Chapter 43 – Lizard (2)

The words spoken by the Young Hero, who had suddenly adopted a polite attitude at the mention of receiving a reward, were somewhat absurd.

Since he was asked what he desired, it was expected that a Young Hero of his age would ask for something he needed, or perhaps something any martial artist would typically covet. However, the Young Hero had made a request that was completely unexpected.

“I do have something I want….”

“What is it? Tell me quickly! Is it a elixir? Money? A weapon? For accomplishing such a major feat, you’ll be able to get whatever you want. I’ll do my best to obtain whatever it is you desire, so go ahead and tell me.”

As Zhuge Hu nodded in encouragement, the Young Hero replied with an embarrassed expression.

“Ahem. Actually, I’m looking for… information about venomous creatures, or something like that….”

“Information about venomous creatures?”

“Yes, well, you could say that it’s my hobby, no, my ambition, to collect venomous creatures scattered across the Central Plains for the sake of the Tang Family’s development. So I need information about where to find such venomous creatures.”

“You want to collect venomous creatures?”

The Young Hero’s desire to collect and raise venomous creatures, especially after already witnessing him raising the Golden-Furred King Bee, felt bizarre.

It was truly a unique wish.

As Zhuge Hu pondered the strangeness of the request, the Young Hero rolled up the sleeves of both arms, revealing his wrists.

“These little ones are also some of the creatures I’m raising….”

“Hmm?”

At first, it looked as though something yellow was wrapped around the Young Hero’s arms, leading Zhuge Hu to assume it was a type of bracer.

However, upon closer inspection, he realized that the yellow objects wriggling on the Young Hero’s arms were alive.

The Young Hero unwrapped one of the creatures from his arm and placed it on the table, where it squirmed and began to crawl back up his arm.

“That is-?!”

It was undoubtedly a living thing.

When asked what exactly it was, the Young Hero answered with an awkward smile.

“It’s the offspring of the Blue-Spotted Centipede. They’re some of the creatures I’m raising.”

“Th-the offspring of a Blue-Spotted Centipede!?”

Ah, yes. Now that he thought about it, he recalled hearing about this in the reports sent from the Tang Family.

The report had simply stated, ‘The Young Hero used a Blue-Spotted Centipede to defeat Tak Wun-yang.’ However, he hadn’t known the details, and it seemed that these centipede offspring were indeed the same ones mentioned in the report.

“Ah, yes, now that you mention it, I heard about it. You defeated Tak Wun-yang with a Blue-Spotted Centipede….”

“Yes, these are the very ones.”

To treat the Golden-Furred King Bee like a puppy and to carry Blue-Spotted Centipedes wrapped around his arms, such behavior was truly unbelievable.

There were certainly many eccentric individuals in the murim, but in all of murim’s long history, he had never encountered anyone quite like this eccentric Young Hero.

‘How fascinating. How is it that venomous creatures follow him so obediently?’

Raising venomous creatures and even carrying them on his body, this was something an ordinary person would never dream of doing.

No matter how tame venomous creatures might seem, a single misstep could result in a fatal bite. And yet, the Young Hero handled them with such boldness that Zhuge Hu couldn’t help but admire his courage.

Then, as Zhuge Hu stood there in astonishment, a memory from several years ago resurfaced in his mind.

It was about the Young Hero’s earlier request for information about venomous creatures.

Although Zhuge Hu couldn’t be entirely certain if this specific creature qualified as venomous, it still crossed his mind.

“Hmm…. I think I might be able to grant you one of the rewards you want right now. Would a lizard happen to be one of the venomous creatures you’re looking for? Do lizards even have venom?”

“A lizard!? Are you serious!?”

“Yes, is that alright?”

“Of course, Elder! Lizards have venom in their eyes, you see. In general, lizards are known to-”

The Young Hero began speaking excitedly, pouring out words that Zhuge Hu couldn’t fully understand.

Although much of what he said was incomprehensible, one thing was clear, the Young Hero was overjoyed.

Watching him jump for joy, Zhuge Hu scratched his head, looking a bit flustered.

Over the years, the Murim Alliance had awarded many martial artists who accomplished great feats with treasures like swords, beautiful women, and spiritual medicines. But it was the first time Zhuge Hu had ever seen someone so happy simply to be told where to find a lizard.

‘Indeed, he must be an eccentric.’

***

「-Kwoaaahhh.

The waterfall cascading from the edge of the cliff roared with a deafening sound.

