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Chapter 391: Personal Revenge
If I recall correctly, it was around the time the Demonic Cult had stripped Jiangnan bare and the Orthodox Path sects of the south had fled to Shaolin Temple clutching nothing but their spoons, their chopsticks, and their gold.
No scholars remained in the Murim Alliance, which had been reduced to half of its former half.
Most had abandoned their monthly stipends and slipped away in the dead of night at a leisurely pace.
And the seats vacated by those who'd at least had the brains to run were snatched up by men with nothing but rocks between their ears, who feasted and swaggered among themselves.
When fools sit in high seats, the people on the lowest rungs are the ones who die.
W̊е̂b̈n ȯ v̇ẽl. Ĕn u m а́
Amid mounting grievances and damage, the power-mongers—who'd never intended to take responsibility in the first place—finally surrendered the positions they'd seized on a whim, sweeping the crisis under the rug.
And so the Murim Alliance, its greatest pillar shattered, propped up by flimsy supports, listed and swayed like a condemned house on the verge of collapse, its roof barely holding.
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Already outmatched in martial strength, the loss of any strategist capable of countering the Demon Brain's tactics and stratagems only hastened the march toward annihilation.
And then, Dam Ak appeared.
When every scholar was fleeing, he alone walked into the chaos.
He left behind the wealth, glory, and absolute power of the imperial court in Beijing and came to the Murim Alliance.
Ě ṅu m̃а́.і̌ ḋ
Working ten times harder than anyone else, he single-handedly rebuilt the Alliance and formulated its battle plans.
Going further, he developed strategies and tactics to counter the Demon Brain, plugging the dam that had burst with Demonic Cult forces flooding through.
After his arrival, the casualty rosters for lower-rank warriors grew much thinner.
They spent more time fighting than clearing away corpses, and more time tossing out lame jokes than sharing grief.
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Even such small daily routines were precious in those times.
And one day, while that modest yet satisfying routine continued—
Е n̂ů m̊ а̇
I had stepped out of the Sojeong Squad barracks to relieve myself, and on the outskirts of the encampment I came across Dam Ak, staggering down the night road.
The realization that I'd run into the Grand Strategist who drew up our battle plans made my body go rigid.
After all, this man was the hero who had saved us.
Yet despite our never having met, he asked me out of nowhere.
[Is the murim always like this?]
Not knowing his circumstances, I couldn't tell what he meant by the question.
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But one thing was clear—his state was perilously fragile, like a candle flame ready to gutter out at any moment.
In a voice drained to the point of mental collapse, he asked.
[Do people throw away their lives for reasons this pointless, and fight battles for reasons this meaningless? Is the murim...... that kind of place?]
He had thrown himself into the murim to cope with the grief of losing his teacher and comrades to the Demonic Cult's slaughter—but now, even the original motive that had driven him seemed to have hollowed out, leaving nothing but empty eyes as he asked me.
[What...... is any of this even for?]
I couldn't answer his question.
Е̂n ǔ m̂ а̄ . і̇ d̄
I didn't know the answer myself.
And unlike him, I was someone who had been dragged here by obligation.
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All I wanted was for this hero not to collapse right then and there.
If this bleeding hero crumbled—
My comrades, and I, would die.
I wanted him to hold on just a little longer.
Èn̄u m а̄.і̇ d
To endure the pain just a bit more.
There was only one thing I could say.
[The murim is......]
***
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"......Junior!"
"......"
Ě ň ŭ m̄ а
"Junior Jin!"
I looked at Dang Seo-hui, who was tugging at my sleeve, and found her porcelain brow furrowed.
"What are you doing? You need to snap out of it."
Why, all of a sudden—
Had I recalled the foolish words I'd said to Dam Ak in my previous life?
Why had the sight of his present self, burning with vengeance, summoned the memory of his previous self, teetering as if walking on fire?
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I shook my head clear.
"I'm back."
Dang Seo-hui eyed me groggily, then reached her hand outside the formation.
Hissss......
Her wrist vanished past the boundary for a time.
Then Dang Seo-hui tucked three empty mother-of-pearl bottles back into her robes.
Е nūm̈ а. ĭd
"We can go out now."
The people outside the formation stood frozen stiff, as if time had stopped.
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According to Dang Seo-hui, they'd briefly lose consciousness and wake up—but thanks to the Forgetting Herb, they wouldn't even remember passing out.
Would I forget some memories too if I took the Forgetting Herb?
Entertaining that foolish thought, I turned and looked back at the Hall of Repose.
Clear sword paths and traces of palm force scored into the ruined halls.
