Try Living Well Without Me

About a year ago, rumors began to spread around the martial world of a phrase: “Cheonhwa-ilro” (The Way of Heavenly Flower).

“The path of Heavenly Flower is the only way.” A somewhat arrogant statement indeed.

Surprisingly, though, this wasn’t actually something spread by the Wudang Sect.

Rather, Wudang itself tries very hard to avoid such arrogance, advocating humility as a virtue.

The real perpetrator behind the spread of “Cheonhwa-ilro” was none other than the group of followers of Wudang’s ‘Heavenly Flower,’ a group called Cheonyehoe, that had burst onto the scene like a comet about a year ago.

One might wonder, how could someone like a Taoist priest have followers? Well, Heavenly Flower does. Particularly, she has a sizable fanbase of middle-aged uncles.

Heavenly Flower, or simply Flower to those in Wudang.

She is around seventeen years of age, two years older than Su-a.

Can you even imagine that this girl defeated one of the hundred greatest martial artists in the world when she was merely sixteen?

What’s more, it wasn’t a bloody battle. It was said that Heavenly Flower toyed with her opponent mercilessly.

While I cannot verify this since I haven’t met her yet, it’s possible that while she might not be on the level of Namgung Su-a, she could possibly rival Jin Gayoung in terms of martial talent.

Even Jin Gayoung managed to reach the peak of martial arts without proper guidance, using incorrect skills. But defeating one of the hundred greatest when you’re only sixteen is an extraordinary achievement that I could never dream of accomplishing.

In addition to her deep blue hair and adorable appearance, it’s not surprising that there’s a group like Cheonyehoe.

“Heavenly Lord, we’ve arrived. Our granddaughter resides here.”

Following Heavenly Lord’s guidance, we entered the inner chambers of Wudang, where several ‘palaces’ representing Wudang were visible.

“Wow, Wudang hasn’t changed a bit even after all these long years.”

During this entire time, Jin Woo-yong confidently strolled with his hands clasped behind his back as if it were his own body.

– Sir, no matter what, you should at least pay some respect in your manner of speech. Even if these people fail to notice, heaven and earth are always watching. Speaking rudely to someone you just met is highly disrespectful.

‘Hmph, this fool of a son-in-law. What kind of eyes does he have to think that heaven resides somewhere when he speaks like that?’

– …Is it my request you are hearing now?

‘Acknowledged. I’ll retract my fists, then. What kind of a ghost with no body could harbor such arrogance?’

Whether my warning was effective or not, he slowly loosened his clasped hands.

His tone… it wasn’t completely different but had improved at least moderately.

“Hmm, is this the place? The girl named Cheonhwa, is she here?”

“That’s correct, Cheong-a! Please come out!”

“Cheong-a? Is that the name or title of this girl?”

“Her title. But why isn’t she coming out? Cheong-a! Cheong-a-!”

Even after Heavenly Lord called out loudly at the residence where Heavenly Flower was said to be staying, the door did not budge.

“Unfortunately, our Cheong-a tends to be somewhat shy. Please excuse us; she needs some time to open up.”

Heavenly Lord sought permission from Jin Woo-yong and Jin Gayoung, then waited silently in front of the door.

Creeeak…

Slowly, the closed door opened, revealing a shadow that peeped out.

Her navy blue hair fell over her face, obstructing it from view. Still, you could tell immediately:

“Ah, hello…? My name is Cheong-a…”

The girl standing before us was none other than Heavenly Flower, the one among the Seven Flowers known for stirring the most conversations.

“Umm…?”

Though I couldn’t help but wonder how on earth someone so dark and mysterious could have the character ‘Cheon’ (Heaven) in their title.

“Who exactly are all of you…?”

*

Through the hair covering her nose, Heavenly Flower’s narrow eyes scanned over us before suddenly letting out an exclamation.

“Wha, Sword Flower! You’re the Sword Flower from the Jin Family, right…! The person beside you must be White Blade Wanderer…! Ah, I saw both of you during the duel with Jade Flower…!”

