Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 179
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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 179
Chapter 1
“It seems like you want me to step aside, right?”
“Yes.”
“…I’ll bring you good news soon.”
“I’ll be waiting in anticipation.”
Seol Ho-ryeong stepped back. Then he deployed his lightness skill. His body became blurry in the snowstorm and soon disappeared.
He had descended Snow Mountain.
Silence settled between the two remaining people, Woon-hwi and Seo Hyo.
That place where the snowstorm raged was like a separate realm cut off from the world, where only nature’s laws existed, not human laws.
Even in this situation, these two men were as calm as if they were standing in a peaceful garden.
When all was said and done, the two were alike.
Woon-hwi turned his head.
“There’s no one watching, and no one listening.”
“…”
“You seem very confused, but we should still bring this to a conclusion, shouldn’t we.”
Seo Hyo rubbed his face.
There was truly so much he wanted to say.
“I’d like to ask one thing first.”
“Go ahead.”
“…Do you still have what you ‘obtained’ from Yangnyeong’s Secret Realm?”
Woon-hwi had once entered the secret realm using disguise arts to change his appearance.
In that secret realm, Woon-hwi learned that a being called Yu Cheong was behind all the incidents, saved Ju So-ah, and obtained a secret manual called the Demon Blood Heaven Gang Art.
It was a secret manual that strengthened blood vessels with demonic energy to withstand any demonic energy, and Woon-hwi had declared that the being called Cheon Ma, the master of demons, could not be created without it.
Now Seo Hyo was talking about that.
However, Seo Hyo had expressed it as something ‘obtained’.
He clearly didn’t know exactly whether it was martial arts or a weapon.
The important thing was that, as they had discussed through telepathy before first entering Shaolin Temple’s secret realm, Seo Hyo already knew that Woon-hwi was Mu Myeong.
Woon-hwi answered briefly.
“Something like that.”
“Aren’t you going to ask how I found out?”
“Should I ask?”
“It could have been just a probe, couldn’t it?”
Woon-hwi let out a small laugh.
“Seo Hyo, I haven’t observed you for long, but I still know what kind of man you are.”
“…”
“In your own way, you would have used everything at your disposal to confirm whether that was really the correct conclusion. Not only the Central Plains information accumulated in Cheon Rim, but also people you could personally mobilize to gather information.”
“…”
“The recent incident involving Lee Myeong-hwa, the game with Cheon Do-ja, Poison Snake Valley’s conspiracy… Those things might not be visible in detail to those far away, but to someone as close as you, they might feel a bit different.”
“…”
“You’re already certain. But if such words came from your mouth after investigating to that extent, it means you need something else.”
He looked at Seo Hyo and said briefly.
“Denial.”
“…”
“You wanted me to deny it. If I had, you would have pretended not to know and wouldn’t have revealed it anywhere. Isn’t that right?”
“…Really… you’re too perceptive. I feel like my thoughts are completely transparent.”
There was one important thing.
Why did Seo Hyo want Woon-hwi to deny it?
“Seo Hyo, you seem to think very highly of me.”
“…That’s right. I evaluate you very highly. Perhaps even more than Cheon Do-ja of the Origin Blood Sect.”
“The reason?”
“…”
“Surely it’s not because they call me a genius outside.”
Seo Hyo let out a small laugh even in this serious situation.
“I’m not unaware that you’re extraordinary. No, rather, the word extraordinary wouldn’t be enough to describe you. Being smart, good at baduk, good at strategy… these things are truly amazing, but that’s not why I hold you in high regard.”
Honestly, Woon-hwi was really curious about this too.
“I’d like to hear the reason.”
“…Because you care for your subordinates.”
* * *
He stared quietly.
Caring for subordinates…
“Is that the reason?”
“For me, it’s a really big reason.”
I could roughly understand what he meant.
Just as Seo Hyo had something he was curious about regarding me, I also had something I was curious about.
“Who is the lord of Cheon Rim?”
“…Do you really want to know?”
When I nodded, Seo Hyo, who had paused for a moment, said decisively.
“It’s Yang Seol-jin.”
At those words, my brow furrowed sharply.
Seeing my expression, Seo Hyo tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand.
“It seems you couldn’t even guess… am I right?”
I nodded.
First of all, I don’t know much about the being called Yang Seol-jin. That he’s a traitor, that all his current gentle expressions are masks, and that he’s actually crazy enough to eat people alive.
And that he’s a man with the persistence to complete plans step by step from the bottom up.
I only know about this much.
Of course, I had asked many things when I killed Yang Seol-jin in my previous life.
But I didn’t ask about Cheon Rim or such things.
There was no reason to ask.
About 10 years from this point, Cheon Rim would be disbanded.
This was really strange from the beginning.
“How can Yang Seol-jin be the lord?”
“…The first lord was Yu Cheong of the Origin Blood Sect.”
“And then?”
“And at that time, Myeong-ju among Cheon Rim’s Four Pillars was Yang Seol-jin.”
I realized it. The stories that would flow from Seo Hyo’s mouth from now on were secrets of the organization called Cheon Rim.
“Continue.”
“60 years ago, after Yu Cheong entered the Origin Blood Sect, Yang Seol-jin, who was Myeong-ju, became the lord of Cheon Rim and maintains that position even now.”
