Chapter 15. One of the Hundred Great Spirit Creatures

Hugong chuckled.

“Where in the world is there a place that is not the martial world? Wherever you are, you are in the martial world. But I think the martial world is also a place where there are righteous and beautiful people like you four.”

Ban Gyoeun’s cheeks immediately turned red.

The Eldest Young Master of the Cheonhwa Library was staring at her intently as he spoke, and for some reason, her heart pounded.

“On this occasion, how about you try learning martial arts too, Young Master Beom?”

It was Myo Garyeong, the daughter of the Baekhwajang Manor Lord.

Hugong just smiled in response.

This one and that one, they all seemed to show quite a bit of intimacy, and it seemed like the conversation would go on forever, so he hinted at his departure by looking outside.

The four people, who understood the meaning, were disappointed.

“Are you leaving already?”

Hugong nodded his head.

“I didn’t realize how time flew while talking with you all. The dispute seems to be over, so I should go back now.”

As they parted, farewells were exchanged.

They were words like “I’ll invite you,” “Please invite me,” and “Let’s have a drink soon.” Seomun Heon, who hadn’t even been asked, was particularly disappointed, saying he was leaving for his maternal grandmother’s house tomorrow.

‘Hehe, you guys…’

Usually, people say this and then don’t invite you and don’t have a drink, but for some reason, the atmosphere was quite serious.

After parting with them, Hugong moved to another place and immediately called for Songhwa.

“Young master, the sun is setting, are you going back?”

“No.”

Hugong then commanded one of the guards.

“Confirmation first. You go to the main house and check the situation. If the stench has not been resolved, we will stay outside tonight.”

“Yes.”

When you meet a wise master, your body and mind become comfortable.

The guard’s face brightened at the thought that he could somehow avoid the terrible stench, and he immediately ran off.

Almost an hour later, the guard returned.

At the news the guard brought, Hugong’s eyes widened.

“Something came out of the ground? Why?”

It was a truly unexpected and bizarre situation.

***

That night, the stench of the Cheonhwa Library had disappeared.

But even so, the old family head’s mood was quite uncomfortable.

There was another person who was uncomfortable.

It was Physician Pyeon, the renowned physician of the Cheonhwa Library.

The air between the two people facing each other was tense.

The old family head opened his mouth.

“You, of all people…”

The family head was about to pour out his anger and curse, but he managed to suppress it by taking a deep breath and then continued.

“When you express your opinion, shouldn’t you fully consider the person’s disposition and past events before speaking?”

“Family Head, this is the best we can do.”

Physician Pyeon argued without backing down.

The twitching of his eyes suggested that he would never back down.

“You’ve gone too far.”

“…”

“I know that the eldest asked for any restorative or spiritual medicine, whatever is good. As a grandfather, would I not want to get him anything?”

“…”

“I also know that his eating habits have changed greatly and he eats most things well. But shouldn’t we consider that he has a weak stomach? Just today, he couldn’t stand the stench and went outside in the morning. Well, that was also an act of trying to live, so I was pleased, but that’s that, and a weak stomach is a weak stomach.”

“I’m saying this because it’s not an ordinary spirit creature.”

Physician Pyeon did not back down from his assertion.

The old family head sighed.

“Yes, it’s not an ordinary spirit creature. That’s the problem. Isn’t it a very special spirit creature? Have you already forgotten that it’s a spirit creature that emits a stench so foul that it can contaminate the entire library by passing through the formations in the ground?”

The family head pointed to a black cloth bundle on one side, as if he were frustrated.

The material of the cloth was not ordinary.

It was a luxurious leather material that emitted a black luster, and something inside it was writhing, making the bundle squirm.

The family head continued.

“It goes without saying that the Hexagonal Eel is an amazing spirit creature. But the situation is different if it has to be consumed as fresh blood. Even someone who would chew on iron if it’s good for the body wouldn’t be able to stand the foul smell of the Hexagonal Eel, would they?”

