Chapter 5
Chapter 5: First Broadcast
Upon hearing the news, Divine Dragon and Iron Blood Witch gathered at Mu-yeong's place.
"Young Lord! Look at this! The comments are nothing but praise!"
"There are tons of posts mentioning you in the featured section too! This is absolutely huge!"
"As expected, the future of the Demonic Heaven Sect—it's Mu-yeong!"
Watching the two chatter endlessly, Mu-yeong wore a bewildered expression.
He hadn't even properly grasped the situation to begin with.
'They're talking about communities and whatnot, but I don't even know how to get into one.'
‘And why is news about me suddenly spreading?’
‘Could someone have recognized me?’
He said nothing, idly wiggling his fingers, when Divine Dragon stepped closer.
"You know that Castle Defense game you played yesterday? It's famous for being completely impossible to clear—and you set a new record, so that's why all of this is happening."
"A new record? Are you referring to Stage 7?"
"That's right! On top of that, someone filmed it on their smartphone and uploaded it, and now it's a hot topic! Because it's apparently not how a human being moves!"
Situation understood.
‘All this commotion over merely clearing Stage 7?’
The corner of Mu-yeong's lips slowly curled upward.
'Feels better than I expected.'
When was the last time he had been praised?
The day before he entered Closed Door Training—that was more than ten years ago.
And yet, the community had been turned upside down by nothing more than pure swordsmanship, without even using martial arts.
What a trivial thing.
He cleared his throat and took Divine Dragon's smartphone.
He clicked on the posts one by one, starting from the first one that caught his eye.
[I've been breaking down this person's footage frame by frame and comparing it to the No. 1 ranked player's]
—At minimum three times faster. This guy's just built different.
[Did this dude just eat and train his whole life?]
—How does a human being move like that? Even if I practiced for a hundred years, I don't think I could even touch his heels.
Mu-yeong's mood lifted even further.
His long-starved need for recognition was finally being fed, and he felt as though he were soaring through the sky.
So this was what Ascending as an Immortal felt like?
No wonder people sang the praises of sages and immortals.
Riding high on his elation, he read the next post.
[But honestly, it's only a big deal because no real martial artists bother with this trash game]
—Bring in any mid-tier martial artist and they could probably do this too, fr
[I dunno, is just swinging a sword back and forth supposed to be impressive?]
—Those guys just seem weak.
[I'm a former first-generation disciple of the Daehwasan Sect][1]
—I could do this too. Don't give attention to some nobody like that.
Crack.
Mu-yeong's face contorted.
Sensing the sudden shift in atmosphere, Iron Blood Witch stole a sidelong glance at him.
She read the posts and pulled an even worse expression.
"Ho ho ho…… Young Lord, shall I hunt them down? Getting their home addresses won't take long."
"It's fine. There's no need to react to every little thing said by nobodies like these."
"But surely one wrist wouldn't hurt? So they can never write nasty things like this again—allow me to personally educate them……"
"……No."
He was momentarily tempted, but shook his head.
He was confident enough that posts like these would disappear after today anyway.
Mu-yeong tapped the screen.
"This is actually perfect timing."
"How so?"
"I just have to prove myself again, don't I? If eyes are on me now, and I show them exactly who I am—there's no better opportunity than this."
What if he made an even bigger splash here?
Not only would he gain a great reputation, the money would follow right along with it.
"Iron Blood Witch, so what do I need to do? Should I go back to a Capsule Room and play the same game again?"
"Not at all. If we install a capsule at home, you can connect directly from here. It will just take a little time."
"That's fine. But can it be done by today?"
"Of course."
"Then I'll leave it to you."
.
.
.
.
The installation finished sooner than expected.
Iron Blood Witch made a few phone calls, and a crowd of people came pouring in.
Watching the technicians bow at a full ninety degrees before leaving, Mu-yeong laughed inwardly.
'Connections really are everything.'
‘Well then’—preparations were complete. Time to get started.
The moment Mu-yeong moved, Divine Dragon asked,
"Young Lord, but won't you need to promote it on the community or something?"
"Why would I bother with promotion? These things need to be done quietly, without a whisper—that's what makes the dramatic effect land."
'Hey, I'm doing a comeback stream tonight, come watch~'—that was the worst possible approach.
