NOVEL NEXT Chapter 183
Chapter 183: In the Four Heavenly Houses
“My eyes definitely met his, but aside from lifting his head at first, he seemed frozen in place.”
A chilling sensation lingered in my mind, but I decided to quietly step back for now.
Since he had yet to react, it would be best if we could just leave things as they were without causing a ruckus.
‘Did he not see me? That would be nice, but…’
I pressed down on Hwa-yang’s throat pouch under her chin to stifle any noise she might make.
She made a squeaking noise, but her cheek pouches were soon bursting with air.
I quickly hugged the squirming creature with my short arms into my chest.
Thank goodness for her short legs, as it meant I could hold her without much struggle.
This insignificant creature was quite helpful at times like these.
– Thump.
“Stay put, you little monster! We’re in deep trouble here!”
“Food. Food. Food. Food. Food.”
“If only I were reincarnated as something black instead of this!”
It was in that moment, while holding the creature that was spamming my mind with the word ‘food,’ that I suddenly locked eyes with the creature.
A chilling sound echoed from its tail.
– Scrape. Scrape.
‘Of course, at this time, it wouldn’t just sit still, would it…?’
The moment I heard the unsettling sound, my heart sank. It was a sound that would freeze the blood of any man.
The sharp smacking sound, like a well-honed pair of scissors, chilled the air as it reverberated off the cave walls.
I had hoped for a miracle, but as the sound hummed ominously in my ears, I stopped in my tracks for a moment.
Suddenly, the creature dashed toward me, its pincers aimed directly at my head.
– Swoosh. Scrape.
“Eek!”
I quickly ducked, but the pincers grazed just above my head.
The tie holding my hair flew off, and dangerously close to me, the pincers severed the stone pillar I had been hiding behind.
– Crash! Rumble!
The centuries-old natural monument crumbled in an instant.
Dodging the falling rocks from the ceiling, I leaped backward.
“Whoaaa!”
“Wei So-ryong!”
“Long!”
As I jumped while holding Hwa-yang, I didn’t even get a chance to look back, but Hwa-eun and Older Sister Seol rushed over to catch me.
Their voices were like soothing balm against the panic swirling in my ears.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine! Wei So-ryong?”
Of all times, Hwa-yang had attracted the attention of the wildest creature in the vicinity.
I could feel that we were in for quite a chase, so I shouted backward while being supported.
“I’m fine! Everyone, run away!”
Just as I yelled at O-ryong Sam-bong, who was still farther back, and was about to retreat alongside Older Sister Seol and Hwa-eun, the creature rushed in right behind me.
Its distance closed in an instant, and its gleaming pincers widened ominously in front of the three of us.
“Watch out, Wei So-ryong!”
“Junior Hero!”
Surprised cries of Brother Gyu-seong and Ji-ryong echoed off the cave walls.
Stuck in the middle, I couldn’t dodge while being supported by the two who were also stunned.
That’s when Hwa-eun and Older Sister Seol’s eyes widened to the size of saucers!
– Crash. Boom!
A huge shadow sprang forth from behind us and shot toward the creature like a missile.
– Whoosh!
The sudden spectacle startled me, and I stumbled backward as I saw a familiar figure coming toward us.
Bin Ah lunged at the creature, butted its head, and alongside Chao, took her position in front of us.
So this is why a well-raised daughter becomes the backbone of a family?
My heart swelled with unintentional pride for the two of them.
“Yay! Our Bin Ah! You’re the best!”
“Bin Ah! Chao!”
“Good job! Bin Ah! Chao!”
However, to my astonishment, despite the hard impact, the creature, shoved into a corner of the cave, quickly got back up and scrambled toward us.
With my heart calling out in disbelief, I could see Chao and Bin Ah’s antennas standing straight up, ready for battle.
They definitely seemed prepared to jump right back into the fray.
I needed to tell them to retreat, as there was no way the creature wouldn’t keep fighting until it was dead.
“Chao, Bin Ah, fall back!”
– Whoosh!
– Whoosh!
Unlike Hwa-yang, my daughters listened well.
Chao and Bin Ah immediately pivoted away.
Without needing to say another word, Bin Ah moved toward me while Chao seized Hwa-eun and Older Sister Seol to crawl swiftly ahead.
The moment we halted, Bin Ah and Chao hastily caught up to O-ryong Sam-bong.
– Scrape, scrape.
