What is growth?

There may be countless answers to that question, but to me, it is simple.

Growth is being able to do what you once couldn't and seeing what was once invisible to you.

"This is the difference in our eye level now."

"How can you talk about ‘eye level’ while looking at the top of my head?!"

Startled, Seol Lihyang immediately backed away—naturally weaving her movements to angle herself behind Tang Sowol for cover.

Her retreat was flawless, almost instinctive.

"Your footwork has become quite natural, I see."

"I really don't want to hear that from you."

Tang Sowol nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Yes, well, it's not just her footwork. Her whip techniques have also improved quite a bit. And lately, she’s even started practicing sound-based martial arts—seems to suit her well."

"Sister Tang?! Aren’t you supposed to be on my side right now?!"

"Oh my, isn’t it only natural to side with my fiancé?"

With a playful smile, Tang Sowol stepped away from Seol Lihyang and stood beside me.

Betrayed, Seol Lihyang’s eyes welled up with frustration.

"Eek! Eeeiiit…!"

She stomped her foot in protest, but her words failed her.

Seeing her reaction, Tang Sowol and I exchanged glances—then burst into laughter.

"Don’t feel too bad. Honestly, Tang Sowol and I were always going to reach this level—we were already strong to begin with."

"Yes. Normally, reaching the Peak Stage before the age of thirty is considered a remarkable feat. But Cheon Hwi-da here reached it at fifteen. However, Seol Lihyang’s case is different."

And Tang Sowol was right.

I had retained all of my insights from my past life, and on top of that, I had incorporated new experiences from this one.

Of course, I would grow quickly.

In fact, calling it "growth" felt strange—because for me, this was more like reclaiming my former strength.

Tang Sowol was in a similar situation.

Born with the Poison Spirit Physique, raised within the Tang Clan, trained in elite poison arts, and fed countless rare elixirs—

And in the last three years, she had been personally guided by Tang Jincheon, a Flowering Stage master.

Yes, she had worked hard, but her circumstances had also played a crucial role in her achievements.

But Seol Lihyang?

While she had received more support than an ordinary retainer, it was nothing compared to what Tang Sowol had.

Before arriving at the Tang Clan, she had never even practiced martial arts.

She had been severely undernourished, nothing but skin and bones.

"Your starting point was different from ours. The fact that you’ve come this far in three years is something to be proud of."

"Well… that’s all thanks to Sister Tang and the Clan Leader… and you too, I guess."

When faced with genuine praise, Seol Lihyang shrank back in embarrassment, her lips twitching as she struggled to suppress a smile.

This expression—

It was exactly the same as the Seol Lihyang from my past life.

She had always been awkward about accepting compliments, twisting her reactions in strange ways.

And just like before, despite her Pure Yin Physique, she had naturally gravitated toward sound-based martial arts.

Even though her body was now healthy, even though her environment had changed—she had still chosen the same path.

It was the same with Tang Sowol.

Now that she had reached the Peak Stage and mastered the Universal Return Divine Art, her hair and eyes had turned a deep black-green, just like in my past life.

By now, I had gotten used to seeing reminders of my previous life.

Still—

"That color is always beautiful."

"…Am I next?"

At my absentminded remark, Tang Sowol’s expression shifted—half wary, half pleased.

I tilted my head, and she narrowed her eyes.

"As a woman of the Tang Clan, I cannot simply allow myself to be on the receiving end. This time, I shall strike first."

"What are you talking ab—"

Before I could react, Tang Sowol looked up at me—by exactly two finger joints—and said,

"As you mentioned earlier, Cheon Hwi-da, you’ve grown quite a bit."

"And I’ll keep growing. Ideally, until you have to stand on your tiptoes to reach my lips."

"Ugh…! W-Well, your face has become more refined, too. It’s a shame that your cuteness has faded, but… this mature look suits you as well."

"That’s fine. From now on, I’ll be the one treating you like the cute one—it evens out."

"Aghh…! Your martial arts were already formidable, but now even your words have become more dangerous. Though my martial journey was short, I still met Cheon Hwi-da along the way—so I’ll have plenty of stories to share with my friends."

"I appreciate it. But I won’t be boasting about anything. Because everything I like about you—I want to keep to myself."

"…?"

She blinked, processing my words.

Then, a few seconds later—

"Hyaaaah!"

With a high-pitched shriek, Tang Sowol sprang backward and ducked behind Seol Lihyang.

It was the exact same scene from earlier, except—

This time, Tang Sowol was hiding behind Seol Lihyang instead of the other way around.

Of course, even though Seol Lihyang had grown, she was still much smaller than Tang Sowol.

Tang Sowol’s attempt at hiding was completely ineffective—her flushed face was still fully visible.

Even so, she wrapped one arm around Seol Lihyang’s leg for support, while dramatically extending her index finger at me.

"Foul! That was a foul move!"

"I thought the rule was to embarrass each other with compliments?"

"That may be true, but where was the compliment in that statement?!"

"Hmm."

…Now that I thought about it, she had a point.

As I nodded in acknowledgment, Seol Lihyang, in an exhausted tone, spoke up.

"Are you two done? We should get going. We can’t keep the Clan Leader waiting forever."

Her expression looked as if she had just witnessed something unpleasant.

Well, to be fair… we had been wasting quite a bit of time.

I reached down and helped Tang Sowol to her feet.

"Alright. Let’s go see my father-in-law."

