Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Heavenly Flower Path
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'Is this guy insane?'
A total stranger barges in, picks a fight over some dumplings, then starts name-dropping Hwangbo Seongwoo. And now he's claiming he's a recommended student from the Heavenly Flower Sect—Wi Seongcheon.
For now, Jang Ilwoo shoved the rest of his dumpling into his mouth. He chewed it noisily while sizing Wi Seongcheon up and down. Wi Seongcheon leaned crookedly against the window frame, staring back at him.
"......You're really from the Heavenly Flower Sect?"
Gulp.
After thoroughly chewing and swallowing, Jang Ilwoo asked again. Wi Seongcheon waited patiently without rushing him to finish eating. After all, no one messes with a dog while it's eating.
"Would I be a fake Heavenly Flower Sect member?"
"The Heavenly Flower Sect's...... Wi Seongcheon?"
Jang Ilwoo's eyebrows furrowed in the middle. He racked his brain trying to recall the name Wi Seongcheon, but nothing came up. It was completely unfamiliar.
On top of that, an uncomfortable feeling squirmed inside him. It just didn't make sense.
The Heavenly Flower Sect.
A minor sect tucked away in some corner of Gangseo. Nicknamed the Bat. Once part of the Black Snake Alliance, it had joined the Murim Alliance around a century ago.
"Not just clueless—you've got no manners either."
Wi Seongcheon muttered, smirking with one corner of his mouth. Another blatant jab. Jang Ilwoo's nostrils flared.
"Manners? What manners?"
"I told you my name. You should return the favor. What, ashamed of yours?"
Even more than me? Wi Seongcheon sneered. Jang Ilwoo's cheeks stiffened. He'd sensed it earlier, but no doubt about it now. This lunatic was openly provoking him.
"......You rotten bastard, drunk on daytime booze or something?"
Jang Ilwoo shot up from his seat. Wi Seongcheon met the glare of his bulging eyes with evident amusement.
"Who am I? You dogshit, I'm Jang Ilwoo. Happy now?"
"Oh, the Jang Clan?"
"You've heard of us, huh?"
"Yeah, not quite a prestigious house, but not obscure enough to call nameless either. Kinda middling, right?"
"What?"
"Hey, perfect. We're both pitiful sods stuck at the bottom under the real big shots here. No real difference. We met by fate, so let's get along from—"
"You crazy bat bastard, what bullshit is this?"
Fire blazed in Jang Ilwoo's eyes. He snorted heavily through his nose, raising his clenched fist.
"What? No difference? You clueless fuck. Why the hell would the Jang Clan be on the same level as the Heavenly Flower Sect?"
"Why? Did I say something wrong?"
"You did!"
Jang Ilwoo's voice rose. It stung a little inside too. Sure, the Jang Clan couldn't compare to true prestigious clans, but it wasn't on par with the Heavenly Flower Sect.
Still, here at the Heavenly Academy, both were equally at the bottom...... He couldn't deny that.
Even so. Hearing it straight from some Heavenly Flower Sect nobody pissed him off. If the Jang Clan was the bottom, the Heavenly Flower Sect was the dirt beneath it.
"My friend's got a short fuse."
"Who's your friend!"
"Same age, same year—friends. What, you older?"
"No!"
"Then friends. Come on, don't get so mad. Friend, sit down here. We've got years ahead together—don't start off on the wrong foot. That's best for you too, right?"
"......What?"
"Sitting alone in an empty dorm stuffing your face with dumplings—you must not have friends either......"
"You!"
Before Wi Seongcheon could finish.
He'd poked too hard, too openly. Of course it pissed him off hearing that to his face.
Face flushing beet red, Jang Ilwoo couldn't hold back anymore and kicked off the ground. For his bulky build, the leap was light and swift.
In an instant, he closed in on Wi Seongcheon and raised his massive pot-lid hand.
"Dogs......"
Just,
A single slap. No murderous intent—no plans to kill or maim. The Heavenly Academy gathered promising students of similar ages, all called geniuses.
At this hot-blooded age, minor scuffles between students were common, and the academy turned a blind eye to such trifles.
So, lightly. Within those light bounds, just a slap to discipline him.
To show that the Heavenly Flower Sect—or Wi Seongcheon—and the Jang Clan, Jang Ilwoo, were worlds apart.
"Nope."
That thought snapped short.
With it, Jang Ilwoo's vision plunged into black.
Wi Seongcheon grabbed the stumbling, momentum-carrying Jang Ilwoo's shoulder. A thin graze at the jaw's edge...... That was it.
Wi Seongcheon waggled his raised index finger, then patted Jang Ilwoo's back.
"Yeah, not the same level."
Wi Seongcheon muttered as he laid Jang Ilwoo's body on the floor.
"Not on my level, anyway."
Jang Ilwoo of the Jang Clan.
Knew the name, but not worth remembering. He'd judged that from the book, and it checked out in person.
'Lucky break.'
He hadn't provoked blindly. Upon entering White Tiger Hall, he'd confirmed no one but Jang Ilwoo.
Then observed him.
First-year gray uniform. Nothing distinctive otherwise. The Nine Great Righteous Sects and prestigious clans all had symbols: Plum Blossom for Huashan, Taiji for Wudang, swords for Namgoong.
Even beggar clan members tied knots at their waists to show affiliation.
The Jang Clan had symbols too, no doubt. But...... In the Heavenly Academy, filled with Nine Great Righteous Sects, prestigious clans—especially Three Great Clans' scions—the Jang Clan's weren't flashy enough to flaunt.
