Chapter 36…
The suddenly announced “Orthodox–Unorthodox Tournament” quickly turned into an unofficial event with a prize pool of about 1.5 million won, thanks to donations from “Tteunam,” known as the “big spender,” and “Cheonma Sect Believer No.1.”
Of course, the entire 2 million won could have been put up as prize money, but Cheonma Sect Believer No.1 insisted several times that they split it up, so that’s how it ended up.
And soon enough, the tournament spread quickly across Pretzel.
Players of Gangho Geomrok (Gangho Sword Chronicles) reacted in various ways:
“Damn! Why is such a huge event happening right before the beginner’s tournament!?”
“I—I already recruited my disciple! Ah! N-no, not that my disciple is bad or anything!”
“This is my chance! I could milk this properly!”
Like mad hermits emerging from hiding in search of post-fame, gamers began to gather, holding makeshift qualifiers among themselves.
Lee Ji-han felt a strange mix of emotions about this sudden event, but also couldn’t help being intrigued.
This was his chance to see firsthand how people really played Gangho Geomrok.
And so, the next day—
Sixteen maniacs who had survived the preliminaries assembled.
Namgung Hyeong, ranked Hyeongyeong.
Hwang Seol-hwa, ranked Supreme.
Alongside them gathered gamers of levels ranging from Supreme to Hyeongyeong. Only a handful were true ranking professionals. In other words, aside from a few active pros, this was essentially an all-star roster.
“Hello! I’ll be hosting the Orthodox–Unorthodox Tournament today—this is Golden Whale!”
“And I’m Iruna! Nice to meet you all!”
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋGolden Whale!]
[He always butts into these fun events.]
[Where’s Bbongtta? Dead?]
[He chickened out, lol. He said on his stream he turned down the MC offer.]
At first, they’d asked Kim Bbongtta to host, but he declined, saying it felt too heavy to take on another event like this after the hell he went through during the “interview” stream.
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ He really did go through hell that day.]
[They were supposed to run the interview together, but they slaughtered everyone, so of course the broadcast tanked lol.]
[I get it though, Bbongttaㅋㅋㅋ]
With him stepping down quietly, Golden Whale and Iruna, who’d shown interest, stepped in as MCs.
“Alright, thank you for waiting. No one expected Ji-han to stir up such a storm, right?”
“Haha, a 1.5 million won prize pool—makes me want to try Gangho Geomrok too!”
“This is starting to feel bigger than a cup tournament. Maybe you should give it a go, Luna?”
“Haha, should I sign up for the beginner’s tourney too?”
Their playful back-and-forth was pretty entertaining, and they smoothly drew in the viewers as the tournament got underway.
The Orthodox–Unorthodox Tournament.
As the name suggested, it brought together both so-called “orthodox” and “unorthodox” players. It might’ve been coincidence, but the stark contrast in styles promised even greater fun.
“Now, for the first match—the one that sparked this whole tournament! Namgung Hyeong versus Hanado! Best of three, winner advances in knockout format.”
Golden Whale confirmed readiness via Discord, then announced:
Namgung Hyeong, rank Hyeongyeong.
Hanado, rank Supreme.
On paper only one rank apart—but in practice, the difference was like Diamond versus Master in another game. A gap not easily closed.
Yet Hanado was no pushover. He was infamous for his bizarre tactics that left opponents bewildered.
“Looks like both players are ready. Connection stable? Then—let’s begin!”
“Everyone, enjoy the match!”
And with that, the very first match of the Orthodox–Unorthodox Tournament began.
Gangho Geomrok was, at its core, a fighting game.
Some maps were small, but true to its VR-immersion style, it also featured wide-open arenas.
“This map, Dosan Sword Forest, is one of the larger ones.”
“Kinda feels like Zero Ground, doesn’t it?”
“Yup—its openness means more freedom, but no wall combos, so it’ll be interesting to see how they manage spacing!”
Having played the game himself, Golden Whale was able to give viewers clear, on-point explanations.
Slash!
Namgung Hyeong made the first move. Not a defensive player—his style was pure offense. A calculating type who slotted in every skill precisely, with airtight frame traps.
They didn’t call him the “Sword Emperor” for nothing—his dominance was overwhelming.
He rushed Hanado with his unique footwork and speed arts.
Tak-tak-tak!
But Hanado didn’t sit still—he used obstacles for cover, seeking any advantage.
“Ah! Namgung going for his trademark aggression!”
Golden Whale shouted as Namgung began smashing through the obstacles with clean, ruthless sword strikes.
Slash!
Every swing tore through cover with chilling precision. Hanado was being stripped bare.
