Chapter 461

No matter how much they told them to continue, how could words come out when that was going on next to them?

Kyareuk, kyaak.

The child’s laughter and monkey sounds utterly didn’t match the current atmosphere.

It truly couldn’t be anything but an awkward situation.

However, among any group there are always brave people, or those who act recklessly.

Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader came forward and challenged Jin Ja-gang.

“Are you joking right now? If you came as the Tang Family Main Estate’s representative to mediate, naturally I hope you’ll act appropriately…!”

Jin Ja-gang’s face hardened further.

“Do you mean I’m acting inappropriately as the Tang Family’s representative?”

A chilling aura emanated from Jin Ja-gang.

Startled, Poison Heaven began crying.

“Waaah! Waaah!”

White Ape climbed onto Jin Ja-gang’s splinted shoulder as if asking why he made the child cry, frowned, and tapped Jin Ja-gang’s head.

Kkyaa kkyaa!

“…”

Jin Ja-gang gritted his teeth and spoke through them.

“Tell me clearly. What part of my behavior is inappropriate?”

“From what I see…!”

“Waaah waaah!”

Kkyaa! Kkyaa!

Tap tap tap.

Tap tap.

Jin Ja-gang’s face turned bright red. His clenched jaw tensed, creating tendons on his lower jaw.

Jin Ja-gang apologized.

“I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“Well…”

Kkyaa! Kkyaa!

Tap tap tap.

Jin Ja-gang’s face hardened further. His expression even became somewhat distorted.

“A-a-a-are you th-threatening me right now?”

“It’s not a threat, I’m asking out of curiosity.”

“Waaah waaah!”

Tap tap tap!

Jin Ja-gang’s face turned completely red, looking like it might burst.

Those standing behind could only stare blankly at the situation in disbelief. They even felt fortunate it wasn’t them who stepped forward.

It didn’t seem like he was asking because he didn’t know, and somehow if they said it outright, it felt like he’d suddenly kill them and tell them to say it again…

What on earth was this commotion?

Why was that damn monkey acting like that!

Why were a child and monkey even here together!

Jin Ja-gang didn’t take his eyes off Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader who had spoken to him. Because of this, Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader couldn’t retreat or do anything.

Jin Ja-gang’s expression grew increasingly frightening.

While Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader swallowed dry saliva and fretted anxiously, he discovered someone behind Jin Ja-gang and his face contorted.

“What’s that now?”

When people turned around, it was a boy and girl holding hands.

Jin Ja-gang also saw them.

It was Woon-jeong and So-so.

When their eyes met, Woon-jeong approached holding So-so’s hand.

“Hehe.”

Woon-jeong laughed awkwardly. Looking at So-so, her cheeks were flushed.

For Jin Ja-gang, with Woon-jeong suddenly following along in the midst of this chaos, he didn’t even want to think about what was going on.

“What brings Taoist Woon-jeong here?”

Even asking, his feelings were incredibly complicated.

Son-bi quietly observed them both, then poked Jin Ja-gang’s back.

—Pretend you don’t know.

“Why?”

—It looks like they ran away together.

“Ran away?”

Woon-jeong and So-so had been getting along extremely well lately. Since they’d be hard to see for a while once he returned to Mount Qingcheng, the two seemed to have escaped.

Woon-jeong’s cheeks turned red.

“N-n-n-no! Wh-what running away?”

Woon-jeong hastily changed the subject.

“I came to monitor Poison Dragon brother because he kills people at every opportunity! Look. Even now, if not for me, he would have killed that person.”

Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader flinched in surprise.

“Who’s killing whom? I only came to mediate.”

“Last time too, you said the Zoroastrian Cult Leader willingly gave you the sacred object.”

“That’s true.”

“But why did you melt someone who willingly gave it to you into a handful of poison? Normal people don’t do that, you know?”

Those listening trembled.

