Fabre in Sacheon’s Tang

After making the decision for the sake of clan peace, I attempted the method to exit the mental realm.

It was a technique that involved focusing one’s mind and strongly desiring to awaken—and just as I focused that desire to awaken as I had learned, a moment of dizziness passed, and a dim ceiling entered my view.

It seemed I had exited the mental realm. I glanced around and saw, near the entrance, the silhouette of Hwa-eun sitting cross-legged, illuminated faintly by the flickering firelight of the campfire.

On her head were two fully bloomed flowers and one final blossom on the verge of blooming.

Additionally, Sister Seol could be seen dozing off nearby.

‘It doesn’t seem like much time has passed.’

Judging by the fact that Hwa-eun’s rebirth was still underway, it didn’t seem as though too much time had elapsed.

—Rustle.

As I placed my hand on the ground to sit up, I felt dry grass beneath my palm.

It seemed that after I collapsed, someone had gathered grass, spread it out, and laid me atop it—but at that moment, I felt a squirming sensation in my chest.

As my robe parted, Dong poked his head out.

‘—Kkyut. “Grandpa!”’

Dong’s adorable voice echoed in my mind.

He quickly scampered up to my chest and began licking my cheek.

—Sluurp. Slurp.

‘Oh, right, Dong. You were guarding Grandpa?’

‘—Kkyuit! “Of course! Dong will protect Grandpa!”’

‘Thank you. I appreciate it.’

As I gently scratched under his chin, Dong closed his eyes, clearly pleased with the sensation of my fingers.

‘—Kkyuuu. “I love Grandpa...”’

Then Dong wrapped himself around my jaw, as if hugging it.

He clung to my jaw and cheek, a satisfied smile blooming across his face.

Dong was unusually affectionate today. Come to think of it, it was probably due to having opened the Third Gate.

It was said that emotional bonds deepened after a spirit beast opened its gates.

Until now, the other spirit beasts had all been adults, so even if their emotions deepened, they didn’t show it in such visible ways. But Dong was still young, so his reactions were more outwardly expressive.

‘—Shia. “So-ryong, you’ve awoken?”’

At that moment, the voice of Cheong-yu Sojeo echoed in my mind.

As I turned my head, Cheong-yu Sojeo was gliding silently into the stone chamber from the entrance.

Since she was awake, it was probably nighttime. She asked again within my mind—perhaps so as not to wake the dozing Sister Seol.

‘—Shii? You’ve opened the Stone Inscription Gate?’

Cheong-yu Sojeo smiled as she saw Dong showering me with affection.

‘Yes, Cheong-yu Sojeo.’

‘—Shiaa. Unlike a spirit beast, since Hwa-eun is human, it seems her cultivation breakthrough is affecting her immediately.’

‘I think so too.’

While stretching out my shoulders and neck, I spoke to Cheong-yu Sojeo.

I meant the things I had discovered inside the mental realm.

I was planning to discuss them with both Sister Seol and Hwa-eun, but of course, Cheong-yu Sojeo was going to be part of that conversation as well.

‘Oh, and I discovered something new in the mental realm.’

‘—Shi? Something new?’

Cheong-yu Sojeo tilted her head curiously as I mentioned the discovery.

I continued, wearing a look that said, “Don’t be too surprised.”

‘Yes, the mental realm had changed quite a bit. A stone slab had descended from the ceiling and re-engraved itself into the walls of the stone chamber. Curious, I touched it. And—don’t be shocked now—

it turns out I can partially enhance the children’s bodies!’

‘—Shia? You can enhance them partially?’

Thanks to my past life playing online games, I immediately understood what “partial enhancement” meant. But for Cheong-yu Sojeo, who had no gaming experience, the concept must have felt unfamiliar.

She seemed not to understand, so I explained further.

‘Yes, for example, when I touched Cho’s fangs engraved on the slab, the character “牙” (tooth) surfaced in my mind, and I realized—ah, Cho’s venomous fangs are now stronger. The venom gets more potent, and the fangs become sturdier. That’s what I learned.’

‘—Shii!? Then that means—!?’

‘Yes, if you select the legs, it increases speed; if you select the shell, it becomes harder. It was like that.’

‘—Shia! Shii? That’s incredible! This isn’t even part of the Five Poisons Returning to the Origin Art. Could it be an effect from Beast Heart Martial Arts?’

‘I’ll have to ask Sister Seol, but that seems likely, doesn’t it?’

‘—ShiiShia. Then what part can I enhance?’

Once she grasped what partial enhancement meant, Cheong-yu Sojeo asked with an expectant expression.

But I could only answer with an apologetic look.

Because I hadn’t checked hers.

