I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel-Chapter 238

What the Fung-Yuhwan creates is merely a temporary illusion.

While an ordinary person might perceive it without any sense of incongruity, to me—someone with the Dragon Eyes—it was nothing more than a fleeting mirage.

Even before obtaining the Dragon Eyes, I could sense that something about it was off.

It felt hollow, like an empty shell.

Of course, there’s some degree of difference, but when you’re expecting something monumental, it’s bound to feel disappointing.

The same applied to Nephila.

I knew full well that what I was looking at was an illusion.

And yet, it didn’t evoke the same strange emotions I’d felt when I looked at Cho-Do.

Was it because Nephila’s face happened to suit my taste?

...If her hair were just a bit longer, I might find myself completely under her control.

Of course, being aware that this was the work of the Fung-Yuhwan, I wasn’t about to lose myself in admiration.

“Gerolong.”

Huh?

I stared intently at Nephila’s transformed appearance, enhanced by the Fung-Yuhwan.

When I saw Cho-Do in this state, I hadn’t thought much of it, but seeing Nephila like this felt oddly refreshing.

Was it because her familiar face and body had changed so drastically?

My gaze kept drifting toward her, almost involuntarily.

This wasn’t entirely due to my personal preferences. Even Baekrang seemed surprised by the artifact’s miraculous effect.

Despite their ongoing fight, she couldn’t help but marvel at Nephila’s sudden, overwhelming transformation.

“Hm... I think I finally understand why everyone’s so obsessed with these fatty tissues. Makes me want to give it a good squeeze.”

“Gekk!”

No way!

Baekrang seemed like she was awakening to something new.

Fortunately, she was still at the beginner stage and hadn’t yet grasped the essence of it.

Things created by the Fung-Yuhwan aren’t meant to be touched carelessly.

...Though, to be fair, even if it weren’t created by the Fung-Yuhwan, touching it carelessly would still be a bad idea.

“Wait, what would happen if I used it myself?”

And there Baekrang went, saying something outrageous.

If she were to don the Fung-Yuhwan, she’d probably spend the whole day roaring “Gerolong.”

Considering how magnificent Baekrang already was, if she used the Fung-Yuhwan...

And if beings like Baek Seolhwa or the celestial fox—those outside the norm—used it?

Even knowing it’s an illusion, my tail might end up wagging uncontrollably.

Given their already immense aura, the illusion would blend seamlessly with their presence.

I might burst from sheer amazement...

I was indulging in such happy thoughts when—

“Heyaah! How could you betray me like this?!”

It seemed Tang Whatever-Her-Name-Was had survived the wolves' assault and managed to escape.

She came running, only to stop abruptly.

Her gaze fell upon Nephila’s overwhelming spiderweb pouch, and she gasped.

“I-is this... the Fung-Yuhwan?”

Simultaneously, her eyes sparkled as her hands formed strange shapes in the air.

“Amazing! Truly... the supreme treasure known as the Fung-Yuhwan! To think the once-scrawny Spider Lady could turn out like this!”

Hearing this, Nephila tilted her head.

Though she seemed to understand Tang So-yeong’s words, a vein bulged on her forehead as she turned her gaze to me.

It was as if she was saying, I’ll let this slide just once because of you.

“If the Spider Lady looks like this, then what about me...?”

No, you’re even scrawnier than Nephila.

Tang So-yeong, lost in delusional thoughts.

A faint smile crept across Nephila’s lips.

Suddenly seeing her smile like that felt a bit intimidating.

She had the look of someone who just came up with a great idea.

Flash.

A beam of light appeared, and Nephila’s overwhelming spiderweb pouch began to shrink back to its original size.

“Geeeeeng...”

Even though I knew it was just an illusion, it was hard not to feel a pang of regret.

Nephila, more than anyone else, would understand.

This was nothing more than a superficial deception.

And that the Divine Beast of the Gae Gak Sect preferred authenticity over such illusions.

...Though I can’t help where my eyes naturally drift.

“Here.”

Nephila held out the Fung-Yuhwan.

Not to me, but to Tang So-yeong.

“Huh? Are you... offering it to me?”

So-yeong looked startled.

“Kioong...”

“Kieeng...”

For some reason, Pus and Tus were waiting behind Tang So-yeong.

