The Lightning I Harbor Is Too Strong - Chapter 52

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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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Episode 52
Those were days spent contemplating two delightful dilemmas.
One was the Hyeon Cheon Geuk Roe Dan that Jung I-sin had received from Academy Master Bong Jung-ak.
The moment he opened the wooden box, the Lightning Qi he felt was the purest he had encountered since setting foot in Jungyeon.
It was in an entirely different class from the Roe Jeong Dan that lay tossed in a corner of his desk, alongside the secret manual of the Grand Void Overwhelming Art.
“How exactly should I consume this?”
It was a Spirit Elixir imbued with tremendous Lightning Qi.
In truth, since he possessed a Lightning Wheel, swallowing it outright didn’t seem likely to cause problems. That had been why he’d declined the suggestions from Bong Jung-ak and Yeom Tak-gang.
Yet now, facing the prospect of actually taking it, certain concerns arose.
“It doesn’t contain Lightning Qi alone, does it?”
A Spirit Elixir was ultimately a creation of human hands.
One couldn’t simply pluck lightning hurled from the heavens and knead it together, so of course other energies would be mixed in.
That was precisely where Jung I-sin’s worry lay.
‘Will I be able to absorb those other energies completely?’
He had confidence. ……Though certainty was another matter.
This was when he’d come to realize that the quantity of his True Qi was his greatest weakness.
At some point, he’d quietly stopped his self-deprecating declarations about Internal Strength poverty, for he didn’t wish to waste such a precious Spirit Elixir.
“Well, it’s not as though it’ll disappear just because I don’t eat it now. Let me search for a better method. Now, now! Don’t you dare lay a paw on this. I absolutely will not forgive you.”
Jung I-sin issued a warning to O-seo, who had been creeping toward the wooden box, then picked up the object beside it.
His second delightful dilemma: the Wooden Tablet from Yeom Tak-gang.
He’d received it for his contributions to the Jeongdo Martial World, though truth be told, it felt surreal.
He’d only subdued a single bandit, after all.
The memory remained vivid—that crude fellow had spoken of Shaolin without respect.
It was also the first life Jung I-sin had ever taken, yet apparently he hadn’t been an ordinary bandit.
That detail held little significance for him. What mattered was what he could accomplish with this tablet.
‘Asking him to uncover the truth about Je-gal Gi-cheon right away would be too much of a long shot. Still, couldn’t I gain more detailed information about the Southern Palace and the Dang Clan?’
Alternatively, simply borrowing Yeom Tak-gang’s martial prowess was also worth considering.
No matter how he used it, the tablet was now like a universal key in his hands.
As he held the precious tablet lightly and organized his thoughts, a voice came from outside.
―Are you in, young master? It’s Bang Si-jeong.
“Yes, come in.”
Bang Si-jeong opened the door and spoke with only his head poked through the gap.
“The Instructional Professors have all been assigned. Would you care to go check them together?”
“Oh, finally.”
He gathered the Spirit Elixir and the tablet and stood.
After prying O-seo away from where it clung to the wooden box, the creature climbed atop Jung I-sin’s head and began to pout, its tail wagging with vigor.
Watching the tail thrash about with unusual force, Bang Si-jeong asked.
“It’s got more power in that tail than usual. This sulk seems to be lasting quite long.”
“It was coveting something to eat, so I scolded it a little.”
“Something to eat?”
“Something precious.”
“No matter how precious, to squabble with a beast over food……?”
Jung I-sin left the dormitory, leaving Bang Si-jeong with that peculiar look in his eyes.
The upper-tier dormitories of Cheongryong were divided into separate buildings for male and female students, and between them stood a large bulletin board.
Academy notices were posted there whenever there was an announcement to make.
“It’s empty?”
Yet though the building housed at least fifteen residents, the space before the board was vacant. Soon, Bang Si-jeong spoke with evident pride.
“So our top-ranked student could examine it at leisure, the others confirmed it first, then I called you.”
