I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel-Chapter 243

How could he do something like that?

What sin did I commit?

Why did he block something so crucial for humanity like that?

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“Gomodo...! Please, release your anger!”

Tang Mu-yeong once again performed a full-body bow.

...But I quickly calmed down. This wasn’t something to be angry at him about.

The target of my anger should be the True Dragon and his group.

I shifted my gaze to Tang Soyeong.

"Hehe, why?"

She smiled without knowing why.

"Geck..."

"...What’s with that expression?"

This poor girl.

"No, I don’t think I’m the one who’s pitiful?"

Yeah, I figured she couldn’t be that small.

Soyeong didn’t want to be small, and it was all because of the evil curse of the True Dragon that she was like this.

I didn’t know, and I had treated this poor girl...

"Hehe! Right now, I’m really satisfied, you know? It's just that I’m wrapped in bandages, but if I take them off... no, don't make that face! Do you really want to see?"

Her mind seems a little off now.

She wiped her moist eyes with her tail and then extended the confiscated Fung-Yuhwan.

"Hehe... Wait, no. If I accept this now, I feel like it’ll make me seem really pitiful?"

She took it but didn’t use the Fung-Yuhwan.

Her face looked strangely like a sneaky grin.

What’s going on with her? Why is it getting sharper?

Thanks to Tang Mu-yeong’s story, I learned more truths.

The True Dragon’s ugly side.

And the relationship between the Tang family and Gomodo.

The daughter of the family head and the second son, who claim to be the precious jewels of the Tang family, seem to be favoring me, so it’s safe to say that the Tang family is on my side.

“Though there were some radicals, the issue has been mostly settled by a fortunate turn of events, so our Tang family can always support Great Master Gomodo.”

The radicals have been dealt with?

That’s great news.

Not just anyone, but the Great Five Families.

And the Tang family, known for their expertise in poisons, is now on my side.

Besides, there might be others like Tang Soyeong, skilled in medicine.

...But if that’s the case, doesn’t that diminish Soyeong’s unique advantage?

“No one knows the Great Master’s body as well as I do, you know? I may not know the bodies of other spiritual beings, but I know the Great Master’s.”

“Geck?”

What?

Why does she know my body?

“Well, because I kept touching you every time we slept?”

Every time I slept with her, I had felt like my fur was gradually disappearing, but was that really not just in my head?

It’s fine now since I have plenty, but if she keeps pulling it, it could be dangerous.

"Now, when we sleep... uh, I mean, Soyeong... with Great Master Gomodo... ugh..."

Tang Mu-yeong stammered.

He must have misunderstood what Soyeong said.

I may have let him think like that, but it’s really not strange that we sleep together.

After all, I’m a reptile. It’s cold these days, so naturally, I need to sleep next to someone with a higher body temperature.

Soyeong plays with my scales, and I gain her body heat.

It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Of course, if we’re talking about body temperature, wolves have the highest, but if I only slept with them, other followers might get jealous, so I take turns.

To be honest, it seems like the followers have a sort of rotation competition going on, but it’s definitely not something inappropriate like Tang Mu-yeong might think.

"Hmm... no, if Great Master Gomodo favors me, that’s..."

While Tang Mu-yeong was lost in such delusions, two spiders entered with a tray holding snacks and tea.

"Kyooong."

"Kyeng."

As expected, it was Pus and Tus.

Seeing this, they seemed ten times more competent than Soyeong.

"Kyeng."

Pus, without needing to say anything obvious, stepped back.

"Hehe."

Soyeong popped a snack in her mouth.

Tang Mu-yeong, having changed his posture to full-body bow, sipped his tea.

Well, just relax for now.

After briefly refreshing himself with the tea, he resumed the conversation.

This time, I would ask the questions.

It’s hard to hear news from outside here, so I asked about the Hwasan Sect.

"Gegegegek."

“So, has anything major happened recently? Specifically, anything of importance with a big sect like Hwasan?”

When Soyeong interpreted, Tang Mu-yeong’s eyes widened.

Then, he switched from full-body bow to a more intense full-body posture.

Bang!

“To think this was all part of Great Master Gomodo’s brilliant plan! I am so proud to be a member of the Tang family, who serves Gomodo!”

Huh?

What’s going on with him now?

"Geck."

"Stop babbling and get to the point, please."

I didn’t say it quite that way.

