Chapter 51
Chapter 51: Is That For Real?
God of Martial Arts, Dan Jung-seon.
The weight carried by those three syllables was absolutely no joke.
Even a child living deep in the mountains would stop crying the moment they heard his title.
That remained true even in the modern age.
Mu-yeong, seeing Dan Jung-seon's face for the first time, grew tense.
He's strong.
Honestly, there had been a part of him that had looked down on the man.
He had often witnessed him throwing money around recklessly during Iron Blood Witch's broadcasts.
But now that they were face to face, it was unmistakably clear that this was no toothless tiger.
A supreme master whom he could not guarantee victory against even in an immediate fight.
A martial artist on the same level as the Sect Leader.
With each step Dan Jung-seon took closer, an immense pressure bore down on his body.
As Mu-yeong held his ground without so much as blinking, Yu Ye-rin tugged at his sleeve.
"Mu-, Mu-yeong. Greet him quickly. He's the Martial Alliance Leader……!"
"It's alright. A friend who's spent a long time in the mountains might not know."
Dan Jung-seon arrived at close range with a heh-heh laugh.
He was ordinary.
The kind of impression you'd get from a grandfather you might see anywhere in a neighborhood.
But within that, a sharp predator kept its claws drawn.
It would be better to show proper courtesy for now. I have no desire to cause trouble.
Mu-yeong immediately performed a Clasped Hand Bow.
"I am Mu-yeong."
"Hehehe! So you're that fellow everyone's been talking about lately? I've seen you in videos a few times, but the real thing seems far better."
"You flatter me."
"What flattery. Face, martial arts, popularity. You have everything—how could I call that flattery? And on top of it all, you even have such a pretty girlfriend!"
"That's not what this is!"
Yu Ye-rin denied it with excessive alarm.
At the sight of that, Dan Jung-seon only broke into a wide grin.
"Now, now. It's the natural order of things for a fine young man and woman to meet. It's nothing to be ashamed of. Besides, there's clear evidence in the form of a motel right in front of us—why bother denying it?"
"It really isn't like that……."
"Hehehe! It's alright. This old man's lips aren't loose enough to go around spreading rumors. Don't worry, not a word shall leave my mouth."
Dan Jung-seon stroked his beard and met the eyes of Mu-yeong and Yu Ye-rin in turn.
He then put on a friendly smile and slowly began to turn away.
"Well then, this old man shall be on his way. Nothing major—I happened to be passing through the area and came over when I spotted you. I hope we get to meet again sometime."
The moment the words left his mouth, the Martial Alliance Leader vanished with a whoosh.
Only a single gust of wind remained to prove that someone had stood there just moments ago.
Frightening old man. An expert is an expert, after all.
He had nearly missed the movement.
Mu-yeong, without releasing the thread of tension, expanded his energy sense to its fullest.
That overwhelming aura from before was nowhere to be found.
He let out a short breath and looked at Yu Ye-rin.
"Let's head back now."
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"Now, Alliance Leader. Did you truly have to make such an unseemly display in front of those youngsters who had just come out from a good time? There'll be plenty of other opportunities—why there, why then, of all moments!"
"W-, was that truly such a mistake on my part? I simply moved on impulse out of gladness to see them……."
"That gladness was yours alone. Just look! Mu-yeong's face is absolutely exhausted, isn't it? Running into you in that state—what a lovely thing that must have been for him."
"Alright, alright. I was in the wrong! So please, spare me the lecture."
Dan Jung-seon looked at the man beside him with a fed-up expression.
Zhuge Yun.
A genius born of the heavens, and the one who served as the Martial Alliance's Chief Strategist.
He grimaced and shook his head back and forth.
"I understand your desire to get a read on Mu-yeong's true nature, but considering his close connection with Miss Yu Ye-rin, he doesn't appear to pose much of a threat. And in fact, hasn't he not caused a single incident up until now?"
"Tch, you wouldn't understand—you were standing in the back. Do you know what I felt when I approached Mu-yeong earlier?"
"What did you feel?"
"Dangerous."
"……Pardon?"
It was entirely unexpected, and Zhuge Yun's eyes went wide.
And for good reason—though they had worked together for decades, there were very few people the Martial Alliance Leader had ever assessed that way.
"You see, I deliberately let my energy pressure flow out, and he didn't flinch in the slightest—he pushed right back at me. Honestly, I had expected to put him on at least one knee. His level is far higher than I anticipated."
"Roughly where would you place him?"
"Supreme Pinnacle at the very minimum. And a fully ripened Supreme Pinnacle at that."
"……At that age?"
"That's my conservative estimate, too. Once you reach a certain level, there's something you just sense—and that something was present in him."
Dan Jung-seon let out a low murmur and moved his feet.
Zhuge Yun immediately fell into step beside him.
Before they had gone many paces, Dan Jung-seon turned to look back.
