Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 309

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

Chapter 309
The five Family Heads of the Five Great Families are called the “Five Pillars of Murim” in the martial world, and since one of them has mastered Limitless Divine Manifestation while the other four are masters of Dao Transformation Authority, these five sects walk their own independent paths without regard for anyone’s opinion.
Among the Odaegeomsong and the Four Demonic Outer Sects below them, the only existence capable of posing even a slight threat to the Five Great Families’ stronghold is Yeon Song-baek, the Sect Master of Ihwageomseonchong.
Yet Yeon Song-baek had come here alone, without even a personal guard.
Wi Cheon-ho gazed at Ansim Tower, its doors firmly shut.
‘I hadn’t heard news of him coming here. Surely he wouldn’t cause trouble.’
Masters of such renown in Murim place great importance on face and honor.
No matter what remarkable deeds Seol Woon-hwi had accomplished, he was still barely past his coming of age.
Even if he held the position of Cheon Ui Jung Jeong in the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance, would the Sect Master of Odaegeomsong really step forward to face him directly? Such an act was taboo in Murim.
If one wished to preserve face, one must conduct oneself accordingly, and because they valued this, they resorted to assassination.
Frankly, if Seol Woon-hwi had offended Gun Mu-gyeol, the Alliance Leader of the Martial Alliance, Gun Mu-gyeol could simply step forward and kill him directly. The same applied to Yu Cheong—if offended, he could simply leave the Origin Blood Sect and kill Seol Woon-hwi.
Since they had not done so, surely Yeon Song-baek would not either.
He wiped his face.
‘Even if the Cheon Ui Jung Jeong dies, there is no reason for me to die. So let me calm myself.’
It was at that moment, as he steadied his mind and body with deep breaths.
The main gate of Ansim Tower opened, and two figures entered.
It was Seol Woon-hwi and Han Mu-rin.
In an instant.
Wi Cheon-ho’s entire body went rigid.
He felt something aimed at him—precisely two finger-widths away from his neck, beside his face.
It was invisible, yet undeniably there.
A cold killing intent, the air trembling microscopically, and an instinctive warning that his life hung in the balance.
‘Sword Control Technique….’
It was Yeon Song-baek’s specialty, Sword Control Technique.
An ultimate technique among ultimates—subduing an opponent with an invisible blade.
But this was no ordinary Sword Control Technique.
It was the exclusive secret art of Ihwageomseonchong—condensing qi from the air itself to create a tangible sword.
It was unmistakably Void Realm Sword Control Technique.
Wi Cheon-ho did not dare even breathe heavily. The slightest movement would sever his neck.
But Seol Woon-hwi was different.
His eyes instantly turned a pristine white.
Heavenly Snow Domain.
In that moment, white frost began to descend across the entire courtyard of Ansim Tower. The air grew bitterly cold, and everything within a radius of thirty feet began to freeze solid. The weeds on the ground turned white, and ice crystals bloomed from the wooden pillars.
Before Seol Woon-hwi’s face, a crackling sound erupted, and the transparent blade suddenly manifested into tangible form.
“Hoo….”
A low exclamation rang out from above the eaves of Ansim Tower, and Wi Cheon-ho hurriedly looked up.
There stood a white-haired middle-aged man.
Dressed in white robes, holding a sword in one hand.
It was Yeon Song-baek, the Sect Master of Ihwageomseonchong.
He had clearly been inside the residence—when had he come out?
Wi Cheon-ho didn’t even notice it.
“Heavenly Snow Domain… I never thought I’d witness the ultimate technique of Snow Palace with my own eyes, only heard in rumors.”
Yeon Song-baek’s gaze sharpened.
“Indeed, you live up to the rumors, Cheon Ui Jung Jeong.”
Seol Woon-hwi smiled faintly and swept the sword before him to the side.
Then he respectfully cupped his fist in salute.
“I greet the Sect Master of Ihwa Geom Cheon Jong.”
“….”
“Shall we continue this conversation inside?”
“…Yes, there seems to be much to discuss. Come in.”
With those words, Yeon Song-baek lightly leaped down from the eaves and headed inside, with Seol Woon-hwi following him into the residence.
* * *
In the largest guest chamber of Ansim Tower, Seol Woon-hwi and Yeon Song-baek sat facing each other.
“I received your letter.”
“I see.”
“There was something rather interesting written in it.”
“It was not written merely to be interesting, Senior.”
Surprisingly, Yeon Song-baek’s voice and expression were gentle.
In the Murim, Seol Woon-hwi’s position was nearly that of a sect founder. Given the path he had walked thus far, dismissing him as a mere youth would only reveal one’s own inadequacy.
Viewed differently, this understanding could shorten the conversation considerably.
So he asked.
“How much do you know?”
“Exactly as stated in the letter.”
“So you know everything.”
“That’s correct.”
“If I were to ask how you know, would you be prepared to answer?”
“I would answer, but I suspect you won’t find it satisfactory.”
Yeon Song-baek chuckled softly.
Then he slowly opened his mouth.
“It was twenty years ago. The previous Sect Master, my own master, told me this: that I would become the Sect Master of Ihwa Geom Cheon Jong, and he would take the position of Vice Sect Master.”
Seol Woon-hwi drank his tea in silence.
“Within the cave, my master attained enlightenment and circulated his energy. At that moment, something stirred within my heart—desire.”
“I understand.”
“Understand… Your situation as a genius dispatched from Snow Palace to the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance differs somewhat in nature, but… let’s say it’s the same.”
With those words, Yeon Song-baek tapped his own face lightly.
Then his face writhed, his nose lifted slightly higher, his slanted eyes became more focused, and his somewhat broad face became more angular.