The best method was to simply play the game in silence, as though nothing had happened.
Do that, and viewers would trickle in one by one.
He wasn't even hoping for numbers like a hundred or two hundred.
Just three people.
When that moment came, show them the same thing as yesterday?
People would come flooding in.
Because.
'This is a game only certain people play.'
Even in the martial world, there had been people with similar tendencies.
Those who spared neither money nor time when it came to something they were fixated on.
Judging from all the posts and reactions he had seen, the players of Castle Defense were remarkably similar.
"Then I'll be off."
Mu-yeong walked toward the capsule.
He opened the lid with confidence and stepped in.
Click!
He slipped inside and lay down comfortably.
Before long, a red light swept across his entire body, and the familiar screen appeared.
[Castle Defense: 210 Players Online]
'Fewer concurrent users than yesterday.'
‘Was it because it was still early evening?’
Letting out a small breath through his nose, Mu-yeong called out,
"Settings."
Following Divine Dragon's instructions, a large window appeared.
He pressed the one that read 'Streaming Mode.'
He'd been told that clicking this would allow him to communicate with viewers while playing.
[Would you like to activate Streaming Mode?]
"Yes."
[The broadcast will begin the moment you enter the game. Please be aware.]
The notice disappeared.
He immediately clicked on Castle Defense and the world before him turned white.
Flash!
The familiar scent of the battlefield pierced Mu-yeong's nose.
Looking to the side, the bearded soldier was huffing and barreling toward him.
"Snap out of it! You idiot! What are you zoning out for—!"
"I'm not zoning. Don't worry."
"Wha…… oh. Right."
Seeing him flustered gave Mu-yeong an involuntary smile.
It had only been a day, and yet seeing his face felt this good.
He turned his back on the soldier and glanced at the bottom right corner.
[Viewers: 0]
Chat:
There were characters there that hadn't been visible yesterday—so the stream was going out properly.
Then all that was left to do was wait.
Mu-yeong drew his sword.
Some time passed.
When he checked briefly, the number had changed.
[Viewers: 1]
No chat yet.
But knowing that someone was watching sent an involuntary surge of energy through his body.
Just then, a dark shadow vaulted above the castle wall.
"This seems to be where the casualties have been highest. Are you the one responsible?"
Gallien leveled his sword at Mu-yeong.
At the same moment, the first chat appeared.
—lol the Newbie Grinder finally showed up. can you beat him?
Iron Blood Witch had told him.
That responding to people made them stay longer.
It wasn't a bad strategy.
But Mu-yeong had no intention of going back and forth in conversation.
He just needed to show them—more powerfully, through action.
"You're nothing but a lowly soldier's—"
Shk!
Gallien's head sailed through the air, his contemptuous expression frozen in place.
His mouth was still moving, as if he didn't know what had just happened to him.
—???
—what did he just do?? I couldn't even see it??
The chat came in late.
That person would stay now, if only to figure out what had just happened.
In other words—the fish was already caught.
Instead of responding, Mu-yeong dashed toward the next enemy.
Fwish! Fwish!
With every sweep of his arm, fountains of blood erupted.
He swept past his designated zone and into the surrounding areas, leaving a field littered with headless corpses in every direction.
It was a gruesome sight—but the reactions were blazing.
[Viewers: 3]
—wait, who is this person??
—his Footwork is just on a different level.
—insane lol
It hadn't even been ten minutes, and he'd already hit his target viewer count.
Faster than he'd expected.
'A good sign.'
People breed people, as they say.
The number shot up right away.
[Viewers: 5]
—wtf, people still stream this trash game?? why are you guys watching this?
—this guy is insane. just watch him for a sec.
—he one-shot Gallien earlier lol
—no way you one-shot Gallien. cap
—it's real. I saw it just now.
The newly arrived viewer didn't believe it.
They assumed it was artificial hype or a friend pumping up the numbers.
So they pushed in a way that would make things crystal clear.
['SmileForUs' has donated 50,000 Won.]
—So you one-shot Gallien? Kill the Stage 2 boss in under a minute and I'll give you 50,000 Won.
Whether he accepted or refused, there was nothing to lose.
If he refused, it was a lie. And even if he accepted, failing meant the donation would be refunded.
