Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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Chapter 4: Venomous Insect Valley

Normally, Army Ants would spend a night at a temporary campsite. As temperatures drop during the night, they gather to protect one another, and once the sun rises and it warms up, they start moving again. But it seemed these guys were different.

Whether they were consuming the food they gathered or if the Queen Ant was laying eggs, they had spent three whole days at this temporary campsite. From their behavior, I could guess that they usually wander like crazy looking for food, and once they gather enough, they repeat this process of settling for a few days.

It didn’t seem they had completely stopped, because they weren’t venturing out for food.

That wasn’t bad news for us, as it bought time for the main force led by my older sister to arrive.

The main force carried supplies like bamboo cages for gathering and food, so I needed to meet up with them to execute my earlier plan of rushing ahead and collecting the venomous insects.

And with my sister arriving, I finally understood why, aside from Grandfather and a few members of the Poison Blood Team, the warriors from the Tang Clan wore such strange expressions at my amusing suggestion.

“Oh my…”

My sister wore a surprised expression as she gazed at the ants across the river. However, her shock didn’t end there. When those things started moving, the idea of rushing in front to catch the venomous insects made her wide-eyed.

“Those things… are we going to run in front of them?”

“Yes, when their lines start advancing, the ones hiding in the grass or between rocks will be startled and pop out. If we aim for them, we could easily catch the venomous insects. The frightened ones only look straight ahead, making them easy picks.”

After staring blankly at my face for a while, my sister muttered to herself.

“Next up after bees, it’s ants? It hasn’t been long since I ran in front of the bees…”

I remembered why the warriors from the Tang Clan, except for Grandfather and a few from the Poison Blood Team, had such strange expressions. They were all veterans of death races.

Reflecting on my sister’s words, I realized that Gu Pae and several warriors from the Poison Blood Team were also veterans of this deadly race.

They had already had their lives on the line since the Golden Hair Bee King, from Yunnan’s entrance to the Tang Clan.

“But didn’t you achieve good results last time?”

“Well, that’s true…”

Honestly, I felt a bit sorry for my sister back then.

She looked quite enchanting when tired, but the pretty sister had run for days, drenched in sweat, without proper food or rest to reach the Tang Clan.

And since I couldn’t use Lightness Skill, she had to carry me as well.

However, the one thing that eased my guilty feelings was Grandfather’s words.

“Still, thanks to me, you gained some fortune.”

My sister couldn’t argue with him when he said that eating the Spirit Medicine and tapping into Death’s Rush was also a stroke of fortune.

Even though taking in Spirit Medicine or Inner Dan generally requires a significant period until that energy blends completely and becomes one’s own, my sister managed to quickly assimilate most of that energy by expending her own during the Death’s Rush.

So, I held her hand tightly and said, “Now that Ogong doesn’t need to consume the energy flowing from the Inner Dan, let’s gather up the remaining energy during this time.”

It might sound a bit annoying, but it was the truth—what could I do?

I wasn’t just doing it for myself; it all circles back to supporting my sister’s blood, flesh, and internal power, right?

As my sister’s lips wobbled like she had something to say, Grandfather’s voice chimed in nearby.

“Thinking about it, So-ryong, you should also run alongside. Tomorrow, run with Hua Eun.”

“Me too?”

My Lightness Skill wasn’t that great yet, so Grandpa had planned to carry me when they moved, but suddenly he was telling me to run alongside my sister.

I blinked in confusion at what he meant when he pointed at my chest.

“You’ve eaten too, haven’t you? The Spirit Medicine.”

“Gasp!”

That’s right! I had indeed consumed the royal jelly from the Golden Hair Bee King. In other words, it meant I needed to gather energy too.

My sister’s lips, which had been moping, curled slightly up.

As Grandfather finished his words, my sister tightly held my hand and smiled at me.

“So-ryong, let’s run side by side tomorrow. I’m happy we’ll run together. Hehe.”