That's why the provocation. Sorry to Jang Ilwoo, but necessary for Wi Seongcheon.
"Hey."
Wi Seongcheon shook the downed Jang Ilwoo's shoulder. After a few shakes, Jang Ilwoo's lips quivered.
His half-lidded eyes blinked open, taking in Wi Seongcheon. Wi Seongcheon grinned at the still-dazed Jang Ilwoo.
"Hngh!"
"Keep it quiet."
Shh.
Wi Seongcheon pressed a finger to his lips. But Jang Ilwoo ignored it, thrashing in panic. Wi Seongcheon sighed deeply and slapped his cheek again.
"Ng!"
"Ilwoo."
For Jang Ilwoo, it was a ghost's lament. He couldn't fathom why he'd blacked out first—now what? Why another slap out of nowhere, and why was this guy calling him by name like they were buddies? What frustrated him most: his shoulder throbbed agonizingly in Wi Seongcheon's grip.
"I've got something to ask you."
"You...... you! Who......?"
"Told you—Wi Seongcheon of the Heavenly Flower Sect."
Jang Ilwoo swallowed hard. No matter how he thought about it...... Impossible.
Heavenly Flower Sect? A backwater sect in Gangseo. Nothing to boast but its despised bat nickname.
Even if Jang Ilwoo wasn't some prodigy, getting into the Heavenly Academy marked him as a noteworthy junior.
He was well aware. Sure, now at the bottom under 'real' geniuses here, but in the righteous Murim world, he was 'young hero' material—'great hero' with a bit more time and age.
That self-awareness now shook at its roots.
"N-No way...... Black Snake spy......?"
Maybe even Demonic Cult. Jang Ilwoo thought it half-seriously. Naturally, it didn't please Wi Seongcheon.
Wi Seongcheon ostentatiously raised his hand, and Jang Ilwoo flinched, clamping his mouth shut.
"Tell me about Hwangbo Seongwoo."
"P-Pardon......?"
"Hwangbo Seongwoo. Tell me about him."
Still foggy from the blackout, his head wasn't turning right. Wi Seongcheon repeated clearly, enunciating for him.
"Hwangbo...... Seongwoo......? Why him......?"
"Him what? Same first-year—what's with the honorifics?"
Wi Seongcheon grumbled in disbelief. Hwangbo Seongwoo. Just those four syllables gave Wi Seongcheon a rough read on the guy's personality.
Jang Ilwoo was mid-tier class, Hwangbo upper-tier. Different classes, sure, but same first-years—no need for 'nim' fawning.
Especially with Hwangbo absent now. Clinging to honorifics like that......
"Seongwoo's a prickly type, huh."
"W-What're you saying!"
"Not like he's listening. Think smart, Ilwoo."
Wi Seongcheon thrust his clenched fist right in Jang Ilwoo's face. Jang Ilwoo jerked back in shock. His heart wanted to retreat further, but he couldn't. His shoulder was still gripped.
"Hwangbo's not here, but my fist is. See? Nice and close."
Tap, tap. Wi Seongcheon's fist prodded Jang Ilwoo's nose tip a few times. Jang Ilwoo's body shuddered.
"......You're really...... not Black Snake or Demonic Cult spy......?"
"Told you no. Just enrolled, dorm's empty. Wanted to learn about the friends I'll be with."
Hwangbo Seongwoo was in Supervisor Woo's booklet, but sparsely. Just name and sect.
Jang Ilwoo hesitated, then steeled himself. Wi Seongcheon listened quietly to his stammered words.
Hwangbo Seongwoo.
Direct line of Hwangbo Clan. Patriarch's own son. Alias: Iron Fist.
Hwangbo Clan—one of the Three Great Clans with Namgoong and Tang. Elite of elites.
Naturally upper-tier. Not just him—first-year standouts like ranked genius Paeng Sa-rin and heaven-sent genius Mu Yeonjun were too.
"Same first-years or not...... Upper and mid classes have totally different lessons. I don't know much......"
"He's a bear, right?"
Wi Seongcheon voiced his question's intent outright. Jang Ilwoo's eyes widened. He whipped around checking surroundings—but empty dorm, no listeners.
"N-Never say that in front of Hwangbo Seongwoo!"
"Why not? It's not like I made it up."
"No...... you can't......"
Any real reason?
Jang Ilwoo suddenly wondered. He himself would never say it to Hwangbo's face, but some other guy—especially this rude prick who'd slapped him—spouting it and getting beat? What business of his?
"Do what you want."
"I can read your mind, Ilwoo."
"I didn't......"
Jang Ilwoo mumbled.
Hwangbo a bear.
Seemed true. Not metaphor. Hwangbo Seongwoo really was a 'bear.' Subhumans weren't just Jang-i folk.
Beastkin.
Human-beast hybrids. History short since God-Demon War—three centuries tops. But beastkin integrated into Murim faster, smoother than earlier Jang-i.
Rare enough, physically tough. Flaw: purebloods had beast bodies sans human dantian for qi.
Purebloods only. Human hybrids sometimes birthed with dantian—like Hwangbo Seongwoo's martial bone beastkin.
Martial bone beastkin were worldly cheats. Beastkin toughness plus martial arts.
Short history like beastkin, but over one-two centuries, famed masters left deep marks.
'Four....... no, three?'
Wi Seongcheon pondered adjusting Hwangbo's rank, then dropped it. He knew little of martial bone beastkin.
"And."
Wi Seongcheon steadied his breath.
"Paeng Yeonhwa."
His voice too.
"Tell me about her."
Recalling old memories.