Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

I calmed the barbarian who had raised his tent high, eager to invade the Central Plains, and quickly dashed off toward the Clan Head’s quarters.

The guards on watch opened the doors for me as soon as they saw me, and inside, my father-in-law was waiting — dressed only in sleepwear, as if he had been roused from bed.

Bright lantern light filled the room, and on the table in front of him lay a letter.

It was clear he had summoned me the moment he’d checked the message from the Murim Alliance.

“Father-in-law!”

“You’re here!?”

“What on earth has happened?”

Judging by his expression, something extremely urgent had occurred.

When I asked what it was about, he frowned and answered,

“The Murim Alliance is urgently requesting you.”

“Me?”

“Yes.”

The conversation began with the fact that the Murim Alliance was looking for me.

Normally, I’d think it was some kind of request for help — but since I did have a few things I’d rather not get caught for, my heart sank.

’D-don’t tell me they found out about Gun Hye-rin?’

That was my first thought — whether it had somehow been discovered because of her.

But if it had, they wouldn’t have sent a letter. They would have sent martial artists to arrest me.

I steadied my unnecessarily guilty heart and asked,

“What’s this about?”

“It’s because of the Blood Cult.”

“The Blood Cult? But... they...”

I froze at the mention of the Blood Cult.

After all, they had been absorbed by the Five Venoms Sect.

If it had been because of the Five Venoms, I would have understood — but the Blood Cult?

They were practically defunct; if anyone brought them up, the Five Venoms would normally come first.

My father-in-law explained further.

“Recently, a Daewol Nation vessel drifted ashore on the coast of Guangxi. Martial artists found it after it slipped past the border patrols, and one man on board said this:

‘A blood-drinking god descended from the heavens and takes the blood of those whose faith is weak!’”

“That’s... quite a coincidence.”

A blood-drinking god, from the mouth of a man from Daewol Nation — where the Five Venoms Sect that had absorbed the Blood Cult had vanished?

It was quite a coincidence. My father-in-law nodded.

“Exactly. The martial artists of Guangxi first thought the man was just a madman, but they reported it anyway. And when the strategist heard, he ordered reconnaissance.”

“Inside Daewol Nation?”

“Yes. The target was the fortress closest to the border. They meant to assess the situation there, but the Murim Alliance reconnaissance team they sent discovered something horrific.”

“Horrific?”

My chest felt uneasy at the word.

These bastards never did anything ordinary.

Sure enough, what he said next didn’t disappoint my expectations.

“They found that the Blood Cult had taken over the fortress and turned it into a hellscape. Thousands of people, drained of blood, were piled like firewood, rotting away — and thousands more waited their turn to die.”

“Those lunatics...”

The words came out on their own.

It was like a vampire city in a horror film, slaughtering and consuming humans like livestock.

“So you’re saying the Blood Cult seized the largest fortress on the Daewol border?”

“That’s right.”

“How could they possibly seize an entire fortress?”

If it were the Five Venoms, maybe — but the Blood Cult?

Or... were the Five Venoms backing them?

My disbelief must have shown, because my father-in-law continued.

“Not just one.”

“Not one? What do you mean?”

“They’ve confirmed only one so far, but the strategist believes it’s not the only one. Daewol’s army is still in place; they wouldn’t risk drawing attention to just one fortress unless they were insane.”

“Then?”

“The opinion is they may have taken several of the surrounding major fortresses.”

“That’s...”

It was essentially saying they had seized part of Daewol Nation. And then my father-in-law added something I could hardly believe.

“The strategist thinks it’s possible Daewol’s royal family itself has been absorbed by the Blood Cult.”

“That would be a disaster!”

Whether they’d been boosted by the Five Venoms or had somehow turned the tables and devoured the Five Venoms instead, it was obvious that something serious had happened.

The Blood Cult grew stronger by drinking blood. If they had really absorbed the royal family and toppled Daewol, then they would have grown powerful enough to covet the Central Plains.

It seemed clear I would need poison crafted specifically for use against the Blood Cult.

“So you were going to ask me to prepare poison for them? That’s actually perfect. I’ve got just the thing — a poison that can wipe them out completely.”

“You have poison prepared?”

“Yes, Father-in-law.”

I could still use the vampire mosquito venom from before, but not in large quantities.

Now we had something even better — the venom of Lady Hoja, the Giant Wasp Queen.

Wasp venom tears apart red blood cell membranes. If you drop it into a blood sample and observe it under a microscope, the cells turn spiky like rock candy before eventually bursting.

That’s because mastoparan, a compound in the venom, attacks the cell membrane, punching holes or swelling the cells until they rupture.

Since Lady Hoja was a spirit beast, she had plenty of venom — and it was highly toxic. Diluted with water, it could be produced in vast quantities.

Given that those bastards used blood-based martial arts, wasps were practically their natural enemy.

I said all this with confidence, but my father-in-law shook his head.

“No, that’s certainly good news, but that’s not why you were called.”

“Then why?”

“You’ve been called to conduct reconnaissance.”

“Reconnaissance?”

“Yes. They want you to fly over and see exactly how many fortresses they’ve seized. You’re the only one who can do that.”

Sounded like I’d just been booked for a business trip.

***

After finishing my talk with my father-in-law, I headed back to my quarters, thinking about what to do next.

The conclusion: I should depart as soon as possible.

’The sooner I go, the better... but I should hit the Current Realm first.’

Hwa-eun might ask why I needed to take on such a dangerous job, but if those bastards pushed into the Central Plains, we’d be affected too — so it was something I had to handle personally.

I had three wives and a happy newlywed life to enjoy, plus my hobbies, and if they invaded the Central Plains, it would ruin everything.

