Chapter 53
Chapter 53: Is It Long? Or Short?
['PointsTooHardToEarnSoIOpenedAnEvent' has donated an image.]
—(rough image of Mu-yeong's shocked expression) Huh? You placed a Short bet......?
—lolololololol
—that expression is so freaking funny lolol
—if you'd just stayed still like me you'd at least have half of it lololol
—lost his entire fortune on the very first event lololol
['Mom, Smoke's Coming Up From The Unit Below, Is It A Fire?' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—that's not fire, that's the scorched head of a Short-bet sucker lolol
—insane lolol
—ah should I boil ramen on a Short-bet sucker's head? lolol
—heading straight to put the pot on lolol
—there was a volcano in the unit below lolol
—free heating, absolute score lolol
—the heating guy is genuinely deranged lolol
['Sword Wraith Hwang Il-chung' has donated 3,000 Won.]
—Short-bet sucker's head going boom lolol the points are sweet as sugar, kya kya kyakakak
—Fr lol
—I just hit a new all-time high on points too lol
—if you didn't believe in Mu-yeong, you deserved to lose lol
—ah~ making money is way too easy lolol
On and on it went—an endless barrage of donations, a chat window climbing in utter madness.
It was almost on par with when they had taken down the Special Boss.
Was the power of betting really this massive?
He had only opened a brief little wager to keep things entertaining while hunting ordinary monsters, so what on earth was this reaction?
This wasn't just hot—it was about to explode.
On top of that, the viewer count had risen further.
[5,230 viewers watching]
Mu-yeong, startled, sent a Transmitted Voice to Yu Ye-rin.
—Is betting normally this effective?
—Not usually...... but maybe it's because it's you, Mu-yeong? I've never seen firepower like this either.
So that was it.
Whatever the reason, there was no harm in it.
He had essentially gained a new tool to use for the broadcast.
If used well, he could blow right through even the dull stretches.
Still, I should make the conditions more ambiguous next time. If it leans too heavily to one side, people will lose interest fast.
What if he had cut the orc-kill time from 20 seconds to 15 seconds?
The result probably wouldn't have been as one-sided as this time.
Then he could have a perfect trinity—fun, money, and the game all at once.
Ding!
['Mu-yeong's One True God' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—tbh though the people who placed a Reverse Bet were at a level where you'd question their intelligence lol
—fr they took down the Special Boss without breaking a sweat, what chance did some orc have lol
—and the levels were pretty much the same too
—their brains are fully pickled in gambling lolol
—let them be. they're supplying the liquidity lolol
—their Reverse Bets are how I make money lolol
['WorkdaySlave' has donated 10,000 Won.]
—huh?? I just got home and there was a casino open??? what percentage of my life did I just miss out on?
—at minimum half of it yep
—well who told you to go to work? lolol
—at this point just reincarnating would be faster lol
—if it were me I'd have thrown open the window and jumped lol
The donations and chat, drumming and dancing all on their own, entertaining themselves.
Thanks to that, there was not a single silent moment in the audio until they reached the next village.
.
.
.
.
Stone Heart Village.
True to its name, it sat in the middle of a barren highland—roughly three times the size of the Beginner Village.
The moment he arrived, he went looking for the man called the Training Officer.
"To survive in this rough world, good equipment is a must. Go ahead and pick something you like from these. I'll say it upfront—you can only walk out with one weapon."
As he had surpassed Level 10, the officer led him straight to the weapon storage without a word.
Mu-yeong swept his gaze along the interior.
The variety was more than diverse—it was overflowing.
Swords, blades, spears, bows, axes, and more.
Even within swords alone, there were choices—short swords, curved blades, and the like.
Among them were some whose shapes he had never seen before.
['Sword Wraith Hwang Il-chung' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—it's gotta be a sword lol right?
—fr lol
—a sword is the best to watch lol
—honestly I kind of want to see him use an axe
—but a sword still feels like the best choice?
In truth, Mu-yeong had already settled on a sword in his mind.
But then a particularly large donation came in and shook his resolve.
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 100,000 Won.]
—Knuckles. Please use knuckles.
A username impossible to ignore.
