Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

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Chapter 3: Transformation Surprise

The audience was left speechless, utterly dumbfounded at the revelation that a small centipede kept by So-ryong had just swallowed the immense Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake.

It wasn’t until So-ryong suddenly blanked out that everyone gasped and shouted in shock.

“So, So-ryong!”

“So-ryong!”

“Ryong!”

At first, they thought the shocking sight of the centipede devouring the precious Inner Dan was just a minor setback, but the situation was clearly much more serious than that!

So-ryong collapsed onto the table, out cold.

Hua Eun, who was beside him, quickly grabbed him, but So-ryong flopped over the table like a withered blade of grass.

His eyes rolled back, and his body trembled.

Then, So-ryong started shaking violently, and the centipede in his hands, Hyang, and his pet, Bin, were clearly alarmed, squeaking as they scrambled up Hua Eun’s body.

They tugged at her clothes as if urging her to check on So-ryong!

Swoosh!

Swish!

“I—I understand!”

Watching their reactions shift from being playful to serious caught Hua Eun off guard as she placed her hands on So-ryong.

Bam!

Suddenly, a blast of light erupted.

The Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake had indeed been swallowed by the centipede, yet a brilliant blue light started bursting forth from beneath So-ryong’s fallen head!

The light was blindingly bright, intensifying the longer it was exposed, and Hua Eun, startled, released So-ryong and attempted to pull him away; but right then—

“Daughter-in-law! Under no circumstances should you touch him! This is not the moment for recklessness!”

The thunderous voice of Beast Palace Lord echoed around them, commanding that Hua Eun not touch So-ryong who was about to be lifted.

With that, Hua Eun pulled back from So-ryong, as did Seol-pyo, who had been hastening to his side.

“Father, why!? Why can’t I touch him!? The child is on the brink of dying!”

Seol-pyo shielded her eyes from the radiant light as she looked at her father, confusion and disbelief etched on her face. It was utterly incomprehensible why they couldn’t intervene when So-ryong lay unconscious, and the radiant light threatened to consume him.

With a look of disbelief, the Beast Palace Lord responded to Seol-pyo’s frantic inquiry, “Feel it! This is the energy of the Beast Heart Technique! That child is emitting the energy of the Beast Heart Technique! Something beyond our understanding is happening within him! We must not touch him, or he may fall into a state of enthrallment by the fire!”

“The Beast Heart Technique?”

Seol-pyo tilted her head, pondering her father’s words, before quickly closing her eyes to focus on the energy around her.

Though she sensed something, being less experienced than her father meant she needed to concentrate harder to grasp it.

And as she focused a little more, she truly began to feel the raging energy of the Beast Heart Technique swirling within So-ryong.

It was an energy coming from something beneath his head, being absorbed and expelled from his body in a repetitive cycle.

Just as her father said, it was a familiar energy—the wild energy imbued with the essence of the earth.

It was undoubtedly the Beast Heart Technique.

“Wha, what!? The Beast Heart Technique!?”

So-ryong had indeed mastered the Beast Heart Technique but to deploy it while unconscious? That was unheard of! And what’s more, this level of energy was astounding!

Even more shocking was that the small centipede So-ryong kept was also overflowing with the energy of the Beast Heart Technique!

As they cultivated their inner power, they could indeed share their spirits with beasts, yet that was the limit of the technique’s capabilities.

Seol-pyo gazed at her father with disbelief as she took in So-ryong’s state, but the Beast Palace Lord, staring blankly at So-ryong, murmured in shock, “What on earth…how is this happening with both the centipede and Ryong!?”

“Beast Palace Lord, what in the world is going on? What should we do!?” Mandok God, unable to sit idle any longer, frantically pressed for answers, but the Beast Palace Lord was at a loss for words.

It was a moment where everyone was frozen, unsure of what to do next.

Just when they thought they had seen enough astonishment, a new spectacle unfolded.

Squish. Squish.

