A complete stranger.
And, in a foreign land, a war hero called a national hero.
She said she wanted to watch a martial arts tournant, even if it ant sacrificing her lifespan by using her awakening abilities.
Even the participants themselves didn’t believe in their own potential, yet she believed in it.
She showed a noble resolve.
Her will surpassed the shallow desire to be noticed by the Silent Swordsman, and it made the contestants genuinely commit.
“Now, we have received the martial arts tournant entries for all 315 participants. Starting now, according to the random drawing of brackets, the announced contestants should co to the tournant stage.”
Although it was an impromptu tournant, no one criticized the lack of formality or the low level of organization.
The tournant, which began not under the organizer’s authority but the participants’ resolve, was unaffected by the procedure or venue.
Even with the procedural formality, the hastily constructed venue, nothing could quell the contestants' burning passion.
“Did we really have to call in a dentist again? These guys are unbelievable.”
“Well, there’s a chance the corn will get stuck, don’t you think? You’re just thinking ‘let's keep the peace’.”
Doctors from all fields were gathered, and the dical team was ready.
Thanks to the National Security Bureau's covert support, the makeshift dical beds and equipnt were set up. Unless there were serious injuries or fatalities, the Saint’s help wouldn’t be needed.
‘I hope all this effort was worth it.’
While Min Woo-sung steeled himself, the tournant was underway with the contestants engaged in fierce battles.
“Muscle Arm!”
In the intense battle, a contestant using the Muscle Arm ability pushed down his opponent’s sword with his right arm, which had swelled up to twice its size.
The opponent, struggling and leaning, muttered coldly without attempting to fix his posture.
“Rewind.”
Like a video playing in reverse, the Rewind ability allowed the user to return to their position just one second ago, aiming their sword at the Muscle Arm user’s neck.
The Muscle Arm user couldn’t hide his frustration but eventually accepted defeat.
“Great ability.”
“Your ability is the sa. If you had trained just a little more, you might have lost before you could even take a breath.”
“I appreciate you saying that. Even though I lost, it gives comfort. I’ll cheer for you to win.”
The two contestants shook hands, and those waiting their turn, along with Haenampa’s staff, gave them a hearty round of applause.
‘Now, this is what a proper martial arts tournant looks like.’
Gashingan was deeply moved.
The previous qualifier, where hundreds of contestants scrambled for positions like wild dogs, was a nightmare.
Although it had been a stepping stone that boosted his own na, Gashingan knew the truth.
Last ti, he got lucky because of Lightning Man.
If it weren’t for Lightning Man, who single-handedly wiped out half of the participants, Gashingan wouldn’t have had any competitors coming after him while he was waiting in the corner.
[Concept Post]
[Ascended Gallery - Gashingan the Silent Swordsman Tournant Hit Not Bad?]
[Author - 3 Dae 750]
[Views - 22,195]
[Upvotes - 840]
[Downvotes - 615]
“If you admit it, give it an upvote”
Cheat post, giving it an upvote anyway
The hedgehog was super annoying, yelling at everyone from a pri spot, lol
Damn, how hard was it for Gashingan to be so sturdy, really felt bad about it, took a sweet nap for two days
How could you sleep when it was so painful?
Got stabbed so badly I slept for 48 hours straight to recover
Are you a masochist? lol
So this guy just naturally recovered without going to a hospital, haha
Seems like most of the martial-arts Ascended are a little crazy lol
Gashingan was okay, though. His face was just so ugly, but man, you could tell he worked hard to improve his skills
Oh my
That’s so reverse-cheat move
Suddenly felt bad for Gashingan and gave him an upvote
If your face looks like that, you really have nothing but money, so you might as well make it big
True
Gashingan’s actions, which had earned him easy praise online, were repeatedly mocked.
As a man, Gashingan had his pride. He didn’t want to be labeled as a lucky guy, so he participated in the interview.
And fortunately, it beca the second Silent Swordsman Martial Arts Tournant, so luck was on his side.
“Next contestant has been recomnded. B-class Ascended big match! In the blue corner, Gashingan!”
Gashingan boldly stepped onto the stage.
Wow, he really is ugly
I heard his thorns are super sharp, right?
Guess it’s because his thorns are so sharp, that’s why his face is so ugly
The assessnt of his appearance in a competition of n pushed Gashingan’s ntal state, but he steeled himself.
‘My face being ugly isn’t sothing new. I just have to endure today. I’ll make a na for myself as a skilled Ascended in this tournant.’
Once he succeeds, Gashingan’s signature won’t be his ugly face, but his impressive skill.
Even Lightning Man wasn’t that handso, but didn’t he get called a “Well-Done Maker” or “Human High Voltage Fence” online?
It’s not just baseless hope.
Thanks to the realization from the previous tournant, Gashingan had leveled up and was promoted to B-class.
“Red corner, the strong contender for this tournant, facing off against Gashingan, is cha Samurai!”
The audience buzzed with excitent.
“cha Samurai?”
“Was there such a person?”
“Unknown.”
“That’s tough. Gashingan is no slouch.”
cha Samurai, standing across from Gashingan, caught his attention.
The mont he saw the tallic gleam on cha Samurai’s hands and face, Gashingan realized.
‘This is a countermatch.’
Every Ascended ability has a counter.