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ as expected! Namgung’s insane!]
[Is he really clearing all the cover? So clean.]
[Smart play. He’s got the upper hand anyway.]
[Nah, his rating’s higher, but their actual skill might be close.]
The chat buzzed with excitement.
Then—
Whoooom!
Namgung’s sword flared with blue energy, cutting down obstacles faster and fiercer.
[Hanado’s panicking?]
[Why’s he crouching like that?]
[Scared stiff lol. As expected of the Sword Emperor!]
The final cover shattered. And in that instant—Hanado unleashed a storm of throwing weapons.
“Ugh!?”
Caught off guard, Namgung swung to block, but couldn’t stop them all. His health bar began to chip away.
Retreating into defense would’ve been the logical move.
But his opponent’s unorthodox style reminded him too much of that crazy woman, Hwang Seol-hwa.
‘Then I’ll push through.’
Clad in defensive energy, Namgung charged straight back in.
“Oh! He’s coating himself with Protective Qi!”
“What’s that?”
“It’s basically a defense buff—you see this ‘Inner Energy’ gauge here? Spend it to power up your character with sword auras, defensive qi, and so on.”
Golden Whale patiently explained to Iruna’s question.
[Ohh, so like mana then?]
“Exactly! Mana! Except Inner Energy regenerates naturally, and you can also drain it from your opponent with techniques like ‘Energy Absorption.’”
“Wow, that’s complex!”
“That’s the beauty of Gangho Geomrok! Now let’s watch!”
Fwoosh!
Namgung barreled in again, immune to most of the chip damage.
Clang! Clang! Clatter!
Shurikens ricocheted harmlessly as he closed the gap.
“Haaap!”
A piercing thrust. A spinning low slash. A rising strike into a brutal downward cut.
Hanado tried to respond, but his character felt sluggish—too slow.
“Beautiful frame traps! Namgung’s every move is landing faster than Hanado can react!”
Golden Whale exclaimed in awe.
[Whoaㅋㅋㅋㅋ insane! Do you need lightning reflexes for this?]
[Not just reflexes—you need to know which moves win the frame battle.]
[So he memorized all of them?]
[He’s a former pro fighting gamer. For him this is easier than eating breakfast.]
Just like chat said—Hanado felt like crying.
He’d always thrived by confusing others with crazy tactics, but this was his first time being crushed on the frame-by-frame level.
Relentless. Namgung’s sword never stopped.
At last—
“First match of this best-of-three is over! Namgung takes the win!”
Golden Whale’s voice rang out.
Lee Ji-han was spellbound watching the duel.
‘So many different games in the world…’
His life had been training, exercise, and hellish office work.
Now it felt like his cramped world was finally expanding.
He hadn’t even known what “wuxia” meant before.
But watching Gangho Geomrok, he understood one thing:
‘Wuxia is… truly awesome.’
Unknowingly, his eyes were tracking every movement, breaking them down frame by frame.
‘Hanado’s counters were just a bit too slow.’
It was astonishing. He’d thought the speeds were the same, but tiny differences in move length and timing completely changed the result.
Fighting gamers really did live in the space of split-seconds.
And Ji-han, too, was someone who lived in split-seconds.
Maybe… he could do it like Namgung?
The thought gave him confidence.
The second round began. Hanado’s momentum flared, but Namgung crushed it, brushing it aside as if it meant nothing.
Hanado was overwhelmed and lost.
“Wow…”
With two straight wins, Namgung advanced.
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ji-han’s totally entranced.]
[Well, it’s all our first time seeing Gangho Geomrok too.]
[We’re entranced as well. Damn, this is sick.]
[It’s like he’s calculating every move in X and Y axes perfectly.]
[And all the frame data too.]
[This is it! The Invincible Lone Sword! The style that counters everything!]
[Lmao, the Cheonma parrot guy’s having the time of his life.]
[First time I’ve heard him talk about anything other than Cheonmaㅋㅋㅋ]
[Wait, what is the Invincible Lone Sword anyway?ㅋㅋㅋ]
Just like Ji-han, chat was captivated.
Most of them were new to this fighting game genre, but the flashy action had stolen everyone’s breath.
[Ji-han’s eyes are sparkling!]
[Look, his gaze is literally following Namgung’s every move—I got chills.]
[A monster might be born here.]
[Ji-han, are you becoming the Heavenly Demon?]
[ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ I can’t wait to see him playㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
[Even if the patch ends, let’s at least keep playing until the beginner’s tournament.]
And so, as they were drawn deeper into this new game, the Orthodox–Unorthodox Tournament only grew fiercer.
