A Feast Fit for a Heavenly Flower
The matriarch had told her to go and enjoy herself. But if she wanted to see just how warmly the masters of the Central Plains welcomed their guests, she should look down at the dinner table that evening. And so Cheong’s eyes widened like saucers.
The moment she arrived, they had already washed away her pent-up frustration with a refreshing victory, and they even brought in an honored guest. Kang Su-yang’s gratitude was so immense that even if he adopted her as his daughter and carried her on his back for the rest of his life, it still wouldn’t be enough. Of course, since many people coveted that position, it would be difficult for the leader of a mere regional sect to claim it. Still, that was how he felt in his heart.
On top of that, a prince had arrived, so they couldn’t possibly slack off on hospitality. The table was on the verge of collapsing under its own weight. There were so many dishes that plates were stacked crosswise on top of other plates in a dazzling display.
“Hyung-nim! This is the pride of Yangguang, Suckling Pig Roast! Please try it before it gets cold!”
Suckling pig roast was a whole pig roasted intact, the most representative dish of Guangdong cuisine. However, calling it “Yangguang” was a sneaky way of lumping Guangdong and Guangxi together. It was practically a crime to include Guangdong cuisine—which proudly claimed to be the finest in the world—under the umbrella of both provinces. Naturally, any true Guangdong native would fly into a rage at the suggestion. How dare those barbarian bastards who ate bugs try to claim Guangdong’s supreme delicacies?
It was well known throughout the Central Plains that Guangdong people were the most ridiculously proud of their food. The saying went that if a Guangdong native and a Hangzhou native ate together, only one would walk away alive. It was a mocking jab at the violent pride of the two regions most obsessed with cuisine in the entire Murim.
But the Gyerim Sword Sect was located in Guangxi, and its members were all Guangxi natives. Guangdong or Guangxi—what difference did it make? They both had the same character for “Guang,” just east or west.
U Na-ram skillfully carved the area near the ribs above the front leg and plopped it neatly onto Cheong’s plate. That part, called jeoruk, was the most delicious cut of the suckling pig. The other side had naturally been offered to the prince, so the entire remaining half ended up on Cheong’s plate.
At that, First Disciple Do Dal-jeon’s eyebrows twitched slightly. Just what was Na-ram doing? Was she a disciple of Gyerim or the Heavenly Flower Sword’s lackey? How could she serve the guest before their own sect leader?
But the sect leader had already entered the state of “Our Heavenly Flower Sword can do whatever she wants and eat whatever she wants.”
“Oh, Na-ram! You really know how to treat a guest properly! Junior Sister, that spot right there is the jeoruk. The absolute best part.”
“Wow, really? Then we should share—”
“No no no. We only get to eat this on special occasions, but you don’t, do you, Junior Sister? You should eat it while you can.”
The Gyerim Sword Sect had “Sword Sect” in its name, so it was essentially a secular martial order. Still, since it followed the Daoist tradition, it technically belonged to that lineage. Even so, they weren’t at the level where the sect leader could claim seniority over others. And if it was just about showing affection to someone else’s disciple, no one would really complain.
Thus, with no one to stop her, U Na-ram went all out, piling dish after dish onto the plate.
“Hyung-nim! This is Roasted Squab!”
Roasted baby pigeon. In the Central Plains, pigeons were considered cheap food for the poor, but in Guangdong, where people had an unusual love for pigeon meat, the locally raised variety was treated as a luxury.
“Hyung-nim! This is Guangzhou Roast Goose!”
Goose was also a dear friend to the people of Guangdong.
“Hyung-nim! This is Eight Treasures Stir-Fry!”
Because the Central Plains’ logistics were still somewhat primitive, using fresh seafood in Eight Treasures Stir-Fry made it one of the highest-grade dishes. Of course, “primitive” was only in comparison to Cheong’s homeland. By the standards of this era, the Central Plains had the most advanced distribution network in the world.
“Hyung-nim! These are Hakka Tofu Dumplings!”
Dumplings with filling stuffed inside tofu. Truthfully, the essence of Guangdong cuisine lay in its soups and congees, but those tended to disappear from high-class banquets. It seemed they wouldn’t be appearing tonight either.
After the Guangdong dishes swept through like a storm, it was time for Guangxi cuisine. And indeed, the two were visibly different right from their appearance. No wonder the Guangdong people got angry when someone lumped them together as “Yangguang.”
“Hyung-nim! This is Wu Pa!”
Wu Pa was semi-dried calf rump meat.
“Hyung-nim! This is Pama Black Tofu!”
Pama was a local name. Even Guangdong natives acknowledged Pama tofu as a delicacy.
“Hyung-nim! This is Steamed Duck Feet!”
