The RoFan Novel Fan Has Reincarnated Into A Martial Arts Novel-Chapter 29
Chapter 29: The Legend of the Sichuan Tang Clan, The Poison Master
“I....”
Gongye, Baek Ju-a, and even Baek Cho-un were staring at her with burning anticipation.
This is your chance, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ Tang benefactor!
Swallowing nervously, Tang Soso finally spoke up.
“Y-yes! I’m the spy!”
“You should’ve said that earlier. Are you an idiot?”
Seong-oh stepped forward and untied Tang Soso’s ropes. As she quietly rubbed her wrists, he spoke again.
“Bring some food.”
“...What?”
“I thought you were slow, but now I’m sure of it. I said bring food. And if there’s alcohol, bring that too.”
Gongye desperately wiggled his eyebrows. If only he could send a telepathic message! Fortunately, Tang Soso picked up on the hint again.
“O-oh! Right! I’ll go get it right away!”
Perfect. Absolutely perfect! You fools—asking someone from the Tang Clan to bring food? You’ll soon see who the real idiot is, you bloodthirsty bastards from the Unorthodox Faction!
Tang Soso awkwardly got to her feet and started heading toward the door.
“Hey!”
“Yes?”
“Don’t go alone.”
Seong-oh jerked his chin, signaling one of his men to follow her. The man sighed, unable to fully hide his annoyance, and trailed behind her.
A short while later, Tang Soso and the man returned, each carrying a large tray and several bottles of alcohol. The food on the tray was similar to what Baek Cho-un had gathered earlier.
“Uh... There’s not much alcohol left. I brought whatever was left over, but...”
“...What?”
Seong-oh frowned, his expression shifting as if he had just realized something.
Then, Gongye’s head exploded in pain.
A sharp cracking sound rang through the air.
“You! You little bastard! You drank it all, didn’t you?”
WHAM. WHAM.
Seong-oh struck Gongye again and again, then, still unsatisfied, started kicking him.
“Ugh!”
“This bastard drank four bottles all by himself. I swear, I want to kill him.”
So it was four bottles.
Realizing this, Gongye shuddered internally.
Still, beating someone like this over alcohol? The cruelty of these Unorthodox bastards knows no bounds.
As Gongye hunched over, trying to endure the pain, the men of the Unorthodox Faction sat down and began setting up their meal.
There didn’t seem to be any strict hierarchy among them, as Seong-oh was the first to pour himself a drink.
“Brother, I’ll have a glass first.”
“Go ahead. I’m eating first. Drinking on an empty stomach isn’t good for me.”
“With a body like yours, it’s weirder that you even have a weak stomach.”
The small cup slowly moved toward Seong-oh’s lips.
Gongye and the Baekha siblings pretended to look away, but their attention was laser-focused on that single moment.
That’s right. Just a little more... Just a little more...!
The cup paused briefly right in front of Seong-oh’s lips.
Then, without hesitation, he tilted it back and drank.
Gulp.
Gongye held his breath, suppressing the urge to sigh in relief. Baek Ju-a’s long eyelashes trembled ever so slightly.
“Ahhh! That’s the stuff!”
With that satisfied exclamation, the men of the Unorthodox Faction began freely indulging in their food and drinks. Even the so-called elder brother finished his meal and started drinking.
“Hey, you. Come here.”
At Seong-oh’s gesture, Gongye crawled forward on his knees.
WHAM!
A hard kick sent him flying backward.
“Again.”
Gongye dragged himself forward again.
WHAM!
“You bastard, again!”
As his knees scraped against the rough floor, Gongye held back his tears.
Why the hell are they doing this to me? Drinking alcohol is such a big crime? Even a thieving monk wouldn’t get beaten this badly!
As he crawled forward again, he was relieved to hear a voice instead of another kick this time.
“You’re from the Martial World, aren’t you?”
A martial artist? Am I a martial artist? The Shaolin Temple is technically part of the Martial World, so I guess that makes me one. But do monks even count?
Lost in pointless thoughts, Gongye was caught off guard as Seong-oh continued.
“I figured. That’s why I poisoned you with Internal Energy Sealing Poison.”
“...Oh, so that’s why...”
Gongye belatedly checked his own body.
He had heard of it before—poison that sealed a person’s internal energy, rendering them unable to use martial arts.
But this was his first time experiencing it.
The secular world is full of strange things.
