The Academy’s Unrivaled Professor - Chapter 33

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Academy’s Absolute Professor Episode 33
A celebration for my first disciple
“Where are you going to shop, sir?”
“Spiritual Medicine.”
“Spiritual Medicine?”
“Hold on.”
Kang Hyun pulled out his smartphone and swiped through the screen.
A message window that had arrived yesterday appeared on the display.
The sender was Yoon Tae-jeong, the president of Taejeong Mulsan.
[Internal reorganization is complete. The promised transfer of 50% equity has also been finalized. It is an honor to welcome you as our principal shareholder.]
A mobile membership card was attached at the bottom of the message.
Tap.
When he touched it, an elegant image embossed in gold leaf on a black background appeared.

“Here.”
As Kang Hyun held the screen toward her, Lee Se-ah’s eyes widened.
“Is this a Daeseong Market membership card?”
“You know about it?”
“Of course!”
Daeseong Market was a black market operated by the Daeseong Group, the nation’s top financial conglomerate.
“Wow, how did you… Did President Yoon Tae-jeong really give you this? I heard the annual maintenance fee alone is a billion won.”
Baek Yu-yeon, who had followed Lee Se-ah’s exclamation, also flinched in surprise.
‘A black market…’
It referred to their exclusive trading hub that dealt exclusively in the highest-grade byproducts from Dungeons.
Black markets thrived worldwide, and the domestic market had exactly one—Daeseong Market.
Since the Republic of Korea was a minor Hunter nation, it ranked around thirty-second globally by scale, but…
‘We’re going there? Us?’
Any aspiring Hunter would naturally be thrilled.
‘The minimum price for items traded inside is one hundred million won…’
Which meant the entry requirements were strict from the start.
Only A-rank Hunters, executives from major Guilds, or corporate officers of conglomerates could even buy a membership.
Small-time players were filtered out.
“You show us the way.”
“I’ve never been there either, sir.”
“The address is there, isn’t it?”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
In the end, the three of them climbed into the vehicle that Lee Se-ah drove—a Government Bureau car.
Kang Hyun sat in the back seat, leisurely sipping whiskey, while Baek Yu-yeon sat in the passenger seat, driving toward the city center amid an odd tension.
Before long, the vehicle entered the Daeseong Building, which loomed in the heart of Gangnam-gu.
But rigorous security checkpoints began the moment they approached the parking garage entrance.
“Stop, please. We need to verify your identity.”
An employee in a black suit with a walkie-talkie stopped the vehicle.
When Lee Se-ah lowered the window, the employee scanned the interior with a sharp gaze.
Kang Hyun held up the VIP pass on his smartphone screen through the window.
“A VIP member under Taejeong Mulsan, I see. Up to two companions are permitted. Please provide identification for both of them as well.”
“Here.”
“Will a student ID work?”
Lee Se-ah presented her civilian ID, and Baek Yu-yeon showed her Academy student card.
Only after a thorough identity check could they descend underground.
The ramp down to the parking garage was longer than expected.
Lee Se-ah swallowed dryly.
“Wow, this really feels like entering Daeseong Market, doesn’t it? Yu-yeon, this is your first time too, right?”
“Yes, the people with memberships here are the ones whose names appear in the news.”
Squeak.
After parking, as they entered the building’s entrance, an employee in a neat tuxedo approached and bowed respectfully.
“Is this your first visit to us?”
“Yes, it’s our first time.”
“Please put on the bracelets first. These bracelets serve as both identification and payment method within the market. This way, please.”
The three of them’s footsteps halted before a massive iron door as they walked down an elegant marble hallway under the employee’s guidance.
Beyond the door lay a thick mist.
“From here on, you’ll need to follow my footsteps precisely.”
The guide turned back to offer the warning.
“This entrance is protected by a special formation. If anyone unauthorized tries to enter, they’ll wander through illusions until we retrieve them from outside.”
“What happens if we make a mistake?”
Baek Yu-yeon asked tensely, and the employee smiled gently.
“We’ll pull you out right away, but it takes some time, so please be careful.”
“Yes.”
Kang Hyun surveyed the formation casually.
‘A Misdirection Maze Formation.’
It was a practical formation that would trap you in illusions if you mistepped even once.
