Being forced to enjoy the hot springs every day wasn’t exactly easy.
Since a lot of energy was consud in the water, one couldn’t help but feel hungry afterward.
“Wow, I’m starving.”
“So-ryong, should I grill so of the leftover venison from yesterday?”
Returning after finishing the morning search for the Fire Crystal, my stomach was naturally growling.
As soon as I rubbed my belly and ntioned my hunger, Hwa-eun quickly offered to grill the venison.
“Yes, please.”
“Yes, So-ryong.”
Before long, Hwa-eun had grilled the ribs of the deer that Gungbong had hunted the day before.
The fragrant scent of venison wafted through the air.
Co to think of it, my connection with Hwa-eun had also begun with venison, leading to a flood of mories.
It was over venison that I had my first conversation with my father-in-law and grandfather—that was where it all started.
Just as I was reminiscing and had taken a bite of the venison she handed , the rich oil seeped out, coating my tongue, and the savory taste was about to explode in my mouth.
‘Venison is always delicious, no matter when you eat it.’
At that mont, Ji-ryong leaped out of the well using Qinggong, his voice urgent.
“Huff, huff… So-hyeop! It’s hatching! I saw sothing thread-like moving inside the eggs!”
He was drenched, water dripping from his hair—likely from having run all the way here without stopping, straight from the well.
Both Ji-ryong and I were equally soaked, as if we had just stepped out of the hot springs.
“Are you certain?”
“Yes! Hurry and see for yourself!”
It had been a month since we settled in the remote ethnic village near the volcano in Yunnan.
And now, at last, the long-awaited hatching of the Giant Black-Clawed Red Earwig was beginning.
The primary objective seed nearly impossible to achieve, but at the very least, I had to secure footage of the hatching and capture at least one of the newborns.
The Fire Crystal search had been nothing but trouble.
For an entire month, I had scoured the waterways above and below the valley, where the hot springs flowed, but there was no trace of the Fire Crystal.
Even after thoroughly searching the rocky formations and boulders along the valley, I had found nothing—not even a hint.
At this point, I had almost given up on finding the Fire Crystal.
Well, considering that sothing as incredible as Ice Jade was found by sheer luck, perhaps it wasn’t that we were unlucky—just that Chang-ryong was exceptionally lucky.
In any case, if my search failed, I had already arranged to receive Chang-ryong’s share, so I was sowhat at peace with the outco.
At first, I had no intention of accepting it, but for Hyang’s sake, it seed necessary.
“Thank you! Let’s go, Bini, Cho! Hwa-eun, please take care of Hyang!”
— Tzrrrr!
— Tzrt!
Clamping down on the venison ribs in my mouth, I tossed the orange potato in my arms toward Hwa-eun.
— Piiik!
It soared through the air, its expression flustered.
Hwa-eun caught Hyang like a ball and imdiately placed him in her arms.
“Got it, So-ryong.”
The reason I was leaving Hyang behind—
I was worried that if I took him, he might cause another accident.
I still hadn’t figured out why Hyang had gone berserk, treating the Black-Clawed Red Earwig as food.
It likely had sothing to do with its fiery energy or possibly a Neidan within it. That was my best guess.
The way Bini and Cho had reacted when they saw the Neidan of Bicheon Shinsa’s pet, Yeondu, was eerily similar.
If that was the case, then Hyang’s sudden outburst made sense.
Even the normally gentle Cho, Hyang, and Bini had transford into wild beasts at the re sight of a Neidan.
Now that Hyang was in safe hands, I hurried toward the well, where the hatching was taking place.
I had been waiting for this mont for so long—there was no way I could hold back any longer.
“I’m heading out!”
“So-ryong, wait! I want to see it too!”
— Tzrrrr!
— Tzrrt!
Bini and Cho followed closely behind .
And then there was Seol, who also wanted to witness the hatching.
— Splash!
I plunged into the well, feeling the water rise up to my thighs.
Pulling out a Night Pearl from my pocket, I lit it up and swiftly squeezed through the tunnel opening.
— Tack, tack, tack.
“So-ryong, wait for !”
“I’ll wait outside the passage!”
“Ah, got it!”
Hunched over to navigate the low ceiling, I ran for a short distance—
And soon, the tunnel opened into a vast space.
