Martial Arts Returnee’s Game Broadcast

Chapter 170

1.

Dashman’s movements were different from those of other awakened individuals.
His stride was constant, yet his body was light.
His expression was light, yet his vision was broad.
He was always prepared to run somewhere.

“That’s like a soldier on the battlefield.”
[It also seems like a martial artist with a sword at all times.]

Because of this, Saint Eve took an interest in him.
And because of this, Ha Eung Eung took an interest in him.

“No matter what you’re tangled in, if you can overcome it, you’ll go far. The key is breaking out of the rules and limitations you’ve set for yourself.”

She had seen countless people who died under the weight of their own burdens, so much so that there were no tears left for them on the battlefield.
Ha Eung Eung fully understood the weary smile that showed the fatigue of Saint Eve.

‘Countless martial artists are still bound by the tragedies of the past. The ones who couldn’t endure the painful memories and dropped their swords are even more common.’

Especially those who were unable to save someone due to their lack of skill, they were not unusual for falling into ruin.
In that sense, Dashman was strong enough not to abandon the path of the awakened.

‘A true martial artist is born when they overcome their past.’

Would Dashman become a true martial artist?
Or would he fall into ruin as a washed-up individual?
When Gwang-A Sword Lee Jeong-un’s sword fiercely cut off his retreat, driving him to his limits,
the moment Eve and Ha Eung Eung had been waiting for arrived.

Slash!

The 50cm Dash gap.
Lee Jeong-un, following that gap like a shadow, cut through Dashman’s torso.
Before the blood on his blade was shaken into the air, Eve stood up sharply from her seat.

“He’s crossed the line.”

Dashman, who had been staggering, almost about to collapse, did not fall even though his body was cut.

Kaang!

Underneath his thick clothes,
the hidden armor absorbed most of the shock.
His steps, steady and precise.
His movements, disciplined.
Every restriction had its purpose.
Self-restraint, not wanting to repeat past mistakes, left Dashman with the strength to endure.

He was not outplayed by Lee Jeong-un.
His weakness was intentional.
He had drawn Lee Jeong-un in with a carefully crafted flaw.
Birds of a feather flock together.
Like attracts like.
Dashman had matched Lee Jeong-un’s crazy fighting style.

• “I’ll give up my belly. Instead, I’ll take your neck.”
  “!!!”

As soon as Lee Jeong-un’s sword cut through Dashman’s armor,
Dashman’s sword struck at his neck.

2.  

Dashman knew.
He understood why Lee Jeong-un, with his dishonorable code name "Gwang-A Sword," willingly embraced danger.

‘A necessary evil to keep distance. Lee Jeong-un, that’s who you were.’

Had he not joined Myunho Guild, the illegal awakened individuals who were as much enemies of the self-defense forces could have been hired by the guild.
That’s why he boldly brought the heads of those illegal awakened individuals to Myunho Guild.

• “The two-man team ends here. We can’t keep the distance with this method. You know that, right?”
• “I’ll try to make my own opportunity in the guild. Don’t fall just because you’re alone. I’ll make the spot for you.”

Lee Jeong-un, dirtying his hands, stepped forward so that those more ruthless than him couldn’t destroy the district.
He ignored his own shame and bore the reputation of being the guild’s lackey, enduring all the disgrace for the sake of the district’s residents.

‘I could only be righteous thanks to your secret support.’

Was there truly no eternal belief?
Six months later,
small doubts began to form.

‘Has he really changed?’

The bribes Lee Jeong-un secretly returned had become thinner.
The information that had once been passed discreetly was dwindling, and his actions had grown more violent.
Suppressing the complaints of the residents had reached its limit.

‘What if Jeong-un really has changed? What should I do then?’

Even though they had never truly fought each other,
they both knew that their sword clashes were just performances to deceive the guild and the residents.
It was a secret between just the two of them.

“Bapting, you still can’t trust Jeong-un oppa? He must have his own reasons.”
“If you raise a daughter, you’ll give her away to someone else. It’s the same with a younger sister. Ugh. Do you really like Jeong-un that much?”
“Jeong-un oppa always gives me the front legs of the chicken when we eat.”
“Wow. Then I’ll give him credit.”

Still, listening to his sister’s words, he couldn’t help but reflect.
If he couldn’t trust him, who else would?
Jeong-un had not changed.
His younger sister was like a symbol that proved it.
Even though they stood in different places, their desire to protect the same things, their hearts were the same.

“Should we go buy a gift for Jeong-un?”
“Then let’s go to the department store! New awakening items are coming in.”

The fateful day.
When they met Lee Myung-woon at the department store.

“You… you’ve been doing this kind of thing?”
“It’s complicated to explain now. Step aside.”

The ember of distrust that had been extinguished flared up again.
Lee Myung-woon had broken their promise.
He had broken their rule that they would contact each other before causing any incidents.
He could no longer trust him.
He didn’t want to tell his younger sister that he had come to buy gifts for her.

‘Su-young and you, this is the end.’

Lee Jeong-un had changed.
There was no need to give him gifts anymore.
That was why, as he comforted his younger sister, he planned to leave Myunho-dong with her.
That distrust,
that greed,
ultimately led to the tragedy.

“Su-young!!”