However, the flow was sloppy, and there were plenty of gaps.
With flaws like that, he could shatter it with a single footfall.
The reason he could read formations so well was because of one of the Seven Aged Eccentrics—Hwangbo Cheon-gi, the Formation Genie.
A genius of formations who had once deployed the Earth Day Formation.
That old man was also the one who devised the insane formation that stretched a single day into four.
As they safely passed through the corridor carved with geometric patterns, the mist obscuring their view finally lifted.
“Here we are.”
“Wow.”
“My goodness…….”
Exclamations burst simultaneously from both women’s lips.
Interest flickered in Kang Hyun’s eyes as well.
‘An underground city.’
Luminous pearls hung from the ceiling, and several meters below, terraced buildings spread out in layers.
“Welcome to Daeseong Market. The zones are divided into five main categories. Zone 1 handles spiritual medicines and medicinal materials, Zone 2 deals with monster organs and byproducts, Zone 3 covers minerals and equipment, and Zone 4 handles rare texts. The center features an auction house and food court.”
Perhaps because of regulations allowing companions?
The place was quite crowded.
‘So Taejeong Mulsan is one of the major partners here.’
Kang Hyun’s lips curved upward.
Daeseong Group?
Our Taejeong Mulsan will become Taejeong Group before long.
With Yoon Tae-jeong’s talent, that’s more than enough.
‘When that time comes, I should create a market like this for them myself.’
The Space Teleportation Formation—Hwangbo Cheon-gi’s secret technique—came to mind.
An absurd divine art that let you leap across space just by treading on the ground.
Kang Hyun knew how to deploy that formation as well.
‘If I improve global accessibility through formations and monopolize the display of good rare texts and precious spiritual medicines?’
The scale would expand tremendously.
The market itself would become both an information network and a financial artery.
With the rough blueprint pleasantly completed, Kang Hyun turned to the guide.
“That’s all for the tour. We’ll look around ourselves.”
“Understood. Enjoy your time.”
We headed straight to Zone 1.
There were quite a few shops, and the air carried a faint yet pungent herbal scent.
“Wow, look at that!”
As we passed, Baek Yu-yeon pointed at a display case and gasped.
Item: Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng
Price: Twenty Billion Won
Source: A-Rank Dungeon in Guri City
The ginseng inside the crystal display case gleamed.
“They say it drops from dungeons at insanely low rates……!”
With her major in martial medicine, she looked around with sparkling eyes.
This was her first time seeing in person the expensive medicinal materials she’d only read about in textbooks.
Kang Hyun was also browsing, but truthfully, his purpose for coming here wasn’t to buy spiritual medicine for himself.
Eating a piece of Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng like that would have some effect, sure, but it wouldn’t be dramatic.
It’d be like adding a few drops of water to an ocean.
‘I need to get supplies for those five guys.’
The midterm Martial Arts World Tournament was coming soon.
Since I’d made a bet, I needed to win convincingly, didn’t I?
Cha Yu-sik was the second son of a major guild, so he might’ve eaten all kinds of spiritual medicine since childhood, but the others were the problem.
Especially Gwak Do-jin, who lived alone with his grandmother—I knew his tuition was barely making ends meet.
People like that could never have tasted Spiritual Medicine before.
As they walked, Kang Hyeon stopped before a suitable display of pills and asked.
“What is this?”
“A Sohwan Pill synthesized with Jeokwhachoo as the base. It’s from China, and it’s 100 million won.”
Hmm.
A cursory inspection suggested it could build up about two years’ worth of Internal Energy.
“And this one?”
“Ah, that’s the Cheongbo Pill. Much higher purity and no side effects. We’re holding it at 200 million won.”
Kang Hyeon’s eyes swept lightly over both pills.
‘The 200-million-won one is better.’
It wasn’t the stuff of legend from the Martial Arts World—pills that instantly boosted Internal Energy by whole ranks or completely transformed bone structure and physique the moment you swallowed them.
But at that level, at least he couldn’t complain about losing due to lack of Internal Energy.
“Give me five Cheongbo Pills.”
“Wow! You’ve got nerve!”
The clerk’s eyes widened.
Buying five of the 200-million-won pills without so much as haggling—just like that!
He really was a true Daeseong Group Market member.
