I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel-Chapter 330

The Master of Odukmun’s composed demeanor seemed to deeply move her disciples.

“Gentle Poison Empress! Gentle Poison Empress!”

“We respect you, Master!”

“Dok-se! Dok-se! Dokdok-se!”

Dok-se? What the hell is Dok-se?

Don’t tell me they’re using “Dok-se” in place of “Long live!” or “Ten thousand years!”

I wanted to ask, but seeing the tips of Dan Hwa-Yeon’s ears turning red, I let it slide.

“Did you hear that, Lord Ko Hui? Dok-se, they said. Goodness gracious. Should we be shouting Go-se instead?”

“Gek gek.”

So-Yeong, sometimes you just gotta pretend you didn’t notice.

“Lizard, don’t you think Dok-se is a bit much? I mean, I get that this is a poison-using sect or whatever, but still...”

Baekrang, not you too...

Come on, there's no way she asked for this. Everyone’s got their own burdens to bear.

“How could you name it Dok-se...”

“That name...! It’s one that will shatter my limbs...!”

The snake-lings curled their tails up in horror.

You guys don’t even have limbs.

“To think the Sect Master was like this... I believe I may have misjudged her.”

My mother-in-law looked at Dan Hwa-Yeon with a strangely sympathetic gaze.

“Gek gek.”

So the person she thought was a villainous tyrant is now being redefined as a pitiable woman who couldn’t bear to copy “Long live” or “Ten thousand years,” so she came up with the original cheer “Dok-se” and took pride in it.

“I wasn’t going to say anything, but there’s no way she didn’t come up with that chant herself.”

Her ears turned redder.

Yeah, looks like she definitely came up with it.

“Dok-se! Dokdok-se!”

“E-Erm, stop that.”

It felt like I could physically see her inner energy crumbling in real time.

“Ki-ong-aeng-se.”

“Ke-aeng-aeng-se.”

Tus and Pus raised their arms and mimicked the disciples.

Even the spiders refused to use the name “Dok-se,” which spoke volumes about the twisted aesthetic sense of the one who coined it.

To be more precise, it was like logging into an old account and seeing your username was “ziZonGekek123S2” and dying of secondhand embarrassment.

No way she came up with that chant after reaching adulthood. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

“Even with the elders opposing it, pushing it through really paid off! Dok-se! Dokdok-se!”

“As expected of the Sect Master! I could never go back to a life before this chant!”

...Wait. You made it recently?

“Ahem, I have important matters to discuss with our allies, so do not approach me until I give further orders.”

“Pardon? We can’t possibly leave the Sect Master alone...”

Dan Hwa-Yeon was clearly trying to get rid of her disciples as fast as possible.

They were quite loyal, though, still worried about her well-being.

“If you remain here, you might get poisoned.”

“Ah...! We’ll teach those stiff newcomers a lesson...!”

She said it with the smile of a villainess, but I could read her true expression beneath it.

Please shut up and leave.

That had to be it.

“Ufufut. It would be wise not to come near for a while.”

“Of course...! Dok-se! Dokdok-se! Dokdokdok-se!”

“S-Stop it and go!”

“Dokdokdokdok-se! Dokdokdokdokdok-se!”

They chanted it to the bitter end.

And now I finally understood the origin of that awful cheer.

Odukmun deals with five primary types of poisons—hence the “O” (Five) in Odukmun.

So their cheer?

“Poison x5 long live.”

“Ge-eek...”

The secret of Dokdokdokdokdok-se had been revealed.

Is this what people mean when they say “the curse of knowledge”?

I learned something I wish I hadn’t.

“Ah...”

Even Hoya was speechless.

“Wow... just... wow...”

So-Yeong let out a soulless «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» gasp of awe.

“G-Get out, all of you! I’ll teach these fools what proper respect looks like!”

Dan Hwa-Yeon screamed, face bright red.

Her shout sent the disciples scrambling.

Clack.

The door closed.

Fshhh.

And then, for the second time, Dan Hwa-Yeon flung herself down in a full-body prostration.

“L-Lord... the truth is...!”

She lifted her enormous butt up high in the air, desperately trying to explain herself—but none of us looked at her.

*

Having dropped the act of the noble Poison Empress, Dan Hwa-Yeon ended up sniffling and teary-eyed.

We hadn’t listened to a single one of her explanations.

Honestly, the more she tried to explain, the worse it sounded, so ignoring her had been the most merciful option... though it did make me feel a little bad.

“...Is Dok-se really that weird?”

She asked, looking downcast.