Something was pushing out from beneath So-ryong’s body, or rather, it began to grow and coil around him slowly.

“Wha, what!?”

“The centipede!? Why is So-ryong’s pet centipede… like that?”

What emerged was undeniably the centipede—a small centipede that So-ryong had kept, yet now, it was growing larger and wrapping around So-ryong tightly.

Its yellow body with blue spots was developing, engulfing So-ryong completely.

As the hard shell shed its yellow body with blue spots, the colors and size transformed, becoming something entirely different.

No longer was it the small, cute version with its yellow body and blue spots.

It was now a deep blue body, jade-green legs, and a flat yet enormous physique.

Seeing this spectacle, Mandok God shouted incredulously, “A, a blue body! Jade-like legs! This can’t be! The, the Flying Heavenly Centipede!?”

If they were speaking of the Flying Heavenly Centipede, then Hua Eun definitely recognized that name!

It was listed in the last section of the Tang Clan’s Secret Record of Venomous Creatures, under the chapter of the Ten Great Venoms.

It was undoubtedly referred to as the king of centipedes…

“The Flying Heavenly Centipede!? How can it be!?”

Hua Eun queried, disbelief evident as she spoke, and Mandok God answered with a blank expression.

“The king of all centipedes, a calamity that soars through the sky spreading a fog and rain of death—the Flying Heavenly Centipede!

For the Blue-Spotted Centipede to become the Flying Heavenly Centipede after swallowing the Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake—this is utterly shocking!”

An account unheard of in any book, even missing from the records of the Tang Clan’s secret documents.

Before their eyes, the Blue-Spotted Centipede was transforming after devouring the Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake.

“Chao became the Flying Heavenly Centipede!?”

Just when Mandok God and Hua Eun were astonished to learn of Chao’s transformation, their surprise wasn’t unique; the bewildered voices of the two ladies from the Beast Palace joined in.

“C-could it be…that means the martial art which allows them to grow together with the beast is true…as the beast grows, the owner grows too—isn’t this what it means!?”

“This hidden meaning behind the Beast Heart Technique passed down through generations is indeed about growing together with beasts!”

A line they had glossed over when they first learned the Beast Heart Technique, thinking it trivial: “The Beast Heart Technique allows one to grow alongside their beast, and if one should grow, so shall the other.”

Realizing its true meaning, the Beast Palace Lord and Seol-pyo shook with awe, while on the side, Mandok God and Hua Eun trembled at the revelation that the Blue-Spotted Centipede had transformed into the Flying Heavenly Centipede.

All while the now blue ball of the Flying Heavenly Centipede encircled the unconscious So-ryong!

*

My head felt like it was about to split!

Clearly, when Chao swallowed the Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake, something in my head swelled up, threatening to burst.

I thought I might lose consciousness entirely, but no.

The agony persisted relentlessly.

It felt as if I could just cut my head off to relieve the pressure.

I groaned as I clutched my head in pain.

“Urgh…help.”

With each pulse from deep within, I felt my head swell with distress.

But curiously, despite the pain, I remained fully conscious.

No, the more clear headed I felt, the stronger the pain became.

If the initial pain was a dull throb, now I could painfully identify the specifics—each type of discomfort, where it was located, and what sensations were occurring, as if I could write volumes on it.

Why was nobody around me—my grandfather, my adoptive father, and none would come to help? I found that odd as I let out muffled cries for assistance.

“…Help…”

Swish.

A gentle touch brushed through my hair, soft like a caress.

I felt the soothing sensation distinctly.

‘Hua…Hua Eun? Older Sister Seol?’

I contemplated briefly who it might be, but at that moment, the identity of the hand didn’t matter.

Strangely enough, every time someone stroked my head, it felt astonishingly refreshing!

As if I were dousing my head in soda rather than drinking it.

With each soothing stroke, the pressure in my mind eased, and though I couldn’t open my eyes with the pain, I leaned into the soft touch.

