#121. Addiction 1
“Khehehehehe… I heard you really like poison, so this is truly your kind of wish.”
Shintu, who had been questioning Geulhwang’s laughter, suddenly opened his eyes wide as if he finally understood the situation.
Then he shouted at me.
“Che, are you asking for the egg of the Heavenly Sleep!?”
Shinto looks at me with a bewildered expression.
When Shinto asked for confirmation again, he nodded his head to make sure he understood.
“Yes, sir. All three. The name is also nice. Cheonjam (天蠶)? Cheonjam···”
‘A silkworm that fell from the sky… It feels like it fell from the sky to me, so the name is perfect, right?’
Shintu turned his head and looked at Geulhwang with a blank expression at my continued answer.
It seemed like he wanted help, but when Geul-hwang saw that expression, he burst out laughing and rolled on the ground, holding his stomach.
He is said to be one of the greatest adults in the martial arts world, but he doesn’t seem to care about things like pride.
But he’s also a beggar, and I guess that’s part of his charm?
“Khehehe···. Look at that guy’s face. The best thief in the Central Plains is being taken advantage of by bandits. Khehehe···.”
The word ‘geopbi’ means ‘robbery’ in Chinese.
So, what Geul-Hwang meant was that I was now robbing Shin-Tu.
What does a day robbery feel like?
‘No, I’m a robber. How sad! How many animals have already died because I couldn’t even feed them? To be exact, it’s an animal rescue, or should I say a poison rescue?’
But calling it a robbery is absurd.
Because I am currently practicing the poison rescue with a heart of philanthropy.
Didn’t you say that several moth larvae have already died because you didn’t provide food for them?
In that case, he was not qualified to be the owner, so confiscation was appropriate.
Wouldn’t that be nothing short of toxic abuse?
‘Of course. A master who can’t even provide food is not fit to be a master.’
I looked at Shintu with an expression telling him to hurry up and come out, anticipating what kind of egg would pop out.
Then, the voice of Grandfather Mandokshingun is heard.
[I can’t believe I can see that kind of face from that old man. Good job, Soryong! Take it all away! Hahaha.]
I’m smiling happily at the thought of getting the egg of the thousand-year-old.
Geul-hwang smiled brightly at the sight of me and Shin-tu.
Grandfather Mandokshin-kun smiled brightly at the sight of Shinto.
A fun scene for everyone except Shinto.
Shintu shouted, stuttering his words in surprise.
“Hey, you. Did you hear me correctly when I said that I need the thread that Cheonjam makes? What am I supposed to do if I give you that!? It’s my sacred water!?”
“Can’t you? If you capture the Shinto, you can grant any wish… Didn’t you say earlier that you would grant any wish since you captured the disciple?”
“Ah, no, that is···.”
It seemed as if Shintu hadn’t heard the words that he would fix it, and he didn’t know what to do with my question since he had said something himself.
Even Geul-Hwang, who was nearby, chimed in with an excited expression.
“Don’t worry, So-ryong, I heard what that guy said. This Emperor will guarantee it.”
“Brother! Whose side are you on!?”
Then Shintu made a face that seemed aggrieved, but he shouted at me and took my side.
“Go! You idiot! The side… As an adult in the martial arts world like me, I have to be fair. Didn’t you clearly say that you would listen to anything with your own mouth?”
“Ugh···.”
I thought I would cry if I kept going like this, so I decided to explain it step by step.
Because just by looking at her, it felt like she was on the verge of crying.
‘A grown adult trying to squeeze out just a few eggs…’
“Elder Shintu, please listen carefully to my explanation. I am not trying to steal it from you. Didn’t you clearly tell me that in order to obtain the Cheonjamsa used as a sacred water, you had to pull out the Cheonjam thread?”
“That’s right. That’s why I asked you to give it to me.”
“Yes, but I don’t know how much you know about silkworms. Do you know that if you pull out silk from silkworms, the silkworms will surely die?”
Silkworm farming is a very old industry.
According to research conducted when explaining about moths, one of the poisonous creatures in a previous life, there is speculation that it may have started around 2500 BC.
It is generally believed that it started with the Bombyx Mandarina Butler moth, a pest of mulberry trees, and that it developed into what it is today as it was raised.
The problem is that while silkworms have become more docile and cute as they are raised, the method of extracting silk has not changed for 2,500 years.
The reason I want to get eggs from Shintu is because it’s poisonous, so I’m just greedy and do my best.
The biggest reason, I would say, is for the preservation of species.
‘True selfishness is very small···.’
As I said, the silkworm inevitably dies during the process of obtaining thread.