Amidst the clamor, the voice of his nephew, Zhuge Qiao, reached him.

“Uncle, it seems we’ve arrived! Just as the writings left by the elder said, there’s the waterfall and the Turtle Rock. I can also see the peak of Gongga Mountain in the distance.”

To their right stood a massive waterfall.

To their left, far away, the snow-covered peak of Gongga Mountain came into view.

In front of them, the turtle-shaped rock lay crouched like a sentinel. Indeed, this place matched the description left behind by their elder.

After hearing his nephew’s words, Zhuge Hu nodded, dipped his hand into the water, and immediately recoiled from the icy chill.

They had said that the water flowed down from the melted snow atop Gongga Mountain, and it was indeed so cold that it felt as if it could cut through bone.

Turning to his nephew and the accompanying warriors, Zhuge Hu called out.

“Everyone, wait here. Qiao, follow me carefully, be cautious, the water is freezing!”

“Yes, Uncle!”

“Yes, Zhuge Hu-nim!”

Without hesitation, he leaped into the surging river where the waterfall spilled into the currents below.

Using the mastery of Stepping Waves Flying Swallow, he lightly stepped on the turtle-shaped rock that jutted out of the river and then leapt again.

He landed on one of the rocks protruding from the opposite cliff and quickly launched himself upward toward his destination.

He climbed by stepping on various protruding stones along the cliff face. Before long, his gaze fell upon a moss-covered rock higher up, a large stone shaped like a human fist.

The stone was not visible from the other side due to the mist created by the waterfall.

That was precisely the destination he was seeking.

“Qiao, it’s up there!”

“Go ahead, Uncle. I’ll follow right behind you!”

After glancing back at his nephew, Zhuge Hu propelled himself toward the fist-shaped rock.

Once he landed atop his destination, he spotted a narrow hole, just large enough for someone to crawl through while lying flat.

“Uncle, it’s exactly as the elder’s writings described.”

The voice of his nephew, who had now landed beside him, confirmed his thoughts.

Zhuge Hu nodded, then pulled out his Iron Whip Fan, his unique weapon, from his chest pocket.

He needed to crawl into the hole ahead, and he didn’t want to risk encountering a wild beast or any other unexpected danger inside.

Even though this hole was atop the cliff, their elder had mentioned that it wasn’t the only entrance.

“I’ll go in first. Follow me.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

Sharpening his vision, Zhuge Hu bent down and began crawling into the hole.

The damp ground pressed against his hands and knees, and cold droplets of water dripped down from above.

However, after crawling for only a short distance, the narrow passage began to widen, and before long, it became spacious enough for a person to walk upright.

Ahead, a bright light seeped in, drawing his attention.

It matched the description in the writings left by the elder that he had read before departing from the family estate.

When he saw the light, he led his nephew further inside, and soon, a massive cavern revealed itself.

The ceiling stretched tens of jang high, possibly more.

From the hole in the ceiling, light poured in, illuminating the entire space.

“It’s truly incredible, Uncle!”

The place they had reached was indeed astonishing.

Despite the chilly feeling they had experienced before entering, thanks to the cold water flowing down from Gongga Mountain, this space felt as warm and gentle as late spring.

On the ground grew flowers and fruits whose names were unknown to them.

Indeed, this was just the kind of place described by their elder, a place where spiritual herbs could thrive.

“It truly is.”

Zhuge Hu nodded at his nephew’s words and slowly stepped toward the center of the cavern.

The very thing they had come for was located there.

As he advanced a few steps, it came into view.

The sunlight pouring down from above illuminated the center of the cavern.

Underneath two man-sized rocks leaning diagonally against each other, a plant with white leaves sparkled in the light.

“Th-that’s Snow Ginseng!”

His nephew’s astonished voice rang out beside him.

Yes, the plant growing beneath the rocks was indeed Snow Ginseng.

It was one of the spiritual herbs imbued with the extreme yin energy.

If it aged for a hundred years, it was called Hundred-Year Snow Ginseng, and if it aged for a thousand years, it was called Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng.

The reason Zhuge Hu had come to this place was to retrieve that Snow Ginseng.

It was a plant their elder had discovered while passing through this area a hundred years ago. At that time, it had only just sprouted and couldn’t be harvested, but now, a century later, it was finally ready to be taken.

To be honest, the family hadn’t planned to harvest it anytime soon.

The longer the Snow Ginseng aged, the better it would become, so it was decided that it would be left for future generations.

