouch for me?]

–Kishashak.

Delighted by the compliment, Yoha spun a thick pouch and handed it over.

I couldn’t have her wrap the demonic pill in silk like before—it would be too risky for both her and me to touch it directly.

So instead, I placed the demonic pill into the pouch and set the pouch into the large storage box I had taken from Qinghai.

Even through the thin fabric of the pouch, faint energy was already leaking.

But once I shut the lid of the box, the energy vanished completely.

‘Done. Thank goodness, So-ryong.’

After checking thoroughly to make sure no trace of turbid qi was leaking, I had Yoha bind the pouch with a cross-shaped silk seal and tucked it into my sleeve.

I had briefly considered wrapping it in silk too, but that would mean direct skin contact, which I wanted to avoid. I had to carry this thing with me, after all.

‘Now that that’s done... I should bring it to Grandfather and ask what to do with it.’

No doubt I’d need to bring the demonic pill back to the Tang Clan and consult Grandfather on how to handle it.

Having now dealt with both the spiritual elixir and the demonic pill, I turned my attention back to Moji and Soji, who were still weaving their shimmering silver cocoons beneath the ceiling.

I covered the cabin’s windows with cloth and spoke to everyone inside—both the children and the adults.

“They’re spinning their cocoons now. It’ll probably take at least two days. Until then, let’s keep things quiet and avoid moving the boat.”

“Got it, So-ryong.”

“Understood, young sir.”

Moji and Soji continued moving their mouths tirelessly in the corner of the ceiling, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) spinning their long-awaited transformation into silver silkworms.

***

A silkworm usually takes about three days to complete its cocoon.

On the first day, it outlines the cocoon’s shape. On the second, it thickens the outer layers so nothing inside can be seen. Then, on the third day, it continues spinning from the inside until the cocoon hardens.

But the silver silkworms—being spirit creatures—had taken nearly eight days just to reach the point where the cocoon was no longer see-through.

Roughly four times the duration of a normal silkworm.

“It’s finally reached the point where we can’t see inside anymore,” Hwa-eun said after breakfast, placing her ear gently against the cocoon.

“Right. The threads seem to be layered thickly. Can you hear anything?”

“Yes, So-ryong. I can hear soft rustling inside.”

“Then we likely still have eight more days to go.”

Even though the cocoon was now fully opaque with silver thread, it would still take time to harden. Just this initial stage had taken over a week, and from the sound of it, the full process might take two weeks.

“So we still need to wait at least eight more days?”

“Yes. I’ll go let the others know that we need more time.”

Because Moji and Soji had suddenly begun spinning their cocoons, our search plans were delayed indefinitely.

If we went out to search and the watermelon beast—whatever that thing was—suddenly attacked again like before, it might interfere with the cocooning process.

And cocooning required absolute stability. If anything went wrong, like shaking or noise, they might fail to molt properly or even become permanently deformed.

“How long will it take for the silver silkworms to emerge once the cocoon is done?”

Normally, a silkworm emerges from its cocoon about two weeks after starting.

So, given that Moji and Soji were already taking four times longer than a normal silkworm, the process of becoming adult silver moths would likely take up to two full months.

“I’d say about two months.”

“So that’s one month and fifteen days left, excluding the time it takes to finish the cocoon itself.”

“That’s right, Hwa-eun.”

“That’s still quite a while. I’m really looking forward to seeing what they look like.”

“Same here.”

Just like Hwa-eun, I couldn’t help but feel excited.

Silver silkworms... Silver moths... What would they look like?

Like Hwa-eun’s bare face.

No—Hwa-eun barely wore makeup, so maybe more like her face after not washing for three days. Just as mysterious and curious.

‘Surely... a kind of untouchable beauty...’

I stepped out of the cabin and informed the rest of the group that we’d need to wait at least another eight days. Senior Brother Gyu-seong nodded in understanding.

“So we’ll have to hold off another eight days.”

“I’m really sorry for the delay. It’s because of me.”

He waved it off casually, but I still felt guilty that our journey was being held up because of my pets.

When I apologized, Senior Brother gave me a smile and said,

“No need to apologize. This place turned out to be surprisingly pleasant. Lots of fish, a good climate, peaceful air. It’s even a great place to train. Don’t worry about us—we’ll use the time to train and improve.”

“That’s right, young sir. We’re here to support you and help deal with those Five Venom bastards anyway. No need to stress over the schedule.”

“Just by being here, we’re already obstructing their plans, aren’t we?”

“Exactly, young sir. I’m just enjoying spending time with Seon-hwa, so you don’t need to worry about me either.”

The other Dragon Fang brothers nodded and agreed it wasn’t a problem.

Which meant the only ones left to speak to were the kids.

I gathered them around and reminded them once more.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“Moji and Soji are at a really important stage, so no loud noises and definitely no shaking the boat. Got it?”

–Tsrurrr!

–Kii-sha!

–Kkukkuk!

–Shaaa!

–Shaaa!

They answered in enthusiastic unison—but I noticed that a few voices were missing.

I looked around, checking one by one, and realized some were gone.

“Wait... where are Bini, Hyang, and Hongdan?”

–Tssrr?

Cho, who was wrapped around my body, perked up and scanned the area.

Her breathing sac inflated with a deep sigh, then slowly deflated again.

So much for hoping the silver threads’ barrier would hold them—those little rascals must’ve snuck off while no one was watching.

‘Bini, where are you?’

***

Bored out of their minds with Moji and Soji cocooning, Bini, Hyang, and Hongdan had gone out to explore.

Staying cooped up on the boat had become unbearable.

They wanted to dig in the dirt, climb trees—do all the things they normally loved to do. But they couldn’t, not with Moji and Soji cocooning and the possibility of other spiritual beasts nearby.

Still, they remembered their dad’s warning, so they had no plans to go too deep. Just a quick peek at what that “marshland” thing was all about.

As soon as they stepped into the open space again, all three immediately brightened.

Excited squeals came from each of them.

–Tssrrr.

–Tssrrt.

–Kkii!

After pushing through a thick patch of tall grass, they arrived at the location Dad had mentioned.

The weeds and plants were thick and scattered, and in the middle of it all was a large puddle.

Fish were jumping, flicking up water in playful arcs—just like the pond back home.

If only they could use salt magic like Cho-sister, they might’ve caught some fish and brought them back to their moms. Watching the fish splash around, Bini and Hyang sighed with disappointment.

Then, Hyang, who had been sitting atop Bini’s head, scooted aside and motioned to Hongdan to come take a look.

–Tssrrt.

Come here! This is worth seeing.

But when they looked behind them, the one who should’ve been there... wasn’t.

–Tssrrr!

Hyang immediately looked around and called to Bini—Hongdan had disappeared.

–Tssrrt!?

Startled, Bini stretched her neck high and scanned the area in all directions.

Then, rustling came from up ahead, and Hongdan popped out from behind a patch of grass.

–Rustle. Rustle.

–Kkii!

–Tssrrt!?

–Tssrrrt?

She chirped something excitedly: “There’s something fun over here!”

The other two had been ready to scold her for vanishing, but hearing that, they instinctively followed her.

And what they found...

...was something round, nestled in the grass.

–Tssrrt?

It was moving.