He was practically a regular at Iron Blood Witch's broadcast, and in reality, a figure with a reputation none could come near.
The Head Abbot of Shaolin Temple, Hyeon-baek.
—wait is that real?
—for real?
—what the hell lol
—is that actually Hyeon-baek???
—damn
—a holy monk watching Mu-yeong's stream, damn
—insane lol
Everyone erupted into excitement at the appearance of such a legendary name.
Someone might suspect it was a fake, but there was undeniable proof attached to it.
A large diamond badge glowing beside the username.
Proof of being a Big Hand—something only earned by those who had donated over one hundred million Won in total.
Why would that person be here?
They had never met, let alone exchanged a single word.
They had no connection through any broadcast either, so for him to suddenly throw money in and ask for knuckles—
There was nothing he could pinpoint, but he returned the courtesy all the same.
"Thank you for the donation. But knuckles, all of a sudden—what do you mean by that?"
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 200,000 Won.]
—your figure as you were killing the orcs just now left quite the impression. I'd love to see more.
"I apologize, but unarmed combat is not my specialty."
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 300,000 Won.]
—no matter. I simply wish to see you use your fists.
Was that what he meant.
It seemed he genuinely just wanted to watch him use fist techniques.
When killing the orcs, he hadn't particularly used the Heavenly Demon Divine Art or any martial skill, so it didn't seem like his identity had been found out.
But this really is a difficult spot. Refusing feels wrong given his social standing and the fact that he's a Big Hand, yet accepting doesn't sit right with me either.
Swinging a sword and cutting down enemies was fun.
But using fists—even the feel of it wasn't particularly satisfying.
As he deliberated, someone cut in front of Hyeon-baek.
['Sword Wraith Hwang Il-chung' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—what are you on about, you bald monk? It's obviously a sword—where do you get off trying to steer things your way?
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 400,000 Won.]
—a bald monk? Commander of the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Unit—shall we arrange a meeting in person?
—just straight up challenged him to a real-life fight lolol
—that's... Shaolin?
—if you don't like it then get stronger, what else is there to do lolol
—hit the floor and bow first lol
Hwang Il-chung.
Just hearing the name he hadn't recognized him, but the moment the rank was given he knew immediately.
Before I entered the Closed-Door Training Chamber, he was the Vice-Commander of the Heavenly Demon Blood Sword Unit—but he's already risen to Commander in that time.
Hearing the name of a fellow member of the Demonic Heaven Sect, a warmth of familiarity swelled within him.
He was also grateful that Hwang Il-chung had stepped in to stop Hyeon-baek's knuckle obsession.
But even Hwang Il-chung, formidable as he was, was no more than a firefly before the sun when facing Hyeon-baek.
In martial arts and in financial power alike.
['Sword Wraith Hwang Il-chung' has donated 1,000 Won.]
—that's a thug, not a monk. Pft. Do as you please!
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 500,000 Won.]
—so it is settled.
—lolololol
—that's genuinely brutal lol
—monks are terrifying these days lol
—honestly, the fact that he even came at someone like that is already absurd lol
—just crushed him with money lol the no-possessions spirit, where'd that go?
—he's busy giving it all to Mu-yeong lol
In the end, Hwang Il-chung tucked his tail and fled.
A shame was a shame, but money was money.
A big donor who settles in to watch the stream long-term is a gain in the long run.
Just as Mu-yeong was about to put on his business smile—
Ding!
['Dan Jung-seon' has donated 1,000,000 Won.]
—Hyeon-baek, I know you've used up your limit for this round.
['Dan Jung-seon' has donated 1,000,001 Won.]
—A sword. It must be a sword.
Another Ultra had just joined the scene.
.
.
.
.
The God of Martial Arts, Dan Jung-seon, and the Holy Monk, Hyeon-baek—both watching Mu-yeong's broadcast together.
The viewers felt an invisible weight pressing down on them.
—the chat suddenly feels heavy;
—fr, feels like I'd die if I just type whatever lolol
—what's this atmosphere lol
—I dunno why but I can't bring myself to type in the chat
—same lol
Those who had been stirring up trouble or spouting nonsense were long gone.
