Star Instructor, Master Baek

TL: FoodieMonster007

Baek Suryong's footsteps echoed as he strode down the long corridor of the Blood Demon Palace, the cult leader's abode, alongside the Blood Dragon Captain.

A red carpet stretched out beneath his feet, intricately patterned and vibrant. Each step felt soft and ethereal, like walking on clouds, but he had no time to savor that sensation right now.

This path… it's been a while, but I still remember it as if it were yesterday.

The hallway seemed to stretch on forever. He could have reached the end in an instant using movement arts, but no one would dare show such disrespect here.

Back then, I was so anxious about making even the slightest mistake that never mind making eye contact with the Blood Demon, I don't even remember what happened during our meeting.

In the Blood Cult, the Blood Demon was practically worshipped as a god. To face such a figure out of nowhere would shake even the boldest heart.

This time, I'll keep my wits about me and observe him properly.

"Why so nervous? Now that you've been assigned to the Blood Dragons, you'll be serving the Lord up close sooner or later," the Blood Dragon Captain chuckled, noticing his restlessness.

Comprised of the Cult's finest martial artists, the Blood Dragons served as the Blood Demon's personal bodyguards at official events, so it was only natural that they would see him often.

Of course, they weren't his only protectors. While the Blood Dragons protected the Blood Demon in the open, the shadow warriors who had mastered the Blue Eyes Demonic Art guarded him from the shadows.

Still, his past self could not relax.

"Why did the Lord suddenly summon me?" he asked.

"I told you, I don't know. Maybe He's curious about the new recruit's face, or maybe He has some other reason."

"Does the Lord summon every new recruit to the Blood Dragons?"

The Blood Dragon Captain frowned, clearly displeased. "Newcomer, let me give you a warning. Do not presume to understand the Lord. He is a being beyond our comprehension."

Under the Captain's stern gaze, Baek Suryong quickly lowered his head. "I'm sorry."

"Don't forget. We live only to serve the Lord. We do not question Him, only follow His orders."

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"Yes, sir."

An uneasy silence fell between the two, but fortunately, they reached the end of the corridor before it lasted too long.

"We're here. This is the throne room."

A colossal door, towering at least ten meters high, stood before them, its handles adorned with the image of a bleeding demon. On either side, two formidable martial artists stood guard, their bright blue eyes glinting ominously in the dimly lit corridor. Most blood cultists flinched at the sight of the Blood Dragon Captain, but not these two.

The Blood Demon's shadow warriors.

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Baek Suryong's thoughts drifted to the Blue Eyed Freak in the Valley of Evil, who had also mastered the Blue Eyes Demonic Art. Slipping into the Blood Demon Palace unnoticed, past those who wielded such a unique eye technique, was out of the question.

The Blood Dragon Captain stepped forward. "By order of the Lord, I have brought the newest member of the Blood Dragons."

"You may enter."

The Blood Dragon Captain nodded and walked toward the door. As he drew close, the heavy door groaned open as if pushed by an invisible hand, unveiling a world of fantasy.

Baek Suryong smiled bitterly. No matter how many times I see it, I never fail to be astounded at this sight.

Entering the throne room, he felt as if they were ascending into the night sky itself. Above them, the heavens stretched close, almost within reach, and starlight cascaded down, bathing them in a soft glow. At their feet, clouds floated, soft and surreal, occasionally revealing a tiny world beneath that lay sprawled out like a distant, forgotten dream.

It was a space that defied all logic, a realm where miracles unfolded—miracles unseen even within the Blood Cult, the nexus of sorcery and the dark arts.

On the highest throne beneath the boundless sky sat a man of otherworldly beauty, his blood-red hair contrasting vividly against his pale, almost ethereal skin. His facial features were flawless, as if they were sculpted from the finest marble with divine precision.

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"Come closer," he said in an enchanting voice that, once heard, could never be forgotten.

Baek Suryong slowly stumbled forward, as if under a spell. However, within him, the mind observing the past seethed with hatred.

The Blood Demon…

This was a face forever etched in his memory. For decades, he had served the Blood Demon with unwavering loyalty, accumulating great accomplishments even after his qi center was damaged and he was cast into a living hell. Despite all he had sacrificed, however, in the end he was merely branded as disposable.

