Chapter 76: Clash of Titans: The Rise of Dark Horses

– The Martial Arts Tournament with a Spicy Twist

The participants whispered among themselves after Joo Ahyoung’s courageous declaration.

“Why does the host have a nickname like that?”

“She likes that trashy game, Jumping Rabbit?”

“Ew, seriously? This is totally perverted, isn’t it?”

“How can someone’s nickname be ‘AhyoungisJumpingRabbitIsGoodAhyoung’?”

Even C-class awakened individuals, who had at least heard of the infamous Jumping Rabbit game, trembled in disgust at the mere mention of it.

They looked at Joo Ahyoung with eyes full of disdain and hatred.

“Ugh. Jumping Rabbit is fun, okay? Don’t mock it! Maybe I’ll just change the tournament map to a Jumping Rabbit map.”

While Hae Eung Eung had made it clear that the martial arts tournament followed national rules, she hadn’t gone as far as giving orders about the map.

With most of the preparations delegated to Joo Ahyoung, if she really wanted to, she could have changed the tournament map to the Jumping Rabbit map.

“How could you say something so terrible!”

“Is the organizer also the host?”

“Well, we’re all awakened, right?”

“True.”

“As long as we don’t have to get into the damn rabbit body and jump, it’s fine, right?”

The momentary hesitation passed.

The awakened individuals regained their confidence and were ready to mock Jumping Rabbit as a trash game. However, one of them muttered,

“Wait, isn’t the Jumping Rabbit map one of those where lava rises from below, or giant insects eat the ground one block at a time, or the entire world floods with rain?”

A silence spread among the previously confident awakened individuals.

Even awakened individuals would die if they fell into lava.

The chaos in the tournament venue gradually calmed down.

But at the same time, in the viewer’s chat room,

[New Vtuber BJ]

[AhyoungisJumpingRabbitIsGoodAhyoung has started a broadcast.]

[World – Tournament Venue]

[Playtime – 00:00:01]

[Current Viewers – 1]

When the broadcast first began, it was like any ordinary low-tier broadcast, with not a single viewer in sight.

[Current Viewers – 4]

• Jumping Rabbit??
• Wow! You know Jumping Rabbit?
• Ahyoung, do you want to jump with me??

This was the kind of chat from random viewers who didn’t even know what the broadcast was about, mostly Jumping Rabbit fans.

[Current Viewers – 9]

• How is your nickname ‘AhyoungisJumpingRabbitIsGoodAhyoung’
• Are you actually Um Gil Dan?
• Familiar nickname level
• Wait, this newbie is hardcore, all their game records are just Jumping Rabbit, LOL
• Other games have less than 30 minutes of playtime, but Jumping Rabbit has over 500 hours, is that real?

Only viewers who were familiar with low-tier broadcasts stayed to watch. These were the kind of viewers who appeared and disappeared countless times in a day.

Everyone thought that was the case.

“Welcome to the Martial Arts Tournament! I’m Joo Ahyoung, the host and broadcaster for this event…”

“Ahyoung is Jumping Rabbit Is Good Ahyoung!”

Her line echoed, before anyone could fully process it.

• Wait, is this real? The Silent Sword master?
• Silent Sword master Tournament???
• What’s going on here?
• There are so many martial arts tournament broadcast streams
• Even the Changwon Guild is broadcasting?
• Ocean World Guild’s Rex is also broadcasting it too!

As viewers began to realize the event was more serious than they expected, with dozens, hundreds, even thousands of awakened individuals broadcasting the tournament,

they slowly came to a shocking realization.

• Is this the main broadcast?
• ??? Is this for real?
• Are we the founding members of the deep-sea divers??

<Low-tierLifeIsFunDonor gave 10,000 won!>

First donation, it’s mine!

<SweetsFan gave a 1-month subscription!>

First subscription gift is mine!

Quick-witted viewers immediately began pouring in, and before long, more viewers flooded in as if coordinates had been shared, swarming in like a swarm of bees.

• Is this person someone the Silent Swordmaster invited?
• Wait a second, the voice…
• Oh, it’s really them! The sibling who appeared in the interview with Lee Gyeo-chan!
• It seems like it, doesn’t it?
• Shocking. The true identity of J. Young, AhyoungisJumpingRabbitIsGoodAhyoung revealed, causing a controversy.
• LOL, if you like Jumping Rabbit, of course it should cause a controversy.

The Silent Swordmaster fan club, famously known as the “Lost Space Travelers” from Vtuber, started flooding in.

• Why isn’t the host’s sister speaking?
• The Silent Swordmaster is sitting in the VIP seat, looking all serious, haha.
• The host looks so dignified today too.
• What are they doing?
• No idea.
• Isn’t the recruitment still open?
• Since they’re all awakened, it seems like they’re recruiting here.
• If the winner gets to collaborate with the Silent Swordmaster on his main channel, I’m all in!
• Ox
• If it’s a collab with the Silent Swordmaster, I’ll fight to win, no matter what.