"How much money do we have left from that last budget we allocated?"
"We have 5,637,422 Won remaining."
"Purchase one monitor for me. Thirty-two inches, 4K, with top-notch picture quality."
"……Didn't you buy one just recently, saying you needed it to watch Iron Blood Witch's broadcasts? What is it for this time?"
"I'll set it up with Iron Blood Witch on the right and Mu-yeong on the left. Then I can watch over them directly myself. That's the only way I'll feel settled. Can it be done by today?"
"I'll have it done within an hour."
"I'm counting on you."
As he said this, Dan Jung-seon's eyes were filled with curiosity.
He glanced briefly in the direction of the motel, then began loading energy into his legs.
"There's somewhere I need to stop by first, so I'll be heading ahead."
"I'll have everything installed neatly in the office."
Shwoooosh!
Dan Jung-seon leapt into the air.
It was even faster than the speed at which he had disappeared from Mu-yeong's sight.
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.
Thud.
After returning home, Mu-yeong immediately opened his email inbox.
[Hongdae Legend Punch King]
[Streamer Yu-na and Mu-yeong's Outdoor Broadcast—Part 1]
[Streamer Yu-na and Mu-yeong's Outdoor Broadcast—Part 2]
[Monster World—Beginner Village Elder Quest]
[Monster World—Hidden Quest and Special Boss]
"He really did send them all."
In the Newtube comments the previous day, the owner of the 'Miscellaneous Toys' channel had left a message.
He would send every video he had edited so far, and asked for an email address to send them to.
Mu-yeong had been skeptical but gave it to him—and in less than a day, the promise had been kept.
Along with a lengthy postscript.
—I'll delete what's on my channel, so feel free to upload them on yours! And whenever I finish editing going forward, can I send the videos here? I'm doing this for fun so I don't need money—feel free to use me as an unpaid slave. If you're worried, we can even draw up a contract!
As he read through the contents, someone from the 12th floor came to mind.
"Something about the way this person writes feels awfully similar to Han Su-a's……."
There was a distinct breathing rhythm to it.
He couldn't express it precisely, but it was something like being a little over the top?
A seed of suspicion sprouted for a moment, but he immediately brushed the thought aside.
In the first place, anyone living in an apartment like this had to be enormously wealthy—why would someone like that be desperate enough to go out of their way for this?
And besides, she was a woman whose sleep schedule was completely irregular and chaotic—someone who pulled all-nighters every single day.
"Even I find myself absurd for thinking that."
Mu-yeong gave a short smirk and began downloading all the videos.
With high-speed internet, it took less than five minutes, and after a brief check, he immediately attempted to upload them to his main channel.
[Encoding in progress. 7% complete]
Once this process was finished, monetization would become possible.
One thousand subscribers, five videos, one hundred hours of watch time.
He would have met every single requirement set by Newtube.
With one more source of income added, a sense of peace settled over him.
At the same time, drowsiness crashed over him with a vengeance.
"My collaborative broadcast with Yu Ye-rin is tomorrow, so I should rest for today."
Two days without sleep was one thing, but having undergone Bone Marrow Cleansing had pushed his body and mind all the way to their limits.
Mu-yeong immediately rose from his chair and headed for the bed.
He fell asleep the moment he lay down.
The next day.
Newtube's community was in an uproar.
—What's going on? Why are notifications going off back to back?
—Holy crap lol, five videos just dropped at the same time???
—Was this guy doing all this while he took two days off?
—Yessss lol, this is it
—Finally doing some work lol
—Was gonna spam the comments if he uploaded another twelve-hour one lol, thank goodness
The effect was explosive.
The subscriber count, which had been hovering around two thousand, shot up to four thousand, and because the videos were already well-known, the view count rose at a pace that was on a completely different level from before.
Of course, it wasn't without some confusion.
—Why is the original video gone and this showing up here instead???
—Because it should be on this channel, obviously.
—But this is the original, what?
—Did you even get the owner's permission? Where's your concept of copyright?
—Isn't this a pirated version????
—Check the first video's comments—the editor said they gave permission
—Then it's legit lol
Fortunately, things gradually sorted themselves out, and the comments began to fill with ones fitting each video.
Unsurprisingly, the one with the best response was [Monster World—Hidden Quest and Special Boss].
The most-watched moment was, without question, the battle scene with Alice.
—Crap, the editing is absolutely insane lol
—This guy just does everything so satisfyingly well, I swear lol
—Dude, how did he beat something 13 levels higher???
—Ah—this is my sincerest reaction.
—Mu-yeong at full power? Absolutely cannot be stopped lol
"I knew the special boss would be the hit."
Seeing so much praise, the corners of Mu-yeong's mouth pulled all the way to his ears.
A good response meant he was moving in the right direction, and that he was satisfying the audience's desires well.
But more than any of that, what made him happiest was the statistics window.
