A Swordsman’s Stream

**Chapter 56**

Sojun leapt over the railing.

He then walked towards the stairs descending below.

He enjoyed a brief moment of leisure.

“Ah! The sunset view is amazing.”

The view of the old Martial Techniques city from the top of the inn, implemented by MubiSoft, was quite charming.

He felt like having sake for the first time in a while.

-How leisurely.
-Time in abundance hahahahaha.
-There are no enemies on the 12th floor, just head straight down.

*Click. Click.*

Sojun descended the empty stairs devoid of any enemies. He slung the sword he had been carrying over his shoulder.

“My inner ki recovery is still really slow.”

Compared to when the Absorption Technique activated, it hadn’t even filled to one-twentieth.

That’s why it was crucial for people to use resources sparingly and reach the enemy leader. Everything was calculated.

*Click.*

Sojun arrived on the 11th floor.

He felt a sense of déjà vu.

Demonic Cult members sprawled around.

Scorched walls and sword marks.

Faint noises.

‘And then past this corner.’

*Crackle.*

‘Here it comes.’

Instead of swinging his sword, Sojun immediately moved his body back.

Just before turning the corner, an NPC appeared in front of Sojun, unleashing a dazzling swift sword strike imbued with thunderous ki.

*Boom!*

The path where the lightning surged blazed, and a sword stuck into the wall where Sojun had been.

“Namgung Cheon emerged.”

He locked eyes with a towering old man in clothing glowing blue.

The old man, after quickly assessing Sojun’s identity, pulled the sword from the wall and swung it.

“If I kill you, this war will be our victory. Hahaha!”

Since the attack lacked internal ki, Sojun struck back.

At that moment, the Absorption Technique activated, and Sojun’s inner ki began to fill.

-If you kill streamer-nim, the Demonic Cult can’t win.
-Don’t you know the Eua Jung?
-Anyway, the winner is the Orthodox sect?
-But killing the streamer lets us see something interesting!
-Ruler of the Magical Girl!

*Swish!*

Namgung Cheon’s sword was long and slender.

Also, since his physique was larger, Namgung Cheon’s arm was longer than Sojun’s.

However, his speed was not slow. The trait of their Martial Techniques enhanced by the speed of the thunder ki.

In a corridor where moving sideways was impossible, Namgung Cheon swung his sword as he approached Sojun.

Sojun stepped back while dodging blades.

However, he wasn’t just evading.

‘If I dodge an attack, I can counterattack, too.’

Why?

Because he had a time limit.

And then.

The sword grazed Sojun’s left arm, and his stamina decreased.

But in the next moment, Sojun sliced into Namgung Cheon’s shoulder and retreated a step.

The lost stamina was restored.

‘It’s fine even if I get hit.’

Because his trait favored exchanging blows during combat.

“Luckily, it’s an NPC, so it just keeps charging without much thought.”

*Clang!*

As soon as Sojun’s words ended, the swords clashed, and he was pushed back.

The thunder ki started to concentrate on Namgung Cheon’s sword.

-The thunder ki concentration speed is insanely fast.
-The preparation is quick.
-Isn’t it because of that sword from that quest a few years back?
-Lightning God Sword?
-Yeah.

The speed with which Namgung Cheon wielded the Heavenly Thunder Divine Sword was much faster than that of average players. There was almost no preparation time required.

This was because, years ago, players had successfully completed a quest for the Namgung family involving acquiring treasures for Namgung Cheon.

In “For Justice”, it was typical for not only Battlefield but also other contents to be intertwined; they were related.

Not only simple quests but also factions’ relationships and NPC growth affected their strength displayed in Battlefield.

The Lightning God Sword, which Namgung Cheon possessed, was exceptional at absorbing thunder ki, and thus its concentration speed was on another level.

‘The game company probably adjusted the balance between factions.’

Focus on the victory in front of him.

A thrilling thrust aiming for Sojun’s heart unfolded.

‘The inner ki was…’

He had recovered enough to endure a few stabs with a sword.

Sojun twisted his body slightly to avoid a vital point.

*Thud!*

Though his stamina had greatly diminished due to the sword embedded in his chest, he could handle it.

Sojun, smiling, thrust his sword imbued with sword ki in return.

Towards the enemy’s vital point.

“Heh. My stamina is recovering.”

If he had had such a martial technique in his previous life, it might have been interesting.

– Scary, hahahahahaha
– Is he really smiling with a sword stuck in him?
– If this were a game, it’d be perfect with blood dripping from his mouth, lol
– Absorption Technique is so broken
– This is a total berserker…

“There truly is no time left now.”

It was tight.

Instead of retreating any further, Sojun advanced forward.

For a cutthroat battle of slashing and being slashed.

Without enough inner ki, he had no choice but to make this decision.

Since he had fought with his inner ki fully consumed from the start, he couldn’t use high-damage sword ki much.

Thus, he had to cram in more basic attacks in a short time.

*Slash.*

If the enemy cut him.

*Slash.*

He’d cut the enemy too.

Once more.

If it were reality, such an exchange of offense and defense could not happen.

Yet another time.

Sojun’s stamina dropped by more than half in an instant, only to recover again.

It was like a dangerous tightrope walk. A mistake would mean falling straight off.

“Kuhahaha! You wretched fool, you’re struggling!”

Namgung Cheon shouted as he lifted his sword high.

The excitement of the NPC was palpable.

Sojun, too, started to feel exhilarated.

Was it because he had never experienced such a battle before, or was it simply the thrill?

– The frenzy is insane
– Meanwhile, is he dodging all the vital points?
– Still, the streamer’s stamina is dropping

*Crackle.*

Thunder qi gathered on Namgung Cheon’s sword.

In an instant, it seemed like an afterimage would fall down.