“Hwasan has been hit by a huge storm. The sect leader, Akbulhwi, has gone missing, and all his misdeeds have been exposed.”

Fortunately, it seems like it went well.

“Moreover, by unanimous decision, the Hwasan elders have selected the Dragon Spirit as the temporary sect leader, and they’re in the process of reforming Hwasan.”

Unanimous decision?

How did that happen?

Well, when the Red Dragon spews fire in front of you, you can’t help but agree.

Isn’t the Red Dragon too competent?

“I was truly amazed. Not only did they remove all of Akbulhwi’s followers, but they also turned the situation around by using it to plant a puppet in the elders!”

...Huh?

"Gegegeek?"

What does that mean?

What did they use?

How?

No, how could they use it?

Tang Mu-yeong continued his explanation.

The head of the Tang family, Tang Seong-ik, fell ill and bedridden.

Just as he was about to make a decision, a woman in black entered the Tang family.

She killed the elders and took the secret within.

Thus, the radical faction was eliminated, and the head of the family regained his health.

From this story, I realized one thing.

Someone who could fly here from Tang family headquarters on their own and kill all the elders.

It was clear that my master had made a move.

And not only that, they helped the Red Dragon take control of the Hwasan Sect.

If they helped to that extent, what should I do?

I’ll go quietly and pay my respects.

"Well, I cautiously speculate... that the Great Master was building up strength to challenge the True Dragon."

He said this with a respectful posture, his voice trembling slightly.

Partially correct.

It was obvious that the day would come when he would have to fight the True Dragon, so he was preparing.

“Fighting thousands of spiritual beings alone and achieving such results... If the Great Master has expanded his power like this... this time, we can finally defeat that evil dragon.”

Alone?

He said Gomodo allied with the Heavenly Demon, but the Tang family doesn’t even know that.

Well, if they knew that, they’d have rushed to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains to form an alliance with the Heavenly Demon Cult.

But in the end, it seems like an alliance was made.

“The Tang family, the Heavenly Demon Cult, and now Hwasan as well. Moreover, no one in the martial world has noticed.”

Hearing this, it sounds like a shadowy conspiracy operating in the background.

...Is it similar?

“As a member of the Tang family, I’m deeply moved, but as a martial artist, it’s even more astounding that these three forces have united. They’re all supposed to be completely different, yet they’ve come together. Hwasan and the Tang family, while aligned with righteous factions, have completely opposing philosophies.”

It’s not so much that the Heavenly Demon Cult is on my side, but rather that my master cares for me, but there’s no need to say that.

Just look at those bright eyes.

I don’t want to disappoint those expectations.

“Of course, when the True Dragon returns, the other members of the Gu Pail Bang will side with him, so we’ll be outnumbered, but we’ll still have a chance.”

The Heavenly Demon Cult is evil, and Gomodo is evil as well.

Unless we conquer all the righteous factions, a clash with the martial world is inevitable.

Wait.

Now that I think about it, there’s one more place that has a connection, isn’t there?

The legendary Shaolin, often referred to as the "Pillars of the Martial World."

...If we can handle that, maybe the others will turn as well.

They say the monks there offer tremendous rewards, so I’ll wait for the right time to negotiate with them.

I can’t fully trust them, but since they owe the Iron-Clad Dragon, they’ll at least listen to me.

"Gegegegek..."

“Great Master Ko, you’re looking a bit evil with that laugh.”

“Geck!”

I covered my mouth with my front paw.

It reminded me of when I first met Soyeong.

Maybe if I smiled like that, I’d scare her, so I’ll have to practice making a kind face first.

Our family’s lizard doesn’t bite, that much at least.

*

The Iron-Clad Dragon, who had claimed the snowy mountains, rapidly expanded his forces.

Despite the wrongs he had committed, it was all for his benefactor, Gomodo.

Even though he had made a significant contribution in the recent war by defeating the spiritual beast Du-ul-li, it wasn’t enough.

He needed to grow stronger, to the point where he could stand against beings of a different dimension, like Gongbok.

He had to become strong enough to fight alongside Gomodo.

He didn’t only focus on personal training.

He had a vague sense that the war wouldn’t be over this time, so he gathered beasts from the snowy mountains that had retained their sanity.

Although officially not a follower of Gae Gak Sect, more and more beings related to it were beginning to join him.

However, the snowy mountains weren’t just a place for those eager to become his subordinates.

