Episode 291. Centipede Gate (2)

Originally, the plan had been to stay at Centipede Gate. Even if they gave up on acquiring the Seven-Flame Five Poisons, it seemed like they could at least establish a relationship with the Beast Palace Lord if they played their cards right.

If they stayed like a guest and helped take care of urgent matters, it would be hard for the other side to refuse any requests.

That had been the plan.

But the building was far too small, and there simply weren’t any rooms to offer to guests. So they decided to stay at a nearby inn instead.

They had somewhat expected it after seeing the small vegetable garden in the corner of the training grounds, but they hadn’t expected it to this extent.

Some of the disciples had said they’d be fine sleeping in the hallway with just a blanket, but honestly, as a guest, they couldn’t just kick out the host.

While looking around the inn room—which looked far better than the Centipede Gate Lord’s office—a deep sigh escaped.

“Hoo.”

“Oh my? Are you worried about something, Brother Cheon?”

Tang Sowol tilted her head, looking satisfied as she held seven small vials, each a different color.

Perhaps it meant she now truly was part of the Tang Clan. There was something strangely touching in how she looked at him before absorbing the poison she’d been eagerly expecting.

With a small chuckle, he nodded.

“It’s not really a worry. I was just thinking about Centipede Gate and its Lord. Just in case you’re wondering, it’s only a concern for the future.”

“I understand. Actually, I’ve been having similar thoughts. After seeing what we did, how could we not think anything?”

“Fair enough. I suppose that makes sense.”

“I just came up with an idea. Would you like to hear it?”

“Now? I’m curious.”

“Hehe.”

With a sly grin, Tang Sowol placed the poison-filled vials down on the nearby desk, then continued speaking.

“It’s a thought I had after seeing the Centipede Gate Lord. Wouldn’t it be fun if we both shared what came to mind and saw if they matched?”

“What if we had the same idea?”

“Then we should act on it without hesitation.”

They exchanged glances for a moment. Then, without anyone prompting them, they both opened their mouths at the same time—

“She definitely seems to have talent.”

“She seemed to have talent.”

Their responses overlapped. At that, the smiles on both their faces deepened.

“How about sending her to the Black Lotus Sect?”

“What if we introduced her to the Murim Alliance?”

Completely diverging follow-up statements.

A brief awkward silence followed, though it didn’t last long.

“The Black Lotus Sect?! She’s a kid who’s drawn her own line, even when no one else set one for her, and tries to uphold it no matter how hard it is! How could you say something so harsh?!”

“You saw the look in the Centipede Gate Lord’s eyes too, Tang Sowol. She might not fall into demonic arts since her hatred hasn’t taken over, but she’s someone who lives with a shadow over her life. And if someone must live in the shadows, then they should learn how to survive there.”

“No, no. If someone’s life is filled with shadows, if they’re already living in darkness, then they must reach toward the sunlight even more. To never back down, to never compromise—that’s the very spirit of the Orthodox sects.”

“To never back down and never compromise… Yes, that does suit the Orthodox path. It’s precisely because there are people who can uphold that spirit that we call them Orthodox… But the most important thing is how one arrived at that conclusion.”

“How? Isn’t it realizing that what they’ve been doing until now was wrong, and deciding to become a better person from now on?”

“And what do you think was that wrongdoing? That he did bad things? Hmm. I don’t think so. What the Centipede Gate Lord calls a mistake is that she kept being swayed by others and made choices she didn’t want to make. It’s the misery of not even being able to live her own life.”

“Kh… Even if what you say is true, the life she chose for himself aligns with the values of the Orthodox path, doesn’t it?”

“That’s right. Not harming others recklessly, working honestly to feed oneself even when hungry, and protecting the people precious to her to the end. Even without some grand cause, that alone is enough to be called Orthodox. And that’s the problem.”

“Huh? How is that a problem?”

“Just as you said, if she joins the Murim Alliance, her life will improve. And maybe one day Centipede Gate will become a firm pillar of the Orthodox sects. But she’s someone who’s lived all her life by other people’s words. One day, she’ll begin to question.”

“Question what?”

“Whether her decisions truly came from her own will, or whether they were forced out of her by the unspoken pressure of ‘what the Orthodox should be.’”

“That’s…”

“Someone who’s looked into the depths of their soul becomes stronger. And someone who chooses to bear others’ burdens also becomes strong. The Centipede Gate Lord fits both. That’s why I said she has talent.”

“So that’s why you suggested the Black Lotus Sect?”

“Yes. While Thousand Poison Gate and Beast Palace lean more toward the Unorthodox than the Orthodox, the loosely connected structure of the Black Lotus Sect is also a big reason.”

Unlike the Murim Alliance, which would swarm to any incident and had rather strict rules, the Black Lotus Sect was more of a laissez-faire group.

You were free to do whatever you wanted, but you were responsible for most of it yourself. However, in certain situations—such as when a sect faced destruction or in disputes over territory—they would receive help from or be summoned by the Black Lotus Sect.

After listening to all this, Tang Sowol fell into thought, then let out a deep sigh.

“Phew… Still, if I had to connect him to somewhere, I think the Murim Alliance would be better.”

“Why?”

“They all gathered under the name of Centipede Gate because they wanted to live better lives. It’s good to find their own way, but if they don’t even know how, I think it’s fine to learn from someone else. Wasn’t it the same for you too, Brother Cheon?”

This time, it was my turn to fall silent.

She hadn’t reached the conclusion of regression yet, but hadn’t she already combed through his memories once using the technique?