As the floor collapsed,
the debris fell on his younger sister.
When her hand, unable to reach him, grasped at the air in front of him,
Lee Jeong-un regretted it.
If only he had trusted him,
if only he had told him that his younger sister was here,
if only he had activated his powers to stop Lee Jeong-un without holding back,
the department store might not have collapsed.
He could have saved his sister.
That tragedy might have been prevented.

“It’s not your fault, oppa. I… I just wish we could reconcile like before.”

Su-young forgave him.
She even said she was sorry for not being able to see him again.
And then she died.

“……”

After the funeral,
holding her urn,
he looked at the sea and scattered the ashes.
He had to force a smile.
Because without it, he wouldn’t be able to stand up again.
That’s how he started pretending to be a fool.
He turned on the broadcast and continued his righteous activities.
Like countless self-defense teams in Seoul,
he felt the limits, continuing his conflict with the guild.
The more he did, the more he felt Lee Jeong-un’s absence.

‘Is this what it was? The future you were trying to protect.’

Lee Jeong-un’s absence was replaced by far more dangerous individuals.
With the guild using the association’s name as a shield, they continued to fight across districts and gates, making new allies, some dying, some retiring.
The long struggle finally came to an end.
The association’s self-defense teams kept the peace of the district.
Meanwhile, the guild monopolized access to the gates.
Though the battle with the guild ended,
his stride had not changed.
Because he knew that this battle was just a temporary ceasefire.
He knew that one day, the guild would reveal its true nature again, once it had built up enough strength from the gates.
So, instead of leveling up,
he continued to train and develop his abilities.

“Myunho Guild… gone?”

Myunho Guild, which had once been so formidable,
was wiped out overnight with the appearance of the legendary Mukwon Sword.
It was more unbelievable than joyous.
With just one person stepping forward, a giant guild that had struggled to survive with Lee Jeong-un and him was torn apart in just a few months.
He couldn’t ignore it.
He looked for Mukwon Sword’s broadcasts, and there he found the peak of the strength he had longed for.

‘Let’s test it one last time.’

Having lost the greatest driving force he had fought for since the dissolution of Myunho Guild,
being acknowledged by the one who destroyed the guild, Mukwon Sword, was the only way to prove that his efforts hadn’t been in vain.
Even when he had taken the position of her attendant in front of her noble demeanor,
even when he had climbed onto the stage in her favor,
even when he had reencountered old wounds,
his purpose hadn’t changed.
If he were to stand at that same place from five years ago,
if he faced the same trial again,

‘I will no longer turn a blind eye, nor will I push it aside.’

He would once again take the blow that Lee Jeong-un had delivered five years ago.
The five years given to him, a person so remarkable that he had even hidden his true abilities, was terrifyingly powerful.

Crunch

Even though the armor saved him from being cut,
the shock transmitted through it broke his ribs.
The broken bone pierced his flesh.

‘But I endured.’

Five years.
Lee Jeong-un’s sword had grown heavier.
But Dashman’s body had grown stronger.

???? ????
Self-drawn, self-sung, no doubt.

Without relying on anyone else,
he stepped forward,
leaving no room for doubt.

‘The weakness was not in the skill, but in the will.’

What had made him anxious wasn’t the inability to trust Lee Jeong-un.
It was because he hadn’t been able to trust himself.
Had Lee Jeong-un changed? Could he really defeat him now?
Could he truly label the friend who had dirtied his hands for him as evil?
Was he innocent for wanting to remain clean?

‘Now I understand.’

A strong body creates a strong mind.
A strong mind creates a strong mission.
A strong mission creates strong justice.

‘The Dash born of distrust is not the same as the Dash born of absolute belief.’

Having cast this technique tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of times,
he had fully absorbed Dash.
He understood the movements of the muscles performing it,
and how to manage his mana.

<Dashman-style Footwork> <Dashbo???>

The distance is still 50cm,
but unlike the uncertain 50cm before,
this 50cm is filled with certainty and immense power.

Boom!!

The shock, like being hit by a tank, pushed Lee Jeong-un back three steps.
Though he barely managed to protect his neck,
the blood flowing from his cheek told another story.

“If I had hit directly, you would have been dead.”
“I guess so.”
“Why did you twist your approach? This was your perfect chance for revenge for Su-young.”

Dashman sheathed his sword and pulled out a silk pouch, throwing it.

The pouch was crumpled and worn with traces of time,
containing an accessory artifact for attaching to a sword.

“This was meant to be given at the funeral. It’s the gift Su-young kept until the end, the one we bought that day at the department store.”

Lee Jeong-un’s eyes trembled harshly.

“Don’t you blame me?”
“I tried to throw it away many times. I thought it was too precious for someone like you. But when I look at this accessory, I realized something.”

The period of doubt,
why they bought the gift for him,
was to reaffirm their trust in each other.

“We wanted the same goal.”

Dashman reached out his hand.

“Come back to the light. Now, you can correct your mistakes. The Haenam faction is different from Myunho Guild. You’ll be able to regain your awakened status, your experience, everything.”

Closing the 50cm gap that Lee Jeong-un couldn’t,
Dashman tore down the obstacles that had stood in their way for the last five years.

“Let’s start again. From Haenam faction.”