Chapter 97: Flower Battle (2)

The First Flower Battle (2)

It was 2-3 years ago that Shin Hyun, the second-generation disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, first saw Gu Ryeonghwa.

It was around the time winter had just ended and spring was beginning, when the Sect Leader, the Plum Blossom Immortal Do Hwa, suddenly brought her, claiming she was their youngest junior sister. That was their first meeting.

It was said she was their junior sister, and a disciple of the Sword Matriarch, famous as a female chivalrous warrior of the Central Plains.

At that time, the initiation of the third-generation disciples had already been completed, and since she entered not as a third-generation disciple but with the qualification of a second-generation disciple, there was considerable backlash.

From the third-generation disciples’ perspective, it was the point that a young girl had suddenly entered as their junior sister.

From the second-generation disciples’ perspective, considering how to deal with Gu Ryeonghwa and coordinate with the third-generation disciples, it seemed like it would cause problems.

However, due to the adamant attitude of the Sect Leader and the elder-level figures, the disciples ultimately had no choice but to accept it.

If the Sect Leader says it’s right, then it’s right.

If they say it’s wrong, then it’s wrong.

That was the kind of faith the disciples held towards the Sect Leader.

A few days later, Shin Hyun heard the news that Gu Ryeonghwa had arrived at the Mount Hua Sect, but… he had to hear about several matters from the elders, so he could only visit her belatedly.

As he approached the lodging where the second-generation disciples stayed, Shin Hyun saw his junior disciples surrounding something.

Since they were all large in build, they were very clearly visible even from afar.

‘…They seem a bit too big, maybe.’

He had heard that as one’s cultivation level rose, the body changed along with the vessel, so it was fine, but there were actually guys who regretted it.

-These broad and rough shoulders and forearms will disappear…? That won’t do, Senior Brother… I must stop my core cultivation technique training starting today!

-That’s right…! How can I give up these sturdy thighs!

-…’Please, don’t talk while moving your chest. It makes me want to vomit.’

They were clearly crazy bastards….

Whether they hadn’t noticed his arrival, Shin Hyun let out a cough as if wanting to be heard amidst their murmuring.

“Ahem…! Cough…!”

Usually, they should have noticed by now, but there wasn’t even a reaction, as if they didn’t know what was going on.

In the end, Shin Hyun had to push his way through the muscle-bound giants.

In the center of the murmuring was a child.

A young girl, trembling whether from the cold or fear of the unfamiliar situation.

The child’s ears were red as she looked around with trembling eyes, held in the embrace of one of the few female disciples among the second-generation disciples.

“Ah, move away a bit…! Isn’t she getting scared!”

The female disciple, Shin Mil, shouted.

Only then did the men begin to slowly step back.

Even after they widened the distance, the child still had tearful eyes.

They wondered what they had done, but in reality, it was understandable that she would be scared, with dozens of men possessing these intimidating physiques looking at one child.

The other guys just don’t understand it well.

“Why is she scared…? We haven’t done anything.”

“Rather, can’t you feel reassured seeing these boulder-like forearms?”

“That’s right, that feeling like they’ll protect anything…. She probably just doesn’t understand because she’s a child.”

How on earth did it get to this point?

Even when they were third-generation disciples, they didn’t seem like this.

Shin Hyun sighed as he looked at his junior disciples.

Then, he slowly approached the girl, bent down, and met her gaze.

It was because he remembered his mother saying that when dealing with children, meeting their eyes made them feel comfortable.

“Nice to meet you. You must be Ryeonghwa, I am called Shin Hyun.”

“…”!

But for some reason, when he spoke to her, Gu Ryeonghwa instead dove into Shin Mil’s embrace.

Is this not it…?

“Uh… I…”

“Hiiik…!”

He tried to raise his hand as if to say he wasn’t a bad person, but at that action, Gu Ryeonghwa flinched and trembled.

Soon, tears flowed down from her big eyes.

“Opp-aaaaaaa….”

“Wow… Eldest Senior Brother made her cry.”

