Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 306

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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 306
In a study where candlelight flickered, a man gazed out the window.
Yeon Song-baek.
Sect Master of the Ihwageomseonchong and a master of Limitless Divine Manifestation.
The dignified man, who appeared to be in his mid-fifties, wore a subtle smile.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound of knocking echoed at the door.
“Enter.”
Yeon Song-baek’s voice was composed.
Soon the door opened and three figures stepped inside.
The man who walked in first was in his late forties.
Sang Ji-hyeok, Grand Elder of the Ihwageomseonchong. He was one of the few survivors who had witnessed that Seclusion Chamber twenty years ago.
“What news of So Young-jin and Jang Jin-ok?”
Yeon Song-baek asked while still gazing out the window.
Sang Ji-hyeok stepped forward and bowed his head.
“…They have failed. Both are dead.”
“Is that so?”
Yeon Song-baek’s reaction was calm, as if he had anticipated this outcome.
“This Seol Woon-hwi is more troublesome than I expected.”
Yeon Song-baek slowly turned his body. His face revealed no emotion.
“Grand Elder Sang.”
“Yes, Sect Master.”
“Do you remember that incident from twenty years ago?”
Sang Ji-hyeok’s body stiffened slightly.
“…I remember it.”
“Then you understand why I have kept you alive.”
Yeon Song-baek sat in the chair placed at the center of the study.
“I do not enjoy killing people. Especially not useful ones.”
Yeon Song-baek paused briefly before continuing.
“Because you know my secrets, I can trust you. Your fate is completely intertwined with mine.”
Sang Ji-hyeok swallowed hard.
“It is an honor, Sect Master. Then what will you do about Seol Woon-hwi?”
“Seol Woon-hwi…”
Yeon Song-baek slowly repeated the name.
“An intriguing figure.”
“In what way?”
“Simply by killing both So Young-jin and Jang Jin-ok, he proves himself no ordinary person. Moreover, to move so boldly while holding the position of Cheon Ui Jung Jeong…”
Yeon Song-baek fell into thought for a moment.
“He must surely be orchestrating something grand.”
“…If I may be so bold, is that why you have summoned the Cheon Pung Swordmaster again?”
Grand Elder Sang Ji-hyeok refused to accept that two of the Seven Flower Swords were dead.
Of course, it was hardly uncommon for martial artists to fall in the Gangho, yet this tragedy could have been prevented.
Yeon Song-baek clicked his tongue with apparent regret.
“It seems you believe those two would still be alive had you not summoned the Cheon Pung swordmaster.”
“My apologies.”
“There is nothing to apologize for. I too am human and occasionally make mistakes. Cheon Pung is a pillar of the Ihwageomseonchong, a figure I myself cannot easily command as sect leader.”
“…”
“If he were to learn our secrets, would he simply remain silent?”
Sang Ji-hyeok’s brow twitched subtly.
“This matter must be handled within ‘our’ circle. I held your abilities in very high regard, yet you continue to fail—it is most disappointing.”
Sang Ji-hyeok’s expression hardened.
“My apologies.”
“It matters not. In the end, those who laugh last shall possess everything. We need only ensure we are laughing at the finish.”
“…”
“More importantly, you said you were heading to An Sim Gun?”
“Yes. Though I confess my bewilderment. An Sim Gun lies at the very edge of Woon-guk’s territory—truthfully, it bears the name of a prefecture but is hardly a place of consequence, is it?”
“Perhaps.”
Yeon Song-baek gazed out the window as he spoke.
“I cannot be certain. But if the Cheon Ui Jung Jeong moves directly, it is no ordinary matter.”
Sang Ji-hyeok spoke carefully.
“Sect Leader.”
“Speak.”
“Then what should we do?”
As if he had been waiting for this question, Yeon Song-baek answered.
“You shall go.”
“…Pardon?”
“What Seol Woon-hwi desires is irrelevant.”
Yeon Song-baek’s voice turned glacial.
“What matters is how we exploit him.”
“Exploit him, you say…?”
“Judging by his nature, his will is stronger than his sense of justice, and he is direct in his thinking. Moreover, when he believes something to be right, he invariably throws himself into it without hesitation. I suspect that if he did not, he would torment himself with self-reproach. Such a temperament is easily manipulated.”
Yeon Song-baek’s lips twisted into a smile.
“This type is simple to control.”
Sang Ji-hyeok tilted his head in confusion.
“How would you control him, Sect Leader?”
“It is simple.”
Yeon Song-baek settled into his chair as he spoke.
“Provide him with an enemy. Give him a reason he must fight.”
“An enemy, you say…?”
“Jin Guk.”
Yeon Song-baek spoke with unwavering resolve.
“If we intensify the conflict between the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance and Jin Guk, the board will expand, and Seol Woon-hwi—the Cheon Ui Jung Jeong and the root cause of this affair—will have to bear responsibility one way or another.”
Grand Elder Sang Ji-hyeok asked carefully.
“Our losses have proven greater than anticipated. Three of the Four Main Gods from Cheon Rim have already defected to the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance, and the remaining one, Dok Ju, is dead.”
“And?”
“I… beg your pardon?”
“The Muk Se-hoe and Cheon Rim both sprouted from the same root. If one absorbs the other and grows in size…”
Yeon Song-baek chuckled softly.
“Then we simply devour it whole, do we not?”
“Ah… I see…”
“It is an opportunity to cleanse both the interior of Cheon Rim and the Muk Se-hoe at once. When that cleansing is complete, only the elite will remain—and at that level, matters become far simpler. Why would I prevent Seol Woon-hwi or Mae Wi-dong from doing this work on our behalf?”