But even that wasn't the worst. Above all, this was the monster who had plunged a sword into his heart when he attempted to flee from the Blood Cult. If only the Blood Demon hadn't appeared that day, he would likely have succeeded in escaping the Blood Cult with his four masters.

THUD!

The Blood Dragon Captain knelt down, and the past Baek Suryong hurriedly followed suit.

""Hail the Blood Demon, in blood shall we reign supreme! This humble warrior greets the Lord…""

"Enough."

Their voices immediately faded, not by choice, but by the will of the Blood Demon, who had muted all sound within his domain.

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This…it's an exquisite technique on a different level than a simple qi barrier!

Dumbfounded, the past Baek Suryong looked up at the Blood Demon, not even realizing his own disrespect. This unconscious move, however, enabled his present self to observe the Blood Demon's appearance in detail.

Even now, I still can't measure his strength…?

Baek Suryong bit his lip. Although he knew that the Blood Demon was the most powerful martial artist in history, he hadn't expected that he wouldn't be able to estimate his skill level even now.

Does that even make any sense…? Wait. Ah, I get it. It's not that I can't gauge his skill level because the gap between us is too wide. It's something else entirely…

The Blood Demon was a master of both martial arts and sorcery. If he used sorcery to hide his aura, then it made sense that Baek Suryong couldn't even begin to estimate his strength.

No need to feel disheartened. This won't be the only time I see him.

If this dream progressed chronologically, then Baek Suryong expected this dream to continue for quite a while. In that case, there would be plenty of opportunities for him to observe the Blood Demon.

"Interesting…" the Blood Demon said in a languid voice, his gaze fixed intently on Baek Suryong.

Only then did Baek Suryong realize the gravity of his disrespect. Slamming his forehead to the ground repeatedly, he desperately begged for forgiveness, "Please forgive me… I have committed a grave sin."

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Blood trickled down his face and into his eyes, yet he didn't blink and continued banging his head. He had committed the mortal sin of looking at a god without permission and deserved the punishment.

Suddenly, however, a gentle force held him in place.

With crimson eyes like jewels, the Blood Demon studied him closely. "Raise your head. I summoned you here to see your face. After all, I was the one who hand-picked you for the Blood Dragons."

"……"

"Aren't you curious as to why?"

"…I am."

Until then, Baek Suryong had been just one of the many warriors who served in the Blood Wolves. Although the Blood Wolves were a prominent military unit within the Blood Cult, there was a huge difference between them and the Blood Demon's personal guard, the Blood Dragons.

It was surprising enough that the Blood Demon knew of his existence, but for him to have personally assigned him to the Blood Dragons? He would be lying if he said he wasn't curious.

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"I did it because of the result of a divination."

The Blood Demon's explanation was as unexpected as it was logical. After all, with his mastery of sorcery, any divination of his was closer to prophecy than ordinary fortune-telling.

The Blood Demon's crimson eyes glinted eerily. "For now, listen to me closely, but when you leave this place, forget everything that happened here."

"Ah…" Baek Suryong mumbled dazedly, feeling the strength drain from his body.

Hearing his own wavering voice, Baek Suryong finally realized why his memories of this day were so hazy.

This bastard! He hypnotized me with the Blood Demon Eyes!

Rising from his throne, the Blood Demon began, "You were born with a very special destiny, with two possible futures. In one, you will become the cornerstone necessary for our cult to achieve world domination…"

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The Blood Demon stepped forward, seeming to teleport directly in front of him in a movement reminiscent of the legendary art of spatial compression. His crimson eyes sparkled with a piercing intensity, as if they could see straight into one's soul, and a twisted smile crept up one corner of his mouth as if he were observing an amusing little animal.

"…And in the other, you will ignite the flames that will destroy our cult."

Baek Suryong remained on his knees, staring blankly at the Blood Demon as if he hadn't heard a single word.

The Blood Dragon Captain, however, stiffened. "My Lord, what do you mean…?"

"I simply recited the results of my divination."

"How ominous… Then, how shall I deal with this fellow?"

"Fate will not bend to our whims. You, Blood Dragon Captain, will do your duty and nothing more."