‘It felt too perverted. I was curious, but still...’

You see, with Hwa-eun, who’s already mine, I had no resistance to touching the slab anywhere, but with Cheong-yu Sojeo, it somehow felt like I’d be groping her body. So I didn’t try it.

‘Honestly, I checked for all the others... but not for Cheong-yu Sojeo...’

‘—Shii? Why? Why didn’t you check mine?’

Cheong-yu Sojeo widened her eyes and asked again.

‘Well, the slab has to be touched all over to check. It’s just a slab, I know... but it felt like I was groping your body, so...’

As I explained the reason, Cheong-yu Sojeo’s face turned red, and she fanned her face with her palm.

‘—Shi, Shia. S-So that’s why? B-But it’s just a s-slab, right? I-I’d like you to check it next time... thoroughly. I mean—not like that!’

She stumbled over her words, embarrassed by her own phrasing, and quickly changed the subject.

‘—Shii? A-Anyway! Which parts did you enhance for the others?’

She was asking what parts I enhanced for the others.

Maybe she assumed I had already done it for everyone else.

‘No, I was going to discuss it with Hwa-eun, you, and Sister Seol, and also hear the children’s opinions. So I came back out.’

‘—ShiiShia. So you just came out?’

‘Well, I did do it for Hwa-eun, but... oh no!’

‘—Shiat!? You enhanced Lady Hwa-eun!? Which part!?’

Because of Cheong-yu Sojeo’s earlier “thorough” comment, I got flustered and accidentally said something I shouldn’t have.

But once the words were out, there was no taking them back. I just rolled my eyes in panic—

—Fwoosh!

Suddenly, a blast of light erupted from Hwa-eun’s direction.

Turning my head, I saw the three flowers blooming on Hwa-eun’s head now in full blossom, radiating golden light.

“Oh! Is it starting!?”

Thinking it was perfect timing, I rushed toward Hwa-eun. Just then, Sister Seol, awakened by the exploding light, called out.

“She did it!”

The radiant light slowly began to fade, leaving only the three fully bloomed flowers.

But soon, even those three flowers gradually vanished into her mind.

Then something else began to rise above her head—five Orbs of the Five Rings.

Like the Olympic rings, five glowing orbs took position above Hwa-eun’s head.

“Five Qi Gathering at the Origin!”

That must be the manifestation of the Five Qi Gathering at the Origin realm.

At the same time, Hwa-eun’s hair began to fall strand by strand, and new hair grew in to replace it.

Then her skin cracked and flaked off like a spirit beast shedding its shell, dropping to the floor.

“To think I’d witness a literal rebirth with my own eyes!”

Sister Seol’s voice trembled with awe.

I was also overwhelmed by the sight.

Though for a slightly different reason than Sister Seol.

‘A human can actually shed her skin!?’

More than anything, it felt like Hwa-eun had become the very image of the woman I adored, and a tsunami of emotion and joy surged through me.

Naturally—shedding one’s skin was something that happened to reptiles or insects, wasn’t it?

And yet, she was shedding hers. How could I not be overwhelmed, when it felt like she’d transformed into something that hit every note in my heart?

‘Gyaaaak!’

As I inwardly screamed with excitement, black liquid began oozing out of Hwa-eun’s shedding skin.

Sister Seol, watching this, explained as if anticipating the question.

“That’s the turbid energy that’s built up in her body over her life. It might smell a bit.”

Just as she said, a foul stench began to waft through the air. About the time it would take to sip a cup of tea, the five luminous rings above Hwa-eun’s head slowly faded back into her mind—and she opened her eyes.

Her skin had taken on the flawless smoothness of a newborn, her lips were now deep red as if painted with lipstick, and her eyes were as clear as a lake.

‘Unbelievable.’

People often called Flower King Peony the most beautiful among the Three Blossoms of the Martial World—but that was based on the rankings before Hwa-eun’s rebirth.

If they saw her now, no one would argue: the greatest among the floral beauties was clearly the Rose.

‘I don’t think I saved the nation in my past life, though?’

I’d only pursued my hobbies, yet somehow my wife ended up as the most beautiful woman in all the Central Plains?

As I kept muttering “unbelievable” in my head, Sister Seol asked,

“Hwa-eun, are you awake?”

Hwa-eun’s lips slowly parted, and a voice flowed out like droplets falling in a natural cave.

“Yes... the Flower Realm...”

Her expression brimmed with emotion.

And understandably so. As a woman, she had suffered constant suppression from her clan.

She had thrown herself into martial arts and even fallen into Qi Deviation as a result.

Now, she had reached the Flower Realm. How could she not be moved?