No matter how hard you try, there will always be soone you can’t beat, a natural predator that nullifies your abilities.
For Gashingan, who uses sharp thorns to penetrate flesh, cha Samurai was that natural counter.
“Both contestants, get ready!”
“Countdown!”
Gashingan stood, eyes fixed on his opponent, while cha Samurai showed no fear at all.
It was proof that he was confident in his ability to win, even against a na like Gashingan.
“5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Begin!”
The first match of the tournant’s preliminaries.
The battle between Gashingan and cha Samurai, which would be considered the biggest upset, began.
Though fighting to prove their skills, the contestants respected each other’s prowess and returned to their senses after each victory or defeat.
A battle between n, where even if no direct injury was inflicted on their bodies, they respected each other’s victory and loss.
“South Korea is the land of warriors. I guess you can't always believe rumors.”
[What’s the perception of South Korean Ascended abroad?]
“They’re just a lucky bunch, surviving on a small land with a high population density. That’s how they’re known.”
Unlike Japan, which didn’t suffer from earthquakes and hail sinking islands or ravaging land by sea monsters.
Unlike China, where vast territories created a survival war between humans and monsters due to open gates.
South Korea, with its lucky geographical positioning, hadn’t been able to gain recognition for their skills.
‘So it was just a rumor.’
Min Woo-sung and Dashman would naturally believe the rumor to be true, but Eve and Ha Eung Eung dismissed it as nothing more than a baseless rumor.
From their perspective, the South Korean Ascended were actually excellent.
“Ah, the first-ever B-class Ascended match of this tournant.”
[There’s Gashingan.]
“Is he strong enough to catch your eye, Sister?”
Ha Eung Eung nodded honestly.
Though she hadn’t been able to follow all the events in the main competition due to her trip to the Jumping Rabbit High Mountains, she had closely watched the previous tournant’s qualifiers.
People thought Gashingan was just lucky, but he had the skill to make that luck count.
The collision between thorns and tal.
Normally, the thorns would have broken under the tal’s hardness, but surprisingly, they remained unbroken, retaining their sharpness.
‘He’s improved.’
Ha Eung Eung rembered.
She recalled how Gashingan’s thorns had bent under the force of Kim Giltae’s spear strike in the Changwon Guild.
Whether it was from learning how to take hits or an improvent in his thorns’ durability, Gashingan had beco stronger.
“I’m sorry, rookie. I would have liked to exchange techniques slowly, giving you face… but I can’t do that today.”
With each step Gashingan took, the shape of his Full Body Thorn ability shifted.
He blocked every sword strike with a long thorn wrapped around his entire arm and relentlessly pushed cha Samurai into the corner.
Rails extended from the heels, increasing his speed, and a booster added additional thrust.
With explosive acceleration that exceeded ten tis the normal speed, cha Samurai’s swordsmanship dazzled.
Thud.
Gashingan’s thorns, which had boasted invincible durability, broke off.
“Fantastic! Despite the disadvantage of the countermatch, both Gashingan, who dominates the battlefield, and cha Samurai, who shows his skills against such a veteran, are impressive!”
[Though Gashingan gained an advantage in the exchange of blows.]
“Even with his thorns being exploited?”
Ha Eung Eung pointed to Gashingan’s other hand.
At the mont cha Samurai launched his sword attack, Gashingan extended his right hand in the shape of a sword, while simultaneously firing thorns from his left hand, which had transford into the shape of a gun.
Sizzle.
cha Samurai belatedly discovered the thorns embedded in his arm.
His face, which had looked like a cold machine, contorted for the first ti.
“Gashingan. You’re stronger than I expected.”
“I didn’t beco a top contender in na alone.”
cha Samurai gripped his left hand and pulled the thorns out.
As sparks dissipated from his arm, the pierced area began to regain its original form.
“Recovery technique? This bastard is just cheating.”
“High-cost techniques co with severe penalties. I had to have sothing like this to manage it.”
“Then we shouldn’t give him any chance to recover. We need to finish it with the next strike.”
“No. You won’t get another chance.”
Gashingan’s abilities were exceptional in many areas.
Impressive durability.
High versatility.
Even the unpredictable thorn projectiles.
By developing the cost of his abilities in various ways, Gashingan could dominate against any number of opponents, regardless of the distance.
That’s why cha Samurai understood.
He couldn’t choose between attack and defense.
He couldn’t give up any distance.
He always wanted to win against any opponent.
With that greedy power,
With the ability that refused to give anything up,
He knew he could never withstand Gashingan’s fastest strike, his fatal blow.
“Ahh! An incredibly fast strike with such force that the shockwave destroys half of the arena behind Gashingan!”
Amid the excitent of the mont, Reporter Bang Ji-cheol grabbed the microphone and began his comntary.
“Gashingan lost!”
[No, he hasn’t given up yet.]
“Even though he’s in tatters?”
Gashingan’s broken thorn armor.
The blood flowing from the torn thorns.
He had beco a bloody ss, almost unrecognizable.
“Ouch.”
Gashingan muttered weakly, as though his hand had been pricked by a needle.
“It stings, you bastard.”
Despite taking a fatal blow that could have taken him down, Gashingan didn’t kneel.
His fighting spirit caused a roar of applause from the other participants.
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