With angry clanging echoing from behind us, Brother Gyu-seong and Ji-ryong spoke up again.
“Junior Hero, instead of running away like this, why not catch it now?”
“Though the little scamp is nimble, Junior Hero has O-gong, doesn’t he? We shouldn’t miss this chance.”
The two were inclined to catch the creature now that they had announced their intent.
Given the display of Bin Ah’s strength, surely we wouldn’t fail if we worked together.
But I shook my head firmly at their suggestion.
If Yo-hwa were present, it might be feasible, but since we couldn’t bring her into the narrow cave, we had no safe way to catch it.
If we could use her string, it would be an instant capture, but alas, that wasn’t possible now.
“It won’t surrender now; it will fight until death.”
They stared at me wide-eyed, not comprehending.
Ji-ryong, who had been glaring forward, finally found his voice.
“Is there a reason for that?”
Ji-ryong queried, asking if there was a compelling reason for it to fight for its life.
He must not have known because he couldn’t get close, but I nodded and answered him.
“Yeah, I think it just laid eggs not long ago.”
“Eggs?”
“Did it have eggs?”
“Eggs, Wei So-ryong?”
The sudden mention of eggs startled everyone.
Indeed, I had seen the creature licking the eggs tucked beneath its belly right before Hwa-yang dashed toward it.
Because of that, it would undoubtedly fight to the death.
“If it has eggs, that makes sense.”
“Nothing is more ferocious than a mother protecting her young.”
“So that’s why it was so aggressive—because it had eggs?”
Everyone nodded in understanding, realizing that a mother defending her eggs would become exceptionally fierce. My assertion about the creature’s readiness to fight was justified because it would be all the more relentless when it had eggs.
‘Egg-laden earwigs really are a risk to deal with.’
The insect which served as the creature’s base is called ‘gusu’ in the Central Plains language (蠼螋).
In English, it’s known as an earwig.
This insect has a notorious misunderstanding of crawling into people’s ears while they sleep to devour their brains.
And that’s why I said it would fight to the last breath.
Like centipedes, earwigs also exhibit maternal instincts, and they become the fiercest of their kind when they have eggs to protect.
These creatures are famously merciless, attacking anyone that dares venture near their nests.
In fact, earwigs are known for being even more nurturing than centipedes.
And there’s another reason I advised against engaging it.
“Yeah, and if we’re not careful, we might catch a nasty surprise.”
“A nasty surprise?”
“What do you mean by that?”
As soon as I mentioned a nasty surprise, the questions arose.
I hadn’t even noticed I had loosened my grip on Hwa-yang, who slipped from my arms and tumbled to the floor.
– Roll, roll…
An orange potato rolled and halted right in front of the advancing creature.
Startled, I called out to Hwa-yang and halted Bin Ah.
From Hwa-yang’s body, a blazing blue flame erupted.
“Bin Ah, just a moment! Hwa-yang!”
– Whoosh!
The cave lit up as the orange potato ignited into flames.
In a sudden panic, the now fiery creature recoiled from the bizarre sight.
As Hwa-yang pressed on, asserting the Ten Great Venoms against the creature, the startled earwig retreated even further.
– Beep!
Hwa-yang took a step forward with her short legs, and the creature panicked, retreating even more.
With a triumphant smile, Hwa-yang turned to look at me.
I felt an overwhelming surge of pride for her unexpected display of courage.
I had thought she cared only about food, but it seemed there was a hint of rivalry with Bin Ah or Chao as well.
Yet I couldn’t help but feel worried for her.
This could turn into a nasty situation…
“No, Hwa-yang, you… you shouldn’t…”
At that precise moment.
Before I could finish, and right as Hwa-yang’s triumphant smile peaked…
– Fwoosh.
Instead of the pincers raising, the earwig lowered its tail and lifted its front legs, unleashing a surge of yellow liquid toward Hwa-yang.
The noxious stench spread immediately.
“Gyaaaaak!”
“Ughhh!”
Sudden screams erupted.
The rancid smell rushed in from every direction, causing everyone to clutch their noses in shock.
The overwhelming odor surged down upon us.
– Beep!
Getting sprayed with the stinky liquid, the orange potato rolled across the cave floor, still surrounded by blue flames.
Hwa-yang, suffering from the stench, frantically rubbed her face with her front legs, writhing desperately on the ground.