“Lizard. She still doesn’t get it. Should I just tell her the truth?”

“Gek gek.”

Hold it in, Baekrang.

Let’s just let the weird chant go for now.

Dan Hwa-Yeon had already unconditionally surrendered to us and offered up all the food and elixirs stocked at this gate.

Kneeling with a sheepish grin, she glanced up at us nervously.

“Th-There’s even more elixirs at the main sect, so please don’t be angry...”

What does she think we are, gangsters?

It’s not like we’re trying to dismantle Odukmun—their leader’s already bowed to me.

That means Odukmun’s basically become a subordinate faction of the Gae Gak Sect.

I had no intention of guzzling down all their elixirs.

Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs would be foolish.

Leave a few, and they’ll work hard to fetch even more.

“Th-This kind of mercy...!”

Guess she was really moved, even though we barely did anything.

“Then... should I take my clothes off?”

...Huh?

What does she think surrendering means?

“Ggerorong... keh-hehk.”

Baekrang quickly covered my mouth.

“Jeez, do you think our lizard is the type to lust after human bodies? What he wants is for you to join under him—not to add more concubines.”

Exactly. That’s it.

“Ggerung ggerung.”

“Right?”

“Kerorong...”

Shaking my head even a little felt like it might turn me into a frozen lizard statue.

“Gek gek.”

So I gave a reluctant nod.

“Ah! I-I just meant that even my clothes are yours to take... as a symbol of devotion...”

She meant well, but please stop saying things that could be wildly misinterpreted.

Especially with my mother-in-law standing right there.

Since communicating with her through Gekek was too inefficient, I picked someone else to handle the talking this time.

Normally, Baekrang would be the sane voice of the Gae Gak Sect, but as a spiritual beast, she didn’t have the best grasp of human knowledge.

So the one stepping forward was Tang So-Yeong.

As a member of the Tang Clan, and someone very familiar with Odukmun, she’d be able to convey my thoughts clearly.

I munched on some snacks—avoiding the elixirs—and focused on the conversation between So-Yeong and Dan Hwa-Yeon.

“Heumwon. What’s the deal with that? That venomous insect doesn’t come from the Southern Barbarian region.”

“Th-The Southern Barbarians? Ugh... Right. That’s us...”

Dan Hwa-Yeon looked utterly deflated.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

I’d expected her to show at least some venom toward her old rival So-Yeong, but even the last remnants of her edge had crumbled.

“Heumwon was a gift sent from Kunlun.”

“A gift? From Kunlun?”

“Yes. They said they’d show a bit of their strength before bringing us into their grand plan, and sent it along with an antidote. We’ve just been using it ever since.”

A grand plan?

I jabbed So-Yeong’s butt lightly with my tail.

Ask her that for me.

“Hyack! Ahem—so, what exactly is this ‘grand plan’? Is it by any chance attacking the Tang Clan, or raiding the Tang Clan, or maybe ambushing the Tang Clan?”

“Ah, no, nothing like that...”

“Nothing like that?”

“Honestly, I don’t really know. I think it was something arranged between the previous sect master and them.”

“And where is this previous sect master now?”

“Um... would you like me to tell you where the grave is?”

Looks like Dan Hwa-Yeon rose to her current position by lopping off her predecessor’s head.

Now it makes sense why my mother-in-law and the spirit beasts at the other gates hadn’t been getting proper support.

The people loyal to the previous master probably didn’t listen to her.

They pretended to obey, all while pocketing the supplies that should’ve gone to each gate.

And the contract with Jinryong? That was the previous master’s doing, so of course Dan Hwa-Yeon wouldn’t know the details.

“Wait—so you had no idea what the plan was, but you still took their gifts?”

“They offered them, so I accepted...”

“Ugh, you’re killing me.”

So-Yeong slapped her own chest in frustration.

Not puff puff, but flat flat.

Dan Hwa-Yeon glanced sideways at her, then gave her own chest a few bounces.

Oh.

That’s a lot of wave.

So much bounce.

“...What do you think you’re doing?”

“Ah... it was just kind of fascinating.”

“What exactly was fascinating?”

So-Yeong’s lips pursed into a sharp little beak.

“When I hit it with my hand and nothing moved at all, it was like hitting a solid wall, you know?”

“What did you just say?!”

Her lips now looked like an actual beak, all right.

How did she even do that?

Still, Dan Hwa-Yeon is, without a doubt, an Odukmun master.

Even now, she’s goading So-Yeong.

