Chapter 482: Damned Bastard (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 482: Damned Bastard (6)
The first thing I did when Nahee woke was slap a Shackle on her.
She seemed disoriented at first, but the moment she noticed the Shackle, understanding dawned. She wasn’t a complete fool.
It was rather amusing to watch her piece it all together—why Tang Duk had sold her out, how I had managed to change bodies. Was it despair she felt? She was certainly teetering on the brink.
Watching someone crumble completely stirred a strange mix of emotions within me.
Not that it matters.
I felt no sympathy for her. If I were capable of such an emotion, I would have felt it long ago.
I walked over to Nahee, who was barely conscious, grabbed a fistful of her hair, and pulled her head back. "I have some business to take care of."
"…"
Her eyes, newly transformed into those of a Demonic Human, were filled with pure terror. A flicker of pity stirred in me, but I quickly smothered it. I had no use for such weaknesses.
Instead, I smiled down at her. "You," I began, my voice deceptively light. "Do you want revenge?"
Her expression shifted instantly. Good. I had questions for her, and a task she was uniquely suited to perform.
With Nahee leading the way, my first destination was obvious: the Lord’s chambers. I needed to inform the Poison King about the lake incident, and check on a few things beforehand.
Swoosh-!
The situation turned violent almost immediately. An immense, crushing force filled the spacious room. The Poison King’s fury was palpable, his fierce Qi saturating the air.
"What did you just say?" he demanded, his face a mask of pure rage. His Qi was so potent it felt like my skin was burning. The Poison King might have fallen behind the other Lords of the Four Noble Clans, but he was still a force to be reckoned with.
Yet, strangely, I felt no urge to retract my words. Perhaps it was my own unnatural calm. "This will be the third time I’ve repeated myself. Would you really like me to?"
His Qi flared even brighter. "You are crossing a line, Lesser King of Hell. I am aware of your talent, but I didn't take you for a fool."
Clang-!
The teacup in front of him shattered into pieces. I protected my own cup with a flick of Qi; I hadn't finished my tea. I took a deliberate sip before addressing the seething Lord. "How about you calm down and hear the rest of what I have to say?"
"Calm down? Did you really just say that?" His anger was understandable. Some outsider, a kid no less, had come to his clan and demanded the right to execute all its Elders. How could any Lord remain calm?
While I understood his position, I observed the subtle movements of his body.
I smell blood.
Outwardly, he seemed normal, but my senses caught a faint, particular scent I knew all too well.
Did he just come from a torture session?
It seemed the Poison King had rushed here directly after interrogating someone. The prisoners brought here… presumably…
The Black Dragon Army?
Hmm.
A thought occurred to me. Even in a hurry, a martial artist of his caliber should have erased all traces. Yet, I could detect the lingering scent of blood and poison.
My senses have evolved. They were sharper than ever before.
How unfortunate. I wished I'd had more time to study the changes in my body. But circumstances had forced my hand.
"You damaged my clan's treasure," the Poison King snarled, "so I expected an apology, not this absurd request. Am I wrong?"
This is a bit frustrating. Damaged? The lake hadn't just been damaged; it had vanished completely. But its disappearance wasn't truly my fault. Technically, the clan's ancestor, Tang Jaemoon, was responsible.
Yet I'm the one being suspected. That was what annoyed me.
"Damage?" I frowned back at him. "I'm sure you've heard the full account. This is a problem for me as well."
I had a reason for being so blatant. "I truly did nothing."
The Poison King must have heard from Nahee, the witness. We arrived, and the lake simply drained away.
"Hah." The Poison King let out a scornful laugh. "And you expect me to believe that?"
I responded with a smile. "Then what? Is it more believable to say I randomly drained the lake?"
"…"
"Are you suggesting I drank the whole thing?"
My slightly annoyed tone seemed to shake him. There was no way he could believe I'd consumed an entire lake. The very idea was unbelievable.
Even I don't understand where all that water went. It was a mystery, along with the fate of all the poison it contained. Questions for another time. Right now, I had an argument to win.
"What am I supposed to do when you suspect me of something I didn't do?"
Crack.
The Poison King clenched his fist. Was he regretting sending me to the lake with only Nahee as a minder? I'd wondered about his lax security at the time, but the traces on him now suggested an answer.
I knew he seemed busy. It appeared he'd begun torturing the Black Dragon Army prisoners the moment they arrived. He couldn't have done it alone; there were many prisoners. Or perhaps they were trying to extract something specific from them?
Knowing what I did of the Tang Clan's history, I doubted they were entirely clean. But then, I was already well aware that no clan in the Orthodox Faction was free of sin.
"You should have come to check yourself if you found me so suspicious," I said, hitting a nerve. "Then everything would have been resolved."
Whether he was busy or simply didn't trust me enough, the fault ultimately lay with him.
There is no proof I was responsible. Even the witness confirmed it. Pushing this suspicion would only damage our relationship. That's precisely why I was being so direct.