Her already large eyes grew even wider. Though, as always, they were mostly hidden by her long hair.

“…So, um, what exactly brought the two of you here…?”

Heavenly Flower appeared to be quite pleased to meet them, but at the same time, she seemed to shrink back into her house for some reason.

As if the mere existence of these two figures was frightening her to her core.

One would never expect this timid demeanor from someone who is considered one of the Seven Flowers, the greatest geniuses in the current martial world. However, her shyness is just as well-known as her appearance.

To alleviate this fear, Heavenly Lord took the lead.

“Today, I’m here to have a friendly match with you, Cheong-a, before the start of the Seven Flowers Tournament. It’ll be quite educational.”

Upon hearing the word ‘match,’ Heavenly Flower’s eyes gleamed for a moment, and she cautiously raised her head to look at Jin Gayoung.

“Uh… a friendly match with me, Sword Flower…?”

She looked like a puppy wearing a soggy noodle on its head.

“No, it will be with our White Blade Wanderer over here. So come on out, stop hesitating.”

“Eu…u…”

Heavenly Flower whimpered timidly and retreated back inside, closing the door.

“Is that it? Surely, this can’t be the end?”

Just as Jin Woo-yong asked with a perplexed look, wondering if this was really the end,

Creeeak…

“Hello…! It’s Cheong-a! Please, treat me kindly…”

Heavenly Flower emerged from the door after hurriedly tying her long hair up tightly.

Indeed, no matter how timid a person may be, if they have the blood of a warrior flowing through their veins, it seems to show.

Fragments of hair that didn’t fit inside the tie stuck out, but the glimmer of ‘ambition’ in her eyes could not be hidden.

“Ahem, please treat me kindly.”

– Sir, even if you’re dealing with someone younger, you must still maintain proper etiquette. Besides, you’re using my body, aren’t you?

“…Let’s have a good match.”

Immediately reprimanding Jin Woo-yong’s abrupt casual conversation, we followed Heavenly Lord to the backyard.

This time, it wasn’t like the last where we wanted to draw public attention. There was an area fenced in on all sides to ensure nobody could see.

Clang!

As Heavenly Flower pulled out her sword, the clear sound of a sword ringing filled the snow-covered courtyard.

It had been a while since I’d seen Wudang’s sword.

“Do, does White Blade Wanderer wield a sword…? Or will it be a saber…?”

“I’m… well… hmm… hmm, Miss… would you be so kind as to lend me that Moonlight Division weapon?”

How could anything resembling me possibly be achieved through mimicry like that?

Never again will I lend my body to someone who consistently lies. There’s no body to lend to someone who can only spew falsehoods.

But for now, I’ll keep quiet and see how it goes.

“Huh? The Moonlight Division weapon? Oh, if that’s what you’re going for…”

“Miss… This is to show you the Divine Heaven Frost Flame Moon. Please hurry.”

“Ah! Here it is!”

When Jin Gayoung handed over the massive weapon she carried on her back, Heavenly Flower’s eyes grew even wider.

“Eh? So instead of a saber, you’ll be using an axe…?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll ensure no one gets hurt.”

“Not exactly… It’s just when dealing with axes, it’s kind of hard to maintain calm…”

Heavenly Flower murmured anxiously as though speaking to herself.

She didn’t seem to realize that her words had stirred some feelings within Jin Woo-yong.

‘Hah! You’re looking at me? Let me teach this punk some respect.’

– Please remember to control your strength and keep it appropriate.

‘You don’t even seem to notice when you’re being disrespected, are you?’

– Since they don’t know any better, how’s it matter?

Agitated by this unintended provocation, Jin Woo-yong began emanating an aura, prompting Heavenly Flower to step back three paces and point her sword at him.

“Alright then, let’s begin. No need to drag this out.”

Naturally stepping between them, Heavenly Lord announced the start.

“Very well, come at me first. I’ll forgo the first move.”

‘Bad manners, lady, let me correct that for you.’

“Then… without being asked twice…”

BOOM!

As Jin Woo-yong slammed the axe into the ground, Heavenly Flower seized the opening and charged towards him at once.