W е̌ b̈ n õ v̌еl Е̃_ń ū m̆ ӓ
Despite such glaring evidence, the reason the investigation had officially turned up nothing was all too obvious.
'The culprits and the investigators were one and the same.'
The failure to identify the Grand Strategist's assailants must have been a godsend for them.
Unless the Grand Strategist personally intervened, the Alliance members' investigation would never uncover Dam Ak's attackers—not if they searched for a hundred years.
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'Even if the Grand Strategist stepped in, could it really be resolved?'
Just as they'd done with me, trying to hide what was plainly visible would not be tolerated.
Е n ǔ m а̊
Dam Ak's man had died, and the weight of that death pressed on him more heavily than any goodwill toward the Murim Alliance.
'Idiots......'
Cursing the unchangeable past did nothing to solve anything.
What I needed now was to find a solution, no matter what.
I took Cheon-gi back to his lodging first.
"Brother......"
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He looked like he had something to say but was holding it in.
Instead, the boy suddenly buried himself in my arms.
"Whatever choice you make...... I will follow you, Brother."
How was it that a kid this brilliant also had such a good heart?
I didn't bother swallowing the smile that crept out.
"Go on in."
Е̊ǹ um̈ а̇
After Jegal Cheon-gi went inside, I was about to head back to the lodging with Dang Seo-hui when—
She threw her arms around me.
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Dang Seo-hui had been staring at me in silence, and then she simply pressed herself against my chest.
What's this straw doing now?
"What are you doing?"
"You need to choose well. This is no ordinary matter."
Enu ṁ а̂ . і́ d
A voice steeped in genuine concern.
A wry smile slipped out of me too.
"I know."
I didn't have any candied fruit tucked away, so I stroked her head instead.
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At that, Dang Seo-hui made a rumbling, purring sound, as though pleased.
***
Е̌n̆ u̇m̊ а̊. îd̀
Since Dam Ak's survival remained uncertain, the Murim Alliance continued its investigation on high alert.
As a result, dozens of innocent people were hauled in and out of the Execution Pavilion every single day.
Among them were some who had been summoned to the Execution Pavilion multiple times.
Those who had been standing watch around the Hall of Repose and the outer compound.
Yet none of them showed any sign of hardship or complained of exhaustion.
As if they'd merely gone out for tea, their step was light going in and light coming out.
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While such days dragged on—
An emergency dispatch arrived at the Murim Alliance.
"The Taewon Branch in Shanxi Province is currently under threat from Black Path martial artists!"
Five hundred Black Thought Alliance members had assembled around the Taewon Branch.
Fully armed and arrayed as if poised to charge, they stood motionless around the branch, awaiting orders.
They hadn't declared war, hadn't picked a fight, and hadn't caused any disturbance by demonstrating.
Е̂ n̊ ū m̊а̀ .і d
But the mere fact of their assembly was enough to cow everyone inside the Taewon Branch.
And then—
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"The Chongqing Seolim Branch is also completely pinned down by Black Path fighters!"
"The Nanchang Branch in Jiangxi Province has had all its supply lines cut!"
"Three hundred Black Path fighters have assembled around the Nanning Branch in Guangxi Province and are staging a demonstration!"
By the time the Alliance had blinked in confusion, Black Path operatives had already crossed the yard and wormed their way into the inner chambers—and the Murim Alliance recoiled in alarm.
Éñ u_m а . і̆ d
No matter how bad things were, no one had expected the Black Thought Alliance to act this brazenly while nothing had been properly clarified.
The tense silence that had pervaded the Murim Alliance shattered in an instant, and everyone was thrown into disarray by the possibility that war might actually erupt.
"War...... are we going to war?"
"We only just got back from Sichuan......!"
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"Where are we being sent? Do we have to go too?"
Of course, not everyone was panicking.
Е n̊_ŭm̊ â . їd̃
In any group there are fools who see chaos as opportunity.
The moment the Black Path moved, they sprang up in rehearsed outrage.
"Why should we, the Murim Alliance, just sit here and take this?! On your feet—let's march to the Mantongbu!"
"That's right! The villains who dared attack the Grand Strategist clearly started this uproar to cover their tracks after the assassination failed. We absolutely cannot let this slide!"
"Let's sweep those vermin out of the murim for good!"
While those who feared war and those who'd been waiting for it each scrambled to protect their own interests—
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"......"
I had reached the end of my deliberation.
If war broke out, the Black Thought Alliance's fighting strength would fluctuate wildly depending on whether Dam Ak was there or not.
Now was my chance to extract him—but the moment I did, he would throw everything he had against the Murim Alliance.
In one sense, the choice was blindingly obvious.
