Master Swordsman’s Stream - Chapter 178

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 178

A professional player.
For gamers, they represent an insurmountable wall.
Simply playing a lot of games, or possessing moderately exceptional talent, isn’t enough to reach that level.
Who said it?
That the talent needed to go pro could be spotted at a glance, even in your first match.
Even if you possess talent, you need equally dedicated effort — but ultimately, if you lack that first-glance-recognizable talent, no amount of hard work will get you there.
Within virtual reality, there aren’t enough words to describe how extraordinary these players are to the gamer community.
In short, they are idols.
And yet someone like that.
Lost.

[LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I’m just speechless?]
[Is this even possible?]
[Has the world gone insane? Am I seeing things??]
[Asking again LMAOOOOOOO what the heck is Seo Jun even???]

Not to the streamer himself, but to an AI.

[Asking again LMAOOOOOOO what the heck is Seo Jun even???]
==
No seriously, what is he?
==

-How many times do I have to say it? He’s the Heavenly Demon, duh?
└Sure, the Heavenly Demon is unbeatable in Korea LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO
└Didn’t the Abbot’s followers see this coming?
-Seriously his swordsmanship is insane. He’s definitely above pro level, right?
└Taker lost because he made a mistake at the end. Got careless. Under normal circumstances, this never would’ve happened
└But it did happen, didn’t it?
└Who doesn’t know that?

[Mistake or not, his swordsmanship was absolutely overwhelming, right?]

-Straight up
-Sword champ needs to be banned for sure
-Dude now Rios’ mid players have to face pros LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
└He probably isn’t pro in the League yet lol
└Does the sword stop being a sword in the League? After seeing that skill, how can anyone even talk?
-Seo Jun casually catching him in under 30 seconds like it’s a walk in the park, that’s absolutely insane. Other people die trying to do that LMAOOOOOOOOO

[And the Training Ground real-time update makes sense?]
==
So Shin Ha-yeon’s swordsmanship and Baek Do-ryul’s swordsmanship are what we just saw?
At least the weakness part seems to have been updated perfectly
==

-Straight up, that’s why he died at the end
-I had no idea that was even possible
-Doesn’t look like Taker can do that
└Is Taker an idiot?
└Whoa, show some respect to a top-5 pro player
└Korea has 10 League teams, so top-5 is half of them
└He’s still Tier 1, though?

Seo Jun’s skill was distinctive — overwhelmingly so.

[What are you guys doing? Not betting your Points on the income gap? LMAOOOOO]
==
This is a no-brainer. You’re not gonna risk your precious memories on a team that doesn’t even have a pro-level player but instead has one who crushes pros, right?
Or would you gamble your precious memories on a team of five clowns?
==

-Clowns? LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO You made those precious memories with the clowns too, didn’t you?
└I like our clown. Pado. But I still can’t bet on him LMAO (OP)
-Post proof
└Just bet my entire fortune on the income gap right after watching LMAOOOOO (photo)(OP)
└Proof is proof
-Stop gambling and risking your precious memories, seriously LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO
└It’s not gambling, it’s betting
└What’s the difference? I genuinely don’t know
-Wait a bit longer before betting LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO We haven’t even started proper training yet LMAOOOOO
└You still won’t bet? How cautious are you anyway? (OP)
└This just proves why the current #1 Points Ranker is #1 for a reason. Assassin? That guy’s a genius apparently
└Ah LMAO just bet on something else. Let me get more Points

[Those viewers over there just knew this was coming, and it’s killing me LMAO]
[Who the heck saw this coming LMAOOOOO]
[The Abbot is god!]
[Why aren’t you joining the Abbot’s followers? Why aren’t you? Why aren’t you?]
[Wow… but what’s the viewer count? 150k? Currently #1?]

* * *

-LMAOOOOOOOOOOO
-Seo Jun! Seo Jun! Seo Jun! Seo Jun!
-Is the Abbot actually insane?! LMAOOOOOOOOO
-A true master of the sword LMAOOOOOOOOO
-But I knew it. It was just a matter of timing — the Abbot was always too much for pros!
-Yeah I knew he’d slaughter pros LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
-For real LMAO

The viewers loved it, but Seo Jun’s mind seized up completely.
More precisely, he was caught off-guard.
Well.
‘Uh, if he loses right there, what happens then.’
He genuinely hadn’t anticipated it.
Of course, losing wasn’t nonsensical.
The Breakdown Technique Seo Jun had planted earlier was designed to counter his opponent’s most confident move.
If played out like just now, a loss was a possible outcome.
But still.
“Oh, I forgot about that.”
Ah.
Seo Jun snapped back to attention and recovered.
“Ah, I forgot to turn off the gas. Haha. A confirmation kill? Stop fabricating!”
After already provoking him plenty, adding something like this on top would be overkill, so Seo Jun had no more interest in getting under Taker’s skin.
I mean.
The guy’s pitiful.

-Watch him wilt all the way to the end LMAOOOOOOOOOOO
-Wow. After that thorough lesson, he’s still got more in him? You’re cold, dude LMAOOOOOOO Abbot LMAOOO
-A pro? LMAOOOOO Loses to a Doppelganger too? What a piece of trash LMAOOOOO
-For real LMAO
-You can never be on the Abbot’s bad side LMAOOOOOOOOOOO
-Koitsuu wwww Now he’s even submerging the coach he invited

But due to the karmic debt he’d accumulated before, Seo Jun’s true intention was distorted.
Well, believe it or not — that’s up to you.
“How’d you do that just now?” Ha Yun-ho asked.