“I appreciate the gesture, but is the Entrance Examination’s first rank really that significant? The Evaluation Matches showed rather mixed results in terms of victory and defeat.”
“Heh heh. Well, until the Ranking Tournament is held, there’s no other way to establish standings. After all, mankind has always had an instinct to rank things, hasn’t it?”
So there was such a thing as a Ranking Tournament.
The name alone conjured a vivid image.
If the Evaluation Matches had been like that, what spectacle would these hot-blooded martial artists present when they formally competed for rank?
“There, the first line.”
Jung I-sin pulled himself from his thoughts and followed Bang Si-jeong’s pointing finger.
Indeed, on the topmost line of the board, Jung I-sin’s name appeared beside an unfamiliar one.
“Yeon Baek-ha?”
“I figured you wouldn’t know. That’s why I brought you here.”
“What sort of professor is he?”
At Jung I-sin’s question, Bang Si-jeong broke into a delighted laugh.
“I’ll have my hands full, I’m sure. I’d dearly love to watch Master Jung flustered from the sidelines, but alas—I’m being assigned elsewhere for instruction.”
Yeon Baek-ha.
A professor who had taught the third-year cohort the previous year, it seemed. Instructional professors rarely stepped outside their assigned class, but as it happened, Yeon Baek-ha was currently the only cultivator of the Lightning Art at Cheonmu Academy.
“Then I should be grateful, shouldn’t I? Though I’m puzzled by the reaction. Is he a frightening man?”
“Likely the youngest professor at Cheonmu Academy. A master of Martial Art Countering, with the epithet Thunder Calamity Asura.”
“Oh! That’s quite impressive.”
“The thing is, I’ve heard he finds everything under heaven tiresome by nature.”
“……Surely he’s not tired of teaching as well? I don’t mind, as long as he instructs me properly…….”
“Well, there’s no professor at Cheonmu Academy who shirks that duty, so don’t worry. But I’ve heard that if a student disciple’s talent doesn’t meet his standards, he won’t associate with them at all. That’s why he rarely takes on an instructional role.”
Following Bang Si-jeong’s words, the figure of Yeon Baek-ha took shape in Jung I-sin’s mind.
A young prodigy, aloof and proud; a taciturn martial artist who interacted rarely with others and devoted himself solely to his own art.
“…….”
“I do wonder how things will unfold between him and Master Jung.”
* * *
At last, spring and early summer arrived, and the semester began. He felt it the moment he stepped outside Cheongryong Dormitory.
On the path toward the Grand Plaza, there were many senior students in scarlet or white martial robes. Their eyes held keen interest as Jung I-sin passed, yet they seemed to have their own pressing business on this first day of the new term.
Soon he entered a vast pavilion.
Gangmudang, to the east of the Grand Plaza, was where indoor instruction took place.
But that puzzled him.
Instruction with one’s instructional professor was typically held in the training grounds. This went without saying for Mu-jin and Bang Si-jeong; Nam Tae-gang had even headed into the mountains beyond Cheongryong Dormitory.
‘Why am I in a classroom?’
In fact, among Gangmudang’s numerous lecture halls, only a few showed any sign of occupation.
He fumbled about searching for the right classroom for a time.
When Jung I-sin reached the farthest classroom on this floor, he opened the door without hesitation. He had arrived a quarter hour early, after all.
Though he had said nothing aloud, he harbored quiet anticipation at the prospect of meeting someone who could properly handle Lightning Qi.
Beyond the door that swung wide open, in the classroom he had expected to be empty, stood a man draped in a dark grey long robe.
“Ah…….”
The dark grey robe was the symbol of a Cheonmu Academy professor. But Jung I-sin had not deduced the man’s identity from that alone.
His face was bloodless and pale; ash-grey hair was gathered back with a hairpin. His dark eyes were sharp and his features refined, yet the deep shadows beneath them, blending with that wan complexion, created an impression of profound exhaustion.
