Star Instructor, Master Baek-Chapter 342: The Dark Heaven Goddess (1)

TL: FoodieMonster007

Nestled at the northern end of Shaanxi, the Black Tortoise Academy distinguished itself as the only one of the Five Great Academies to focus on teaching sorcery, engineering, formations, spirit beast training, and artifact research rather than martial arts.

Only those guided by destiny are permitted entry.

This famous phrase, said to have been inscribed by the Dark Heaven Goddess herself beneath the Black Tortoise Academy's signboard, was the reason why many joked that gaining admission here was harder than entering the Heavenly Martial Academy.

"…This is a problem. I didn't expect the academy gates to be closed," Baek Suryong muttered softly, his gaze fixed on the Academy's signboard.

After departing Artist Pung Wol's manor, he had used his movement arts to reach the Black Dragon Academy in a single day, only to run into an unexpected obstacle. The main gate of the Black Tortoise Academy was locked, with no guards in sight.

I know it's school vacation, but I can't sense any presences inside at all.

Something felt strange. No matter how many times he yelled or knocked, no one showed up and the gates remained shut.

"I can't just barge in… Not that that would be easy."

A grayish, opaque energy enveloped the entire Black Tortoise Academy, forming a barrier that restricted entry.

Baek Suryong found an old inn nearby and stepped inside. He ordered a generous meal and casually questioned the innkeeper about the Black Tortoise Academy.

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"This is the first time something like this has happened. Until just a few days ago, the gate was open, and people were coming and going freely. Then, they suddenly sealed it off, " the innkeeper replied.

Baek Suryong prodded further, "So the academy just suddenly closed down unannounced?

"Yes, it happened about… five days ago." The innkeeper, mentally counting the days, lowered his voice and looked around nervously. "All of a sudden, thunder and lightning raged from a clear sky, and a violent downpour began. Dark clouds gathered only over the Black Tortoise Academy and didn't disperse for two whole days. Can you imagine that?"

"Weren't they just performing some kind of sorcery as usual?"

The principal of the Black Tortoise Academy was the Dark Heaven Goddess, who was said to be the world's most powerful sorcerer. Additionally, the students primarily studied sorcery and its related academic fields rather than martial arts.

If they truly wished to, summoning rain clouds should be a simple matter for them.

Baek Suryong had firsthand experience with the Dark Heaven Goddess's formidable abilities at the Namgung Estate. As a result, he couldn't understand why the innkeeper was making such a fuss over what seemed to be a trivial event.

The innkeeper, however, shook his head. "Usually, before performing any large-scale sorcery, the Black Tortoise Academy gives us prior notice. They inform us of the type of sorcery they're performing so that we won't be alarmed. That day, however, there was no warning at all."

"Hmm…"

Now, a clearer picture began to form. The Black Tortoise Academy, an institution that would normally issue a notice before employing sorcery, was struck by an unknown phenomenon resembling large-scale sorcery. Subsequently, they abruptly sealed their gates and refused all visitors.

Did something go wrong with a spell?

Baek Suryong couldn't help but come to that conclusion. He gazed at the Black Tortoise Academy through the inn's window. "What should I do now…?"

Shortly after, the innkeeper emerged from the kitchen carrying the food. "Did you have business with the Black Tortoise Academy?"

Baek Suryong nodded. "Yes."

The innkeeper sighed as if he had expected that answer. "If possible, I'd advise you to come back another time. You might get caught up in something unpleasant if you try to force your way into the academy now."

"I can't, I have important business…" Baek Suryong muttered.

"W-Well, this is merely a rumor, but…" The innkeeper glanced around furtively, then lowered his voice dramatically. "There's talk that the Dark Heaven Goddess used forbidden sorcery and angered the Primordial Heavenly Lord, who then exacted punishment upon her."

"……" Baek Suryong instantly recalled the Dark Heaven Goddess words of warning at the Namgung Estate.

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"You have a destiny that defies the heavens. A fate that can overturn celestial order, capable of either destroying or saving the world."

"Revealing the secrets of the heavens usually comes at a terrible price. Since you exist outside the celestial order, however, you are an exception."

Could it be my fault?

There was no apparent reason for a sorcerer as exceptional as the Dark Heaven Goddess to get into trouble with the gods, but what if she was paying the price for revealing heavenly secrets?

While it may be excessive speculation, the coincidental timing of his arrival in Shaanxi and the dark clouds that had gathered only over the Black Tortoise Academy bothered him deeply.

Something significant has clearly happened.