After a brief pause, Bini and Cho darted in, followed by Seol, who landed and clutched her throat.
“It gets harder every ti.”
The passage height was evidently a challenge for an adult woman like her.
I smiled and spoke.
“Let’s go, Seol.”
“Yeah, let’s hurry.”
We ran for a while, stopping at a place where, even after a month, lingering scents still filled the air.
A stale, musty sll assaulted my nostrils.
From here on, we had to proceed with caution.
The cave walls echoed, aning even the sound of our footsteps could be dangerously loud.
I stashed the Night Pearl away and, together with Seol, activated the Cat’s Night Vision Technique of the Beast Palace.
A tingling sensation gathered in my eyes, and the surroundings grew clearer.
When I glanced at Seol, her pupils had expanded, looking almost like she was wearing colored contact lenses.
[Let’s move quietly from here.]
[Understood.]
I whispered softly in her ear.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Then, in my mind, I instructed Bini and Cho to stay silent before moving forward.
As we continued walking, a pile of fallen rock pillars ca into view—the remains of a collapsed section from before.
Beyond that was the nesting site of the Black-Clawed Red Earwig.
Crawling stealthily with Seol, Cho, and Bini, we hid behind the rubble.
And there, in the farthest corner, we spotted it—the Black-Clawed Red Earwig.
Focusing my vision, I saw yellow eggs beneath its abdon—no, they were no longer just eggs. They were wriggling newborns, fresh from their shells.
Just like when Cho, Hyang, and Bini had first hatched, these newborns were yellow, squirming beneath their mother.
[Whoa… So-ryong, they’re everywhere.]
Seol murmured in awe as she observed the scene.
I, too, watched with excitent as the newly hatched creatures wriggled about.
Then, Seol asked sothing peculiar.
[Wait… So-ryong, why don’t the hatchlings have pincers?]
As she pointed out, instead of pincers at their tails, the newborn earwigs had only two long, hair-like appendages.
There was a reason for that.
The so-called “pincers” on the tail of an earwig weren’t actually pincers. They were modified cerci—appendages that had evolved for specific functions.
Cerci—also known as tail filants.
In English, they were simply called cerci.
They were the sa as the twin filants found at the tails of dragonflies and cockroaches.
And those, too, were cerci.
That was why the newborn earwigs only had long cerci instead of pincers.
As they grew and molted several tis, those cerci would transform into fully developed pincers.
[After a few molts, those long filants will turn into proper pincers.]
[Ohh, really?]
[Yes, Seol.]
[Insects seem far more mysterious than beasts.]
Seol’s eyes sparkled with fascination at my explanation.
It was rewarding to teach soone so eager to learn.
Then, my excellent student followed up with another question.
[But So-ryong, I’ve been wondering—why is this creature called a Black-Clawed Red Earwig? Its tail pincers seem closer to swords or knives than to actual pincers. Shouldn’t it be nad sothing like Twin-Sword Red Earwig or Twin-Blade Red Earwig?]
Damn. That was a great question.
As expected of a sister worthy of this Spicy Fabre.
The character 鉗 originally referred to shackles placed around a criminal’s neck, but the mother earwig’s pincers weren’t shackles—they were clearly shaped more like blades or scissors.
Still, there had to be a reason why this species was nad Black-Clawed Red Earwig.
Most female earwigs had sharp, scissor-like pincers like this, but the males typically had hook-shaped pincers, resembling executioners’ shackles.
That difference in shape between male and female pincers was a characteristic trait of earwigs.
[Ah, the males of this species actually have hook-shaped tails, while the females have blade-like ones. The person who nad them must have only seen the males.]
[As expected of our So-ryong. You seriously know everything.]
For the first ti in a while, Seol looked at with admiration.
Feeling proud, I gave her a look that said, You should really brag about having a little brother like .
But then, Seol suddenly turned her gaze back to the Black-Clawed Red Earwig, and her expression froze.
“!”
A look of panic flashed across her face as she suddenly grabbed my shoulder, squeezing hard.
I blinked at her sudden reaction, confused.
Then, in a trembling voice, she whispered into my ear.
[H-Hyang!]
[Hyang?]