However, due to the urgent need to treat the daughter of the Namgoong Family, who had been born with a severed meridian condition, the Namgoong Family had been seeking spiritual medicines or spiritual herbs imbued with yin energy. The Zhuge Family decided to exchange the Snow Ginseng for that purpose.

In return, the Zhuge Family would receive a two-hundred-year-old Black He Shou Wu, which would be an unparalleled spiritual medicine for the Zhuge Family’s martial artists.

There was even a chance that his nephew, Zhuge Qiao, might achieve mastery in Xuan Yuan Complete Elixir Divine Technique.

Slowly approaching the rock, Zhuge Hu and his nephew made their way forward.

Once they reached the rock, they bowed deeply in gratitude for their elder’s foresight.

“Descendant Zhuge Hu, thank you for the arrangements, ancestor.”

After bowing toward the Hundred-Year Snow Ginseng, the two carefully began digging around it and removing the moss surrounding the plant.

And that’s when it happened.

-Shhhhhh!

-Shhaaa!

A sound came from behind the Snow Ginseng, followed by something being fired toward them.

Startled, Zhuge Hu quickly leapt back, raised his Iron Whip Fan, and deflected the incoming attack.

-Kang!

Although he couldn’t clearly see what had struck his weapon, blue sparks exploded off the surface of the Iron Whip Fan.

A heavy shock traveled through his arm, so intense that it felt as though his arm might have broken if he had been careless.

“Ugh!”

“Uncle! Are you alright!?”

“I’m fine! Be careful! It’s coming again!”

As his nephew, who had retreated in shock, ran toward him, another blue light shot between them.

-Chwaak!

-Kwaduk!

This time, Zhuge Hu, prepared for the attack, swung his Iron Whip Fan in response. He felt the sensation of slicing through something solid.

-Shaaa!

The creature let out a strange cry and retreated into the vegetation behind the rock where the Snow Ginseng grew.

As it disappeared, it left behind drops of liquid that shimmered like blue water droplets.

Looking at the Iron Whip Fan that had struck the creature, Zhuge Hu noticed frost forming on its surface.

A cold chill emanated from the weapon, transferring to his hand.

“What in the world was that!?”

His nephew, gripping his Judge’s Pen tightly, asked with a shocked expression.

It seemed his nephew’s internal energy was still too weak to identify what it was. However, Zhuge Hu could clearly remember the image of the creature that had just attacked them.

“A lizard?”

“A lizard, you say?”

Yes, what had suddenly shot at Zhuge Hu was clearly two two lizards.」

***

The information provided by Zhuge Hu, the military strategist of the Murim Alliance, was as sweet as honey.

A blue earth lizard!

That meant a blue earth lizard, an incredibly rare find.

It was said to be a venomous creature that grew by feeding on the energy of spiritual herbs, but honestly, the specifics didn’t matter.

The fact that it was a lizard was what mattered.

And on top of that, it was blue, wasn’t it?

Natural blue is exceedingly rare, and that made the blue earth lizard an exceptional piece of information.

Moreover, lizards are one of the most entertaining creatures to breed.

Not only are they cute and enjoyable to handle, but they also have this endearing habit of baring their teeth and biting when they’re angry, so even that is adorable.

The location where it had been spotted? Near Gongga Mountain in Sichuan.

From what I heard, it wasn’t far from here.

The even better news was that he promised to notify me whenever venomous creatures were discovered in the Central Plains.

Here in murim, they call men who are generous and knowledgeable “Masters”, and he certainly lived up to the title of a true Master.

‘He was such a truly magnanimous person.’

However, despite receiving such excellent information, there was one unfortunate issue: because of those Blood Cult bastards, it would be difficult for me to leave the family grounds for the time being.

If I wanted to go get the lizard, I’d probably have to wait for my father-in-law to return so that Grandfather could be free to move around again.

I would need to take one of them with me, after all.

That’s why, while sitting in the Inner Courtyard Pavilion and examining Bin’s antennae, I was pondering when my father-in-law might return.

“Soryong! Where is Soryong?!”

A man’s shout, loud enough to shake the entirety of Tang Family Mountain, rang out.

Even Bin, who was wrapped around my hand, was startled and folded its antennae back.

And shortly after, my father-in-law burst into the Inner Courtyard, leading the Poison Extermination Squad behind him, a space restricted to direct family members only.

‘Nice timing.’

It seemed my father-in-law, who had gone out with the Poison Extermination Squad, had just returned.

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – 에르훗]

[Translator – bjgoofy]