Chapter 11
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 11
Chapter Title: Acquiring New Poisons
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In the mirror was a handsome man with lustrous black hair and skin as fair as white jade.
"How could I have changed this much in just one night?"
I had looked at my face in the mirror yesterday, but it was nothing compared to now.
"This is insane..."
I kept touching my face, checking if this was real. Maybe it was because I'd lost the fat in my cheeks and my skin had improved, but the harmony of my features was near perfect.
I was good-looking enough to walk into one of the top three entertainment agencies and be welcomed with open arms.
"Yuren, you should be grateful. I've turned you into the pinnacle of handsome men."
"Ahem..."
"Gasp!"
Arin had come in at some point and was staring at me with a blank expression.
"Uh, when did you get here?"
"I came in when you said you were the 'pinnacle of handsome men'."
"..."
My face burned with embarrassment, but I pretended nothing was wrong, stepped outside, and changed the subject.
"What happened to my room?"
"I don't know what on earth you did, but the smell was so awful that we had no choice but to throw out the clothes and the carpet."
"Oh? Good job."
I didn't even want to touch that stuff, so I was actually grateful she'd thrown it away.
"So, what exactly was that black liquid?"
"It came out while I was training in my room."
"What?"
Arin slowly turned her head to look at me.
"You're saying a black liquid came out while you were training?"
"Yeah. It came out of my whole body, like sweat."
"Don't tell me! Have you become an Aura user?"
"Of course not."
What Arin was talking about seemed to be the black sweat that comes out of the body when one becomes an Aura user.
"I suppose not. There was far more of it than the black sweat that came out when I became an Aura user. You were practically drenched."
That was probably because the old Yuren's body was so fat, and also because the effects of the internal art, Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi, were exceptional.
"Right. Besides, I don't even know how to use Aura."
"That's true. The Grand Prince has never learned about Aura. Then what on earth..."
"Don't worry. Something bad came out, so that's a good thing, right?"
"That may be so, but..."
Arin continued to look at me with suspicion. She wasn't an idiot, so she must have known I was hiding something, but she didn't press further.
"What are your plans for today?"
"I'm taking the day off."
"A wise decision. You haven't slept for three days straight, so it would be best to rest today."
"I will. You should rest today too. You haven't had a single day off for a month because of me."
"I'll bring you your meal first."
"Thanks."
Arin went to the kitchen, and I headed to my room.
The door and the windows inside were all wide open, and the carpet that had been touched by my bodily waste had been replaced.
"Thankfully, the smell has mostly faded."
It wasn't completely gone, but it was barely noticeable. A little more ventilation should do the trick.
"Anyway, I hope they weren't discovered."
I looked under the bed, and the poison herbs were still there.
"I need to deal with these right away. I have nowhere to put them. I should have just left them with Peru."
As I was looking at the herbs, I sensed the light footsteps of someone coming up the stairs. It was Arin's gait.
I pushed the herbs back under the bed and sat on the edge of it.
"Grand Prince. I've brought your meal."
"Just leave the dishes. I'm going to sleep now. You don't need to come back today."
"Understood."
Arin glanced around my room for a moment, then bowed her head and left.
"Well then..."
No one else would be coming. I decided to consume all the poisons.
Honestly, I wanted to eat them all yesterday, but I only ate the Hanyangcho because I thought I might die if I consumed them with a level one internal art. But now that I'd reached level two, I figured it would be difficult to absorb them, but I wouldn't die.
Crunch.
I ground the Yeokrokpa and Mukjakyeop into powder and sprinkled them over the Chirein soup Arin had brought.
"This seems like a truly insane idea. What if I don't wake up tomorrow?"
After grinding all the poisons into powder, the ratio of poison to soup was about half and half. A poisonous soup, so thick it was almost pasty, was complete.
A genuine poison soup containing two bundles' worth of poison...
With a trembling hand, I lifted a spoonful and swallowed.
"Keuk!"
The Yeokrokpa was ridiculously spicy, and the Mukjakyeop had a sweet taste. It was strange that something could be both spicy and sweet.
You have consumed Poison (Yeokrokpa).
Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi is absorbing Poison (Yeokrokpa).
The proficiency of Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi has increased.
Yeonjangdok () has been unlocked.
You can now use Yeonjangdok.
You have consumed Poison (Mukjakyeop).
Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi is absorbing Poison (Mukjakyeop).
Truth Serum () has been unlocked.
You can now use Truth Serum.
Salhonyeon () has been unlocked.
You can now use Salhonyeon.
Since I'd eaten two poison herbs at once, the message window was scrolling up so fast it was hard to read.
It seemed the poisons had been unlocked, but that wasn't what was important right now. If I didn't want to die, I had to circulate my internal art quickly.
.
The soup was incredibly spicy and sweet, but I endured it and swallowed everything.
I'm screwed. The toxicity is stronger than I thought.
My head grew fuzzy as if I'd taken a sleeping pill, and a pain like needles stabbing my stomach began to spread.
I collapsed to the floor and immediately circulated the Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi. With the Hanyangcho, it was to increase my internal energy; now, I had to absorb the poison herbs just to survive.
The toxic energy began to churn inside me like a raging wave. To control the massive surge of poison, I mobilized all the internal energy in my dantian to halt its movement.
It felt like I'd passed the first crisis. Now I had to circulate this toxic energy along with my internal energy and make it my own.
I sighed inwardly and began circulating the Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi. Terrible pain and strange hallucinations continued to wash over me, but I didn't stop the internal art.
Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi () has reached level 3.
It hadn't been long since I saw the message for reaching level 2, and now I'd reached level 3 in a single day.
"Haa..."
I released my cross-legged position and sprawled out on my back.
"That was insane. I almost died for real..."
Even if the poisons weren't highly toxic, eating such a large amount at once was no different from a suicide attempt.
If I had eaten them like this at level 1, I would have actually died.
I shook my head and tidied up the area. Outside the window, the sun had already set, and a thin moon hung high in the sky.
"It felt less like circulating an internal art and more like waging a war."
Feeling a sense of pride in my effort and achievement, I opened the Sichuan Tang Clan specialty tab.
I planned to check out the new poisons I'd acquired.
I immediately went to the Sichuan Tang Clan - Poisons category. Originally, I could only use Paralysis Poison, but now the number of available poisons had increased to four.
I read the description of the poison below Paralysis Poison.
Yeonjangdok () (Pain)
A poison that directly affects the body's internal organs. As the character 'Yeon' () implies, once it enters one organ, it spreads sequentially to all others. Those poisoned will feel the pain of hundreds of needles stabbing their organs.
The feeling of hundreds of needles stabbing my stomach... I just experienced that. It hurt like hell.
The confusion from the Mukjakyeop was hard to endure, but the pain from the Yeokrokpa was truly unbearable.
"Hmm, Truth Serum."
Truth Serum (Confusion)
A drug that breaks down a person's mental barriers, making it easier for them to tell the truth. It gradually diminishes the willpower and vitality of the one who ingests it, rendering them lethargic. Applying stress further increases the likelihood of confession.
"This is exactly the kind of truth serum I know. The kind you see in dramas and movies."
The description was very similar to real-world truth serums, but the difference was that this one was created with internal energy and had a proficiency level, meaning its effects would grow stronger the more I used it.
"The last one is Salhonyeon."
Salhonyeon (Confusion)
Creates a smoke that bewitches people. Those who inhale the smoke cannot distinguish between friend and foe. It makes them see everyone around them as the thing they fear most.
"Salhonyeon seems more dangerous than Yeonjangdok..."
Reading the description of Salhonyeon, it seemed like it would be incredibly effective in a war rather than in individual fights.
Even after reading the descriptions, I only had a rough idea. I felt I'd need to test them out to be able to control their power.
I got up from the floor and climbed onto the bed. The softness of the high-quality mattress, a feeling I hadn't enjoyed in a while, started to make my body feel languid.
My mind and body were both exhausted, so I decided to sleep for now and test them on 'them' tomorrow.
"Hoo... Time to sleep."
"Grand Prince. It is time to wake up."
Morning had come at some point, and Arin arrived with a basin of water for washing.
"It seems you rested well yesterday."
"I slept the whole time."
Arin nodded and went out to bring my meal.
My body felt lighter than ever. My mind, body, and internal energy were all in perfect condition.
A short while later, after I finished the soup Arin brought, she began preparing to head to the training grounds as if it were a matter of course.
"Arin."
"Yes."
I called out to Arin, who was gathering various things for training.
"It's the weekend today."
"Yes, that's right."
"So where do the knights train?"
"They leave Training Ground 1 and usually go to Training Ground 2 or 3 to train."
"Why not Training Ground 1?"
"Because training could be scheduled unexpectedly. For the knights, the weekend is not an unconditional holiday."
So there's no need to go to Training Ground 1. I'll have to choose between 2 and 3.
"Will Training Ground 2 be crowded right now?"
"Yes. The knights of House Lox strive to improve their skills, so many of them train even on weekends."
"And the third?"
"Not as many as the second, but it will be crowded there as well."
"Then let's go to Training Ground 3 today."
"Why the sudden decision to go to the third?"
Arin seemed puzzled by my words, tilting her head as she asked me.
"Hm? I just wanted to see the knights."
"Weren't you terrified because of how you used to act toward the knights?"
"Ugh."
As expected, Arin is sharp, contrary to her expression.
"Terrified? I don't do terrified."
I said, puffing out my chest confidently. Before, I was scared just as Arin said, but not anymore.
Arin seemed to be trying to figure out my intentions, lost in thought, but her hands never stopped packing.
"Then let's go to Training Ground 3."
"Alright."
Just as Arin had said, despite it being morning, many knights were training at Training Ground 3.
"Hmm..."
When I arrived, the gazes of the knights who were taking a break turned to me. They didn't seem to know who I was and started whispering among themselves.
"They don't seem to recognize you, Grand Prince."
"Well, I have changed a little."
"It's not a little. You've become a completely different person."
"Is that so?"
To the extent that Arin, who saw me every day, acknowledged it, I had become a completely different person, both outwardly and inwardly.
"Wow, that woman is pretty."
"Yeah, she's gorgeous. But I feel like I've seen her somewhere."
"Isn't she the Grand Prince's attendant? Arin, was it?"
Thanks to my internal energy, my ears could pick up all the voices of the knights talking from a distance.
"Wait a minute, then that man is..."
"Gasp!"
"So that's the scoundrel Grand Prince?"
"No way!"
"When I saw him a month ago, he was a waddling pig!"
"What kind of magic did he use to turn a walking lump of flesh into that!"
They were talking quietly among themselves, but thanks to my internal energy, I could hear their entire conversation.
The knights stared at me, their eyes wide with shock at my appearance. I answered their surprise with a wicked smile.
"Good, plenty of test subjects."