Its belly had gotten wet from the pooled water that had run down from above, and although I had wiped its head with a cloth, it had remained damp for a while.

As a result, once the moisture had evenly soaked through its body, the creature revealed a completely different appearance.

Of all its body’s coloration, the only remaining white was on its belly—everything else had turned into a dark navy hue, shimmering with fluid patterns.

Could this be its true form?

Or was it the earlier version?

Either way, what I saw now was unmistakably Bakwon.

It was definitely Bakwon.

“So you really are Bakwon, huh?”

“Is this child really Bakwon, Master?”

Gun Hye-rin asked in wonder at my words.

I nodded in reply.

“Yes. It’s exactly the same as the illustration in the Compendium of All Poisonous Creatures. In the book, the colors had faded and looked black due to age, but I guess the original is this deep navy. Heh heh. So cute.”

Kki...

As I looked at it with a fond smile, the creature shrank back in alarm, pressing itself tightly against the far wall of the cage.

So different from before, when it had acted so bold and full of bravado—it now looked completely deflated.

Now that the bars between us were gone, it had clearly become terrified.

It didn’t even dare shoot any crystals; I found myself regretting not making direct contact sooner.

“So this little one doesn’t feel safe.”

Smiling gently, I spoke to the creature.

“It’s okay. We’re not going to treat you badly. You saw the other sisters, didn’t you? Oh, maybe not—you were sleeping? Hey, kids, come gather around.”

Except for Hwanji and Hwana, the others had been resting around the cabin.

Since it hadn’t been introduced yet due to sleeping, I gathered the kids together.

I figured it was finally time to formally introduce everyone.

—Kissik. 『Ah, so you’re finally awake? If you spit poison at big brother again, you’ll be in trouble.』

—Tsururu. 『You’re awake? I’m Cho. Nice to meet you.』

Yohwa gave a stern warning in her usual sharp tone, while Cho greeted it cheerfully.

Then Hyang and Yeondu chimed in as well.

—Tsk. 『This little guy’s scared now? What happened to all that swagger from before?』

—Sia. 『Hi there, no need to be scared. I’m Yeondu.』

One by one, as I called them, the kids gathered and introduced themselves to the creature.

With everyone greeting it, the one that had been trembling with its back to the bars slowly began adjusting its posture.

“Come on out. It’s okay.”

I gestured, beckoning it forward, and it glanced around nervously.

But as everyone smiled warmly, the creature finally managed to take its first step.

“Oh, it’s coming out!”

Just as the creature took that first step, Gun Hye-rin spoke.

At her voice, the creature froze.

It seemed startled by her tone.

“Ah...”

—Tsur... 『Ah...』

—Sia 『Ah...』

Everyone turned sharp eyes toward Gun Hye-rin, who shrank back and muttered an apology.

“Okay, I’ll be quiet.”

“Read the room. Alright, come on, you’re okay.”

After Gun Hye-rin went quiet, we gently encouraged it again, and the creature began moving once more.

Step by tiny step.

It toddled forward and stepped out of the cage—then stretched out its limbs, as [N O V E L I G H T] if cramped from being inside.

Its short legs stretched adorably as it loosened up.

Kkiieee.

With a wide yawn, it extended its whole body, and the mane on its back flared outward.

Its mane, which shimmered like metal, glittered with a holographic shine—the blue strands undulating like ocean waves in the deep sea.

“Wow. That’s amazing.”

The splendid mane made my heart thump with excitement, and the creature, now fully stretched, looked around timidly before slowly waddling over and settling down in front of me.

It backed into me, carefully pushing its butt toward me.

It must’ve decided I was the one it trusted and felt safest with.

As I slowly raised my hand to pet its head, it lowered its head and peeked up at me out of the corner of its eye.

“It’s okay.”

I reassured it and gently stroked its head—and its eyes began to droop, blinking sleepily.

Whether it was just indifferent or fearless, I couldn’t tell.

