I had heard endlessly from both Grandpa and Hwa-eun that people from the Demonic Cult worship power and love to fight.
They were the type who would jump up and run out at the mere mention of a fight, even in their sleep.
It gave the impression of Central Plains pit dogs—battle-crazed roosters or something like that.
But I never expected they’d enjoy fighting non-human creatures this much, too.
From Gun Hye-rin, I could sense not just a desire to hold the line but an intent to wipe them all out completely.
Honestly, when I heard it from Grandpa or Hwa-eun, I believed it maybe halfway, but seeing Gun Hye-rin now made it feel undeniably real.
‘If this is the Demonic Cult's average, that’s kinda serious.’
Of course, if she weren’t in the water, Gun Hye-rin could likely finish them off.
That’s what the Flower Realm level means.
What Gun Hye-rin would face were artificial spirit beasts, specifically the String Worms.
Sure, they were hard to detect and ambushed well, but in the end, they were just oversized and slightly stronger ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ worms.
However, Gun Hye-rin couldn’t unleash her full power here.
To go all out, she’d have to release her energy completely—and that would inevitably let loose waves of demonic energy.
And letting demonic energy leak out in a place full of Murim Alliance members?
That’d be like a witch using magic surrounded by holy knights in a medieval fantasy.
‘Like begging to be burned at the stake while tap dancing.’
Of course, someone in the Flower Realm could expertly conceal their energy and fight well enough with only basic internal strength.
She couldn’t unleash her full power, but she could still fight at full effectiveness.
Still, if she lost control in her excitement and slipped up, the Murim Alliance would throw a parade.
Celebrating the capture of the Demonic Cult’s top figure.
『“Gun Hye-rin, be careful not to expose your demonic energy.”』
Worried, I warned her not to let it show, but her reply came off rather half-hearted.
『“Of course. Don’t worry and take your time. It's just a bunch of beasts. I could use the workout.”』
‘Ugh, this woman... If she screws up—wait, if she screws up, that’s my mess too.’
I was about to say something more when Yo-hwa’s voice suddenly came through.
‘Dear Brother, be careful on your way.’
She was probably telling me not to get hurt while hurrying over.
She had surprised me earlier by saying she missed me, and though I was flustered, I composed myself and reminded her about the net.
Because her web was the key to our defense plan.
‘Right. Yo-hwa, please make sure the net doesn’t break!’
The larvae driven out by the mother would scatter in all directions.
They wouldn’t all rush downstream at once, but if any of them broke through the net, they could scatter into the river below.
Which meant the net was the number one thing we had to protect.
Her response came back with resolve.
‘Yes, Dear Brother!’
If she said it, I could count on her to keep that promise.
I quietly sent a personal warning to Hwa-eun as well.
‘Hwa-eun, be careful. I’ll get there as fast as I can.’
‘Got it. Be safe, So-ryong.’
When I finished the conversation and came back to my senses, I realized the surroundings had gone cold.
Looking ahead, I saw my grilled Korean perch (so-gari) buried in sand, and the fire had completely gone out.
“Huh?”
I hadn’t even eaten half of it—what happened?
As I looked around in confusion, I heard Cho’s voice coming from the water.
Surprised by the sudden call, I turned to look in that direction.
Cho and Yeon-du had already packed up and placed Seom and Byeok back into the pouch.
They were fully prepped and ready to go.
“Go?”
We had flown all day. We were supposed to rest, and now we’re leaving again?
They must’ve overheard the conversation in the group chat.
I walked up and patted their heads.
“You two should rest.”
I understood what they were feeling.
They were worried about Hwa-eun and wanted to get going right away.
I had considered leaving a little early myself, but pushing ahead without rest would only slow us down more in the long run.
“If you get tired, we’ll be delayed even more. So let’s rest properly.”
I shook my head again, but Cho and Yeon-du replied in reassuring tones.
They tugged at my collar and wrapped themselves around me, lifting me off the ground.
“Hey, wait—you guys are going to get exhausted! Guys? Guys!?”
Despite my protests, they launched themselves into the sky toward the moon.
***
Only the sound of quietly flowing water filled the riverside.
It seemed silent because no one was there, but in truth, it was not.
Even the sound of breathing had diminished—because both sides of the riverbank, hidden in the thickets, were filled with warriors tense and waiting to carry out their orders.
This was the location of the first net laid under Master So-ryong’s command.
