Chapter 641
No further words were needed. My instincts knew before my thoughts did.
Rustle. Crunch.
Crossing through the grass laced with faint poison, we arrived at a clearing where light seeped through. And the moment we saw what lay before us, our jaws went slack in disbelief.
“This is…!”
Under the faint moonlight stretched a vast swamp.
And waiting for us there—were countless bodies wrapped tightly in translucent webs, hanging in midair, along with clusters of pale white eggs.
There are moments when simply witnessing something sends chills down your spine, when the hair on your body rises on its own—like the sight before my eyes now.
The faint moonlight pouring through trembling leaves looked mystical, like a scene from a legend, but it didn’t shine over a serene blue lake.
This was a swamp filled with darkness and cold dread. Dozens—no, hundreds—of massive cocoons wrapped in spider silk, and countless white eggs several times their number.
‘What the hell is this?’
An ominous question pressed down on my chest—one that I felt I shouldn’t know the answer to. Yet my hand, acting on instinct rather than reason, reached out toward the nearest cocoon.
Thud.
A repulsive sensation crawled through my fingertips—and at that moment, a system alert rang in my ears.
Beep. Ding.
– You have been poisoned by [Paralyzing Venom of the Thousand-Year Spider]!
– If not neutralized swiftly, you will fall into [Full-Body Paralysis] and [Unconsciousness]!
– The latent effect of [Ten Thousand Poisons Pearl] has been activated!
– All [Poison]-related status effects have been removed!
The tingling in my fingertips quickly faded, leaving behind a cool numbness.
The Ten Thousand Poisons Pearl was a divine relic capable of absorbing even formless toxins. No matter how deadly the Thousand-Year Spider’s venom was, it couldn’t harm me.
‘Still… if this web belongs to a Thousand-Year Spider…’
A thought flashed through my mind. I gripped the web tightly and tore it apart.
Crack. Rip.
The countless layers of webbing tore under my strength. And as the hidden figure within was revealed, the Beast Miao King beside me murmured under his breath.
“A person?”
He was right.
A man—face pale as paper, body utterly still.
After checking the man’s pulse, the Beast Miao King let out a breath of relief.
“Fortunate. He’s still alive.”
I had expected as much. The system message had already informed me: the Thousand-Year Spider’s venom didn’t kill outright.
And the reason was simple.
‘To keep the prey fresh. That way, they can feed whenever they wish.’
Now I understood why I had felt such dread the moment we entered this place.
‘A slaughterhouse.’
This swamp wasn’t just the spiders’ den—it was a slaughterhouse and a massive pantry.
At last, I recognized the thick scent of blood hidden beneath the stench in the air.
“These damn spiders. They’ve eaten plenty over the years.”
Hundreds—no, perhaps thousands.
If the Southern Barbarian Palace’s records were true about the Venom Sect creating this Poison-Blooded Land, then countless people must have perished here throughout the ages.
Ironically, that very habit of the Thousand-Year Spiders was the reason we could save so many today.
‘It makes sense now. More people disappeared than died.’
There had been three hundred elite soldiers stationed on Mount Aino.
The five Thousand-Year Spiders killed about a hundred of them on the spot to sate their hunger, then dragged the rest here.
Those people—who should have become the next meal—were the ones we were saving now.
“These monsters deserve to be torn apart!”
The Beast Miao King’s eyes burned red with fury. I held up a hand to calm him.
“Forgive me, but… you already tore them apart.”
“Still not enough! They should suffer more!”
I had no response to that. But anger wouldn’t help now—we needed to focus on saving lives.
A moment later, the Beast Miao King, having regained his composure, looked around with a grim face.
“To think they dared commit such atrocities.”
“Come to think of it,” I said, “you mentioned there hadn’t been any serious attacks before?”
“That’s true. Not once during my time as Palace Lord.”
“That’s odd. For five Thousand-Year Spiders to appear out of nowhere now—it feels deliberate.”
He fell silent at my words for a moment, then spoke quietly.
“…Dark Heaven. Do you believe this is their doing?”
I nodded without hesitation.
“Maybe not directly, but I’m sure they had a hand in it. For venomous creatures like these to attack people isn’t unusual—but given the timing, it’s hard not to suspect them.”
“But if it truly were Dark Heaven’s doing, they could have waited until after your departure. Causing chaos during the Great Tribal Assembly only hurts them.”