Before it could fall asleep, I looked at it and said,

“Let’s give you a name before you doze off. Let’s see... What would be good? Don’t fall asleep—ah geez, I’ve gotta hurry. What should it be? Don’t sleep yet...

Got it! Your name is now Ram.”

As the moisture began to evaporate, the color of its belly started to change.

It turned white from the belly up, while the mane returned to its blue hue—but its true color was still that deep navy.

I chose the Chinese character ram, which means indigo blue, but since Nam sounded too masculine, I settled on Ram to soften it.

“Gotta respect the initial sound rule, right?”

It was a rushed and hasty name, but if it fell asleep now, I figured it might never learn its name—so I had no choice.

But once I gave it, I realized—it wasn’t a bad name at all.

Ram. Isn’t that pretty?

And as I named the creature, joy filled me.

Because now, I had completed the entire Cloud-Rain-Snow-Hail set of the Twenty-Four Poison Branch.

Cloud: (Red Cloud Black Millipede) — Spirit beast Ranghyang

Rain: (Seven-Colored Rain Sea) — Spirit beast Cheonhae the jellyfish

Snow: (White Snow Carapace) — Spirit beast Sunbaek / Baekbaek the pangolin

Hail: (Great Crested Newt) — Spirit beast Ram

With that, my Cloud-Rain-Snow-Hail set of the Twenty-Four Poison Branch collection was complete.

“Nice!”

And now, I was only two steps away from completing the entire Twenty-Four Poison Branch collection.

***

Ram spent most of the day asleep.

Even during her waking hours, her eyes were nearly always closed.

I wondered if maybe she was feeling weak due to the lack of water, so I tried putting her into a basin—but she immediately crawled out.

With a look of deep betrayal in her eyes, no less.

Apparently, it wasn’t that she couldn’t go into water—she just didn’t like to.

A ridged-backed newt for sure, but clearly a terrestrial one. No doubt about it.

As I gently scratched the chin of the dozing creature, the princess approached and asked,

“So then, what should our destination be?”

Originally, our journey was to follow the Grand Canal connecting the Yellow River and the Yangtze, then turn southward and continue by boat to the border of Yunnan.

From there, we would spend some time in Yunnan before eventually returning to the Tang House in Sichuan.

However, since we needed to search for the habitat of the World-Destroying Golden Toad north of the Yangtze, our destination had to change.

I gazed out the window and said,

“Let’s head to Henan.”

“In that case, we’ll need to turn the boat around. Where in Henan should I have us dock?”

“We need to go to Mount Wangwu...”

The terrain marked on the map that Ji-ryong had shown me was Mount Wangwu.

When I answered that we needed to go to Mount Wangwu, the princess responded with a knowing expression.

“Ah, Mount Wangwu—it’s a famous mountain.”

“Is it really that famous?”

Worried that a well-known location might mean lots of human traffic—thus decreasing the odds of encountering a spirit beast—I asked in a slightly uneasy tone. The princess nodded and answered with a single phrase:

“Yugong Moved the Mountains.”

“Yugong Moved the Mountains?”

“Yes. The mountain in that story is Mount Wangwu.”

“Ohh, so the mountain Yugong tried to move was Wangwu?”

Even I knew the idiom Yugong Yishan.

Long ago, there was an old man named Yugong who lived in northern China. In front of his house stood two enormous mountains, making travel inconvenient. Determined to solve the problem, he decided to dig them away—every day, he would shovel away dirt and stone and haul it off to the sea.

People mocked his efforts, but Yugong replied, “If I can’t finish it, my descendants will.” And so he continued to dig, stubborn and steadfast.

Eventually, the Jade Emperor, moved by his sincerity, sent divine beings to relocate the mountains for him.

Hence, the idiom Yugong Moved the Mountains.

“So one of the mountains Yugong wanted to move was Mount Wangwu.”

“That’s right.”

The princess nodded, then, as if something clicked, she spoke with a brightened expression.