The source of the stench was a spirit creature of the imugi type called the Hexagonal Eel.

They had managed to catch the cunning and fast Hexagonal Eel by driving it into an illusionary formation after digging up several formations, but even while catching it, the stench was so unbearable that several people fainted and many vomited, causing a huge commotion.

The Hexagonal Eel mainly lived deep underground and moved around, and it had an excellent talent for digging through the soil and escaping. Its size was about the length of an adult’s arm. It was called the Hexagonal Eel because its head had a hexagonal shape, but it was also called the Green Blood Eel.

This was because the snake’s outer skin was yellow on the head and red on the body, but strangely, its blood was green.

According to ancient texts, the Hexagonal Eel was one of the hundred great spirit creatures of the world, and its abilities were also amazing. It was known that if a martial artist consumed the green blood of the Hexagonal Eel, their internal energy would greatly increase, and they would also become immune to poison.

It was also recorded that if a non-martial artist consumed it, they would be free from minor illnesses for the rest of their lives. But the fatal difficulty was, of course, the smell.

The stench emitted by the Hexagonal Eel, even though it lived underground, was enough to cause immediate respiratory distress. The ancient texts recorded that no one had ever drunk the blood of the Hexagonal Eel,

because the smell of the green blood was even more foul than the smell of its outer skin, and even if one forced themselves to drink it, they would end up vomiting it all out.

There was also a problem with the method of consumption.

If the blood was squeezed into a bowl and drunk, the effect would be halved.

To get the maximum effect, the blood of the Hexagonal Eel had to be consumed before it was exposed to the outside air, so one had to put their mouth on the skin of the living Hexagonal Eel and suck the blood.

Physician Pyeon was insisting that his eldest grandson should drink the fresh blood of such a Hexagonal Eel, so the family head wondered what he was thinking.

“Family Head, it is one of the hundred great spirit creatures. A hundred-year-old wild ginseng or fleeceflower root is nothing but a bellflower compared to the Hexagonal Eel. If he just consumes it, the Eldest Young Master will live his whole life without knowing illness, so it is only right that the heir of the Cheonhwa Library should drink it.”

Physician Pyeon was still adamant.

The family head shook his head.

“What’s the use of any rare spiritual medicine if you can’t eat it? Although Beomhang’s appetite has increased and his eating habits have diversified now, this is not it. Who knows what kind of trouble will arise if we force him to consume the Hexagonal Eel? Bumong, what about you? Can you drink it?”

“Me?”

Bumong, who had been listening quietly on one side like a scarecrow, shuddered.

“Why are you doing this to me, grandfather?”

Bumong had been disgusted while catching the Hexagonal Eel, and he just wanted to get rid of it quickly.

“Did you see that?”

“Ugh, it’s not that I don’t understand, but it’s too wasteful to dispose of the Hexagonal Eel like this. Isn’t a spirit creature something you can’t get even if you pile up money?”

“Fine. Then let’s compromise like this. Find a way to consume the Hexagonal Eel without the stench, even if its medicinal effects are reduced.”

“Family Head, why don’t you recommend it to the Eldest Young Master first, and if he refuses, then we can find another way?”

“Ahem, you’ve become stubborn. I’m telling you it won’t work. The moment you open that leather, your mind will go blank!”

Just then, Yun rushed in with urgent footsteps.

“Grandfather!”

“What is it?”

“Eldest brother is furious right now.”

The family head’s eyes widened in surprise. The spark flew to Physician Pyeon.

“Did you hear that? To make him eat that is to fight with him…”

“Grandfather, that’s not it.”

“Huh?”

“Eldest brother is making a fuss, asking when he can eat the Hexagonal Eel and why it hasn’t been brought yet.”

“Whaaaat?”

A moment later.

The family head was dazed.

He couldn’t come to his senses. It was such an unbelievable sight that his eyes completely lost focus.

“Slurp, slurp, sluuuurp, sluuuurp!”