When Jung I-sin thought him to resemble a scholar more than a martial artist, Yeon Baek-ha’s gaze fell upon him.
Jung I-sin bowed quickly.
“I apologize for my tardiness, Professor Yeon. It’s an honour to meet you. I am Jung I-sin.”
“……That’s fine.”
His voice was hoarse, as though he had spoken little in a long time.
It was in that moment, stepping into the classroom with the thought that perhaps he ought to have brought water, that—
“Wait.”
Yeon Baek-ha extended his palm, his voice chilled and cutting. As if to say: come no closer.
Immediately after, he asked:
“I’ve heard you handle Lightning Qi.”
“Yes.”
Then silence again.
With each passing moment, Bang Si-jeong’s teasing remarks came to mind. The man was certainly disconcerting.
‘He doesn’t seem arrogant, but he’s certainly not ordinary.’
Typically, an instructional professor took on several student disciples at once. To receive instruction one-on-one was rare. He had thought himself fortunate, but now a vague unease settled over him.
After staring at the documents before him for some time, Yeon Baek-ha glanced at Jung I-sin.
“The documents you submitted……contained essentially nothing of substance.”
“Ah, well…….”
“If you wish to forge your own path alone, that’s acceptable.”
At that cold and resolute statement, Jung I-sin shook his head at once.
“No. I require instruction.”
To achieve his aims, he knew he could not simply grow stronger in the ordinary way.
The youngest professor at Cheonmu Academy, a cultivator of the Lightning Art like himself.
He had no intention of letting such an opportunity slip away.
“……Tsk.”
“……Professor?”
Yeon Baek-ha spoke without so much as a flicker of expression.
“I understand. It’s only natural that my tutelage appears the most precious thing in the world to you. Lightning Qi remains rare enough that even where martial knowledge is scarce, it’s still regarded with reverence.”
“No, that’s not what I meant…….”
“Then you must first understand my position. You must grasp reality as it is. This is a matter of attitude.”
“…….”
“If you truly wish to receive instruction…… then decide for yourself what and how much you will reveal.”
“…….”
It was a stinging rebuke.
Jung I-sin, who had entered the Entrance Examination with the arrogant belief that he would simply observe and evaluate the enemy’s legacy himself, had nothing to say.
The man before him was one who spent his precious time offering guidance.
He was offering Jung I-sin genuine counsel.
The word “teacher” rose unbidden to his mind.
“At Manmugak, there is a book recording the secret chronicles of Na Gun-cheon. Study it and organize your thoughts. The deadline is tomorrow at the Hour of the Goat. If you’re late, don’t bother coming again.”
He stated the assignment in an irritable tone.
Jung I-sin remembered Bang Si-jeong’s words, yet Yeon Baek-ha’s warning didn’t seem like mere assessment of ability.
‘It sounds like he’s saying it for my sake.’
Perhaps he was paying special attention because they were both practitioners of the Lightning Art?
Something…… gave him a strong sense of a true educator.
Jung I-sin brought his hands together in sincere gratitude.
“When I return, I will come before you without shame.”
Jung I-sin bowed and closed the door behind him as he left.
Yeon Baek-ha gazed at the closed door with vacant eyes.
Only after the sound of footsteps descending the stairs faded…….
Thud.
Yeon Baek-ha collapsed against his desk as if struck from behind by an unseen force.
“Argh! What in hell is that monster?! Where in blazes did such a terrifying thing roll in from……!”
Yeon Baek-ha tore at his own hair. He didn’t notice the hairpin rolling across the floor.
With the cohort he’d been overseeing advancing to their fourth year, regular classes had ceased. It was a time that could rightly be called a sabbatical.
“I was trying to focus on martial cultivation, and suddenly this……!”
A student had entered the Entrance Examination, they said, one who possessed an affinity for Lightning Qi—and Ok Jung-hui, the newly appointed First-Year Director, had come seeking him out personally.
