The Best Murim Manhwa I've Read (and Where to Start)

Murim is the martial arts world of wuxia novels brought to manhwa: sects, clans, demonic cults and people who settle their differences with a sword. It’s also, by a mile, my favorite genre.

It does have one problem: almost every premise has been done before. Regression, revenge, a fallen sect, an heir nobody takes seriously. What separates the good ones from the rest is execution, and these eight nail it. I rate each one in five categories (art, story, characters, humor and action). Chapter counts are for the original Korean release as of October 2026, per MangaUpdates.

1. Return of the Mad Demon

Lee Ja-ha, the Mad Demon, dreams of becoming the God of Martial Arts. That dream ends when he falls off a cliff while running from the Demonic Cult, from whom he has stolen the Jade of Heaven. He wakes up back in his twenties with a second chance.

Absolute top tier. We’ve read this premise a thousand times, but Ja-ha makes it all feel new: he’s hands down one of the most interesting protagonists in the genre. Whenever he walks into a scene, you know something you didn’t see coming is about to happen. Required reading.

Status: ongoing (210+ chapters).

My ratings: art 10 · story 9 · characters 10 · humor 10 · action 9. Read it on WEBTOON. Also known as Return of the Crazy Demon.

2. Return of the Blossoming Blade

Chung Myung, a disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, dies after defeating the leader of the Demonic Cult in a battle that nearly wipes out the great sects. He wakes up a hundred years later in a child’s body and finds his beloved sect reduced to a shadow of its former self.

A well-deserved hit. Another premise the genre has done to death, executed flawlessly. Chung Myung is one of the most beloved leads in manhwa, and the humor (I give it a 10) is what turns a story that isn’t trying to surprise you into one you can’t put down. Required reading.

Status: ongoing (170+ chapters).

My ratings: art 9 · story 8 · characters 9 · humor 10 · action 9. Read it on WEBTOON. Also known as Return of the Mount Hua Sect.

3. Absolute Regression

Mugeuk Geom, son of the Lord of the Demonic Cult, watched Mugi Hwa, a swordsman without equal, defeat every lord of the murim, his father included. Instead of accepting defeat, he turned to a forbidden ritual that sent him back into his own past.

Undisputed top tier. The premise is familiar, but this manhwa’s strength lies in its characters and their relationships. Don’t let the murim label fool you: the action alone would put it near the top, and it still isn’t the best thing about it. Required reading.

Status: ongoing (120+ chapters).

My ratings: art 10 · story 8 · characters 10 · humor 8 · action 9. Read it on WEBTOON.

4. Log-in Murim

Jin Tae-kyung is a low-ranked hunter in a world overrun by monsters pouring out of gates. One day he plugs into a beat-up VR console by accident and gets trapped in a murim world with no way to log out.

I already recommended it among the manhwa like Solo Leveling, and it makes even more sense here: if you’re coming from hunter stories and murim is new to you, this is your way in. It blends both genres masterfully, without either one losing steam. One of my favorites.

Status: on hiatus between seasons; season 4 starts on November 7, 2026 (250 chapters).

My ratings: art 10 · story 9 · characters 9 · humor 9 · action 10. Read it on Tapas. Also known as Murim Login.

5. Myst, Might, Mayhem

His grandfather’s gruesome death turns Jeong into a bloodthirsty, ruthless man: the Scythe Demon. Rage alone isn’t enough, though. To stand any chance against the one responsible, he needs to train in martial arts.

The protagonist is absolutely overpowered, and yet the story is gripping and he makes you need to keep reading. It doesn’t have the track record of Nano Machine or Absolute Sword Sense yet, but for me it’s the best of the three manhwa by its original author (more on that below). Required reading.

Status: ongoing, now in season 2 (100+ chapters).

My ratings: art 10 · story 8 · characters 8 · humor 6 · action 9. Read it on WEBTOON.

6. Nano Machine

Cheon Yeo-woon is the son of the Demonic Cult’s leader, but his mother isn’t one of the official wives, so he starts the succession race far behind his half-siblings. In the middle of that race, a descendant from the future injects him with a nanomachine.

A relatively original premise, executed exceptionally well. The opening had me hooked for a long time; the quality dips a little later on, but it stays top tier. Sure, you could call it powerslop given how overpowered the lead gets, but it has earned its place in any ranking of the genre. Required reading.

Status: ongoing (330+ chapters).

My ratings: art 10 · story 7 · characters 7 · humor 6 · action 9. Read it on WEBTOON.

7. Absolute Sword Sense

Woon-hwi So has always been the black sheep of his family. With his spirit core destroyed, he works as a third-rate spy for the Blood Cult, until he dies on a mission and goes back ten years into the past with a strange ability: he can hear the voice of a dagger.

A familiar premise with a few original touches, telling an interesting if unsurprising story. Set in the same universe as Myst, Might, Mayhem and Nano Machine, and considered a prequel to both, it falls behind its siblings but stands on its own. Worth reading.

Status: ongoing (190+ chapters).

My ratings: art 7 · story 7 · characters 7 · humor 6 · action 8. Read it on WEBTOON.

8. The Genius Murim Fitness Trainer

Kang-hyeok’s gym is going under and he has debts he can’t pay. One night, while reading his favorite author’s latest web novel, he ends up inside a martial arts world, in the body of a child monk at the Shaolin temple.

An interesting premise, if derivative, with exemplary execution. The characters are endearing, the story doesn’t surprise but never misses, and the art is enviable. Worth reading.

Status: ongoing (120+ chapters).

My ratings: art 9 · story 7 · characters 7 · humor 7 · action 8. Read it on WEBTOON. Also known as Genius Martial Arts Trainer.

If you get hooked on Hanjung Worya

Absolute Sword Sense, Myst, Might, Mayhem and Nano Machine share an original author, Hanjung Worya, and a universe. Absolute Sword Sense is the prequel to the other two, with Myst, Might, Mayhem in the middle. But they’re fairly independent stories, set far apart in time and linked only by nods, like the names of certain martial arts, so you don’t need to read them in order. If you only read one, make it Myst, Might, Mayhem; if you want the longest, Nano Machine.

Where I’d start

If you want a protagonist who owns every page, Return of the Mad Demon. If you want to laugh, Return of the Blossoming Blade. And if you’re coming from hunter stories and murim still sounds like a foreign language, Log-in Murim.

Which one did I miss?