Star Instructor, Master Baek-Chapter 399: But Not Tonight

"Mr. Baek, huh?" Noh Goonsang muttered just as indifferently, his gaze sweeping steadily across the academy grounds.
Kwak Duyong scanned their surroundings with wary eyes before answering, "Yes. The academy is in complete chaos, yet Baek Suryong is nowhere to be found. It's strange."
The question seemed natural enough that Noh Goonsang replied honestly, "I don't know the specifics, but he's probably somewhere out there hunting for Skykiller."
"Skykiller...?"
"Deathshroud's finest assassin. Countless peerless masters have fallen to his blade. In the world of assassins, Skykiller is an absolute legend."
Kwak Duyong gulped at the mention of an assassin capable of killing peerless masters, tension creeping across his face.
Noh Goonsang noticed his anxiety and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. Skykiller won't target us directly."
"H-How can you be so certain?"
"Well... could you hand me that lamp?"
Noh Goonsang accepted the lamp from Kwak Duyong and lit it with his tinderbox.
FWOOSH!
Flame burst to life, casting faint illumination through the building's interior. The two men stood amid their search of the club buildings, rooting out any hidden assassins while seeking out students who hadn't yet evacuated to safety.
"Stay alert. An assassin could strike from anywhere."
"Y-Yes, sir..." Kwak Duyong stammered nervously.
Although torches flickered intermittently on the outside of the building, the narrow interior remained pitch-black, making any surprise attack nearly impossible to counter.
"Try not to be too tense, Mr. Kwak."
"I-I'm not tense."
Noh Goonsang continued his earlier story, seemingly to ease Kwak Duyong's nerves. "Skykiller possesses immense pride. He's also a madman who considers himself an artist, so he won't involve himself in anything that fails to interest him."
"You mean..."
"Exactly. Cannon fodder like us are beneath Skykiller's notice. You could say we're not even worth killing."
"He's still just an assassin..." Kwak Duyong muttered with displeasure, though his fearful glances around the room betrayed his true feelings.
Noh Goonsang chuckled gently. "Isn't his arrogance fortunate for us? He's likely targeting Mr. Baek Suryong right now, completely uninterested in our existence. We simply need to locate and eliminate the other assassins in the meantime."
A strange expression flickered across Kwak Duyong's features, but since Noh Goonsang had walked ahead, he missed it entirely.
"...Principal, you seem remarkably knowledgeable about Skykiller," Kwak Duyong murmured.
"Hoho! By the time you get to my age, you've already heard all sorts of rumors. It's nothing so impressive."
Kwak Duyong believed such humility was excessive. Few people in the murim could match Noh Goonsang's seniority. This old man, known as the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva, had once studied at Shaolin as a secular disciple and fought bravely in the war against the Blood Cult fifty years ago, earning great merit.
While injuries from that war had forced his near-retirement from the jianghu, and despite achieving no notable results even after becoming Principal of Azure Dragon Academy in his later years, Noh Goonsang remained a respected elder in the murim. His experience, insight, and connections commanded serious respect.
"...It's been about fifteen years now," Noh Goonsang remarked wistfully, walking ahead with the lamp raised high. "An old friend of mine fell victim to Skykiller. For a time afterward, I devoted myself to finding the damned assassin, conducting my own investigations."
"I'm sorry. I had no idea you'd endured something like that..."
"Hoho! You have nothing to apologize for."
This secret story remained unknown throughout the murim. In such an atmosphere, any ordinary person would have remained silent, no matter how curious they were.
However, Kwak Duyong was both tactless and possessed an insatiable love of gossip. He couldn't simply let this revelation pass. "If you don't mind my asking, who was the friend who died?" he asked curiously.
Noh Goonsang chuckled as though he'd anticipated the question and shook his head. "I cannot say. The matter concerns not only my honor but my friend's as well."
"I-I'm sorry..."
"Don't be. I was the one who brought up these old memories first. Simply let what you've heard go in one ear and out the other."
"Understood..." Kwak Duyong nodded, though his curiosity persisted. "Then... did you continue searching for Skykiller after that?"
Regret clouded Noh Goonsang's eyes. "I had no choice but to abandon the pursuit. Back then, I managed to discover a method for placing a request with Deathshroud. My requested target was myself, the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva Noh Goonsang. My name still carried considerable weight at the time."