Fully grown silkworm larvae start their development by pulling out thread from the sac under their mouths and making an oval-shaped cocoon. The thread pulled out from this cocoon is the material used to make silk.
However, to extract thread from this cocoon, you have to put the cocoon in hot water and stir it with something like chopsticks.
This is the traditional and still-standing process of pulling out thread, where the end of the thread that the silkworm first pulled out is caught on the chopsticks and the thread is pulled out from there.
The problem is that it is like putting a cocoon in boiling water, so the silkworm larvae die inside the cocoon without even being able to emerge as moths.
Of course, since Cheonjam is a spirit, the material of the thread itself will definitely be different, but the protein that maintains the shape of the cocoon will not be much different, so the method will not be much different.
Shinto nodded his head to my question, wondering if he had heard that.
“Yes, I heard that from the craftsmen of the temple.”
“Yes, because usually, to pull out the thread while sleeping, you boil it in water.”
There is a reason why this method has been passed down: silkworm silk is surprisingly 100 percent protein.
It is composed of two proteins called fibroin and sericin. Fibroin is the thread itself, and sericin is the glue that holds the thread together and maintains the shape of the cocoon.
However, this method was used because sericin, the glue that keeps the kochi round, dissolves well in hot water.
It is a process of melting the grass and harvesting it by leaving only the thread.
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You might ask, “Why can’t we just pull out the thread after the moth emerges from the cocoon after it has hatched?” However, in that case, the thread on the side where the moth emerged will inevitably break, so this method was established to obtain the longest thread possible.
So, the pupae sold in Korea in the previous life were the remains of silkworms that were left after the silk was pulled out in this hot water, and they were traces of the poor silkworms that met a tragic death.
“Then wouldn’t the precious spirit die?”
“No, if I don’t kill him, I can’t pull out the thread. So what should I do?”
‘No, this guy is like boiling a silkworm···.’
It’s the same as the ancient punishment of boiling people to death, but Shinto doesn’t know the problem.
And beyond that, I decided to improve his short-sighted thinking.
“Oh my, you didn’t realize that you were at a huge crossroads?”
“At a crossroads?”
“Yes, I heard there are only three eggs left. I don’t know how much thread you need, but if you take the amount of cocoons you can get from three eggs, it’s only three. What are you going to do next?”
“from now on?”
Shintu blinked at my question.
He continued with a smile.
“Fortunately, the amount of thread from the three kochis was not small, so let’s say he passed it on to his disciple. Then, what about his disciple’s disciple? His disciple’s disciple’s disciple? His disciple’s disciple would probably become a divine being without water, right?”
“Huh! Oh, I see!”
Only then did Shintu realize the problem and opened his eyes wide like a rabbit in surprise.
Shintu didn’t seem to know, but as a teacher, he had to save Cheonjamsa right away, but he also had to attack Cheonjam and secure the egg.
For the sake of future generations.
I don’t know how durable it is, but if not, the next Shinto will definitely be a Shinto without a soul.
“Then what should we do!?”
Only then did he realize the situation, his voice becoming urgent.
‘I’m almost there. Why does my IQ seem to go up whenever I come across poison?’
Strangely, when associated with poison, the IQ soars like a cockroach in danger of survival.
I explained to the king everything that came to mind.
“That’s why I’m asking for eggs. Catch a pair and sleep in a thousand sleeps. If you receive eggs and increase the number, wouldn’t it be helpful for the next generation of Shinto and the next generation of Shinto?
From what I’ve heard, you are a person who doesn’t have a home and travels around the Central Plains like the wind. Do you have a place where you can secretly call Cheonjam? It might take several years or more.
If you can’t do it yourself and you have to leave it to someone else, can you trust them?
“Will it be successful?”
It takes strength to keep a secret, and that strength lies in our Sacheondang family.
Well, we’ll end up sharing the Cheonjamsa, but Shintu will be able to supply Cheonjamsa whenever it’s needed, and our Sacheondang family will be able to secure the poison called Cheonjam by having Cheonjamsa. It’s a win-win deal for both of us.
‘Honestly, this shouldn’t be considered a wish, but I think it was a great act of kindness.’
Shinto took a deep breath as if trying to make up his mind and looked at me with a more serious expression than usual.
“Do you really think you can succeed?”
He seemed a little worried, but the comment he was going to make around this time was, of course, set.
“Elder, have you ever heard of the term expert?”
“expert?”
“Specialist (專門家) is a word that refers to a family and person who is skilled in only one thing.
For example, you could say that Sacheondangga is an expert in poison.”
