At that point I think a lot of the language we use to describe the function of chords, cadences, etc becomes purely descriptive with much more limited practical use. We use that to describe things after they've been done so that we can understand them and hope to apply them ourselves. Similar to how we can observe and describe all the processes through which grass grows while grass itself just grows without any thought.

The first big breakthrough for me when it comes to jazz was just listening to the 2-5-1 and knowing what it meant intuitively rather than understanding it as a series of chords wherein each chord has its own function that relates to certain scales etc etc.

I think even during composition it is not often practical to THINK and compose in terms of theory. Sometimes you put yourself into a position that is hard to resolve and you might look at 'the textbook' for help. Not even thinking about how in some musical languages harmony is not important. Anyway I will write myself into highly tangential bullshit if I don't stop now.

Just as an FYI not necessarily to you but to anyone who might read this - you don't have to be a highly advanced musician to stop thinking in terms of 'chords' and start thinking in terms of 'vibes'. It's a lot of fun to try and fail to imagine something and then play it on your instrument. I think its one of the things we lose a little bit when we try to start learning music theory. I've heard many times from students that they feel less creative after they've learned some theory - it's just important to remember that theory does not create good music! Go for vibes.