“Conch steam! Silkworm pupae! Freshwater crab paste! Frog legs!”
Guangxi had barren land, rugged mountains, and only recently developed coastal areas. As a result, their food culture still carried strong influences from the “barbarian” tribes, which explained the rather… rustic ingredients.
Cheong, of course, ate everything without discrimination.
Meanwhile, First Disciple Do Dal-jeon’s eyebrows kept twitching violently. He genuinely couldn’t tell anymore whether that woman was the senior disciple of this generation or if they had simply dragged in the author’s personal errand girl.
Of course, none of the disciples were unaware that U Na-ram idolized the Heavenly Flower Sword and treated her as her ultimate role model. In Cheong’s hometown terms, she should have at least moderated her enthusiasm a little. But since she had been asking “When is the Heavenly Flower Sword coming?” every single day, it was no surprise her neck had practically stretched from waiting so eagerly.
Still, there had to be limits. The Heavenly Flower Sword couldn’t possibly refuse the food being offered and was continuously shoving it into her mouth. No matter how delicious, there was such a thing as too much. This was basically torture by overfeeding.
When he thought about it that way, the Heavenly Flower Sword’s willingness to play along despite everything truly showed what a wonderful person she was.
Of course, this was a massive underestimation of Cheong.
“Mmm. Delicious. So good.”
Cheong had even unwrapped her bandages. She was happily devouring everything when—
“Ouch.”
Cheong’s stomach was not some infinite-dimensional pouch like the ones used by immortals in stories. It simply stretched as much as she ate. Once she finished a proper meal, her upper belly would swell to an astonishing size.
Normally, her sturdy bones and thick muscles could handle her stomach’s tyrannical expansion. But right now, one side of her ribcage was cracked, and the triple-layered muscle wall protecting her flank had been completely torn apart. The pressure from her swelling stomach was putting immense strain on the area. Her ribs, which had been healing nicely, sent a serious warning: “Stop stuffing yourself or I’m going to snap and shoot out of your body.”
Cheong’s face instantly turned pale. Her face was hidden behind the cotton veil, so the severity wasn’t visible, but the sudden pained sound and the dropped chopsticks immediately drew everyone’s attention.
“Hyung-nim!? Are you alright!?”
“No, it’s just… my wound. I’m fine. I can still eat more.”
Cheong gritted her teeth. When would she ever face a table filled exclusively with regional specialties like this again? It had to be now. Hold on, Seomun Cheong.
She was on the verge of an unprecedented disaster—her wounds bursting open from overeating. If Seomun Su-rin knew, she would have said something like, “You stupid girl, even the starving ghosts of the underworld would run away in horror,” before delivering the Seomun Su-rin-style Special Secret Technique: Nuclear Fist of Supreme Courtesy, Azuksa Sepaja—a sin worthy of death and destruction.
“A wound? You mean you’re injured?”
“Yes. I had a little scuffle with some Green Forest bastards.”
“Good heavens! Are you alright? How bad is it?”
“It’s not that serious. About a month of rest and I should be fully recovered.”
Normally, no one would describe an injury requiring a full month of recuperation as “not that serious.” But Kang Su-yang had already seen Cheong walking around perfectly fine, so he assumed it couldn’t be too terrible.
“My goodness. How did you end up tangling with the Green Forest?”
“Right? I was just passing by and stopped to admire how beautiful Mount Zhangjiajie was when they suddenly started harassing me and picking a fight.”
Cheong proudly recounted the tale of how she had encountered bandits on the road and subjugated them. Those wicked bandits who dared to provoke the completely innocent, flawless, and pure Seomun Cheong! In the name of justice, she could not forgive them. She drew her sword, and a fierce gale of sword wind swept forth. Mysterious sword qi descended upon the earth! The ultimate, transcendent, super-ultra Cheong-nim had descended upon those vile parasites who lived by sucking the blood of others. Unable to withstand her overwhelming martial prowess, the scoundrels brought their boss.
Thus began the legendary duel: Seomun Cheong versus the bandit leader!
“So that Wang Cheol-gun guy was crying his eyes out, snot and tears everywhere, begging for his life. I looked at him and said, ‘Have you ever spared anyone? Have you ever shown a single person warmth? Don’t carelessly kick the charcoal ashes.’ Wait, never mind that last part. Anyway, I cut his head off, and the rest of the Green Forest trash scattered in terror.”
It was a rather heavily embellished story. But since she had stabbed him with a poisoned dagger and he had spent the whole time running around using his dead children as an excuse, it wasn’t entirely wrong to say he had brought it upon himself. Her master had also told her that when sharing martial tales with others, she should make them as impressive as possible. Even if it pricked her conscience a little, it was a necessary sacrifice for a greater cause. A great woman must do great things. As a pioneer among female martial artists, it was her duty. That was what she had been told.
