Star Instructor, Master Baek

Chapter 359: What Makes You Any Different from Me?

TL: FoodieMonster007

KWAAAANG!

With a deafening explosion, the main gate of the Seol Clan residence was smashed to pieces. Amidst the flying splinters, Han Songbaek and his entourage stormed the compound.

The Seol Clan members were dumbfounded. This gate had been a symbol of their pride and arrogance, a fortress they had built within the North Sea Ice Palace itself.

"W-What is happening!"

"An attack? But who…"

"Inform the Empress Dowager at once!"

The Seol Clan martial artists milled about in confusion. The timing of the attack could not have been worse, as most of the clan's elders were away attending the grand conference.

As they recognized the intruders, however, they froze. Why were Han Songbaek and the elders of the North Sea, who should have been at the conference hall, here?

"Grand Elder! Do you really think you can get away with this?" A middle-aged man, who appeared to be the most senior among the remaining Seol Clan martial artists, shouted as he stepped forward. "This is treason! When the Empress Dowager returns, she will slaughter every last one of you…!"

BOOOM!

Han Songbaek sent the man crashing through the wall of a nearby building with a single palm strike. He did not rise again.

"Did you say treason? You bastards are the real traitors!" Han Songbaek roared, eyes blazing with killing intent.

For the first time, fear began to dawn in the eyes of the Seol Clan martial artists.

Read this at northbladetldotcom, or else.

Han Songbaek glared at the opposing martial artists and gave them one last chance. "We have confirmed that several members of the Seol Clan have learned the Blood Cult's demonic arts. The Empress has commanded that they be captured and punished according to the laws of the North Sea. All who bear the Seol name, kneel and receive the Empress's decree!"

"W-What…"

"What do you mean, demonic arts?! Even if our family has a close relationship with the Cult…"

"How absurd! That's slander!"

Most Seol Clan members protested loudly at the mention of demonic arts. Among them, however, a few eyes flickered with unease.

Han Songbaek took note of those who seemed anxious. "You have two choices. Surrender, or die. Those who do not submit to the investigation peacefully will be executed on the spot."

"…!"

Although the Seol Clan had enjoyed unrivaled power for decades, without their leaders, the clan members were helpless against the North Sea Ice Palace's elite, led by the Grand Elder.

THUD! THUD!

One by one, the Seol Clan dropped their weapons and kneeled obediently… except for a few.

"Kill them!" a man shouted, leading a pack of warriors against Han Songbaek. Black demonic qi surged from their bodies.

Unfortunately, they were nothing compared to the elders at the Royal Court. Han Songbaek and the masters following him had little difficulty subduing them.

When he had overpowered all the enemies, Han Songbaek shouted again, "I will say this one last time! Kneel! All who refuse the Empress's command will be executed!"

THUD! THUD! THUD!

Having lost their will to fight, the remaining martial artists of the Seol Clan fell to their knees.

The fight ended just like that. All in all, it took Han Songbaek less than an hour to subdue the Seol Clan.

The Seol Clan martial artists, however, still refused to accept reality.

This humiliation is only temporary. These fools who don't know their place. How dare they, here of all places…!

Why must our family suffer this injustice?

Read this at northbladetldotcom, or else.

When the Empress Dowager returns, all of you will die!

To those bearing the Seol name, the defeat of the White Ice Empress was unimaginable. They all believed Seol Suryeon would come and save them.

Not far away, however, the very thing they couldn't imagine was taking place.

RUUUMBLE…!

A heavy vibration shook the earth, and a massive shockwave of qi was carried on the wind.

Everyone's heads turned toward the Royal Court.

"The Royal Court… is collapsing," someone muttered with a dazed expression.

Indeed, the Royal Court of the North Sea Ice Palace, which had stood for centuries, was swaying as if it were about to collapse.

CRACK… CRACKLE…

Cracks spread like spiderwebs across the outer walls in all directions. Within the blink of an eye, they had covered the entire building.

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWAKWANG!

northbladetldotcom welcomes you.

