The Academy’s Unrivaled Professor - Chapter 36

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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 036
Worth a Name or Not
When Kang Hyeon said that he couldn’t become a disciple without meeting a certain standard, Cha Yu-sik flinched for a moment—but soon composed himself and asked calmly.
“May I ask why, sir?”
In the past, he’d been content as a Saengdo, but circumstances had changed.
He wanted nothing more than to become Kang Hyeon’s disciple—more than anyone else.
He wanted to keep receiving his guidance.
“You’re weak.”
Kang Hyeon answered plainly.
Cha Yu-sik’s jaw tightened at those words.
It was the answer he’d expected.
But hearing it directly stung.
‘I want to learn from you because I want to become stronger! If I were already strong, why would I need your teaching?’
So he pressed further.
“Then why did Baek Yu-yeon become your disciple? Are you saying she’s stronger than all of us?”
“Then she is strong, isn’t she?”
“Sir?”
“I never said strength meant physical power. Among you all, is there anyone with better memory than Baek Yu-yeon? Anyone who understands Mugong medicine as perfectly as she does?”
Silence fell over the room.
Of course there wasn’t.
Baek Yu-yeon’s memory was a prodigy even by standards far beyond the Academy.
You’d be hard-pressed to find her equal anywhere in the world.
“Exactly. Baek Yu-yeon is irreplaceable in her field—a true master. But you?”
Kang Hyeon’s gaze swept across them.
“There are tens of thousands walking out that door right now who are stronger than you and better with a blade. You’re just common Hunter aspirants, nothing more.”
The students couldn’t even muster indignation at such a brutal assessment.
“Then we’ll never become your disciples?”
Cha Yu-sik pressed the question with stubborn persistence.
‘Hmm.’
Kang Hyeon clicked his tongue inwardly.
‘I’d originally planned to take disciples only from those with the aptitude to master the Chil-yo Formation.’
These students lacked such talent.
They performed adequately by ordinary standards, but they didn’t have the inborn gifts of the Baek sisters.
Of course, in the Murim, there were ways to force someone to reach a level even without natural talent.
‘But those methods are far too cruel.’
Kang Hyeon himself had endured horrible ordeals at the hands of old cultivators to acquire an ability similar to the Cheonmak-an.
Gwang-su, and Hwang-cheon Doksoo—that cursed old bastard.
They’d taken turns painting toxic herb juice directly on his eyes, again and again.
Other cultivators suffered similar trials.
Could these young students even bear such pain?
Should they have to endure such a hellish ordeal at all?
‘But then again.’
When that day inevitably came, he wouldn’t face the Demon God Asura alone.
He’d need others to hold back the creature’s army.
So he changed his mind.
“Someday.”
Kang Hyeon opened his mouth, addressing the disheartened students.
“When the day comes that you can breathe naturally and move freely even within the Salgi I release,”
that much, at least, would let them stand against Asura’s subordinates.
“then I’ll consider taking you on as disciples.”
“……In other words, you won’t take us, sir.”
Cha Yu-sik wondered why.
Becoming Kang Hyeon’s disciple seemed far harder than inheriting the Cheonrang.
How long did the silence stretch?
“Since you’re here, come inside.”
Kang Hyeon nodded slightly.
The students filed awkwardly into the professor’s office and found places to sit, uncomfortable in the cramped space.
“Space is tight, so spread out on the floor as best you can.”
Click.
Kang Hyeon opened a drawer and pulled out a wrapped box, distributing it to each of them one by one.
“What is this?”
“Open it.”
As the students carefully unwrapped the package, the scent of medicinal herbs rushed toward them.
Inside the box lay Yeongdan, placed with reverence.
“This, this is——!”
Yun Hyeon-jong reacted at once.
“Isn’t this Cheongbo-dan?”
“Cheongbo-dan?”
The other students gasped in shock.
Among manufactured Yeongdan, the premium grades were at least somewhat known to the students.
Especially the price.
“……Two hundred million won per unit…….”
Only a high-ranking executive of a major guild would consider closing his eyes and giving one to his own son once, maybe never.
“Consume them all.”
“This?”