"...What happened?" Kwak Duyong asked, swallowing dryly as if he couldn't imagine using himself as bait.
Unfortunately, Noh Goonsang's answer was disappointing.
"Skykiller never responded. My request was rejected outright. Either he realized I was the one making the request, or..." Noh Goonsang raised the lantern to illuminate the hallway ahead, revealing a faint flickering shadow in the distance. "...I had become such an insignificant old man that even I couldn't draw his interest. Either way, I gave up."
" That's not true at all! Principal, you're still a great master and...!"
"Lower your voice." Noh Goonsang calmed Kwak Duyong, who looked ready to explode with protest. "Didn't I tell you? This happened more than fifteen years ago. There's no need to console me now."
"But..."
The two men's shadows danced uneasily in the lamplight as they continued their search.
"By the way, isn't fate truly fickle?"
"Pardon?"
Noh Goonsang seemed particularly talkative today. His calm voice echoed through the dark corridor as he mused aloud, "Not long after abandoning my quest for revenge, I received an offer to become Principal of Azure Dragon Academy. After some consideration, I accepted. It seemed a suitable position for spending my final years, yet now, after all this time, I find myself entangled with Skykiller once again..."
"Yes, it does seem quite fickle." Kwak Duyong nodded with a peculiar expression, then turned to study Noh Goonsang's side profile. "Principal. There's just one more thing I'd like to ask..."
"Shh!" Noh Goonsang hushed him sharply, sensing movement pulling away from them.
The two exchanged glances and moved swiftly. Soon, they cornered three figures against a dead-end wall. The trapped individuals turned around, dismay plainly visible on their faces.
They weren't assassins but students who had been hiding in a club room.
"You lot! What are you doing here!" Kwak Duyong strode toward the students, raising his voice. "Didn't you hear the announcement to return to the dorms? We were shouting ourselves hoarse outside!"
"We're sorry..."
"W-Well..."
As the two instructors approached the students, the powerful smell of alcohol wafted over, revealing why they were hiding. Terrified of being caught and disciplined for underage drinking, they had hidden in the club room and fled when the instructors appeared.
Completely understanding the situation, Noh Goonsang let out a low sigh. "I'll scold you later. For now, follow me. Let's get out of here."
"Y-Yes, Principal!"
"We're sorry!"
Noh Goonsang nodded and turned around.
SWOOSH!
The three students struck at Noh Goonsang in unison. Their drunken act had been so convincing that even Kwak Duyong, watching from the side, failed to react in time.
"Principal!" he screamed.
SHRED! SHREEEED!
Flesh tore apart and blood sprayed in every direction as three mangled assassin corpses collapsed to the floor.
"P-Principal...?" Kwak Duyong stared at Noh Goonsang with terror in his eyes.
So this is why he's called the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva!
Although the Bodhisattva Guanyin was known for showing great mercy and saving all beings with her thousand arms and eyes, Noh Goonsang had earned his alias for an entirely different reason. He was a supreme master whom the unorthodox sects had once called a devil because he ripped his enemies' bodies to shreds with his thousand arms and discovered their hiding places with his thousand eyes.
Although his hadn't displayed a thousand arms just now, there were still easily dozens of them.
Noh Goonsang flicked the blood off his hands onto the floor and said coolly, "Let's head back. It seems these were the last of the assassins."
"The last...?"
"We've been talking loudly throughout our journey here, haven't we? Every assassin in the area should have heard us and swarmed our location all at once," Noh Goonsang explained. In truth, he hadn't shared his old stories out of nostalgia, but to draw out any hidden assassins by giving the illusion that he was off guard.
"Ah...! I had no idea..."
"Hoho! That's just like you."
As they emerged from the building, they paused for a moment to let their eyes adjust to the brightness, courtesy of the torches burning throughout the Azure Dragon Academy. After a moment, they resumed walking toward their next destination.
Noh Goonsang smiled warmly and glanced at Kwak Duyong. Sharing life-or-death experiences was bound to create a bond between people. "I've been monopolizing the conversation. How about sharing some of your own stories?"
"My stories?"
"May I ask about the Mount Tianzhu Massacre? I understand you're one of the few survivors."
"That's..."
The Mount Tianzhu Massacre, which occurred over twenty years ago, was a horrific incident. During a joint training session of the Five Great Academies, dozens of instructors and students were slaughtered by unknown assailants at Mount Tianzhu.
