Chapter 2: First Broadcast (1)

There are moments in life that are so deeply etched in our minds that they sometimes suddenly come to mind.

“Has it already been a year since I ascended and returned…?”

Time really flies.

Or is it because I’m getting older?

They say time seems to pass quickly as you get older.

Having lived for three hundred years, it’s no wonder my sense of time is starting to break down.

The wandering thoughts abruptly stop.

At that very moment, Cheon Hwi, who had been lying in bed idly, rose to his feet.

‘This won’t do.’

It’s nice to enjoy the lifestyle of modern civilization after struggling to return.

It’s nice, but still, this life feels too aimless.

‘I need to start living a proper life soon.’

Those who don’t work should not eat.

This was a saying that transformed me from struggling to survive in the martial world to who I am now.

Cheon Hwi, reflecting on his motto, recalled his vow from a year ago.

“I will live by the work I do and the fair reward I earn.”

“I will be self-sufficient without asking for help from others.”

This mindset was influenced by the pride Cheon Hwi held as a martial artist.

A martial artist who had reached the highest peak, ascended to the Everlasting Realm, and yet would never suffer because of a few dollars.

But that naive thought came crashing down when he saw the screen of the smartphone he had picked up.

[Haedong Bank]

Balance: 148,300 KRW

Unfounded confidence always ruins everything.

Cheon Hwi, who had momentarily forgotten this fact, sighed and looked at his recent spending history.

Fried chicken/48,000 KRW (Yesterday, 12:03)

Large pizza/51,600 KRW (Three days ago, 17:11)

Donald’s/23,800 KRW (Four days ago, 13:32)

Grandfather’s bossam/51,200 KRW (One week ago, 22:37)

In just one week, nearly 174,600 KRW had been spent on delivery food.

Cheon Hwi, facing the reality he didn’t want to confront, marveled at the shocking amount.

‘How much did I eat, you pig?’

Whenever he ordered chicken or pizza, it was always two servings and two pizzas.

Burgers weren’t any different, so every time he ordered, it was always two large sets.

Bossam, well… it’s naturally expensive.

How is a medium serving of bossam so expensive?

Anyway, Cheon Hwi has always had a hearty appetite.

Having lived in the martial world for three hundred years, Cheon Hwi had many excuses, he hadn’t eaten certain foods, or his increased food intake was a side effect of his martial arts training.

But, no matter how much he rationalized his actions, a heavy reality was about to shatter those excuses.

‘This won’t do.’

In fact, once a martial artist enters the Life-and-Death Realm, there’s no need to eat.

It’s a simple truth, but since they don’t need to eat, they also don’t need to excrete.

If nothing goes in, how can anything come out?

Moreover, by not sleeping, a martial artist can maintain a state of perpetual, optimum energy.

Because of this, martial artists who enter the Life-and-Death Realm, and beyond, evolve into beings that transcend regular humans—beings who neither eat, sleep, nor excrete, and who remain in peak physical condition.

To transcend the heavens?

Well, that would require going beyond the Life-and-Death Realm, passing through the Blossoming Dao Realm, and then reaching the Severance Realm.

‘Money, I need to earn money.’

Despite this, Cheon Hwi still made sure to have three meals a day.

He even enjoyed midnight snacks and treats from time to time, which of course led to his wallet becoming emptier faster than he could imagine.

Why did he eat so recklessly?

There was no real reason.

It was simply because it tasted good.

Just before his bank account hit zero, Cheon Hwi snapped back to reality and quickly changed clothes.

He tossed aside the worn-out T-shirt and shorts and put on the martial clothes he had left untouched in his wardrobe since his return from the martial world.

‘This isn’t bad at all.’

Since he had just gotten out of bed, his appearance wasn’t as neat as it could have been, but he did look somewhat respectable, and Cheon Hwi felt satisfied with the image of a master. He left the house with a sense of pride.

His destination was the Hunter Association.

The sturdy legs of a master, shaped by the Everlasting Realm, began to move swiftly.

This was right after Cheon Hwi had returned from the martial world.

‘After the great upheaval, the world was turned upside down, and the awakened individuals started entering the gates to stabilize the world.’

This was the kind of opening scene you often saw in novels or comics.

The fact that it had become a reality was a shock to Cheon Hwi immediately after his return.

Of course, despite the shock, he accepted it quickly.

He had already experienced countless events—from being transported to the martial world to ascension.

A global upheaval on Earth? He could easily consider it a minor event.

‘I never intended to become a hunter, but it felt wrong to turn down the opportunity they were offering me.’

Perhaps because of that, when Cheon Hwi first returned, the whole country was in an uproar.

The debate about whether the fantasy world, which had always been dismissed as fiction, actually existed or not, and the attempts to measure Cheon Hwi’s strength against the awakened individuals, had all taken place.

