I Prayed for a Murim Reincarnation, But I Was Born as the Youngest Imperial Prince - Chapter 76

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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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Zhuge shook his head as he watched Seonwu, who couldn’t hold back his laughter.
‘I can see right through what he’s thinking.’
What was so great about being a chivalrous xia anyway?
‘But then again, our clan survived thanks to his obsession with playing hero, so I can’t really complain.’
He was grateful.
Since things had turned out this way, he had no choice but to play along.
Zhuge Jun opened his mouth.
“Family Head, shouldn’t the Main House show that it does not neglect to repay its debts of gratitude? First, let us spread the word widely across the Jianghu so the Eunhak Sect gains a clear reputation, and we should also present them with a Token of Gratitude so that we may repay them in the future when the Eunhak Sect needs the Main House.”
Honestly, there was no reason why King Wuryong, who had received the entirety of Henan Province as his fiefdom, would ever need a Token of Gratitude from the Zhuge Clan.
But a hero of the Eunhak Sect would certainly need something like that.
“Ahem, oh come on, there’s no need for that.”
Zhuge Jun inwardly clicked his tongue as he watched Seonwu put on a show of declining while his mouth split into a wide grin.
‘Seriously, getting so happy over something completely useless makes him a total eccentric.’
He had known since his past life that the guy loved martial arts novels, but to think he would be this sincere about it even after being reborn.
From the side, the First Elder chimed in.
“Should we not also generously offer our clan’s Spiritual Pills and silver taels? It seems they would be of help in rebuilding the Eunhak Sect…”
‘Uncle, that guy is the sixth richest person in this country.’
The richest was the Emperor.
Second to fifth place were his four older brothers.
The Zhuge Clan wasn’t poor either, occupying the bottom seat among the Five Great Noble Families, but…
To be blunt, being one of the Five Great Noble Families only mattered within the Wulin.
If you factored in the prominent general families and prime ministerial houses that merely served the Imperial Court, their rank would drop drastically.
Even if a family like theirs gave away some wealth, would King Wuryong even notice it?
Is this what it feels like to desperately want to shout that the king has donkey ears?
But whether Zhuge Jun felt frustrated or not, Seonwu was thrilled.
It didn’t matter to him that the silver taels given by the Zhuge Clan were only a fraction of his actual wealth, or that the Spiritual Pills they offered couldn’t match what he had already given to the Zhuge Family Head.
The important thing was the very fact that he received such rewards in recognition of his Chivalrous Journey.
‘They will say Seonwu of the Eunhak Sect saved the Zhuge Clan from a crisis and received silver taels and Spiritual Pills. What a wonderful rumor.’
Now he had finally gained a proper reputation.
It would only grow bigger from here on out.
Until the day he was hailed as the Number One Under Heaven.
‘My name needs to be at the very front of the Top Ten Masters of Wulin.’
To achieve that, he would have to raise his cultivation realm first.
For now, let’s be satisfied with this.
* * *
The Zhuge Clan held a banquet.
It served to boost morale by celebrating how they had overcome this crisis together, and regardless of the details, they had won a defensive battle.
In addition, celebrating the exploits of Seonwu and Dan Suyeong was a major reason.
Furthermore, there were other guests invited to the banquet, as well as merchants connected to the Zhuge Clan.
And the Beggars’ Sect.
Utilizing such connections, the Zhuge Family Head diligently spread the rumors.
It was an event that would spread on its own even if left alone, but because the Zhuge Clan spread it intentionally, it traveled even faster.
The reason the Zhuge Family Head made such an effort was to ensure the rumors took a more accurate shape.
‘If you let it spread naturally, the rumor gets distorted.’
Even if the general public didn’t know the specifics, the primary rumors spreading to the major powers of the Wulin needed to be accurate.
‘Receiving fourteen Spiritual Pills alone is enough of a price to keep the Main House at his beck and call for a while, but now the entire clan owes him the Grace of Saving a Life…’
If His Highness King Wuryong hadn’t informed them about the issue with the formation, they would have spent several more days completely oblivious.
And what if another one of the Eight Hidden Demons had arrived during that time?
‘The clan could have been utterly devastated.’
Since His Highness saved them from that, how could they not repay him with loyalty?