But—
Eṅ u m̈ ӑ.і d̈
[Is the murim always like this?]
The question he'd asked me in my previous life had refused to leave my head for the past two days.
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If I'd known it'd be like this, I should have gotten some Forgetting Herb from Dang Seo-hui.
"What kind of place is the murim......"
The answer I'd given him then had been a deeply selfish one.
Not for his sake, not for everyone's sake—only for my own.
Е̊ ň u_m̈а̀ .ї d̂
Perhaps the time had finally come for me to take responsibility for that answer.
***
"......That's the situation."
I visited the inn where the Taeul Sect members were gathered and briefed them on everything that had happened.
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Dam Ak had told me never to reveal his status to the Murim Alliance, but he hadn't said anything about keeping it secret from Taeul Sect's people.
More importantly, they needed to know the situation if I was going to execute an operation on Dam Ak's behalf.
Ên uma
After hearing everything, the faces of the Sect Leader, my father, and Wang Geum-san had gone rigid.
"......"
"......"
"......"
A long silence filled the room uncomfortably.
Wang Geum-san was the first to speak.
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"Normally I'd say the obvious answer is to report it to the Murim Alliance, but right now...... I honestly don't know."
He shook his head and continued.
"The truth is, the Black Thought Alliance's envoy delegation wanting to return to their own headquarters isn't, on its face, a problematic act at all."
My father added.
"If we help before war breaks out, it should be fine—but if a clash happens somewhere along the way...... it immediately becomes an act of treason."
He continued, looking at me.
Е n u̇ m̂ а . id
"If the assailants truly are the Righteous Path Association and this was deliberate, then the Taeul Sect would be making an enemy of the Righteous Path Association."
As if asking whether I could bear the responsibility of dragging the Taeul Sect into this.
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Then—
"Isn't the Taeul Sect already at odds with the Righteous Path Association?"
"Estate Master!"
Wang Geum-san tried to lighten the mood with the quip, but no one took the bait.
En ů ma
After a long silence, the Sect Leader—his appearance still unfamiliar—posed a question to me.
"What do you think is the right thing to do?"
His voice had changed in both depth and gravity, and I still hadn't adjusted—but I didn't let it show.
"I......"
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"I am not asking you to speak with the Taeul Sect's welfare in mind."
"......"
W_e ḃň оvеl Enù m̊ a
"Tell me what you, So-un, truly believe is right."
The Sect Leader asked as though he could see straight through me.
I steadied my breathing and looked him squarely in the eye.
"I've decided that I must help him, even if I have to do it alone."
"Why?"
Why, he asks.
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I finally spoke the answer I'd never been able to give Dam Ak in my previous life.
"Because that is what the 'Righteous Path' and 'chivalrous righteousness' mean."
"......"
The unfamiliar Sect Leader nodded once, then twice.
Then his lips moved. Without a trace of hesitation on his face.
"Then that settles it, doesn't it?"
Е nu m а
I hadn't imagined such a response. I stared at the unfamiliar Sect Leader in stunned silence.
And there, wearing a familiar smile, was the Sect Leader I knew—looking at me.
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"Do what you believe is right. That is the Taeul Sect's teaching, and carrying it out without hesitation is what it means to be a disciple of the Taeul Sect."
Something welled up from deep in my chest.
I struggled mightily not to let the surge of emotion show.
But the faint trembling in my shoulders refused to be hidden.
Wеb̌ ňо̂ṽ еl Еn u mа
"Hmph! This is exactly why I can't quit the Taeul Sect."
At Wang Geum-san's grumbling, the Sect Leader addressed him softly.
"Estate Master Wang, this matter could bring harm to the Wang Estate."
Despite the gravity in the Sect Leader's low voice, the Estate Master answered without a shred of restraint—like an eagle gliding across the sky, beholden to nothing.
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"If they have their organizations in the murim, I have mine in the world at large. If my merchant guild could be shaken by such a flimsy ploy, I wouldn't have devoted my entire life to it in the first place."
With that, every decision was made.
W̌.е̃b n ov е̊l̃ Еn um a
Now it was time to play a big hand.
***
Once the decision was reached, there was no reason to delay.
Moving as fast as possible and resolving this as fast as possible was the only way to keep the situation from escalating further.
After finalizing the operation with the elders, I was on my way back to the lodging.
Passing through the entertainment district, a sharp gaze shot toward me from amid a cluster of people, and I stopped.
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The man I'd met at the Golden Sun Pavilion was dressed as impeccably as ever—an expensive changshan of blue and white, his hair combed neatly up.
A middle-aged man in whom no gap or opening could be found stared holes through my face.