The Blood Dragon Captain bit his lip tightly, then turned to glare at Baek Suryong. "I will raise this lad to become the cornerstone necessary for world domination."

"Do as you wish," the Blood Demon said wearily. "Oh, and bring this child along to serve as my guard at the Elder Council meeting in three days."

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"Yes, my Lord."

"You are dismissed."

With a wave of the Blood Demon's hand, Baek Suryong's past self stood up and quietly followed the Blood Dragon Captain out of the Blood Demon Palace. Nevertheless, he was still so out of it that even as he staggered back to his quarters, he failed to notice the complex looks the captain kept throwing his way.

Meanwhile, the current Baek Suryong fell into deep thought.

Why would the Blood Demon say such things to me, knowing I wouldn't even remember them? Could it be… that he somehow knew I would revisit this memory someday?

A terrifying chill ran down his spine.

What if… the power of the Heaven Defying Divine Art that is allowing me to see glimpses of the past in my dreams, is resonating across time and space with the Blood Demon's Heaven Defying Divine Art that allowed him to peer into the future?

In the dream, time flowed like water, pooling and spilling without direction. Some events were skipped, and others appeared out of chronological order.

Nevertheless, Baek Suryong saw himself accompanying the Blood Demon to every formal gathering and official event. This gave him an invaluable opportunity to observe the martial arts of the Blood Cult elders, the patriarchs of the Eight Great Clans, and a wide array of powerful masters up close.

Among them were martial arts that Baek Suryong didn't know well, some that were much stronger than he remembered, and others with clear weaknesses that he hadn't noticed before.

It's a totally different experience, analyzing the Blood Cult's divine arts then and now.

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Although these were his own memories, seeing it again with fresh eyes opened up a whole new perspective. With his current martial arts skills, he was able to analyze them with a clarity that he hadn't possessed before.

I'll create techniques to counter them later.

Since the Blood Cult seemed to be on the verge of resurrection, it was good if he could gain a significant advantage over them.

Now that I think about it, I wonder how much time has passed outside. Probably not much. Since this is just a dream, maybe a few hours, or a day or two at the most.. Well, it would be great if I could find some clues to regain my memories before I wake up.

If it was true that the past Baek Suryong lost his memories here, then there should be clues here to help him recover them. Unfortunately, until now, he hadn't made any significant progress in this regard, so he decided to focus on analyzing, refining, and memorizing the Blood Cult's martial arts.

Then, one day, Cho Hyeok called him out, saying, "The Captain seems to favor you a bit too much. Are you sleeping with him behind our backs?"

Since the first encounter, he and his gang had stopped showing Baek Suryong open hostility, opting instead to hurl contempt and insults at him.

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Their intentions were clear. They were waiting for him to snap so they could beat him up and claim it was self-defense… and like a fool, his past self had lost his temper many times and let them beat him over and over again, leaving fresh bruises hidden under his clothes every day.

Slowly, though, he'd learned to endure the bullying in silence, swallowing his anger and secretly sharpening his blade, vowing that he would one day take his revenge.

"Why so quiet? Should I take your silence as proof that it must be true, then?" Cho Hyeok taunted.

The supposed elites of the Blood Cult snickered.

"…Trash," Baek Suryong remarked softly.

Cho Hyeok and his gang blinked in surprise.

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"…What did you just say?" Cho Hyeok asked.

Baek Suryong grinned. There was no longer any need for him to remain passive. "I said, you guys are trash."

This is a dream, not the past… and dreams bend to the dreamer's will.

For the first time, Baek Suryong took control of his dream. From now onward, it would no longer be a simple re-enactment of his past life.

His form wavered briefly, and then he drove his fist square into Cho Hyeok's face.

"Guh!" Cho Hyeok flew backward, blood spurting from his mouth as his teeth shattered.

"Have you gone mad?"

"What the hell? He just attacked all of a sudden!"

Though startled, the senior members of the Blood Dragons instinctively drew their weapons.

Laughing, Baek Suryong leisurely cracked his neck from side to side. "You know, I've always dreamed of beating you guys up… oh, wait, this is a dream. So, I might as well enjoy myself and get in a little martial arts training at the same time, yeah?"

With a wicked grin, Baek Suryong charged at his former comrades.