The earwig backed away cautiously.
Once it had retreated, it glanced back at us before disappearing quickly into the shadows.
As it vanished completely, kind-hearted Hwa-eun, covering her nose, asked.
“Wei So-ryong, what if that was poison? Cough, what do we do?”
“No, it’s probably not poison. More likely…”
Some earwig species have the ability to spray that kind of foul odor, and I presumed this was one of them.
Ji-ryong approached, pointing to Hwa-yang, and asked.
“Is that the nasty surprise?”
“Yeah… That’s why I warned against fighting. Sigh… Bin Ah, could you pull out that pillar from the ceiling?”
– Whoosh.
Sighing, Bin Ah fetched the pillar, rolling it toward Hwa-yang to wash her off.
It looked like she needed a good rinse.
“You’re going to be in trouble for this.”
Just as I internally smirked at how satisfying this incident felt, Hwa-yang’s pitiful cries echoed throughout the cave.
– Beep. Beep.
*
When Hwa-yang finally shook off the stench and sat sulkily on the cave floor, Ji-ryong posed a question.
“By the way, what was that creature earlier?”
It appeared he had finally grown curious about its identity.
“Well, that was a large gusu (蠼螋)…”
In response to my answer regarding the large earwig, Hwa-eun, who had been looking at Hwa-yang with pity, chimed in.
It seemed she had information on it.
“The colors of Heaven and Earth, the Sun and Moon, the stars’ vibrations—
Gold, silver, water, fire: red, green, white, black; flora, trees, grasses, and fruits.
Among the twenty-four poisons categorized by the Tang Clan, that one appeared to be the black-clawed red insect (黑鉗紅蠼). Although it resembles a large gusu, it has sharp pincers on its tail and is red in color, which must have appeared as a fiery hue in the dark.”
Originally, earwigs were just meant to catch their opponents, much like stag beetles, but I didn’t expect it to be part of the Twenty-Four Poisons with such sharp pincers.
That was already the third one of the Twenty-Four Poisons I had encountered.
Collecting them certainly had its fun.
‘Oh ho, it looked fancy, but it turned out to be a Twenty-Four Poison?’
I delighted at having encountered three of the Twenty-Four Poisons, while Brother Gyu-seong, who had been lost in thought, called out.
“By the way, Long, what will we do about that?”
“What do you mean?”
I tilted my head at the sudden question, and the moment the storm of words came from Brother Gyu-seong.
“It’s generally considered taboo among hunters to capture both the parent and the offspring at once, and even among beasts, tearing apart a parent from its young is utterly vile.
So, capturing it before its eggs hatch isn’t an option. And it’s impossible to take the eggs away from the mother, right?
Leaving it be just means it will keep eating pigs…”
It was certainly a very Beast Palace thought.
Smiling at Brother Gyu-seong’s inquiry, I replied.
“The gusu won’t eat a thing once it lays eggs, so it should be just fine.”
“Really?”
Once they lay eggs, gusu will fast from that moment.
As I explained this, my sister brightened.
“Yeah, and we might have to capture the little ones, too.”
“Right, that might not be ideal, but with so many, it’s likely the best strategy. But what do we do about the mother? Once the offspring hatch, it’ll just go back to devouring beasts, won’t it?”
Brother Gyu-seong had many concerns, but I assured him there was no need to worry.
“Once the little ones hatch, they’ll likely perish.”
“What!? The mother will die?”
At the mention of the mother dying, my sister looked shocked, yet it wouldn’t be a straightforward death.
The highly nurturing earwig mother sacrifices her life to nourish her hatchlings after they’re born.
The mother’s body becomes the first meal for her newly hatched little ones, providing the essential sustenance they need before they disperse into the world.
The epitome of maternal instincts in the arthropod world.
“Yeah, an earwig giving her body as sustenance to her hatchlings is the norm.”
“!”
“A lowly creature like that can truly care so deeply for its offspring?”
“Is that true?”
“Yeah, gusu will show fervent love for their young.”
Hwa-eun and the others looked on, mouths agape, while the realization that Bin Ah and Chao might be feeling the same concern surged in their hearts.
“Dad loves us, so would he really tell us to eat each other?”
“…”
If I told them not to eat one another, it felt like I’d be rejecting my affection for them, and yet, telling them to eat each other seemed out of the question.
I resolved to tell them to eat in moderation, just lick and savor it like candy.