The red-haired man had kicked the girl with the dumpling hairstyle, knocking her over.

They seemed to be part of the same group, so why did he do that?

Honestly, it was irritating, but there were probably other circumstances involved.

Maybe the girl had told them to leave her behind to save themselves in advance.

...Still, kicking her like that was too much, wasn’t it?

The more I thought about it, the more it annoyed me.

But I guess I’ll let it slide since she was crying and panicking while trying to run away from me.

Let’s forget the details.

Their situation doesn’t matter to me.

The only thing I need to know is that the girl was knocked down.

And unlike the others, she didn’t run away when she saw me. She just sat there, not moving.

It didn’t seem like she was seriously hurt, maybe she just twisted her ankle.

Or perhaps she was a completely ordinary person who couldn’t understand why her companions were fleeing from such a calm and gentle lizard like me.

Since I don’t want to move twice, let’s grab what I need in one go.

Shrrrkkk.

I flicked my tongue, feeling the ground with it.

Was it around here?

I found a particularly damp spot.

Time for the Eighth Form of the Dragon Claw Hand, Digging the Earth Like a Dog.

Just like a dog digging up a hidden bone, I began furiously clawing at the dirt with my front legs.

Thud-thud-thud-thud!

What I unearthed were various plants and items.

Among them were things like a rare-looking lightning-shaped stone I had collected.

A storage spot for things that seemed useful but weren’t immediately necessary.

Now, what I needed was...

Ah, there it is.

I carefully pulled out something that looked like a plant root.

What was it called again? He Shou Wu?

Back when I got hurt, applying the juice from He Shou Wu to my wounds would always heal them quickly.

Of course, I never needed it thanks to my title, which let me heal just by splashing around in the water.

I had saved it thinking I might need it for Tus or Pus one day, but now I get to use it here.

I also grabbed a bit of spider silk from Pus that I had stored nearby.

If she wraps her injured leg with this He Shou Wu juice, leaves, and spider silk, she should recover quickly.

Once I give her the ingredients, she can handle the rest.

Alright, let’s head over.

Even though I went to some trouble to gather these materials, the best outcome would be if she just stood up and walked away on her own.

I still think it’s too early for me to get involved with humans.

It’s a sad truth, but it seems most humans are scared of me unless they’re eccentric like Baek Yeon-Yeong.

If I ever do meet people again, I should at least try to make a good impression. Maybe I should make some clothes or something to wear.

I’m not ready yet.

Encountering humans just now was not part of the plan.

Sure, I could just ignore it and go to sleep, having driven them away from my territory, but I don’t want to see a human die near me, either.

Maybe it’s a bit selfish, but please just heal up and leave where I can’t see you.

Tadadak.

To make myself appear smaller, I crawled on all fours.

Was it the sword I was carrying in my mouth that might’ve scared them? I moved it to my tail instead.

I should be almost there now.

Yep, there she is.

The girl I had seen earlier was still in the same spot.

...She wasn’t dead, was she?

Looking closely, I could see her chest, smaller than Baek Yeon-Yeong’s, rising and falling.

It seemed she had injured her leg and couldn’t move.

I cautiously moved behind her, gently tapping the ground a couple of times to avoid startling her.

Excuse me.

"Hii-hiiiik!"

The girl was startled out of her wits.

She looked at me with teary eyes, trembling all over.

"P-please don’t eat me..."

No.

You’ve misunderstood.

I don’t eat people.

Tang Soyeong wasn’t talented in martial arts.

But she didn’t mind that.

In the Tang Clan, they primarily used poisons and hidden weapons rather than conventional martial arts.

Though she lacked martial arts skills, her talent for handling poisons was exceptional.

Her poisons weren’t extraordinarily strong, but even masters much stronger than her could fall victim to them. That was why the Tang Clan valued her.

Valued, or rather, used.

Just as they used poison and hidden weapons, the people of the Tang Clan naturally used their own bloodline.

The title of poison person wasn’t just a myth from legends—it was a derogatory term used by those who, like puppets, became nothing more than a vessel for the family’s poisons.

Tang Soyeong refused to become just another poison handler.

That was her reason for existing, and it wasn’t surprising that after making such a declaration, she wasn’t in good standing within the Tang Clan.

Even if she shared their bloodline, it was unlikely she’d be spared, or she could be locked away in some cave, destined to become another mindless puppet.

But Tang Soyeong didn’t allow that to happen.

She secretly built up her strength.