“That was…”

“Primordial Celestial Worthy. It’s not that I don’t trust Poison Dragon brother, but Poison Dragon brother’s life path makes me unable to trust. Do I see it once or twice? I’ve even seen him chop people up to kill them?”

“Lines appeared all over people’s bodies from the sky and they became pieces of meat…”

“Thud thud thud, pieces of people fell like hail…”

“On the ground, blood and all slippery and long things and wrinkly and squishy things all over…”

“Ugh, I really saw that for the first time in my life. I didn’t know so many strange things were inside a human body…”

Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader’s complexion turned pale.

Woon-jeong continued as if proving the legitimacy of his visit.

“Recently there’s that Asura World-Ending Soul. That martial art that melts people so bones and organs flow out. Ugh, horrifying.”

“…”

Jin Ja-gang couldn’t actually answer, but Poison Heaven stopped crying listening to Woon-jeong’s story. She giggled.

“See, see. Poison Heaven already acts like this because she resembles her dad. For Poison Heaven’s education at least, please stop killing now.”

Mount Yao Sect and Grand Sword Sect martial artists were completely cowed. Mount Yao Sect’s vice sect leader had somehow retreated backward.

Kak kak kak!

White Ape laughed while tapping Jin Ja-gang’s head. Jin Ja-gang was holding Poison Heaven with one arm because his crushed shoulder hadn’t healed, so he couldn’t put White Ape down.

“Fine. So tell me the real reason you followed.”

Woon-jeong and So-so hesitated together, then Woon-jeong said quietly.

“We had nowhere to go… If we said we followed Poison Dragon brother, Master probably wouldn’t say anything…”

“You’ll only stay together while I’m here, then leave. Understand?”

“Yes!”

Woon-jeong and So-so excitedly went to play in the lower village.

Jin Ja-gang got a headache.

However, conversely the situation improved. Thanks to Woon-jeong babbling such strange stories, Mount Yao Sect and Grand Sword Sect lost their will to fight.

Immediately Mount Yao Sect and Grand Sword Sect’s vice sect leaders consulted with the Tang Family elder who had come earlier and decided to end the dispute.

Then they agreed to meet the next day to settle on detailed damage compensation and parted.

***

When the two groups left with somewhat deflated feelings, Jin Ja-gang almost returned right away.

That’s how chaotic and embarrassing it had been.

But the reason for coming here was to find clues about the Hungry Ghost King. He couldn’t return just after arriving. Moreover, the Tang Family elder stopped him.

Though they decided to end the dispute, there was tremendous room for conflict in the process of agreeing on compensation. If Jin Ja-gang wasn’t there then, fighting could break out again.

While Woon-jeong and So-so went to play, Jin Ja-gang went to a nearby inn and heard explanations about why Mount Yao Sect and Grand Sword Sect fought.

A Mount Yao Sect disciple became addicted to gambling and squandered his wealth, which was the beginning. They said he even sold his wife.

But unfortunately, that gambling den was run by someone from Grand Sword Sect. Because of this, Mount Yao Sect viewed it as Grand Sword Sect’s scheme.

Just as they were about to protest to Grand Sword Sect, the gambling den owner happened to be poisoned to death. At the same time, at Mount Yao Sect, the disciple addicted to gambling was caught stealing the sect’s land deeds. Mount Yao Sect’s disciple was even caught stealing land deeds and rallied fellow disciples to start a rebellion.

Mount Yao Sect believed Grand Sword Sect was involved behind their sect’s rebellion, and Grand Sword Sect believed Mount Yao Sect framed them with false charges to attack them.

So Mount Yao Sect struck Grand Sword Sect first. And just as Grand Sword Sect counterattacked, the Tang Family stepped in to mediate.

It was a strange situation, but if coincidence upon coincidence overlapped, it could be interpreted as a situation prone to misunderstanding.

But it was that time. Not one thing could be viewed carelessly.

“Has the poison that killed the gambling den owner been identified?”