“I’ll wrap them right up for you! Just present your bracelet here!”
Ding!
[1,000,000,000 won has been charged.]
Half of his reward money was gone, but Kang Hyeon felt no regret.
He’d never been particularly materialistic, and with his abilities, money was something he could earn endlessly if he wished.
Wasn’t it another kind of joy to spend freely for someone else’s sake?
That’s how money works in the end.
Locked away, it becomes stagnant water. Released, it flows back to you one day as a river.
‘Wow.’
Lee Se-ah, standing beside him, dropped her jaw.
She’d realized it the moment he bought five Spiritual Medicine pills.
Who he was thinking of when he made that purchase.
‘The more I see, the more unexpected he is.’
She’d dealt with plenty of people herself, but those who cared for others so selflessly were rare.
Kang Hyeon moved directly to Zone 3.
The section where minerals and equipment were displayed.
His brisk stride halted before one particular display case.
Item: Cheongun Silver Needle
Price: 300 million
Source: B-Rank Dungeon in China (Import)
‘Oh.’
A spark lit in Kang Hyeon’s eyes.
‘This has quite a good reputation as an acupuncture tool.’
A needle crafted from the cold ice-silver of the Northern Sea as its base—which prevented the corruption of Qi—mixed with trace amounts of blue jade powder to give it properties that purified toxins.
For channeling Internal Energy when striking vital points, nothing could compare to it.
And one more thing became clear.
‘Items from the Martial Arts World are coming from Dungeons.’
“I’ll take this one.”
Kang Hyeon unhesitatingly extended his wrist to pay.
Ding!
[300,000,000 won has been charged.]
“Take it.”
“Pardon?”
Baek Yu-yeon’s expression turned bewildered.
“Why… why are you giving this to me?”
“A gift to mark your first as my student.”
“It’s far too expensive.”
“Too expensive? Are you looking down on me because I’m a contract worker?”
“N-no, that’s not what I meant!”
“Take it. It’s only beginner-grade anyway. You’ll need better equipment later.”
She accepted it with trembling hands.
“If you’re learning acupuncture, your hands shouldn’t shake like that.”
“…Thank you, Master.”
Emotion welled up in her chest, making her voice tremble.
“I’m grateful, but I’ll need to practice at least tens of thousands of times before my hand settles into it.”
As Kang Hyeon moved forward again, his gaze caught on a small, translucent jade pendant.
Item: Cheongshim Jade
Price: 500,000,000 won
Source: A-rank Dungeon in Sejong City
‘Really?’
Kang Hyeon’s pupils dilated slightly.
‘It’s here?’
Seeing the price, he let out a hollow laugh.
Only five hundred million?
In the Martial Arts World, anyone in a position of strategist or advisor would kill to get their hands on this treasure.
Simply possessing it cleared the mind and blocked Illusion Techniques—those were its remarkable properties.
‘They’ve never fallen victim to an illusion, so they don’t understand its true value.’
A windfall.
Kang Hyeon completed the purchase without hesitation.
Ding!
[500,000,000 won has been charged.]
“Ugh… aren’t you showing off a bit much?”
Lee Se-ah’s voice trembled as she watched 1.8 billion won drop in less than thirty minutes.
To her,
“Take it.”
“…Me?”
Lee Se-ah stumbled backward in shock.
She was a civil servant, which meant she fell under the Anti-Corruption Act.
“No, no! I absolutely cannot accept such an expensive bribe! I’m merely grateful for the thought….”
“A bribe? What good would bribing you do? Keep it. You’ll be less tired.”
“…Why are you giving this to me?”
“So you’ll work harder next to me, that’s why.”
While Lee Se-ah stood bewildered, unable to find her words,
[Ding-dong!]
An announcement chimed.
[Attention, please. A special auction will begin shortly in the central auction hall. Today’s featured item is a secret manual of the Five Tiger Sword Technique imported from the United States. Interested members are requested to proceed to the auction hall.]
‘The Five Tiger Sword Technique?’
Kang Hyeon turned his head.
The domineering sword art of Habuk Peng Clan, which stood as an equal to Namgoong Clan’s Emperor Sword Technique!
The sword method he’d planned to teach Seo Hae-in later would be unveiled here?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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