“Not right in front of me.”

*Bang!*

Sojun immediately imbued his sword with sword ki, spun it around, and threw it. The concentration broke.

Only sword ki could counter sword ki, and Sojun’s chosen trait didn’t include any special martial technique to launch sword ki, so he improvised.

Deprived of its concentration, Namgung Cheon’s sword swung without sword ki.

Sojun took the hit as it was. His stamina plummeted to a dangerously low level.

A single mistake, and he could truly die.

But he didn’t have time to dodge or deflect it.

He moved his body and swung his arm first.

The sword he had just thrown hit the ceiling and fell.

Sojun caught the falling sword in its trajectory and completed the attack.

*Slash!*

– ??
– What the heck, lol
– Wow, hahaha
– What did I just see
– What the, lol, that’s unbelievable, hahahahaha

Sojun stepped further inside.

The extreme close-range combat led to quicker attacks.

He succeeded once again in an attack imbued with sword ki.

The enemy’s stamina decreased noticeably.

As the damage grew stronger, Sojun’s recovery also increased.

Once he repeated this process a few times.

“Krrr.”

Namgung Cheon collapsed, and as he imbued Sojun with stamina, the Absorption Technique, which had been tightening around his neck, was released.

“It doesn’t hurt.”

– Wow!
– He’s insane!
– I trusted you, streamer!
– Four minutes? What a joke. Four minutes? What a joke. Four minutes? What a joke. Four minutes? What a joke.
– The streamer was humble! The streamer was humble! The streamer was humble!
– Stop trying to steal ranker routes!

Sojun glanced at his palm with a smile.

His palm was filled with blood.

And his entire body was covered in wounds.

Despite being a virtual reality, he couldn’t remember the last time he fought while being slashed like this.

After a few seconds, the red blood evaporated as if it had disappeared, and Sojun’s wounds completely healed.

Sojun then adjusted the settings and turned the camera facing forward.

It was as if he made eye contact with someone and opened his mouth.

“So, we should head to the Demonic Cult, right?”

The identity of “someone” was obvious.

His record was 3 minutes and 01 seconds.

Much quicker than even the 4-minute mark.

-Are we going?
-The cult leader personally recruiting lolololol
-Tang So, why did you make a bet?
-I guess Battlefield is a loss for sure lolol since you kept bluffing

* * *

A little earlier.

Tang So sat in the spot where Sojun had disappeared.

And he opened several internet windows.

One was Sojun’s stream, while the others were sites where he could gather information like No Justice Rank and group chat rooms.

“I’ll definitely win the bet, but let’s check it anyway. Hahaha.”

Here, “check it” meant he intended to watch Sojun’s stream, not to reconsider the bet for Sojun’s sake.

Of course, even if it wasn’t for the bet, Sojun’s stream was one that rankers were keeping an eye on.

He had become a topic of discussion after earning the title of Grandmaster the previous day, and he started playing the game right as the Battlefield opened at 7 PM.

“What’s he talking about? Why did he make such a bet if he was going to lose?”

Tang So turned his head toward the direction from which the sound came from his screen.

“That guy’s a con artist, I have no chance of losing.”

Tang So confidently stated after identifying the sound’s source.

His opponent was a fellow ranker from the same side.

“I don’t think that person is a con artist.”

“How come?”

“What kind of scam did he supposedly pull on you?”

“A hidden quest?”

“If it’s a hidden quest, wouldn’t it have been better to open the quest log and show it to the stream? You blockhead.”

“Oh. I should have checked.”

“If you lose the bet and have to go to the Demonic Cult, it’ll be a disaster. Every ranker like you is so precious.”

Tang So’s colleague sighed.

In Battlefield, winning streaks could accumulate immense Reputation Points due to bonuses.

Rankers who amassed such a significant Reputation Points soon became valuable assets to their forces.

The higher the Reputation Points, the more attack and defense points they could accumulate.

Usually, once the game progresses past the middle stages, these rankers’ attack and defense points become significant.

For now, with not much fame accumulated, they were no more than one regular user.

But the moment you built up a vast amount of fame through consecutive victories, each ranker became a crucial resource.

Tang So, placed near the top tier, might have seemed unintelligent, but his quick situational judgment and expertise ranked him among the top four in his sect, making it vital for him to win the bet, regardless of impressions.

“Were you also watching the stream?”

“Yeah. Most Demonic Cult and sect users fighting against the orthodox were probably watching that person’s stream too. They surely saw your foolish bet.”

“Ha. Don’t worry.”

Tang So scoffed.

“How could he possibly meet the 4-minute mark with that build?”

“Why? He might succeed.”

Tang So responded sharply.

“I didn’t underestimate that person’s skills. But impossible is impossible.”

“Agh.”

His colleague stopped speaking and turned the stream on while sitting opposite him.

‘Anyway, if that Tang family guy wins the bet, it means a ranker-level player joins their camp.’

One that’s incredibly skilled and desperately needed in Battlefield.

He knew.

What Sojun risked in Battlefield.

The problem was.

‘Why am I feeling this uneasy?’

In that worrying atmosphere, the 1-minute waiting time elapsed, and Sojun’s game began.

“Oh. Does he break the wall immediately to go outside? What’s he planning to do? Another exploration in the second round?”

Tang So asked.

“That’s not likely.”

His colleague replied.

On the screen, Sojun broke through a wall and went outside.

And then he looked up.

Anxiety crept in.

Tang So’s consistent smile slightly lowered.

Soon, he reached the top in one go.

“…18 seconds?”

“……”

“……”

“It’s over.”

“Haha. I can’t say he succeeded yet. He used all his inner ki, and he might not be able to catch the NPC……”

“Hey.”

“……”

“Pack your bags.”