Star Instructor, Master Baek

TL: FoodieMonster007

"That's the Heavenly Lightning Sword Technique! Scatter, everyone! If we stay together, we'll all get electrocuted by lightning qi!" Geo Sangwoong shouted, his eyes widening as he recognized Namgung Su's sword technique.

Although not as renowned as the Namgung Clan's Infinite Heavens Sword Technique or the Royal Sword Style, the Heavenly Lightning Sword Technique was no less powerful than those top-tier martial arts. However, because lightning qi inflicted extreme pain on the practitioner, no one in the Namgung Clan had ever learned it…except for Namgung Su.

Namgung Su's eyes gleamed with interest as he watched Geo Sangwoong rally the students. Strolling over to them with unhurried confidence, his voice drifted lazily through the chaos as if he were giving a lecture.

"Hmm? It seems that Geo Sangwoong, not Dokgo Jun, is the leader? Don't you know that most enemies target the leader first? Why aren't you protecting him properly?"

Namgung Su's warning hung in the air, but still the students hesitated, backing away as they cautiously eyed the lightning qi.

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Without another word, Namgung Su lunged forward, barely giving anyone time to register his movement.

CLANG!

An inch from Geo Sangwoong's shoulder, Namgung Su's sword was blocked by Dokgo Jun and Wiji Cheon's crossed blades. Gritting their teeth, the two boys glared at him defiantly.

"Not bad," he murmured, a faint smile playing on his lips as he easily swatted away the boys' swords with a flick of his wrist. Then, glancing at the other students, he taunted, "The rest of you had better step up your game."

"Spread out wide and surround him! The Cold-Blooded Asura Demon King is alone! We can take him!"

"Are you provoking me on purpose, or are you just woefully unaware of your own situation? Very well, let's see how much you've learned from that guy," Namgung Su leered coldly.

Eyeing the students encircling him, he recalled the conversation he had with Baek Suryong the day before. He hadn't agreed to this absurd Four Heavenly Kings game without reason.

"You want me to test your students?"

"Yup. If you want to teach them something too, go ahead."

"Confident, aren't you?"

"They're the key players in our quest to win this year's Heavenly Martial Festival, after all."

"Those kids? The key players to win the Heavenly Martial Festival? …Fine. I'll be their examiner."

Baek Suryong's faith in his students was incomprehensible to him, but he hadn't mocked or ridiculed the man as he usually did.

I'll give credit where it's due.

Baek Suryong certainly deserved recognition. Since his arrival, the Azure Dragon Academy's morale had been slowly but surely changing for the better. Despite his best efforts, even he, a Star Instructor, hadn't been able to achieve that.

However, the Heavenly Martial Festival isn't that simple.

Namgung Su observed the eight strongest students surrounding him. Despite their impressive strength for their age, their current skills still fell well short of what was needed to succeed in the Heavenly Martial Festival.

He didn't want to dampen their spirits, but seeing their recent arrogance, he felt they badly needed a reality check. By accepting Baek Suryong's proposal, he aimed to beat some sense back into them and prevent their recent successes from going to their heads.

"Come at me. I'll give you some advice," he said.

Spurred on, the students sprang into action, working together to launch a coordinated attack targeting his mask.

WHIZZ!

First came the hidden weapons thrown by Yeo Min, twenty-two in all, aimed straight at his vital points.

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With his excellent kinetic vision, Namgung Su tracked each one with flawless precision, discerning their speeds and angles. Spinning his sword in a wide arc, he created a gust that drew the weapons toward him as if they were magnetized, then flung them outward in a powerful burst, scattering them in every direction at twice the speed they had when Yeo Min first threw them.

"Dodge!"

"Ahhh!"

Fortunately, the students were able to deflect or dodge most of the hidden weapons, but their tight formation was completely dismantled by that single move.

"I'll evaluate you two first," Namgung Su declared, slipping into an opening in the formation and swinging his sword at the Azure Dragon Twins. To be honest, he felt that neither twin was exceptionally gifted in martial arts, but their combination techniques were quite decent.

""Take this!""

The Azure Dragon Twins attacked from both sides, swooping down on Namgung Su's left and right. A rope whipped forward, twisting like a snake to catch his sword, while a baton shot toward his mask.

"Good idea, but you're too inexperienced to do it well."

SWISH!

In an instant, Namgung Su brushed the baton and rope aside and maneuvered between the twins, who retreated with astonished expressions on their faces.

"Stop blindly relying on each other and focus on improving your individual skills," he advised, but before the twins could respond, he poked their sleep acupoints and knocked them out.

The twins crumpled to the ground, unconscious, and he turned away without a second thought. He still had many lessons left to teach.

"Next," he said.

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"Uraaah!" With a thunderous roar, Ya Suhyeok charged forward, his massive frame moving with earth-shaking momentum like a bear or tiger.

Namgung Su nodded. "You have an impressive physique, outstanding athleticism, and I can tell you've put a lot of effort into your external arts training. However…"

He stuck his sword in the ground.

Ya Suhyeok frowned, feeling insulted. Why is a swordsman laying down his sword? Is he planning to fight me barehanded?

"Die!" he bellowed, swinging his mighty fist.

"Your reckless nature and your tendency to be easily provoked are your greatest weaknesses," Namgung Su pointed out calmly, before reaching out and grabbing Ya Suhyeok.

"Huh?" Ya Suhyeok felt as if the world had turned upside down. He couldn't even grasp what had happened. One moment he was airborne, and in the next, his massive frame crashed into the ground.

