The outer sect's hustle and bustle quieted as the Poison Pavilion's door creaked shut. Tang Yun stood alone in the dim chamber, the tainted light of the fading sun filtering through the colored poisons suspended in crystalline jars. Faintly, he could still hear the whispers of disciples outside, echoing the reputation he had begun to forge.
Poison Pavilion Master Tang Mo had not said a word after the events of the small-scale contest. But Tang Yun knew: eyes had begun to notice him. The way the Pavilion elders watched him now… was different.
And in that silence, another whisper returned to his mind. The scroll.
He took it out a faded parchment, passed to him secretly after the contest by Elder Tang Mo himself. The old man hadn't explained it, only said: "Find the root beneath the serpents."
Cryptic words, but Tang Yun wasn't a child anymore. He traced the faded ink, fingers brushing the ancient symbols, and a single phrase glowed faintly with residual qi.
"Below the Third Serpent's Eye, the legacy coils."
He looked up.
Three serpent statues coiled around the Poison Pavilion's inner wall. Each held a different expression: one in fury, one in agony, and one… blindfolded.
The third serpent.
Tang Yun approached, feeling a pulse beneath the stone floor. Poison qi subtly gathered there, denser than even the clan's core vaults. He reached out and pressed his palm against the statue's eye.
Click.
A hidden compartment shifted with a dull grinding. The floor opened with a hiss, revealing a narrow, spiral staircase descending into darkness.
He took a breath and stepped in.
Underground Poison Veins Chamber
The air below was thick with toxins, ancient and potent. Tang Yun covered his mouth with a poisoned cloth not to protect himself, but to taste the age and complexity of what had been hidden here.
A glowing stream of green liquid trickled down the walls. Moss bloomed not with life but death black and purple, feeding off the poison-rich environment. Tang Yun's steps slowed as the temperature dropped, not cold in the normal sense, but toxic.
This place hadn't been touched in decades. Perhaps longer.
At the bottom, he found a chamber carved of black stone. In its center stood a wide basin filled with liquid so dark it seemed to absorb the light around it. Floating inside were fragments of bone, old scrolls, and withered herbs.
And above it all a massive stone plaque carved into the wall:
"To become Emperor of Poison, one must drown in the venom of those who came before."
Tang Yun's eyes flickered. This was no test for disciples. This was a legacy trial.
Only someone with the right bloodline could access this. And Tang Yun had it not only as a direct descendant of the Tang Clan but as a reincarnated expert whose past life once explored poison paths far beyond what anyone here understood.
He stepped forward. The basin pulsed.
Poison qi slithered up his legs, testing him.
He didn't resist.
He opened his meridians willingly, circulating the Widow's Blanket technique. The poisons flooded him. Agony burned through his body. But instead of screaming, he smiled.
"You're still not enough to kill me."
Flashback: The Voice of Tang Mo
As the poison gnawed at his meridians, Tang Yun recalled the words Tang Mo whispered when he handed him the scroll.
"You're too smart for your own good, boy. But if you survive that place, you might just become what this clan forgot it needed."
He understood now. This wasn't about strength. This was about worthiness a legacy lost after the last Poison Emperor vanished.
Revelation: The Poison Veins Awakening
The poison in the basin began to react to Tang Yun's body. Instead of corroding him, it flowed into his dantian, merging with his cultivated poison qi. The Widow's Blanket technique transformed, changing color from pale purple to midnight green.
A glowing lotus mark appeared faintly on his back a Venom Root Sigil the mark of one who had endured the poison trials.
His qi surged.
Mid Meridian Opening Realm.
And climbing.
Late Meridian Opening Realm.
He fell to one knee, body steaming with poisonous mist. Every vein was alight with dark light, reshaping, adapting, evolving.
But just as he felt his dantian stabilize, something stirred beneath the basin.
An eye opened.
Guardian of the Veins
From within the toxic pool, a skeletal beast emerged. It was no longer alive but moved through sheer residual will. Fangs made of obsidian, a body fused from the remains of a hundred venomous creatures the Guardian of the Poison Veins.
It lunged at him.
Tang Yun dodged, barely avoiding a strike. His qi was still turbulent from the breakthrough. He couldn't overpower it directly.
But he didn't need to.
He took out a single needle, coated it with his newly evolved poison qi, and tossed it into the beast's open jaw.
The creature staggered.
The Widow's Blanket, now evolved, spread within its marrow.
It collapsed.
Tang Yun exhaled slowly and looked at his shaking hands. They weren't weak they were evolving.
Aftermath
As the basin settled, the wall behind the plaque cracked open, revealing a chamber filled with ancient scrolls and poisons sealed in jade bottles. At the center lay a cocoon made of pure poison crystal, inside of which floated a heart still beating.
A plaque beneath read:
"Heart of the Last Poison Emperor – Awaiting Successor."
Tang Yun didn't hesitate. He knelt before it.
"Not yet. But soon."
He gathered the scrolls and departed.
The stone staircase sealed behind him.
Back at the Pavilion
When Tang Yun re-emerged from the Poison Pavilion hours later, no one dared approach.
Something about him had changed.
His poison qi flowed more naturally, like a part of him — not cultivated, but born.
His eyes glinted with subtle venom.
He looked up at the crimson moonlight and smiled faintly.
"Just a little longer… and I'll show you all what the true Tang bloodline means."
[Tags]: Reincarnation, Martial Arts, Poison, Scheming Protagonist, Cultivation, Weak to Strong, Anti-Hero, Cold Protagonist, Clan Wars, Hidden Identity, Revenge