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Welcome, Esteemed Guests

“Greetings.”

As we crossed the threshold, the old woman welcomed us with a warm smile.

“You must have had quite the journey.”

She had a kind demeanor. From what I knew, she was the new head of the Tang Clan’s Medicine Hall.

Was she the last surviving elder?

I carefully lowered my head as I regarded her.

“How have you been?”

“Always the same. How about you, Gu Prince?”

“Well…”

“I hear you are doing splendidly, to the point where it makes me proud.”

“…hahaha…”

I chuckled awkwardly. There really wasn’t much I could say in such situations.

It felt both flattering and embarrassing. This was about my limit.

After exchanging light pleasantries, the old woman turned her gaze to the side with a smile.

“Miss.”

“Hello…”

At the old woman’s glance, Tang Soyeol bowed her head as well. For some reason, her reaction seemed a bit uncomfortable.

“It’s been a while since I last saw you. I’ve been hearing great things about how you’ve been soaring.”

“…Thank you.”

The conversation didn’t go on for long. The old woman seemed to understand that Tang Soyeol was feeling uneasy.

Did something happen that I hadn’t heard about?

I thought about asking but knew it wasn’t the right time.

“First, allow me to take you to the Manufacture Room. The Clan Leader is waiting.”

For now, we needed to address the reason for our visit to the Tang Clan.

*

I followed the old woman for a moment. The interior of the Tang Clan hadn’t changed much since the last time I saw it.

Though they claimed to have sealed the gates, it seemed somewhat maintained.

However…

‘It’s a bit worn down.’

It seemed they couldn’t maintain the former splendor.

The dim atmosphere and quiet ambiance felt vaguely chilling.

The grandeur that had once defined the Four Great Clans was no longer evident.

In some ways, this was to be expected. After all, the clan had brought this upon themselves.

I glanced sideways at Tang Soyeol.

As before, her expression wasn’t particularly pleasant. The question was whether it was because of the clan’s current state or something else entirely. I had no way of knowing.

I forced myself to ignore it and kept walking.

Soon enough, we arrived at our destination.

The Medicine Hall.

I nodded at the name written on the residence. However, it was odd even before I opened the door.

‘This energy…’

I could feel a strong aura emanating from inside even before entering. And not just any aura.

‘Is it Poison Qi?’

Poison Qi. Quite a considerable amount, too.

It wasn’t a problem for me. After all, with my Immunity to All Poisons, poison posed no threat to me whatsoever.

Besides, even if the quantity was large, as long as one had a high enough realm, it was bearable.

As for Tang Soyeol, she was someone who had learned Poison Techniques, so she would be fine too.

“If you feel uncomfortable, I can prepare some cloth or…”

“No, I’m fine.”

The old woman carefully made her suggestion, unaware of my immunity, but I naturally declined.

“I can manage. Let’s go in.” I grabbed the door and opened it. At that moment—

Whooooosh—! An energy rushed out from inside.

Within that energy was not only the poison but also a pungent herbal scent.

Frowning slightly, I peered inside.

“Welcome…?”

Inside stood a weary-looking middle-aged man, the Poison King of the Tang Clan, who greeted me.

“I’m sorry for not coming out to welcome you…”

The Poison King, speaking in a tired voice, stopped mid-sentence as he noticed Tang Soyeol beside me.

“Ah, you’ve… come.”

“Father…”

His demeanor was somewhat ambiguous.

As the Poison King swallowed his words upon seeing his daughter, Tang Soyeol sighed and spoke to him.

“It’s been a while since I last saw you.”

“Yes, I’ve been well—”

“I heard you visited the branch yesterday.”

Tang Soyeol interrupted the Poison King’s words.

“Th-that’s because I had something to discuss with the Gu Prince…”

“Didn’t I clearly say I’d come today?”

Her voice grew slightly colder, making the Poison King fumble nervously.

“It was a pressing matter…”

“Of course. It must have been quite urgent. But…”

Tang Soyeol raised her brows slightly and added.

“Why did you come and not look for me?”

“…”

Upon hearing her words, the Poison King turned his gaze towards me.

I could sense it in his eyes. He seemed to be silently asking for my help…

‘What could I possibly do here?’

I knew nothing to help with. I was genuinely curious. It seemed odd that he would come all the way to the branch and not see his daughter.

‘Back then, I figured he just didn’t want to be lectured.’

But looking at Tang Soyeol’s reaction, it appeared to be more than that.

There seemed to be something I didn’t know.

“About that…”

The Poison King hesitated, trying to find the right words.

“…Never mind.”

Tang Soyeol abruptly turned her back as if she didn’t want to hear anymore.

“I’ll wait outside. I’ll come back once you’re done with Gu Prince.”

“Uh? O-oh.”