Judging by how they were jostling for the front spot, they seemed eager to line up.

...What would happen if they used it in their non-human forms?

Terrifying thought.

“This priceless artifact... Fine. If you insist, I’ll try it!”

Tang So-yeong puffed out her small chest.

“...But how do you even use this?”

After Nephila gave her a brief explanation, Tang So-yeong seemed to get the hang of it and snapped her fingers.

“Ufufu... Now everything is ready.”

With those words, Tang So-yeong activated the Fung-Yuhwan.

“This... this is...!”

A radiant white light enveloped So-yeong’s chest, spreading warmth in all directions.

It was a sight vastly different from anything I’d seen before.

“The Fung-Yuhwan must have recognized its rightful owner!”

At last, the Fung-Yuhwan’s effects took hold!

Yet... nothing happened.

Huh?

What?

There should at least be some kind of illusion.

“Kieeng...?”

“Kioong...?”

Pus and Tus tilted their heads, equally puzzled.

Why hadn’t anything changed?

“Ufufu. Can’t you see? My terrifying growth?”

So-yeong stuck out her chest—or rather, her stomach, to be more accurate—as if to flaunt her supposed transformation.

“Gekk.”

No matter how I looked at her, nothing seemed to have changed.

“Look more carefully! It’s a little bigger, isn’t it?”

Bigger?

Squinting, I thought I might have seen a slight difference.

But compared to Cho-Do and Nephila’s transformations, which were jaw-droppingly noticeable, this was...

Why was she like this?

“W-why are you looking at me like that?”

Even the spiders, wolves, and twin-horned beasts were staring at her with pity.

“Hm...”

“Minor preferences...”

“Minor preferences...”

Even the twin-horned beasts shook their heads in disapproval.

“Lord Lizard! Polygamy! Demand must match supply!”

One twin-horned beast seemed to be shouting something to the others, but it didn’t seem to align with popular opinion.

“Ah, I get it now. You’re all so jealous you can’t even speak, right? Even you, mighty one. If you just let me touch your tail, I might even let you hug me.”

What nonsense is this?

Why would I hug you?

I already barely have enough time to alternate between hugging Chillang and Ilrang.

“...Just keep using it.”

Even Nephila, who had initially received the Fung-Yuhwan as a gift from me, lent it to Tang So-yeong.

She must have looked so pitiful.

“Why are you all looking at me like that? Can’t you see how magnificent I’ve become?”

Sure, there was some change, but having seen Cho-Do and Nephila’s transformations first, it barely registered.

Unless you were family, you wouldn’t even notice.

“Ugh!”

*

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After Tang So-yeong’s fuss over her hollowed-out illusion, Gomodo set out to hunt.

Since he had only been eating grass while in Cho-Do’s domain, he decided to prepare a grand feast for dinner.

With Jaekjaeki having joined him, it was also a good opportunity to familiarize her with the surrounding territory.

Meanwhile, Tang So-yeong, who suddenly had free time, decided to gather some vegetables to accompany the meat.

Although Gomodo’s abilities and the twin-horned beasts had cultivated plenty of plants, most were unsuitable for human consumption.

Thus, it was better for her to gather her own vegetables.

However, as one of the lowest-ranked fighters in the Gae Gak Sect and a second-rate martial artist, she couldn’t roam alone. A pair of escorts accompanied her.

“Kioong.” “Kieng.”

It was the Left and Right Guardians of the Gae Gak Sect, Pus and Tus.

They weren’t particularly concerned about her safety but knew she’d inevitably get lost if left alone.

Though they found her annoying, they also felt obligated to care for her since no one else would. Besides, sticking close to her often meant access to good food.

Human cooking methods had proven to be quite agreeable to Pus and Tus.

“Maybe they’re just jealous. I feel like I’ve grown two or three times bigger...” Tang So-yeong muttered.

“Kioong-ong,” Pus and Tus replied as they walked, listening to her complaints.

“But the Spider Ladies have grown so much more impressive.”

She stared blankly at Tus’s back.

“Kioong?” Tus tilted her head and flicked her tail slightly, signaling for Tang So-yeong to speak her mind without hesitation.

“Would it be okay if I... rode you?”

“Kiek!” Tus swatted Tang So-yeong’s rear with her tail, as if telling her to stop spouting nonsense.

