Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 117

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 117

Chapter 3

With trembling hands, he rummaged through his storage bag.

He hadn’t prepared for this exact situation, but how could worldly affairs ever flow according to predictions?

The spirit pills and medicinal materials he had kept just in case were needed now.

He took them out as they were.

Three Hundred Year Ice Heart Pills, five drops of Fifty Year Snow Marrow Essence, three roots of Ice Snow Lotus, and four roots of Cold Ice Hundred Li Grass.

As they say, excess is as bad as deficiency—going too far is the same as not reaching far enough.

But in a situation like this, excess was necessary.

The quantity was far greater than what he had taken when recovering his blood vessels contaminated by blood energy back in Seol-ap, and the quality was better too.

Without hesitation, he stuffed them into his mouth one by one.

Blood came up from his throat, but he swallowed it down along with everything else.

If he didn’t take this now, what would normally take ten days of suffering could be shortened to just one or two days, so taking it was the right choice.

He quickly circulated the energies to purify and restore his contaminated blood vessels.

Haah…

Breathing heavily, he struggled to stand up from his position.

His stomach was churning, but he was still okay for now.

Cheon Pung spoke.

“Hehe… Branch Leader, I wasn’t swayed by that old man’s words even a little. You know I would never doubt you, right?”

“I know.”

“That bastard Woo Rin was really good at spouting nonsense. Saying our Branch Leader is from the Cheon family—what kind of ridiculous bullshit was that? He should have seen how you shed tears thinking of your second brother.”

“Did I… cry?”

“Didn’t you?”

“I don’t think so.”

It seemed Cheon Pung’s memory was becoming greatly embellished, but he didn’t mind.

It wasn’t the first or second time—this much was fine.

Pure and refreshing energy entered from behind. It was Won Yang.

“Won Yang.”

“…Yes… Branch Leader… No, my lord…”

“You can stop now.”

“…But…”

“I’ve put out the urgent fire with the medicinal energy. If your energy and the others’ energy enters on top of that, it might go beyond my control. So stop.”

At those words, Won Yang and the other two who had been trying to channel their energy also withdrew their hands.

He briefly stroked his chin.

Though he hadn’t met Lee Ja-gyeom of Jeok An separately, just looking at how the situation was unfolding was enough.

He connected the information and linked the relationships between people.

The overall picture was unfolding in his mind.

Honestly speaking, he hadn’t specifically targeted Hondo Maryeom Palace.

He had been thinking of the Four Demonic Outer Sects and the eight great families that maintained neutrality, but it happened to be Hondo Maryeom Palace.

The bigger problem was the timing.

If it had been him, he would have finished all conversations before even entering Yang-ryeong.

It had been eleven days since he killed the two warriors of the Sichuan Sect, and six days since Lee Ja-gyeom entered Yang-ryeong leading the sects of Jeok An.

But only now was ‘one person’ from Hondo Maryeom Palace heading to Jeok An.

This meant that the deal between Hondo Maryeom Palace and Lee Ja-gyeom was still only in the discussion stage.

Then what needed to be done in this situation was extremely simple.

Clearly speaking, there was only one thing.

The Black Flame Demon Woo Rin never reached Jeok An.

The situation had to be manipulated so the inside story couldn’t be uncovered.

“You might not understand, but listen carefully. I was never here today.”

“…What?”

“But you all annihilated the merchant group from Jeok An here.”

The branch members blinked their eyes.

“In this process, you never saw Woo Rin. Understand?”

Everyone nodded their heads.

“Then go now and help Ju So-ah.”

Only then could they see it. Ju So-ah was walking toward the opposite side.

It was definitely Hwaryeong Sword Gate’s merchant group.

According to Beggar Sect’s secret message, the number was about sixty in total.

Cough.

Blood burst out.

The tendons visible on his skin writhed madly, and dark red blood flowed from the corners of his mouth.

“…Branch Leader…”

At Han Mu-rin’s worried words, he silently patted his shoulder.

“Tell Ju So-ah not to kill them all. She needs to give the impression that she tried her best to annihilate them but failed.”

“…Yes. I will do so.”

“The time limit is Han Da-gyeong. We must finish everything and get away from here within Han Da-gyeong. Understand?”

“Yes.”

“Move out.”

“”Yes, sir!””

* * *

The main hall of Hwaryeong Sword Gate was magnificent. The place where red tiles and crimson pillars had shone under the sun now had only dark shadows cast over it.

Drip, drip, drip.

The sound of falling raindrops broke the silence.

Lee Ja-gyeom looked at the corpses before him without his expression changing at all.

Their bodies were neatly arranged, but most were so gruesome they were unrecognizable.

Limbs were severed, torsos were split open—these were corpses, but it would be remarkable to recognize them intact.

This was the five merchant group processions that should have returned to Jeok An today.

This wasn’t a joke—this was everything.

The money, goods, and everything else they should have brought back had disappeared.

Warriors, porters, and merchants—their numbers approached two hundred, but only corpses and people had returned.

That’s right. People.

There were survivors. Twenty in number.

They were covered in wounds, but at least they were alive.

Lee Ja-gyeom, who had been looking around at them for a moment, asked Hong Ja-gyeong, the vice sect leader beside him.

“They said everything was put in storage bags, is that right?”

“…Yes. The goods that the five merchant group processions should have brought back would fill nearly twenty carts. For all of that to fit… it must definitely be high-grade storage bags.”

“High-grade storage bags…”

Lee Ja-gyeom’s voice was calm, but anger was hidden within it.

As befitting one who ruled Jeok An, he thoroughly controlled his emotions.