Of course, for Mu-yeong, his wallet was fatter than ever—he was on top of the world.
"Then I'll follow the word of the Alliance Leader, who donated the greater amount."
Mu-yeong picked up the sword he had been eyeing for a while.
A five-cheok-long sword, identical to the one he had always trained with.
[Sharp Steel Sword]
—Durability (45/45)
Compared to the sacred weapons of the Demonic Heaven Sect, it was a pitifully lacking instrument.
But having used a soldier's sword in Castle Defense, and having swung a Wooden Sword in real life, he no longer felt any particular reluctance.
If anything, this was the familiar one.
After a few swift test swings, he turned to the Training Officer.
"I'll take this one."
"A modest choice. Are you sure? Once you choose, you can't change it."
"It's enough."
"I hope we'll get to meet again. I wish you luck on the road ahead."
With those brief parting words, he stepped outside.
He locked eyes with Yu Ye-rin.
"Now that we have a weapon too, I'm thinking it's about time to go after the Stone Golem—where do we head? Do we need to clear some prerequisite quests first?"
"Already? That's absolutely impossible right now. Didn't I say there's a 90% damage reduction for a 10-level gap? At a 20-level gap it goes up to 99%—effectively impossible, you could say."
"One percent of my original strength? That's practically telling me not to bother."
"The Stone Golem is Level 35, so to meet even the bare minimum condition, you'd need to get to at least Level 15. That's only 'theoretically' possible, of course."
Mu-yeong's current level was 14. Yu Ye-rin's was 16.
They had each gone up by one while killing Orc Vagrants, but compared to the Stone Golem, they were still far too lacking.
"On top of that, it has a passive that ignores half of all physical attacks, so it'll be on a completely different level from the White Snake."
"Trickier than I expected."
—'than I expected' lolol
—did you even hear what Yu Ye-rin just said?
—I genuinely don't understand Mu-yeong's sense of scale sometimes lolol
—this boss is meant for a Level 30 party of four, you know lol
—he just hasn't faced it yet, so he doesn't know lol
"For now, let's focus on leveling up then. What's the fastest way to do that around here?"
['LandlordLife' has donated 100,000 Won.]
—there's a Lizardman hunt quest on the village bulletin board! they travel in packs and there are loads of them—mob-hunting is absolutely the way to go!!
—ohhh
—the Chairman is unhinged lolol
—there are people who give money AND drop tips at the same time???
—an actual angel lol
—this is it
Following the donation's advice, they moved to the village center and quickly found the bulletin board.
[Repeatable Quest — Lizard Horde Subjugation]
—A large number of Lizardmen inhabit the highland areas surrounding the village.
They occasionally threaten passersby and produce loud noise that disturbs the village.
The villagers wish for the Lizardmen to be gone.
Lizardmen Defeated (0/100)
"If we head just a little north from here, that should do it. But 100....... is that manageable?"
"No problem on my end."
"Doing it plainly would be boring, so let's open a bet this time too."
Mu-yeong thought for a moment, then set a bold condition.
[Time it takes to kill 100 Lizardmen]
[3 minutes or more — 0 POINTS vs. Under 3 minutes — 0 POINTS]
—insane lolol 3 minutes???
—100 kills in 3 minutes???
—isn't that cutting it too short?
—hmm
—feels impossible, but since it's Mu-yeong, who knows lol
—you faithless lot, with Mu-yeong it's always Long lol
—Long? lol you can't always just go up
—fr lol even if just one of them runs away the whole time, 3 minutes is already busted
—putting my bet on 3 minutes or more this time
Opinion split straight down the middle.
Even the regulars were torn—meaning it was genuinely hard to call.
Mu-yeong smiled slyly and said,
"Alliance Leader, Head Abbot of Shaolin—why don't you both place a bet as well."
A moment later, donations arrived bearing the clear traces of deliberation.
['Dan Jung-seon' has donated 100,000 Won.]
—I put 5,000 points on: he clears it.
['Shaolin Temple Captain' has donated 100,001 Won.]
—I put 3,500 points on: he doesn't.
Dan Jung-seon and Hyeon-baek, split in opposite directions.
One of them was headed for a Liquidation Ending.