Even in his current situation, he remained lost in thought, earning a sneer from Seong-oh.
“Clearly, you’re not from the Unorthodox Faction. You must be from the Orthodox Sect. It must be killing you to be at our mercy like this.”
As Gongye processed that, he recalled the history between the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions.
The great war that once shook the Martial World—The Orthodox-Unorthodox War.
Back then, the Orthodox Sect, led by the Wudang and Mount Hua Sects, waged a battle of destiny against the Unorthodox Faction.
In the end, the Unorthodox Faction was defeated. However, both Wudang and Mount Hua suffered so much damage that they were forced to close their doors.
To this day, those two sects remained closed, which led to the rise of powerful noble families like the Namgung Clan.
That was about as much as Gongye knew.
“You know why people like us are still around?”
“...Huh?”
“The big shots in your Orthodox Sect. If they really wanted to, they could’ve wiped us out completely. So why are we still here?”
“...Why are you asking me—AARGH!”
Seong-oh smacked him across the back of the head again before answering his own question.
“It’s because they need us. Whenever those high-and-mighty Orthodox nobles need to do something dirty, they turn to us.”
His men laughed heartily as the alcohol started taking effect.
“Especially that bastard who leads Red Flower Gate. I’ll bet you anything he’s not actually Orthodox.”
“Seong-oh, you saying he’s Unorthodox?”
“Nah, you idiot. A bastard like that couldn’t ever be one of us.”
“Hahaha!”
As raucous laughter filled the room, Gongye noticed Tang Soso moving ever so subtly.
She’s making her move. The poison should be kicking in right about now!
Just then, the door burst open.
A man with a scarred face stepped inside, followed by someone else.
It was Baek Ju-a’s former maid—Jeong.
“Boss! This wench says she’s the real spy. Apparently, she got caught and tied up earlier!”
The room fell silent in an instant.
“...What did you just say?”
At Seong-oh’s words, the entire Unorthodox group turned to stare at Tang Soso. She froze awkwardly in place.
“Then what the hell is that?”
Seong-oh gestured toward Tang Soso, and Jeong immediately shouted.
“H-her? She’s from the Sichuan Tang Clan! I am the real spy!”
“...What? The Sichuan Tang Clan?”
The atmosphere turned ice-cold in an instant.
At that moment, Gongye, who had been suppressing himself all this time, suddenly shot to his feet.
“Ha! Hahahaha! That’s right! She’s a proud member of the legendary Sichuan Tang Clan! Your Unorthodox Faction is as good as finished!”
“...Wait. So, what exactly did we just eat?”
Seong-oh’s sharp voice rang out as he turned toward the man who had followed Tang Soso into the kitchen.
“Hey! Did that wench put anything weird in the food?”
“I—I didn’t really see, boss. She just said it was seasoning, so...”
“You absolute moron!”
Just then, one of the seated men clutched his head.
“Ugh... I suddenly feel kinda dizzy...”
Gongye, giddy with excitement, shouted triumphantly.
“Bwahaha! You fools are about to see the depths of hell! Lady Tang must have poisoned you all with an extremely lethal toxin... Yes! That’s it! Seven-Step Soul-Shattering Powder!”
“S-Seven-Step Soul-Shattering Powder...!”
The moment the name was spoken, sheer terror filled the eyes of the man who had just complained of dizziness.
This poison was said to kill a person before they could even take seven steps.
“No! I can’t die like this! M-Mommy!”
Completely losing his mind, the man shot to his feet and bolted for the door.
But just as he was about to step outside—he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
“...Wait a second. Didn’t I just walk seven steps?”
“Uh... Yeah. Actually, it was eight.”
“I saw it too.”
All eyes turned toward Gongye.
A cold sweat trickled down his back, all the way to his tailbone, but he forced out a confident laugh.
“Ha! Hahaha! My mistake! It must have been Ten-Step Soul-Shattering Powder! A mere slip of the tongue! Bwahaha!”
The man hesitated, then took another step forward, his whole body trembling in fear.
One step.
Two steps.
Then—three.
Nothing.
“...The hell?”
“...What?” freewebnσvel.cѳm
“...Uh. I was hanging around those Japanese guys yesterday. Anyway, is he dead?”
“If he was, would he still be standing like that?”
Once again, all eyes turned to Gongye.
Naturally, his gaze then shifted toward Tang Soso.