"In the first place," the Poison King countered, his voice low and dangerous, "why did you want to see the lake?"
This was the core of his suspicion. My lack of a compelling reason.
"I was simply curious."
"You know that's not a good enough reason."
"Then are you asking me to invent a reason after the fact?"
"If you can, then do so."
Creak.
The Poison King leaned forward, bringing himself to my eye level. "Even if I'm being unreasonable, even without evidence, this is still the Tang Clan, Lesser King of Hell."
The pressure from his gaze was sharp enough to cut. He was blatantly threatening me, implying he could dispose of me without justification if I displeased him.
However.
Slide-
I didn't back down. I met his gaze with a smile. "You are right. This is indeed the Tang Clan." One of the Four Noble Clans, pinnacle of the poison arts.
"And," I continued, my voice dropping, "an incompetent clan, failing to realize it is rotting from within."
The Poison King's hand shot out towards my throat.
Kwak-
"!"
I intercepted his strike, my own hand closing around his wrist. His eyes widened in shock. He hadn't expected me to stop him. Frankly, I was a little surprised myself.
Huh… I was able to react. Not only did I see his movement, I blocked it. Was this the power of the perfected Fusion Realm? Though I felt slightly sluggish, likely due to the Qi drain from maintaining the Qi Body Transformation Technique. I'd forced my body smaller, handicapping myself.
A pointless thought crossed my mind: what if I stopped using the technique and fought seriously? Could I win against the Poison King?
Not now.
I was curious about my new limits, but this wasn't the time. I released his arm slightly. "I apologize for my words just now. I crossed the line."
"…Lesser King of Hell." His anger was undiminished. It was understandable. A young upstart had just insulted his entire clan, claiming it was rotting.
But I couldn't think of a more accurate description. The Tang Clan was rotting from the roots. Perhaps because it was a clan of poison, I could almost smell the decay, a stark contrast to the pure aura I'd sensed from their ancestor.
The Poison King was still reeling from the fact that I'd stopped his attack. Seizing the moment, I asked the question I'd been meaning to. "My Lord, are you aware of… the Celestial Martial Body Plan?"
"…!"
His pupils dilated violently. His reaction confirmed my suspicions.
"…How do you…" he began, but I pressed on.
"Furthermore, are you aware… that it is still happening behind the scenes?"
"How absurd…!!"
Clang-!
The Poison King shot to his feet, overturning the table and shattering the teacups. "First you insult my clan, now you spread vile lies! What is your reason?!"
Killing intent now poured from him, thick and heavy.
I pondered. Was this reaction genuine? Was he truly unaware?
Not yet. It was too early to tell. For now, I had to focus on what Tang Jaemoon had revealed.
"My Lord." The Poison King glared, poised to strike if my next words weren't satisfactory. The room was saturated with his intent to kill. Under the immense pressure, I slowly rose to my feet.
"Shouting in anger won't change what I asked you initially." My request—no, my statement—that I would kill the Tang Clan's Elders. It had sounded like a request for permission, but that was never the case.
"It's one of the reasons I came to Sichuan, to the Tang Clan specifically." That was a lie. I'd really come for the secret vault. But I made it sound like the truth.
This was also Tang Jaemoon's wish. Before I left the vault, she had made a request. Because of it, I had told the Poison King I would kill all the Elders.
Told. Yes, that was the key word.
"I wasn't asking for your permission."
"…What?"
"It's a deal, of sorts. I'm offering to help you."
"Lesser King of Hell. You seem unaware of the patience I'm exercising by not killing you where you stand. Do you have a death wish?"
"Why such anger when I'm offering to help you cut away the rot infesting your clan?"
"You little brat…!"
Just as the Poison King was about to lash out again, unable to contain his rage,
Tap.
I tossed a small object onto the floor between us. It was a light green orb, glowing with a soft, pretty radiance.
"…!"
The Poison King froze solid, his eyes locked on the object. Thankfully, he recognized it immediately. It was surprising; this medicine had been lost for centuries, yet he knew it at a glance. Perhaps it was a bloodline instinct.
"This is…" he whispered, his voice hoarse.
"The Heavenly Poison Orb."
The moment the name left my lips, his pupils shook uncontrollably. Nine out of ten members of the Tang Clan would name this as their greatest lost treasure. It far surpassed any medicinal treasure Shaolin possessed. It could grant poison immunity to even the most vulnerable and vastly empower those who practiced poison arts.
The legendary orb, lost for centuries, now lay before the Lord of the Tang Clan.
He forgot his anger completely, staring at me as if bewitched. "This… how…?"
"Let's sit down first," I said, gently pushing the orb closer to him with my foot, a smile playing on my lips. "Now, can you listen to what I have to say?"
"…"
"I'll tell you about the Heavenly Poison Orbs as well."
I wasn't worried about his reaction. No matter how rude I had been, the sight of this orb left him with no choice.
As I expected,
Swish-
The Poison King sat back down. I allowed myself a small, internal sigh of relief.