For some reason, my sister looked as if she had just eaten a delicious mealworm, but maybe that was just my imagination.

‘Probably not?’

*

We quietly moved ahead to where it was expected those guys would start moving.

I didn’t know how long they would linger, but it was best to secure a position early.

The distance between us and those guys was about sixty spans, roughly two hundred meters.

Once they started moving, I planned to close the gap to within thirty spans, maintaining a certain distance as we ran.

Of course, our main force would slowly follow from across the river, receiving the venomous insects and vipers we captured.

We decided to store the venomous insects we caught in cages and toss them on the opposite riverbank.

With that in mind, I lay awake in anticipation for tomorrow’s gathering until I finally dozed off.

Suddenly, a chilling sound pierced the air.

– Swaaa!

When I opened my eyes, morning had come, and as the sun rose and illuminated the basin, the sound of the ant colony stirred like a wave in the bamboo grove.

We had set up our defenses, but they were unnecessary.

The signal that they were about to move was given intensely.

“So-ryong, wake up.”

“I’m awake, Hua Eun.”

My sister shook me awake from her curled-up position next to me.

Skipping the washing-up, I immediately tightened the strap around my forehead.

The warriors from the Tang Clan, who had experienced it before, were already tying their straps tightly on their foreheads.

My sister also quickly did the same.

It was already discussed yesterday, but I was wondering why we needed to do this; apparently, if sweat dripped into your eyes, it would sting.

So I decided to follow the advice of the experienced ones.

‘Looks like tying a strap on my forehead while running a marathon in my past life had its reasons.’

I had thought it was just a fashion statement back then, but it seemed there were indeed reasons.

With our preparations finished, Ogong were ready to go for me, while the Lizards were for my sister. Yo-hwa had been confident that she could run when asked yesterday, so we decided to trust her.

If she couldn’t keep up, she could always jump across the river.

And as we put the final touches on our preparations, the red wave of ants began at the basin below.

– Swaaa!

The wave of ants surged like a tide.

Leading the formation were indeed the large worker ants.

Since they were friends replacing soldier ants, they charged ahead, cutting through the line while protecting those flanking.

In the middle, the larger worker ants and medium-sized worker ants passed through, representing the moving formation of the Army Ants.

“The foremost of those guys is the foraging team. So be cautious; they’ll bite anything in sight.”

“Understood, So-ryong.”

The leading force of the Army Ants was a very aggressive group known as the foraging team that attacked anything visible as it approached.

As I gazed at the encroaching ants, I thought it was time to start moving.

– Keeee!

A terrifying scream pierced the air.

Whether it was a deer or a roe deer, it suddenly sprang from between the ants and us, hopping toward us in fright and then leaping back in sheer terror.

With ants behind and people in front, it probably found us more frightening. However, its choice led to a horrific outcome.

– Keeek! Keeee!

As it got snagged by the massive jaws of a large worker ant, it screamed and began to jump around.

Trying to shake off the large worker ant that had latched onto its thigh, the creature leaped but couldn’t detach the imposing soldier.

Like primitive tribes in Asia or the Amazon that used giant workers like staplers for their injured legs, these ants never let go once they bit.

Ultimately, when the struggling beast fell before the swarm, the red wave engulfed it.

Seeing that scene, every warrior from the Tang Clan surged forward without exception.

Since the deer had been reduced to nothing in an instant.

“So-ryong, let’s go too!”

My sister said beside me.

When I turned, I saw her already standing with her arms raised in a starting position.

With her arms raised, it felt like her mind was already sprinting ahead.

I nodded while keeping an eye on the approaching army of ants.

“Let’s go!”

It was the official start of our venomous insect collection.

*

The Army Ants, with their nearly nonexistent eyesight, couldn’t chase after us, but they surged forward at a considerable speed.

Their average speed was roughly that of a person jogging quickly.

However, when food was in sight and fights broke out, additional ants rushed in from behind in an instant.

Despite our pace resembling a half-a-mile run, we were already swamped by bears and boars, even deer.