“Congratulations, Hwa-eun.”

“So-ryong... this is all thanks to you.”

Filled with joy, Hwa-eun launched herself at me to embrace me—but was suddenly stopped by Sister Seol, who quickly grabbed her sleeve in alarm.

“Hwa-eun, not right now!”

“Huh?”

“Your body... it’s still filthy with turbid energy.”

At Sister Seol’s words, Hwa-eun looked down at herself—and her face slowly turned red.

“I-I didn’t realize...”

“Let’s go wash up right away. Now that you’ve attained Cold-Heat Immunity, you’ll be able to bathe even in river water.”

“I understand.”

It was said that upon reaching the Flower Realm, one gained Cold-Heat Immunity—the ability to no longer feel cold or heat.

So Sister Seol was suggesting she wash in the cold river.

Hwa-eun nodded and took a few steps forward—then suddenly halted, shifting her arms and armpits as if feeling discomfort.

“What’s wrong, Hwa-eun?”

Sister Seol asked why she was acting strangely, and Hwa-eun whispered softly,

[It’s just... my chest feels kind of...]

[Your chest?]

[Yes. It feels... off somehow.]

Both Hwa-eun and Sister Seol’s gazes dropped to Hwa-eun’s chest. With a puzzled look, Sister Seol murmured,

[They look... a bit bigger? That’s odd. Isn’t it normal for the chest to shrink slightly after rebirth so it’s easier to use martial arts?]

[Right?]

Having trained in martial arts myself, I could hear their whispers.

And I couldn’t help but smile smugly.

It meant the enhancement had worked perfectly.

That remark about the chest normally shrinking after rebirth just confirmed I’d done a great job enhancing it.

‘Nice!’

As I internally celebrated, their hushed conversation continued.

[Well, I guess this means your new body matches your martial arts. It’s probably just temporary unfamiliarity because you just finished rebirthing.]

[You think so?]

[Yeah. Let’s just go wash up for now.]

[Okay, Sister.]

With that, the two headed out of the stone chamber.

Then, silently gliding over, Cheong-yu Sojeo whispered in a secretive tone:

—Shia. “I... I’d like something like that too.”

She must have realized exactly which part I’d enhanced.

I, pretending not to hear, turned toward the crackling campfire outside.

Ahem.

***

—Crash!

Inside a grand hall adorned with the emblems of five venomous creatures, the sound of something slamming echoed.

A fresh crack had just split the recently replaced blue steelstone table.

The Lord of the Five Venoms Sect had slammed his palm on it in a fit of rage—and before him, a man clutched his abdomen and writhed on the floor in agony.

“Guhhh...”

The man’s lower abdomen pulsed erratically from a dual-core backlash.

He was the Head of the Financial Division—responsible for generating income for the Five Venoms through trade disguised under the banner of Daewol Nation merchants.

But something had gone terribly wrong in their business with the Central Plains, and now he was paying the price.

“M-My apologies—AAARGH!”

His eyes rolled back in torment, but the sect lord coldly spat,

“Twenty years in the trade, and you couldn’t even tell the silver was fake!? Do you know what kind of humiliation I endured in front of Daewol’s nobles!?”

“Gahhh... it was a type of counterfeit we’d never encountered before...”

—Thud!

With one final twitch, the man’s abdomen burst—and he died on the spot.

The sect lord then looked at the gathered elders seated around the shattered table.

“Have you figured out who did it?”

One of the elders replied in a cautious tone.

“Yes, Sect Lord. We traced it through the Beggars’ Union, and found that ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) this batch of silver was transported from Sichuan.”

“Sichuan?”

“Yes, sir.”

“That brat again?”

“We haven’t confirmed it yet, but...”

The mention of Sichuan made it almost certain in his mind—it had to be that boy.

The elders seemed to share the same suspicion.

The sect lord’s palm flew again.

—CRASH!

The blue steelstone table finally shattered completely, and the sect lord muttered grimly,

“And the locust incident too... We will repay this, no matter what...”

They’d been humiliated too many times. He couldn’t sit idle any longer.

At that moment, one of the elders raised a hand and offered a new report.

“While monitoring the Sichuan region, I came across an interesting rumor.”

“An interesting rumor?”

“Yes, Sect Lord. There are whispers that the boy is marrying into the Tang Clan.”

“A wedding?”

“Yes, Sect Lord. It’s said he’s inviting prominent figures from Sichuan.”

“A wedding, hmm...”

The Sect Lord of the Five Venoms smiled coldly.

“I see... in that case, we must send a wedding gift.”

At that very moment, the crows lined up on the eaves outside the open window flapped their wings in unison and soared into the night sky.