“True…”
My voice trailed off. His reasoning was sharp—and hard to deny.
‘He’s right. If I were Hong Ran, that damned woman, I wouldn’t have done this.’
The Southern Barbarian Palace’s alliance was already falling apart on its own. Dark Heaven had no reason to stir up trouble now.
‘Then why?’
Questions upon questions.
The sudden appearance of the Thousand-Year Spiders, the unseen Wraith of Mount Aino, and their possible ties to Dark Heaven—all of it was a tangled mess.
As I pondered, the Beast Miao King’s voice broke my thoughts.
“For now, we must move these people. It’s a miracle they’re still alive, but getting them out of this Poison-Blooded Land will be difficult.”
I replied after a moment.
“In my opinion, we should leave them where they are for now.”
“Leave them? Here?”
“…What do you take me for, a madman? Of course we’ll bring them to the Southern Barbarian Palace. I’ve already told Baekho to come for them—better to wait here. I just hope he understood.”
“You mean Muyaho. He’s a smart beast; he’ll understand.”
“…Why that face?”
“Ah, nothing. It’s just—never mind.”
Barely managed to stop myself from laughing. I still couldn’t get used to that name.
I steadied my expression and continued, “We should also leave the webs intact.”
“Because of the poison?”
“Yes. The journey back will be far worse than coming here.”
We’d have to move two hundred barely conscious people through the poisonous mist again. Even with the Ten Thousand Poisons Pearl, I couldn’t guarantee everyone’s safety.
Keeping them cocooned might actually be safer.
“Inside those webs, they’re protected from the poisonous miasma. If not, they’d already be dead.”
“Hmm. Perhaps the spiders’ venom neutralizes other toxins. Poison against poison.”
It was a cruel irony—what once served as their coffin now shielded them like a protective capsule.
Trying to detoxify everyone one by one would be pointless anyway.
At best, I could do this:
‘All right, open your eyes. Can you see my hand? How many fingers am I holding up?’
‘Ugh… one. Just one.’
‘Which finger?’
‘Middle.’
‘Correct. That means you’re fine.’
‘Wait, what does that—’
‘Just a test. Anyway, good news—you can see and hear again.’
‘Thank you, doctor!’
‘You’re welcome. Now, can you move your hands?’
‘Yes, I can.’
‘Good. You’ll need them soon. What’s your name?’
‘It’s… Jang Sam.’
‘Excellent. Then take this knife and write what I tell you on this plank.’
‘O-okay.’
‘Now repeat after me: “Here lies Jang Sam.”’
‘Huh?’
‘Didn’t want to alarm you, but we’ll soon head back the same way we came. And we’re out of antidotes. Don’t worry though—I’ve got the Ten Thousand Poisons Pearl.’
‘…’
‘I’m invincible. My relic’s divine.’
Yep. Two hundred people about to fight to the death for it.
Maybe even two hundred and one, if you counted the Beast Miao King and his top-tier antidote gourd.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked.
“Nothing.”
“Were you thinking of Dark Heaven again?”
“No, just… the sky.”
He blinked. “You really are insane.”
If this were the Team Leader, he’d have laughed. But as the Palace Lord, he just stared at me like I was the Thousand-Year Spider itself.
Still muttering, he began cutting down the hanging webs one by one.
Slice. Slice.
Each time his hand moved, another cocooned body dropped neatly into a pile.
Two hundred in total—almost exactly the number of warriors who’d vanished from Mount Aino.
‘Wait. What about the beasts?’
As I helped him move the survivors, a realization struck me. There were no beasts here.
No trace of the fierce animals that had once fought beside the warriors.
The Beast Miao King frowned as he came to the same conclusion.
“Strange. Not a single beast remains.”
“Are they the timid type? Maybe they ran off when they saw strangers?”
He turned and stared. “Do you even know what the word ‘beast’ means?”
Of course. Wild, savage animal. Which made it stranger still. There was no way so many beasts would abandon their masters.
‘And it’s not like the spiders would be picky eaters, either.’
I would know. After seven years living in Hope Gosiwon, I’d grown used to spiders—fed them instant noodles sometimes, even.
‘Then where did they go?’
We’d have to search deeper into the Poison-Blooded Land to find out. The spiders weren’t the type to sort their prey by species.
Just as we exchanged puzzled glances—
Rustle.
A faint sound echoed from the darkness, followed by a flicker of movement several dozen paces away.