It felt like they were simply skirting along the riverbanks to hunt down animals that came to drink.

So, as I ran forward, picking up the venomous insects while gazing at the disheartened creatures being swallowed by the red wave, Gu Pae’s voice echoed from the opposite side.

“So-ryong! There’s a huge snake up ahead! Is that perhaps a python?!”

‘A large snake!? A python?’

With Gu Pae’s shout about a giant snake, I glanced backward to see a massive serpent straining to crawl toward us right in front of the ant horde.

Its shiny scales and massive body—what was coming toward us was a Burmese python!

“It’s a Burmese Python! We must catch it!”

The Burmese python ranks among the largest snakes in the world.

Moreover, they are relatively docile and not too difficult to keep.

I couldn’t let this chance slip away.

‘It’s not poisonous, but it’s a thrill to keep!’

But then Gu Pae wore an incredulous expression.

His discontent erupted as he let out a grumble.

“So-ryong! Didn’t you say the same thing when the whip scorpion popped up earlier? And the toad before that? If you’re going to catch everything that comes out, why even consider what’s worthwhile?”

The reason Gu Pae was frustrated was that I wanted to catch everything without filters, even though he intended to catch only creatures he deemed valuable.

Yet, what could I say? I was seeing everything for the first time, and they all seemed valuable.

‘It’s really hard to manage these people. Is setting an example such a big deal?’

So, I dashed toward the creature when I heard people shouting in astonishment. They realized how close the snake was to the ants.

“So-ryong, it’s dangerous!”

“So-ryong!”

Ignoring the calls from the warriors of the Tang Clan and my sister, I quickly surrounded the snake.

“Wow, this thing is no joke.”

The Burmese python can grow up to six meters long, and the one before me was about three meters. As I grasped its head, I felt its weight.

Taking a step forward, I heard a spine-chilling sound from behind me.

– Swoosh.

As I lunged forward and turned back, a large worker ant had already crept up close.

Among the worker ants, a subordinate of the large worker ants swung its powerful jaws, designed for cutting and crushing.

We had gotten too close too fast.

With the weight of the snake on my shoulder, just as I was about to step, I lost my footing on the grass.

– Whoosh.

“Ouch.”

At that, both my sister and Gu Pae’s eyes widened.

Surprised, my sister and Gu Pae leaped into action, using their Lightness Skill to rush toward me.

As I turned around, the mound of ants surged.

“So-ryong!”

“So-ryong!”

My sister’s and Gu Pae’s cries were drowned out by the rushing tide of ants, and just when I thought it might be my last moment to regret my greed—

– Whoosh!

My body was suddenly pulled forward.

I was sliding over the grass, being dragged along.

As I was taken away, I found myself right in front of Yo-hwa, who had seemingly ensnared me in her web without me realizing.

– Kshh! Kshh!

Immediately, Yo-hwa began to scold me like a mother hen, and my sister chimed in from the side.

“Yo-hwa, great job! Teach him a lesson! So-ryong! You can’t approach so closely to the ants anymore!”

“I-I’m sorry.”

I had nearly become an insect dumpling out of greed.

Taking a deep breath, I followed quietly behind Yo-hwa, unable to join in the catch due to my earlier misstep.

It wasn’t just me, though—she had my neck caught in her web, refusing to let me go.

‘What, am I not a pet or something?’

“Yo-hwa, can you let me go now?”

– Kshh!

After several attempts, her unwavering voice left no room for negotiation.

In the end, I had to sneak silently behind her until the sun began to set, and the army of ants started to come to a halt just over a hill.

Just as we crested that hill, I noticed what looked like a gate down below, and some armed men came running out, halting us with their cries.

“This is the land of the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace! Identify yourselves, intruders!”

Among them, a leading man held a wolf on a leash while alternating his surprised gaze between me, caught by Yo-hwa, and his wolf.

“U-uh…”

‘No, that’s not what it looks like. No way…’