The warriors stood guard on either side of the river, holding their breath to remain undetected in front of that first net.
With them, concealed in the grass, were long bamboo spears, ready to strike into the water the moment the Poison Larva appeared.
That was the order they had received.
Amidst this tension, the only thing moving was the soft sound of trickling water.
Gun Hye-rin, sitting among the warriors and watching the river, turned to Hwa-eun with a bored expression.
“Still nothing?”
“Seems that way.”
“I thought they’d come crashing in like a wave... guess not.”
Gun Hye-rin’s face showed clear disappointment.
It made sense—he’d been expecting some blood-splattering, desperate fight, but there wasn’t even a hint of action yet.
And it was already the middle of the night.
But it wasn’t just Gun Hye-rin feeling that way.
The surrounding warriors cast sidelong glances in his direction, prompting Sister Seol to step up and rebuke him.
“Hey, Lady Gun, don’t jinx it with that kind of talk.”
To Gun Hye-rin and Hwa-eun, the incoming creatures might seem like nothing special, but to the warriors here, they had recently lost their comrades to the mother of those very creatures.
The news that the Poison Larvae had multiplied greatly in number after nearly a month of terror had everyone on edge.
Gun Hye-rin grumbled in response to Sister Seol’s comment.
“I’m just bored, that’s all.”
“Even if you are, don’t say stuff like that. It’d be best if things stayed quiet until Master So-ryong gets here.”
“...Tch. Fine. I’m sorry.”
How had it come to this—where even the Little Heavenly Demon, now the Heavenly Demon, had to apologize?
Gun Hye-rin lamented her situation and briefly thought of pulling Sister Seol aside to scold her later. But then, a thought popped into her head.
Seol wasn’t just anyone. In a way, she was like a sister-in-law.
So really, there was nothing she could say.
To be precise, she was the sister of the one who would become her master—and isn’t “master” just another word for “husband”?
‘A-Are you insane? What are you even thinking?’
The moment that thought crossed her mind, Gun Hye-rin flushed and bowed her head deeply.
At that exact moment, one of the warriors watching the river suddenly grabbed his bamboo spear and thrust it into the water.
–Pshhk.
The order had been clear: if a Poison Larva appeared, they were to quietly stab it with their spears and throw it onto the prepared ashes.
So, while the move wasn’t unexpected, the loud sound that broke through the quiet rippling of the stream drew everyone’s attention.
Veins bulged in the warrior’s arm as he applied strength.
There was some resistance—then, when he yanked the spear out of the water, something squirming was stuck on its tip.
Sure enough, it was a Poison Larva.
It had been said they were the size of a forearm, but it seemed this one had grown even larger—about the size of an adult’s leg.
It was so heavy that the bamboo spear bent like a bow.
“Ooh! I got one!”
Just as the warrior let out a triumphant shout—
A piercing screech tore through the night sky, erupting from the tip of the spear.
–Kieeeee!
Everyone trembled at the sound.
The creature impaled on the spear was making an eerie noise.
“They’re here?!”
Anyone could tell that it was a Poison Larva.
As Gun Hye-rin leapt to her feet with joy—
The creature’s scream rippled across the water’s surface, and suddenly, countless somethings began rising from the stream upstream.
–Pop. Pshhk. Pshhpshhk.
The sound of water splashing was like the pattering of rain. The things that had emerged quickly disappeared beneath the surface again.
The eerie silence returned to the area.
But shortly after—
A new current began flowing from upstream to downstream.
No—it seemed like just a current, but in truth, it was the movement of countless Poison Larvae covering the surface of the stream.
The creatures squirmed as they surged toward the area where the warriors from the Martial Alliance and Beast Palace had gathered.
“Hiiiik!”
“P-Poison Larvae are coming!”
“H-How can there be that many?!”
Seeing the wave of Poison Larvae approaching, the warriors screamed in shock.
The fear of the venomous swarm surging through the dark water channel was overwhelming.
The surface of the water was shifting as if all at once, and even the most steeled hearts found it hard to stand their ground.
Then the high command of the Martial Alliance and the Beast Palace stepped forward and shouted:
“Do not fear! They are mere beasts!”
“Master So-ryong has already given us the method to deal with them—just follow it!”
The lord of the Beast Palace and the elders of the Martial Alliance shouted in unison.
At the same time, the Dragon Fangs darted between the warriors and shouted:
“They’re coming! Get ready!”