[Your channel received 12,633 views during the selected period]
[Estimated earnings: ₩64,392]
He didn't know the exact payout per view.
There were quite a few variables—video length, view count, whether viewers dropped off midway, and so on.
But the mere fact that payouts were coming in was more than satisfying enough.
"Not even a full day in, and it's already this much. Not bad."
If he kept streaming consistently, the unpaid editor would send finished cuts on their own.
All he had to do was upload them, and the money would roll in by itself—an environment no different from auto-farming.
This was the true beginning of his Newtube operation.
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That evening.
Mu-yeong turned on his broadcast right on time for the collaborative stream appointment.
—He's here
—The great Mu-yeong
—Oh, hey, glad to see you lol
—You finally came lol
—Phew, he actually showed up today lol
—Oh my light, my love, my salvation, Mu-yeong
—I thought I was going to freeze to death waiting……
['MookKnight' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—My liege. Why hast thou only now arrived?
['Muha' has donated 10,000 Won.]
—Hey, you didn't even post a notice—where'd you disappear for two days??? I was refreshing the whole day.
"My apologies. I had something urgent come up and forgot. I'll make sure to post one from now on."
—Quick apology, love it
—Just don't do it again and it's fine
—Yu Ye-rin didn't post one either so waiting was rough lol
—For real, yesterday was supposed to be a broadcast day and you both just ghosted
—Wait, now that I think about it, their days off overlapped?
—Hm, don't tell me……
—Nah come on lol
The chat window suddenly tilted in that direction.
Deducing all that just from a two-day overlap in missed broadcasts.
But having already received a warning from Yu Ye-rin, he didn't let anything show.
"Just in case anyone's wondering—there was absolutely nothing between me and Yu Ye-rin."
—We were just testing the waters lol
—Even if you said you went on a date, nobody would believe you lol
—For real lol
—Honestly it seems like he just slept at home lol
—Probably just doing Meditative Breathing Cultivation again lol
Fortunately, it seemed they were all joking.
Just as the topic was naturally starting to shift, Yu Ye-rin appeared.
"Hello, Mu-yeong! I'm here!"
—Crap
—King Ye-rin
—Hey~
—Hi hi
—She's literally glowing on screen
—Was about to fall asleep and now I'm wide awake lol
"Welcome. It's been a while."
"Almost three days, right? How have you been?"
"Nothing much on my end."
She made particular emphasis on three days.
Mu-yeong gave a subtle nod, conveying that he had not said anything.
But with Yu Ye-rin now there, the viewers who had gotten playful started teasing again.
—Hey, your days off overlapped—what were you two up to? lol
—Go somewhere nice?
—Spill the tea lol
—Now that I look closely, your skin seems even better lol
"What—what are you all talking about? You're saying I went somewhere nice with Mu-yeong?"
Normally, Yu Ye-rin would have brushed it off lightly or ignored it.
But with a somewhat guilty conscience, and with that chat appearing the moment she arrived, she raised her voice before she even realized it.
The viewers, having caught a reaction, kept escalating.
—We just said it casually and you're this flustered?
—For real, was something actually going on?
—The expression says it all?
—Did you two secretly meet up?
"Wh-, what secretly meet up! Please refrain from talk like that, rumors are spreading."
['LewdDemon' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—The days off overlapped for two days—could this be??? Is this real?
"No, that was……!"
—Wait? Why's her face turning red?
—Don't tell me they actually went lol
—Breaking news) Yu Ye-rin with Mu-yeong, together……
—She does seem way brighter than usual lol
The chat window scrolled faster and faster.
Apparently deciding enough was enough, Yu Ye-rin made a terrifying expression and drew a finger slowly across her throat.
—lol lol lol only
—It was my cat typing
—Shush!
—She opened those eyes.
—Snake-eyes on lol
—Every man for himself
At Yu Ye-rin's firm glare, the chat quickly died down.
As the atmosphere settled back to something like normal, Mu-yeong extended his hand toward her.
Yu Ye-rin hesitated for a moment—then, ever so slightly, took hold of just the very tips of his fingers.
[You have formed a party with Yu Ye-rin.]
"Then I'll see you inside Monster World."
"Yes!"
The loading began, and everyone's screens went dark.
A brief lawless stretch of time during which the streamers could not see the chat.
Within that window, the viewers whispered among themselves.
—Honestly, doesn't it seem like there really is something going on between these two? lol
—The way she treats Mu-yeong is completely different from three days ago
—She just barely held his fingertips, did you catch that lol
—For real, before she was grabbing his hand without hesitation—is this the green light?
—Guess we'll know if we watch long enough lol
[Connecting to the World. Please wait a moment.]
—Oh, loading's almost done.
—Al-ert
—Shh.
—Hurry and post it lol
—From here on out, only hype comments lol
—Let's gooo
—Woo-hoo!
—The great Mu-yeong