“L-Lady Tang... What’s going on here?”
Tang Soso shrank under the attention and muttered in a small voice.
“Uh... Sorry, but... that Seven-Step Soul-Shattering Powder thing doesn’t actually exist.”
“...Then what the hell did you put in the food?”
“Just a mild paralytic...”
“...Wait, why?! And it doesn’t even seem to be working!”
“Well... If you use too much, people can die. So I was just being careful, but, um...”
Tang Soso lowered her head in shame.
Gongye swayed, suddenly feeling like he had just downed an entire bottle of paralytic himself.
“...Unbelievable.”
Before he could recover, something came flying at the back of his head with brutal force.
Seong-oh’s palm.
“You goddamn idiot!”
A short while later, Tang Soso found herself in the same position as Gongye—tied up tight, sitting on the floor.
Even Baek Ju-a and Baek Cho-un looked too stunned to process what just happened.
How... how did it come to this?
For the first time in ages, Gongye found himself reciting Buddhist scriptures in his mind. It was the only thing keeping him from completely losing it.
But no matter how much he chanted, the frustration just wouldn’t go away.
In the end, he turned to Tang Soso with a sigh.
“Haha... Our dear Tang benefactor, you are truly a remarkable woman. Sparing poison because you were worried about these criminals? If that isn’t the mark of a living saint, I don’t know what is! I should be the one heading to a temple—not you, Lady Tang.”
“Huh? Oh... T-thank you?”
She bowed her head sincerely, her face full of innocence.
...She actually thinks I was complimenting her.
Gongye suddenly felt something boiling up inside him.
He turned his head and looked in the direction of Sichuan—where the Tang Clan resided.
Sichuan Tang Clan... You truly are extraordinary. You have created the ultimate poison. Not one that kills with venom, but with sheer frustration. This is it. This is the deadliest poison of all—one that shatters a man’s soul from the inside out. Tang Soso... you are the true Poison Master of legend!
He sensed Baek Cho-un sneaking glances at him, but he ignored it.
He was too busy sending his deepest respects—or rather, curses—toward the Tang Clan.
Right then, Seong-oh called out to him.
“You. Bastard.”
Gongye flinched and immediately started crawling forward on his knees. He had laughed way too loud earlier, and he knew it.
“Y-you called for me, sir?”
“...I barely drank anything, but I feel like I’m getting tipsy. Did that damn wench put something in my drink?”
His gaze was sharp, his face slightly flushed.
“...Say something. Like you did before.”
“...I-I apologize, sir. I merely wished to liven the mood. I had no other intentions, I swear.”
“You sure ran your mouth earlier. Talking about how the Unorthodox Faction was ‘finished’ and all that.”
“Y-you must have misheard me. I clearly said that the great warriors of the Unorthodox Faction would prevail.”
“You little—”
Before Seong-oh could slap him, someone else beat him to it.
SMACK!
It was the man who had panicked and tried to run earlier.
“You bastard! Do you have any idea how humiliated I feel?!”
“You really wanted to see your mom back there, huh?”
“Pffft—hahaha!”
His comrades immediately burst into laughter, making his face turn bright red with embarrassment.
Consumed by anger, he stomped toward Gongye and started kicking him.
“You son of a bitch! I’ll kill you!”
“Damn right! My heart almost stopped because of him!”
Another man joined in, kicking Gongye mercilessly.
Curled up on the ground, Gongye did his best to protect his vital spots.
The beating grew more and more brutal.
Finally, Baek Cho-un couldn’t take it anymore and shouted.
“Stop it, you filthy bastards!”
Seong-oh immediately turned, marching straight toward Baek Cho-un.
Before anyone could stop him, he swung his leg.
WHAM!
Baek Cho-un was sent flying.
“Ugh...!”
“This little brat just won’t learn.”
Seong-oh clicked his tongue, then looked toward his so-called elder brother.
“Boss, don’t stop me. We only need the Baek family girl alive. That’s what I was told.”
“...Tch. Do what you want. I don’t care anymore.”
The elder brother, full and satisfied from his meal, simply lay down.
Seong-oh pulled a dagger from his belt.
“You’re dead, kid.”
“No! Please, don’t!”
Baek Ju-a screamed.
At that moment—
Something grabbed Seong-oh’s ankle.
“...What the hell?”
It was Gongye.
The man who had just been beaten half to death... was still alive and kicking.