He hadn’t believed it even when he was told he was making a fuss,

This couldn’t be happening,

He had thought he would run out of the room, saying he couldn’t eat it,

But his eldest grandson was going crazy, sucking the blood of the Hexagonal Eel.

He himself could barely stand the stench, but his grandson was using all his strength, with the veins on his neck bulging and his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. He was putting so much effort into it that his face was flushed red, and it was quite scary.

The family head was not the only one who was surprised.

Physician Pyeon, who had actively recommended it, was also completely out of his mind, with his mouth agape like a fool, with a ‘what is this’ expression on his face.

Yun and Bumong, who were by his side to hold him down if he had a seizure, thought that the Hexagonal Eel had met its proper natural enemy.

A little while later, the plump Hexagonal Eel had shriveled up.

“Now it’s done…”

The family head couldn’t continue.

His eldest grandson didn’t take his mouth off.

The sucking sound continued.

Songhwa, who had been holding the head and tail of the Hexagonal Eel folded for easy drinking, grimaced and moved back, but he had a terrifying obsession to not leave even a single drop.

The Hexagonal Eel, completely drained of its blood, had its eyes go blank and ended its life. Even so, he didn’t take his mouth off. But at this point, it was safe to say that he had drunk it all.

Physician Pyeon quickly opened his mouth.

“Family Head, I have an urgent matter to attend to, so…”

“Where are you going?”

Physician Pyeon didn’t even finish his sentence and, without answering, kicked the door open as if to break it and left. The stench that already filled the room was no different from hell, so he had just left to find a way to live.

Songhwa followed him.

“F-family Head, me too…”

As soon as Songhwa uttered the word ‘go’, she disappeared from sight. The rest of her words were faintly heard from outside. Yun and Bumong also disappeared so quickly that it was hard to believe they were originally that fast.

But only the family head remained.

He had a worried expression on his face.

It was a stench that was hard to endure even for a moment, but his eldest grandson was calmly still holding the skin in his mouth, so he was worried that he might have a problem with his sense of smell and taste.

“My child, doesn’t it smell bad?”

“It’s foul. It’s truly incomparable to anything else.”

“But are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine…”

“Then that’s a relief!”

The family head, who had confirmed that there was nothing wrong, also immediately fled.

Hugong, left alone in the stench, frowned and smiled.

Why wouldn’t it smell bad to him too?

‘I feel like I’m going to die.’

It was just as hard to endure.

But this was a treasure that smelled.

He also knew about the Hexagonal Eel.

In the martial world, where they liked to rank everything, the Hexagonal Eel was ranked around twentieth in the ranking of spirit creatures.

Perhaps its ranking was pushed back because it was difficult to eat.

The efficacy of the Hexagonal Eel was comparable to that of Gongcheongseokyu, and another benefit was that it made one immune to all poisons, so it was not inferior to the ten great spirit creatures.

Now, he would be able to quickly approach Heoun and Tonggyeok, which followed Jeonhyeol among his body protection arts. It was also not impossible to raise the Formless Heaven and Earth Cultivation Art to the second level. At this rate, the possibility of reaching his original level of the twelfth level within five years had increased.

Just then, a thought suddenly came to his mind.

‘The Three Evils (三惡)?’

It was Beomhang’s knowledge, his memory.

The Three Evils were, along with the Hexagonal Eel, also known as the Three Great Stenches, and they were a spirit snake, a spirit herb, and a spirit insect.

Hexagonal Eel.

Yeongakcho (Spirit Evil Herb).

Dogyangchung (Poisonous Sun Insect).

The spirit snake was the Hexagonal Eel he had just consumed, the Yeongakcho was a plant, and the Dogyangchung was a type of insect. Hugong had never heard of the Yeongakcho and the Dogyangchung. But according to Beomhang’s memory, if one consumed all three of these evils, they would achieve an efficacy incomparable to when they were consumed one by one.

‘To think its abilities are almost on par with the five great spirit creatures.’

How foul.