“Oh… But?”
“The moment I became the son-in-law of the Sacheon Dang family. The Sacheon Dang family is an expert in poisons and poisonous substances. It would be impossible for anyone other than me to obtain Cheonjam.”
The elders of the family nodded and smiled happily at my confident words.
And Hwa-eun’s mouth was half open and wouldn’t close at my confident comment.
‘Wow. This younger man’s appearance stimulates my protective instincts, but he occasionally shows this professional demeanor. I’m sick of it!’
The gaze that feels like I’ve finally managed to charm Hwa-eun again today.
When I turned my head, Shintu was making the same expression as Hwaeun.
‘No, sir, please be patient.’
It was a really burdensome gaze.
***
“Yeah, here it is.”
-Click.
Shinto seemed to be a more fiery person than he had thought, and once he had made up his mind, he silently took out a rather large weapon from his bosom and placed it on the table.
-Ouch.
A weakness that was pushed towards me as if it was a result of martial arts.
I opened the lid with trembling hands and found three pills the size of ping-pong balls inside.
“Oh, this is it!”
‘This is crazy! What’s so big about this!’
Judging by the size of the eggs, I have a feeling that the adult size will be no joke.
Even a rough calculation would estimate that the size of an adult moth is greater than the size of a human head and body.
[Little Dragon!?]
When I came to my senses at the sudden sound of Hwa-eun’s voice, I found myself rubbing the egg on my cheek without realizing it.
He was so surprised that he put the egg down and went back into serious mode.
“Ahem. The eggs are so beautiful that I can’t even think straight for a moment… Oh, and would you mind giving me the dead ones too? It would be helpful information to help me figure out what kind of guys they are.”
“Is that so? Can you tell that from the body of a loyal person? Yes, here it is.”
When I opened the small pouch that was being pushed towards me, what came out were seven poor silkworms.
They were quite cute and slender, but their pure white bodies must have shrunk a bit.
‘Let’s see. Huh? There’s an Osmeterium?’
The osmetrium is a horn found in the larvae of some butterflies that protrudes when touched and emits a foul odor.
It was a time when I was amazed at the fact that moth larvae had it.
[Little Dragon, come to think of it, I need to use that old man for something, but tell him I can’t help you right now.]
A message from my grandfather telling me that he can’t help me right now.
As I pretended to look at the dead Cheonjam and moved my eyes towards my grandfather, my grandfather spoke again.
[I have to go to the Murim Alliance right now, but I’m three days late because of that guy. So I have to make him take responsibility. There’s an adult named Geulwang, and if you tell him about it, he’ll definitely help you. It’s important to Murim. Tell him about it.]
Well, I had decided not to go, but it is true that other people’s journeys were delayed.
He nodded at his grandfather’s words, putting Weakness and Cheonjam’s corpse into his pocket.
“Ahem···. I see···.”
“What did you find out!?”
Shintu asks urgently as I make a move that seems to suggest that I have figured something out.
He spoke in a regretful voice, just as his grandfather had said.
“No. I will look into it later, but I don’t think I can help you right now.”
“Huh? What the hell are you talking about, you idiot! I gave you the sleep you asked for, and now you’re coming!”
I explained the situation to Shintu, who was shouting angrily, just as my grandfather had said.
“Actually, I had to go to the Murim Alliance because the elder sent me a letter, but I ended up being three days late.”
“The Murim Alliance?”
When I heard about the Murim Alliance, even Geulhwang was watching my story.
When we explained what happened in Yunnan and why we had to go to the Murim Alliance, Geulhwang jumped up from his seat.
“So that happened!”
“Yes, so I have to report the matter of the Blood Cult urgently now, but it’s been delayed by a few days due to the letter from the elder Shintu···.”
“Then this is not the time! I also knew that the people of the Murim Alliance and the warriors crossed the border of Yunnan to find the base of the Blood Cult. They are all dead!”
Geulhwang hit Shintu on the back.
-match!
“Ugh! Why are you hitting my back!”
“Isn’t it because of you that we’re late! As soon as your disciple’s body recovers, take Little Dragon and the daughter of the Beast Palace and leave for Wuhan! Wouldn’t it have taken three days for you?”
“Hey, since it’s work in the martial arts world, I have no choice but to help. I understand. Ten days should be enough to get there and back. I’ll take responsibility for coming and going to Muhan, so don’t worry and just focus on that heavenly sleep.”
‘No, it only takes three days from here to Muhan!?’
I got a ticket to the Murim Bullet Taxi along with three Eggs of Heavenly Sleep.
