The Five Poisons 1
“A Human-faced Spider! You said you were only going out to fetch food for the lizards—how in the world did you come back with a Human-faced Spider!? And for a creature as vicious as that to be this tame!”
“Son-in-law, where on earth did you catch a Human-faced Spider!? And what’s more, the spider has taken on Hwa-eun’s appearance! How is this even possible?”
“My goodness! So this is a Human-faced Spider! She looks exactly like Hwa-eun.”
Those were the startled voices of Grandfather Man Dok Shin Gun, my father-in-law, and my mother-in-law the moment they laid eyes on Yo-hwa. Behind them, the rest of the Tang family crowded in and nodded vigorously in agreement with the three elders. Every time their son-in-law stepped out and returned, the household’s collection of venomous creatures only grew—how could they not be astonished?
My shoulders were already puffed up high with pride. Balancing arrogance and humility in a single strange emotion, I answered with a look that said it was nothing special.
“Well… one thing led to another.”
The unspoken meaning was clear: I just picked her up on the road, or This is simply the level I’m at.
Apparently, bringing home one of the Ten Great Venomous Creatures—a Human-faced Spider—earned a man the right to a little swagger. The elders nodded with thoroughly pleased expressions.
“That’s right. If you’ve caught a Human-faced Spider, a man is allowed to throw his shoulders back like that. Hahaha!”
“You’ve worked hard, So-ryong.”
In that warm, lively atmosphere we headed toward the private courtyard used by the direct bloodline of the Tang family. Walking at my side, my elder sister-in-law carefully addressed the adults.
“Father… from what I know, a Human-faced Spider only has a human face. Why does this child have a full human body as well? At first I wasn’t even sure whether she truly was a Human-faced Spider.”
The name “Human-faced Spider” literally meant a spider with a human face, yet just as she said, our Yo-hwa possessed an entire human torso. To call her accurately one would have to say “Human-bodied Spider” or “Human-form Spider.” My sister-in-law had confessed that this was why she had remained so cautious even after I obtained one of the Ten Great Venomous Creatures. I was curious myself, so I waited for my father-in-law’s answer.
He smiled.
“It seems you’ve been so buried in martial manuals that you never properly read the Secret Record of All Venomous Creatures Under Heaven. It’s because this child is a female. What you know of, Hwa-eun, is the male. Females are far rarer than males, which is why the species is simply called Human-faced Spider. Both are the same creature. You could say he brought home the more precious of the two.”
“I see. Then Yo-hwa isn’t merely mimicking a woman’s form—she really is female?”
My sister-in-law was only learning this now, but I had already known Yo-hwa was female. I had confirmed it by examining her pedipalps.
There had been two reasons for that inspection: curiosity about her mimicry ability, and curiosity about her sex. I could understand her transforming into my sister-in-law’s likeness after consuming my yang energy, yet the way she perfectly reproduced even the mole on Namgang Seol’s chest—details no one else had ever seen—defied explanation. If the mimicry relied solely on the memories of the man whose yang energy she had absorbed, perfect replication of such intimate features should have been impossible.
When I checked her pedipalps, the parts I myself did not know were indeed incomplete. I asked her why. Instead of answering, she secretly gathered and ate strands of my sister-in-law’s hair. After that, her mimicry became flawless. Only then did the mystery resolve itself: she had once picked up and consumed hair that had fallen while Namgang Seol was training. Yang energy allowed her to take the form of whoever the donor found beautiful, but perfect mimicry required hair.
And so I also confirmed her sex. Male spiders uniquely develop their reproductive organs on the pedipalps—the sensory legs. If the pedipalps bear genitalia, the spider is male; if not, female. Yo-hwa’s pedipalps mimicked a human upper body yet possessed no genitalia, so she was naturally female. Besides, female spiders are normally far larger than males. Had Yo-hwa been male, the true female would have been enormous beyond all reason.
My sister-in-law’s expression finally cleared. Having explained Yo-hwa’s nature, my father-in-law clapped my shoulder and laughed.
“Hahaha! Then you are now completely our son-in-law, aren’t you?”
“Oh my, now that you mention it—yes. The promise between the two of you has been fulfilled, hasn’t it?”
“H-how did you—!?”
Their faces and answers made it plain they already knew about the bargain my sister-in-law and I had struck. My eyes flew wide. Father-in-law only smiled again.
“What does that matter? What matters is that you are truly family now.”
I turned my head. My sister-in-law was deliberately avoiding my gaze, cheeks flushed pink as she pretended to study the moon.
I had fretted endlessly over how to handle the matter, but it seemed she had already told the entire family about our deal.
Then Grandfather spoke.
“Keh-keh. In that case, So-ryong, starting tomorrow you will go down to the river and catch a live wild goose.”
A live wild goose, out of nowhere. I blinked in confusion. Grandfather’s voice was still full of laughter.
“You little rascal. For the betrothal ceremony you have to prepare the goose yourself, don’t you? We can’t hold the full wedding yet because you’re still underage, but we can certainly hold the betrothal.”
“Son-in-law, a betrothal ceremony is the rite in which, before many witnesses, you swear that a formal wedding will one day take place. And the reason you must catch a goose is…”
After Mother-in-law’s explanation, everything made sense. Grandfather Man Dok Shin Gun had demanded a live goose because of its symbolism. Geese mate for life; therefore a goose is an indispensable bridal gift at a betrothal. As migratory birds that fly north in spring and return in autumn, they are also regarded as creatures that understand the harmony of yin and yang—another reason they are essential to the ceremony.