She announced her departure and vanished without another word. Wow… it seems her skill in evasion has improved even more!

She disappeared in an instant.

“…”

I scratched my head, feeling the awkwardness of the situation. It was quite hard to know how to react.

I turned my attention back to the Poison King, but…

“…”

“…”

Even when our eyes met, there was nothing to say. The awkward silence just stretched on.

“…First, please come in.”

The Poison King spoke in a slightly sad tone, prompting me to step inside without a word.

“Ahem. I apologize for my intrusion.”

His expression was too sorrowful for me to even ask anything. It looked like he was deeply hurt, making it impossible for me to offer comfort.

‘He hasn’t been home for years.’

I thought it was simply for training. Perhaps there were other circumstances at play.

Curiosity burned within me, but I needed to restrain it.

‘If he didn’t mention it, then there must be a reason.’

Tang Soyeol hadn’t said a word to me either. That alone indicated there were things one should not ask about.

Moreover, it seemed the Poison King was silently communicating that to me through his eyes.

‘Please don’t ask.’

This is definitely something he didn’t want to talk about. So I would just ignore that glance.

Once we entered the Medicine Hall, I began assessing the surroundings.

‘Hmm.’

What a chaotic mess.

The state of the space seemed to scream disorder. There were various unknown materials strewn about.

I picked one up.

‘This is…’

I widened my eyes slightly upon seeing it. It looked like a simple weed, but it had a familiar shape.

‘Isn’t this Small Common Grass?’

Though it looked like a weed, it was actually quite an expensive herb. It definitely didn’t belong on the floor like this.

‘And it’s not just this.’

There were other valuable ingredients visible among the clutter. I couldn’t help but smirk.

‘Things weren’t this chaotic last time I visited.’

The last time I was here, it wasn’t quite like this. The disarray reflected the circumstances as if shouting for help.

Perhaps the absurdity was showing on my face, for the Poison King cleared his throat.

“Ahem. We’ve been rather busy lately.”

“How busy does one need to be to treat herbs like this?”

Especially in the Tang Clan.

“Things have piled up toward the end, making it difficult to manage other matters.”

“I see.”

Since organizing wasn’t my place to comment on, I let it slide. What mattered was the outcome.

“So, what’s going on?”

The Poison King turned to me with determination in his eyes.

“Is there truly a way?”

The way his eyes sparkled with that intensity was surprising, considering how he had just been flustered with his daughter a moment ago.

But this was something that had to be of utmost importance to him.

Reclaiming the clan’s lost history. It might even be a chance to revive the clan. For the Poison King, it was significant.

And naturally, it was just as important to me.

“…First, please show me the situation.”

I needed to see what had unfolded. Upon hearing my words, the Poison King promptly led me deeper into the hall.

To the Manufacture Room within the Medicine Hall. The energy here felt exceptionally strong.

‘This is it.’

It was impossible to miss.

The quantity of herbs and poison here far exceeded what was found outside.

An unknown turbulence simmered in a pot.

The materials inside and the clusters piled to the left.

I could even detect a foul smell wafting in the air from that direction, so repugnant that I would need to block my sense of smell.

Following the source of that scent, I quickly spotted the cause.

I pointed at it with my hand. “Is that it?”

“…”

The Poison King nodded. That was indeed the answer.

As I approached, a mass of indiscernible dough came into view. This was the root of the stench and, more importantly…

‘The reason the Poison King is troubled.’

Failed attempts to create the Poison Heavenly Pill. That was likely what this was.

I reached out and grabbed a handful of the dough. The stench intensified.

Not only was it dry, but it was also mixed with poisonous herbs, releasing a strong Poison Qi.

“Mmm…”

The state of the situation was dire. I couldn’t fathom how it had decayed to this extent.

“Are you saying this is the dough for the Poison Heavenly Pill?”

“Not exactly. It failed before it could succeed.”

“Can you show me what sort of phenomenon occurred?”

Before I could even finish my question, the Poison King brought something forth.

What he held looked like unblemished dough. While it still radiated poison, at least it didn’t smell bad.

Additionally, it was infused with a considerable amount of energy, revealing it to be a Spirit Pill’s ingredient.

And atop it, there was—

Woo Hyeok.

A force pierced my heart. An object resonating with Demon Energy approached.

It was Demon Stone.

A vividly red Demon Stone, to be precise.

The Poison King clutched the stone and picked up a tool.

“Whew!”

Crrrrk—!!

With a powerful force, the Poison King crushed the stone into the tool.

Immediately, the powder from the stone lightly settled onto the dough, and right afterward, he began kneading the dough.

In that moment.

Chiiiiiing-!

“What?”

The color of the dough altered drastically as the powder mixed in, and soon turned foul once again.

It was clear evidence that it was rotting in real-time.

 

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