So before leaving, I decided to step into the Current Realm just in case.

If danger was coming, I wanted my combat power fully solidified before I went.

’Sorry, Moji, Soji... but this time I think I’ll have to register Sister Jeokwol.’

And today, I finally came to a conclusion after an entire day of agonizing over it.

I decided to register Sister Jeokwol.

If I was going on reconnaissance, it made the most sense to register her.

To scout effectively, I’d need to make use of Sister Jeokwol’s stealth abilities, and for that, we would have to be able to converse in detail through our mental link.

It wasn’t as if I could speak to her via sound transmission, nor could I interpret her speech for others — the current situation left a lot of inconveniences.

If we ended up separated, we wouldn’t even be able to talk.

On infiltration missions, there was always a chance I’d have to move alone; if we got split up and had to change the rendezvous point for some unavoidable reason, having a mental link would be invaluable.

I was sorting out these thoughts when I heard someone’s sharp voice.

“Who goes there!?”

“It’s me. So-ryong.”

“So-ryong-nim?”

Cutting across the Sichuan Tang Family estate without a lantern at midnight had startled the guards on watch.

“I’m just heading back after being called to the Clan Head’s quarters.”

After calming the guards, I cut quickly through the inner garden of the Sahawon.

And as I opened the door to my quarters, I muttered to myself.

The story my father-in-law had told me earlier had been too shocking.

“Seriously, those insane Blood Cult bastards... turning thousands of people into husks to drain their blood? They’re beyond lunatics.”

Still muttering about how truly deranged they were, I stepped inside — and saw the princess lying in bed, lifting the quilt slightly with a smile.

“So-ryong, you’re back? Come here.”

Through the parted folds of her robe, bare skin down to her thighs was exposed.

The sight was dizzying, and before I knew it, my Byoam Night Arts’ infrared vision had kicked in, bringing her glowing silhouette into view.

Steam-like heat wafted from beneath the raised blanket.

This wasn’t a time to be worrying about other people being drained into husks — there was someone right here trying with all her might to turn me into one.

***

It was only at dawn that I finally managed to close my eyes.

Isn’t it strange to expect sleep when a woman is snuggling up next to you in see-through lingerie?

The fact that I’d fallen asleep at all by dawn was a miracle.

When I woke and sat at the edge of the bed, there were dumplings and a few side dishes set out on the table.

After a quick bite, I went to find Moji and Soji to explain the situation.

“Sorry, you two. But I think I’ll have to register Sister Jeokwol this time.”

- Myu myu. Myuu.

When I explained what my father-in-law had told me yesterday, they nuzzled their cheeks against my shoulder in understanding.

The soft fur of moth wings brushed against me.

Then, without delay, I went to bring Sister Jeokwol back to my quarters.

“Sister, I think I’ll have to go on reconnaissance, so I should register you first. If we’re out in the field, there’ll definitely be times we need to talk quietly, and it would be a hassle if we couldn’t.”

Chii.

“Then, just in case, I’ll let my wives know, and we can do the registration today.”

Chiii.

I took her along to find my wives.

According to a maid, they were in the pavilion.

“So-ryong.”

“Master!”

As soon as I stepped into the entrance of the pondside pavilion, Gun Hye-rin ran up to greet me like an eager puppy.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Uh... yes.”

Was she finally getting over her shyness?

I led her by the sleeve toward the pavilion, where the princess asked with a mischievous smile,

“So-ryong, did you sleep well?”

“How could I, with what you did last night?”

“What did I do? I just slept quietly.”

“No, you...”

’You groped me! You touched me!’

She put on an innocent expression, as if she had no idea what I meant — infuriatingly so.

Then, Hwa-eun brought up what I’d discussed with my father-in-law.

“So-ryong, I heard from Father. Let’s all go on the reconnaissance together.”

“All of us?”

“Yes. You’re still weaker than we are.”

“That’s right. It’s too dangerous for you alone.”

“Hey, I’ll be stronger once I reach the Current Realm.”

“You haven’t built up your martial foundation step by step, so even if you reach the Current Realm, you’ll still be weaker than other masters at that level. So take us with you.”

“She’s right. We’ll go together. We might not share the same birthday, but we’ll share the same death day.”

With all three insisting, there was no persuading them otherwise. I agreed to take them along — after all, we’d only be flying over a few cities in Daewol Nation while the children clung to me.

“Fine, fine. Oh, and about Sister Jeokwol’s registration — I’d like to do it today. Is that okay?”

“Today?”

“Yes. Why, Hye-rin?”

“Oh... no reason. It’s just that I have to oversee it, and I’m not really in the best shape today.”

Of the three, only Gun Hye-rin had precise knowledge about the Current Realm. If I wanted to do this right, I’d have to wait until she was feeling better.

“All right, then how about tomorrow morning?”

“Of course. That’ll be fine.”

So we agreed to do the registration tomorrow morning.

Later that night, I understood why Hye-rin had said she wasn’t in the best shape — she showed up at my quarters after the princess, wearing something similar to the princess’s outfit but in a different color.

It seemed she had just been waiting her turn.

“I... I’m only holding your hand, all right?”

“Sigh... fine. Let’s hold hands.”

The good thing was that, unlike the princess, she didn’t have any special “logs” to keep her up — so I got a solid night’s sleep.

After a full rest, I woke early at dawn and began Sister Jeokwol’s registration right away.

“All right, Sister, let’s begin.”

- Chiii.

Placing her saliva into my mouth, I began the registration process.

My vision blurred, and I was drawn into my mental landscape.

This would now be the Seventh Venom Realm.