Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 270

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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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Chapter 270
I needed to grow strong enough to overturn the Go Board itself.
Seol Woon-hwi’s footsteps grew heavier with resolve.
It was time to return.
Behind him, the sound of Go stones striking the board echoed through the air.
Tap, tap, tap.
A rhythmic yet melancholic sound.
Seol Woon-hwi continued walking, leaving that sound in his wake.
* * *
The stench of blood permeated Cheongpa Port now that the torrential rain had ceased.
Seol Woon-hwi’s figure emerged from the darkness.
Though his face bore the pallor of exhaustion, the reactions of those present split sharply into two camps.
Those who had stood with Seol Woon-hwi brightened visibly.
Seong Yang-ho released a breath of relief, Ju So-ah let out a hollow laugh, while Han Mu-rin and Namgung Won Yang broke into radiant smiles.
Hwa Mu-ryeong, who stood among Seol Woon-hwi’s faction, blinked with a vacant expression—much like the captured martial artists of the Ihwa Alliance.
No, that wasn’t quite right.
All the living martial artists from the Ihwa Alliance had succumbed to despair.
They could not believe it.
Seol Woon-hwi’s arrival here meant that Manhwa Geom-je Jang I-cheong had been defeated.
Even with their own eyes, they could not comprehend it. No matter how much of a genius Seol Woon-hwi was, the Heaven-Human Realm was surely an absolute divide—how could he have reversed that?
This sentiment was shared by Seol Woon-hwi’s own people.
They had faith in him, but truthfully, they harbored doubts.
If Seol Woon-hwi had fallen, they were prepared to die alongside him—such was their resolve in joining this endeavor.
Yet the outcome had proven favorable.
Seol Woon-hwi had returned as the victor, and immense rewards would surely flow in.
Of that, there was no doubt.
Among the Ihwa Alliance prisoners, Jin So-cheon raised his voice.
“How… how is it that you stand here!”
Hang Ryeo joined in as well.
“What of the Great One Jang… what has become of the Great One Jang!”
So Ryeong-hwa cried out in a voice bordering on a scream.
“This makes no sense! You defeated a master of the Heaven-Human Realm? That’s impossible!”
Seol Woon-hwi gazed down at them coldly.
“Must I explain myself to you?”
“…”
“I have no desire to respond. Keep your mouths shut.”
What manner of man was Seol Woon-hwi?
It was simple.
He cherished his own people with terrible devotion. Conversely, those he deemed his enemies he regarded as less than insects.
Until just days ago, Seol Woon-hwi had treated the other two with respect as seniors, but that courtesy had now ended.
As Seol Woon-hwi surveyed his surroundings, a considerable number of corpses came into view.
Among them were members of the Yang Woon Dan, and martial artists of the Seong Jak Alliance.
His chest did not ache, nor did tears fall, yet his mood remained heavy.
The world of martial artists had always been this way.
A place of death and killing, where ultimately the victor claimed everything.
But knowing this truth did not ease the burden in his heart.
After a brief moment of studying Hwa Mu-ryeong, Seol Woon-hwi asked quietly.
“Is your resolve unwavering?”
Hwa Mu-ryeong placed her hand on Han Mu-rin’s shoulder beside her and answered.
“It is.”
“You have made the right choice.”
Now came the question of what to do next.
Seol Woon-hwi lowered his gaze.
He observed the three Cheonsu Temple disciples kneeling before him.
Jin So-cheon flinched.
The fact that Seol Woon-hwi had achieved victory over Jang I-cheong was beyond dispute.
The Ihwa Alliance had suffered a decisive defeat.
Now came the matter of what followed.
At the very least, these three dispatched from Cheonsu Temple possessed considerable intellect.
They spoke their true intentions at once.
“If you kill me, the O-dae Geom-jong will not remain idle.”
Hang Ryeo added his voice.
“If you spare us, we will bury what transpired here today.”
So Ryeong-hwa, who had been observing the two men intently, interjected with a resolute expression.