To this day, the culprits remained unidentified. Some speculated that they were remnants of the Blood Cult or unorthodox sect masters who practiced demonic arts. However, with so few survivors, the truth of what transpired remained largely unknown.
One of those survivors was Kwak Duyong.
"Mm... At the time, I..." Kwak Duyong hesitated briefly, then obediently began to recount his experience. Having just heard Noh Goonsang's story about Deathshroud, he couldn't very well refuse to share his own.
When he was done, Noh Goonsang remarked, "You've experienced your share of hardships..."
"Yes. I still suffer nightmares when I recall that incident..."
The flow of the conversation had felt incredibly natural. Kwak Duyong delivered a detailed account of the Mount Tianzhu Massacre, a subject known to few beyond the survivors themselves, while Noh Goonsang listened with a grave expression.
"...So, you are Skykiller after all," Noh Goonsang concluded.
Kwak Duyong froze in his tracks and stared at Noh Goonsang in disbelief. At some point, the old man had put some distance between them.
"How did you find out? I don't recall making any mistakes."
Their conversation had flowed so smoothly that any listener should have believed that it was Kwak Duyong sharing his experience.
"I apologize for saying this, Principal, but at your caliber, you shouldn't have been able to see through my disguise."
Despite this clear dismissal of his capabilities, Noh Goonsang nodded in acceptance. "I couldn't detect it through martial arts, and the Azure Dragon Emblem that Mr. Baek gave me didn't react either. I just had a... hunch."
"A hunch?"
"Yes, a gut feeling. It's hard to explain, but this is a sensation one develops after living for a long time. You know, sort of like how old joints ache right before it rains."
"......"
"However, I became certain when you talked about the Mount Tianzhu Massacre."
"What was wrong with my story? The details should have been perfect."
Before assuming Kwak Duyong's identity, Skykiller had researched him thoroughly. So what if the topic was the Mount Tianzhu Massacre? Even if it was a taboo subject in the murim, it wasn't beyond Deathshroud's ability to uncover.
"The very perfection of it was the fatal flaw."
"......"
"The real Mr. Kwak Duyong would have evaded that conversation completely and changed the subject, even if I had tried manipulating him into speaking by sharing my story first."
"......"
"Yet you recounted it with barely any hesitation. Normal people don't discuss their past traumas so readily, you know? Everyone has unpleasant memories they'd rather not recall."
"Hmm..."
"However, there is one exception. Psychopaths are incapable of empathizing with others' emotions. After living as long as I have, I've encountered such individuals occasionally."
Skykiller nodded and regarded Noh Goonsang with mild admiration. "I hadn't considered that. I've learned something new today."
Noh Goonsang, the Azure Dragon Academy Principal, might be an elderly man with unremarkable martial arts skills, but he had keen experience and perception. He'd held no interest in him previously, but now his hands itched to eliminate him.
RIIIIIIP!
A rip spread across Kwon Duyong's face from beneath his neck, and the skin peeled away like discarded cloth. Shedding the unnecessary disguise, a lean figure stepped free from within. This revolting sight seemed unbelievable even to those who witnessed it firsthand.
"So, Principal, are you prepared to die protecting the Azure Dragon Academy?"
Nothing surrounded the two men except vague darkness and their shadows dancing in the lamplight. Still, despite facing the world's deadliest assassin, Noh Goonsang showed no trace of fear.
Noh Goonsang nodded. "Naturally. I am prepared to risk my life for the Azure Dragon Academy...."
Skykiller narrowed his eyes in puzzlement.
Hmm? His eyes don't hold the resolve of one prepared for death, rather...
"...But not tonight."
"What?" Skykiller's eyes widened. He finally understood.
Noh Goonsang's eyes held amusement. This experienced old master's act was so convincing that it deceived even the world's finest assassin.
"Unfortunately, I must make way for someone who has been really looking forward to meeting you."
Skykiller's heart sank. "Since when..."
WHOOSH!
A presence materialized behind Skykiller and approached with soundless footsteps.
"Why don't you remove that ugly face? Before I'm tempted to rip it off myself."
A gust of wind picked up, causing a blue martial arts uniform to billow dramatically in the breeze.
Translator's Note:
I have created an unedited MTL site to dump translations I couldn't be bothered to edit. Feel free to request on discord series that have not been translated or are severely paywalled by unscrupulous groups, and I might pick it up as long as I still have free Gemini AI credits.