To take on the role of Instructional Professor…….
Rumors about Jung I-sin had already spread thick among the faculty. Professors had even squabbled over the Instructional Professor position.
Yeon Baek-ha had scoffed at it all.
He was a man born to despise complications and tedium. He disliked standing out, disliked receiving attention, disliked mingling with others.
And yet, the Instructional Professor role for Jung I-sin wasn’t merely shining—it was burning brilliantly!
But he couldn’t refuse.
Ok Jung-hui alone would have been troublesome, but standing beside him with gleaming eyes was none other than Seop Yeon, the Radiant Sword Master.
‘It would be wise not to forget that there are those who wish to do something but cannot.’
The lightning he’d been seeking dwelt in Seop Yeon’s gaze.
‘Then you do it yourself!!!’
In the end, he accepted.
But he set a condition: he would decide only after seeing Jung I-sin in person. As always, he planned to use an assignment as a pretext to refuse.
But what of Jung I-sin when they met?
“Talent? That’s not even the issue here.”
After thrashing about on the desk for a moment, the now limp Yeon Baek-ha pressed his fingers hard to the corners of his eyes and made a vow.
“Absolutely not. That…… that can’t be it.”
This transcended his tedium by an immeasurable distance.
When he placed a hand over his chest, his heart was still pounding. It had begun the moment he faced Jung I-sin.
From childhood, he had possessed exceptional sensitivity to Lightning Qi. That he had risen from a third-rate Lightning Art practitioner in the provincial academy to first-rate proved it.
Ever since, he had trained in the Lightning Art his entire life. If the Lightning Art alone were the measure, he was a specialist who transcended his peers.
But what Jung I-sin possessed…… was something he had never encountered before.
Even Ma Roe Geum-ga-ju, who had perfected the Purple Lightning Demonic Art, was nothing like this.
It had begun the moment Jung I-sin opened the door with that serene smile.
The True Qi that Yeon Baek-ha had refined over a lifetime suddenly surged at the mere sight of him—like a beast reunited with an old master after eons of separation, drawn irresistibly to Jung I-sin.
Every instant that had scraped at Yeon Baek-ha’s senses and nerves now wagged its tail as gently as if it had all been a lie.
“It’s wrong. This is wrong. I need to run.”
The thought that he would be devoured by what Jung I-sin carried would not leave him.
He wanted to flee Cheonmu Academy at once.
But…… was there anywhere he could research the Lightning Art more comfortably than here? Whichever faction took him as a guest, there would be mountains of work to do.
In the end, Yeon Baek-ha buried his face in the desk again.
“Ugghhh.”
That he had thought of Manmugak was nothing short of providence. Without question, it was the finest gambit he’d deployed in nearly three years.
“Finding that book will take at least two years. Once he learns the truth, he’ll certainly give up or question me.”
The deadline for the assignment was only one day.
Though an absurd task, even a professor must have principles.
In the current Jeongdo Martial World, not knowing Na Gun-cheon while training in the Lightning Art?
As an instructor, it was reason enough to refuse. Ok Jung-hui would have nothing to say to that.
“If you must, then don’t argue—just give it up……!”
Yeon Baek-ha sprang to his feet and hurried to the window, rubbing his hands together anxiously.
He could see Jung I-sin’s retreating figure in the distance, walking with measured strides.
Though the sun hung high overhead and cast no long shadows, to Yeon Baek-ha’s eyes a dark demon seemed to writhe and shimmer in the man’s wake.
“Never! Never come here again!”
Then Jung I-sin turned slowly around.
“Hah!”
Yeon Baek-ha gasped in shock and sank to the floor.
He clutched his chest and leaned against the wall for a long while, then carefully lifted his head—but Jung I-sin had already vanished.
“Hoo……!”
The lecture hall was filled only with the sound of his labored, anguished breathing.
The Lightning I Harbored Burns Too Bright
Author |
Woo San-yu
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(주) Samyang C&C
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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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