"Baek Ri-won has invaded?"
Unable to believe his disciple's report, Gwan Ju-heun rushed outside to confirm the situation himself.
The first thing he saw was the shattered front gate—and dozens of trainees surrounding an intruder.
The intruder stood casually, with one collapsed gatekeeper lying behind him.
The strange thing was… he looked young.
At most, he seemed around fifteen years old—no older than the average mid-tier trainee of the martial academy.
And yet, someone like that had attacked alone.
Gwan Ju-heun, dumbfounded, shouted in outrage.
"You wretch! Do you even know where you dare to stand…?"
"Are you the one in charge here?"
But Ju-heun couldn't finish his words.
Baek Ri-won had cut him off.
Ju-heun's eyes sharpened with fury. That a brat barely half his age would dare act so insolent made his blood boil.
"So it's true—you must be the fool of the Baek Ri clan, aren't you?"
"Convenient. Saves us the trouble of introductions."
Baek Ri-won chuckled lightly.
"You already know why I'm here, don't you?"
Of course Ju-heun knew.
They had been talking about him just moments ago.
But he couldn't understand where this confidence came from. This was a boy who supposedly hadn't even mastered martial arts properly—so what gave him such arrogance?
Does he not realize he's been discarded as a pawn? Or maybe he has hidden guards nearby?
Yet no matter how carefully he scanned the area, Ju-heun saw no sign of escorts.
That left only one conclusion—
He's just a complete idiot.
Yes. The reports were clear—he had beaten up academy kids.
Even if he was called the fool of his clan, he was still a scion of a prestigious martial family. Of course, roughing up a few academy trainees was within his ability.
Even today, knocking out the gatekeeper and barging in was no great feat.
Most likely, a streak of easy victories had made him arrogant and cocky.
"You have two choices."
Baek Ri-won suddenly raised two fingers.
"First, you can sincerely apologize for everything you've done to the Azure Dragon Martial Academy, swear never to repeat it, and of course, pay proper compensation."
Ju-heun scoffed.
To apologize now to the Azure Dragon Martial Academy?
The sheer absurdity of it left him speechless. Not even Baek Ri-won himself could believe anyone would choose that option.
Baek Ri-won folded down one finger.
"The second choice is to keep defying me without apologizing—and be crushed where you stand. So, choose."
"Keh-heh-heh. You crazy brat."
Ju-heun burst out laughing.
"You're nothing but an arrogant fool, flaunting your family's name without knowing how the world works. You need a beating to teach you a lesson."
"So you've chosen the second option."
"Trainees! What are you waiting for? Teach this insolent brat some manners!"
At Ju-heun's command, dozens of trainees exchanged glances.
Slowly, they formed a circle around Baek Ri-won, closing in. Baek Ri-won only smiled faintly.
"Since you're still children, I won't kill you."
He set the spear he'd been carrying down on the ground.
Ju-heun blinked in disbelief.
He's putting down his weapon? Has he gone completely mad—
Crack!
His thoughts froze.
Because at that instant, Baek Ri-won vanished.
"...!"
The first to notice something wrong was one of the boys on Baek Ri-won's right.
He held a wooden sword with an iron core, glaring menacingly.
But it wasn't his senses that gave him the warning—no, it was because Baek Ri-won had suddenly appeared right in front of him and slammed a fist into his stomach.
Boom!
Thud!
The boy flew backward, rolling across the ground.
Every mouth fell open. Not one of them had caught Baek Ri-won's movement.
But Ri-won didn't pause.
Crack!
Sparks of lightning danced.
The Heavenly Thunder God Steps erupted, and in a blink, nearby trainees were swept away.
Some were struck in the stomach, others in the ribs, others in the knees.
One by one, they collapsed, groaning and screaming in pain.
Though he hadn't killed them, each blow carried enough force to crack bones.
"Th-this lunatic! Form a defensive formation!"
Ju-heun finally barked an order, panic setting in.
Terrified after seeing their friends collapse in seconds, the remaining trainees huddled together back-to-back, covering every direction.
A simple triangular defense formation.
It wasn't much, but it could still deter reckless advances—long enough for the instructors to subdue him…
"Aaargh!"
…Or so Ju-heun thought.
But their formation shattered instantly—
All it took was a single punch from Baek Ri-won.
The fist carried thunder's energy, paralyzing its target while flooding them with pain.
Before even a minute had passed, every trainee lay crumpled on the ground.
"This bastard…!"
The instructors finally stepped forward—
Boom!
"Guhk!"
Only to be struck down by even stronger blows.
One had his jaw smashed and collapsed unconscious.
Another had his shin shattered before he could swing his sword.
Yet another, trying to thrust a spear, was kicked hard in the gut and folded over.
"Y-you… you…!"
"What?"
Crackle!
Baek Ri-won, still wreathed in lightning, strode forward.
Ju-heun stared in terror.
Is this really the same boy once mocked as the disgrace of the Baek Ri clan?
Even Baek Ri-sang, the gifted second son, couldn't possibly do this…
"If you've got something to say, then speak."
