Star Instructor, Master Baek

TL: FoodieMonster007

"A bet? I won't stand for such an insult!" one of the Vermillion Phoenix instructors shouted before Sama Yeong could react, approaching Baek Suryong with his hand resting lightly on his sword hilt.

Noticing that the man had a stubborn demeanor, Baek Suryong tilted his head and asked innocently, "Why is proposing a bet considered an insult?"

"Surely you know what a big deal it is when an instructor changes allegiances. Don't you think it's insulting to suggest that we bet on such a thing?" the man yelled.

Baek Suryong widened his eyes as though he was astonished. "So when the Vermilion Phoenix Academy offers a transfer, it's goodwill, but when the Azure Dragon Academy does the same, it's an insult?"

"Naturally! You should know the difference in status between the two academies!"

"That will change soon enough. I'm just giving Miss Sama the chance to jump ship now, while it's still easy."

"Mr. Baek Suryong, do you think I'll back down just because you're strong?"

"What gives you the confidence to challenge me when you're so weak?"

"You impudent…!" The man's face flushed red.

Whether it was martial arts or a verbal match, he couldn't win against Baek Suryong. He tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword, but before he could draw it, Sama Yeong stepped in and grabbed his wrist.

"That's enough, Mr. So Geomdong," she warned.

So Geomdong gritted his teeth, but nodded silently.

Baek Suryong clicked his tongue in disappointment. Should I provoke him one more time?

"You're quite the loyal dog, aren't you?" he taunted.

Seo Geomdong flinched, but a sharp glare from Sama Yeong compelled him to withdraw in silence.

Turning back to Baek Suryong, Sama Yeong said, "You mentioned a bet?"

"That's right."

"Alright, I accept."

Baek Suryong's eyes widened. Isn't she agreeing too easily? She's willing to take that kind of risk?

He had only mentioned the bet to provoke her, never expecting that she would actually agree to it. After all, if she lost, it would lead to the inconceivable scenario of the Fire King's granddaughter becoming an instructor at the Azure Dragon Academy.

He wasn't alone in his shock. The Vermilion Phoenix instructors were just as dumbfounded as he was.

"Ms. Sama Yeong!"

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"Why are you accepting such a bet?"

"Please reconsider!"

Some of them secretly disliked Sama Yeong, but this was a matter of honor for Vermilion Phoenix Academy. They had to talk her out of it, no matter what.

"This is my personal affair. I'll take responsibility for any repercussions myself," Sama Yeong snapped, silencing her colleagues with a cold glare.

Fixing a provocative gaze on Baek Suryong, she went on, "However, I would like to change the terms of the bet. If you lose, all the special privileges I just promised you will be revoked. You'll start with a basic instructor's salary and work your way up from the bottom by doing various menial chores. You'll have to learn everything from scratch under my strict supervision. As for the contract, how does three years sound?"

Baek Suryong grinned. Even though Sama Yeong was from a rival academy, he found her quite likeable. Her eyes burned with intensity, her competitive spirit was boundless, and she seemed exceptionally capable. Recruiting her as a junior and putting her through her paces would be fun.

"Then we'll set the same conditions on our side. Shall we put it in writing?"

Sama Yeong shook her head. "I know a more reliable method. Lets have the Namgung Clan be our witness."

Everyone knew that the Namgung Clan had eyes and ears everywhere within their own estate. Once the details of this bet were reported to their leadership, any violation of the terms would be met with ridicule from the entire jianghu.

Smiling confidently, Sama Yeong added, "You know, a great teacher doesn't always make a great student. Sometimes, being aware of your own brilliance can cause problems."

"Thank you for your concern. I'll try to appear a little less outstanding, even though that's the one thing I'm not sure I can pull off," Baek Suryong replied.

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"I'm just liking you more and more… Anyway, see you tomorrow," Sama Yeong laughed, turning around and walking away without hesitation.

Exchanging anxious glances, the Vermilion Phoenix instructors quickly hurried after her.

