The Poison Demon's Specialty is Making Antidotes
Gurye Free City, home to a population of two million.
The downtown area was bustling with high-rises dotting the skyline, far grander in both scale and development than Paju, where Taeju had lived. It was no comparison.
But Gurye bore the heavy burden of monster waves that could erupt at any moment.
The Jirisan Dark Forest had an unusually high monster density compared to other regions.
Unlike elsewhere, waves hit frequently and without warning.
With weak public authority, law and order were poor, drawing in every sort of shady character imaginable.
Debtors fleeing their loans, debt collectors hot on their heels, criminals on the run from warrants, gamblers chasing a big score, and merchants preying on them all...
Still, it was a place where people could live decently enough.
The city autonomy committee filled the gaps in security, and brisk commercial activity meant that with hard work, one could live prosperously. The foundations were there.
Twenty percent of the monster byproducts produced in the Samhan Empire came from Gurye Free City alone.
That meant a huge variety and sheer number of monsters.
Dozens of orc villages, blade-toothed martens, storm weasels, poison-clawed civets, red-furred wolves, giant moon bears, and steel-feathered eagle owls...
Threats that burdened even the Empire.
To contain Jirisan's monster waves, imperial monster defense legions were stationed in Sancheong City, Hamyang City, and Namwon City to the north.
But defense alone wasn't enough.
The monster numbers had to be culled continuously.
For that reason, the imperial family had designated the southern Jirisan area—Gurye—as a free city.
Tax exemptions on monster byproduct sales, legalized gambling and prostitution, and minimal public authority—it drew people in droves.
Civilians, not military, and especially awakeners, flocked there.
They raised their system ranks through hunts and earned money harvesting byproducts.
Taeju considered what he needed to do to establish himself in Gurye Free City.
Hunting?
Not yet. It wasn't time.
With his Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong at a mere 1st stage, facing strong monsters was risky.
Besides, could he handle them with poison alone?
He needed hidden weapons too.
Poison and hidden weapons—their synergy was key.
Together, they became perfect.
But hidden weapons cost a fortune.
They had to be custom-made by nature.
So?
First, he had to make money.
He was flat broke right now.
Buying or crafting them was a pipe dream.
He needed lodging, food, and a new smartphone...
He'd tossed the old one.
It was worn out, and he planned to change numbers anyway.
It was also about shedding the lingering attachment to his father, however small.
Sleeping was easy—he could crash in a park or train station—but hunger was the problem.
Could a person live on poison alone?
That's why he started as a hunting supporter.
Supporter? He was just a porter, really.
Regular porters were mana adapters—normal folk.
Mana compatibles were supporters too, but they assisted in combat, not just carried gear.
He decided to porter for a while.
Combat support drew too much attention.
Especially since he was stronger than a beginner—maybe even a regular.
Plus, it let him scout the vibe of Gurye and the Jirisan Dark Forest.
At dawn in the dim outskirts of the forest, at the labor market...
"Three porters for blade-toothed marten territory!"
"Me! Pick me!"
"Over here! Me..."
"118 hunts as a porter. I'm a veteran."
Job seekers shot up their hands like fireworks.
But employers had standards.
"Carry this."
"This pack? Piece of—ugh! Why is it so... heavy?"
"Tsk tsk. You're not even a rejector, and you can't handle it? Go train some muscle first."
You needed the stamina to carry a massive pack for at least eight hours to qualify.
Taeju passed, of course.
Daily pay: 200,000 won. He joined a Jirisan Dark Forest monster raid as a porter.
A typical raid assault team consisted of fifteen members total.
Three porters, seven combat support mana compatibles, and five awakeners.
Those with swords, spears, bows, or guns were mana compatibles or awakeners; pack-bearers were mana adapters, or porters.
And if they had palm-sized tattoos on their faces—especially the sides—they were system awakeners.
Awakener tattoos varied wildly in shape and size.
Some faked them for scams.
Main raid hauls included energy crystals from monster heads, hides, teeth, claws, and organs like livers or gallbladders.
His first porter gig was stable.
Awakeners valued their lives—no reckless hunts.
It was easy work.
He just had to follow with the pack.
His poison arts had strengthened his body.
Though the mana rejector's curse lingered.
"Good work. Here's your pay."
"Thanks."
"Skip the daily market from tomorrow. Call this number direct."
He must've impressed them.
Duh—he was striding through the forest with that huge pack, even helping exhausted porters.
With the cash, he ate, rented a cheap room at a rundown inn for temporary lodging, and got a smartphone.
In his spare time, he trained Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong.
Poison herbs were everywhere.
Two straight weeks as a porter.
And he spotted it.
This could make bank.
He'd found it.
The way to big money.
And the way to build his base in Gurye.
The Jirisan Dark Forest had spots even awakeners avoided.
Monsters steered clear too.
Hell Swamp.
Taeju headed there at dawn as the sun rose.
Bzzz, bzzzzz.
Chaos was already brewing near the swamp.
Insane. Are these all mosquitoes?
A mosquito swarm.
The marsh ahead was black with them.
They were variant three-striped mosquitoes.