"Uwaaaaah!"
But it was a pointless struggle.
For now, survival came first.
Ju-heun roared and swung the wooden sword at his waist with his fiercest, deadliest technique.
Crash!
"Guhh!"
But before the blade could even land, Baek Ri-won's palm struck first.
Ju-heun staggered backward, choking on breath.
Then Ri-won's palm smashed into his jaw—
Smack!
With a sharp crack, Ju-heun toppled.
"Urgh… huff… huff…"
"Not bad. You can take a hit."
Baek Ri-won smirked at the still-conscious Ju-heun, though the man was too wracked with pain to answer.
Ri-won hadn't expected an answer anyway. Picking up the spear he'd set aside, he calmly walked toward the hall bearing the signboard of the Martial Academy.
Then—
Boom!
A thunderclap rang out, and lightning split the academy's signboard clean in two.
Ju-heun could only gape in disbelief.
"You… you think you'll get away with this?"
Ju-heun forced out his voice.
"The Red Demon Sect won't sit idly by. If they hear of this, you're—"
"Of course they won't. Naturally."
But Baek Ri-won interrupted him again, smiling faintly.
"Their pet academy just got smashed. Of course they'll be furious. Even though they were the ones who started this mess, idiots like them won't care about that."
"Y-you knew this, and still did such a thing?"
"Exactly because I knew. That's why I did it. Let them come seeking revenge."
Ri-won's eyes gleamed with killing intent.
"That way, I don't have to bother hunting them down myself."
"...!"
Ju-heun's face froze in horror.
And that was just the beginning.
Baek Ri-won didn't stop at destroying one academy.
He immediately sought out the others.
There were four martial academies harassing the Azure Dragon Academy.
He intended to destroy them all, one by one.
And the results were the same—
"Aaargh!"
"Do you think you'll escape unscathed after this?!"
Each academy repeated the same lines, first boasting, then threatening him with their backers.
But Baek Ri-won wasn't one to be frightened by such things.
In a single day, he had destroyed the signboards of all four academies oppressing the Azure Dragon Academy.
And news spread like wildfire.
"Unbelievable. Four academies gone in just one day?"
"So the Azure Dragon's master finally made his move?"
"No, I heard it was the third son of the Baek Ri clan."
"What? That disgrace of the clan? Impossible."
At first, people refused to believe it.
Who could imagine that Baek Ri-won—the shame of the Baek Ri family—could accomplish such a feat?
But soon enough, the truth was undeniable.
There were too many eyewitnesses, and Baek Ri-won himself hadn't bothered to hide.
"Did the clan finally find him a good teacher?"
"Or maybe he stumbled on some miracle elixir or hidden legacy."
"Either way, the Baek Ri clan's power in this region will surge again."
"With the four rival academies destroyed, their trainees are already quitting in fear. No one wants to stay and risk another beating."
Naturally, the ones most rattled were the Red Demon Sect—the very backers of those four academies.
Boom!
"What the hell happened here!"
The Red Demon Sect's leader, Hwang In-ho, roared in fury.
But none of his lieutenants had an answer. They were just as dumbstruck.
After all, who could have expected that the neglected bastard son of the Baek Ri clan would ruin their plans?
And not just ruin them—but in a single day, topple four academies.
They had personally received reports from each academy's master. This was no rumor.
"We always knew the Baek Ri clan might retaliate someday—but I never imagined it would play out like this…"
Hwang In-ho muttered in disbelief.
They had been working to strip away the Baek Ri clan's influence in Hwaeum City.
But instead of weakening the clan, their own Red Demon Sect's reputation had been trampled.
Everyone knew by now that those four academies were backed by the sect.
"Sect Master, what should we do?"
"We should send men to kill that arrogant brat!"
His subordinates spoke with grim faces.
"Kill him? That would mean war with the Baek Ri clan!"
Hwang In-ho exploded at them.
The truth was, he had only wanted to slowly chip away at the clan's power. All-out war was far too risky.
If we go to war, win or lose, the cost will be too great.
Even if the orthodox sects were waning and the unorthodox ones rising, the Baek Ri clan still retained formidable strength.
A direct clash would only weaken both sides—leaving room for other sects to take advantage. That could not be allowed.
"Then perhaps we don't kill him outright—just teach him a lesson. Enough that even the Baek Ri clan can't complain."
It was Hwang Ui-cheol, one of the sect's officers, who spoke up.
He was the nephew of Hwang In-ho, young but highly skilled, and trusted deeply by the sect master.
At his words, Hwang In-ho's eyes lit up.
"Ui-cheol… you think you can do it?"
"Leave it to me. Maybe he found some miracle or treasure that's made him cocky—but I'll remind him of his place."
He smirked confidently.
"I'll go and show him the true power of the Red Demon Sect."
"Good. I'll trust you with this."
Hwang In-ho nodded firmly.
Ui-cheol was so talented that he considered him his heir despite having no children of his own.
If anyone could display the might of the Red Demon Sect, it was him.
read more on BrightNovels.com