Chapter 439: Don't Tell Me Father is a Gatherer Too?

TL: FoodieMonster007

Father is here?

The Poison King plays the most crucial role in Father's unification of the murim. Father had come one step ahead of me to meet him.

Despite that, I felt a pleasant tension rather than worry. It felt different from before. If he had been testing me until now, this time I felt he intended to have a contest with me. It must mean he acknowledges me that much.

If that's the case, I should enjoy this contest with my father.

This whole process is a memory with my father, and it's my life. I always promise myself this. I won't live a life solely for revenge. One such life is enough. In this life, I'm going to enjoy myself, even a contest like this with my father.

I spoke loudly enough for my voice to be heard inside the building.

"Father, your son is here! Please let me in, too."

Sangseon looked flustered. I was probably the only person in the world who would shout at the Heavenly Demon like this. The Young Cult Leader is truly an incorrigible person. As I was looking at Sangseon's expression, my father's voice came from inside.

"Come in."

It was a strange situation.

Normally, the Poison King should have been the one to speak. He should have said something like, 'On behalf of the Cult Leader, I will escort the Young Cult Leader inside.' For Father to personally tell me to come in?

When I opened the door and went inside, an unexpected scene unfolded. From that sight, I could understand why Father had answered instead of the Poison King.

The Poison King was concocting a poison, and my father was helping him. It was a scene I could have never imagined, so I just stared blankly. In front of the Poison King was the vat he used to concoct poisons. Floating around it were a dozen or so bottles.

The person keeping those bottles afloat in mid-air was none other than my father. He was helping with the poison concoction using telekinesis from a spot far removed from the poison's range of influence. It was a distance as far away as the entrance where I stood.

"Black, a little more, please!"

GLUG.

"Green, stop!"

As he commanded, liquid poured from the floating bottle with the black paper label. The bottle with the green paper label stopped pouring its contents.

"This time, pour the blue, red, and purple simultaneously."

At that, the blue, red, and purple bottles floating in the air tilted at the same time, pouring out the liquids inside.

SSSSSSS.

Smoke rose from the mixed poison.

Even as he spoke, the Poison King's hands moved busily. Amidst the rising poisonous fumes, he stirred the concoction with a wooden stick and added other poisonous substances.

It was truly a magnificent sight. It might not look like much at a glance, but both my father and the Poison King were displaying their highest level of skill and concentration.

"Blue, stop for a moment! Brown instead."

Once again, at the Poison King's command, the blue bottle stopped and the brown bottle moved.

The level at which my father handled objects with telekinesis was truly exquisite and precise. It felt as if he had bestowed life and will upon the bottles.

The Poison King watched the falling liquid intently, mixing in powders to match.

The only person who could withstand the poison generated in this process was the Poison King. That was why he usually did this work alone.

Pouring this, mixing that. It was a truly dangerous and complex process underway when suddenly…

"Stop everything!"

At the Poison King's shout, all the bottles floating in the air stopped at once.

A single drop that shouldn't have gone in splashed and fell toward the vat.

The next moment, that single drop stopped in mid-air.

Father had stopped it with telekinesis.

Silence descended. With a single drop of liquid suspended in the air, it felt as if time had stopped.

It then flew back through the air and returned to its original bottle.

That was the moment the Poison King's poison concoction was finally complete.

The Poison King's face was flushed. He didn't even know I had come in. He was focused solely on the poison.

More than the fact that he was concocting a poison with my father, his desire to complete the poison was paramount. I knew very well that he never had any thoughts of doing things out of courtesy to the Cult Leader.

The Poison King took out the concocted poison, smelled it, and performed a few tests.

Is the Poison King in his own world right now, or is he in reality? I could always guess where the Poison King stood, but right now, I felt I couldn't tell.

After finishing a few checks, the Poison King's expression brightened. He announced with a face full of joy.

"Success."

The Poison King was truly, genuinely happy.

"It was mixed properly this time. I kept failing on my own, but thanks to the Cult Leader's help, I succeeded."

This, I believe, is the Poison King's greatest strength. For the sake of poison, he willingly accepts help from others. Asking the Demonic Buddha to dig up poisonous herbs is one example, and receiving help from my father today is another.

A person who easily gets lost in his own world might have put up a front of useless pride and been stubborn. However, he surprisingly has no such ego.