“Ah! W-where did you even learn such behavior? No, wait, were you always like this?”

Though Tus enjoyed having her tail patted by lizards, she didn’t mind occasionally reversing the roles and swatting Tang So-yeong.

While Tang So-yeong’s chest was relatively flat, her lower body had a bit more substance, with wide hips.

The lizard had developed a habit of swatting her hips whenever it had the chance.

Of course, after Tus noticed and began staring expectantly, the frequency of those incidents had decreased.

“Hehe. Still, there’s no one but the Spider Ladies.”

“Kioong.”

Before she knew it, Tang So-yeong had climbed onto Tus’s back.

Now the size of Chillang, Tus could easily carry someone as light as Tang So-yeong.

“Hm, but calling them ‘Spider Ladies’ all the time feels a bit impersonal. Big Spider Lady, Small Spider Lady, Smaller Spider Lady—it lacks affection, doesn’t it?”

“Kieng?” “Kioong?”

Both Pus and Tus turned to look at Tang So-yeong.

“What if I gave you names? We’ve been together for quite a while, and I do have some ties to the Tang Clan.”

The spider sisters already had names.

Their species names were Arthrocopus and Antracomartus, but the lizard had shortened them to Tus and Pus.

Since he had been the one to name them, calling them Tus and Pus felt appropriate.

Even after evolving into new species, their names stuck.

However, Tang So-yeong, who didn’t fully understand the lizard’s naming conventions, couldn’t have known this.

“Since I’m from the Tang Clan... how about the Spider Ladies adopt the Tang surname? It would make us sworn sisters, in a way.”

“Kioooong?” “Kieeeeeng?”

Pus and Tus froze for a moment at the mention of "sworn sisters."

Though they weren’t related by blood, Pus and Tus were sworn sisters. Even Nephila, whom they regarded as their elder sister, could be considered part of this bond.

While they weren’t entirely fond of the idea, considering their history with Tang So-yeong from the early days, they pondered whether the definition of "sworn sisters" could be extended.

Taking their reaction as approval, Tang So-yeong continued.

“The smaller Spider Lady has a tail, so how about Tang Mi-young? And the even smaller one has thick legs, so... Tang Gak-young. What do you think?”

“Kieeeek!” “Kieeeeeng!”

It was a catastrophically bad attempt at naming, akin to Gomodo’s infamous choices.

“Ahhh! If you don’t like it, just say so with words, not violence!”

After a bit of a scuffle, Tang So-yeong finally collected vegetables to pair with the meat. She was riding on Pus’s back, preparing to return, when—

“Kiek...”

Pus, who was leading the way, suddenly crouched low, taking a defensive stance.

“Huh? What’s wrong all of a sudden?”

“Kioooong...”

Tus, too, began emanating cold energy, readying herself.

The reason for their tension was clear—an intruder had appeared.

Realizing this late, Tang So-yeong also unleashed a killing intent of her own.

Though some might scoff at the idea of a second-rate martial artist exuding killing intent, Tang So-yeong was from the Tang Clan, masters of poison.

She couldn’t take a life, but she could at least prepare to scatter a poison that would cause hair loss.

Amid the tense standoff, a man’s voice rang out.

“W-wait a moment!”

The voice was oddly familiar.

“...Spider Ladies, hold on. That voice sounds familiar.”

Emerging from the bushes was a face she recognized.

It was none other than the eldest son of the Tang Clan—Tang Mu-yeong.

Of course, he was covered in dirt, as if he’d been through a lot.

“Brother?”

“So-yeong...!”

At long last, after countless struggles in the Mountains of Ten Thousand Beasts, Tang Mu-yeong had found Tang So-yeong.

Tears of relief streamed down his face as he approached her, but then, something strange caught his eye.

It was Tang So-yeong’s slightly heavier chest.

“...This is... odd.”

Though the difference was subtle, as someone who had known her for years, he could spot the change.

The reason the lizard hadn’t noticed was that it was used to much larger beings and automatically dismissed anything below a certain threshold as insignificant.

But Tang Mu-yeong, comparing her to her past self, could clearly see the difference.

“My little sister could never have something like this.”

Shing!

Tang Mu-yeong drew a hidden dagger from his sleeve.

“Who are you?”