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Chapter 27
“The poison once absorbed doesn’t easily leave the body — it lingers inside,”
Grandfather said, placing his large hand over his lower abdomen.
“But if you can’t control it, it’s useless. No matter how much poison accumulates in your body, it won’t matter. However—”
“However?”
“If you create your poison core and learn to handle toxins, then absorbing formless poisons will become a great opportunity for you.”
Grandfather reached into his sleeve and pulled out a small box.
It was tiny — perhaps the size of my palm at most.
But even without opening it, I could tell that whatever was inside wasn’t ordinary.
I swallowed nervously and waited as Grandfather lifted the lid.
Without hesitation, he opened it.
“Huh? What’s that?”
Inside was a round spiritual pill.
At first glance, it looked black.
But upon closer inspection, it wasn’t simply black — whenever Grandfather’s wrist moved or the box tilted, iridescent colors shimmered faintly across its surface.
It truly looked like a venomous substance.
Poisonous creatures like vipers often disguise themselves in dull colors, but when provoked, they reveal dazzling hues to threaten their enemies.
The pill in Grandfather’s hand was just like that — a presence that radiated intimidation.
It was majestic, mystical, and perilous all at once.
“This is the Gucheon Mandokdan — the Pill of Ten Thousand Poisons.”
“What…?”
Grandfather held the box out toward me.
I blinked, stunned, and took it carefully.
Gucheon Mandokdan?
I had heard of it.
It was the peer of Shaolin’s Daehwandan, Wudang’s Taecheongdan, and Mount Hua’s Jasodan — the supreme spiritual pill of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
But unlike other pills, the Tang Clan’s Gucheon Mandokdan was made through a unique and terrifying process.
As the name implied, it was forged by gathering nearly ten thousand poisons and refining them into one elixir.
Which meant, of course, that not just anyone could consume it.
A normal person — or even a martial artist of insufficient cultivation — would die almost instantly from poisoning as the toxins spread through the body.
While other elixirs granted power to anyone, the Gucheon Mandokdan could only be safely consumed by the world’s top masters — at least one of the Ten Great Experts under Heaven.
Only such a person could overcome the pill’s venom and absorb its energy.
This is the first time I’ve actually seen one, I thought.
Its surface gleamed with multicolored light, like a dark pearl.
Up close, it wasn’t purely black but faintly tinged with deep green — worthy of being called the essence of the Tang Clan.
“But why are you showing me this…?”
“I will give it to you.”
“What?”
“Not now, of course.”
Then why take it out at all?!
I stared blankly at Grandfather.
He extended his hand. “Give it here.”
Quickly, I placed the box back into his palm.
The little case vanished again into the sleeve of his dark green robe.
“If you succeed in forming your poison core quickly, I’ll grant you this Gucheon Mandokdan.”
I blinked and pointed at myself. “To… me?”
“Then who else? Your snake?”
“But that’s one of the Tang Clan’s greatest treasures!”
“They say only three people in a generation ever achieve immunity to all poisons.”
Grandfather shrugged, unconcerned.
“There are few in the clan who could even use the Gucheon Mandokdan properly. So it’s better to give it to a promising successor. Most great families do the same — producing one exceptional heir is worth more than raising a thousand mediocre ones.”
I blinked.
So he’s not just teaching me poison arts… he’s choosing me.
Is this really okay?
Ever since my past life, I’d been told again and again — women cannot learn poison arts.
And because of that old-fashioned family rule, all the women of the clan were forbidden from studying venom qi techniques.
But if Grandfather meant to give me the Gucheon Mandokdan…
Then he’s choosing me as his successor.
Only now did I fully grasp how incredible this situation was.
Until then, everything had felt distant, almost unreal.
Of course it had.
I had been murdered. I had lost my father.
The memories were still vivid — as if it had happened yesterday.
When I closed my eyes, I could still feel the Tang assassins encircling me; when I opened them, I half expected to see Tang Pae-jin glaring at me again.
My days had been peaceful, but never truly so.
Ever since I returned to my eight-year-old body, I had felt constantly anxious and precarious.
Naturally, I’d pushed thoughts of my new constitution aside — how extraordinary, how miraculous it really was.
Because saving Father comes first.
That was what mattered most — what couldn’t wait.
So I had ignored it.
But now, sitting face-to-face with Grandfather, it finally sank in.
The reality I’d been avoiding felt tangible on my skin.
“You were born with the perfect body to become a poison master,” Grandfather said. “And now you have a chance to absorb both the Blood Venom Spirit and the Formless Poison. You’re very fortunate.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
“But right now, there is no venom qi in your body at all, is there?”
“Because I have the Body of Ten Thousand Poisons Immunity, right?”
“Exactly. The poisons you absorbed simply vanished — you haven’t yet learned how to convert them into internal energy.”
He took my hand.
“What matters most comes next. Before the venom qi dissipates from your body, you must guide it inward and form your poison core.”
Those born with the Body of Ten Thousand Poisons Immunity had a choice:
To purify the venom into ordinary internal energy and store it in the lower abdomen…
Or to condense the venom itself, creating a second dantian — the poison core.
And my choice was obvious.
Of course, the latter!
I was the daughter of the Tang Clan.
My path was poison arts — and for that, I had to cultivate venom, not pure qi.
I clenched my fists and looked up at Grandfather.
“Do you think I can do it?”
“You will,” he said with quiet pride. “You are the daughter of the Great Tang Clan.”
“You said it would take about half a year, right?”
“It depends on the person. But Jin-hyun succeeded faster than anyone.”
Grandfather looked at me.
“Bring out Manhyeolsa.”
I patted my sleeve, and the little red snake poked its head out.
“Now I’ll teach you the incantation. Watch carefully and learn.”
“Yes!”
“Directing the venom is the key.”
“Understood! I’ll do my best!”
I replied as firmly as I could, and Grandfather smiled.
“Good. Let’s begin.”
The day of the Dokryonggak (Poison Dragon Hall) examination.
Normally, there were no spectators at such tests.
Naturally — it wasn’t a public event to be watched by everyone.
It was merely a trial to determine how the next generation of disciples would train their resistance to poison.
So usually, only the hall master, the vice master, and the examinees themselves attended.
But today was different.
The courtyard in front of Poison Dragon Hall was already crowded.
Servants, guards, and even the warriors of the Tang estate peeked in curiously.
The direct and branch disciples training in the hall were there too.
Everyone had gathered to witness today’s test.
Then, one boy whispered to another beside him.
“Did you hear? They say she formed her poison core in just a week.”
The boy was Tang Hyun-woo, a branch disciple studying at the hall.
The other boy nodded.
“Yeah, and they say it’s almost certain she has the Body of Ten Thousand Poisons Immunity.”
“As expected of the main bloodline… they really are on another level.”
The boys murmured among themselves, gazing toward the courtyard.
Usually, the exam would be held secretly inside the hall — but not today.
Acting Hall Master Tang Rip had decided to hold it outside, in full view.
It was likely because of the special circumstances — the test of someone with the Body of Ten Thousand Poisons Immunity, and because the examinee was the Tang Clan’s youngest daughter.
A girl could not learn poison arts.
That was the long-standing rule of the clan.
But today, an exception would be made.
Those gathered before the hall already suspected why Tang Rip had chosen such an open venue.
He wanted to show them.
To show everyone that a new exception to the Tang Clan’s laws would be born here and now.
Then—
“Look! Over there!”
The crowd stirred.
Soon, the spectators parted, forming a path.
And down that path walked a small, confident girl.
The star of today’s trial —
The youngest daughter of the Sichuan Tang Clan.
Tang Bi.