Baek Suryong looked back at his companions. "Shall we go check out our rooms…"

"Senior Blazing Rakshasa!" Jaegal Soyeong suddenly exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

Baek Suryong blinked in confusion. "Who?"

"I knew I'd heard the name Sama Yeong somewhere before! She's five years my senior at the Heavenly Martial Academy, so I've never met her in person, but she's one of the more famous young alumni," Jaegal Soyeong explained.

Ak Yeonho gulped. "The Blazing Rakshasa? What on earth did she do to earn such a fearsome alias?"

Jaegal Soyeong replied worriedly, "I heard that it's because she turns into a fiery demon when enraged, to the extent that she even forced three people to drop out of the Heavenly Martial Academy."

"……"

"……"

"Cough!"

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Ak Yeonho, Myeong Il'oh, and Kwak Duyong remained silent, but the cold sweat dripping from their foreheads and their strangled gasps spoke volumes about their inner thoughts.

Jaegal Soyeong continued with a somber expression, "On top of that, she graduated as one of the top five students, and her instructors said she was so good at the flame arts that they had nothing more to teach her about it."

"She's indeed quite impressive," Baek Suryong remarked.

Although Sama Yeong had seemed exceptional in the earlier duel, he could tell that neither she nor Tang Baekho had fought at full strength.

I wonder how powerful she is when she goes all out? Well, I'll probably find out soon enough. That lady is both prideful and stubborn.

One thing was for sure, even before the training started, they had already declared war on the Vermilion Phoenix Academy. Everything was slowly descending into chaos, exactly as he had wished.

Smirking darkly, Baek Suryong mumbled to himself, "I thought there were only little brats here, but this might turn out to be more interesting than I thought…"

"Do you think I'm acting arbitrarily by using my grandfather's influence?" Sama Yeong asked.

At the Vermilion Phoenix dormitory, Sama Yeong gathered her colleagues together at their designated training ground. The new instructors were divided among four different buildings, one assigned to each academy, and besides the central training ground where she had sparred with Tang Baekho, each academy received a smaller, private training ground.

The other Vermillion Phoenix instructors remained silent, but their restless faces spoke volumes. Right before their eyes, Sama Yeong had made an extraordinary offer to an Azure Dragon instructor, and as if that alone wasn't shocking enough, Baek Suryong had turned it down, leaving the entire Vermillion Phoenix Academy feeling humiliated.

So Geomdong asserted, "Yes, it was a mistake to accept the bet.

Sama Yeong shook her head. So Geomdong was practically her right-hand man, absolutely loyal to her, yet here he was expressing his dissatisfaction out loud. There was no need to ask what the others thought. If she hadn't been the Fire King's granddaughter, all kinds of criticism would have poured out.

It's so easy to guess what they're thinking. They're either jealously accusing me of being a woman who only succeeded because I was born into the right family, wondering what I'll do if I lose the bet, or convincing themselves that I've fallen for the Azure Dragon Hero's good looks.

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…Not that their opinions matter to me.

Sama Yeong sneered as if she could read all her colleagues' minds. "Fine, I'll give you all an opportunity as well."

"…Pardon?"

"What do you mean?"

Sama Yeong smiled radiantly. "During this training course, anyone who outperforms Mr. Baek Suryong in even one subject will have their monthly salary tripled. What's more, you'll also be assigned a class to teach starting next year."

The instructors' eyes widened in astonishment. A threefold pay raise coupled with a teaching gig was a extraordinary opportunity, especially in the highly competitive Vermilion Phoenix Academy.

One of the instructors raised his hand. "Does that include theoretical classes?"

"Of course. As you saw earlier, the Azure Dragon Hero's martial prowess surpasses everyone else here, so defeating him in practical lessons is most certainly out of the question."

If the evaluation criteria was purely about combat ability, Sama Yeong had no doubt that none of the new instructors could defeat Baek Suryong. However, this was an instructor training course, not a martial arts competition. Throughout the program, their teaching methodology and communication skills would also be put to the test. Excellence in martial arts alone wouldn't guarantee a top score.

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The instructors' eyes began to burn with motivation.

If it's theory…

We can definitely win!