He didn’t reveal his inner turmoil through a single glance or wrinkle of his brow.

That was the power that made even Jeok An’s military commander serve under him.

The sect leader of Hwaryeong Sword Gate and a master of the Body Establishment Boundary.

Having obtained the Blazing Fire Heaven Art, the exclusive martial art of the Flame Sword Sect that made its name in the primordial era from a secret realm, he became famous in Murim for his ability to freely manipulate flames.

Lotus Heart Master Lee Ja-gyeom.

He slowly turned his head to look at one man.

The man in black official robes was Jin Mu, the inspector of Jeok An.

Lee Ja-gyeom’s question was concise.

“What are the investigation results?”

Jin Mu bowed at the waist to show respect before speaking.

“The culprits were definitely ‘four people,’ Sect Leader.”

“Tell me in detail.”

“Yes. Based on the testimonies of survivors and traces at the scene, it appears four culprits attacked the trading companies. And currently, they are all presumed to be Yang-ryeong Branch members.”

Lee Ja-gyeom’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Evidence?”

“According to witnesses, they couldn’t see their faces clearly due to the heavy rain, but their distinctive physiques and martial arts usage patterns match. One was a giant who used a great sword, and the areas touched by the great sword exploded. It’s definitely Heaven Killing Wolf Star Formula, a Heaven and Earth Grade martial art used by Yang-ryeong Branch members. Another was a woman using a thin sword who displayed Salgeom-mun martial arts. Her level was Five Energy Harmonizing Origin, matching the characteristics of the Heavenly Beauty Ju So-ah. The other two were…”

“That’s enough.”

Lee Ja-gyeom raised his hand to cut off Jin Mu’s words.

“But what about Woo Rin?”

Jin Mu’s expression changed subtly.

“That is… the most difficult part to understand, Sect Leader.”

“Speak.”

“According to the general manager of the last trading company that was attacked, Black Flame Demon Beast Woo Rin said he smelled blood and was certain someone was causing trouble. Then he said, ‘I’ll go handle it and return, so prepare for departure leisurely.'”

“And then?”

“When he didn’t return after time passed, the trading company departed… and they too were eventually attacked. And Woo Rin’s whereabouts remain unconfirmed to this day.”

A light of suspicion appeared in Lee Ja-gyeom’s eyes.

“A Body Establishment Boundary master was defeated by warriors of merely Five Energy Harmonizing Origin level? That doesn’t make sense.”

Jin Mu nodded.

“I think so too. When I investigated the scene, there were even more puzzling points.”

“What points?”

“At the scene, there were definitely traces of Ju So-ah’s internal energy and marks left by her sword. And there were traces of the ground, weakened by heavy rain, collapsing from her internal energy. But…”

Jin Mu paused for a moment and steadied his breathing.

“But we couldn’t find any traces that a Body Establishment Boundary master would have left. As if… Woo Rin hadn’t fought at all.”

Lee Ja-gyeom’s brow furrowed slightly. That was the greatest expression of agitation he could show.

That was right. This was truly a strange situation.

Black Flame Demon Beast Woo Rin, a Body Establishment Boundary master, had gone missing?

It didn’t make sense.

Moreover, the fact that he who had gone to deal with the culprits disappeared without leaving any trace was beyond strange—it was bizarre.

“It looks as if they never encountered each other.”

“…Sect Leader.”

“Speak.”

“I’ve been an inspector for over ten years. In that process, I’ve handled hundreds of cases, and from my perspective, the only conclusion is that Woo Rin moved directly to meet the culprits but disappeared before even seeing them.”

Lee Ja-gyeom saw it the same way.

Even if Yang-ryeong Branch members had somehow managed to deal with Woo Rin through heavenly luck and even erased the traces, they would have suffered tremendous damage themselves.

Someone might have died, or limbs might have been severed.

But they were still four as before, and those four attacked Hwaryeong Sword Gate’s merchant group.

Clearly, looking at what had occurred, it was right to assume Woo Rin met someone else and disappeared.

That was definitely correct, but the feeling was strange.

One thing bothered him.

“Where was Yang-ryeong’s Branch Leader at that time?”

Hwaryeong Sword Gate’s Vice Sect Leader Hong Ja-gyeong stepped forward.

“Sect Leader, at that time Seol Woon-hwi was in Yang-ryeong. According to our people’s reports, he caused trouble at Yang-ryeong Hall, then stopped by the branch and headed to Oksu Village’s gold mine with people.”

“Did he leave his position at any point?”

“In the middle… except for when he briefly went to the branch, there wasn’t any time.”

“Who was at the branch?”

“Seong Yang-ho. From Baekseol Wiryeong-dan.”

As soon as he heard that name, Lee Ja-gyeom’s eyebrows twitched.

“He would have suffered severe internal injuries and couldn’t even move… so he stopped by to check his condition…?”

“It appears so.”

Silence flowed through the room.

Everyone was waiting for Lee Ja-gyeom’s next decision.

Lee Ja-gyeom spoke slowly.

“Track down Woo Rin’s whereabouts. We must find out exactly why he disappeared.”

This problem had to be solved regardless of how future events proceeded.

Making an enemy of Hondo Maryeom Palace would be madness.

Even Sichuan Sect’s Main Alliance didn’t want that.

At the very least, they needed to have something to say about Woo Rin’s disappearance.

“And since Yang-ryeong’s Branch Leader wants to play around, we should accommodate him a little.”

Lee Ja-gyeom’s gaze turned cold.

In Lee Ja-gyeom’s eyes, Woon-hwi’s scheme was clearly visible.

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