Star Instructor, Master Baek

Chapter 103: Tit for Tat (1)

By the time the sun rose the next morning, rumors were already swirling through the halls of the Azure Dragon Academy about the violent clash between Pung Jinho and Baek Suryong.

Taking a leisurely sip of tea, Mae Geuklyom scolded, “Baek Suryong. Didn’t I warn you not to make an enemy of Pung Jinho?”

“I’m sorry,” Baek Suryong apologized, kneeling meekly in front of his grandfather. “I thought I’d kept it under wraps, but somehow word got out… Who could have spread it?” he mumbled, his voice barely audible.

“Silence.”

“Yes, sir.”

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Mae Geuklyom massaged his temples, hoping to ease his escalating headache. “Sigh, whose penchant for trouble did you inherit? Both, I suppose.”

Covering his face with his palm, images of his daughter and son-in-law flashed through his mind. In his three decades at the academy, he’d dealt with numerous delinquents, but as the product of two particularly notorious ones, Baek Suryong was a special case.

“I suppose it’s no surprise, considering your parents.”

“Grandpa, I swear I’m innocent,” Baek Suryong asserted, straightening his posture. “If you had heard what he said, you would’ve split him in two yourself.”

Baek Suryong was sure that Mae Geuklyom would have reacted the same way. No, he’d bet his entire fortune that Mae Geuklyom would have been even more extreme.

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Mae Geuklyom clicked his tongue at his grandson’s naivety. “You should avoid conflict whenever possible, not out of fear, but because it will only dirty your hands. You should have ignored him…”

“But he…”

“He what?”

“Never mind.” Baek Suryong clamped his mouth shut.

He couldn’t bring himself to reveal that Pung Jinho had mentioned Mae Geuklyom not attending his own daughter’s funeral. Even if I’m not the real Baek Suryong… Mae Yakbing gave birth to this body. How can I possibly ignore such disrespect?

“I will not interfere in your affairs,” Mae Geuklyom said firmly, taking another sip of tea. “The reason is…”

“Of course you shouldn’t,” Baek Suryong interjected, nodding as if it were obvious. “This petty dispute is not worth your attention. I’ll prove my ability on my own.”

“To prove your ability, you must first meet the enrollment threshold.”

“Yes…” Baek Suryong’s voice faded. Without at least five students for his Defense Against the Unorthodox Arts class, it would be canceled before it even started.

“Pung Jinho has extensive connections and is a master of academy politics, not to mention his popularity among the students. He’ll use every trick in the book to undermine your class.”

It pisses me off to think that such a disgusting pervert is a celebrated teacher. Baek Suryong sighed, “Sadly, personality and ability don’t always match.”

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Mae Geuklyom narrowed his eyes and fixed Baek Suryong with a stern look. “Are you referring to yourself?”

“No…” Baek Suryong whimpered.

The truth was, he was bewildered by his current state. He had never feared any martial arts master, not even Namgoong Jaehak and Skysword, but Mae Geuklyom’s presence somehow always unnerved him.

Wait, I know. This must be all Dad’s fault.

Regardless, he needed to recruit at least five students by next week.

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“Getting five students won’t be as easy as you think. Do you have a plan?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Mae Geuklyom wanted to press further, but when he saw Baek Suryong’s confident smile, he just said, “Fine.”

Since he had promised not to interfere, it would be embarrassing to probe further. Mae Geuklyom quietly resumed sipping his tea.

Baek Suryong downed the rest of his drink and stood up. “Grandpa, I should get going now.”

“Is it that late already?” Mae Geuklyom remarked absentmindedly as he walked him to the door. Watching his grandson put on his shoes, he hesitated before adding, “Um, if you ever need my help… ahem.”

His voice trailing off awkwardly, Mae Geuklyom cleared his throat.

Baek Suryong turned around and bowed deeply. “Then, I’m off.”

“Don’t be late tomorrow.”

Watching his grandson’s shrinking silhouette, Mae Geuklyom sighed softly, “Stubborn boy. He won’t ask for help even at the end.”

After leaving Mae Geuklyom’s office, Baek Suryong headed straight to the Azure Dragon Academy’s administration office.

“Five students? That’s nothing. I’ve faced worse back in the Blood Cult.”

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When his qi center was damaged, none of the previous Blood Cult instructors welcomed his career shift, yet, he’d manged to climb from the bottom to the top.

“How do you plan to teach martial arts when you can’t even use qi?”

“Hey, newbie, do you think being an instructor is easy?”

“I heard that you were quite the outstanding captain among the Cult Leader’s personal guards? Well, don’t expect any special treatment here.”

He faced daily ridicule and scorn, and even his students subtly looked down on him. Determined to survive, he had dedicated himself to learning and understanding every martial arts manual he could lay his hands on, all so he could adapt his teaching to each student’s physical and personality traits.

“Is this guy for real…?”

“Does he even sleep?”

“He did all this alone?”