The Vice Palace Lord of Snow Palace has a lot to do.
First, he must handle practical affairs on behalf of the Palace Lord, receive reports, and that alone is difficult, but Yang Seol-jin is even scheming to overthrow Snow Palace.
Even if he were an exceptionally outstanding person, that would be his limit. But he also serves as the lord of Cheon Rim? This isn’t a matter of whether it’s possible or not. It cannot be established and is realistically impossible. From the moment Yang Seol-jin received the position of Vice Palace Lord of Snow Palace and entered Yangji, he couldn’t operate the organization called Cheon Rim.
Except for one case only.
“It seems the lord’s role disappeared at some point.”
“That’s right.”
This makes sense.
Cheon Rim has a separate owner, but the Four Pillars handle all the operations.
In other words, the master is merely a symbol.
Yet the reason a master exists is for the greater cause.
A strategic move for the reconstruction of the Thousand Year Demon Cult.
An organization that must operate thoroughly in the shadows.
An organization that can be eliminated immediately when it becomes useless.
If that’s the case.
“Are you the actual rim master currently operating Cheon Lim?”
Surprisingly, Seo Hyo shook his head at those words.
“Though I am the Myeong-ju, I’m not fulfilling the role of rim master. Currently, it’s Hwa-ju who’s fulfilling the rim master role.”
Hwa-ju.
The only one I don’t know about.
“Who is he?”
“He’s the sect leader of Ihwageomseonchong.”
There are several forces currently dominating the Central Plains, but the representative among them is the Martial Alliance.
And there are ten organizations that don’t belong to the Martial Alliance but revere righteousness – the Five Great Families and the Five Great Sword Sects.
Ihwageomseonchong refers to one of the Five Great Sword Sects, and naturally my brow furrowed.
The sect leader of Ihwageomseonchong is a master of Great Void Formless and a master among masters with considerable martial power.
And as I mentioned earlier, both the Five Great Sword Sects and Five Great Families all revere ‘righteousness.’
The one currently called a ‘gentleman’ in this world is Gun Mu-gyeol, the leader of the Martial Alliance, but if Gun Mu-gyeol hadn’t existed, the one called a gentleman would have been the sect leader of Ihwageomseonchong.
Even in my previous life, there was no particular connection, and when Hyeolgyo unified the Central Plains, they were the ones who locked their doors and went into seclusion.
“I didn’t know there were this many bastards who are rotten front and back.”
“…That’s unexpected.”
“What do you mean?”
“Didn’t you know everything already?”
I chuckled.
“If I knew everything, there would have been no reason to ask.”
“…That’s even more surprising. Then it means you make maximum use of available information, and all these words that came from my mouth are also the result of that, aren’t they?”
“Something like that.”
“…”
“Do you have more to say?”
Seo Hyo’s expression was still stiff, so it seemed he had more to say.
“As you said, Young Master, there are no watching eyes or listening ears here. Earlier, you told me this – that I think very highly of you, Young Master.”
“I did.”
“And I told you that the reason was because you, Young Master, care for your subordinates.”
I nodded.
“Actually, there’s one more thing.”
“Go ahead and tell me.”
“I think you, Young Master, are truly a terrifying person. Beyond fear, to the point of having reverence.”
“The reason?”
“…You, Young Master, are someone who knows how to wait for the right ‘time.'”
A strange smile appeared on my lips.
“Continue.”
“Young Master, earlier in the secret realm, you erased several names from the list that Yeon Chu-ha had prepared.”
“I did.”
Seo Hyo, who had caught his breath for a moment, spoke resolutely.
“Young Master, you clearly know exactly what will happen if you kill Yang Seol-jin right now. Am I right?”
“You’re right.”
“May I ask? About that result?”
I answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“It would be annihilation. Of the Snow Palace.”
Seo Hyo nodded.
“That’s right. Though I am the Myeong-ju of Cheon Lim, even I don’t know exactly who all the people working for the reconstruction of the Thousand Year Demon Cult are. But if Yang Seol-jin dies in any way, the Snow Palace will be annihilated.”
This wasn’t just empty talk.
Why does Woon-hwi not kill Yang Seol-jin but just watch him, and even try to confuse him?
There’s only one reason.
Because that’s the right answer until the ‘time’ he’s been consistently talking about arrives.
Yu Cheong is a remarkable person beyond being cunning.
His main purpose isn’t to devour the Ten Thousand Year Snow Palace. His purpose is to find that thing on Ten Thousand Year Snow Mountain.
If Yang Seol-jin dies in that process, he will try to erase the Ten Thousand Year Snow Palace from the world by mobilizing everything he can mobilize.
This is the result of considering Yang Seol-jin’s position and the beliefs of one who leads an organization.
The reconstruction of the Thousand Year Demon Cult is certainly a great goal.
If the one leading it is cowardly and doesn’t take responsibility for his subordinates, who would follow him?
Yang Seol-jin’s death would ultimately become justification for testing Yu Cheong’s leadership and command ability, and at that moment, even Yu Cheong would have no choice but to move.
The Five Great Families, Five Great Sword Sects, Martial Alliance, Four Heaven Alliance.
He would create a situation where he could mobilize everything that exists in this world, and would create justification even by force.
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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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