Star Instructor, Master Baek

TL: FoodieMonster007

In the end, Baek Suryong killed Ma Jungcheon.

I can't take the risk of letting someone who has seen the Heaven Defying Divine Art live.

The man was an Infernal Sanctum captain who frequently communicated with Blood Cult headquarters, so it was impossible to deceive him for long. The best course of action was to kill him after obtaining the necessary information.

Baek Suryong completely incinerated Ma Jungcheon's body, then returned to the Seol Clan's domain. The faces that had become familiar over the past few days greeted him warmly.

However, Seol Ryonghwi's gaze as he looked toward the Seol Clan martial artists was noticeably colder than before.

I don't have much time. I need to take action immediately.

Seol Suryeon would find out about Ma Jungcheon's disappearance within three days. Before then, he had to meet with the Empress, tell her the truth, and convince her to attack the Seol Clan.

The voice of the Divine Azure Dragon Sword echoed in his mind. [By the way, why did you return to the Seol Clan? Didn't you say you were going to meet the Empress?]

Baek Suryong knew that Seol Suryeon had assigned people to monitor him while he was in the Seol Clan's territory. By now, she would have been notified of his escape from their surveillance.

I doubt she knows that I met with Ma Jungcheon, though.

In any case, if he were to visit the ruler of the North Sea Ice Palace, Seol Suryeon would be informed of it within minutes. Perhaps even the details of their conversation would be relayed.

There's no way that bitch hasn't planted spies around the Empress.

Considering Seol Suryeon's hold on the North Sea, it was impossible for him to meet the Empress without her knowledge.

[Then how do you intend to make contact with the Empress?] the Divine Azure Dragon Sword asked.

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Baek Suryong lightly patted the sword hilt. [You'll see.]

Seol Ryonghwi was stopped by the Seol Clan guards keeping watch over Seol Suryeon's room.

"Halt!"

"Is something the matter, Young Master?"

Their faces showed no wariness, only surprise and confusion due to his late visit.

Both of them are fiends who have learned demonic arts. Should I take this as a statement of her stance?

Baek Suryong bit back his mounting anger and clasped his hands together in greeting. Keeping his face impassive, he said, "Please inform my grandaunt that Seol Ryonghwi has come to see her."

Despite being a direct descendant of the Seol Clan, it was disrespectful for Seol Ryonghwi to visit the matriarch late at night without prior notice. However, he had come to see her as if it were no big deal.

Even more surprising, Seol Suryeon welcomed Seol Ryonghwi as if she had been waiting for him.

"She says you may enter,"

Stepping inside, Baek Suryong was greeted by the sight of a lavish interior. Seol Ryonghwi's room was luxurious, but it paled in comparison to this place.

Every item in the room radiated opulence, and jewels adorned every surface. Although he hadn't yet seen the Royal Court of the North Sea Ice Palace, he was certain that it couldn't be more splendid than this.

"Good evening, Grandaunt."

Seol Suryeon was lounging on a wide, soft bed, clad only in a thin silk robe. While it wasn't proper for a family elder to conduct herself this way in front of a grown man, she didn't seem to care.

"I was just about to retire for the night when you arrived, so don't mind my attire," she teased, smiling.

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"If it's too late, I'll come back tomorrow."

“No, I was bored anyway. Keep me company.” Seol Suryeon held a long pipe to her lips. With a puff, wispy smoke coiled around her like mist. "I hear talk of you everywhere these days. And all of it is praise, or so I'm told."

"Fortunately, it seems the family elders have taken a liking to me."

"But it seems the young ones like you even more."

"The young are always interested in new things."

Seol Suryeon's smile deepened. "Anyone who heard you would think you were around seventy years old. Sometimes I forget that I'm not talking to someone my own age."

A teacup levitated off the tea table and flew toward Seol Ryonghwi.

Seol Ryonghwi quietly accepted the tea. After taking a sip, he remarked, "Everyone seems very interested in the succession competition between me and Mugeol. However, I think they're paying more attention to Grandaunt's reactions than to me.

"My reactions?"

Regardless of my own abilities, Grandaunt's opinion is the most important."

A strange smile formed on Seol Suryeon's lips. No one else would dare say these words to her, but Seol Ryonghwi said them while looking straight at her without blinking an eye. She found that incredibly fascinating.