“As expected of Hyung-nim! How magnificent! That courage to face evil for the sake of justice! That peerless martial prowess that secured ultimate victory! I, U, am truly moved!”
U Na-ram was the only one making a fuss. The others wore expressions that said, Is that right? Does that even make sense? They looked skeptical. Cheong wondered if she had gone a bit overboard with the embellishments.
---
Since she had been injured fighting the Green Forest, they called for a physician. The patient herself showed no signs of pain, but the doctor was in an absolute panic.
“In all my years of treating patients, I have never seen someone walking around in this condition. Goodness gracious. A normal woman would be sobbing in agony just from breathing, yet here she is. It’s a miracle that her flank isn’t rotting and leaking pus. Is this a living person or a corpse? The fact that she’s still alive is nothing short of a miracle.”
In other words, she had been walking around with injuries so severe that even the physician was horrified. They had thought she looked too healthy to have fought the Green Forest Supreme Leader, but according to the doctor, merely being alive was a miracle in itself.
“What do you think?”
“The Heavenly Flower Sword has no reason to lie, does she? And if she were going to lie, she wouldn’t choose something that could be so easily exposed, right?”
Whether the Supreme Leader of the Green Forest was truly dead or not would become clear soon enough. If what the Heavenly Flower Sword said was true, countless bandits had fled in terror. In time, the story would spread across the entire Central Plains.
“Hah. To think a girl who only reached the Transcendent realm at the beginning of this year has slain a Harmonious Realm demon. It’s hard to believe even after hearing it.”
“I thought the rumors were exaggerated, but perhaps they weren’t.”
The rumors surrounding the Heavenly Flower Sword were simply too extravagant. A genius sent by the heavens. At only twenty years old, she had reached the Transcendent realm—the youngest in Murim history. Not only that, but after viewing the Sword-Carving Cliff, she had comprehended the insights left behind by Mucheon-daeje. A genius who could grasp sword intent from nothing but sword scars. The young expert closest to becoming the next number one under the heavens. The wielder of the Shaolin divine art, Yeorae Shinjang. And on top of all that, a peerless beauty who could undeniably be called the greatest beauty in the world.
It was the kind of story that would make anyone laugh and call it pure nonsense no matter who told it. Why not just say she was the reincarnation of the Moon Maiden and her name was A-Cheong while they were at it? She truly was the second coming of the legendary Moon Maiden from the old tales.
“They say she already slew the Flame Demon Lord while still in the Peak realm. It seems she has properly learned how to fight against stronger opponents.”
“The gap between the Transcendent and Harmonious realms isn’t something that can be explained so simply. But whether such a thing is possible or not isn’t what matters right now.”
“Indeed. Treat that child well. I hear the leaders of the Nine Great Schools adore her. If she is to become the next number one under heaven, it’s only natural. I thought Na-ram was being unusually excited, but it seems she had the right idea after all.”
First Disciple Do Dal-jeon frowned.
“No matter what, she is still our senior disciple, isn’t she? For the future first disciple to be running around without any dignity—isn’t that a problem? I was actually planning to give her a stern talking-to.”
“Just let her be. Isn’t it better to have a first disciple who is friends with the future number one under heaven than one who is overly concerned with face? When considering the future of our sect, that is clearly the superior choice.”
“Hmm. Are you not being unusually soft on Na-ram? If you show such blatant favoritism, it is rather disappointing for your first disciple.”
At that, the sect leader burst into hearty laughter.
It was the moment Cheong’s status as an honored guest was officially decided.
One might call it too materialistic, but the leader of any organization needed to possess such pragmatism. Of course, this wasn’t purely an investment in the future of the Murim. She was simply too grateful and impressed. After suffering such injuries, she should have been resting and recuperating in a nearby city. Yet she had dragged her wounded body all the way here in a hurry. That alone was worthy of thanks. And she hadn’t come alone—she had brought an army’s worth of reinforcements. That made it even more appreciated.
Since the prince had said he would stay for a month, it was more than enough time for the support request sent to the Murim Alliance at the beginning of the month to arrive. Of course, if they didn’t show up by then, he would have to cling to their pants and desperately beg them to stay. But since the prince had already shown that he treated the Heavenly Flower Sword as a close friend, even if it was a bit shameless, they could ask her for help.
Therefore, they had to treat her well! They had to treat her well with the fate of the sect on the line! For the present and future of the sect!
And so the sect leader and first disciple, master and disciple, exchanged resolute glances filled with perfect unity of purpose.