Chapter 49 - Lian’s Resolve

‘You have reached the third stage, but you will need to train yourself to increase your poison resistance capacity. It isn’t only indispensable for when you reach the meridian stage, but also to learn the two detection techniques at your disposal - spider hair and snake tongue.’

It was what his mother said as she introduced the two new techniques Hei was supposed to learn. This time was one technique per style, for a total of two.

‘Although these are neither attack nor defense techniques, these two are essential techniques for your growth. Martial artists, having reached a certain level of mastery of their spirit power, can use that to perform a technique called spirit search. It merely consists of spreading one's spirit power in the surroundings to detect any traces of spirit power, thus avoiding being caught unawares by the enemy.

However, its weak point is that it detects only active spirit power sources. That is to say; if one momentarily deactivate one's spirit power, they cannot be perceived. Furthermore, using spirit search implies revealing your position to anyone within the search range. For this reason, it can be considered a double-edged technique to be used with due precautions.’

Bao Bei paused to let Hei understand every word and didn't lose the flow of the conversation. Only after she was assured that Hei was following what she was saying, she went on.

‘Therefore, you must learn to use alternative techniques that don’t require using spirit power and can perceive nearby enemies. And regarding that aspect, here come into play spider hair and snake tongue. These two derive from how spiders and snakes perceive the surrounding world.

You must know, typically, spiders don’t have such good eyesight, except for some spider species. In order to detect prey, they use the hair on their bodies to pick up vibrations from a moving object or body. Snakes also don’t have good eyesight, although some species have adapted to see in low light conditions. But, in any case, they cannot see detailed images. However, they have another way to detect prey or predators, which is their tongue. Snakes’ tongues are, in fact, capable of detecting scents.

Thus, spider hair technique consists of using your body hair to detect vibrations while snake tongue uses your tongue to identify scents. As a human being, you, Hei, you have good eyesight. However, your sense of hearing and smell are inferior to those of animals. With these techniques, you can improve your flaws. But you must always remember not to trust too much in a single sense. Only by utilizing multiple sense you can contrast enemies who are good at hiding themselves.'

Hearing this, Hei was struck. Over the years, he had actually noticed that fact. He had been surprised by how he was easily discovered at the beginning of his hunting training. Therefore, he was happy to be able to fill his flaws in those aspects. Yet something was tugging his mind.

"Mother, you said that spiders and snakes don't usually have good eyesight; yet you, Xing and Ye don't seem to have ever had any vision problems of any kind, or am I wrong?"

Even after all these years together, he had never heard his mother or his two little sisters complain about their sights. Indeed, if his mother hadn’t pointed it out to him, he would never have known that fact.

Bao Bei chuckled at her son's question before answering. Of course, more than a human-like laugh, it would have seemed like a series of squeaks in succession to another's ear. But for Hei, it was a beautiful sound. Like a forest fairy who was playing with him.

‘As we are divine beasts, we don’t have that kind of problem. Therefore, we can see as good as humans or other creatures. Before being a divine beast, mother had, in fact, various vision problems. So I had to rely on sounds to understand where I was. Looking back, it was pretty scary because predators are skilled. They stand still all the time before slinging against you, and they make little noise when they move. But fortunately, for Ye and Xing, it wasn’t the case; after all, we couldn’t have seen your face well if we hadn’t been divine beasts, and that would have been very unfortunate.’

While explaining that anecdote, Bao Bei stretched one of her legs to caress her son's head gently. It was true. When she was just a small spider, she had spent countless days filled with the fear of being devoured at any time. For that reason, she was grateful to her companion, who had helped her escape from that nightmare and allowed her to become a divine beast. She was also grateful that her daughters didn't have to live that terrific experience. They could perceive the world with their own eyes and use, at the same, their other sense.

After cuddling Hei a bit, Bao Bei went on to explain.

‘As I was saying, these two techniques are based on these detection principles. But unfortunately, it isn’t possible for humans to autonomously use their own body like that without a catalyst that allows hair and tongue to pick up sounds and smells like spiders and snakes do. And here the poison comes into play - using your sisters’ poison as a catalyst, you can use these two techniques. For your training, you will need to be subjected to continuous poison injections over your body’s entire surface while you will also need to swallow lots of poison and let it permeate in your tongue. Did you understand everything, my little one?’

"Yes, I correctly understood, mother. So this time, I just have to hold on until I can stand the poison, and then I can use those two techniques, right? "

‘Yes, but don't think that you just need to learn how to endure poison. You will also need to figure out how to perceive sounds and smells in that way until you feel them naturally as your other senses. If not, anyone who has done a similar training to increase their poison resistance capacity could have discovered those moves.’

“Got it. And your poison, mother? Will we only use Ye and Xing's? "

‘My poison is too powerful for you. To use it, we should dilute a small amount with other substances, but it would still be more harmful and difficult than using that of your two little sisters. But in the future, we will use my poison when you reach the fifth stage, that of the bones. Furthermore, using Ye and Xing’s poison, the two of them will be able to train themselves by controlling their poison while injecting it into a body and increasing its quantity.’

That said, she called the two little spirit beasts engaged with their exercises. The little spider and the little snake cheerfully ran to their mother's call and listened as good daughters to what Bao Bei wanted them to do.

At first, they were a little appalled to have to hurt their big brother and even injecting their poison, but since their mother said it was for Hei's good, they decided to do it. Moreover, it was also an excuse to train with him; lately, in fact, they hadn't trained together much since Hei was busy with his exercises and in cultivating. So they gladly accepted that opportunity.