That's why I think the Poison King is a frightening person. Because he is someone you cannot define.

"Huh? When did you get here?"

The Poison King finally noticed me. He wasn't pretending not to see me. He had been so frighteningly focused on concocting the poison.

"I arrived a while ago."

"I succeeded in concocting the Myriad Deaths Poison."

"Congratulations."

The Myriad Deaths Poison was a new poison created by the Poison King, one he had failed to concoct dozens of times. Sangseon had helped, but as seen earlier, the process of mixing the poison was extremely tricky and difficult, making it hard to create. Yet, he had succeeded with my father.

"What a shame! I should have been the one to help you succeed."

"Then you would have failed again today."

This was the Poison King's way of thanking my father.

I belatedly greeted my father.

"It seemed you were in the middle of something important, so my greeting is late."

I must not forget. The one who let me in here was my father. He intended to show me the sight of him and the Poison King concocting a poison.

"I didn't know you were here."

"I was just passing by."

Father, do you know that everyone's fate changes drastically every time you 'just pass by'? Please don't ever say you should stop by the Murim Alliance!

I pictured a scene of myself and my father standing on a giant Go board.

In this phase of the game with the Poison King, the move my father just played was the 'poison concoction' move.

What conversation did Father and the Poison King have before I arrived? Did he ask him to look after me again? Or was he trying to firmly nail down the Poison King as his man?

"I've returned safely from the North Sea."

"Is that so?"

The Poison King answered my greeting perfunctorily. He was staring in wonder at the poison he had completed. He was completely engrossed in it. He was only bothering to answer and ask questions because my father was present.

"Did you get the poisonous herbs that only grow in the North Sea?"

"Well, I tried, but…"

I had actually looked for poisonous herbs from time to time on my way back. However, I couldn't find any worthy of being a gift.

"I think the poisonous herbs get shy and hide whenever they see me. It's all your fault, Father. I'm just too handsome, having taken after you."

A sneer formed on my father's lips. Seeing that sneer after so long made me feel good. Please smile often like that, Father. For now, please keep giving me tests rather than contests.

"Father, why don't you go out to gather poisonous herbs with the Poison King next time? Surely he won't be able to use you as a gatherer too."

I had intended it as a joke, referencing how he'd used a bet to make the Demonic Buddha his gatherer, but my father threw an unexpected question at the Poison King.

"When was that?"

At the random question, the Poison King paused to recall his memory.

"Four years and seven months ago."

"Has it been that long already?"

With a feeling of 'no way,' I looked back and forth between the two of them and asked.

"Don't tell me that four years and seven months ago was the day you two gathered poisonous herbs together?"

I could tell from the expressions on their faces as they looked at each other. That 'no way' was, in fact, true.

Father often surprises me, but this time, I was truly shocked. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't picture my father and the Poison King gathering poisonous herbs together.

Moreover, the Poison King remembered that last day precisely.

It meant that it was a precious moment for him as well. It was also a moment that made me think winning the Poison King over to my side would be anything but easy.

Suddenly, the words of the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon came to mind.

[The Cult Leader will be just as difficult to persuade.]

Somehow, I think my case will be even more difficult.

Just then, my father bid his farewell.

"I'll be on my way now."

At that, the Poison King bowed politely and respectfully. He didn't thank him again for helping with the poison concoction.

However, I had a feeling that if Father ever asked, When was that?, the Poison King would remember this very moment today and answer precisely.

Before leaving, my father looked at me. His gaze was saying this.

My move is over. Now it's your turn.

I could feel my father's confidence.

From my father's unique way, free of checks or coercion, I realized once again that composure comes from strength.

As soon as my father left the residence, I immediately asked the Poison King.

"Did you ask him to help with the poison concoction first? Is that why Father came?"

"I wouldn't dare. I was just about to concoct a poison when the Cult Leader arrived without notice. I was going to postpone it, but he offered to help."

He wouldn't have displayed that same level of concentration on the poison from the very beginning. They must have had some conversation during the preparation process.

"May I ask what you and Father talked about today?"

Then, a surprising answer came out.

"He didn't say anything."

"You mean he didn't say a single word?"

The Poison King nodded. He had come, helped with the poison concoction, and left just like that.

I could feel that this was a more powerful blow than persuading the Poison King with all sorts of words.

You just do that and leave? How am I supposed to win?