‘Though our clan chose to remain in the Wulin rather than entering government service in the Imperial Court, repaying a debt of gratitude is a separate matter from not taking up official posts.’
As luck would have it, His Highness also wished to inspect the Wulin while concealing his identity, so how could they not assist him?
‘With this, the reputation he desires as a chivalrous xia has been established for the first stage.’
The silver taels and Spiritual Pills were merely given for appearances; in truth, he must possess them in abundance.
The Token of Gratitude was also just a formality; in reality, receiving grace from the Imperial Family and claiming to repay it with a Token of Gratitude would be closer to a sacrilege.
He could almost hear the auditory hallucinations of court officials impeaching him, asking if a mere Zhuge Clan had the right to give a Token of Gratitude to the Imperial Family.
‘It was only given because His Highness wishes to disguise himself as a chivalrous xia, so it holds no real meaning.’
Then, what could they assist with next?
‘As expected, it is the matter of Namgung.’
They must ensure that investigating and punishing the evils of the Namgung Clan proceeds according to His Highness’s wishes.
Seonwu hadn’t given any detailed instructions, but power was something that naturally had subordinates catering to it from below.
The Zhuge Family Head worked out a strategy for Seonwu on his own.
‘The Namgung Clan is currently advocating for a vertical alliance, urging everyone to combine forces so the Imperial Court cannot look down on the Wulin…’
But that was only beneficial to Namgung.
He, on the other hand, just needed to move the Wulin to choose a horizontal alliance.
‘However, openly bringing up words like horizontal alliance or loyalty would make me a novice.’
There was no need for that.
He just had to provide the proper data for them to make their own judgment.
The leaders of the other factions were also thinking men.
‘This is hardly a grand divine calculation and demonic strategy. It is far too easy.’
* * *
Though they were under a sect lockdown, the members of Namgung did not stay solely within the clan’s manor.
There were those who had been traveling outside on various missions.
In their bewilderment, they moved busily to save their clan.
That didn’t mean they chose a path like openly storming the palace to threaten the Emperor.
If they tried that against the current Emperor, whose cultivation realm was on an entirely different level from the Ten Grand Sovereigns, the clan would not just ruin itself but face total family extermination.
Instead, they appealed to other Wulin factions and petitioned the civil and military officials of the Imperial Court to whom they had regularly sent favors—meaning bribes.
Namgung believed there was hope.
‘It has been forty years since the current Great Long Empire was founded. During this time, there has never been such a large-scale suppression of the Wulin.’
‘In a situation where everyone takes the current balance for granted, this will trigger a sense of crisis in each faction.’
‘If the Nine Sects and One Gang and the other noble families plead with His Imperial Majesty, it will be difficult for His Imperial Majesty to push forward too aggressively.’
Of course, the Imperial Court was stronger than the Wulin.
Namgung knew this, and everyone knew this.
But the Imperial Court did not have as much spare capacity as one might think.
‘Just look at how many demonic monsters they are currently blocking at the border.’
The gates to the Demon Realm remained open, and battles occurred at the border almost every single day.
Great strategic clashes rarely happened, but local skirmishes never ceased.
Eight of the Ten Heavenly Mighties were defending the border.
On top of that, the Four Great Dragon Kings supported that very border defense from just one step behind.
Practically speaking, the only masters the Imperial Court could deploy to the rear were the forces under the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of each province, the central Golden Dragon Guard, the Yuelongwei, and His Imperial Majesty himself.
Since His Imperial Majesty was the pillar of the Great Barrier, he couldn’t move around recklessly either…
‘In reality, if you only look at the Imperial Court’s available surplus forces, our Wulin is by no means weak.’
Therefore, the success or failure of this matter depended on convincing the rest of the Wulin.
Following the instructions of the Family Head, which had somehow slipped out past the lockdown, they put effort into moving each sect.
Indeed, their movements seemed to bear some fruit.
Because the sight of the Namgung Clan being thoroughly plundered made the other sects uneasy as well.
The fact that no one knew what kind of punishment would be handed down after such a raid was also an unsettling factor.
Human beings are bound to feel anxiety toward the unknown.