[Current Viewers – 2048]

At 10 a.m. on a Saturday morning, when humans are most likely to be lazy, the viewers grew at an unimaginable speed.

Soon, they realized a major fact while watching the broadcast.

• But why is there no reaction to donations?
• Answer some questions, please!!
• What do you get if you win the tournament? Asking for the seventh time.
• Why isn’t your sister speaking? Waaah!
• Read the chat!!!
• No manager here?
• This familiar feeling… there’s no doubt about it… Ahyoung is really the Silent Swordmaster’s real sibling…
• The sisters are both silent, huh.
• Am I the only one wondering what’s going on here?

Before Joo Ahyoung started the broadcast, she had asked Hae Eung Eung for broadcasting tips and was unknowingly taught the forbidden secret: turning off all notifications.

Unaware viewers, frustrated by the lack of communication, poured their anger into the chat,

but Joo Ahyoung, busy with the tournament proceedings, never paid attention to the messages.

“Now, let’s begin the tournament, as per the wishes of the Silent Swordmaster, the host. The rules for Round 1? Hmm.”

As Joo Ahyoung looked at her sister sitting in the VIP seat, Hae Eung Eung wrote a large number on a sign.

Oh, four people.

With an enthusiastic voice, Joo Ahyoung announced,

“There are too many people here, and my sister is uncomfortable. From now on, kill each other until only four remain!”

• ?
• ?
• 04||?
• Wait, you actually said ‘kill each other’?
• WTF, this is a virtual tournament, but they’re seriously hardcore.
• Is this the official broadcast…?
• LOL, really?
• No tournament brackets? No league matches?
• Yep, none.
• You’ve come to the wrong tournament. This isn’t the Silent Swordmaster’s tournament, it’s the Total Destruction Swordmaster Tournament, lol.

The tournament was a brutal “spicy” martial arts contest, where only the top four would be recognized.

“Today is a treat for the eyes.”

“Look at those kids, their pride hurt, so they’re pulling out all the hidden techniques. Isn’t it crazy?”

“Agreed.”

“And I never expected Lightning Man to be so strong. I saw him at another branch before, and he was so awkward, I thought he was just a nerd, but turns out, he was a nerd hiding his power.”

Even Woo Ji-woo and Seogyeong-seok, C-class awakened individuals who had always done the hardest work for the association, couldn’t help but admire the chaotic scene unfolding before them.

“Don’t touch me, you bastards!!”

“Ahhh, Lightning Man’s pissed off!!”

“Shit, we’re screwed, here comes the hundred-thousand-volt attack, run!!”

Contestant number 143.

Lightning Man.

Recognizing Lightning Man’s expertise in area-of-effect attacks, someone decided to target him first, calling him a nerd with a weak personality and saying, “Let’s take out Lightning Man first!”

Along with other awakened individuals, they rushed at him. But after about a dozen of them were electrocuted and eliminated simultaneously, the arena turned into chaos.

“Ahh! Damn it, run to the corner!”

“Don’t come over here! I’ll stab anyone who comes near! Don’t you see the corpses?!”

Contestant number 211.

Spiny Man.

In the corner of the arena, after narrowly avoiding Lightning Man, Spiny Man grew sharp spikes all over his body and entered a defensive stance.

“Get out of the way, I’m pushing this bastard out of the ring!”

“Whoa, it’s Do Yeong from the Siege Club!”

“Damn, these spikes are really hard! It hurts! Help me!”

A martial artist who rushed in confidently was thrown out of the ring after being pierced by the long spikes.

The awakened individuals who had fled to the corner to escape Lightning Man could no longer stay there and scattered in all directions, screaming.

[Ahh, Lightning Man and Spiny Man, they’re too strong! Other awakened individuals can’t even keep up, they’re being swept away!]

Everyone agreed with Joo Ahyoung’s commentary.

Even within the top tier of C-class, the difference between those barely hanging on and those aiming for B-class was striking.

Crisp

Crisp, crackle

Even among the C-class top tier, Lightning Man stood out with his exceptionally high energy efficiency. With his mass destruction attacks consuming minimal energy, the area around him was

soon cleared of awakened individuals.

Anyone who tried to sneak by him was electrocuted and forcefully logged out.

• Breaking news > Lightning Man reaches 143 kills
• LOL, Lightning Man is seriously OP.
• Wasn’t he the nerd who fainted after getting electrocuted while cleaning up high-voltage wires? My heart is swelling…
• I had no idea someone like that existed before the tournament, but this is insane.
• Even a regular Rammus could get over 20 kills easily.
• The awakened ones getting slaughtered must feel utterly humiliated, haha.

