I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel-Chapter 245

"Haah-hah-hah!"

Is he eating fish cakes, or is it just that loud as he eats the Ouyang Pork?

At first, he claimed there was no time for this, but now he’s even pulling out drinks and indulging himself.

"The Nahan of the Shaolin...! Truly, the Great Master Gomodo is incredible!"

Dang Muyeong admired as he watched such a display.

He had heard that the existence of Cheolduyong was kept hidden by the Shaolin.

But as expected, being from the Dang family, it was only natural for them to recognize Cheolduyong.

"I never imagined that the head of the Dang family could have such culinary skills hidden away. And with connections to the lord... Hm, truly, the lord is amazing!"

Cheolduyong wasn’t concerned with that at all, focused solely on eating.

It felt strange that my den had become a place of unity.

Upon reflection, the Gaegyeokgyo wasn’t an ordinary group.

From its location on Mount Shiman, and with the support of my master, it was well-placed.

With the Shaolin's Nahan as a subordinate, the Dang family was certainly an ally.

Also, they had almost completely seized control of the Hwasanpa, and were in friendly relations with numerous powerful spiritual beings.

...Honestly, anyone who didn’t know might think Gaegyeokgyo was a demonic cult.

Regardless of their intentions, their gathered power was undeniable.

If any sect put all its power into attacking us, our chances of winning would still be high.

In fact, we had already defeated Hwasanpa.

A rising group.

And with such a strong religious character, if the martial world knew of their strength, they would likely have rushed at us with their full might.

Luckily, being in the remote Shiman mountain range, we hadn’t been discovered. If they were located in any of the central plains, they would have been eradicated.

Using this terrain to steadily build up power until it became so great that no one could interfere was the best course of action.

But we didn’t have much time.

"Hmm... Do-cheol, Do-cheol..."

The spiritual being from the Jinryong side had come.

The fox bead, which had been silent until now, or more precisely, the spirit trapped inside the bead, muttered.

The followers liked the bead itself, but they didn’t care much for the spirit.

After all, the spirit had attacked my domain.

While the spirit had stepped aside in the end, my followers didn’t know that.

I didn’t bother mentioning it.

So, in the followers' minds, the spirit would be remembered as a ghost absorbed into the fox bead after foolishly attacking and losing.

Naturally, they couldn’t like it.

I silently stood up and walked out.

Given the nature of my followers, they likely would have kept the spirit imprisoned, but it seemed they noticed I had something to do alone.

"Kiyon!"

"Kiing!"

Could it be the food was just that delicious?

Well, whatever.

I went outside and tapped the fox bead lightly.

"Speak."

The bead trembled slightly, and something that appeared to be the face of the spirit of the Gongbok appeared near it.

"Huh... Why are you trying to hide that you can speak? This is a truly perverse interest."

Thanks to Cho-do, I could speak to some extent.

I hadn’t told my followers, but I wasn’t exactly hiding it either.

It was just that speaking took a lot of energy, so I mostly communicated by grunting.

What I had learned from Cho-do wasn’t human language.

More precisely, I learned how to use the Yong-eon language.

Even just speaking drained my energy rapidly, so I had to conserve words.

If my proficiency improved, I could speak comfortably, but for now, I had to minimize speaking.

If the followers knew this, they would likely give up on interpreting my grunts.

Communicating like this was quite convenient, and I had no reason to give that up.

"Ge-ge-ge."

"Well, it's not the speaking that matters, it's that Do-cheol is coming here."

"Do-cheol?"

A heavy thud.

"Why is he suddenly doing this?!"

Since when was he my senior?

"No, he was born before me, so he’s my senior!"

"Ge-ge..."

Though I wasn’t pleased with the term, I agreed.

"Anyway, you must have heard about Do-cheol from Cho-do."

Cho-do had said that he was a malevolent and sneaky being who sought to destroy all humans and spiritual beings.

If that was true, we had to remove him.

"The story about my little sister is mostly true, though there are exaggerated parts. The Do-cheol I know isn’t that extreme."

He called him senior, so they must have been close.

"Well, we were close enough."

Could I believe that?

Cho-do had said the same thing and then been thoroughly dismissed.

"Stop with that strange expression, I’ll tell you about the Do-cheol I know."

Alright, I’ll listen.