Her strength was knowledge.

Instead of cultivating internal energy, she accumulated vast amounts of knowledge.

Knowledge that even the elders of the Tang Clan were unaware of, leading them to use her differently.

Her most significant area of expertise was in spirit beasts.

Even before the sudden surge in the appearance of spirit beasts, the Tang Clan had shown the most interest in them—after all, the strongest beasts produced the strongest poisons.

Tang Soyeong’s previous accomplishments in this field allowed her to represent the Tang Clan on this expedition. She was one of the few capable of handling the juvenile Dilophosaurus.

Of course, sending her to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains was a gamble.

She was weak, and both she and the valuable spirit beast could be lost.

That’s where the Tang Clan’s council focused on Namgung Yeon.

Through information gathered by the spy Cheong Mulin, they learned much about Namgung Yeon. Though he was known as a second-rate martial artist, this was intentionally misrepresented.

Upon realizing his true identity, the council decided to send Tang Soyeong along with the juvenile spirit beast.

They had more to gain than to lose.

As long as Namgung Yeon was with them, she wouldn’t die easily.

That was, assuming she could still control the Dilophosaurus.

However, she lost control of it.

A sudden attack by wild beasts almost cost her her life.

If she hadn’t used the smoke bombs she carried, blood would’ve been spilled for sure.

Now, all she had left were some supplies, a few hidden weapons, and poison needles.

And in this dire situation, she had encountered a monster beyond comprehension.

At first, she had been terrified.

She could sense the vast amounts of internal energy it possessed.

And this energy wasn’t refined in the usual way.

She could detect at least four cores and the aura of Heavenly Pure Jade Essence as well.

Facing such a creature, completely defenseless and injured, how could she not be afraid?

To make matters worse, her leg was injured.

She couldn’t move.

All she could do was wait for the creature to return.

"P-please don’t eat me..."

She begged in a trembling voice, her heart pounding wildly.

Shlick.

The creature flicked its tongue as it stared at her.

Just as she braced herself for death and squeezed her eyes shut, something dropped in front of her.

Peeking through squinted eyes, she saw the roots of a plant.

He Shou Wu.

And not just any He Shou Wu—this was at least a hundred years old.

The creature pawed at the root a few times before handing her a silk-like material and some leaves.

Such precious He Shou Wu!

Normally, Tang Soyeong would have scolded it for wasting such a valuable herb.

But in this situation, she could only tremble in fear.

Was it telling her to apply it?

"Grraaar…"

"I-I’ll apply it!"

Terrified, she rubbed the He Shou Wu juice on her injured leg with trembling hands.

As time passed, the pain slowly subsided.

Tang Soyeong found herself wondering—why was this creature helping her?

Was it like marinating meat with tea leaves before cooking to make it taste better?

No, she tried to think more optimistically.

Perhaps the creature didn’t intend to harm her.

Though the sight of its tail swishing with a sword made her nervous, if it had wanted to eat her, it would have done so already.

Even if it was just a whim, this was still better than doing nothing and getting eaten.

At least she had some control over the situation.

Tang Soyeong slowly lifted her head.

She needed to confront the creature in front of her.

It had a large body.

Sharp claws.

A bizarre expression that she wasn’t sure was a smile or not, but whatever it was, it was unnerving.

As she studied the creature’s appearance, a thought suddenly crossed Tang Soyeong’s mind.

A piece of information from a legend in the Tang Clan.

There was said to be a spirit beast, more powerful than even a divine beast.

It had many names: The Ancient Being, Death’s Tail, The Old Death.

It symbolized death and violence, an overwhelming existence that the Tang Clan had longed for.

Its armor was said to block even the sharpest blades. Its twenty claws were sharper than any sword forged from meteorite. Its fangs could pierce through the strongest protective energy fields. Its venom was deadlier than any beast known to man.

It was called Gomodo.

The creature before her resembled Gomodo.

Of course, there were some differences from the legends.

Its size was a bit smaller, and its skin color was different.

She could let this pass without saying anything.

They could both just go their separate ways, and that would be the best outcome.

But Tang Soyeong couldn’t leave it at that.

Was it her scholarly curiosity, or the hope that this might be the very creature she had been searching for?

"U-um!"

She called out to the spirit beast that had started to walk away.

"By any chance... are you Gomodo the Great?"

A siren went off in my head.

A human calling me out in this situation.

My sharp mind was spinning.

This human is crazy!

Oh, I need to get out of here quickly.