At some point, those news stories and discussions had completely disappeared, but Cheon Hwi still remembered the last words the association president had said to him.

If you ever feel like showing off your martial arts, please do visit the association.

‘I never thought I would be the one to visit the association first.’

Until just a few days ago, Cheon Hwi believed there was no way he would ever visit the association on his own.

After all, someone who had no interest in becoming a hunter had no reason to step foot in the Hunter Association.

But, as they say, you never know how things will turn out.

A year after his return, Cheon Hwi found himself at the association, stepping into the headquarters’ underground level with the association president, who had taken it upon himself to guide him.

“There’s such a space in the association’s underground?”

“We may be overshadowed by other large guilds in terms of fame, but our influence and power are in no way inferior.”

Every time this happened, Cheon Hwi couldn’t help but feel that the times had indeed changed.

Fifty years had passed since he disappeared into the martial world, so it was only natural that things had evolved.

Though everyday life hadn’t changed much, every time he encountered such advanced technology, he was reminded of how much the world had progressed.

“This training room is available for your use.”

“It’s spacious. Even though it’s underground, it’s as comfortable as some mountain valleys.”

“We can’t afford to treat a place that our talented associates will use carelessly.”

This was a special training room, a place where cutting-edge technology was concentrated.

Ordinary awakened individuals and hunters would find it difficult to even step foot in such a place in their lifetimes.

The association president was very curious about what Cheon Hwi would do in this space, but he decided to suppress his curiosity, thinking that Cheon Hwi might feel uncomfortable.

“We’ll be conducting some maintenance in about three hours. I’ll come back to see you then.”

With that, the association president left the training room.

Left alone in the training room, Cheon Hwi lifted his smartphone from his pocket with his invisible power.

Then, gripping the phone firmly as if it were floating in the air, he began to operate it, quickly preparing for what was to come.

‘No time to hesitate…!’

Having worked in the martial world, the job of a hunter didn’t really appeal to him.

However, considering a typical job in a regular company, Cheon Hwi immediately rejected the idea.

He didn’t have any notable experience or qualifications, and he certainly didn’t have the patience to endure the excruciatingly dull work hours.

So, how was he going to make money?

Cheon Hwi answered his own question in his mind.

[Live Broadcast / Song Cheon Hwi: You can do it too! Real-world compressed legend ascension!]

What else could he do?

With the martial arts he had trained for three hundred years, he would just have to make it work.

The great upheaval that had once destroyed human civilization had become a story told by the elders in this new era.

This was the perfect time to call it the “era of the awakened.” One particular profession had undergone a massive transformation.

That was, of course, internet broadcasting.

What’s commonly known as streaming.

“Ah, there’s nothing interesting to watch. There’s a lack of content.”

Awakened individuals absorbed magical power and gained unique abilities, called traits.

By law, they were required to undergo a rating assessment by the association, and depending on their rank, some became hunters, while others gravitated toward internet broadcasting.

This new broadcast paradigm was born from the unique powers of the awakened, creating the superpower category of broadcasts.

Superpower category broadcasts were nothing less than a dopamine-filled experience, using the magical power and traits of the awakened as content.

‘I’ve seen enough hidden camera pranks with superpowers, and cosplay with transformation abilities… is there anything left to do?’

Of course, the superpower category broadcast had a massive fanbase, with passionate viewers who enjoyed this type of content.

Among them, a viewer who considered himself well-versed in the genre of superpower broadcasts, clicked his mouse and tuned into a streaming platform.

‘Even the smaller company broadcasts don’t have anything worth watching.’

Usually, when he got bored of big corporate broadcasts, the seasoned viewer, Kang Hyun Woo, would hop around to explore smaller company broadcasts.

The broadcasts of rookie streamers with few viewers usually didn’t have much to offer, often resulting in more duds than hits, so he had largely ignored them in the past.

But now, he had to lower his expectations.

[Live Broadcast / Song Cheon Hwi: You can do it too! Real-world compressed legend ascension!]

The bizarre title of the broadcast left Kang Hyun Woo completely confused, unable to grasp what the show was about.

It was so strange that it almost seemed like he was hypnotized, and out of curiosity, he moved his mouse and entered the broadcast.

‘Where is this place?’

The location visible on the screen looked like a mental hospital, with walls completely painted white.

And at a distance that wasn’t too close or too far, a man in a martial arts uniform was sitting cross-legged, meditating.

What kind of broadcast is this?

Kang Hyun Woo, who quickly typed a short chat message, was filled with either shock or awe at the bizarre title and the even more bizarre appearance of the broadcast.

[Let’s skip the complicated explanations and put it simply, okay.]

The man, who seemed to exude the aura of a high-level martial artist straight out of a wuxia novel, spoke in a low voice.

[This is a broadcast where martial arts are taught.]

He opened his mouth quietly.