Due to Lightning Man’s mass destruction and Spiny Man’s corner dominance, dozens of groups caught in the crossfire had nowhere to run.

In just a few minutes, the number of participants drastically dwindled, and now fewer than ten remained.

“Get lost, hurry up! You’re making Lightning Man come this way!!”

“Shut up, you bastard! If you don’t remove those spikes, you’ll attract aggro and die with us!”

“Damn it, I wanted to save these spikes. Too late for regrets. I definitely warned you.”

Spiny Man puffed up his body, making it swell like a balloon.

“Ugh, damn, why is that bastard getting bigger?”

“Run, run!”

“What the hell is going on with him?”

“Are you from Goheung? This guy, Spiny Man, is famous for being a weirdo there! He messed up a few spaceship launches and got so pissed off that his abilities evolved in that direction!”

“His abilities evolved like that… Could it be?”

“He can shoot those spikes! They can be launched!”

With a bang, the spikes were shot.

The sharp spikes flew ferociously, embedding deep into the arena floor.

Even as the floor was pierced, there was no way people could withstand it.

Several awakened individuals were simultaneously logged out.

“Gasp… Hah… Damn it… I told you… Hah… Get out of here.”

Spiny Man, panting heavily, heard footsteps he wasn’t supposed to hear.

Clang!

A spear struck one of the spikes that had been urgently shot.

The heavy weight of the spear caused the spike to bend sideways but not break.

Sensing danger from the unusually heavy spear, Spiny Man attempted to shoot more spikes but realized, under invisible pressure, that he couldn’t release any more.

[Here come the notorious trio from Changwon Guild, who were considered key players before the tournament started! They’re the first to stop Spiny Man’s spikes!]

Joo Ahyoung’s commentary made Spiny Man realize the identity of the enemies before him.

Contestant number 93.

Iron Spear Kim Gil-tae.

Contestant number 94.

Telekinetic Master Lee Jeong.

“Damn, it’s the crazy trio! Did one of them die already?”

“Don’t tie me down. My spear is the strongest.”

“Stop posturing and focus. That guy’s output is no joke. The telekinetic force won’t hold for long!”

Together, the Changwon Guild trio fought off the spikes with the spear and telekinesis, managing to survive.

“Your name’s worth something. You’re better than the mediocre ones, but it’s still not enough to beat me!” said the Changwon Guild member.

“Not enough? Damn, you’re already done for.”

Contestant number 92.

Phase Shifter Ahn Changyun.

After crawling between the bodies, Ahn Changyun grabbed Spiny Man’s ankle.

In that moment, Spiny Man and a corpse far away both flickered and swapped positions.

The spot where Spiny Man appeared was now near Lightning Man.

Both awakened individuals, realizing each other’s presence, widened their eyes and unleashed everything they had—lightning bolts and spikes flying in all directions.

Crackle!

Boom!

After a series of spike launches, the air crackled with sparks, and the spikes that had pierced into the ground lost their energy.

Lightning Man, covered in spikes, and Spiny Man, charred black from the lightning, stood facing each other for a moment before collapsing simultaneously.

[Contestant number 92 pulls it off! The tournament’s biggest dark horse, Lightning Man, is eliminated using Spiny Man’s own ability in a devastating assassination!]

• Wow! Phase Shift!
• C-class is no joke, you need real skill to take down two top contenders like that.
• This is why I love the Changwon Guild, they’re saving face here!
• Not a prestigious guild, but they’ve got real strength.

After the two dark horses eliminated each other, the Changwon Guild’s trio looked around, startled.

[Remaining participants – 19 people]

More than 300 participants had gathered at the start of the day, but after Lightning Man and Spiny Man were taken out, fewer than twenty remained.

‘At least I must have earned some serious points with the Silent Swordsman for taking down both dark horses,’ thought Ahn Changyun.

He was secretly pleased.

This had to have caught the Silent Swordsman’s attention, right?

At the same time, there was a hint of unease.

Many people had been eliminated on the opposite side of the arena, so maybe someone else was being observed instead?

His emotions were mixed, a blend of hope and anxiety, as he looked up toward the highest seat in the judging area where the Silent Swordsman sat.

“What’s that? Did she write something? ‘JumpingRabbit’… Jumping Rabbit?”

The tournament’s host, the Silent Swordsman, wasn’t paying attention to Ahn Changyun.

Nor was she watching anyone else on the opposite side of the arena.

She was holding a large sign and giving instructions to the host, A-Young, who was looking at Jumping Rabbit.

[People are asking about the Jumping Rabbit map!]

“Oh no, the difficulty of the field is being raised to increase the pace of the tournament! This is unavoidable, we have to do it… Jumping Rabbit map!”

Ahn Changyun muttered to himself.

“Damn, we’re screwed.”

The expressions of the remaining awakened individuals all soured.