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Chapter 41: Sword Unification
“What kind of outer arts class is this?” A burly man said in a gruff voice. His name was Yang Yi-Rak, and he was an outer arts instructor at the Azure Dragon Academy.
With a thick finger, Yang Yi-Rak pointed at Baek Su-Ryong, who was skillfully dodging the students’ attacks. “ He’s pushing them out of the circle without even teaching them properly. On top of that, he’s offering them money as a reward! Outer Arts is the sacred study of physical training, not a game…!” he complained.
“Please calm down, Mr. Yang,” Namgoong Su said.
Yang Yi-Rak immediately stopped sulking, but did not stop glaring at Baek Su-Ryong. “…Alright, but I still cannot accept such a frivolous person as an instructor. First of all, he’s way too skinny!”
Yang Yi-Rak flexed his large muscles. “It is impossible for an outer arts instructor to gain the trust of the students without a well-conditioned body. In this respect, that pretty boy Baek Su-Ryong is already disqualified… Fellow instructors, am I wrong?”
Several of the instructors nodded in agreement, and all of them who did had one thing in common: they saw the look in Namgoong Su’s eyes.
Mr. Namgoong must be furious that someone other than him is getting so much attention…
A mere newbie instructor shouldn’t be allowed to outshine or humiliate their seniors…
He has offended Mr. Namgoong, so even if he is accepted, he probably won’t last very long.
The most calculative instructors agreed with Yang Yi-Rak. Even though student evaluations would be taken into account from this year, it wasn’t difficult to eliminate a new instructor candidate if all the instructors were against it.
“……” In reality, Namgoong Su was couldn’t care less about the other instructors’ ingratiating. Only Baek Su-Ryong interested him.
However, thinking he had gained control of public opinion, Yang Yi-Rak announced, “Looks like we’ve all made up our minds. Without further ado, let’s get him to halt that joke of a class and…”
“Did you say that young man doesn’t know outer arts? I disagree,” Noh Gun-Sang interrupted in a voice that was barely a whisper, but no one here could ignore him.
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Yang Yi-Rak looked at the old man awkwardly. Damn the principal. Why is he so talkative this year? He never said anything in the past years’ new instructor selections!
Yang Yi-Rak cautiously said, “Mr. Principal, as I said before…”
“Mr. Yang, let me ask you something. Is it necessary to have a large physique and lots of muscles like you to be able to teach outer arts?”
“…No, but the body doesn’t lie. Those who have practiced outer arts for a long time and do it properly have a good body, and naturally teach better.”
Noh Gun-Sang shook his head. “That’s true, but old folks like me don’t gain much muscle even with training, and too much unnecessary muscle reduces flexibility and slows one down considerably.”
“Speed comes from muscles, too!”
“Heh. You’re not wrong about that either.” Noh Gun-Sang smiled gently at the muscle-brained Yang Yi-Rak as if soothing a child, then continued, “What I’m trying to say is that different martial arts require different types of physical training in order to master them, and depending on their natural constitution and personality, different people also need to train different muscles. It’s not always just a matter of increasing muscle mass.”
“……” The old man’s words were soft, but his gaze was stern, and Yang Yi-Rak dared not contradict him. Even though he was a proud martial arts instructor of the Azure Dragon Academy, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva Noh Gun-Sang was a legendary figure who had been included in the top hundred martial artists of the orthodox faction for decades.
“From what I can see, Candidate Baek Su-Ryong is considerably proficient at outer arts. Do you think otherwise, Mr. Yang?”
“I… That…”
Noh Gun-Sang was staring at him with clear, unclouded eyes, but Yang Yi-Rak felt like there was a blade at his throat and didn’t dare lie to the old man. He gulped and admitted, “…He’s better than average.”
“Better than average, hmm? Hehe… I’m already looking forward to Mr. Yang’s class this year.”
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“……” Yang Yi-Rak bowed his head in embarrassment. However, he hadn’t given up just yet. Using voice transmission, he sent a message to Namgoong Su.
[Mr. Namgoong, will you stand still and take all this lying down? The principal is biased towards that pretty boy. Please say something. If it’s you, not even the principal can…]
[Why should I?]
Yang Yi-Rak shuddered, chills running down his spine. Startled, he was just about look toward Namgoong Su when…
[Don’t you dare move the thing on your neck this way. Do you plan on telling the whole world that you’re sending me a telepathic message?]
[S-Sorry.]
Cold sweat dripped down Yang Yi-Rak’s back at Namgoong Su’s merciless tone.
[I’m not interested in such petty nonsense, if you want to do something, do it yourself.]