“Surely you cannot be ignorant of what may unfold hereafter.”
Seol Woon-hwi asked.
“What will unfold?”
“You have provoked both the O-dae Geom-jong and the Sa-ma Oe-jong. Martial artists will come from their main sects, and matters will inevitably escalate. Therefore, I propose a bargain.”
“A bargain, you say?”
“Listen well. We have all been deceived by Jang I-cheong’s machinations. Thus we were drawn into this bloody conflict, and the true culpability lies with Jang I-cheong and the Ihwageomseonchong that manipulated him from the shadows.”
Hang Ryeo’s eyes brightened.
“Precisely! We need only hold the Ihwageomseonchong accountable!”
Jin So-cheon raised his voice.
“If we proceed thus, we can prevent all future conflicts before they arise. Wars with the O-dae Geom-jong, conflicts with the Sa-ma Oe-jong—such things would be forestalled.”
This was unmistakably a transaction.
These three men had each come as representatives of authority. If their proposal were accepted, everything could be resolved.
It was certainly a bargain worth considering.
But.
Seol Woon-hwi’s thoughts diverged.
“Then what of the lives and blood of my people who fell here today?”
The three of them stood with their mouths agape.
They called him a genius, yet something was terribly wrong—was this fool truly so stupid?
“Do you not comprehend the situation before you?!”
Hang Ryeo’s voice thundered.
“If you refuse to join hands with us, you’ll have to face both the O-dae Geom-jong and the Sa-ma Oe-jong alone—what madness are you spouting?!”
Seol Woon-hwi let out a soft chuckle.
“It seems you’re the ones laboring under a grave misunderstanding.”
“…What?”
“I offered you all a fair opportunity.”
“….”
“And only one person seized it—Hwa Mu-ryeong alone.”
“…Wait….”
Jin So-cheon felt a sinister premonition creeping over him.
“And today, in this place called Cheongpa Port, my people’s blood was spilled. I must exact a price for that blood.”
“So if you would just join hands with——”
“Resolving this matter with mere coin and hollow justifications would be unjust.”
Seol Woon-hwi spoke with absolute conviction.
“I will claim your gold, your secret manuals, the Spirit Pills you possessed, and everything connected to you.”
The three of them’s eyes widened in shock.
There was something ominous in Seol Woon-hwi’s words.
“Tell me—why do you think I offered you this opportunity in the first place?”
“….”
“The O-dae Geom-jong and the Sa-ma Oe-jong are formidable forces, certainly. Confronting them directly would spill much blood and exhaust my resources, yet what is begun must be finished. From the start, my offer was not merely to you three, but to the main sects standing behind you.”
“What… what kind of madman is this….”
“As representatives, you have determined not only your own fates but the fates of your entire sects. Therefore, your three heads shall become spoils of war and sacrificial offerings to appease the vengeful spirits of my fallen.”
“Wait… just wait——!”
So Ryeong-hwa cried out in desperation, but he paid her no heed.
Seol Woon-hwi gestured with his hand.
Three sharp-eyed figures stepped forward behind the three kneeling captives.
They were the three from Yang Ling-ju’s faction.
Ju So-ah, Namgung Won Yang, and Han Mu-rin, in order.
Ordinarily, Manager Seong or Pung Mu-hwi would have stepped forward for such a task, but Pung Mu-hwi lay collapsed from exhaustion while Manager Seong leaned against the wall, breathing heavily—neither could move even if they wished to.
With a metallic whisper, the three from Yang Ling-ju drew their blades.
Seol Woon-hwi spoke.
“Depart well.”
The moment those words left his lips.
Shhk—!
A single, precise cutting sound rang out, and three heads fell simultaneously.
Blood seeped into the earth.
Silence descended.
Now I had made enemies of Ihwageomseonchong, Azure Cloud Sword Sect, Heavenly Sound Sword Sect, Heavenly Demon Yin Spirit Gate, and created debts of gratitude and grudges.
Even that mattered little.
What one begins, one must see through to its end.