“He made her cry… Even though he told us to back off, he’s really the worst person.”

“No! What did I even do…!”

Moreover, it wasn’t even Shin Hyun who told them to back off.

He felt extremely wronged, but in front of the child’s tears, it was a meaningless story.

In the end, he couldn’t even greet her properly and had to spend the day soothing the child.

Of course, it was the female disciples like Shin Mil who took charge, not the male disciples.

Even on the next day, Shin Hyun couldn’t easily speak to Gu Ryeonghwa.

Did she even sleep properly? Gu Ryeonghwa’s eyes were swollen.

Did she cry all night?

At that sight, Shin Hyun had a question.

‘…Why isn’t her master coming?’

Usually, if one takes someone as a direct disciple, they would provide separate training, but for some reason, the Sword Matriarch did not appear.

The Sect Leader also didn’t say anything particular about this.

He was only told to take good care of her.

If the problem was indeed how to take care of her…

Somehow, they tried to join forces and do something, but it wasn’t an easy task.

One day, a disciple who was watching Gu Ryeonghwa’s training said something.

“…Eldest Senior Brother, you know, Junior Sister Gu.”

“What is it?”

The disciple, who approached with an uneasy expression, spoke to Shin Hyun as if it was too difficult.

“…I’m afraid something might break if I touch her wrong… I can’t touch her…!”

“…What the hell?”

At first, he thought, ‘What kind of dog-shit nonsense is that?’

Gu Ryeonghwa was thin and small in build, so it seemed like she might die if you accidentally tapped her.

Moreover, because she was still crying whenever someone approached, it was difficult in many ways…

Still.

“That’s right! Hold it like that! Good job!”

“Wow! She picked up the sword! Junior Sister picked up the sword!”

“Oh, what do we do! Could Junior Sister actually be a genius?”

The junior disciples seemed to like it.

That’s understandable, because the third-generation disciples hadn’t taken a girl this time, and all the junior disciples who were second-generation disciples were no different from men.

Especially in Shin Mil’s case, she possessed physical abilities that made even Shin Hyun himself, the Eldest Senior Brother, wonder if he could win if he fought her.

For martial artists, the limits of gender were already meaningless.

It’s understandable that everyone was unable to contain themselves, with such a delicate and beautiful girl coming as a junior sister in that situation, but.

Will training actually happen like that?

‘When training the junior disciples, these devils… what on earth is this sight.’

Even while cursing inwardly, Shin Hyun himself was treating Gu Ryeonghwa with difficulty.

If it continued like this, it seemed like there wouldn’t be any training at all.

Even though he liked the junior sister who joined late, if they only treated her cutely like this, it would only obscure the essence.

So, Shin Hyun came up with a method to train Gu Ryeonghwa among the third-generation disciples.

He thought it would be better if she trained among the younger disciples, not among these old guys.

Since the Sect Leader told him to handle it himself, he thought he should try to do something helpful.

Since Gu Ryeonghwa showed gestures of trying various things even while scared and tearful, he thought it might be okay.

And there, he discovered a problem.

On the fourth day of Gu Ryeonghwa’s training among the third-generation disciples.

Someone ran up and shouted to Shin Hyun, who was training.

“Eldest Senior Brother!”

“What is it now?”

That guy was one of the few who insisted on watching Gu Ryeonghwa train among the third-generation disciples, calling it ‘useless effort’.

Every time he saw him, no matter what he said, the guy didn’t seem to give up, so Shin Hyun had left him be for now.

The disciple who came, panting, said.

“Ju, Junior Sister Gu has collapsed.”

“What?”

Gu Ryeonghwa had an unexpected problem.

Fortunately, Gu Ryeonghwa woke up not long after, but she curled up her whole body with a terrified expression.

Shin Hyun saw this and asked the third-generation disciples who were training with her.

What on earth had happened.

When asked about it, the junior disciples only said they were wronged.

They said they hadn’t done anything; rather, they tried to teach her something, but because she cried and screamed, even that wasn’t easy.