In the midst of that momentum, the rumor that a junior disciple of the Eunhak Sect had defeated a squad leader of the Namgung Changtian Sword Squad was buried in an instant.
But it was right then.
A massive new rumor erupted, completely flipping the situation.
* * *
Hubei Province was a place where a giant like Wudang held its ground, and with the Zhuge Clan there to boot, the Beggars’ Sect didn’t wield much power.
Still, along with Henan, it was a region that formed the two main pillars of the Orthodox Factions, so it was also a place where the Beggars’ Sect had painstakingly built an information network.
And the one who gathered all such information regarding Hubei Province was Chwiseongae, an Elder whose rank placed him within the top few of the Beggars’ Sect.
“What? Is that really true?”
“It is true, Elder. Why would we lie about something like this and risk facing a terrible punishment?”
“Mmm, indeed. To think the Zhuge Clan almost perished… and they didn’t even notice that all Three Great Formations were subtly sabotaged?”
“Yes, it is what the Zhuge Clan officially revealed at the banquet.”
At the banquet hosted for Seonwu, the Zhuge Family Head revealed what could be considered their greatest shame exactly as it was.
While there were some clan members who opposed it, Zhuge Ganyun said just one thing.
“If we hide the grace of the Imperial Family, do you think there will be no consequences?”
With those words, all opposition instantly vanished.
And as the world goes, while people take boasting with a grain of salt, confessions of shame always sound sincere.
“Those guys who make a living off their reputation as masters of formations confessed that they were actually completely hollow and incompetent, and they revealed it just like that?”
“They said that though it is shameful, they fell victim to a grand scheme that took thirty years of effort by Sima Muyue, the previous generation’s great archdevil. Instead of hiding it, they revealed the truth in hopes that no fellow Wulin comrades would suffer the same damage.”
“Oh? If they do this, won’t the formation installations they were commissioned for by other sects in the past come under suspicion too?”
“They said it’s better to clear up suspicions now, because if the formations fail later when they are truly needed, that would be an even bigger disaster.”
“Mmm…”
Chwiseongae calculated what kind of ripple effect this would have.
‘Right now, because Namgung is being raided by the Imperial Court, everyone’s attention was focused there.’
The rumor that Zhuge almost faced total extermination, and that Sima Muyue, a dead great archdevil of the past generation, was involved, carried far greater explosive power.
Wouldn’t everyone start worrying about whether their own clan or sect was safe, feeling a renewed sense of crisis?
‘Right now, even I am worried about whether our Beggars’ Sect is safe…’
“Still, the fortunate thing is that someone from the Imperial Court secretly arrived and informed them that the traces of that great archdevil seemed to lead to the Zhuge Clan.”
“Ohho.”
“So they hurriedly tried to activate the formation, but as expected, it failed…”
When the story reached the point where they managed to survive the initial crisis thanks to the Brahma Bell from the West granted by the Imperial Court, Chwiseongae could compute the aftermath.
‘The public opinion of the Wulin, which was terrified that the Imperial Court was trying to suppress them because of Namgung, will completely flip.’
If they intended to ruthlessly suppress the Wulin, why would they bestow such grace upon the Zhuge Clan?
With this, the Imperial Court sent a simultaneous signal of both carrot and stick.
Namgung is merely being punished because they were too arrogant and caused many evils.
Instead, those who have no major issues, like the Zhuge Clan, are protected.
Do you think the various forces of the Wulin can single-handedly block the demons currently lurking in the dark?
The grace and protection of the Imperial Family are this deep and wide.
‘The Brahma Bell from the West. To think they even lent that legendary divine artifact which was thought to have disappeared? Ha.’
Shaolin must be burning with anxiety.
Not that they could demand it back from the Imperial Family, claiming it was originally a relic of Tathagata.
But the important thing was the fact that the Wulin’s public opinion, which had been purely fearful of the Imperial Family, would completely reverse.
‘If things go this way, people will think Namgung fell out of favor because they committed crimes, so why should we fall out of favor too?’
That was exactly what he thought himself.
Since he didn’t know what kind of help they might need from the Imperial Family and the Imperial Court in the future, did he possess enough loyalty to cross the Imperial Court just to help Namgung?
What if the next turn belonged to the Beggars’ Sect?