With a tone of finality, Namgoong Su returned to his lesson observation, leaving Yang Yi-Rak to his own devices.
‘I’m not interested in such petty nonsense, if you want to do something, do it yourself.’ Damn it! What am I supposed to do? Yang Yi-Rak couldn’t figure out what Namgoong Su meant (he has muscles for brains).
Shit. This is all because of that bastard. Yang Yi-Rak directed his killing intent at Baek Su-Ryong, who had been dodging, blocking, and even counterattacking all of the students’ attacks in an unbelievable manner since the beginning of the class.
If you′re seeing this, you are at the wrong place.
Honestly, if they swapped positions, he knew that wouldn’t have fared as well as Baek Su-Ryong. However, the worst thing was, the young man was so handsome that he was attracting everyone’s attention!
Fuck. If he becomes an outer arts instructor, he’ll threaten my position. Yang Yi-Rak gritted his teeth. Somehow, he had to get rid of that pretty boy. There had to be a way to ruin that class. Or, better yet, injure him so badly that he wouldn’t be able to take the second practical test, the duel with an existing instructor…
Just then, a student caught Yang Yi-Rak’s eye.
“Keuk! Shit…”
A male student who had been unfortunate enough to be struck by the sword sheath was lying on the ground, grunting. As he staggered to his feet, Yang Yi-Rak sent him a message.
[So Ju-Han. Use your qi].
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[What?]
The student’s name was So Ju-Han. He had no talent, came from a mediocre family, and never worked hard, yet he used his status as an Azure Dragon Academy student to get drunk and sleep with women. If he had one redeeming feature, it was that he was interested in bodybuilding and had attended quite a few of Yang Yi-Rak’s classes.
During those classes, the two of them had hit it off and even visited the brothel together several times.
[Attack him with your inner arts techniques and blow him away.]
[What? But…]
[Don’t worry about the consequences, I’ll take care of that.]
[……]
[Do you really think you’re going to get expelled from the academy for hurting a new instructor candidate? At worst, you’ll be suspended for a few days.]
[Still, that’s a bit…]
So Ju-Han hesitated, and Yang Yi-Rak scowled.
[Or should I report to the Headmaster about you visiting the brothel?]
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[That… You went with me!]
[Do you think Headmaster will believe you, or me? I’ll get a few months’ pay cut at most, but what about you?]
Blood drained from So Ju-Han’s face. Yang Yi-Rak threatened him again, and finally, So Ju-Han nodded.
[Fine, I’ll do it.]
[Alright. I’ll give you the signal to move, wait for it.]
Yang Yi-Rak watched the match closely, waiting for the perfect moment to strike down Baek Su-Ryong.
For a moment, their gazes met.
Hmph, I’ll crush that smug face soon.
It wasn’t long before the opportunity came.
“DIE!”
“AAAHHHHHH!”
Peng Sa-Hyuk and Hyonwon Kang, two of the most prideful students in the academy, attacked Baek Su-Ryong from both sides at the same time. They weren’t using qi, but the intensity in their eyes was terrifying, like they were facing a life-and-death battle.
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Yang Yi-Rak immediately sent a message to So Ju-Han.
[Now!]
So Ju-Han gritted his teeth and released a gust of Blade Wind, aiming right in between Hyonwon Kang’s and Peng Sa-Hyuk’s attacks.
“Blade Wind?”
“What are you doing?!”
“Hyung-nim, dodge!”
Several instructors and students exclaimed in shock.
On the other hand, Yang Yi-Rak clicked his tongue disappointedly. So Ju-Han’s Blade Wind was much weaker than he thought. Tsk, even if that hits, it’ll only break a couple of bones. Well, no matter. That’s enough. With that kind of injury, Baek Su-Ryong won’t be able to take part in the second practical test tomorrow.
“Which crazy bastard…!” Feeling the wind behind him, Peng Sa-Hyuk forcefully redirected his punch, only to end up slamming it into Hyonwon Kang’s side.
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POW!
Hyonwon Kang bounced off to the side, and the recoil from the powerful punch sent Peng Sa-Hyuk flying in the opposite direction.
“Keuk, fuck you…”
“You should be grateful, asshole, because if it wasn’t for me, you’d have gotten stabbed in the back.”
As the two students dodged to the side, the Blade Wind headed straight for Baek Su-Ryong.
Yang Yi-Rak tried his best to keep the corners of his mouth from turning up. It’s too late to dodge now. You’re finished!
In just a moment, that irritating pretty boy would fall down screaming, his bones crushed!
Huhu, show me how you struggle in vain…!