No matter what obstacles arise, a martial artist must live this way.
At least.
Seol Woon-hwi had lived precisely like this.
Chapter 3
Because there were so many wounded, everyone was relocated to Cheon Ryong Palace.
We mobilized every Beggar Sect member within Seongchakju and brought every physician we could find, and now all the injured members of Yang Woon Dan and figures from the Seong Jak Alliance were receiving treatment.
As I surveyed them briefly, Jang Seok from the Gaebang Seongjakju Branch approached me.
“You’ve endured much hardship. Great One.”
I nodded, and Jang Seok handed me a bundle of papers.
“Recently, something occurred within the Beggar Sect that could overturn heaven and earth. When you’re alone, you must read this without fail.”
“What’s the price?”
Jang Seok laughed.
“I’ve already received it. Great One.”
I shook my head.
“I’ll prepare something myself, so look forward to it.”
“Understood.”
Leaving Jang Seok behind, I headed toward my residence at Cheon Ryong Palace.
There, those who could be called my people had gathered.
All except one.
Hwa Mu-ryeong spoke.
“Is there any reason I should be here?”
“Do you dislike it?”
At my words, Hwa Mu-ryeong scratched her head.
“It’s not that….”
After observing her for a moment, I simply flopped down onto a random seat and spoke.
“I find it somewhat uncomfortable.”
“…What? Suddenly? Hey, what could possibly be uncomfortable? I alone killed twenty martial artists from Ihwageomseonchong at Cheongpa Port. And Hang Ryeo, whom you killed—I subdued him. So what’s uncomfortable….”
“Speaking formally is uncomfortable.”
“…Huh…?”
“So from now on, I’ll speak casually. Is that acceptable?”
My demeanor was no longer that of someone at the Five Qi Toward Origin.
From the moment I defeated Jang I-cheong, I should have been treated as a master who had already transcended the Four Stages of Heaven and Earth.
To put it bluntly, even though Hwa Mu-ryeong was a Divine Transformation Realm martial artist, if she faced Jang I-cheong, ninety-nine out of a hundred times she would lose.
Why ninety-nine? Because Hwa Mu-ryeong is a Divine Transformation Realm martial artist in her own right.
Jang I-cheong might make a mistake, and if she didn’t miss that mistake, and if heavenly fortune favored her, she could overturn the match perhaps once.
But if she faced me.
Out of a thousand times, she would lose all thousand. I had faced many higher masters from a lower realm multiple times.
He had never suffered a single defeat.
His deep schemes, his strategies.
His judgment in battle.
I could not surpass him.
Above all, the Murim is a world where the strong are revered.
Hwa Mu-ryeong had already recognized Seol Woon-hwi as a stronger master than herself.
As Hwa Mu-ryeong slowly nodded, Seol Woon-hwi spoke.
“Then sit down. Stop making a fuss.”
The way Seol Woon-hwi dropped his formal tone was utterly natural, and Hwa Mu-ryeong found herself entranced, settling into her seat.
Everyone rested in silence.
Manager Seong leaned against the wall, groaning softly, while Pung Mu-hwi sat with eyes closed, circulating his qi in meditation.
When Seol Woon-hwi called to Namgung Won Yang at a distance, she approached him as though she had been waiting.
“I heard it on the way, but I wanted to hear it from your own lips. How is your sword technique training progressing?”
“…Yes, Master. It has been going well.”
“The level of your martial learning is excessively elevated for you to achieve mastery at this stage, yet I have absolute faith in you.”
Seol Woon-hwi’s eyes held profound trust.
Bestowing infinite faith upon his own people.
That was the kind of man Seol Woon-hwi was, and Namgung Won Yang quietly bowed her head.
Seol Woon-hwi’s gaze turned toward Namgung Won Yang’s left arm.
“You’re wounded.”
“It’s fine. It will heal with rest.”
Seol Woon-hwi withdrew wound healing medicine from his robe and began applying it gently to her arm.
Just as it had been at some moment in the past.

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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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