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BOOM!

The impact was tremendous, causing cracks to spread across the earth.

"Ugh…" Ya Suhyeok struggled to raise his upper body, but his strength failed him, and blood dripped from his mouth.

"Learn to discern the difference in strength between you and your opponent," Namgung Su chided. "Your body may be tough, but it's nothing compared to the Vajra Body. Next!"

Dozens of hidden weapons soared through the air toward Namgung Su.

He furrowed his brows. "Sigh, how crude."

With a sweep of his sword, he swept away the hidden weapons once again, but this time, Yeo Min seized the moment and advanced from his left, thrusting her frost-covered palms forward. However, just as she was about to strike, Namgung Su met her attack head on, his hand crackling with lightning qi.

RUMBLE!

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"Kyaah!" Yeo Min shrieked as she was blown backwards, her body quivering as if she had been electrocuted.

"Have you only been training in hidden weapons and movement arts? Your ice techniques are devoid of any finesse," Namgung Su berated.

Yeo Min protested, "Ugh… I only recently started learning ice techniques!"

"Now isn't the time for excuses. Minus ten points."

"That's unfair!"

"…Student Council President. Is it your turn next?"

Sensing sword qi descending upon him from behind, Namgung Su ignored the fallen Yeo Min and spun around.

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"At least you finally understand the true nature of the Nine Swords of Dokgo," he remarked, a hint of approval flashing across his stony face as he met Dokgo Jun's attack.

CLANG!!!

A huge shock wave spread out in all directions. Feeling his hands go numb from the impact, Dokgo Jun quickly pulled back.

Namgung Su continued, "Not bad, but there's still a lot of room for improvement. For instance, just now…"

He couldn't finish his sentence. While Dokgo Jun was drawing his attention, Wiji Cheon approached like a ghost from behind, aiming for the nape of his neck.

For a moment, Namgung Su felt his skin tingling from Wiji Cheon's repressed killing intent. "Impressive," he whispered.

At the same time, the heavenly lightning qi on his sword glowed even brighter.

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CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Their swords clashed again and again, sending ripples through the air. Within seconds, cold sweat trickled down Wiji Cheon's forehead as he found himself forced onto the defensive.

Meanwhile, Namgung Su's breathing was still even. "Your swordsmanship is truly impressive for someone your age," he remarked in a relaxed tone.

"Duck, Wiji Cheon!"

The moment he heard the shout, Wiji Cheon dropped into a crouch, narrowly escaping the wave of blade qi from Hyonwon Kang as it flew over his head.

Still, despite the perfectly timed surprise attack, Namgung Su deflected the powerful slash effortlessly.

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"Tsk! That was my best move," Hyonwon Kang grumbled.

Namgung Su retorted, "Really? It was amateurish."

"Argh! You're insufferable, you know that?!" Hyonwon Kang fumed.

Namgung Su's gaze drifted from Wiji Cheon to Hyonwon Kang, then back to Dokgo Jun, who was charging at him again. As if taking a leisurely stroll, he effortlessly dodged and countered each of their moves.

"Is this the best you can do?"

"Khh…!"

"Damn it!"

To the students, Namgung Su resembled an insurmountable wall. Even with eight of Azure Dragon Academy's strongest students working together, he was totally overwhelming them.

On the other hand, Geo Sangwoong, who had deliberately stayed out of the fight to search for an opening, was surprised for a different reason.

His martial prowess is one thing, but…he has completely grasped our strengths and weaknesses.

Namgung Su fought while pointing out each student's flaws, showing that he had thoroughly analyzed each and every one of them. With this level of understanding, the chance of him revealing any openings was basically zero.

Geo Sangwoong had no choice but conclude, If he wanted to end this, he could have done so long ago. He's just toying with us.

It wasn't just Geo Sangwoong. Everyone present felt a quiet sense of despair settle over them, draining their fighting spirit until their attacks gradually lost steam.

"Pathetic," Namgung Su snapped, pausing his attacks. "You parade around arrogantly despite having such pitiful skills, and that foolish braggart still thinks that he can lead you to victory at the Heavenly Martial Festival. You're absolutely pathetic, all of you."

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"…What?"

"What did you just say?"

Suddenly, the students who had been feeling crushed by the defeat felt their spirits reignite. The one Namgung Su had just called a foolish braggart was none other than Baek Suryong, a person they all respected.

Hyonwon Kang roared, "Criticize our skills all you want, but don't you dare drag Baek Suryong into this!"

Namgung Su ignored him and scanned the faces of the other students—Geo Sangwoong, Yeo Min, Wiji Cheon, Ya Suhyeok—before settling his gaze back on Hyonwon Kang. Baek Suryong's class glared at him with open hostility, and even Dokgo Jun's eyes were burning with rage.

"I thought that maybe something had changed since that guy kept bragging about how much you've improved… but I guess failures will always be failures," he said icily.

"What did you say?"

"You bastard!"

"Mr. Namgung! You've gone too far!"

"……"

In a flash, vitality returned to the students' eyes, strength to their trembling hands, and anger to their hearts that had subconsciously conceded defeat.

Namgung Su continued to goad them. "What? Am I wrong? Then quit your whining and prove it to me."

"Ptooey!" Hyonwon Kang spat blood-tinged saliva onto the ground. "I'm gonna punch that asshole's face."

"Me too."

"I've hated him since day one."

"……" Seeing the students regain their fighting spirit, Namgung Su secretly smiled in satisfaction behind his mask.