"......Were you never taught that the younger person greets first?"
"Ah, is that so?"
I gave a slight bow of the head.
"I hope you haven't been well."
W ebňо v̄е̊ l̄. Е̇_n̄úṁ а̃
"......"
The people around Clear Water True Man furrowed their brows at me as though looking at a madman.
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But honestly, from where I stood, he was the crazier one—so treating him normally was a tall order.
"Strange that I seem to run into you more often in the entertainment district than at the training grounds, Daoist Master."
"The enlightenment of all things in the universe ultimately resides among the people of the mundane world."
My, how eloquent the cultured breed of jackass can be.
Е n ŭm ä
But no matter how learned, he still couldn't hold a candle to the stinking rhetoric of the Sojeong Squad boys. Not even close.
"Even so, seeking enlightenment while fondling a woman's bare skin is, well, garba—...... no, isn't that the Unorthodox Path?"
"......"
For the first time, Clear Water True Man's expression hardened.
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Those around him gaped in shock, eyes bulging.
"......Y-you insolent wretch! How dare you speak to—!! Do you have any idea where you are!!"
Е n̆ ūmа .ī d
For fuck's sake, at least hide the twitch at the corner of your mouth before you talk.
Bunch of black-hearted bastards, the lot of them.
Clear Water True Man swiftly changed the subject.
"And where might you be going in such a hurry at this hour?"
"I haven't reached the lofty heights of seeking enlightenment in the company of wine and women, so I'm heading back to my lodging to run laps or something."
Despite my barbed words, Clear Water True Man maintained his composure.
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He even took a step closer, his changshan rustling softly.
"Why not join us? As I mentioned before, drinking alone has a way of making a man look desolate."
He then gestured at the people who were glaring at me disapprovingly.
"Win over even one of these people, and your life will be utterly transformed from what it is now."
"Is that so."
What a change of times. In my previous life, I never even got the chance to kiss up to people like this.
Е̌ǹ um ã
On the other hand, it was depressing.
After working so hard to survive, the opportunity that came knocking was ass-kissing.
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And this is what they call getting ahead in the world.
"I'll pass."
"Why?"
"I do want to change my life, but...... my stomach isn't strong enough to lick someone else's backside."
Е̌ ñ ǔmа̄. і̌d̃
The glass-smooth facade of Clear Water True Man showed the faintest crack.
I looked past his face and surveyed the people around us, adding—
"Besides, these people...... don't seem like they can even wipe their own asses properly. I can smell the stench from here, Daoist Master. Your stomach must be...... truly impressive."
"This bastard, we've been patient long enough—!"
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"How dare you, do you know who I am!!"
Some of them finally rolled up their sleeves and stepped forward.
Е ñ u m̌а̊
But here's the thing. If they came at me first, all the better.
Fuck, I'm in a state where nothing looks sacred to me right now.
I stepped toward them with a welcoming grin—
BOOM—
My martial arts uniform billowed as killing intent scattered in every direction, and those who'd been advancing froze, stumbling backward.
Backing down over just this much?
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An irrepressible sneer escaped me.
"See what I mean? They can't even own what they just said a second ago—you think they can wipe their own asses? Watch yourself too, Daoist Master. Keep licking that hard and you'll catch a nasty case of poisoning."
"......"
Deciding I'd had enough fun, I walked past them toward my lodging.
And then, a Sound Transmission flew from Clear Water True Man.
—I know you entered the formation.
Ẅ ё b̊ n ǒv е l̊ Е n u ḿa
I stopped dead.
My body turned of its own accord.
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Despite the insult he'd just suffered, Clear Water True Man—surrounded by people—gazed at me as though nothing had happened.
—Do not make a foolish choice. Your life alone might be expendable, but what crime have the people of your sect committed?
With that, he melted into the crowd and vanished.
'......That son of a bitch.'
Е̃ ñu m̆а .іd̈
So overflowing with confidence that he didn't even bother hiding what they'd done.
At this point it wasn't mere delusions of grandeur—it was full-blown "I alone am supreme under heaven."
Well, at least one thing was fortunate.
In my previous life, I'd had a front-row seat to watching Yong So-ah—who truly had been "supreme under heaven"—get cured.
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Oh, how was he cured, you ask?
The method was simple.
Е ǹ úmа̇.
A few good cracks to the skull, and the mental therapy took care of itself.
Clear Water True Man was the man who would lead Wudang's future.
If I cracked open that man's skull and created an opportunity for Wudang to change...... wouldn't Patriarch Jang Sambong appear in my dreams to congratulate me and share a secret technique or two?
I headed to my lodging, buoyed by swelling expectations.
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