With each stroke, the pain rapidly diminished, and it felt like this was the only way to survive.

Before long, after fewer than ten strokes, the nearly unbearable pain dissipated.

While the agony faded, I slowly opened my eyes, scanning my surroundings.

But I couldn’t see anything around me.

Was it night? It didn’t seem that way, and as my consciousness sharpened, I realized I was being cradled by someone.

But unlike the soothing touch, the embrace felt chilly.

‘What is this?’

A soft yet cold embrace.

I cautiously lifted my head to see above me.

I wanted to find out whose arms I was in.

‘Blue?’

The first thing that caught my eye was blue hair.

Deep cobalt blue hair was the first thing I noticed.

Hua Eun and Older Sister Seol both had black hair.

No, it was inconceivable that a woman with blue hair existed in this world!

Surprised, I tried to break free from the woman’s grasp, but for some reason, my body didn’t respond correctly, resulting from the lingering pain. I managed just enough to lift my gaze and discern the face staring back at me—an unfamiliar woman with blue eyes smiling at me.

“W-Who?”

As I asked who she was, instead of a verbal response, her lips approached my forehead.

Chu.

As her lips touched my forehead, my vision began to fade once more.

*

‘A blue-haired person is impossible!’

I thought the memories were too vivid for a dream, but I must’ve been mistaken.

Suddenly, a wave of pressure enveloped me.

“Ugh…”

Slurp. Chu.

I felt something odd brush against my forehead, and when I opened my eyes, I was met with a gigantic blue eye.

However, if the woman I had seen in my dreams had a single blue eye, the sight before me had four dot-like eyes!

“O, O-gong?”

Those dot-like eyes were undoubtedly the eyes of a centipede I had seen in the guidebook thousands of times.

As I blinked in disbelief, trying to make sense of what was happening, I realized a massive centipede was extending its fangs, licking my forehead!

“Gahhhh!”

I shrieked in pure terror.

No matter how famous I may be as the Spicy Fabre guy, having a gigantic centipede licking my forehead would shock anyone!

The moment I screamed, the large centipede recoiled, and I could hear Hua Eun and Older Sister Seol’s voices nearby.

“So, So-ryong! Are you awake?”

“Ryong, are you awake?”

“Help! O-O-gong!”

As I struggled to break free from the centipede, I found myself utterly immobilized.

Panicking, I called for help, and Hua Eun’s voice assured me not to worry.

“It’s alright, So-ryong. It’s Chao.”

“Chao?”

Chao was definitely the name of our first daughter.

I hesitated briefly, then upon remembering her name, I looked back at the centipede, which nodded as if to confirm it was she.

Then, the pressure binding my body released, and I began to feel free.

Slither.

“Chao, you’re Chao? What’s happening…?”

Swish!

Her voice grew more pronounced, yet Chao, who I remembered as our small, cute first daughter, now looked like a massive creature close to six meters long, her body a vivid blue.

Emerald-green antennae and legs adorned her form.

As her presence registered, I felt an eerie sense of deja vu.

While I was still sitting at the table of the Beast Palace, I stated in disbelief, “This is not Chao…it’s like the Flying Heavenly Snake!”

Then both my wife and Older Sister Seol smiled and answered me.

“Yes, So-ryong. Chao consumed the Inner Dan of the Flying Heavenly Snake and has become one of the Ten Great Venoms—the Flying Heavenly Centipede!”

“Chao has grown into the Flying Heavenly Centipede! Ryong.”

“The Flying Heavenly Centipede!? The Ten Great Venoms!?”

As I turned my head toward Chao, who had transformed into one of the Ten Great Venoms, she hovered in the air, making delighted sounds as she looked at me.

Zzzrrrrrrrr.

‘Whoa…our daughter! Our daughter has become a flying girl!’

I didn’t know how this happened, but coming back to my senses in disbelief, I couldn’t help but scream uncontrollably.

It was just too good to be true!

“Aaaah! Of course! Our first daughter!”