Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 272

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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 272
“You look exhausted. Rest yourself. And soon I will send you a contact. If you make a request of them, it will be delivered to me at once. Should you need anything, speak freely.”
“I shall take my leave, Senior.”
It was at that moment when Hwa Mu-nyeom’s physical body began to scatter like smoke.
Hwa Mu-nyeom flinched and gazed toward the space behind Seol Woon-hwi, then stood quietly for a time.
Seol Woon-hwi turned his head.
Han Mu-rin was there.
* * *
In the Murim, there exists no one without circumstances.
Even Seol Woon-hwi has his circumstances, and so does Hwa Mu-ryeong who stands here.
And Han Mu-rin too had his circumstances.
In his childhood, he witnessed his entire family massacred.
Han Mu-rin, who fled madly again and again, did not make survival his goal.
He made vengeance his goal, and regardless of the path, he had come this far.
Thanks to Seol Woon-hwi, he had even met Hwa Mu-ryeong, who would become a great force in annihilating the Hondo Maryeom Palace.
Beyond serving as his master, gratitude was something he absolutely had to express.
So he had followed, yet there was a figure he had never seen before.
An elderly man of diminutive stature, his unkempt white hair was most striking.
Surely it was our first meeting.
Yet strangely, it felt as though I had seen him somewhere before.
No matter how much I racked my mind, the memory would not surface.
“How much you have grown.”
The old man’s eyes seemed to gaze upon some distant moment from the far past.
Who could this be?
“You do not remember.”
“…Who are you, sir?”
“I am the master of your father, Yu-seong.”
My brow furrowed sharply.
But that was all.
Han Mu-rin, who glanced briefly at Seol Woon-hwi, quietly assumed the Embracing Fist salute.
“I seem to have been discourteous. I shall return shortly.”
Seol Woon-hwi grasped Han Mu-rin as he turned to leave.
“Han Mu-rin.”
“…Yes, Supreme Commander.”
“He is the father of Hwa Mu-ryeong, with whom you were to annihilate the Hondo Maryeom Palace.”
From Han Mu-rin’s memory, he could recall Hwa Mu-ryeong, but not Hwa Mu-nyeom.
The period when he had undergone his seclusion was twenty years prior, and even being generous, Han Mu-rin would have been but an infant at the time of any possible encounter.
It would have been strange to remember this.
“Each person has their circumstances, but if one is human, and if one is a wandering knight with great purpose in maintaining the order of the world, then in some way they will aid your vengeance.”
Seol Woon-hwi’s gaze was not directed at Han Mu-rin.
His gaze was fixed on Hwa Mu-nyeom, and Hwa Mu-nyeom was looking back at Seol Woon-hwi.
At those words from Seol Woon-hwi, Hwa Mu-nyeom showed nothing on the surface, but his inner thoughts were another matter entirely.
This man was beyond being merely an object—he was absolutely insane.
It was nothing short of coercion to help Han Mu-rin in any way possible.
What was infuriating was that he couldn’t easily refute it.
The maintenance of order, each person’s circumstances.
Hwa Mu-nyeom was someone genuinely committed to the reconstruction of the Thousand Year Demon Cult, enough to break his seclusion. His position as Vice-Leader of the Muk Se-hoe meant exactly that.
Seol Woon-hwi had seen through it precisely.
Seol Woon-hwi spoke with a subtle smile.
“Is that not so?”
“…As Vice-Leader of the Muk Se-hoe, you’d incur a debt of gratitude and grudges, and as an ordinary martial artist, you’d incur another?”
“It seems you’re interpreting this with some distortion.”
“…What do you mean?”
“I am now asking you to fulfill your human duty, Senior.”
It felt like being struck in the head with a hammer.
“You said you regarded Dong Yu-seong, the father of Han Mu-rin, my person here, as your disciple. Is that not correct?”
“…That’s true.”
“Your disciple died miserably, so shouldn’t you, as a human being before being a master, help with his revenge?”
“…”
“Of course, you likely provided some support from behind while Han Mu-rin lived in Seol Ap initially.”
When Seol Woon-hwi was Division Leader of Seol Ap, Han Mu-rin had already been active as a Division Member for five years. Considering the time before that, how could a fugitive from the Hondo Maryeom Palace have established himself in Seol Ap?
Even if the name had been changed, someone’s assistance must have been involved in the process of smuggling him out.
Initially, Seol Woon-hwi had believed this was done by someone from within the Hondo Maryeom Palace who pitied Han Mu-rin—someone from Dong Yu-seong’s circle—risking their life to do so. But after meeting Hwa Mu-ryeong and Hwa Mu-nyeom, he reconsidered.
A brief escape was entirely possible. After that, it entered the realm of heavenly fortune, but thinking about it, the existence known as ‘Dong Mu-rin’ was said to be completely dead.
This changed the story entirely.
It wasn’t an insider who helped, but an outsider.
And one with that much power at that.
Then there was only one possibility.
Hwa Mu-nyeom.
He had intended to help Han Mu-rin from the beginning and was actually doing so. Without anyone knowing.
“But that alone is insufficient.”
“…”
“Moreover, you are someone who holds a greater cause. In this world, there is no such thing as a half-hearted moral duty. The chains of cause and effect must be seen through to the end with full commitment, whichever side you’re on. If you’ve gone so far as to save him, only to push him away saying ‘now figure out the rest yourself,’ how do you intend to maintain the order of the Martial World?”
“…Huh…”
“Will you handle that order the same way—’I’ve done my part, so let others figure out the rest’?”