Perhaps she judged it would be hard to immediately respond with just one swing of the heavy-looking axe.

However, she didn’t realize that the axe was nothing more than a well-laid trap by Jin Woo-yong himself.

Does she lack much practical combat experience compared to her reputation?

SWISH!

My thought was quickly dispelled as Heavenly Flower began weaving her sword patterns.

More precisely, the moment Wudang’s supreme technique ‘Taekyuk慧검’ unfolded, the one often compared to Hwasan’s Dokugoo검 and Namgung’s Jang Wang검.

“Taekyuk Hye-gyun.”

“Taekyuk Yu-ro.”

Zing-z-zing!

The sword bends. Rather, the space surrounding the sword distorts in a circle.

The confident smirk on Jin Woo-yong’s face froze.

Dozens of Heavenly Flower’s sword slashes swirl and embellish the surroundings.

Soon, countless wisps of sword energy resembling mist envelop them entirely.

‘What…! What is this? For someone of her age to reach such a realm…!’

– After promising to thoroughly humiliate her, you seem quite flustered, don’t you?

‘Are you mocking this venerable master too? Just watch carefully and see how I crush this lofty ‘Taekyuk Hye-gyun’ technique!’

Jin Woo-yong’s axe ascends to the sky faster than a blink of an eye.

Despite using only a minor amount of inner power—due to the vastly different natures of our powers—we can see his considerable skill in Hwakyung.

“Whoaaa!”

Jin Woo-yong’s Moonlight Division weapon descends like Mt. Tae.

Heavy. Even as I observe from this disembodied space, the intimidating momentum of it reverberates through me.

A saying comes to mind: ‘With proper technique and clarity, sheer force is unnecessary even in something heavy.’

Indeed, this makes perfect sense now, as Jin Woo-yong is creating a tremendous force with a simple upward swing and downward smash, without the need for excessive inner power.

SWOOSH!

His strike disperses Heavenly Flower’s sword mist like temporary fireworks.

Naturally. Against such overwhelming force, mere illusions crafted from Yu (flow) techniques are helpless.

…Or so I thought.

SWISH-SWISH-SWISH!

Azure petals encircle the axe. Hundreds of blue snowflakes dance with the white snowflakes descending from the sky, obstructing the view.

SQUEAK-SQUEAK!

The accumulated petals bombard the axe, subtly but persistently altering its trajectory, targeting the sides. With this persistence, they sway and disrupt the stability of the ‘Moonlight Division Weapon’ as a meteor.

CRACK-CRACK!

The curved space and countless sword qi support and enclose the meteor-like axe. Soft yet unyielding, they cradle and embrace it.

In the end, weakened and slowed by the Taekyuk Hye-gyun technique, the axe descends diagonally to the right of Heavenly Flower.

“…!”

“Ah…! Sorry… I thought if I just took the hit, my blade might not survive…”

Heavenly Lord smiled pleasantly, while Jin Woo-yong behind the mask looked stunned.

Watching this, Jin Gayoung could do nothing but gape wordlessly.

‘Hm.’

‘Ah, so the current generation’s strength isn’t as diminished as I thought. This was quite the miscalculation on my part. They just lost their better members during the war.’

‘Ho ho, you promised to teach her a lesson but seem thoroughly rattled, don’t you?’

‘Shush, you! You just witnessed a monster. Right there!’

The flow, yet upright. The fluidity that can twist even when power cannot be flowed through—this is the peak of flow, nothing short of amazing.

Though many orthodox sects claim to revere flow, upon closer inspection, there is truly no one else who cultivates it as thoroughly as Wudang.

‘Hm, I see. This won’t do.’

It might have been a while since I last saw Wudang’s sword techniques, but the shock does not wane.

To create such fluidity at merely seventeen years of age, recognition is unavoidable. Heavenly Flower is the greatest genius of the current generation, perhaps even surpassing Namgong Su-a.

The title ‘Heaven’s Flower’ seems anything but arrogant after witnessing her blade.

Heaven’s Flower’s name is truly well-deserved.