For the first time in three years, we were finally heading out.

Sure, our destination was the Yongbong Gathering—but that didn’t mean we couldn’t enjoy ourselves along the way.

Time to secure a generous travel allowance.

***

I still wasn’t used to the Tang Clan.

Or rather, I had yet to fully grasp the difference between my definition of "generous" and Tang Jincheon’s.

"Tell me, son-in-law. The first thing you say before setting off on a long journey is that using gold ingots is inconvenient, so you'd like some silver mixed in instead?"

"As long as I'm not indulging in extravagance, silver is still a large sum of money."

"You’re the son-in-law of the Tang Clan, traveling with none other than the Poison King’s daughter. You should be staying in fine inns and carrying yourself accordingly."

"Hmm. Fine inns have spacious rooms… meaning we could share one without issue—"

"Hold it right there."

Before I could finish, Tang Jincheon casually flicked his fingers toward the ceiling, and in the same instant, a surge of internal energy shot out.

A decorative pearl ornament embedded in the ceiling rattled.

…What?

Why was he using Object Manipulation just to make a point?

Honestly, I was a bit taken aback.

But rare opportunities to witness such techniques didn’t come often, so I focused on the moment.

I observed how his internal energy remained stable even outside his body, how it changed upon contact with the pearl, and how he controlled it with precision.

Of course, I didn’t fully understand it yet—but committing it to memory might prove useful in the future.

Unfortunately, Tang Jincheon’s demonstration was brief.

By the time I had absorbed what I could, the pearl was already in his hand.

He placed it on the desk—closer to me than to himself.

"It’s a luminous pearl. Hard to see in daylight, but valuable if sold."

"And why are you suddenly handing this to me?"

"So that you book at least two rooms instead of spouting nonsense about sharing one."

…Wait.

Did he seriously use Object Manipulation just to rip a pearl out of his own ceiling…

Just to tell me not to share a room with Tang Sowol?

It had been over three years since our official engagement, and he was still like this?

I couldn’t just let that slide.

Accepting the pearl, I nodded politely.

"Thank you. I’ll take a room with Tang Sowol, and Seol Lihyang can have her own. That way, you'll be seeing grandchildren soon enough."

"What?!"

Shocked, Tang Jincheon immediately used Golden Thread Snatch to snatch the pearl from my hand and then threw it back to the ceiling.

The pearl curved unnaturally midair—almost like a hidden weapon—before reattaching itself perfectly to its original position.

And then, with the most shameless expression, Tang Jincheon cleared his throat.

"Let's pretend that never happened."

"Fine. But now that it’s been over three years since our engagement, I’d like to know when you’ll actually allow us to get married."

"If it were up to me, I’d delay it another seven years."

"If you insist on making it ten full years, I’ll take Tang Sowol and elope."

"…Ahem."

At my words, Tang Sowol, who had been quietly snickering in the background, suddenly perked up with interest.

Tang Jincheon sighed.

"If I were against it, I wouldn’t have agreed to the engagement in the first place. But it’s still not the right time. We know who you are and what kind of person you are—but others don’t."

"So, in short, you want me to make a name for myself first."

"Exactly. It’s not mandatory, but it would be ideal. And for someone like you, that shouldn’t be difficult."

"That was an awfully long-winded way of saying, ‘Do your best at the Yongbong Gathering.’"

"That’s right, my dear son-in-law! Since you’re competing anyway, why not win? And while you’re at it, declare to the world who your fiancée is—in the most spectacular way possible!"

"Leave it to me."

I answered confidently.

Tang Jincheon let out a short chuckle.

"Heh. You’re getting more and more shameless."

"That just means I feel closer to you, father-in-law."

"Tch. That’s how all men are."

Even as he shook his head, a small smile remained on his lips.

After laughing and chatting for a while, he finally straightened his posture and stood.

Then, placing a hand on each of our shoulders, he spoke.

"This time, you're traveling without any escorts… but you two should be fine."

"Don’t worry. Even if, by some misfortune, we end up facing a Peak Stage master, at the very least, we should be able to run away."

"…With all your limbs intact?"

"That, I can’t promise."

As I furrowed my brows, running through possible worst-case scenarios, Tang Jincheon burst into boisterous laughter and gave my shoulder a hearty slap.

"I’m joking. If I worried that much, I might as well tell you not to leave at all."

"That’s true."

There were barely a hundred Peak Stage martial artists in all of the Central Plains.

The odds of not only running into one but also having them as an enemy were exceedingly low.

"Go on ahead and enjoy yourselves for a while. I’ll be busy, so I’ll arrive just in time for the main tournament."

"You’re coming as well, father-in-law?"

"Did you know? Ever since the Yongbong Gathering was founded, the Tang Clan has never won even once."

"Well, the rules aren’t exactly in your favor."

After all—

Hidden weapons were restricted to blunt or non-lethal ones.

And poison was completely banned.

For a sect that specialized in poison and hidden weapons, it was practically like fighting with their hands tied.

"But thanks to my son-in-law, we finally have a shot at winning this time. So, of course, I have to watch."

Though Tang Jincheon’s expression was cheerful, there was a faint trace of bitterness in his smile.

"I’ve kept you too long. Go on. And remember—separate rooms."

"Of course. We’ll see you in Wuhuan City, father-in-law."

With a final polite fist salute, I picked up my prepared belongings and stepped through the Tang Clan's grand gates.

The three-year travel ban had officially come to an end.