Who was to say whether they would be investigated like Namgung or receive grace like Zhuge during that next turn?
And frankly speaking, while the Beggars’ Sect had many members and a widely spread organization, they weren’t as wealthy as the Namgung Clan, nor had they committed that much tax evasion.
They hadn’t stolen the military merits of other sects either.
‘While I can’t possibly know every single minor corruption committed at the bottom, at least at the level of the Beggars’ Sect, we haven’t caused public scandals like Namgung.’
Chwiseongae reached a conclusion.
“I should send an opinion to the Chief recommending that we ignore Namgung’s request.”
“Yes, it’s a fire that started in their house, not ours, isn’t it? What’s the point of pointlessly crossing the Imperial Court?”
The disciples immediately expressed their agreement.
“Of course. If we casually cross them and they reduce our allowance for purchasing Spiritual Medicine, what will we do?”
Disloyal sects would dry up over the long term if their allowed quota for Spiritual Medicine was reduced.
That empty space would be consumed by sects that knew how to read the room.
‘If the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Noble Families all united to plead, it might be different, but Zhuge will definitely break away right now.’
With that as the starting point, the remaining sects will also break away in droves.
Namgung has been isolated by this event.
‘Well, they will receive punishment fitting for their crimes. Surely they won’t be punished for things they didn’t do.’
Even though he knew that historical dynasties often framed people for non-existent crimes to punish them, Chwiseongae deliberately chose not to think about that side.
It was because he didn’t want the Beggars’ Sect to get hurt by getting entangled with Namgung for no reason.
“By the way, you’re saying it was the two martial brothers of the Eunhak Sect who ambushed and killed Sima Muyue, the legendary great archdevil?”
“Yes, originally it’s a opponent that would be hard for the two of them to defeat since he was in the Transcendence Realm, but because he was summoning all sorts of demonic monsters to attack the Zhuge Clan, he wasn’t in a state to display his true skill.”
“Mmm, I see. Even so, does that mean both of them are at least in the Peak Realm?”
“Wasn’t it already extraordinary when the junior disciple defeated the squad leader of Namgung’s Changtian Sword Squad?”
Chwiseongae nodded his head.
“Right. It was. It wasn’t just the entrance of the Peak Realm; it was a shocking event that caused people to comment that he must be close to the absolute limit of the Peak Realm.”
That rumor had just begun to spread before it was buried by the investigation into the Namgung Clan’s corruption.
But now that they had captured Sima Muyue, the two would once again stand at the center of attention.
“The Eunhak Sect… they will become famous. We should also pay more attention and watch the future footsteps of those two.”
“Shall I raise their interest rating?”
“Do so. Set it just below the Top One Hundred Masters.”
Masters of the Peak Realm are few if you consider them scarce, but many if you consider them plentiful.
This is because the realm just below the hundred or so Transcendental Experts is packed full, causing a bottleneck.
To assign them an interest rating at the very top of that tier meant Chwiseongae had decided to value the potential of the two that highly.
‘It won’t just be me; the other major sects will now remember the names of those two as well.’
Right below the Top One Hundred Masters.
Or perhaps even higher, considering their age.
“There was talk that we should change the Seven Dragons to the Eight Dragons because of that junior disciple, Dan Suyeong, but now people might say we should change it to the Nine Dragons.”
“Since both of them use swords, and the title of Sword Dragon is only one, won’t the three of them have to fight over it?”
Namgung won’t like it.
Though he didn’t know if they were in a situation to care about that.
“Well, once some time passes, the Jianghu will sort out the aliases on its own.”
Who would remain as the Sword Dragon, and who would receive a different alias.
* * *
Seonwu, who received the same report, grinned broadly.
“Then let Dan Suyeong take Sword Dragon, and I’ll be Chivalrous Dragon! And Namgung… can’t they just get kicked out? Nine Dragons sounds awkward. Let’s just keep it as Eight Dragons.”
Zhuge Jun shook his head and prayed for the soul of Namgung’s current Sword Dragon, Namgung Su’on.
To have his alias stripped away while his family was on the verge of ruin.
Not that he felt particularly sorry for him…
It wasn’t because the guy had mocked him before.
It was because justice prevails.

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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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