This time, one of the junior disciples accidentally brushed against Gu Ryeonghwa and suddenly lost consciousness.

The Mount Hua Sect’s infirmary said there was no problem with her body.

They said it was a mental issue…

Shin Hyun, who was gradually making a name for himself in the Central Plains as a leading figure of Mount Hua and an outstanding swordsman, was truly weak in this aspect.

What is the problem?

What on earth is making this small child struggle like this?

Although she was a child who joined suddenly, she was undeniably a fellow disciple.

The Sect Leader had said so, and he had decided to think that way, so that child must also be his family.

“Eldest Senior Brother, what should we do…?”

“Since it was said that comforting her now would be poison, let’s wait and see.”

The physician said it would be better not to approach her carelessly now.

Just watching, time flowed again.

If there is anything Shin Hyun learned about Gu Ryeonghwa as a little time passed.

What Gu Ryeonghwa feared was not just unfamiliar environments, but fundamentally, it was people.

Especially men.

And even more so, the younger the person, the more scared she seemed to get.

‘Can it be called fear?’

At first, he thought so, but as time passed and he saw Gu Ryeonghwa more, he couldn’t define it as such a simple emotion.

Countless things were contained within a single gaze.

He could feel various negative emotions mixed together, from fear and resentment to terror and despair.

Shin Hyun could also feel a faint longing within that.

That’s why he couldn’t carelessly define it as a simple emotion.

If it continued like this, it wasn’t possible to leave her to the third-generation disciples, and since she seemed uncomfortable with men, he had no choice but to entrust her to the other female disciples.

Even after that, time flowed further, and several seasons changed.

Gu Ryeonghwa became a young girl, but even as time passed, the line was clear.

She seemed much better, but she still seemed overwhelmed.

The fortunate thing is that there were occasional days when she seemed happy.

‘Perhaps it’s because she’s going to see her master.’

He heard she was located on the mountain peak, and as if it wasn’t difficult, Gu Ryeonghwa went up the mountain whenever she had time.

Other disciples were forbidden from going up carelessly, so there were many discussions.

Most of them were saying perhaps there was some problem with the Sword Matriarch’s health, but.

Since there wouldn’t be good talk even if it floated outside, they didn’t bother to mention it.

Meanwhile, an incident occurred, and a search party had to be organized to go out.

It happened that several Plum Blossom Swordsmen, who had participated outside as swordsmen, went missing.

They searched urgently, but compared to the duration and distance, the traces were meager.

In the end, while returning with heavy hearts, Yeongpung, who was searching with them, said he felt something again and left the formation.

Since Yeongpung often acted on instinct, Shin Hyun sighed and followed him to handle the situation.

Such incidents weren’t the first or second time.

At the place they arrived quickly, Shin Hyun met Gu Yangcheon.

At first, he looked like he had lost consciousness, so Shin Hyun was shocked, thinking Yeongpung had caused trouble.

Fortunately, that wasn’t the case, and the misunderstanding was quickly resolved.

While talking with Gu Yangcheon, who had regained consciousness, Shin Hyun learned that Gu Yangcheon was related to Gu Ryeonghwa.

Even when he heard that Gu Yangcheon had come to take Gu Ryeonghwa to her family estate, Shin Hyun was inwardly a little happy.

Seeing Gu Ryeonghwa seeming somewhat impatient recently, though he didn’t know why, he hoped she could escape Mount Hua for a while to rest and return.

Perhaps this was the same for the other disciples.

Shin Hyun didn’t know the Gu family in great detail, but he knew it was the famous Sword Peak family.

Not to mention the head, the chivalrous warrior.

A woman who even Yeongpung, possessing monstrous talent, had to concede a move to.

Shin Hyun had never seen her properly, but it wasn’t an easily believable story.

Talent surpassing Yeongpung, who bloomed plum blossoms at the tip of his sword before reaching adulthood, wasn’t an easily believable story.

The problem was that a more baffling situation appeared for Shin Hyun.

It was because Yeongpung, who was suddenly sparring with Gu Yangcheon, had lost.

