Star Instructor, Master Baek

TL: FoodieMonster007

"You want to duel me?"

Dumbfounded, the Soul-Seeking Swordsman Cho Yeonil stared at the boy in front of him. The kid still looked wet behind the ears. He had probably only been learning martial arts for ten years at most.

"Are you serious? You want to have a duel with me? Not a spar, but a real duel with sharpened blades?"

"Yes!"

Cho Yeonil sighed. He could see that the boy's posture and breathing were pretty decent, but it was nowhere near enough to face him.

"You look like a pretty strong swordsman. I wanted to see your swordsmanship, so I wanted to fight you…"

Cho Yeonil's eyes flashed. The boy's innocent expression made his words sound like praise at first, but the content was absurd.

The phrase 'pretty strong swordsman' was never used for someone clearly above your level. Usually, it was said about an opponent who was at the same level or weaker.

Cho Yeonil felt that this was exactly what the boy meant. His eyes turned cold, and he released a subtle killing intent. "Did the Azure Dragon Hero put you up to insulting me?"

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Wiji Cheon's eyes widened in shock. "Huh? N-No, of course not! I really only came because I wanted to test my skills against you…"

"You swear this has nothing to do with the Azure Dragon Hero?" Cho Yeonil snarled.

Wiji Cheon shrank back timidly. "Well, he did say that fighting you would be helpful…"

"Helpful, is it? So that's it." Cho Yeonil nodded. So Baek Suryong sent this fledgling swordsman to provoke me, hmm?

The Soul-Seeking Swordsman had misunderstood Wiji Cheon's words about 'helpful' as 'being helpful to the Azure Dragon Hero.'

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"So that cunning bastard plans on sizing me up through his student? What a devious fox," he muttered.

"…What? Who?" Wiji Cheon blinked in confusion.

Cho Yeonil snorted. The Azure Dragon Hero might have thought he was being clever, but he had discovered his plan.

I knew it. Azure Dragon Hero, you finally admit I'm a worthy opponent, huh?

He was sure that the Azure Dragon Hero was on guard and had sent his young apprentice to provoke him and watch his swordplay.

Holding back a triumphant grin, he asked, "Did your master tell you to observe my swordsmanship?"

"No, Mr. Baek never said anything like that…"

Cho Yeonil ignored Wiji Cheon. He turned to the crowd inside the inn and spoke loudly, "Did you all hear that? This is the true nature of the Azure Dragon Hero. He sent his student to find the weaknesses in my swordsmanship. Hahaha! How pathetic!"

Seriously? Most of the onlookers cocked their heads, but a few overconfident types nodded, voiced their agreement, and began making the Azure Dragon Hero the butt of their jokes.

"Fufufu, looks like the Azure Dragon Hero is trembling in fear of the Soul-Seeking Swordsman."

"Tsk tsk. Still, sending a young student to do his dirty work is too much."

"If that's true, I'm a little disappointed in him."

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"He must be feeling anxious now that he has gained undeserved fame by sheer luck!"

"That's… that's not how it is!" Wiji Cheon shouted, flustered by how the mood had turned against him so quickly.

"Go back and tell your master this: My swordsmanship, honed by countless real battles, has no weaknesses." Cho Yeonil smirked, then pretended to be troubled. "Although, if he hears this and runs away with his tail between his legs, that would be a shame.

"Puhahaha!" The audience burst out laughing.

Wiji Cheon's face turned bright red. "I'm telling you, Mr. Baek doesn't care about you at all! I just wanted to fight you myself!"

Chuckling, Cho Yeonil patted Wiji Cheon lightly on the shoulder. "I wouldn't even need thirty percent of my true power to defeat you, so just go back and give Azure Dragon Heo my message. I don't want a child to get hurt because your cunning master is using you."

That was the last straw. Wiji Cheon could not stand by while someone openly mocked his teacher.

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In an instant, his entire aura changed. The flustered boy from before was nowhere to be found.

Placing his hand on the hilt of his sword, he warned Cho Yeonil sternly, "…Say whatever you want about me, but don't you dare insult my teacher again."