Hearing that, Mu-yeong's eyes lit up.
'What?'
They're giving him money?
He hadn't even thought about donations at all—what a windfall.
He nodded immediately.
"Accepted."
—oh, nice voice?
—stream more, please!
—the confidence is something else lol
The moment the mission window appeared beside him, the reactions grew even hotter.
Smiling inwardly, Mu-yeong began to count.
'Three or four more kills and the boss appears. From what I've felt so far, it took around ten enemies to trigger it, so this time……'
Sure enough—exactly four more kills, and the Stage 2 Boss landed in front of Mu-yeong with a heavy thud.
The chat began scrolling rapidly.
—Stage 2 boss is here lol
—this one uses a spear, so if you can't manage the distance you're getting skewered lol
—just charge in headfirst and you're basically a moth to a flame
—seen plenty of people hit a wall here and uninstall.
Everyone was eager with anticipation.
So then—how should he take this one down?
What style of fighting would the viewers enjoy most?
'If I just kill it outright like before, it won't be any fun.'
To get another donation after this—and beyond—he needed to deliver on the expectations they held.
Then let him give the first move away.
Mu-yeong spoke to the knight.
"Five exchanges."
"What?"
"If you can make me move my feet by then, you win."
"What are you on about! You insolent brat!"
—lol what's with that confidence?
—if this backfires and he gets wrecked instead, legendary.
—feels like he might actually lose though……
Whoooosh!
Before the chat could even be read, the spear came in exactly along the path he had anticipated.
He twisted his body to evade it, and the attack curved inward right away.
He ducked his upper body and sidestepped it just as easily.
A flicker of surprise crossed the knight's face.
"So you're not all talk."
"Three left."
"Your arrogance will hasten your death!"
He came charging in even more recklessly.
Claaang!
—oh look at the sparks flying
—he seriously hasn't moved his feet once, right?
—something's off about his movements……
Clang!
—this is getting intense
—the way he's so relaxed makes me think he'll win
—nah we don't know yet. that guy has a finishing move up his sleeve.
The atmosphere was blazing.
The viewer count had already surpassed seven without him noticing.
'Twenty seconds left.'
Time to wrap this up.
The knight, holding his final attack in reserve, shifted his intent.
"You don't seem like an ordinary opponent. Then take this!"
He leveled his spear directly at Mu-yeong.
As it gradually turned blue, the chat exploded.
—here it comes!
—if that lands you're getting a big hole punched through your gut lol
—he'll dodge it, right?
—no way you parry that head-on lol
The veins on the knight's forearm bulged.
His muscles looked about ready to burst, and then he leaped.
"One Flash!"
The spear shot toward Mu-yeong with tremendous force.
'Now!'
Mu-yeong opened his arms wide.
He let the spear slide precisely between his armpit and side—and caught it.
"Wha, what—! How can this—!"
"Five exchanges. Done."
The knight's eyes nearly popped out of his skull.
Sensing the danger, he tried to pull back immediately—but it was useless.
"You showed me something good, so I'll return the favor."
With his other hand, Mu-yeong raised his sword high.
Without internal energy channeled through it, he couldn't draw out its full destructive power.
But the technique's force alone would be more than enough.
"Heavenly Demon Three Swords, First Form."
A swordsmanship he had drilled countless times.
A martial art he could execute even in his sleep.
Annihilation.
Crackle-crunch!
The iron armor crumpled like paper.
Without stopping there, Mu-yeong's sword drove inward, deeper and deeper.
Until it pierced the heart.
—?????
—what was that??
—he just punched through the armor with a sword?
—insane lol
—wait, is that actually possible?? lol
The chat scrolled at a pace that seemed impossible for just seven viewers. It continued even after the Stage 2 Boss collapsed to the ground.
Enjoying the reactions, Mu-yeong spread his arms wide.
"Fifty-thousand Won donation—gratefully received."
Footnote:
- The Daehwasan Sect (대화산파), also known as the Great Mount Hua Sect, is most commonly called the Mount Hua Sect (Hwasan-pa) or Huashan Sect, but it is also referred to as the Volcanic Sect, the Plum Blossom Sect, or by descriptive titles like the Peach Blossom Sect and Lotus Mountain.