Having come this far, Baek Suryong was not about to turn back now. He was determined to enter the Black Tortoise Academy, even if it meant climbing the walls.

Just as he was about to get up, however, he heard a voice say, "If you go in there, you'll die."

"Hm?" Baek Suryong looked toward the speaker.

An old woman with a deeply wrinkled face and bent back sat like a stone statue in a corner of the inn.

"Granny! I told you not to say unlucky things when customers are around!" Startled, the innkeeper chided her worriedly, then glanced at the sword strapped to Baek Suryong's waist, fearing she might have provoked a martial artist.

Turning to Baek Suryong, he pleaded nervously, "Dear customer. She's an old woman, and her mind isn't entirely sound. She sometimes says strange things, so please be understanding."

"No worries." Baek Suryong nodded, completely unconcerned by the slight.

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Indeed, the old woman looked as if she didn't have much longer to live. Her eyes were unfocused, and she was missing most of her teeth. A single plate of cold dumplings sat on the table in front of her.

"Elder," he said. "What do you mean I'll die if I go in?"

"……" The old woman pressed her lips firmly together, her brow furrowed.

Baek Suryong turned to the innkeeper. "Innkeeper, could you please bring some food for the Elder over here? I'll cover the cost."

"Not food, alcohol!" the old woman rasped.

"And some alcohol too," Baek Suryong amended.

Once the food and alcohol were on the table, the old woman's grumpy expression softened slightly. "Something similar happened fifty years ago," she began. “Back then, that place wasn’t known as the Black Tortoise Academy, but as the Dark Heaven Sect.”

The Dark Heaven Sect was a sorcerers' guild that existed before the Black Tortoise Academy was established. It was the predecessor of the current Academy, and the Dark Heaven Goddess was its sole successor and Sect Leader.

"It was during some murim war. Many people died, and dark rumors abounded.

Baek Suryong immediately thought of the war between the Blood Cult and the Murim Alliance.

The old woman raised a gaunt finger and pointed out the window. "Around there, there used to be a mountain known as the Dark Heaven Mountain. It was a small but sacred peak. The Dark Heaven Sect was situated on its summit. Suddenly, one day, lightning struck, and earthquakes persisted all day long. The next day, the mountain vanished, and the Dark Heaven Goddess descended to this town."

The idea of a mountain being destroyed overnight was hard to believe, but Baek Suryong listened in silence. The fear etched in the old woman's eyes was far too real to dismiss her words as mere babbling.

"Back then, many people were alarmed and went to investigate the Dark Heaven Sect, but most of them never returned. Those who did come back went mad. Hehe. My husband died then, too. He left saying he would pick up a treasure or two… but we still haven't found his body."

As the old woman recounted the old tale, her voice reverberated ominously through the inn. To add to the atmosphere, she didn't touch the food, only sipped her wine.

"The current scene looks exactly the same as back then. No, this time it's worse. Many more people will die…"

"Granny! I told you not to say such unlucky things!" the innkeeper sighed in exasperation.

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The old woman cackled, eyeing Baek Suryong as if taunting him.

He could almost hear her unspoken words: "Now that you've heard my story, do you still dare to go in there?"

Grinning, he shot to his feet. "Hearing this story has made me even more intrigued. I must go to the Black Tortoise Academy at once!"

Fear flickered in the old woman's hazy eyes, and she trembled as if the mere thought terrified her. "Are you mad? You'll face divine retribution! Aren't you afraid of the gods?"

Baek Suryong smirked. "I was never destined to be on good terms with the heavens in the first place."

"…What?"

Baek Suryong laughed. If he was truly born with a heaven-defying fate, then heavenly punishment should be the last thing he needed to fear. In fact, just by existing, he had likely already incurred the wrath of the heavens.

"Innkeeper, please add this Elder's bill to mine."

"Ah, yes."

Leaving the inn, Baek Suryong strode purposefully toward the Black Tortoise Academy.

The innkeeper watched him anxiously. "How do you think he's going to…"

Before he could finish, Baek Suryong leaped into the air, drew his sword, and cleanly sliced through part of the formation surrounding the Black Tortoise Academy.

RIIIP!

As soon as the grayish, opaque energy shrouding the Black Tortoise Academy dispersed, Baek Suryong rushed inside and disappeared. Then, barely an instant later, the sorcery formation restored itself.

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The innkeeper's jaw dropped in amazement. "G-Good heavens!"

Meanwhile, the old woman sipped her wine with eerie tranquility.

The moment Baek Suryong set foot inside the Black Tortoise Academy, he felt a subtle shift in the air around him, similar to what he had experienced at Artist Pung Wol's estate.