“I’d originally planned to give you one before the midterm.”
The students held their breath.
The disappointment and gloom they’d felt just moments before—when he’d said he wouldn’t take them on as formal disciples—melted away like snow before that single Yeongdan.
Instead, their chests swelled with emotion.
What professor in this world was mad enough to burn through a billion won of his own money for mere auditors, not even formal disciples?
Money doesn’t lie.
If one didn’t care, how could one casually place a two-hundred-million-won medicinal elixir into someone’s mouth?
“Professor…….”
Gwak Do-jin and Yun Hyeon-jong felt the bridge of their noses sting.
“……!”
Cha Yu-sik also pressed his lips firmly closed.
Seo Hae-in’s eyes brimmed with tears, while Han Tae-ho’s fists trembled.
We’re sorry, Professor, for failing to understand your intentions and feeling slighted!
“Don’t even think of making excuses after taking the elixir. Consume it and then sit to cultivate your Ungi. I’ll be watching.”
Excuses?
To take a two-hundred-million-won medicine and then disgracefully lose the midterm?
That was not something a human being would do.
They had to win, even if it killed them.
Even if they had to stake their very lives!
“We will gratefully consume it!”
Gwak Do-jin swallowed first, and the remaining students followed, tossing theirs into their mouths.

* * *
Korean Hunter Association Headquarters.
Employees approached Ma Cheol-ung, who stood with a stern expression and arms crossed.
In their hands they held a Bijup.
“You were right, Hunter.”
“What do you mean?”
“They really did mix the Cheonpung Doseop and Hyeolsa-do together in a clever way. It’s a fake.”
“……These goddamn bastards.”
Ma Cheol-ung’s rage erupted.
He’d nearly lost thirty billion won—that infuriated him enough—but…….
‘What if I’d trained with it thinking it was real?’
He’d almost wasted time clinging to a worthless Bijup.
The thought of competitors climbing higher while he alone stagnated made his blood boil backward.
“It would be best to take this up with the American Hunter Association immediately.”
“I’ve already sent a letter…….”
“Are you joking right now?”
Whoooosh——!
The employees swallowed their screams at the force Ma Cheol-ung unleashed.
“A letter? Call them directly, right now, and demand answers on the spot. They guaranteed it, didn’t they? Make those bastards take full responsibility.”
“P-please calm yourself! Since the other party is the American Hunter Association, we should approach this carefully at first…….”
“Carefully?”
Ma Cheol-ung let out a contemptuous laugh and thrust his face close to the employee’s.
To him, it must have felt like a yaksha from the netherworld had descended.
“It seems the situation still hasn’t fully sunk in. The American Hunter Association has plenty to lose, so they’ll at least be watching public opinion.”
Ma Cheol-ung bared his teeth.
“I have no such concerns.”
“……Hiss.”
“Whether you release a statement or make a fuss, step forward and resolve this completely. If you hem and haw out of deference to America?”
Crack!
The marble floor of the Headquarters beneath his feet splintered.
“Then I’ll flip this entire Association building upside down myself. Do you understand?”

* * *
Days later.
“Wow, Kang Hyeon!”
Lee Se-a, who had been taking a break from grinding her ink stone, let out a yelp.
“What?”
“An article just came out! You have to see this.”
She thrust her smartphone screen toward him.
[Breaking News] American Hunter Association–Certified High-Value Bijup Ruled Counterfeit in Shocking Turn!
[Global Issue] The 30-Billion-Won Oho Danhyungdo Also a Patchwork Forgery? ‘Counterfeit Bijup Alert’ Issued!
“Oh.”
Kang Hyeon whistled in admiration.
“If articles are already breaking, there must have been real progress.”
“Let me read through it.”
Lee Se-a reviewed the article and relayed its contents.
“Apparently the American Hunter Association was furious at first.”
“But?”
“They asked to compare it with the original Cheonpung Doseop and Hyeolsa-do. They’d have the data too.”
They likely possessed their own copies of the forged Oho Danhyungdo manuscript as well.
They would have duplicated everything when granting the certificate of authenticity.
“So they had nothing to say.”
“Exactly. It was identical down to the last syllable.”