Such impertinence! Is it because he doesn't know my position in the North Sea yet, or does he naturally possess the disposition of a noble dragon?

Seol Ryonghwi was ambitious and capable. He was clearly her ideal successor.

In fact, he was so perfect that it was suspicious.

"You are audacious and arrogant, and that pleases me. A man should have ambition," Seol Suryeon chuckled as she drank some warmed wine. This was a luxury enjoyed by few in the North Sea, but to her, it was merely part of daily life. "So, did you come at this hour to pester me into making you Prince?"

"I have a favor to ask of you."

"A favor…" Seol Suryeon narrowed her eyes. She hadn't expected the word 'favor' to come from those lips.

Surely he didn't come to whine about wanting the Prince position? I would be extremely disappointed if that were the case.

"Let's hear it," she said.

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"I wish to meet the Empress."

"…You want to meet Eun Hwiryong?"

Seol Suryeon furrowed her brow for the first time. This request was something she had never considered.

The two had not been on good terms since Eun Hwiryong's days as Princess. Although Seol Suryeon acknowledged her as the rightful heir of the North Sea Ice Palace, she wasn't the successor Seol Suryeon had wanted.

If our family's children had possessed even half of Eun Hwiryong's talent, we would have become the masters of the North Sea long ago.

At that time, all of the Seol Clan children supported by Seol Suryeon were overshadowed by Eun Hwiryong's undeniable talent.

Furthermore, since she stepped down as Empress twenty years ago, Eun Hwiryong had been a constant obstacle, thwarting Seol Suryeon's plans at every turn.

Whether it's her outstanding talent or her impertinent personality, that wench reminds me of Eun Yerin. How dare she act so lofty even though she's just a figurehead?

Although there wasn't much physical resemblance, Eun Hwiryong reminded her of Eun Yerin.

Damn the Eun Clan and their natural air of nobility!

This was one of the reasons Seol Suryeon had disliked the Eun Clan since long ago.

And yet, this child is saying he wants to meet the Empress? Why? I don't get it.

Seol Suryong asked curiously, "Why do you wish to meet Eun Hwiryong?"

"As a new martial artist of the North Sea, shouldn't I pay my respects to the Empress? I believe my greeting is already quite overdue."

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"Do not lie to me," Seol warned sternly.

CRACKLE…

The temperature plummeted instantly, and frost formed on the tea's surface.

Seol Ryonghwi calmly placed his teacup on the table. "I intend to ask the Empress what she thinks of the current Prince. I want to know if she has any intention of replacing him with a better candidate, should one exist."

Seol Suryeon's jaw dropped in shock. "Are you saying… that you will persuade Eun Hwiryong?"

"Yes."

"Ahahahaha!" Seol Suryeon threw her head back and laughed so hard that the furniture in the room shook as though an earthquake had struck.

When she finally managed to control her mirth, she asked, "Does that have anything to do with why you threw off my eyes and ears today?"

"……"

"Hmm, I see. So my guess was only half correct, huh?"

Seol Suryeon. She's indeed not an easy woman to deal with.

Baek Suryong didn't bother hiding his flustered expression. "…I didn't think I was that easy to read."

Seol Suryeon smiled triumphantly. "I won't ask what you're scheming. I commend your efforts, so I'll at least pretend not to know anything."

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"……"

"This is quite amusing. You want to increase your influence in the North Sea. Do you think you can become Prince without my consent?"

"I am merely doing my best in my own way."

Rising from the bed, Seol Suryeon glided over and caressed Seol Ryonghwi's cheek with her fingertips.

HISS…

The smoke from her long pipe puffed out and dyed the space between them a hazy white.

"The more I look at you, the more you remind me of myself in my youth."

"…Compared to you, Grandaunt, I am still lacking."

"It would be troublesome if you tried to compare yourself to me. Besides, I see no sense in making a political rival out of my family's fledgling."

An eerie, cold wave of energy brushed against Baek Suryong's skin. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

This woman is innately evil. If she had been born in the Blood Cult, she would surely have become a great demonic master… Not that she's much different from one now. I guess it should come as no surprise that such a person would ally themselves with the Cult.