"Do-cheol, as the rumors go, is a bit violent... but there’s a slight difference. He doesn’t kill just to kill, he picks fights with both humans and spiritual beings."

Hmm.

What’s the difference?

"He’s not just randomly killing. He’s a spiritual being whose goal is not slaughter, but combat."

So, he's a bit of a muscle-headed character?

"He reveres strength. That’s why he’s under the strongest father figure right now."

Now, I was starting to get an idea about Do-cheol.

Now I understood why Cheolduyong was back and why he wanted me to come.

He wasn’t satisfied with Cheolduyong, so he sent for me.

...I’m grateful, but I also think he might be a bit of an idiot.

"But this strength is somewhat vague... It’s not just physical power, but he seems to care about his appearance too."

Huh?

Do-cheol, being one of the Four Fiends, cared about his appearance?

"He’s not neglecting his physical training, but he spends more time thinking about how he should look cool."

This was not the Do-cheol I expected.

"Though, after joining the Four Fiends, he might have changed. I didn’t meet him after he became a Fiend... So I’m not sure."

The Four Fiends could be a hidden truth, like Gomodo or Cheonma, but based on the reaction of the spirit, that didn’t seem to be the case.

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"The Three Fiends before becoming Four Fiends were just evil spirits. After Do-cheol joined, he became one of the Fiends."

Maybe Do-cheol just joined because the name sounded cool?

Nah, he wouldn’t have joined just for that.

He’s not a child.

"Whatever the reason, the important thing is this. Do-cheol is in the Seolsan. And he will come for you soon."

In this situation, there’s no reason for me to go to him.

Even if I had to fight him, it would be better to do so on my terms, in this terrain.

"He wouldn’t have sent Do-cheol as an order. Do-cheol is that kind of spiritual being. He came here out of personal curiosity and his own decision."

Jinryong must be aware of me to some extent.

He may not know about the descendants of Gomodo, but he likely noticed that the traps set in Shiman mountain were foiled.

Given that someone as strong as Jinryong couldn’t move directly, Do-cheol must have acted.

"By the look on your face... you must have figured it out. Yes, if we can satisfy Do-cheol’s personal curiosity, we can turn him to our side."

Getting Do-cheol on our side would be more than just eliminating a lackey of Jinryong.

We could gain intelligence on Gonryun, powerful subordinates.

Of course, just blocking his attacks would be difficult.

He likely possesses strength above that of Gongbok.

But for now, I know a lot about Do-cheol.

The spirit is explaining everything.

If I use this, I can capture him without expending too much effort.

*

The earth rumbled with a deafening roar.

As planned, the followers had evacuated to a safe zone in advance.

With Tang Mu-yeong, a peak-level master, present, a combined assault would make things easier. However, my goal wasn’t simply to defeat this creature.

I had to take it down in a one-on-one battle.

“How dare you... HOW DARE YOUUUU!”

The furious roar of Docheol rang out.

“I waited for you for over seven cycles of the sun and moon, and you didn’t come!”

Seven days and nights—a full week. He had waited in that spot all that time.

Why wait that long, though? I’d thought two days, at most. Still, thanks to his patience, I was fully prepared to face him.

With a flash of light, Docheol, exuding a terrifying aura, reached the entrance of the domain.

I took a deep breath, stepping forward on all fours, revealing myself.

“Grrr...”

A low growl escaped my throat as I tried to intimidate him.

Docheol took the form of an old man.

“Hooh... Quite the appearance, I must admit.”

That didn’t mean I could underestimate him. I knew this wasn’t genuine aging—it was simply his personal preference.

“Black scales are a rarity. And paired with that contrasting white fur? Your appearance is passable, I’ll give you that.”

Despite his earlier fury, Docheol grinned at the sight of me. Clearly, he wasn’t all there.

“Your size is somewhat disappointing, but no one’s perfect.”

The old man muttered to himself as he gazed at his own hands.

“Black beast, don’t think you can afford to be careless.”

Docheol’s killing intent steadily intensified.

“Show me the power that defied my father’s sorcery.”

He spread his hand wide and pointed at me.

Truly, his aura was... wait a second.

Why are his palms black?

“K-khh!”

Docheol hastily covered his palm, flustered.

Did he seriously write his lines on his hand?

I’ve met a lot of strange characters in my time, but this guy takes the cake.

Embarrassed, Docheol sprang toward me, his movements suddenly hurried.

“Give it your all to stop this frail old body!”