They mated and laid eggs in Hell Swamp.
Then they foraged across the whole Jirisan Dark Forest.
They were mana-mutated, as expected.
They were the size of normal mosquitoes.
But they carried a special venom that tormented mana compatibles and awakeners.
Bites sapped strength and induced drowsiness.
More bites meant worse symptoms.
It wasn't super potent—one recovered in a day or two.
But oddly, they were harmless to mana adapters and normals. They were just itchy.
They affected only mana compatibles and awakeners.
In combat, bites were dangerous.
Combat power dropped; in severe cases, it led to injuries or death from mere bugs.
Worse: there was no cure.
Regular insecticides failed.
Annual spraying was tried, but numbers never dropped—efforts were eventually abandoned.
The only prevention: insect repellent suits.
They required full coverage.
So Jirisan hunters sweltered in subtropical heat, bundled from head to toe.
Anyone who's worn one knows the madness.
How much it tanked hunting efficiency.
Those damn pests—hunters wanted to torch them all, but their numbers were endless.
What if someone found a repellent or an antidote?
Jackpot.
That is why Taeju went alone to Hell Swamp.
Up close, mosquitoes swarmed like manna.
Bzzz, bzzzzzzzz!
He let them bite him.
Ah, I've got it.
Now he understood their weakness.
It was his Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong poison essence.
Plus the experience from his soul twin, the Absolute Poison Demon Dang Gunak.
From that, he identified the poison type...
San-gong Poison, as expected.
San-gong Poison.
It disrupts mana and bodily energies.
It's not too strong—it fades naturally—but heavy bites crippled fights.
Taeju was unbothered, even when bitten.
His energy was poison.
Standing still, he circulated Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong.
Poison qi surged through his body.
Plop, plop-plop-plop.
Mosquitoes were dropping lifelessly.
Weak poison yields to strong.
Shall I?
He swatted flying ones, popped them in his mouth, and chewed.
The taste confirmed it.
He kept eating.
He let some bite him too.
The secret of Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong: to embody and analyze poison properties.
I know the poison now.
Time to neutralize it.
Yi-duk-je-dok—controlling poison with poison.
I need a counteracting poison...
There was no need to go deep in.
According to the Absolute Poison Demon's experience: antidotes are often found nearby.
He pulled swamp-edge poison herbs and tasted them.
He grabbed useful ones and put them in his pack—not what he sought, but handy.
The Jirisan Dark Forest is...
Paradise.
Touch-toxic herbs were everywhere.
Dang Gunak would drool.
He was chewing and searching.
He didn't overdo it—body strain was a risk.
Slow, small tastes.
Not this.
He needed the opposite of variant three-striped mosquito venom.
Not this either.
Poison and medicine: there's a paper-thin line.
Poison becomes med, and med becomes poison.
That is why the Sichuan Dang Clan was famed as healers.
This works.
He found it.
A blue-spotted mushroom.
Venom congeals mana and blocks meridians.
The mosquito scatters mana; the mushroom solidifies it. They are opposites.
One down.
It wasn't enough.
He searched the swamp perimeter.
He was safe from mosquitoes—no monsters or people were around.
He harvested dozens of plants—poisons and herbs.
Herbs were essential to alter poison traits.
I'll test these at my base.
A pack full of poison herbs? His pride swelled.
To turn poison medicinal: processing is essential. You must strip toxins and dilute for minimal irritation.
Raw? That leads to mass poisoning and death.
Same ingredients, but varied effects? It comes down to processing.
Wrong process: medicine turns to poison.
That is why even advanced tech struggles with new drugs.
But who was he?
The Absolute Poison Demon, master of Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong—he analyzes and converts poisons.
The hurdle: his realm was too low for antidotes.
He was at a mere 1st stage.
I must push to 3rd fast.
It won't take long.
He'd walked this path before.
Time passed.
Finally!
3rd stage.
It took a full month.
Days portering, nights training.
It was insane speed, even with abundant base herbs.
It wasn't weird.
He had the same soul as poison grandmaster Dang Gunak; all knowledge was inherited.
Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong 3rd stage.
The poison essence doubled in size and became denser.
More techniques were unlocked.
Crucially: he could now make a variant three-striped mosquito venom antidote.
Ingredients were stockpiled.
His room was packed.
Everything was tasted and analyzed.
Some were powdered, some juiced in cloth, some chopped—and placed into containers. They were divided into the inn's huge tub, and water was added.
Taeju immersed his hands and circulated Hunwon Musang Dokryeong Gong.
Absorb poison qi via essence, gentle it, then expel; repeat.
It was delicate work.
Hence the 3rd stage minimum.
His body was a pharma lab bench.
First: extract mosquito venom from the dantian essence.
Simultaneously draw purities from the blue-spotted mushroom etc., mix them, and observe reactions.
Discard some, keep others, and tweak ratios.
More of this, less of that.
Dang Gunak's poison knowledge was being utilized.
Earth vs. murim poisons differ.
But for the mosquito's San-gong Poison—he knew the detox method.
Two days: no work, no food, just nonstop neutralization.
Success.
A side-effect-free variant three-striped mosquito venom antidote.