HUMMMM…

Sensing its master's killing intent, Wiji Cheon's Soul Sword let out a low hum.

Cho Yeonil narrowed his eyes. This kid isn't ordinary, but he's just an academy brat. He is no match for me.

He saw no reason to be nervous. Even if the boy's talent allowed him to achieve resonance with his sword, it could never surpass the blade of someone forged in countless real battles.

"My answer hasn't changed. Go back and tell the Azure Dragon Hero that if he wants to see my sword technique, he should come here in person instead of sending his student. I will not tolerate cowardice."

"Hmph!" A sneer spread across Wiji Cheon's lips. "You know, Mr. Baek gave me one piece of advice before sending me to find you."

"Advice?"

The Wiji Cheon right now was no longer a clueless child. He was a vicious sword demon who wanted nothing more than to cut down his enemy.

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With a malevolent grin, he playfully licked his lips and taunted, "He said that someone like the Soul-Seeking Swordsman is the perfect match for my current skill level. If I use my full strength, I can definitely take your head."

It was an arrogant provocation that Wiji Cheon would normally never make, and the effect was immediate.

"How dare a brat who still reeks of milk look down on me…!" Cho Yeonil's face flushed with rage.

He, a veteran martial artist, was being publicly humiliated by a junior. Even if Wiji Cheon was young, this was no laughing matter. No one would blame him if he killed Wiji Cheon here and now.

"So you really want a duel? Anything can happen in real combat, so you might end up crippled for life. Are you sure you won't regret it?" Cho Yeonil growled.

The people watching them in the inn gulped nervously. None of them dared to jest anymore.

Wiji Cheon licked his lips. "Even if you slit my throat, I won't regret it. Just hurry up and fight me."

"Ha! I can appreciate your spirit at least. Follow me."

Killing intent radiated from the Soul-Seeking Swordsman's body. As his alias suggested, he was a martial artist who didn't hesitate to kill.

He had traveled the jianghu to hunt down unorthodox sects and perfect his swordsmanship through real combat. If he hadn't come from an orthodox sect, he would have been called the Soul-Seeking Sword Demon.

Kid, there are too many witnesses for me to kill you, but I'll leave you with a scar you'll never forget.

He decided to at least chop off one of Wiji Cheon's arms.

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The two made their way to the courtyard behind the inn, and the onlookers followed them outside.

"Someone could end up dead."

"That hotheaded kid dug his own grave."

"He's Wiji Cheon, right? The top freshman at Azure Dragon Academy this year."

"That still makes him just a prodigy, while the Soul-Seeking Swordsman is a well-known master. The outcome is pretty obvious, isn't it?"

"We can only hope that the Soul Seeker decides to show mercy."

Most of them believed that Wiji Cheon would lose his head or at least a limb.

However, some among the spectators had other ideas.

"I don't know. Something unexpected might happen…" Wang Son of the Beggars' Gang muttered, picking his nose while keeping his tiny eyes fixed on the two swordsmen. His posture seemed lazy, but his gaze was sharp.

Wiji Cheon. A freshman at the Azure Dragon Academy, and a genius swordsman who entered the Azure Dragon Academy as the Azure Dragon Hero, Baek Suryong's private tutee.

Although the Beggars' Gang prided itself on being the world's most extensive intelligence network, even they only knew the superficial details about the Azure Dragon Hero Baek Suryong.

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We have no information on Baek Suryong's past or martial arts before he joined the Azure Dragon Academy, and the same goes for Wiji Cheon.

Both teacher and student seemed to have dropped out of the sky, leaving no trace of any prior history.

He's the most mysterious among the Azure Dragon Hero's five students. There must be some kind of secret involved here.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Wang Son studied Wiji Cheon carefully. He had already met Baek Suryong, having drawn ticket number one, and had asked him plenty of questions about his cherished students.

"Cheon? That kid is a genius swordsman. Not the usual kind, though. When people call someone a genius, they usually mean a child with an amazing physical constitution or keen insight, but Wiji Cheon is not that kind of genius," Baek Suryong said with absolute conviction.