Trying to say anything contrary to my father's will to the Poison King right now would only be counterproductive.

Because my hundred words of flattery could never beat this heavy blow from my father, who helped with the poison concoction without saying a single word.

"I'll be going for today as well. I'm in the middle of a strategic retreat."

Still, I couldn't just leave, so I hinted that my reason for coming today wasn't just for a greeting.

It must have been a rather random remark, but the Poison King didn't ask what it meant. Father came, and then I came. He must have sensed that something was happening. For some reason, the Poison King stopped me.

"Since you're here, help me with something before you go."

"Just say the word."

"Let's bottle this poison first."

The Poison King brought a box. Inside were a dozen or so bottles, and the box was structured to store them without breaking. These specially made bottles were designed to be sealed perfectly so that no poison could leak out.

"I'll bottle it. You can rest."

The Poison King perched on a desk a short distance away and watched me silently.

I divided the Myriad Deaths Poison into the bottles. The poison filled exactly ten bottles. I could tell that he had intended to concoct exactly this one box's worth from the start. If the concoction hadn't been a success, it would have been too little or too much.

How many people could be killed with this poison? Hundreds? Thousands?

"Pack that up and follow me."

I put the bottles of poison back into the box. Carrying the box, I followed the Poison King.

The Poison King headed deep into the Thousand Poisons Forest.

I had wandered around here with him looking for poisonous herbs before. However, the place he took me to today was one I had never been to.

The Poison King forged a path where there was none, going deep into the forest.

Was there a place like this in the Thousand Poisons Forest?

As if we had entered a new section within the Thousand Poisons Forest, the place was filled with all sorts of poisonous creatures and plants that were more venomous and dangerous than those outside.

Moreover, the area we were walking through was a swamp. It was no ordinary swamp. It was a swamp of death from which a person could never escape if they fell in.

The mist that spread like a fog over the swamp was also mixed with poison.

Truly, this place needed no one to guard it, nor did it need any formations.

A place that no one could ever enter unless they had Myriad Poison Immunity or were the Poison King.

I crossed the swamp by stepping on the same stones and branches as the Poison King.

TSTSTSTS!

Strange sounds came from all directions, and as we walked, the Poison King would stop to examine the condition of the poisonous creatures. With a boyish face, he would explain to me what kind of creature it was and its current state. That one was angry because it couldn't find a mate, or that one was sick somewhere. He recognized things an ordinary person could not.

After passing through the swamp, there was a cave.

The cave was also full of poisonous things. If it weren't for the two of us, even an ordinary master would not have been able to take a single step into this cave.

At the end of the cave was a heavy iron door. When the Poison King opened the locked door and we entered, we found ourselves in a large warehouse.

The moment I stepped inside, I was overwhelmed by the sight that unfolded within.

The vast space was filled with bottles. There were hundreds of shelves, and bottles were placed upon them. I could tell. Everything in these bottles was poison. It was an enormous quantity, numbering over several thousand.

"All of our Cult's poisons are stored here."

This was the secret warehouse where the deadliest poisons of the Thousand Poisons Forest were kept. These were the poisons that would be unleashed upon the world if a war broke out.

Why did the Poison King bring me here?

"Put the poison you brought over there at the end."

I placed the Myriad Deaths Poison in a row where the Poison King pointed. The Poison King wrote the name of the poison on the bottles. The bottles placed next to them also had their own names written on them.

Snake Poison, Madness Poison, Blood Poison, Guts Melting Poison, Severing Poison, Soul-Severing Poison, Annihilation Poison, Yin-Yang Poison, Shadowless Poison, Corpse Poison, Parasite Poison, Soul-Losing Poison…

There were truly countless kinds of poisons. Every terrifying poison that existed in the world was here.

Strangely, the arrangement of the poisons was completely different from what I had expected. I thought the more powerful poisons would be deeper inside, but bottles of imperceptible poison were displayed right next to the entrance. It was an arrangement that gave the impression of, 'The more powerful it is, the faster you should take it out to use.'

"What would happen if all the poisons here were released into the world?"

From behind me, the Poison King answered.

"Everyone would die."

It was an answer that was not merely an exaggeration.

I was curious about the Poison King's thoughts. So, before asking whether he was on my father's side or mine, I asked this first. It was the first time I had asked him this question since we met.

"Poison King, why do you make poisons?"