The highest level of Disguise Arts I knew was Transformation Disguise Arts.
That disguise technique used when operating as Mu Myeong was the exclusive martial art of Man Maeng-rip, once famous as the Black Face Color Demon, and it made no sense that there wasn’t a single disguise art in this vast Murim that could compare to it.
In the first place, the criteria for ranking disguise arts were not simply how subtly one could alter one’s face and body.
That had to be equipped as a foundation. If even that remained unclear, there would be no reason for me to use it or mention it.
How much of one’s true power can be wielded while maintaining the Disguise Arts?
This is the most critical measure, and the Transformation Disguise Arts that Yeon Song-baek employs—the Divided Shadow Bone Shrinking Technique—allows him to deploy most of his true power even after transforming both mind and body.
Yeon Song-baek chuckled softly.
“That phrase in the letter you sent—’three entered the mountain, but only one emerged’—yes, you were right.”
Yeon Song-baek smiled broadly.
“I am Shin Gang. I killed my master Yeon Hak-cheol, murdered the next sect master Yeon Song-baek, and have been masquerading as Yeon Song-baek for twenty years using the Disguise Arts.”
“How would you prefer I address you?”
“Call me as you wish. It hardly matters now.”
Seol Woon-hwi let out a quiet laugh.
Why had Yeon Song-baek—no, Shin Gang—come here?
And alone, no less.
There was only one reason.
To kill everyone.
“You’re rather hasty.”
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm… shouldn’t it have been the opposite? Regardless of how you discovered the truth, you should have concealed it as much as possible. Then none of this would have happened…”
“I prefer to move the story along quickly.”
“…Story?”
“Senior. Do I appear foolish to you?”
“Based on your actions thus far, I never thought so—but now I’m beginning to wonder.”
“Then would you hear out a proposal from this fool?”
Shin Gang shrugged his shoulders.
“Go ahead.”
“Twenty years ago on Flower Mountain, Shin Gang did not actually die.”
“…What?”
“At that time, Yeon Hak-cheol told ‘Shin Gang’—not Yeon Song-baek—that he would receive the position of next sect master, while his own son Yeon Song-baek would become Grand Elder of the Ihwageomseonchong…”
“Wait, what are you saying?”
Seol Woon-hwi laughed quietly.
“You’re fabricating the ‘true story’ right now.”
“…”
“Will you hear me out to the end?”
“…Go on.”
“Yes. Continuing: His own son Yeon Song-baek was enraged. Why couldn’t he sit as sect master? Even if Shin Gang possessed remarkable talent, the sect master position should naturally belong to the Yeon clan—it made no sense otherwise. This unbearable fury consumed Yeon Song-baek entirely.”
“…”
“Yeon Song-baek ambushed his own father and sect master Yeon Hak-cheol in a moment of enlightenment and energy intoxication. Shin Gang, greatly alarmed, tried to intervene, but Yeon Song-baek was slightly faster. Caught off guard, Shin Gang was defeated and buried beneath the collapsing Flower Mountain. Yet by some miracle, he survived, fled into hiding, and entered closed-door seclusion.”
“…”
“Twenty years passed, and Shin Gang became a master of Limitless Divine Manifestation. One night, he infiltrated the Ihwageomseonchong and killed Yeon Song-baek.”
“…And after that?”
“What else? You must become the true sect master of the Ihwageomseonchong. Senior.”
Shin Gang wiped his face clean.
“Cast off the mask and now operate the Ihwageomseonchong under the name Shin Gang?”
“Yes.”
“Must you? Things aren’t so bad as they are now….”
“They are bad. Very much so.”
“….”
“You know it yourself, which is why you’ve been using me to clean house, isn’t it?”
“…Fascinating. But completing that narrative requires several procedures.”
“Correct. Procedures are necessary. Witnesses are needed, corpses are needed. Justification is needed.”
Shin Gang let out a hollow laugh.
“More intriguing than I thought. But your narrative has too many holes. You know this as well as I do—to manipulate facts, one must know more than what the common people know.”
Seol Woon-hwi listened quietly to Shin Gang’s words.
“The stories you’ve presented are ones anyone in this world could present. Without understanding the ‘hidden layer,’ manipulation isn’t easy. If that’s all you’re offering, I wonder if there’s any reason to continue this conversation.”
“A reason… Of course there is. First, I will find for you the divine weapon of the Ihwageomseonchong that was supposedly buried with Shin Gang in the old narrative—the Heavenly Extreme Sword.”
“…So you knew everything all along.”
“I wouldn’t have called you if I didn’t know, Senior.”
“But you know the location of that divine weapon even I don’t? That’s hard to believe.”
“I always speak through results. I will find the Heavenly Extreme Sword and present it to you.”
“Then what’s the second?”
“I will also provide the corpse. A body at the level between Heaven-Human Unity and Limitless Divine Manifestation should suffice.”
Shin Gang’s eyes flashed at those words.
“Not the corpse of another Limitless Divine Manifestation, but one of a lower rank?”
“Yes.”
“Deception won’t be easy. The density of qi the corpse carries, the size of the dantian—I’ve lived as a martial artist and seen countless corpses. Work of that caliber requires considerable precision.”
“You’ve been acting for twenty years. Forging specific parts of a corpse won’t be particularly difficult for you, and adjusting the dantian’s size and qi density should also be manageable. With the Ihwageomseonchong’s unique mental technique, or perhaps claiming an injury occurred during combat—if you can’t manage that much, there’s no reason to remove the mask.”
Shin Gang, who had been watching Seol Woon-hwi quietly, suddenly asked.
“What do you want?”
“Write a blood oath for me.”
“…A blood oath?”
“A kind of vow that you will do nothing against the organization called Cheon Rim from now on.”
“That sounds like you’re asking me to surrender.”
Seol Woon-hwi’s smile deepened.

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