Sang Ji-hyeok marveled.
“Two birds with one stone, indeed.”
“Precisely. By wielding the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance as a blade to unite Cheon Rim and the Muk Se-hoe, then devouring that organization entirely through the ‘way of martial artists,’ the blade we appear to have lost will return to us far sharper than before.”
Yeon Song-baek gazed out the window and continued.
“Grand Elder.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Go yourself and tell Seol Woon-hwi that I am willing to have a ‘conversation’ with him.”
Sang Ji-hyeok’s eyes gleamed.
“Should I simply convey that message?”
Yeon Song-baek shook his head.
“Though I know his location, I am the Master. As Master, I cannot appear directly, so you shall go in my stead and sever one of his arms before you return.”
Sang Ji-hyeok nodded.
“No matter how formidable he is, he has only just faced a martial artist of the Heaven-Human Realm a mere few time periods ago. You can reach Seol Woon-hwi within half a day—that will be more than sufficient to claim an arm.”
Sang Ji-hyeok cupped his fist in salute.
“I shall do as you command, Master. However…”
“Speak freely.”
“Who do you intend to appoint to the vacant position of Vice Master? Surely you are not considering Im Su-je…?”
Cheon Pung the Swordsman, Im Su-je.
Yeon Song-baek smiled faintly.
“Though Im Su-je is indeed a master of Heaven-Human Unity, the position of Vice Master cannot be claimed by cultivation level alone.”
“…”
“Of course, Im Su-je is worthy of being called a pillar, but one who sits in that seat must possess deeper knowledge of the organization to which they belong.”
Yeon Song-baek extended his hand and placed it upon Sang Ji-hyeok’s shoulder.
“It is your seat. After you return, we shall prepare your inauguration ceremony.”
Ordinarily, upon hearing such words, one would smile brightly, yet strangely, Sang Ji-hyeok did not.
Rather, he could not.
He cupped his fist in salute.
“Yes, Master. I shall return with favorable results.”
And with that, Sang Ji-hyeok departed.
Yeon Song-baek stood alone, gazing out the window.
Everything had unfolded according to his design thus far.
Perhaps it was the weight of years that had made him anxious.
He had long harbored and utilized those who knew his secrets, but that would change now.
He intended to erase them all.
Their numbers had already been reduced to a precious few, and most of them were already dead.
Only two remained.
Once these two were gone.
Then Yeon Song-baek would move directly.
He opened his palm.
Everyone played within the confines of this hand.
That was what he believed.
* * *
It was all proceeding as planned.
When Seol Woon-hwi’s party had barely an hour remaining before reaching An Sim Gun, a man blocked their path.
A thin-framed man carrying a sword on his back—a blade as large as his own body.
It was Sang Ji-hyeok, the Grand Elder of Ihwageomseonchong.
He had come alone, without a single subordinate.
Yet his aura, elevated to the Heaven-Human Realm, was more than sufficient to halt the procession—it overflowed with overwhelming presence.
Sang Ji-hyeok, who had been nervously glancing between Wi Cheon-ho and Han Mu-rin, shifted his gaze toward the largest carriage.
Seol Woon-hwi was inside.
Strangely, he neither opened the door nor showed his face. Sang Ji-hyeok spoke.
“Come out. Don’t hide.”
Then Seol Woon-hwi’s voice came from within the carriage.
“I have never hidden myself in any moment, Senior Sang.”
“Then what are you doing right now?”
“I would like to ask you the same.”
“….”
“It seems you understand how this situation is unfolding, Senior Sang.”
Sang Ji-hyeok flinched.
“You show no intention of using force. Yet in the nature of the Murim, surely the one in greater haste must act first, would you not agree?”
“….”
“Enter, if you wish to live.”
How should I describe this feeling?
A chill ran through me.
Though I could not see him directly, Seol Woon-hwi’s condition was far from normal.
Yet I felt overwhelmed.
Not as a martial artist, but as a person.
Seol Woon-hwi was right.
Sang Ji-hyeok had certainly received orders from Yeon Song-baek.
Cut off one of Seol Woon-hwi’s arms.
But this required understanding his inner nature.
If his arm were severed, what would he reveal, given the temperament he’d displayed thus far?
He would undoubtedly rush forward to stake his life on it.
Yeon Song-baek’s command was, in essence, no different from ordering Seol Woon-hwi’s death.
Moreover, had Sang Ji-hyeok intended to follow that order, he would have launched a surprise attack long ago. Yet he had merely halted the procession instead.
Seol Woon-hwi clearly understood the meaning of this.
“When thought deepens, action slows. Senior.”
A wedge drives home.
Sang Ji-hyeok exhaled silently and began to move forward.
The Wu Yi Squad and Han Mu-rin naturally stepped aside, and as Sang Ji-hyeok reached the carriage, he slowly grasped the door handle.
What if.
The moment he opened this door, Seol Woon-hwi’s blade came flying?
He had already discerned everything worth understanding about Seol Woon-hwi.
There was one point Sang Ji-hyeok had focused on.
When ordinary martial artists draw upon their internal energy, they require ‘time’ in some form.
Reducing this temporal gap was an endless challenge every martial artist must confront until their dying breath.
Yet Seol Woon-hwi’s gap was narrower than that of ordinary martial artists.
In the briefest moment, he could unleash the maximum qi a warrior of the Heaven-Human Realm could produce.
This was not merely lethal—it bordered on miraculous.
“Right now, I am not even holding a sword, nor am I circulating my energy.”
He shut his eyes tightly.
Slowly, he opened the door.

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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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