"It's good to be daring, but keep one thing in mind. In the North Sea, you can never escape my eyes, no matter where you hide."

This was a warning that, no matter how much Seol Ryonghwi rampaged, he was merely dancing in the palm of her hand. However, it also meant that he was free to rampage as much as he wanted as long as he remained within her grasp.

"…I will keep that in mind," Baek Suryong acknowledged.

"Then I will arrange a meeting for you. Try to persuade Eun Hwiryong with your own abilities. If you can truly accomplish such a feat…" A dangerous-looking smile played on Seol Suryeon's lips. "The tradition of the North Sea Ice Palace might be broken once again."

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"…Thank you."

"I am tired now. I will send word to you tomorrow, so you may leave today."

Seol Ryonghwi clasped his hands in farewell and slowly backed away.

However, the moment he turned away from Seol Suryeon's room, a chilling smile formed on his previously expressionless face.

You might think I'm dancing on your palm, but soon, that palm will be torn to shreds.

The next day, Baek Suryong went to meet the Empress of the North Sea Ice Palace.

The Royal Court of the North Sea Ice Palace felt old and desolate compared to Seol Suryeon's room, but the imposing atmosphere that made one's shoulders hunch instinctively certainly befitted the ruler of the North Sea.

Seated on the jade throne, Eun Hwiryong cast a solemn gaze downward. Han Songbaek stood beside her, while a young man knelt in front of her according to the North Sea Ice Palace's etiquette.

"Seol Ryonghwi, son of Seol Sinwoo, greets the master of the North Sea."

Eun Hwiryong had also heard the recent rumors. Moreover, having personally witnessed Seol Ryonghwi's one-sided demolition of Seol Mugeol, she was already aware of his extraordinary martial arts prowess.

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"You wished to see me?" she asked.

Seol Ryonghwi lifted his head and regarded the two North Sea leaders. Somehow, the impression they gave him was quite different from what he had imagined.

He smiled boldly. "It's good that both of you are present."

"Good?"

"I had hoped to meet with Grand Elder Han Songbaek as well. There is an urgent matter I wish to discuss with the two of you."

Han Songbaek's white eyebrows twitched at the shameless tone. "Discuss, you say? Let's hear it."

"Would you please clear the vicinity?" Baek Suryong requested.

The Empress was usually protected by bodyguards within the Royal Court. Since the possibility of Seol Suryeon's spies being among them was high, he requested their departure.

However, Grand Elder Han Songbaek immediately roared, "How insolent! As expected of a Seol Clan member, you are beyond brazen!"

"Grand Elder, let us hear him out first. Everyone, leave us," Eun Hwiryong said, her commanding voice restraining Han Songbaek's rising killing intent.

The bodyguards withdrew, and Baek Suryong committed the faces of those with troubled expressions to memory.

"Why are you here? Did the Empress Dowager send you to persuade me to join the Blood Cult? Or did she send you to assassinate me?"

SSSAAAAA!

A terrifying, icy aura emanated from Eun Hwiryong's body. "Speak. If you came to mock me, you will not leave this place unscathed, no matter how much the Empress Dowager favors you."

White frost formed on Seol Ryonghwi's clothes from the intense cold.

She's stronger than I expected.

The North Sea Ice Palace had long been compared with the Central Plains' Nine Sects One Gang. Naturally, the Empress's martial arts was also widely considered to be at the same level as a major Sect Leader.

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Despite enduring the full force of her aura, however, Seol Ryonghwi smirked. "First, I must clear up a misunderstanding."

He slowly rolled up his sleeves.

"What are you doing… huh?"

VWOOOOM!

Eun Hwiryong and Han Songbaek's eyes widened in disbelief. They instantly recognized the glowing bracelets on Seol Ryonghwi's wrists. How could they not?

"The White Ice Bangles!"

"How do you have those…!"

It was unbelievable. The divine artifacts of the North Sea, lost sixty years ago, were the last thing they expected to see.

"You asked me why I came here, right? Seol Ryonghwi asked.

His fiercely upturned eyes softened and his firmly set lips curved slightly upward. Instantly, he transformed into a completely different person.

Baek Suryong locked gazes with Master Eun's descendant. "I came to the North Sea Ice Palace to kill Seol Suryeon and restore this place to its former glory."