Kang Hyeon took a sip of whiskey with an air of interest, and Lee Se-a continued with growing excitement.
“The funny part comes next. Once the American Association understood the situation, they tried to arrest that appraiser and the Dungeon broker, but apparently both have been in hiding for ages. And the executive who gave final approval? He quit and fled a month ago.”
“Planned fraudsters, then.”
“So now it’s total chaos. They’ve ordered a recall of all Bijups that went through that executive’s hands over the past year and are re-validating everything.”
Just as Kang Hyeon had predicted, they couldn’t have made only one fake.
They likely preyed on smaller nations primarily.
The Oho Danhyungdo was identified only because Kang Hyeon examined it—if it had fallen into Ma Cheol-ung’s hands as intended, the fraud wouldn’t have come to light for at least several more months.
“Well done. So? Is there anything else in the article?”
“Anything else?”
“Something important seems to be missing.”
“What……? Um……?”
Lee Se-a’s eyes widened as she scrolled through the article.
“Huh?”
Lee Se-a’s lips trembled slightly.
“……S-rank Hunter Ma Cheol-ung revealed that the Haeseogsа, Lee Se-a, played a decisive role in exposing the counterfeit incident. He praised her without reservation, stating that without her discerning eye, he and the entire world would have been deceived……?”
“Nice.”
Only then did Kang Hyeon take another satisfied sip of whiskey.
“Wait, just a moment.”
Suddenly anxious, Lee Se-a typed her three-character name into a portal site’s search bar.
Related search terms flooded the screen.
[Haeseogsа Lee Se-a]
[Lee Se-a Oho Danhyungdo]
[Lee Se-a Identity]
She blinked.
Not only domestically, but internationally as well—people were mentioning her…….
Global-famous Haeseogsаs had even left comments.
– To instantly discern how a third-rank Mugong like the Cheonpung Doseop and Hyeolsa-do were so intricately blended requires enormous Naegong. It’s only possible if you have that Bijup completely internalized in your mind.
– The birth of a rising star! Do you have other Bijups appraised by this person?
“Oh my.”
And there were also two fresh breaking-news articles that had just been posted.
[Exclusive] Management Bureau Reveals Full Delegation of Top-Secret Mugong Interpretation to Lee Se-a!
[Breaking News] Hunter Association Begins Official Sales of Lee Se-a’s Interpretation of Public Technique Jilpung-bo! Industry Shocked: “Everything We’ve Been Walking Has Been Mere Crawling!”
The response was genuinely tremendous.
In fact, within the country, Jilpung-bo generated even greater ripples than Oho Danhyungdo.
It was more accessible to the general public.
“I told you. Your reputation’s about to explode.”
And explode it did.
Ding, ding-ding, ding-ding-ding!
Her personal smartphone, not her work phone, had been ringing continuously.
– Mom: Se-a! Is that you on the news?
– Dad: My daughter was a Bijup interpreter? I thought you worked at a trading company?
– Kim Min-ji: You crazy Se-a! What is this?!
– Choe Su-jin: Se-a, I’ve looked at that interpreter’s photo a hundred times—it really looks like you…?
She was a member of the Management Bureau Special Task Force.
Naturally, her identity couldn’t be exposed—she’d told even her family and acquaintances that she worked for a trading company.
“Ah, what am I going to do.”
Watching herself despair, she found herself growing even more irritated at the tipsy professor grinning beside her.
“It’s like my job changed overnight, sir.”
“That’s a good thing.”
“How is this good? My face is plastered everywhere.”
“At least money’s coming in, isn’t it?”
“Money…?”
Lee Se-a’s eyes went wide.
She’d thought they were only borrowing her name.
What money was he talking about?
“I’m not like those government types, squeezing patriotic sacrifice out of people. I’ll make sure you get something for the use of your name.”
“How much…?”
When Lee Se-a asked hesitantly, Kang Hyeon drained the last of his whiskey in one gulp and flashed a grin.
“That’s something we’ll have to discuss.”
Kang Hyeon gestured with his chin toward Lee Se-a’s smartphone.
“Set up a meeting with the director.”

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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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