Well, given the rivalry between Odukmun and the Tang Clan, maybe that’s to be expected.

“Lord Ko, don’t stop me. Kieeek!”

She let out a cry like Tus and Pus and lunged.

I managed to calm her down just in time by wrapping my tail around her waist.

“No, really, I’m sorry... I was just honestly curious...”

And the worst part? She even sounded sincere.

As much as I wanted to back So-Yeong, this wasn’t something I could intervene in.

“Lord Ko... you didn’t avenge me...”

The Tang Clan prodigy suffered total defeat.

“...Well, I understand the circumstances. The lack of support is regrettable, but my son-in-law corrected the problem, so there’s no reason to make it an issue now. And besides, the previous master is dead.”

My mother-in-law stepped in to speak on So-Yeong’s behalf, offering forgiveness with the broad heart of a saint.

Truly a ggerorong-worthy moment.

“Ugh... about the elixirs... I really am sorry...”

“It’s fine. I told you we won’t make an issue of it. What matters now is that you give my son-in-law useful information.”

Dan Hwa-Yeon tilted her head at the word son-in-law.

But when she looked to her side and saw Tus and Pus chirping gleefully, her face turned bright red.

“I-It’s just... I mean, I figured the size didn’t... no, nothing. Forget I said anything...”

What exactly were you thinking?

“What Lord Ko needs right now... is information about Kunlun.”

As expected of my mother-in-law.

She’d only heard a brief summary, and already knew what I was after.

“Kunlun wouldn’t have just sent Heumwon. I’ve sensed other ominous poison auras several times lately—far sharper and heavier than that insect.”

Dan Hwa-Yeon nodded at her words.

“They’ve sent more than just Heumwon. Or rather, they didn’t send them... the creatures kind of showed up on their own.”

More venomous beasts sent from Kunlun.

That sounded like a major keyword.

Given the context, it was likely Jinryong intended to use Odukmun to strike at the Heavenly Demon Cult from behind, and dispatched venomous creatures powerful enough to be a legitimate threat.

“One of them is Hwidura. I was uneasy about taking in a poison beast of unknown origin, but it had power on par with Gigano of the Southern Beast Palace, so I accepted it.”

“Hwidura...”

“It’s a massive serpent with five heads. I was worried at first—what if it went out of control? But surprisingly, it turned out to be really nice. It listens to me, hears me out when I’m troubled, even shares meals with me...”

A cooperative poison beast... but that’s still a bit strange.

“Oh, I think it’ll be a huge help to you too, Lord Ko. It listens to me well, so if you visit the main sect, I’ll introduce you.”

There was a flicker of anxiety in her eyes.

She was probably worried we might eat it.

If the creature really was as cooperative as she claimed, there might be no need to fight it.

“If that’s true, then it will indeed be helpful. But what’s this about sharing meals and talking through your problems? You sound like a lonely old woman.”

My mother-in-law hit the nail on the head, without hesitation.

“Huh-eeek...”

Dan Hwa-Yeon crumpled like So-Yeong had earlier.

It made sense.

She’d been maintaining her act as the noble Poison Empress for so long, it was only natural that she’d kept everyone at arm’s length.

The people from old Odukmun didn’t respect her authority, and others probably found her too intimidating to approach.

The ones we saw earlier were probably the best-case scenario—idolizing her from afar like a divine figure.

In that light, this Hwidura guy seemed pretty decent.

A lonely Dan Hwa-Yeon, with her only friend being a snake sent from Kunlun—kind of sad, honestly.

Thud thud thud.

Footsteps hurriedly approached from outside.

As a Hwagyeong-level master, Dan Hwa-Yeon straightened her posture the moment she heard them, expression stiffening.

No more hueek—she was ready to scold anyone who defied her command.

Clatter!

The door flew open despite her order to stay away.

“If I’d been even a second later in withdrawing my aura, you’d have dropped dead before touching that door. You dare defy your master’s order?”

“I-It’s urgent!”

Urgent?

For someone to burst into a private audience with the sect master, it had to be seriously urgent.

Dan Hwa-Yeon must’ve thought the same, because she reluctantly calmed her anger and replied in a cold, measured tone.

“Tch. Speak, then. Your outrageous behavior will be punished later.”

She’d clearly had some practice acting, because her expression was flawless.

If I didn’t know her true personality, I might’ve assumed that was how she always was.

“There’s been a revolt! Hwidura and several elders have taken over the main sect!”

...Silence.

Three seconds passed before Dan Hwa-Yeon’s lips parted.

“...N-Nueeeng?”