Father-in-law’s mischievous voice followed.
“Once the betrothal is done, even if you someday grow tired of our Hwa-eun, you won’t be able to run away.”
In short, my engagement ceremony was about to take place. I felt the last possible escape route slam shut; I was now irrevocably the son-in-law of the Sichuan Tang family.
Yo-hwa seemed particularly fond of the great tree planted by the well in the middle of Tang Family Village, deep inside Tang Family Mountain. I had been wondering where to make her a home; the moment I told her this mountain would be hers from now on, she raced straight toward the distant well. She climbed up and down the massive tree several times, then settled herself high in its branches.
I had assumed that, large as she was and sedentary by nature, she lived on the ground like a trapdoor spider. Apparently she had simply never found a tree she liked before. She immediately began weaving a web-house among the branches—not the familiar open orb, but something more like a cocoon.
“You like it here?”
—Kishi!
Yo-hwa nodded.
“I’ll show you where I sleep. Come with me for now.”
I led her to my quarters, pointed out the location, and told her to come find me whenever she was hungry. She then fastened a thread so fine it was nearly invisible to the window frame of my room.
“What’s this for, Yo-hwa?”
—Kishit!
When I asked what the thread meant, she plucked it with one of her legs.
“If I pluck it, you’ll come?”
I asked whether my guess was right. She nodded. Yo-hwa really was clever in every way.
With her home decided, only the lizards remained. They could not be left in the Poisonous Creature Garden or the venomous-beast hall, so for the time being I settled them in my own room. They were far too puppy-like to keep anywhere else.
Only after every new family member had a place to stay did I finally manage to wash and fall asleep.
The betrothal ceremony itself was nothing elaborate—aside from the fact that, after I failed for two whole days to catch a live goose, Yo-hwa secretly caught one for me at night.
It was a simple rite: the family elders gathered, and before them I presented the betrothal gifts while swearing the marriage vow to my sister-in-law. Preparing those gifts, however, caused a small stir.
There were three gifts: a goose, a letter written in my own hand, and a personal token of my choosing. The goose was ready and the letter was quickly composed; the problem was the final gift. I had intended to offer the ornamental knot pendant Namgang Seol had given me as payment, but my sister-in-law suddenly suggested, to my utter shock, that I use the lizards instead.
“So-ryong… about the gift. Would the lizards be all right?”
I had known she was eyeing them hungrily, yet I never expected her to say it so openly. It felt like a blow to the back of the head. I spun my thoughts at lightning speed and answered carefully. Refusing when the subject was a betrothal gift would only give her endless future leverage.
“Hwa-eun, betrothal gifts are supposed to be things that never change. The goose symbolizes that our bond will never change; the handwritten letter is a vow that it will never change. Naturally the third gift should also be something unchanging, like ice jade, shouldn’t it? And… once the betrothal is complete, everything that is mine becomes yours anyway, so…”
Her cheeks flushed scarlet. She turned her face away and answered in a trembling voice.
“I-is that so? Th-then I’ll follow So-ryong’s wishes.”
Nice! Well done, me!
Having successfully soothed her and fended off the lizard-napping attempt, we finished the betrothal ceremony. Immediately afterward, Father-in-law and Grandfather Man Dok Shin Gun summoned us both to the Family Head’s Hall. Some sort of congratulatory speech seemed forthcoming.
Once we stepped inside, the two of them spoke.
“We called you here because of So-ryong’s Great Law.”
“The Great Law?”
The word “law” made me tilt my head, wondering if it was something like registering a marriage with the authorities. My sister-in-law explained.
“It means learning the Tang Clan’s internal energy method and accepting poison into the body.”
“Ah—the process of taking in the Ten Poisons?”
“That’s right, So-ryong.”
Yes. Now that I had captured one of the Ten Great Venomous Creatures, it was time to incorporate its poison into my internal energy method. I nodded, and Grandfather continued.
“Catching a Human-faced Spider this time was truly excellent work. Among the Ten Great Venomous Creatures her poison is considered the mildest, which makes her ideal for the acceptance process. Had you brought something far more toxic, we would have had to dilute the poison and perform the Great Law several times over.”
Yo-hwa’s relatively weak venom would make the absorption easier. I almost felt as though Heaven itself was helping me.
“Hearing that, it really does sound fortunate. Shall we begin the Great Law at once, then?”
The Tang family seemed the impatient sort, so I asked whether we would start immediately. Both men shook their heads. Grandfather spoke again.
“Listen carefully, So-ryong. If you had not brought the Human-faced Spider, the Family Head and I had intended to make you a different proposal.”
“A different proposal?”
“Yes. While examining the venomous creatures you already keep and those you will bring in the future, we remembered something the clan had long forgotten.”
I looked to my sister-in-law for clarification, but her expression showed she was hearing this for the first time as well. Grandfather opened a book and asked,
“Do you know the precise meaning of the Five Poisons?”
He was asking whether I understood the Five Poisons—the same term that appeared in the Five-Poison Returning-Origin Art I practiced—yet I did not know the exact definition. My sister-in-law supplied it.
“So-ryong, the Five Poisons are the centipede, the snake, the scorpion, the lizard, and the toad—five kinds of venomous creatures.”
Centipede, snake, scorpion, lizard, and toad: those five were called the Five Poisons. Realizing that two of the creatures I already kept belonged to that list, I grew intensely curious about what their other proposal might have been.