“…”
“Though I am but a distant junior in the Martial World, I dare speak thus to you: A greater cause begins with the fundamental duties of humanity, and once begun, it must be continuously retraced and recreated through results that see it through to completion in every way. Gratitude and grudges are complexly intertwined, and in this situation, nothing is clearer than the relationship between disciple and master.”
“…”
“The greater cause spoken by a petty person who has abandoned moral duty is devalued by its very nature. If you wish to be confident in yourself, then do what must be done.”
What must be done.
Hwa Mu-nyeom had little choice but to let out a sigh.
When I met with Seol Woon-hwi, there was much I wished to ask—what had transpired within the Secret Realm, and how I had managed the Muk Se-hoe members I had stationed there.
Yet I received no answers, only reproach instead.
At an age well past one hundred, being scolded by a junior so far removed in years felt too surreal for anger—instead, a hollow emptiness consumed me.
“…I executed the moral duty of man half-heartedly…? Yes, I concede. Your words ring true.”
“If my words caused offense, I offer my apologies.”
“They were harsh, yet every syllable was just. I have no wish to become a petty person, so I acknowledge this fully and shall alter my conduct henceforth.”
Hwa Mu-nyeom’s pupils gleamed.
“Whatever the case, I shall aid you actively—not as a member of Muk Se-hoe, but as the master of Dong Yu-seong. Does this suffice?”
“Yes, Senior.”
Hwa Mu-nyeom scratched his head and glanced sidelong at Han Mu-rin before asking.
“Do you intend to continue using the Han surname?”
“No. When the ‘time’ comes, I shall return to my true name.”
“…I see. Understood.”
Hwa Mu-nyeom stood in contemplation for a long while.
Then, as if a conclusion had been reached, he spoke to Seol Woon-hwi.
“I shall take my leave now.”
Seol Woon-hwi performed the Embracing Fist salute.
“Safe travels, Senior.”
Hwa Mu-nyeom departed without another word, leaving Seol Woon-hwi and Han Mu-rin alone.
“Han Mu-rin.”
“Yes, Supreme Commander.”
“Your singular obsession with annihilating Hondo Maryeom Palace has thus far been nothing but blind determination devoid of methodology. Do you agree?”
Han Mu-rin nodded.
For Han Mu-rin to realistically topple Hondo Maryeom Palace, what would be required?
Time was inevitably necessary. And talent to accelerate that time was equally essential.
The mere goal of annihilation spoke only of an ‘end’ without concrete means.
But now, circumstances had changed.
“The moment has come to determine your method.”
Han Mu-rin’s eyes gleamed.
“You have two choices before you.”
“I am listening.”
“The first is to erase Hondo Maryeom Palace itself from this world, sparing neither means nor method, just as your heart currently desires.”
I could now mobilize Muk Se-hoe’s strength, use Hwa Mu-ryeong to secretly summon key figures of Hondo Maryeom Palace to one location, and carry out assassinations there.
There was also the method of designating Hondo Maryeom Palace as an enemy through my position as Cheonsu of the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance, and countless other approaches.
Han Mu-rin asked.
“What is the second option?”
“That you become the Palace Lord of Hondo Maryeom Palace.”
“…Pardon?”
Seol Woon-hwi continued, observing Han Mu-rin’s excessive bewilderment.
“Your father died bearing the false accusation of treason. Yet when one considers it, is it not extraordinarily strange?”
“I’m not certain what you mean, sir.”
“What could the Palace Lord of Hondo Maryeom Palace have possibly feared?”
“….”
“What terror drove him to fabricate charges of treason against your father and eliminate him?”
Despite his seclusion, Hwa Mu-nyeom maintained intimate ties with Dong Yu-seong, making him a certain enemy—yet Shin Ju-eon, the Palace Lord of Hondo Maryeom Palace, executed the scheme regardless.
Why had he been compelled to do so?
“I conducted separate investigations, but nothing surfaced. Yet something must exist. The crucial matter is that you possess the ability to transform that unjust accusation of treason into reality.”
Han Mu-rin’s eyes widened.
“Treason occurs when an internal faction of sufficient power rises against the existing authority. Shin Ju-eon has essentially already provided you with justification.”
“Justification, you say?”
“Indeed. Shin Ju-eon’s scheme amounts to nothing less than viewing your father as a candidate for the next Palace Lord. You, having survived, can seize that justification and claim Hondo Maryeom Palace for yourself.”
“….”
“Should you become Palace Lord of Hondo Maryeom Palace, it carries two meanings.”
Seol Woon-hwi raised his fingers in demonstration.
“First, it proves that your father died unjustly. If the false charges stemmed from fear of losing his position, then your ascension to that throne is nothing less than the rightful heir reclaiming his seat. Neither external nor internal forces would dare oppose it.”
Truly, none would—for all who sided with Shin Ju-eon and those who aided in eliminating Blood Shadow Divine Lord Dong Yu-seong and his associates would be erased from the world.
The most critical factor is external perception, and Han Mu-rin carries Dong Yu-seong’s bloodline. Thus, the entire Murim would deem Han Mu-rin’s restoration of the throne as righteous. Such is the way of Murim.
“Second, you can fulfill the gratitude and grudges that give meaning to the lives of Martial Artists. Shin Ju-eon, fearing the loss of his domain, sought to eliminate any potential threat entirely—yet he failed to destroy the youngest, the one who posed no threat whatsoever. As time passed, that youngest rose to seize what Shin Ju-eon once dominated and slew all connected to him, thus completing the cycle of gratitude and grudges. Your honor and your father’s name would be restored, and moreover, all of Murim would turn their gaze upon you.”
Han Mu-rin drew in a deep breath.

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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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