Hyang should’ve been asleep inside my robe.
I reached into my clothes—only to find nothing.
I widened my eyes. Had I accidentally dropped him sowhere while running?
Before I could even react, Seol grabbed my head with both hands and forcefully turned it toward the Black-Clawed Red Earwig.
At first, I had no idea what she was trying to show —
Until I saw it.
Beyond the earwig, clinging to the cave wall…
A tiny, yellow figure with blue spots.
‘H-Hyang!? What the hell are you doing there?!’
At so point, Hyang had slipped out of my clothes and stuck himself onto the cave wall behind the Black-Clawed Red Earwig.
My mind went blank at the sight.
And then, his innocent little voice rang through my head.
‘Tzrrr! Dad, there’s sothing here! Hyang found sothing!’
The mont I tried to call him back, Hyang suddenly chomped down on sothing embedded in the cave wall and started tugging at it.
Then—
Pop!
A loud noise echoed through the silent cave.
— Clatter.
— Thud. Thud-thud-rattle…
The object Hyang had just yanked free fell to the ground, its impact reverberating through the quiet cave like a sudden thunderclap.
And then—
The Black-Clawed Red Earwig slowly turned its head.
Its gaze locked onto Hyang.
The clicking sound of its pincers grew louder.
— Scritch. Scritch.
And then, suddenly—
— CRACK!
The earwig’s tail lashed out, striking the cave wall.
Hyang was pinned in place.
“Hyang!”
“Ahhh! Hyang!”
— Tzrrr!
I lunged forward.
Hyang was caught between the earwig’s pincers, struggling, trying to bite at them to break free.
If I left him like that, he’d be Hyang in na only—he’d be gone.
I dashed forward and shouted.
Because saving one’s child was a father’s duty.
“W-Wait!”
The Black-Clawed Red Earwig slowly turned its gaze toward .
I had no idea if it could understand , but I raised my hands, trying to show I wasn’t a threat.
“Calm down, calm down. I get what you’re thinking, but don’t do it. My kid was just curious about you. He didn’t an any harm to you or your babies.”
— Trut?
For the first ti, the giant earwig let out a sound.
As expected of a spirit beast, it seed to understand at least a little.
It even looked… confused.
“Yeah, I know it doesn’t make sense, but he really is my kid. These two here are also my kids.”
I motioned for Bini and Cho to co closer.
They imdiately crawled toward .
At the sight of them, the Black-Clawed Red Earwig flinched and instinctively shielded its young with its body.
“We’re not here to hurt anyone. You don’t have to worry.”
The earwig was still on high alert, but it seed to be listening.
So I made an offer.
“You know you don’t have much ti left, right? If you release my kid, we’ll make sure your babies survive even after you’re gone.”
“As a parent myself, I get it. I’d be willing to help. So what do you say?”
If it hurt Hyang, Bini and Cho would tear through the entire nest in a fit of rage.
But what we needed right now wasn’t a fight—it was a deal.
— Tzrrr!
— Tzrrt!
Bini and Cho chid in as if adding their own words to the negotiation.
For a mont, the Black-Clawed Red Earwig’s gaze shifted.
And then—
Slowly, carefully, it released Hyang from its pincers and set him down in front of its head.
The negotiation had succeeded.
“Thanks. I’ll keep my promise. And I’ll co check in on you from ti to ti, so don’t be too surprised. I just need to know when you’re ready to pass on.”
At my final words, the Black-Clawed Red Earwig gave a small nod.
Hyang scurried over and climbed into my arms.
I quickly checked him for injuries, but he seed unhard.
With Bini, Cho, and Seol, I carefully backed away, retreating toward the well’s passage.
As we walked, Seol turned to , her face still pale.
“…Did you see it?”
I nodded.
I knew exactly what she was referring to.
“Yes.”
The cave wall—where Hyang had been clinging—had cracked open from the impact of the earwig’s strike.
And embedded in the shattered rock, glistening faintly—
Was a Fire Crystal.
Not only that—Hyang’s antennae and the tips of his feet were stained a deep red.
TL Note: Qinggong is a technique in Chinese martial arts (including Wushu) that allows fighters to move with incredible speed, effortlessly jump long distances, and run on walls or water.
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