Finally, the thick walls that had withstood the biting winds of the North Sea fell to the collision of two peerless masters.

Everyone watched in dismay as the building, which held the history of the North Sea Ice Palace, crumbled with a deafening roar.

"Look! There's someone over there!"

From within the dust cloud, a figure shot up into the sky.

The masters immediately enhanced their vision with inner arts. They could vaguely make out a red palace dress fluttering in the wind.

Only one person in the North Sea dressed like that.

"The Empress Dowager!"

"…Seol Suryeon?"

The reactions of the Seol Clan and non-Seol Clan members were strikingly different. While the Seol Clan martial artists glared at their captors defiantly, Han Songbaek and the others visibly flinched.

BOOM!

Another figure shot up above the ruins.

"Who is that?"

"That's not one person, but two! I think one of them is being carried…"

northbladetldotcom welcomes you.

"Don't tell me…?" Han Songbaek's expression darkened.

The Empress… has been defeated.

Baek Suryong quickly landed, laid Eun Hwiryong on the ground, then immediately pursued Seol Suryeon.

WHOOOOSH!

In a flash, the two martial masters disappeared into the plains beyond the North Sea Ice Palace, their speed so great that all the Ice Palace elders could see was a faint afterimage.

"…You must defeat her! No matter what!" Han Songbaek muttered, clenching his fists tightly.

KWAKWAKWAKWAKWA!

A blizzard raged savagely. This time, though, it was not a scene created by the White Ice Divine Art. It was a force conjured by nature itself.

"Huff… huff…"

How far have I run?

Seol Suryeon had completely lost her sense of direction. Normally, the extreme cold wouldn't have bothered her, but now she was shivering and staggering uncontrollably in the strong wind.

"Kugh…" she groaned.

Her vision was blurry, her left eye glazed over as if covered in frost. She had lost her right eye to Eun Hwiryong and both arms to Baek Suryong. Her legs were barely attached to her body, and she had almost no sensation in them. One foot was missing below the ankle. Despite sealing her acupoints, blood dripped from the wound.

She knew that she was leaving a long trail of bloodstains on the white snow behind her, but she didn't have the energy to care.

THUMP!

Finally, she fell to her knees. She couldn't feel anything below her thighs.

Seol Suryeon bit her tongue and swallowed the blood. "I won't die like this… I absolutely won't die like this…!"

Right now, all that matters is my own survival. So what if all my blood relatives died? I can just make a new family.

Read this at northbladetldotcom, or else.

"I am the sky of the North Sea, the true ruler of the North Sea Ice Palace…"

That's right. I can still go to the Blood Cult and ask for their help in taking revenge. I'll tell them everything I saw today and reveal all of the North Sea Ice Palace's weaknesses. If necessary, I'll even hand over the complete formula for the White Ice Divine Art, which they have coveted for so long!

"Baek Suryong, Baek Suryong, Baek Suryong…" Seol Suryeon muttered the name of her enemy ceaselessly to sear it into her memory.

Baek Suryong, the disciple of that loathsome Eun Yerin. She would return someday and repay the humiliation she suffered today, dozens or hundreds of times over. And then she would burn Eun Hwiryong to death, too.

"Kufufu…"

Seol Suryeon pushed herself up again, imagining sweet revenge to endure the pain. Despite her missing foot, she kept moving.

WHISTLE!

Suddenly, she heard a sound like a hummingbird flying by her ear. She knew that sound. It was the sound of the White Ice Bangles, the thing that had cut off her foot, approaching.

She shuddered. In her eyes, the divine artifact that had protected the North Sea for centuries now resembled a monster.

"Go away, go away from me!"

Seol Suryeon tried to run like a frightened animal, but it was impossible for her in her current condition.

CRASH!

Falling to the ground, she whipped her head around. The White Ice Bangles were still pursuing her through the blizzard.

"Go away! I said go away!"

This is a non-profit translation. You should not be seeing ads.