And yet, he glanced at his palm again mid-jump.

Just as I prepared to respond to his attack—

CRACK!

The ground beneath him gave way.

“RAAAARGH!”

Wait, he triggered the trap?

That was meant to be simple enough for even Tang Soyeong to evade. It was only supposed to serve as a warning.

Still, the fact that it worked made things easier.

CRASH!

The sound of the embedded weapons shattering echoed loudly.

“This is... fun. Truly fun!”

With a burst of energy, Docheol leapt out, completely unscathed.

“What a delightful situation. To fall into such a vile trap and emerge victorious! I’m grateful—so much so that I’m unsure how to repay you.”

This time, he glanced at his other palm.

Apparently, this line was written on his left hand.

He seemed genuinely pleased with himself, despite falling into the trap.

“Well then. Time to demonstrate my—”

But he couldn’t finish his sentence.

“Ghh... Gahk!”

Not even five steps later, blood gushed from his mouth.

Even if he was humanoid, conventional weapons shouldn’t have been able to harm him.

But these weren’t ordinary weapons.

The sharp spikes were carved from wood empowered by the Dragon Gate’s energy.

Still, they wouldn’t have inflicted much damage—just enough to draw a few drops of blood at best.

And even that was only because of his humanoid form.

Why was he reacting so strongly to such a minor wound?

The answer was simple.

Poison.

The higher the rank of a spiritual being, the stronger their resistance or immunity to toxins.

Even in his humanoid form, he would have some resistance. But naturally, it was weaker compared to his true form.

The poison coursing through Docheol's body left him with no choice but to cough up blood.

Normally, a simple toxin wouldn’t have had such an effect, but take a look at the company I keep: Gomodo, the young master of the Tang Clan, Tus with the spiritual rank of a divine beast, and Tang Soyeong herself.

Even for Docheol, with his formidable strength, taking on a humanoid form came with vulnerabilities.

I considered mixing in one of Soyeong’s poisons, but the Tang siblings vehemently opposed it. Apparently, using it on a male could lead to unspeakably horrific consequences. Who was I to argue?

“This frail old body... brought low by poison... khh...”

Docheol staggered, but even in his unsteady state, his gaze remained fixed on his palm, a faint smile creeping across his lips.

He was oddly satisfied with the situation.

“Khuhuh... Kahaha!”

BOOM!

A burst of malicious energy radiated from Docheol’s body, powerful enough to send someone like Tang Soyeong flying into the distance with sheer pressure.

CRACK!

“So, you’re not just any opponent. To think you’d force me to reveal this old body’s true form so soon.”

Docheol’s body swelled.

The human figure disappeared, replaced by his original form.

A black beast emerged.

It had the intimidating appearance of a creature that was part wolf, part tiger, with glowing red eyes capable of instilling dread in anyone who dared look at him.

But what stood out the most were his forelimbs.

They resembled my own in structure, suggesting that clawing rather than biting was his primary attack method.

In addition to his larger size, which granted him superior brute strength, his defenses weren’t to be taken lightly either.

As a descendant of dragons, he bore dragon scales, though his were peculiar, resembling fur.

The scales were most concentrated around his neck.

With such a structure, even if I managed to strike his neck, the majority of the impact would be absorbed by his scales.

Still, everything was going according to plan.

Even though the traps and poison had been effective, returning to his true form essentially nullified the damage.

But forcing him into this form was a win in itself.

Fighting his humanoid form was tricky, and I knew he’d eventually revert to his true form once pressured.

If I had let the battle drag on until then, he would have analyzed my full capabilities, whereas I’d have little understanding of his true strength.

This was a preemptive strike against that disparity in information.

You could call it... skipping Phase One.

Docheol, oblivious to this fact—or perhaps too preoccupied with his own theatrics—spoke in a deep, dramatic tone.

“Come forth.”

Malicious intent spilled from him as his crimson eyes locked onto me.

“My fangs shine with vengeance, my claws deliver judgment.”

“Grrrr...”

My heartbeat quickened.

“Those who spill the blood of others shall have their own spilled in turn.”

I could feel my dragon scales bristling.

“Such is the will of the dragons.”

Seriously, how long is he going to keep spouting this cringeworthy nonsense?

“Now, let us dance under this moonlit night!”

ROAAAR!

Enough, you crazy old fool! Stop it already!