‘…Yeongpung… lost?’

Seeing Yeongpung rolling on the floor and spewing vomit, and Gu Yangcheon watching him, Shin Hyun was horrified.

Before pointing out Yeongpung’s rudeness and getting angry, Shin Hyun couldn’t comprehend that a boy younger than Yeongpung had burned the plum blossoms.

‘…Plum blossoms burning, what on earth is this.’

The sight of plum blossom petals filling the air, all burning from the flames erupting from the boy’s body.

From Shin Hyun’s perspective, devoted to the Mount Hua Sect, it was an indescribable sight.

Seeing that, Shin Hyun was convinced.

‘…In the future, the position of Divine Dragon will belong to that child.’

The reason why Gu Yangcheon is not yet known might be because he is young, but.

More precisely, it’s because he hasn’t participated in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering as a later-generation disciple.

Originally, Peng Woojin, who was called the Divine Dragon, stepped down after receiving the position of Young Master of the Peng family, so naturally, the name of the foremost later-generation disciple was held by Sword Phoenix.

This too was a name that would descend to Yeongpung once Sword Phoenix settled his position and stepped down.

Shin Hyun also thought that, but after glimpsing Gu Yangcheon’s martial prowess, he had no choice but to change his mind.

‘…I have nothing to say, truly a monster.’

Identifying openings and movements that reached out without hesitation.

The internal energy supporting it not only had destructive power but also speed.

The composure he maintained while controlling the wild flames made it hard to recall later-generation disciples at that age.

Gu Yangcheon already possessed the senses that a seasoned martial artist would gain through actual combat.

If that’s not talent, what should I call it?

‘…What kind of place is the Gu family?’

He had seen it as just a famous noble family of Shanxi, but a family that raised such a monster, let alone the Sword Peak…

“It’s scary…”

From a certain point on, Shin Hyun began to take interest in Gu Yangcheon himself, rather than the sect’s treasure that Gu Yangcheon brought.

The strangely enlightened pupils, compared to those sharp eyes, must be one of the reasons.

His demeanor of mingling with his attendants without dividing them by status, and the fact that he didn’t neglect his training even amidst traveling when a young boy might be tired… in Shin Hyun’s view, made him think Gu Yangcheon possessed a good disposition.

‘Wouldn’t he have been a good older brother to Junior Sister Gu too?’

Shin Hyun had thought perhaps something had happened in her family regarding Gu Ryeonghwa’s condition, but.

Shin Hyun remembered the sight of Gu Ryeonghwa, held in Shin Mil’s embrace at night, crying while looking for her brother.

However, a few years ago, after visiting her family estate for the last time, that behavior had almost disappeared.

Shin Hyun thought it might have been helpful, as Gu Ryeonghwa had rather shown she had composed herself.

Of course, even so, the distance between Gu Ryeonghwa and the disciples hadn’t decreased, but there was hope that it might have improved just a little.

However.

Afterwards, as Gu Yangcheon entered the Mount Hua Sect, Shin Hyun could see the change that occurred in Gu Ryeonghwa.

After Gu Yangcheon arrived, Gu Ryeonghwa’s gaze once again showed the complex emotions she had harbored in childhood.

Resentment, terror, fear.

And longing and sadness.

Shin Hyun could finally understand that Gu Yangcheon was the owner of the emotions Gu Ryeonghwa was sending.

‘Are my eyes mistaken?’

He thought the boy named Gu Yangcheon wouldn’t have done anything wrong to his junior sister.

He prided himself on being sharp when it came to judging people, so this was even more confusing.

He still didn’t think he was that kind of person, but the doubt had already arisen.

As a martial artist of Mount Hua, Shin Hyun doesn’t like to hesitate.

At least in matters like this, he wanted to find some resolution.

So, he asked Gu Yangcheon.

He asked the boy about the matter he had kept in his heart, unable to ask directly.

The boy, with an unwavering expression, heard everything and immediately gave an answer.

“Yes, it is my fault.”

It was a very firm answer.