Volume One, Chapter 17: Drink the Medicine

"Ah—"

Seeing the spider pounce toward him, Montage cried out instinctively and squeezed his eyes shut.

The next moment.

Montage jolted upright on the sofa, realizing that everything just now had only been a nightmare.

"Brother, are you alright? Did you have a bad dream?"

At that moment, his sister Meng Tiantian’s gentle voice sounded at his ear.

Montage shuddered, instinctively leaning back to avoid her reaching hand.

Noticing the confusion in her eyes, Montage finally realized this was his own sister, not some monster.

"Sorry, Tiantian, I just had a nightmare. How did I fall asleep here?"

He remembered that after returning home, he was looking for someone in the courtyard, wasn’t he?

How did he end up on the sofa?

"You’re one to talk. I went with our family to the outer city to buy things, we wanted to surprise you. When we got back, we found you lying in the courtyard.

You scared us all half to death."

Meng Tiantian looked at Montage with a hint of reproach.

As the two spoke, several more people entered from outside.

"Taiqi, come, take your medicine."

The old woman, her belly swollen, walked over holding a bowl of medicine.

"Ugh… What kind of medicine is this? It smells awful."

When Montage caught its scent, his stomach churned.

The stench was sharp and nauseating.

"Bitter medicine is good for illness, hurry and drink it while it’s hot!"

The old woman handed the bowl to Montage.

Staring at his grandmother, Montage couldn’t tell if it was his imagination, but her belly seemed even larger.

Crash—

Just as Montage was about to drink the medicine, the sudden sound of a cup shattering rang out in the room.

Following the sound, he saw his grandfather, the one who always wore a red scarf, standing there, his face stricken with terror.

He trembled all over, like a child caught misbehaving.

"What’s wrong with you!"

The old woman snapped coldly.

"I didn’t mean to, truly, I didn’t!" The old man dropped to his knees, apologizing frantically.

Montage couldn’t help but smile wryly at the scene.

Everyone in their family feared his grandmother, especially his grandfather, a classic henpecked husband.

Even the slightest cough from her was enough to send him scrambling to beg forgiveness.

So this was nothing new for Montage.

Seeing the old woman’s anger rising, Montage hurriedly put down the medicine bowl and tugged at his grandmother’s sleeve.

"Grandpa didn’t mean it, it’s just a cup. Please, don’t make a fuss over it."

"Hmph! This time I’ll let it go."

With a cold snort, she shot a fierce glare at the old man, then turned to scold Montage: "Hurry up and drink your medicine!"

"Alright, alright, I will. Please, don’t get upset, it’s bad for your health."

While soothing her, Montage picked up the medicine bowl.

Suppressing his urge to vomit, he forced down the entire contents in one gulp.

He nearly retched as it hit his throat.

The old woman, quick as a snake, rapped him with her cane just as he bent over to gag.

Montage straightened at once.

As the medicine slid down, a cool sensation traced his esophagus—only to ignite into a searing blaze in his stomach.

He felt as if he’d swallowed strong spirits, his blood boiling throughout his body.

Even the spiritual energy within him, which had been all but dried up, began to surge back.

"So hot!"

Montage clawed desperately at his clothes.

"Now!"

The old woman barked the order to the others.

His mother and father’s bodies began to melt; their clasped hands merged into a single monstrous limb.

Under Montage’s aghast gaze, they transformed into two enormous tentacles.

A mass of viscous slime rose from the ground, engulfing Montage completely.

Only then did he notice—the courtyard of his home was actually the body of a giant snail.

The house, the yard—everything was a lie.

If his home was fake, what about his family?

Montage looked at the other three.

The old woman’s gaze was ice-cold, while his sister and grandfather stood behind her with heads bowed.

"Toss him in the pill furnace. Wait for the medicine’s effect, then we can begin refining the elixir."

The old woman addressed the two behind her and walked away.

Meng Tiantian and the old man exchanged glances and slowly stepped forward.

"So, Master Huang was right—everything is a lie. I really… have no family…"

Montage suddenly laughed, but the sound was tinged with bitter despair.

The ‘family’ he’d lived with for over a decade had turned into monsters, and now they wanted him dead.

"My dear grandson…"

"Are you really my grandfather?"

Montage abruptly looked up, his eyes bloodshot.

The old man, startled by his reaction, ducked his head guiltily and hid behind Meng Tiantian.

"Brother, we truly didn’t want this, but if we don’t do it, we’ll die too.

Weren’t you always the one who loved me most? This time, just help me one last time—go on, rest in peace. Once you’re dead, I’ll eat you myself.

Then we’ll always be together, just like all my former husbands.

You always said I was love-crazed, always being deceived by them, but in truth, all those who became my husbands—I devoured every last one!"

Meng Tiantian’s voice was sweet as honey, but her words were cruel as death.

At her confession, Montage recalled the spider from his earlier dream—

Black as pitch, with a red hourglass stain on its belly.

Wasn’t that the infamous ‘Black Widow’ spider, known as the cruelest of all?

No wonder whenever she went out with men, their family never tried to stop her.

Even knowing those men wanted her only for her looks, she never refused.

Because she was the hunter—the men were merely her prey.

How ridiculous, Montage thought, that he’d ever worried for her safety.

"And you? Just what kind of monster are you?"

Montage fixed his gaze on the ‘grandfather’ beside him.

"My dear boy, I never meant to deceive you, I don’t want to hurt you, but… but…"

The old man stammered in panic.

"He’s a ginseng spirit, ten thousand years old, who only gained sentience a century ago. Unfortunately, he was caught by the master and used as a tonic for her cultivation.

Oh, you probably don’t know—the medicine you decoct every day, it’s made from his roots.

But the medicinal power in his body is too strong to absorb directly. It must be tempered with your blood to neutralize it.

That’s why you’ve always had to add your own blood when preparing the medicine."

Meng Tiantian recounted these things with a mocking smile.

"Why me? With your strength, you could have killed me at any time. Why wait until today?"

Montage’s face was ashen.

What he thought was filial devotion turned out to be nothing but their manipulation.

"Do you think we didn’t want to? The first time our master met you, she wanted to swallow you whole, but you were brimming with spiritual energy.

We’d only just been unsealed ourselves, so we had no choice but to raise you, drawing out your energy to weaken you while we recovered.

Today is the rarest of days—the Seven Stars align and spiritual energy erupts. If we refine you into an elixir and consume it, our bloodlines will transform and we’ll ascend to the ranks of superior beasts.

Since we’re siblings, I won’t torment you like I did the others. Brother, just go peacefully!"

Meng Tiantian’s smile bloomed like a flower. Her black fingernails lengthened, glinting with a frigid, deadly light.