However, to his dismay, Baek Su-Ryong neither stepped out of the circle, nor panicked and hastily released his qi. He simply…grinned and drew his sword in one fluid motion, gracefully slicing through the air.
SWISH!
The sharp blade wind was cleaved in half and reduced to a gentle breeze that ruffled Baek Su-Ryong’s hair and the hem of his robe.
Everyone’s mouths dropped open in astonishment at the picturesque scene.
If you′re seeing this, you are at the wrong place.
“…What did he just do? How did he do that?”
“He cut the Blade Wind with a sword…”
“He cut it… He cut it…!”
“No, but how…”
Although it was just a simple swing, the more experienced one was in martial arts, the more shocking Baek Su-Ryong’s feat was. The scene played over and over in their minds, but they couldn’t fully comprehend it.
”!!” Namgoong Su and Kwak Cheol-Woo jumped to their feet, while Ak Yeon-Ho’s body shook as if he had been hit by an invisible blow. Without realizing it, Mae Geuk-Lyom almost drew his sword.
“……” Noh Gun-Sang, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva, closed his eyes for a moment to reflect on what he had just seen.
In the end, Yang Yi-Rak was the one who broke the silence, stuttering, “I-Inner Arts… He used Inner Arts!”
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The other teachers and students immediately stared at him in derision.
“Haha, I’ll confess that Mr. Baek’s split-second decision to cut the Blade Wind with Sword Qi was incredible. It seems that one of the students got too enthusiastic and used his qi, and since Mr. Baek didn’t get hurt, I hope you all find it in your hearts to forgive the kid. Anyway, that was truly amazing. Even though he didn’t use Outer Arts, that final Sword Qi was quite…outstanding.”
Yang Yi-Rak made a point to emphasize the words “he didn’t use Outer Arts” to show that Baek Su-Ryong had resorted to Inner Arts in the end, even though he had declared that he wasn’t going to.
It was a desperate attempt to humiliate Baek Su-Ryong even a little.
Unfortunately, his efforts were for naught.
“I used Inner Arts? Is that what you think?” Baek Su-Ryong said, smiling gently.
Several of the female students immediately swooned and squealed.
Yang Yi-Rak winced and replied, “Just now, when you cut the Blade Wind, you used Sword Qi…”
“He didn’t use any qi at all,” an old man’s voice cut him off mid-sentence.
Yang Yi-Rak glared resentfully at the person who had interrupted him again.
Noh Gun-Sang rose from his contemplation and looked at Baek Su-Ryong with admiration. “What Mr. Baek just did was Sword Unification (身劍合一). Without using a single bit of internal energy, he pulled off a perfect sword technique. Oh my, you really put this old man to shame.”
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No one doubted the truth of the great master’s words as suddenly, everyone realized why they had been so shocked by the sight of Baek Su-Ryong’s swordplay.
The next person to defend Baek Su-Ryong was, surprisingly, Namgoong Su.
“It is often said that Outer Arts is all about building muscle and strengthening the body, but the entire process of perfecting control over every muscle and joint is also an indispensable part of Outer Arts. The demonstration lecture that Candidate Baek Su-Ryong gave just now was…” Namgoong Su paused.
All eyes turned from Baek Su-Ryong to him.
Aww, to think that he was such an honest guy… Baek Su-Ryong smirked.
Seeing the smug look on his nemesis’s face, Namgoong Su’s eyebrows twitched. With great reluctance, he clasped his hands in a gesture of respect and acknowledged, “…An excellent display of Outer Arts mastery.”
“……” Dumbfounded, Yang Yi-Rak clamped his mouth shut and scowled. Even Namgoong Su, the Star Instructor of the Azure Dragon Academy, recognized Baek Su-Ryong’s skills. There was nothing more he could do.
Glancing around at the quiet audience, Noh Gun-Sang announced in a qi-enhanced voice, “Well, I guess this brings us to the end of Mr. Baek’s class, and all of the demonstration lectures today. I thank every candidate for their efforts, and hope that everyone gets enough rest in preparation for tomorrow’s duels.”
““Thank you!””
With that, the first half of the practical exam ended, and the candidates dispersed and returned to their respective inns. The grades for the demonstration lectures weren’t tallied yet, but everyone knew who the hero of the day was.
Baek Su-Ryong…
All eyes were focused on a single person as he walked out of the Azure Dragon Academy and disappeared into the distance.
Translator’s Note: After the lecture, Noh Gun-Sang starts calling Baek Su-Ryong “Mr. Baek” instead of “Young Master Baek”. It is an indirect hint that he has acknowledged Baek Su-Ryong as a teacher. Yang Yi-Rak is just being sarcastic when he says it.