‘If we’re to ensure the victory of our young one, we must ensure this girl’s arm is rendered unusable.’

‘Do you…?’

As he muttered something that made me doubt my ears, Jin Woo-yong pulled back his axe once more.

In his taut arm, reminiscent of a drawn bow, there’s even more power than before.

“Ah…! Are you going to attack me again…?”

Is it a characteristic of the techniques passed down in the Jin family and Jin Gayoung to employ even greater powers as time passes?

“Whoaaa! Wind Moon Slash…”

I can’t exactly stop him, since Jin Gayoung is watching with shining eyes from the side.

– Just be careful not to go too far. An outright feud with Wudang is undesirable.

‘Tsk tsk, don’t worry. I’ll just ensure one arm is unusable, which will improve our young one’s chances of winning, even if by a little.’

– If possible, please refrain from even that.

Ultimately, the friendly match between Jin Woo-yong and Heavenly Flower concluded after ten exchanges.

That said, there were many restrictions on Jin Woo-yong, and he did control his strength. Even so, for a junior to withstand his attacks for ten seconds qualifies as Heavenly Flower’s extraordinary talent, which is beyond astonishing.

Perhaps, out of the current generation of the Seven Flowers, she might be second only to Jade Flower.

– Surely, you needn’t go so far to feel satisfied.

‘Thanks to this, our Gayoung gets a step closer to victory, doesn’t she?’

Heavenly Flower suffered minor internal injuries as the price of holding out for ten exchanges.

Minor enough that recovery should be complete after some rest, but it will likely affect her in the Seven Flowers Tournament.

Still, her gratitude and the modest acknowledgment that “it was a wonderful experience” were commendable, as was Heavenly Lord’s hearty laughter that “such things happen as one grows.”

“So, our young lady, what did you think while watching? Did you, perhaps, gain insight into the essence of Divine Heaven Frost Flame Moon…?”

Still imitating me, Jin Woo-yong casually questioned Jin Gayoung.

“It was impressive. Personally, I had many realizations. Especially the weight that my techniques lack was truly impactful. It also made me realize how much I still have to learn.”

“Hmm, hearing that is indeed fortunate.”

When will this man leave my body? The friendly match is over; it’s time for him to step out.

– Alright, that’s all. I’ll step out now.

‘Acknowledged, you brat. It feels good to finally breathe some fresh air. Even though I couldn’t break a sweat.’

– Having sweated profusely by using my body against a child—good job on maintaining that arrogance. I’ll make sure to tease you about it for a long time.

‘Hmpf! I’ll leave right away, so stop your nonsense! What kind of man remembers such underhanded things?!’

Just as Jin Woo-yong was about to leave my body—SWIISH!

“Um, excuse me.”

Heavenly Flower’s dagger lightly touched the neck of Jin Woo-yong, who hadn’t fully exited my body yet.

“What…?”

Why…?

Could she have figured it out?

“Yes?”

“What nonsense is this? I’m your guard, B-yul Rak…”

“Lying and getting caught results in severed arteries. Speak properly. Where is my uncle?”

“…”

Of course! How could someone like Heavenly Lord or Heavenly Flower, not to mention sharp Jin Gayoung, miss such obvious impersonation?

“The atmosphere, tone, hand movements, breathing, body scent—all were different. Did you think I’d fail to recognize?”

Hold on, how could she notice differences in breathing?

And besides, even with a different soul, we’re still the same body. What’s this talk about differing body scents?

“Speak clearly. Where is my uncle? If you don’t speak the truth, I’ll strike—no, I’ll disable you through pressure points. So speak!”

“Wha- wait! What on earth are you talking about…!”

“Hold on. Hmm, sniff… I can smell Uncle’s scent over here…”

Jin Gayoung closed her eyes, leading with her nose, tilting her head towards the space where my body floated.

SNIFF, SNIFF…

“Yes! Here it is! You’re here, Uncle! Respond if you can…”

I need to return to my body immediately, before Jin Gayoung truly causes any trouble.

Perhaps the real puppy was not Heavenly Flower, but her.

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