"More sorcery, huh."

The scenery around him was a kaleidoscope of colors, changing in real time. Only one thing remained constant—a mountain peak in the distance.

Baek Suryong instinctively realized that was where the Dark Heaven Goddess resided. novelbuddy.cσ๓

I can't trust my eyes.

Illusions indistinguishable from reality deceived his eyes and tricked his five senses, but he remained unfazed. If this were his first encounter with such powerful illusions, he might have been flustered. However, since he stayed at Artist Pung Wol's manor for several days, he had habitually scrutinized the complex formation.

It's not a simple sorcery that can be deciphered by observing it for a short time, but…

Given that the Dark Heaven Goddess was Artist Pung Wol's master, this sorcery formation likely incorporated similar principles. Navigating through it should be doable.

There it is!

The moment Baek Suryong determined the correct direction, he shot forward like an arrow without hesitation.

RUMBLE! BOOM!

He twisted his body sharply to the side, dodging a lightning bolt that crashed down right in front of him. If he had been even a second slower, the bolt would have hit him directly.

Still, that was only the beginning.

RRRRRUMBLE!

An earthquake powerful enough to make standing difficult shook the ground violently, causing the earth to sink in great patches. Beneath it all, a bottomless abyss yawned.

STOMP!

Baek Suryong leaped into the air just before the ground beneath him crumbled. He unleashed his movement arts and ran at full speed, the earth continuing to fall apart in his wake.

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SWOOSH!

Next came a storm. Rain hammered down upon him as if a hole had been torn in the sky.

"This much won't stop me," he muttered. He was drenched. Every step felt steadily heavier. He glared at the mountain peak. It still seemed so distant.

A sharp glint flickered in his eyes.

Why did she suddenly lock the gates? Because my heaven-defying fate will incur divine retribution? If so, then why did she help me at the Namgung Estate? Or… is she testing me?

In order to answer all of these questions, Baek Suryong was determined to meet the Dark Heaven Goddess.

"Even if you've changed your mind and no longer want to meet me, I will find you."

KYAAAAAAK! KIIIIYAAAAA!

Baek Suryong faced more than just natural disasters. Demons crawled up from an underground abyss, and winged monsters swooped down from the gray sky like hail.

Despite all the supernatural phenomena hindering his path to the Dark Heaven Goddess, however, he did not stop.

SWISH! SWOOSH!

He drew the Azure Dragon Sword and swung it, etching dozens of fine lines into the demons charging at him.

CRASH!

Baek Suryong tore through the ranks of his enemies like a tempest, chopping them into dozens of tiny pieces. Nevertheless, the onslaught of demons and monsters continued unceasingly. Among them were even creatures resembling the One-Horned Demon Dragon.

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Before he knew it, his eyes had turned red. He lifted his head and scowled at the mountain peak, which still appeared distant.

How much further do I have to go?

Given his speed, he should have arrived at the Black Tortoise Academy long ago. However, within this massive sorcery formation, the laws of the world were distorted.

"…As if I'll give up so easily."

A fierce smile played on Baek Suryong's lips, and fiery determination blazed in his eyes. Gritting his teeth, he picked up the pace.

…How long have I been running?

Baek Suryong felt as if he had run for several days and nights without rest, but finally, he reached his destination.

THUD!

The instant set foot on the summit, the Dark Heaven Goddess appeared before him.

Baek Suryong blinked, dumbfounded. It was the old woman he had met at the inn. "You were the Dark Heaven Goddess?"

"You finally made it," the old woman said. Her appearance regressed through time, growing younger and younger until she finally settled as a mature woman around Baek Suryong's age.

Baek Suryong sighed inwardly. Her technique is completely different from bone contortion and other disguise arts. Thanks to that, I didn't notice anything wrong with her.

He complained, "I thought you were suspicious from the start, but I never would have guessed it was actually you. It would have been fine if we had talked back there. Why did you make me go through hell to get here?"

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"I wanted to confirm some things."

"Confirm what?" Baek Suryong asked, feeling slightly annoyed. Throughout his journey here, he had sensed the Dark Heaven Goddess's eyes watching him.

"First, I wanted to confirm that you are not a threat to the world. Second…" The Dark Heaven Goddess's eyes shone with a clear blue light, and a divine aura flowed from her body. "I wanted to confirm if someone reincarnated you for a specific purpose."

"…!!" Baek Suryong's eyes widened.

Translator's Note: I have just received a request to repaint my in-laws' bedroom tomorrow, so there will only be 1-2 more chapters this week.