After a moment's reflection, Bao Bei also called Lian in the meantime. Although she didn’t need to undergo all this, it was undeniable that it was a good thing if she increased her resistance to poison. But it was especially for another reason she decided to do so.

Bao Bei sensed that during her imprisonment period, Lian had received various physical and psychological ill-treatment. When they welcomed her into their family, the spider had carefully examined the young girl's body, noticing multiple wounds and bruises here and there. The only positive thing in all this was that she hadn’t suffered sexual violence. Whether it was because they had considered her too young or for some other reason, she had been spared that nightmare.

But despite this, she was still deeply scarred. Even if she didn't show it because of her inexpressive reactions, Bao Bei’s careful eyes and her long years of life had allowed her to see through that fake mask of impassivity - Lian was still afraid inside herself. That fear wouldn’t leave as long as she didn't fight against the inner demons that tormented her.

The inner demons term wasn’t related to the demon race. It was, instead, an abstract description of all the negative emotions and mental barriers that a person carried within themselves. If for ordinary people that affected daily behavior, for martial artists such inner demons were an even more severe problem, because it could also influence their cultivation training.

Often, martial artists with inner demons couldn’t breakthrough to the next stage or rank. In the end, after various failures, they ended up resorting to drastic measures to forcibly increase their spirit power, resulting in severe consequences and ending up crippling themselves.

Of course, this didn’t mean that high-ranking martial artists were all perfect and free of negative emotions. However, through their type of personality and willpower, it was possible to live with your inner demons without delaying cultivation. There were also people who were so arrogant and self-centered that they weren’t even able to see their flaws and were, therefore, immune to negative emotions until they experienced something that brought them back down to earth.

Bao Bei wanted, therefore, through the physical pain to revive those emotions so that she could face her inner demons slowly until she reached a state in which she accepted what had happened to her without, however, preventing her from looking towards the future.

When Lian knew that she would experience physical pain, she trembled visibly and curled up on the ground. It was one thing to train until you finished your strength; another was to be tortured continuously.

When she had learned the cultivation method devised for humans by divine beasts, she had felt pain, but it was a pain lasting a few hours at most, the time to finish that process. Since she had become used to pain to some extent, it hadn't been a problem to hold on for that length of time. But now, it was a matter of feeling pain for who knows how long. That not knowing was what terrified her. She hoped not to have to find herself again in a situation of having to feel pain for days and days.

"C-can I... don't... please?"

In a soft voice, so weak as to be almost inaudible, Lian pleaded with Bao Bei not to be subjected to that training. Usually, she would have done without retort about what she was supposed to do. Lian was aware of her situation and how that strange family had helped her; consequently, her obedience was a way to show them gratitude. But this time, she just couldn't harden her heart and reset her emotions to such a request.

Ye and Xing immediately went to her, worried because they didn't understand what was happening. They had seen Lian endure pain before so they couldn't understand why she was behaving like that now.

Hei, on the other hand, who sensed something about her behavior, approached Lian and lowered himself until they were at the same height. Then he took Lian's face with his hands and pulled it up so she could look into his eyes.

"I don't know exactly why you are afraid, and I know it will seem stupid to say it, but don't be afraid. Mother knows what she is doing. Even if they look like hard and difficult things to deal with, all she tells us to do is for our own good. I, therefore, ask you to give mother a chance. Everything will be fine. I'm there with you during this training. The ones injecting poison would be Ye and Xing, and you know that they aren’t going to hurt us viciously, right? Mother also will be with us during these sessions and will monitor us in case something happens."

Hei's words were straightforward but sincere at the same time. Looking into his eyes, Lian could see absolute confidence in what he had said. With her emotions in turmoil, she shifted her gaze to Bao Bei, who had approached them.

‘If you don't want to do it, it’s okay. I won't force you. But you should also know that you can't go on like that forever. Sooner or later, you will have to face what you have in your heart, but in any case, we will always be with you.’

Bao Bei, therefore, raised one of her legs to caress Lian’s head as she did with her son. Ye and Xing also expressed their affection for Lian, who was moved by their sincerity.

Thinking back to the night when Bao Bei revealed her origins, she realized how that family had always trusted and cared for her. Lian had sworn that time that she would repay them for saving her. In order to repay her debt and to keep her promise, she had to face her inner demons.

Resolving herself again after a careful meditation, Lian nodded her head and gave her consent to be subjected to training. Having convinced her, Bao Bei started their actual practice.

The two little spirit beasts, although a bit sad from having to hurt Hei and Lian, took courage and bitten their brother first on his hands by injecting venom deep into his skin. Then they went to Lian and repeated the same action.

In order to make it all the more extreme, there was a ban by Bao Bei on using their spirit power during those sessions, forcing the two youths to resist the poison by using only their willpower. As soon as she saw that the two of them were about to get used to the poison in circulation, she had Ye and Xing bite other parts of their body again so that the pain caused by the poison didn't go away.

Initially, the two youths managed to resist pain well enough and calmed their breath to concentrate on calming their body’s spasms. But with the increase of the circulating poison, it soon became impossible for them to stay calm until they began to squirm on the ground, coming to have convulsions.

They had already experienced a similar pain, but this time there wasn’t Bao Bei to alleviate their pain through her spirit power. Now they had to do it themselves without outside help. When they were no longer in a position to continue, Bao Bei stopped the training and transported them to the spiderweb to rest.

However, this experience became a daily routine that Hei and Lian had to undergo every morning so that they had no strength to do anything else but to cultivate. Fortunately, they weren’t alone and could, therefore, concentrate solely on resisting pain from the poison.