“You said you’re searching for the World-Destroying Golden Toad, right? Then Mount Wangwu actually might be a really likely spot.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Mount Wangwu has a Dongcheon—a mystical cave realm—and it’s even called the Number One Cave Under Heaven. There are countless caves there, and some say Dongcheon is a place that connects this world with the Immortal Realms.”

“Oho...”

“So, doesn’t that make it highly likely you’ll find the toad there?”

“It really does.”

Whether or not immortal realms actually exist, just hearing that a place is called the Number One Cave Under Heaven made it seem pretty promising.

Like I’ve said countless times, caves are where rare and mysterious creatures tend to be found.

I mean, didn’t I meet General Geum there?

And that was in a measly little cave.

If that place housed someone like General Geum, then surely the Number One Cave would be home to something even more remarkable.

Seeing my interest, the princess smiled and said,

“Then let’s depart right away.”

“Got it!”

Nodding excitedly at her explanation, I watched as she called for the ship’s commander and ordered him to change course.

“Turn the ship. We’re going to Mount Wangwu.”

As a royal command, the only proper response would have been “Yes, Your Highness”—but the commander just looked flustered.

He even stammered.

“P-Pardon? M-Mount Wangwu?”

“Yes, Mount Wangwu. Is something wrong?”

Was this... disobedience?

I wondered if the commander had recently broken up with a girlfriend or something.

Was he at the point of giving up on life?

As I stared at him suspiciously, the commander stammered his explanation.

“To go there, we’d have to pass through Yeongcheon Prefecture again... and the orders I received were to transport you as discreetly and quietly as possible. Mount Wangwu isn’t exactly easy to reach quietly, you see...”

Now he wasn’t the one flustered anymore—it was the princess.

Up to just a moment ago, the commander had been the one panicking. But now, it was the princess who looked uneasy.

She let out an awkward laugh and asked,

“It’s because of His Majesty, isn’t it?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Apparently, if the princess traveled near the capital again, the emperor was likely to be informed—and that would probably get her scolded.

She had been kicked out, after all. It would make sense for the emperor to get angry if she was seen wandering nearby.

If you’ve been exiled, you’re supposed to go live quietly somewhere—not go gallivanting around the countryside.

Still, we couldn’t just drop the matter—so I quietly stepped up beside the commander and said,

“Then let’s just slip through Yeongcheon at night.”

“Y-Yes, understood!”

It was a casual remark on my part, but maybe because I said it next to the princess, it came off as authoritative?

The commander straightened up and answered briskly.

It seemed I’d tasted just a hint of what power felt like thanks to the princess—so sweet it made me think I should treat her well.

“So this is why people get drunk on power... I should be good to her.”

We waited at a distance until sundown, and once the sun dipped below the horizon, the boat began to make its way quietly upstream on the Yellow River.

Watching the yellow waters churn and bend from the runoff, I thought to myself:

Yugong wanted to move Mount Wangwu because it was in his way—but this Sorong would move it in pursuit of a spirit beast.

“Today is your second moving day, Mount Wangwu.”

If it meant finding the World-Destroying Golden Toad, I was willing to move a mountain myself.

***

Since it wasn’t far, we were able to dock the ship close to Wangwushan.

Then we arrived at the village at the foot of the mountain—but the atmosphere wasn’t good.

We were planning to stay at a guesthouse for a day, but they told us they weren’t accepting any guests.

No, the issue wasn’t just about guests.

Most of the villagers at the foot of the mountain were evacuating the village.

“What’s going on?”

In response to my question, the owner of an ox-cart who was loading up his belongings answered with a worried expression.

“They say thunderous quakes have been coming from the cave in Wangwushan. No one knows when the mountain might collapse, so everyone’s evacuating. You all should get out too.”

“An earthquake?”

“Yes. It’s already rumbled dozens of times.”

Dozens of quakes already?

A continuous string of tremors was a clear sign of a major earthquake to come.

I was supposed to be the one to move the mountain—yet it was trying to disappear on its own.

‘What the hell is going on now?’