There were also those who came to challenge him, hoping to defeat the Iron-Clad Dragon and claim the title of the new master.

Of course, most fled before even witnessing his headbutt.

KWA-A-A-A-A-A-N-G!

Sometimes, there were those who actually saw it.

"Kwong!"

A giant mountain goat-like beast, Toru, couldn’t withstand the Iron-Clad Dragon’s headbutt and collapsed.

"Hmm... The strongest challenger yet."

The Iron-Clad Dragon stared at the fallen Toru.

"Definitely from Kunlun... Well, this isn’t too strange, considering this is a place where even winged dragons reside."

The Iron-Clad Dragon didn’t kill Toru. He sat down without killing him, his breath steady.

At this level, the beast was useful.

Not only to himself but potentially to Gomodo as well.

He was about to accept the beast as one of his subordinates when—

"Hoh, even after winning, you didn’t kill him."

A voice came from behind the Iron-Clad Dragon.

"No reason to kill him."

The Iron-Clad Dragon slowly turned around.

What met his gaze was an old man with graying hair.

"...An human should not be here, so you must be a spiritual being."

"You’re quite perceptive."

The Iron-Clad Dragon realized this opponent was no ordinary foe.

Even though he had been approached from behind, he had failed to notice.

Had the man attempted an ambush, he would have been defenseless.

"But you don’t look as strong as I expected."

The old man clicked his tongue.

"They say a new master of the Dragon Gate has appeared, yet someone like you?"

"It doesn’t seem like you’re here to join me, so are you after the Dragon Gate?"

The Iron-Clad Dragon drew power from his lower belly.

This was an opponent he could not afford to underestimate.

If he didn’t go all out from the beginning, there was no chance of victory.

"Well, if the power of the Dragon Gate is only this much, I don’t see the need to claim it."

The Iron-Clad Dragon kicked off the ground and charged at the old man.

Instinct told him that if he didn’t finish this in one blow, he would lose.

Swoosh!

His headbutt, infused with the art of a fatal blow, flew directly toward the target.

No, it seemed to fly directly, but the trajectory was distorted, as though the space itself bent under the impact.

It was an unavoidable, pinpoint attack.

KWA-A-A-A-A-A-N-G!

However, the Iron-Clad Dragon’s attack never reached him.

More precisely, it was blocked by a single hand of the old man.

"Ugh..."

What was happening?

Even Gomodo had tried to avoid his headbutt.

This old man had effortlessly blocked the attack with a single hand, without breaking a sweat.

"A creature like this defeated Gongbok? Hah, I should’ve believed what I was told."

Muttering, the old man pushed the Iron-Clad Dragon aside.

KWA-A-A-A-A-N-G!

The Iron-Clad Dragon, whose body was as tough as Vajra, couldn’t escape the shock reverberating in his head.

"Ugh!"

"You’re quite sturdy."

The old man glanced at the Iron-Clad Dragon, as if losing interest in him, and looked toward the empty air.

"If your subordinates are this good, they might be useful."

At those words, the Iron-Clad Dragon’s eyes wavered.

The old man wasn’t after him.

He was after the true master of these snowy mountains, the one who had defeated Gongbok.

He was after Gomodo.

"Ugh... Ggh..."

The Iron-Clad Dragon struggled to rise.

"Who... Who are you?"

Hearing this, the old man grinned.

"I don’t have many words to explain this old body."

Though he said that, he grinned like he had been waiting for the question.

"One of the nine dragon children."

"Y-You mean, Yongsaengguja?"

The old man’s grin widened.

It seemed the Iron-Clad Dragon’s response pleased him.

It was inevitable.

The old man had deliberately dressed as he did and enjoyed the reaction he got from his opponent.

In the hometown of some black lizard, they’d call this type a "starving attention-seeker."

"And the Four Fiends."

"S-S-Seriously... The Four Fiends!"

The fifth of the Yongsaengguja.

An existence even the True Dragon couldn’t control.

A greedy, attention-loving, and fiercely aggressive fiend.

"Go tell your master that Docheol is waiting here."

"Yongsaengguja, and the Four Fiends! Docheol!"

The Four Fiend, Docheol.

At that moment, the Iron-Clad Dragon thought to himself:

‘...I’m supposed to spare him?’

Normally, he wouldn’t let him go unharmed, but this man’s reaction had pleased him so much that he had changed his mind.