Wang Son blinked in confusion. "A martial arts prodigy who lacks a unique constitution and insight? Does that even exist?"

"I said he's a genius swordsman, not a martial arts prodigy."

"What's the difference?"

Baek Suryong gave Wang Son a meaningful smile. "Before long, the entire murim will understand the distinction."

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Wang Son shook off his brief memories and focused on the two swordsmen. "Shall I see for myself what he meant by 'genius swordsman'?"

Wiji Cheon and Cho Yeonil stood with their blades raised and pointed at each other.

There was a brief silence, then both figures blurred as they rushed in at the same time, swinging their swords.

CLANG!

The impact of their clash sent a shockwave rippling across the area, sending dust swirling off the ground. People who stood too close stumbled back and landed on their butts.

"Not bad!" Cho Yeonil shouted, his eyes flashing. Pulling back his sword, a fierce grin appeared on his face.

"You too," the young sword demon, Wiji Cheon, said with a feral smile of his own, not backing down.

Cho Yeonil's furrowed his brow in irritation. "Enough of your cheek!"

The two lunged at each other again.

In the first strike, Cho Yeonil had only used forty percent of his strength, but this time, he put seventy percent of his power into his attack.

Even though the boy was more skilled than expected, he was confident that he would dominate the battle.

CRASH!

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However, the result was the same as before. Wiji Cheon stood his ground and blocked Cho Yeonil's attack without flinching. No, he even seemed relaxed.

"You…!" Cho Yeonil shouted, but Wiji Cheon interrupted him.

"Why don't you get serious? If you don't…" The young sword demon's eyes sparkled with killing intent, fixed on his enemy's vitals. "…You might lose your head."

SWOOSH!

Wiji Cheon knocked his opponent's sword aside and spun like a top, then slashed at Cho Yeonil's neck using the momentum.

CLANG!

"Guh!"

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It didn't end with just a single blow. Wiji Cheon continued to spin, his sword tip constantly changing direction, targeting each and every one of Cho Yeonil's vitals.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Cho Yeonil was shaken. His martial arts uniform was stained with blood. Not only was he unable to seize the advantage, he was barely able to defend himself.

Fuck!

He felt both humiliated and afraid. If he let his guard down even for a second, he was sure that the boy would decapitate him.

Clenching his teeth, Cho Yeonil abandoned all complacency. "Yaaaaah!"

With an explosive burst, he unleashed his inner arts and used his most powerful secret technique. A colorless sword qi ripped through the air, aiming to cut Wiji Cheon in half at the waist.

SWISH!

Wiji Cheon jumped back in a flash, and Cho Yeonil's best attack only sliced through empty air.

The distance between them widened, and the onlookers finally remembered to breathe.

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"Whoa…!"

"Is the Soul-Seeking Swordsman actually being pushed back?"

"This is unbelievable. He's just a student. How can he possess such skill?"

All eyes turned to Wiji Cheon in disbelief. The Soul-Seeking Swordsman, Cho Yeonil, was already a renowned murim expert. He might not be as famous as the Azure Dragon Hero, but he was certainly qualified to challenge him.

Nevertheless, he was overwhelmed by the Hero's student, and the youngest one at that.

"This is crazy," Wang Son gasped, staring wide-eyed at Wiji Cheon. He had expected the boy to be good, but he never imagined that the duel would be so one-sided.

I thought I might need to step in if the Soul-Seeking Swordsman got carried away, but that wasn't necessary at all…

"This doesn't make any sense. Mr. Baek doesn't make mistakes," Wiji Cheon mumbled, dragging the tip of his sword along the ground as he walked toward Cho Yeonil.

The older swordsman took a step back, alarmed at the harsh scraping sound.

Wiji Cheon tilted his head. "You don't mean to tell me this is all you've got, right?"

His question was not a taunt or mockery, because his eyes were completely guileless.

"You brat!" Losing his temper, Cho Yeonil swung his sword at Wiji Cheon again.