Chapter 9
Chapter 9
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: They Became Obsessed After I Fed Them Poison
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Dang Ha-ryeong had mentioned that all sorts of rumors circulated about Blood Gate Mountain.
That guy must have played a pretty big part in spreading them.
The Human-Faced Spider never lets humans who invade its habitat leave alive.
So why hadn't the Human-Faced Spider attacked him?
The reason was simple.
The Human-Faced Spider was the creature the old man had raised with utmost care since it was young.
Thanks to that, Lee Seon had built a rapport with it from childhood as well.
It had been captured in the Southern Barbarian lands, hadn't it?
It had been so finicky to raise that most died off, leaving this one as the sole survivor to this day.
There had originally been a healthy male specimen too, but one day it vanished.
Turned out it had devoured its own mate to replenish its energy after breeding.
The Human-Faced Spider, affectionately nicknamed Pearl, was the queen who commanded every spider in the area.
It possessed intelligence enough to understand human speech.
A colossal body brimming with monstrous strength.
And with its potent venom to boot, even the most renowned martial artists were reduced to mere prey before the Human-Faced Spider.
It wasn't for nothing that the old man and he had set up barriers throughout the forest to deter intruders.
Not to keep people away, but to prevent mishaps where the Human-Faced Spider attacked them.
Come to think of it, it had been ages since he'd last seen the Human-Faced Spider devouring people like this.
Lee Seon quietly murmured his thoughts amid the scene unfolding before him.
"Brutal."
A black wave of spiders surged over the bandits.
Torches began extinguishing one by one.
As the bandits fell, the darkness thickened.
"I'll kill you all! I'll tear you limb from limb!"
Ho Myeong bellowed, his eyes bloodshot.
Sorry, but that's not happening.
The Human-Faced Spider was a spirit beast of such overwhelming power that not even a peak realm expert could slay it.
It was far beyond what some no-name bandit stronghold could handle.
"Pearl. Don't toy with him. Finish it quickly. It's noisy."
As if understanding Lee Seon's words, the Human-Faced Spider plunged its fangs straight into Ho Myeong's neck.
Ho Myeong shuddered violently before stiffening up on his feet.
With a massive dose of paralyzing venom injected, his heart would stop beating in no time.
As Lee Seon turned to leave,
Keeeeeek!
The Human-Faced Spider let out a shriek.
This was the cry it made when it sensed fear.
But what could possibly frighten the Human-Faced Spider amid these bandits?
Sensing something amiss, Lee Seon whirled around.
A man stood beside Ho Myeong.
He wore pristine white robes embroidered with red threads.
What stood out was his eerily pale skin.
He hadn't even noticed the man's presence until he'd come this close.
His senses belatedly screamed in alarm.
Lee Seon broke out in cold sweat.
Things were taking a strange turn.
"Who are you?"
From the man's aura and presence alone, it was clear he wasn't anyone good.
Even from this distance, an acrid stench of blood wafted off him.
How many people had this guy killed?
Ho Myeong gaped at the man.
He's here!
Tears welled up in his eyes.
He was overjoyed that the man had arrived just as he was about to become spider food.
"You've done well."
But the man dashed his hopes in an instant.
Pukeok!
The man's hand pierced straight through Ho Myeong's chest.
"Guh... guhuk."
Why?
"You're no longer of any use."
When the man withdrew his arm, he held a still-beating heart in his grip.
With its heart ripped out, Ho Myeong's body shriveled up as if all moisture had been drained from it.
"At least this heart was useful."
He greedily shoved the dark crimson organ into his mouth.
Crunch crunch.
His red eyes gleamed demonically even in the darkness.
Keeeik...
Pearl bristled its hairs under his chilling gaze.
"Staring so brazenly at someone else's meal isn't polite."
The man wiped the blood from his lips with his stained white sleeve.
"...Should I show manners to a monster that rips out and eats a living person's heart?"
"Monster? That's hurtful."
The man bared his teeth in a grin.
"Quite the spectacle. A human commanding the Human-Faced Spider."
Keeeeik!
Commanding? Don't upset our Pearl like that.
Lee Seon didn't move rashly.
No matter how ignorant he was of the outside world,
he knew that martial arts ruthless enough to rip out hearts weren't common.
Unorthodox sects, or perhaps the demonic cults.
But it leaned more toward demonic cult than unorthodox.
Even unorthodox sects that took in bandits had their own massive forces rivaling the orthodox ones.