Soon, the disdain turned into shock and admiration. Some envious instructors tried to sabotage him, but he always stayed a step ahead, ensnaring them instead.

Those were exciting times, like walking a tightrope between life and death daily.

By the time his students became renowned masters in the murim, he was acknowledged as both the best and worst instructor in the Blood Cult, a distinction that led him to eventually meet with his four masters.

“This is nothing compared to that…” Baek Suryong chuckled as he entered the administration office, his steps light.

Let’s see how many have signed up so far.

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However, before he could open his mouth, the secretary preempted him, saying, “Defense Against the Unorthodox Arts? Just a moment. I’ll check. Currently, you have one student.”

“Did you say twenty-one?”

“No, one.” The secretary emphasized with a finger.

Baek Suryong stared at her finger. Is that her middle finger…?

“Just one? Only one student in two days?” he asked again.

“Yes. See for yourself.” The secretary handed him the enrollment list.

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At the top was the name Wiji Cheon, written in neat handwriting.

“Cheon…” Baek Suryong muttered, feeling a sense of pride and fulfillment. Cheon’s such a good and hardworking boy. Even after joining the Azure Dragon Academy, he hasn’t become arrogant and still wants to learn from me.

“Wait a minute… Where’s Hyonwon Kang? How dare that punk not enroll in my class?”

The warm fuzzy feeling in Baek Suryong’s heart vanished, replaced by irritation. Even though that damn brat’s much weaker than Wiji Cheon, he didn’t enroll? As punishment, I’ll double his training today…

Baek Suryong turned to the secretary with an awkward smile. “Excuse me, how many students have enrolled in Analysis of Unorthodox Sects Martial Arts?”

“Oh…” The secretary blushed slightly at his smile and quickly found the document. “Normally, we shouldn’t disclose this… but there are thirteen students.”

“Ah, I see.”

He hadn’t expected similar numbers, but while his class had only one student, the other had managed to nab more than double the required minimum in just two days. Even for a less popular subject, a few more should have signed up just to meet their credit requirements.

Something smells fishy.

Baek Suryong said to the secretary, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. If you have more questions, come by anytime.”

As the secretary playfully tucked her hair behind her ear, Baek Suryong left the office and paused for a moment to decide on his next destination.

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I need to gather more information.

Luckily, he knew someone within the academy with exceptional information-gathering skills, although dealing with them required significant mental readiness.

Approaching his destination, Baek Suryong took a deep breath and muttered, “I would rather not meet that person, but… Now is the time to be picky.”

He strode into the building labeled “Azure Dragon Academy Student Council.”

“They’re avoiding your class because of bad rumors about you,” a girl with a cold expression said, her eyes burning with a strange intensity.

Paying close attention to the girl’s every move, Baek Suryong carefully asked, “Bad rumors? What kind?”

“First, give me the hair you promised. Make sure it’s thick and fresh,” Tang Soso demanded.

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Why does she want my hair? Baek Suryong wondered, reluctantly pulling out a few strands. No, he knew the answer. He was just in denial.

“Here,” he said feebly, giving her the hair.

“Hehehe…” Tang Soso cackled gleefully, wrapping the hair in a silk handkerchief and tucking it away. “There’s a rumor going around that you ambushed and beat up Pung Jinho last night.”

“Who spread that? I made sure all the nightclub staff kept quiet…”

Tang Soso’s eyes glittered like stars in the night sky. “So it’s true?” she probed.

Baek Suryong smirked and replied, “I’m the one asking questions. Are there more rumors?”

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“Plenty. They say you seduced girls at your previous academy, swindled rich men, and practiced sexual arts…”

“All those rumors sound very similar.”

“Well, I don’t believe any of it. I know you’re not like that.” Tang Soso smiled dangerously, her eyes filled with boundless confidence. “If you had ever done anything of the sort, I would have caught you already. After all, I track your every move…”

“Ahem! Okay, that’s enough, I get it,” Baek Suryong quickly changed the topic, feeling a chill run down his spine. “Anyway, you’re right, it’s just rumors. Are students avoiding me because of them? I didn’t notice anything unusual today…”

Pung Jinho is most certainly behind all the rumors, but those alone aren’t enough to explain my current situation.

“That’s because you’ve been marked by Mr. Pung, of all people. Not only does he teach several core classes, but behind him…”

“Namgoong Su?”

Tang Soso nodded solemnly. “Without Mr. Namgoong’s favor, it’s hard to get a good performance appraisal, so Mr. Pung and the other instructors frequently suck up to him.”

Licking Namgoong Su’s boots while plotting to oust him… I was right to call him trash.

Baek Suryong weighed his options. He could counter the rumors with bigger ones, stir discord between Pung Jinho and Namgoong Su, set a trap, sabotage Pung Jinho’s class…

No, I can’t act like I used to in the Blood Cult.

Regaining his composure, he looked sternly at Tang Soso. “Do you take requests?”

She beamed. “For the right price.”

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