Chapter 66
Boom— Rumble—!
The ground shook violently with each movement, as if it might collapse at any moment.
Lee Jae-ha instinctively hugged the two children close, sensing the ominous tremors.
“Let’s evacuate somewhere else until the hunt is over. If we stay here, we’ll only get in the way.”
“Okay.”
Holding Lee Jae-ha’s hand, Eun Sowol quickly moved away from the danger.
While the three retreated, Dokgo Ryong and Dang Jin-ak’s hunt of the Yin-Yang Twin-Headed Serpent was reaching its climax.
Thanks to Dokgo Ryong’s relentless head-bashing, the white head had already been unconscious for a while, and only the black head remained barely conscious.
“Damn, this thing’s tough as hell.”
“Hyung-nim, please try to finish it without damaging it! These creatures fetch a fortune!”
“I know. If it weren’t for that, I would’ve sliced it in half already.”
As they discussed how to subdue the beast without ruining it…
Suddenly, the black head’s eyes lit up.
‘I can’t die… not like this!’
It was a seasoned spiritual beast, and its will to live burned fiercely.
To survive, it had to devour something—anything—and convert it into power.
Only then could it defeat these two monstrous humans.
‘Food…! Something with extreme energy…!’
Driven by a primal survival instinct, the Twin-Headed Serpent lifted its head and scanned its surroundings frantically.
That’s when it detected an enormous energy—powerful enough to heal all its wounds.
Without hesitation, it turned toward the source.
Shhhk shhhk—
The serpent began to move at a speed far beyond anything it had shown before.
“Ah! Hyung-nim, it’s—!”
“That damn beast—!”
Dokgo Ryong and Dang Jin-ak quickly realized its intent and rushed after it, but the beast’s desperate will to survive outpaced them.
The black head paid no mind to the unconscious white head smashing into the ground and raced ahead—straight toward an adult and two children fleeing in the distance.
With survival instinct flaring, the beast opened its massive jaws wide.
Kyaaaargh—!
“Uwaaah! Father!”
“Run, kids! Now!”
Lee Jae-ha frantically pushed Imu-geol and Eun Sowol away, but the serpent’s mouth descended faster than they could escape.
The black jaws opened, aiming directly for them.
The moment Eun Sowol saw the dark, cavernous mouth, a primal terror seized her. Her legs gave out.
‘Am I… going to die like this? Uncle too?’
Just then, Dokgo Ryong came soaring over the beast’s head. His bloodshot eyes flared with fury, his teeth clenched.
But—
‘Too late…’
The snake’s jaws rushed down upon Sowol’s head.
CRASH—!
A blinding flash suddenly erupted before her eyes.
A blinding white light so intense it seemed to erase the world.
Everyone winced from the glare. Sowol blinked, waiting for her vision to return.
Kyung!
As the haze faded, a small, furry creature came into focus just before her hands on the ground.
“Huh? You…”
With a long fuzzy body tinged in gray, soft fur, dainty perky ears, and a puffy tail, the little creature turned its tiny head.
Black pearl-like eyes met hers.
Sowol recognized it immediately.
‘Ah! The weasel I saw at Heuksigok Market!’
It stood firmly on all fours, fur puffed up and tail raised defensively, as if shielding her.
As she looked up, she saw the charred remains of the serpent’s body behind it.
Thud…!
The beast toppled over, its eyes rolled back.
Kyaaa!
Even after it fell, the baby weasel hissed fiercely.
Once certain it was dead, the weasel gave a snort and turned to look at Sowol with gentle eyes.
Almost without thinking, Sowol reached toward it.
“…Was it you? Did you save me?”
Kyurung!
Unlike its wary attitude yesterday, the weasel now looked at her with fond eyes.
It even scurried over and rubbed its nose against her outstretched hand.
Sowol’s eyes widened, sparkling like stars.
“Kkomaeng! Are you okay?!”
Suddenly, Dokgo Ryong burst out atop the serpent’s corpse.
Startled by the unfamiliar voice, the weasel leapt into Sowol’s arms.
Flustered, she instinctively held it inside her clothes.
She looked up to see Dokgo Ryong pale and disheveled, visibly worried.
Realizing he was concerned for her, she smiled brightly.
“Yep! Uncle! I’m okay!”
Seeing her completely unharmed, Dokgo Ryong let out a shaky breath.
Then, his eyebrows twitched as he angrily slammed his axe into the serpent’s black head.
“You damn bastard. Jumping out of nowhere like that?!”
As he vented on the corpse, Dang Jin-ak flailed in panic.
“Ahhh! Hyung-nim! We caught it without damaging it—don’t ruin it now!”
“Shut up! Didn’t you see this thing try to eat the kid?!”
“I did! But still, it’s a rare medicinal beast for Sowol. Besides, the heavens must favor us—lightning struck out of nowhere!”
“Huh? That was lightning?”
“Yes, didn’t you see it?”
Something had indeed flashed before her eyes…
But she hadn’t known it was lightning.
“So… it wasn’t you?”
Kyung?
Sowol lifted her clothes and peeked at the weasel curled inside.
It tilted its head innocently, whiskers twitching adorably.
‘Well… there’s no way a tiny thing like this could kill a giant snake.’
The weasel was small enough to fit in her two hands.
More likely than not, it was lightning that struck down the serpent.
“Let’s not waste time. Let’s get that core out.”
As Dokgo Ryong got ready to carve open the beast—
“Wait. If it’s alright, may we do it ourselves?”
Lee Jae-ha asked with an oddly excited voice.
He and Imu-geol looked flushed, visibly thrilled.
“Every part of a spiritual beast has value. We have to be careful not to damage it. Since the two of you left it mostly intact, we don’t want to ruin it during dissection.”
Sowol glanced at the black head Dokgo Ryong had just bashed.
‘Didn’t he hit that part pretty hard…?’
A large bump was forming on its forehead.
“Have you ever dissected a spiritual beast before?”
At Dokgo Ryong’s question, the father and son trembled.
“W-We’ve never done a spiritual beast, but we can dissect normal animals blindfolded!”
“Snakes, especially the medicinal kind—we’ve done those like daily meals!”
“If you let us, we’ll make sure to preserve everything usable!”
Their eyes sparkled with anticipation. As herbalists, they seemed eager to handle such a rare creature.
Dokgo Ryong and Dang Jin-ak exchanged glances and nodded.
“Alright, let’s see what you can do.”
“We won’t disappoint! Let’s go, son!”
“Yes, Father!”
The two eagerly pulled out all kinds of tools from their packs. Holding long knives and grinning, they looked a bit creepy.
One hour later.
Sweating heavily but visibly satisfied, the two completed the dissection.
“Here’s the core.”
“Ooh…”
Sowol gave a short gasp as Lee Jae-ha handed it to her.
Swirled with black and white like a yin-yang symbol, the round core looked like a polished bead.
“It’s small. Are cores usually this small?”
It fit neatly in her palm, slightly larger than an old coin.
“This one’s actually big. Most are fingernail-sized.”
“But it’s not just the size… The quality is impressive too. You handled this exceptionally well.”
Dang Jin-ak inspected not just the core, but all the serpent’s parts with admiration before turning to Lee Jae-ha.
“With this, you won’t have to worry about money anymore. Your crumbling business can rise again.”
“Huh? Oh, no—this isn’t ours.”
Lee Jae-ha waved his hands in refusal.
Dokgo Ryong and Dang Jin-ak both blinked in surprise.