“That wasn’t me.”
It was the Doppelganger.
“Wow. Seriously… our ace is incredible.”
Rumi dropped the Carrot she’d been holding.
Alpaca did the same.
Seeing his teammates like that, Seo Jun shook his head slowly.
‘At least they’ll follow better because of this.’
The possibility of defection had diminished.
“So is the bet over now?”
“I was just trying to gauge your skill, and now this…”
“It’s all pretty bewildering, to be honest.”

-For real LMAO
-That was quite a show
-Wait, the Abbot’s viewer count is currently #1!
-Oh LMAO I went to watch Baek Do-ryul and ended up just staying here
-Same LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Ah.
He’d hit #1 in viewer count.
Though he’d probably drop again, combined with Ha Yun-ho’s viewers, his team would maintain the highest viewer count.
At least for today.
“Ah. Right.”
There was one last thing to say.
“So, Baek Do-ryul?”
Seo Jun knew.
“Aren’t you coming in?”
That Baek Do-ryul had subtly taken a light swing at him as a modest expression.
And.
That he wanted to fight but was holding back.

* * *

[So, Baek Do-ryul? Aren’t you coming in?]

‘Phew. That guy’s got some fire to him. But he’s earned the right.’
Taker, whose consciousness had briefly dimmed.
He snapped to attention at Seo Jun’s words.
He’d lost to an AI.
It was embarrassing, and he dreaded what people might say about it.
His teammates would probably tease him.
And he was worried what the coaching staff and director would say.

-Taker, from today on you’re banned from meals until you finish training LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
-Banned from meals LMAOOOOO
-You’ve managed every embarrassment a pro can have, right?

Though his loss was due to a mistake, it was undeniable that he’d been overwhelmed by a streamer in the Training Ground.
But.
Despite his initial worries, he gradually began to understand something, and his previous concerns faded away.
Perhaps he’d been hit while also being enlightened.
‘I’ve found the path I need to walk.’
Because he’d found the answer.
Until now, he’d been stagnant.
His skill, which had once leaped over walls quickly, could no longer move even an inch.
It felt like an enormous barrier was blocking his way.
So he’d tried learning other things.
But the growth was equally marginal — barely perceptible.
So he kept dabbling in multiple places, floundering.
‘Wandering would be the right word for it.’
No one gave him a clear answer.
It wasn’t a slump — just a natural plateau after reaching such a high level, they said. No more breakthroughs now.
It’s natural, they said.
People just kept saying to accept it and keep working hard as he had before.
They weren’t wrong.
But something in his mind kept insisting that something wasn’t lined up right.
And the bigger problem, as with most life problems, was that he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong.
But.
‘He’s been showing me from the start.’

[Do it ten thousand times a day. Then you can become like me.]

‘He saw my problem at a glance!’
Before long, he found himself using the most respectful speech even in his own thoughts.
‘He changed my swordsmanship too. Right. If the fundamentals differ, then teaching me to unfold other people’s swordsmanship more powerfully — that must’ve been why he did it.’
In his mind, Seo Jun was no longer an arrogant person.
Rough, seemingly thoughtless — but actually possessing deeper intent than anyone else. An expert.
Or perhaps a master.
That’s what he’d become in Taker’s eyes.
‘Yes, let’s do it.’
What Seo Jun had said.
Ten thousand swings a day.
Let’s do that.
Ideally in that gymnasium, if possible.
‘First, I should apologize to him for being disrespectful.’
Of course, Seo Jun thought internally that this would take 200 years to accomplish, but Taker had no way of knowing that.

* * *

Meanwhile.

[So, Baek Do-ryul? Aren’t you coming in?]

Baek Do-ryul felt the competitive fire that had been simmering overflow through his entire being.
‘He’s scratching at me.’
He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.
Yet his lips curled upward.
This was fun.
This was thrilling.
He wanted to fight.
In this Training Ground.
And in the League.
And in the Sect.
‘Is this the second time?’
When was the last time he’d witnessed something so difficult to replicate?
There had only been one before.
That person was Shin Ha-yeon.
But today.
‘Taking someone else’s sword and applying it so precisely to his own swordsmanship?’
A second one had been added.
Catching someone in under thirty seconds — he thought he could manage that.
But using someone else’s sword was different.
It meant moving against movements your body had memorized. That required extensive practice to master.
And to merge it with existing techniques, you’d need that level of understanding.
Especially with a sword belonging to Shin Ha-yeon or Baek Do-ryul himself.
Where did that understanding even come from?
‘He must’ve spent quite a long time preparing…’
Logically, that made sense.
But for some reason, Baek Do-ryul felt like his opponent had just seen it today and executed it.

-Baek Do-ryul? Scared?
-The suspense about how this plays out deserves a thumbs-up
-Suspense deserves a thumbs-up LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO It’s curiosity, not suspense
-Seriously just close the community, you clown LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
-If you’re curious, thumbs-up LMAO

Not today, in any case.
Against an AI, he couldn’t secure victory. He might even lose.
Baek Do-ryul accepted that cleanly.
The opponent probably knew that, and that’s why he was trying to get under his skin like this.
It was obvious.
Still, he’d managed to overcome Shin Ha-yeon as a team, somehow.
So he’d find a way this time too.
“Haha. There’ll be another chance to fight. So for now…”
It wouldn’t be long.
For now.
“Shall we go train?”
First, he had to win the proxy match.
With that, Baek Do-ryul closed Seo Jun’s stream.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————