“The corpse didn’t remain, but hearing the symptoms, it was probably… thought to be the Five Fatal Pill.”

It wasn’t just this place. Evidence of the Five Fatal Pill being used was often discovered at other sects in Sichuan too.

It couldn’t be anything but outrageous.

According to Tang Ha-ran’s secret investigation, it seemed other sects throughout the martial world also used the Five Fatal Pill.

Even if King of Hell Tang Qing’s Extinction Essence wasn’t included, it was hard to believe the Five Fatal Pill was this common.

Jin Ja-gang felt the case was falling deeper into mystery.

Yeong-gwi, who was listening beside him, raised the same question as Jin Ja-gang.

“I don’t know just how much Five Fatal Pill was used. If it’s being used even at small sects like this, the amount absolutely cannot be small.”

The Tang Family elder thought the same.

“For diverting part of the Five Fatal Pill, it’s been used in too many places.”

Jin Ja-gang fell into thought.

“Waaah waaah!”

Poison Heaven cried from the next seat, startling him awake from his thoughts.

White Ape, who was holding Poison Heaven, tried to soothe her then held Poison Heaven out to Jin Ja-gang. It was convenient to entrust her to White Ape since she liked Poison Heaven. If she emitted poison energy, she’d be the first to notice, so it was also preparation.

But there was nothing to be done about the constant crying.

Poison Heaven cried from time to time, so Jin Ja-gang couldn’t concentrate at all.

Was Tang Ha-ran handling even the acting family head position in this situation?

Tang Ha-ran seemed newly impressive.

The Tang Family elder said carefully.

“She’s been crying constantly… I think she might be hungry.”

Jin Ja-gang also thought “oh no.” Thinking about it, it seemed past the time to eat something. But there was nothing to feed her.

Still, being older, the Tang Family elder gave advice.

“It looks like you’ll need to get some milk.”

Jin Ja-gang was slightly flustered and looked back at Yeong-gwi and Son-bi. Both were flustered.

Yeong-gwi stepped forward.

“I’ll go to the village.”

But Jin Ja-gang couldn’t send Poison Heaven to get milk. Martial artists could endure Poison Heaven’s poison energy to some degree, but ordinary people couldn’t.

Jin Ja-gang worried, then bit his finger and put it in Poison Heaven’s mouth.

Poison Heaven bit Jin Ja-gang’s pinky finger and sucked.

“Phew…”

Jin Ja-gang breathed a sigh of relief.

“Fortunately. She doesn’t seem particularly picky about food.”

But from the perspective of those watching, it was different. Feeding a child blood. It was horrifying just to think about, but seeing White Ape had run far away, it wasn’t blood but poison being fed!

The Poison Dragon’s blood poison at that!

“Haha… like father like child. Haha.”

The Tang Family elder hid his uncomfortable expression and forced a laugh.

Poison Heaven quieted down while consuming Jin Ja-gang’s poison. She quickly felt better and even fell asleep.

Jin Ja-gang went outside to burp her and came back to entrust Poison Heaven to White Ape, but White Ape had no intention of approaching.

Yeong-gwi held Poison Heaven and went up to the room.

Only then did Jin Ja-gang stabilize, drink a cup of tea, and finally become able to concentrate.

“I apologize. Where were we?”

“We said too much poison was diverted.”

Son-bi dipped her finger in tea water on the table and wrote.

—Why do you think the poison was diverted?

Jin Ja-gang, whose head had been dazed, answered carelessly.

“Because King of Hell couldn’t have taught the recipe to someone else. The Five Fatal Pill is…”

Suddenly Jin Ja-gang realized something he’d forgotten.

The Five Fatal Pill’s base was made of easily obtainable ingredients.

It became the worst poison when King of Hell’s Extinction Essence was added.

In other words, if one knew the ingredients and mixing ratio, anyone could prepare the Five Fatal Pill’s base form.