“Raise your spears!”
At their call, the spears rose up in unison, transforming the riverside into a field of reeds. Everyone stood tense, awaiting the charge.
The tide of Poison Larvae reached spear’s range.
“Stab!”
“Waaaah!”
“Die!”
The warriors let out war cries to chase away their fear and drove their spears forward.
Soon, the writhing Poison Larvae were hoisted up on the tips of spears.
–Kieeeee.
–Kiee!
They were immediately tossed into the prepared ash pits.
There, they thrashed in agony and began to shrivel up.
“Ooh! It’s working!”
“As expected of Master So-ryong!”
Shouts of confirmation spread instantly among the warriors.
They now believed they could exterminate the creatures according to Master So-ryong’s plan, and morale surged.
Once tense and fearful, the warriors stabbed and tossed one Poison Larva after another into the ashes.
–Kieee.
–Kiiie.
The creatures shrieked as they vomited a sticky substance from their mouths.
The waters quickly became a horrific sight, filled with squirming Poison Larvae and their foul secretions.
***
“Wounded incoming!”
“Bring them here!”
“There’s another one! He’s been poisoned by the mother Poison Larva!”
“Lay him down, quickly!”
With the wounded piling in, Hwa-eun and the Tang Clan members were rushing non-stop.
If they didn’t expel the poison quickly, the victims’ hearts would stop, and they would die.
Hwa-eun pushed out the poison using her internal energy, then turned to Chang-ryong, who was resting nearby with an exhausted face.
He had been one of the ones brought in earlier—Hwa-eun assumed he’d know more about the current situation.
Because of the wounded poisoned by the mother Poison Larvae, she hadn’t been able to participate in the battle. She had stayed back to treat the ones being carried in with the Tang Clan members.
“Chang-ryong, what about the fourth net?”
“It’s still holding, but it’s only a matter of time. It was made from bamboo and ordinary netting to begin with. What about Dok-hwa and Master So-ryong?”
“They’re supposedly still rushing here without stopping...”
They had started off full of courage, but by the second day, things had taken a strange turn.
Three of the five nets had already been torn apart, and now everyone was locked in a desperate fight in front of the fourth.
All of this was because the mother Poison Larva had appeared.
As the cries of the larvae continued, the mother had suddenly burst out of the water and started spraying venom. That attack had caused multiple casualties and torn the first net made from Yo-hwa’s thread clean in half.
The thread itself had been strong—but the tree anchoring it had been the weak point.
When the tree broke, the net was ripped apart in vain.
All the nets laid afterward were made of bamboo or ordinary netting layered multiple times, so they didn’t last long. One after another, they were either torn or ripped free.
More than dozens of warriors had already been brought back after being drenched in venom by the mother Poison Larvae.
The creatures were enormous—too big to spear and lift—and even if stabbed, their wounds healed rapidly, creating a constant stream of casualties.
Even when struck by masters, the injured areas would quickly regenerate. Hwa-eun had tried using poison arts as well, but only the infected flesh would fall off, and the newly exposed area would regenerate almost instantly.
Eventually, one of the Martial Alliance elders, furious at the mounting injuries, slashed one of them in half vertically—but that only triggered a greater disaster.
Three mothers had now emerged from the larvae, spraying venom as they rampaged.
At the moment Hwa-eun frowned after hearing the fourth net was about to tear—
Shouts erupted from the distance.
“The fourth net’s been torn! Falling back to the fifth!”
So it had finally happened.
But the fifth net had been made with Yo-hwa’s thread, and Yo-hwa herself had reinforced it—so it might be able to hold.
After the first net was torn apart, Yo-hwa had been pulled back to reinforce the last line of defense.
Hwa-eun held onto the hope that, somehow, they might be able to hold the line until Master So-ryong arrived.
–Rrrummmble.
Suddenly, the sound of thunder rolled through the air.
Earlier, she’d thought the sky upstream looked a little darker—now flashes of lightning were breaking through the clouds overhead.
“Is it raining?”
There was no doubt now—it was raining upstream.
They didn’t think much of it at first.
But then Sister Seol, soaked in sweat, came running and shouted at Hwa-eun.
“I-It’s bad! It’s raining upstream!”
“Will that be a serious problem?”
“This is Yunnan! The summer rains here pour like hell! The stream might swell to more than double!”
“What?!”
At Sister Seol’s words, everyone froze in place.