That meant Tang Sowol wasn’t just speaking abstractly—she was referring to how he had changed after meeting Seol Lihyang in his previous life.

In truth, he had changed significantly between his time before joining Ironblood Hall and after.

He had learned how to live from Seorin, and how to love from Seol Lihyang.

Though they had all met in the Black Lotus Sect, that was merely the result of their fates being twisted.

If they had met in the Murim Alliance, perhaps things would have turned out better.

Because he knew this all too well as someone who had experienced it firsthand, his confidence in his own judgment faltered.

As he sat there, Seol Lihyang, having unpacked and changed into something comfortable, shook her head.

“What’s the point of you and Sister Tang going on and on when the person in question isn’t even here? You can make suggestions, sure, but it’s their decision in the end.”

“You’re right, Seol Lihyang. But just to be clear, this isn’t just out of pity.”

“Oh? It’s not? I thought it was about helping a poor, ill-fated young head of household.”

He did have such a thought, but at the root of it was a plan to use that as leverage to gain favor in their meeting with the Beast Palace Lord.

“You said that’d be difficult, didn’t you?”

“Well, if we want to continue making a living in Yunnan, we’ll have to be mindful of the Beast Palace, who are essentially the overlords of this region. If we were planning to leave Yunnan altogether, we could afford to be shameless once.”

“So that’s what it’s about?”

“If we can present the Centipede Gate Lord and his people with a clearly better future, I’m sure he’ll help.”

“Then… couldn’t the Tang Clan just take them in? Like you did with me?”

“Hm?”

The Tang Clan had grown a lot recently, but in the end, it was still just one family.

Even if it was the greatest individual force in the world, compared to alliances like the Murim Alliance or the Black Lotus Sect, it was still lacking in many ways.

More importantly, Centipede Gate, even if small, was still a legitimate sect. Being absorbed into the Tang Clan would be far too humiliating.

“I never considered that option seriously, because I thought they’d obviously refuse…”

“Well, that’s something we’d have to ask them directly, isn’t it? If Centipede Gate agrees, then it’s doable, isn’t it?”

“It’s not so simple. Even if we’d be fine with it after seeing them for ourselves, there are many elders in the Tang Clan who would reject them just because Centipede Gate is made up of survivors from Thousand Poison Gate. Don’t forget what the former Thousand Poison Gate Master, the Poison Demon, did to my mother…”

“Ah. I hadn’t considered that, Sister Tang. But I don’t think persuading them would be too hard.”

Having said that, Seorin shrugged and pointed at herself as she rolled around on the bed.

“Weren’t you the infamous White-Haired Rakshasa of the Unorthodox? Things are fine now, but I heard there used to be a lot of gossip even within the Tang Clan.”

“Infamous…?”

She used one pillow for her head, hugged another, and stuffed the third between her legs, selfishly monopolizing all three pillows—showing the ruthless side of Seorin.

She truly had been a fearsome demonic figure.

“Besides, Sister Seorin herself is at the Flowering Stage. She’s got more pride than most middling sects.”

“Pride?”

Seorin, having found the most comfortable position, used her high-level skill of Object-Grasping Through Empty Air to sneak snacks from his bundle.

If she used her willpower even for something as trivial as stealing snacks, she really did have an extraordinary pride as a martial artist.

Yes, extraordinary indeed…

He turned to Tang Sowol, who was staring blankly at Seorin.

“How about we suggest all three options and see what he says?”

“Yes. That sounds good. If he chooses the Tang Clan, leave the persuasion to me. With the Seven-Flame Five Poisons in hand, I’ll figure something out.”

Grateful for the peace in their group (family?) once again preserved by Seorin, though only briefly—

Tang Sowol smiled sweetly, picked up one of the poison vials she had set aside, and said cheerfully:

“Well, now that our talk is over, shall we drink some poison?!”

“You seem awfully excited.”

“Well, the Seven-Flame Five Poisons are rare to begin with, but they’re also nearly impossible to get these days!”

“But once you absorb them, you can use the power of the Poison Spirit Constitution to call upon them again, right?”

“Correct! They say the true value of the Seven-Flame Five Poisons shines when mixed with other poisons… I’m already excited thinking about which ones to combine!”

With a rare wicked grin, Tang Sowol began drinking the poisons from the vials one by one.

After drinking all seven, she sat cross-legged and began concentrating to absorb them.

Poison energy rose around her closed eyes.

It shifted through gray, purple, blue, red, black, and so on—changing and mixing over and over.

This was likely due to the reactive nature of the Seven-Flame Five Poisons with other toxins.

Most would panic at the unpredictable transformations, but Tang Sowol had learned the Ten Thousand Orgin Poison Divine Art, a skill that allowed her to masterfully control all forms of poison, no matter how different.

As time passed, the poison mist swirling around her gradually unified into a deep green hue.

When the last trace had finally turned green, the poison energy suddenly got sucked into her body.

With a final deep breath, Tang Sowol opened her eyes and said:

“Brother Cheon. While I was organizing the energy, I think I stumbled upon an incredible poison. One I think you’d especially like.”

“Hm? If I’d like it… is it something helpful in combat?”

“Hmm. In a way, it is helpful in battle.”

Tang Sowol cast a sly sidelong glance at Seorin, who was still rolling on the bed, and whispered quietly:

“It’s a poison that makes certain parts of a woman’s body grow. I don’t know how effective it is though.”

“…What.”

So Plump Jade Pill really did exist after all.

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