Sama Yeong grinned with satisfaction. Manipulating ordinary people was so easy.

"Do whatever it takes to prevail over the Azure Dragon Hero. Prove to him that the instructors of the Vermilion Phoenix Academy are the best!"

""Yes!""

"Good. You're dismissed."

At Sama Yeong's command, the Vermillion Phoenix instructors dispersed, some returning to their rooms, some staying in the training grounds to spar, and others gathering in groups to chat.

After watching them for a moment, Sama Yeong returned to her bedroom. She changed into comfortable clothes, sat cross-legged, and began to circulate her qi.

Still, she couldn't concentrate on her breathing exercises. An annoyingly confident face kept popping up in her mind.

Baek Suryong.

He had not only rejected her proposal, but also suggested that she join the Azure Dragon Academy instead. At first, she was angry, but a moment later, her desire to bring Baek Suryong to Vermilion Phoenix Academy triumphed over her indignation.

I'll keep you by my side forever and make you work like a slave.

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Flames flickering in her eyes, Sama Yeong bit her lip, closed her eyes, and began to calmly circulate her qi.

"My liege, I believe this is the right direction," a gaunt, hunchbacked old man said, wiping blood off the map with his hand and bringing it close to his face. Even then, he squinted his dim eyes, seemingly struggling to read the small print.

"Are you sure? Can we really reach Namgung Estate if we keep going this way?" a young man with a lazy expression asked, looking at the old man doubtfully. He was an exceptionally handsome man with half black and half white hair, an unusual combination that somehow suited him perfectly.

The old man pointed to a huge mountain peak with a skeletal finger. "Yes, sir. If we keep going this way, we'll reach the Namgung Estate. In fact, we're already inside their territory. We just have to cross that mountain."

The young man kicked aside the corpses blocking his path. "Will there be more bandits on the road? These guys were too boring."

The torn dead bodies of hundreds of bandits, their faces etched with horrifying pain and fear, lay at the feet of the two men. Puddles of blood had formed on the ground, but despite the gruesome massacre they had committed, the young man and the old man chatted casually.

"Even if there are, there won't be another mountain keep that big," the old man replied.

"I guess the rumors that there are supreme external arts masters among the Green Forest Bandits are all from bygone days," the young man sighed.

"Fifty years ago, there was a legendary external arts master called the Bandit King…"

"Spare me the boring old stories." The young man turned away, waving his hand dismissively.

The old man put the map back in his pocket and followed him.

As they descended from the bandit camp, the young man asked, "Since this is the Namgung Clan's territory, why didn't that old geezer, the Blue Sky Sword King, clean up the garbage in his front yard?"

"His territory is too big to call this his front yard. He probably doesn't care," the old man replied.

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The young man snorted. "Those orthodox sect bastards are always like this. They pretend to be chivalrous heroes, but they're really just hypocrites."

"Hehehe, you're absolutely right. In that sense, aren't we the real heroes for killing those bandits?"

They continued down the mountain, having a trivial conversation.

"Kuh…uh…" At the foot of the mountain, they came upon an injured man crawling on the ground, leaving a trail of blood behind him.

The young man approached him and greeted him cheerfully. "You only made it this far, huh?"

"Eek!" the man shrieked.

He was the bandit who had first tried to rob them, only to have the young man cripple his legs and leave him with a promise to spare his life if he could escape before they returned from destroying the bandit camp.

Weeping, he begged, "P-Please spare me…"

"No. A promise is a promise," the young man retorted, stomping down mercilessly on the terrified man's head.

CRACK!

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The young man wiped the blood and brains off his foot, then proceeded nonchalantly down the road.

The old man followed beside him. Decades ago, the murim had trembled in front of him and called him the Asura Demon Sword. Now, however, their fear was directed even more at the young man standing beside him.

"By the way, my liege, are you planning to cut off the Blue Sky Sword King's head this time?" the old man asked.

"Well, I'll think about it after I give him a good beating," the young man replied.

He was, after all, the strongest martial arts master of the unorthodox, the Night Emperor (黑夜魔帝).