They wouldn't tolerate a murderer who casually disposed of living people.
'No vital energy left at all.'
A living person just moments ago had turned into a dried husk in an instant.
Judging by the method, it didn't seem unorthodox.
From the domineering aura pouring off the man, the answer was clear.
"Demonic cult?"
"No."
The man wagged a finger.
"Then what? What kind of cult permits murder? Tell me its name."
"I am Wi Yu-gi of the Blood Cult."
Blood Cult. He'd heard of it.
The jianghu was full of lunatics.
And regardless of orthodox, unorthodox, or demonic, deranged organizations popped up now and then.
The Blood Cult was one of them.
"In the past, the martial world called me the Blood Bird Hand."
With a moniker like that, he must have been a notorious demonic figure back in the day.
The Blood Cult were utter scum, treating human lives like those of flies.
A gathering of monsters who gained power by shedding their humanity—that was the Blood Cult.
I might die today.
Cold sweat trickled down his back before he knew it.
In terms of sheer might, no one disputed that the Demonic Cult was the greatest threat in the Central Plains.
But if the Demonic Cult boasted overwhelming power, the Blood Cult embodied utter depravity and cruelty.
In the martial world, the Blood Cult was synonymous with terror.
They slaughtered indiscriminately—civilians, martial artists, anything with a pulse. That brutality was their very identity.
Yet as Lee Seon braced for battle, the Blood Bird Hand, Wi Yu-gi, couldn't hide his intrigue.
"Aren't you afraid of me?"
"Maybe back when the Blood Cult was the epitome of fear, but now? Who knows."
Twitch.
A vein bulged on Wi Yu-gi's forehead.
True to his words, the once-mighty Blood Cult had ultimately fallen to the alliance of orthodox and unorthodox forces.
"You sure run your mouth for a brat with a hole in your head."
His hands turned red, as if gloved in crimson.
His energy had visibly materialized to the naked eye.
...Hand Gang?
A cheat-like power that those who hadn't reached the same realm couldn't even clash against.
The majesty of Gang Qi, displayable only by those who had fully established themselves as true martial artists.
Its might could shred sword auras and cleave iron horses with ease—utterly terrifying.
"...This is a mountain of hurdles."
Just knowing he was Blood Cult remnants was daunting enough.
If the enemy had reached the pinnacle realm, victory was a long shot.
'I've still got something to rely on.'
He had no intention of clashing head-on.
But he wasn't alone here.
Our Pearl.
Scientific name: Human-Faced Spider.
Known to the world as the king of venomous creatures.
No pinnacle martial artist could tank its attacks barehanded.
Conversely, Pearl's hide couldn't withstand Hand Gang either.
But if he supported from the side, the enemy couldn't unleash attacks freely.
"Pearl. Let's fight well together."
He offered warm words to kindle their shared resolve.
"......"
No response came.
"...Pearl? No way, right?"
With a bad feeling, he glanced back.
Nah, no chance.
Our Pearl wouldn't abandon me and flee.
But the spiders that had filled the area were gone.
Even the massive queen spider had vanished.
It was the kind of situation that made him want to curse.
"Damn it."
"Spiders are smarter than humans, it seems."
Wi Yu-gi chuckled.
"Ready to pay for flapping your mouth?"
Wi Yu-gi approached slowly before halting after a few steps.
"...!"
His red pupils dilated as he swiftly put distance between them.
He tore at his clothes to cover his mouth and nose.
'Overly sensitive for no reason.'
Lee Seon clicked his tongue at the sight.
The aggressive momentum had fizzled, but this wasn't enough.
"What's wrong all of a sudden? Weren't you going to make me pay?"
"...When did you disperse the poison?"
"Who knows."
Truth be told, Lee Seon hadn't spread any poison.
This was the Human-Faced Spider's habitat.
From the thin threads riding the wind to the scattering fine hairs.
There was hardly a spot free of venom.
Its toxicity paled compared to direct injection, but prolonged exposure would let the poison seep in bit by bit.
Of course, it had no effect on Lee Seon.
Wi Yu-gi glared with blazing eyes.
"If you thought this paltry amount could stop me, you're mistaken."
Of course it couldn't stop a fiend like him.
But then why had he distanced himself?
The higher the realm, the sharper the senses, making it hard to poison experts.
But once poisoned, even experts could only delay the spread at best.
"Don't think those rag scraps will block my poison."
Realm or whatever.
Before poison, all were equal.