Once upon a time, she had coveted those bangles more than anything. She had been so, so envious when Eun Yerin was selected as princess and received the White Ice Bangles from the former empress.

So envious that she had wanted to kill the bitch right then and there.

However, the two White Ice Bangles closing in on her now looked like Eun Yerin's cold, upturned eyes.

"You ghost from the past! Don't follow me! Why do you torment me even after death?!"

Seol Suryeon kicked snow at the White Ice Bangles with her one good foot, then scrambled back to her feet and hobbled away as fast as she could. When she fell again, she crawled. When she encountered a steep slope, she simply rolled down it.

Before she knew it, the humming of the White Ice Bangles had disappeared.

Have I finally shaken them off?

Seol Suryeon let out a sigh of relief. "Just a little, just a little more…"

A glimmer of hope flickered to life in her eyes. Her body was gradually getting warmer. She must be heading south.

"Did you really think you could escape?" a man's voice rang out.

She looked up. A few dozen steps ahead, a man stood waiting for her, his handsome face so perfect it was as if he had just walked out of a painting. His pure white hair cascaded down, bleeding into a startling crimson at the ends.

If you′re seeing this, you are at the wrong place.

"How are you here…" she muttered, despair threatening to consume her.

Baek Suryong grinned maliciously. "Sorry, but I let you go on purpose. How does it feel to regain hope only to lose it again in an instant?"

"Aaaaaaaargh! I'll kill you!" Shrieking like a banshee, Seol Suryeon lunged at Baek Suryong.

Without any arms, however, her attack posed no threat to him.

SLAP!

Baek Suryong slapped Seol Suryeon so hard that she was sent flying, then approached her again. "Are you upset because I deceived you for a few days? Master Eun spent over ten years in a cramped prison, suffering and missing her lover until the moment she died."

"What am I supposed to do about that now? That was sixty years ago!" Seol Suryeon shrieked desperately.

Baek Suryong looked down at her impassively. "Sincerely apologize to Master Eun. If you do, I'll grant you a slightly quicker death than I'd originally planned."

"Apologize…? Me? Ahahahahaha!" Seol Suryeon's crazed laughter echoed through the empty plains. "Yes. I lured Eun Yerin into a trap and sold her out to the Blood Cult. So what?"

Her eyes filled with berserk qi and curses flowed from her one remaining intact organ, her tongue, as she completely abandoned all lingering attachment to life.

"Everyone commits sins while living, and martial artists even more so. Are we not the ones who refine the ways of harming, breaking, and killing others? That is the fate of a martial artist. Yet, you want me to regret my actions now?"

It was absurd sophistry, but Baek Suryong decided to play along for a while, asking, "The fate of a martial artist, you say?"

"What makes you any different from me? Someday, the karmic retribution for the sins you committed in the past will come for you as well."

This is a non-profit translation. There are no ads.

VWOOOOM!

The White Ice Bangles vibrated fiercely, as if enraged on their master's behalf.

On the contrary, Baek Suryong readily admitted, "…That's probably true. My sins are no less heinous than yours."

He looked down at the dying Seol Suryeon. For an instant, her face overlapped with someone else's in his mind.

Number Two.

The face of his former student, to whom he had taught the White Ice Divine Art, haunted him. In truth, he had been thinking of her constantly since arriving at the North Sea Ice Palace. He couldn't help it.

"I know… my retribution will come for me someday," he whispered.

"It is a pity I will not be there to see it…"

SPLURT!

The White Ice Divine Sword pierced Seol Suryeon's qi center and embedded itself deep in the ice.

Seol Suryeon's face contorted horribly. "…I'll be watching you from hell. Let's see if you can act so high and mighty then…"

Baek Suryong met her gaze indifferently. "At least, I won't run away like you did."

WHOOOOSH!

A desolate wind whipped past him, chilling him to the bone.

Translator's Note: I won a $1500 voucher for kitchen appliances in a lucky draw today, and spent the entire day deciding what to buy. I now have a new kitchenaid stand mixer, instant pot, air fryer, and coffee grinder :D See you next week!