Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 196

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Genius Blacksmith’s Game
Continental War (8)
The members of Hyeon’s Forge were magnificent. To be honest, they performed far better than I had anticipated.
Because they managed to reach the Legendary tier, even if only briefly, I was able to create this opportunity.
Yet crisis struck once more.
Even in this moment of absolute desperation, I moved to protect them.
A Sentence-type Title.
A title granted only to me in Ares.
And Skill Reversal—the power hidden within it to temporarily combine Artifacts into a single weapon.
Two Artifacts drawn together to become one.
But what must be remembered is that one was my masterpiece, the Jijon Blade, the finest longsword in existence.
The other, though reborn anew and now perfectly established as a complete debuff, was the Transcendent Twin Dragon Blade—possessing both the attack power and advantages of a greatsword in full.
The moment the two Artifacts converged, a tremendous shimmer bloomed forth.
[The most perfect combination.]
[Recognized as the single most powerful Blade in the world.]
[All effects are enhanced by an additional 6%.]
And then came the voice of history.
-The Chinese viewers mocked and condemned us.
-As a citizen of Korea, it was an unbearable insult.
-But the Crazy Rookie scratched that uncontrollable emotion of ours so satisfyingly.
-The name of the Crazy Rookie is vividly etched before my eyes, plastered everywhere.
-Just confirmed—the subscriber count for Hyeon’s Forge has increased dramatically….
-What comes next is the key. Will we endure, or will we fall?
Chinese Users: 150. Korean Users: now 81.
The gap in power was immense.
Korean Users, already exhausted beyond measure, appeared scattered throughout the Fortress.
Breaching the Castle Gate meant immediate collapse.
Lee Hwan, the Master of the Hwarang Guild, stood beside me.
“Seven hours of rental time already—that’s 140 million. Far too expensive. Next time, I hope you’ll give us a discount.”
What was he talking about?
With a small smile, he revealed the Legendary-grade Twin Dragon Blade.
“The whole world said our country couldn’t last four hours, but it’s already been over ten. Hyeon’s Forge has contributed greatly to that, it’s true.”
Lee Hwan was not someone who would hesitate to answer “yes” if asked whether he was a morally upright person.
But in this moment, he acknowledged what needed acknowledging.
“Tell Hyeon for me? Thank you.”
That gratitude was conveyed well.
The fifty-some Korean Users behind him stood together.
“Let’s go.”
[The Sentence begins.]
I had faced many crises before, and I was not unaware that this was the greatest one yet.
A freshly forged Sword in Hyeon-su’s hands as he charged forward.
The Chinese Users sneered at the sight of Hyeon-su wielding the dark-gleaming great Blade.
In this critical moment, words inscribed themselves across the sky, granting Hyeon-su the power to overcome the crisis.
[Rather than break]
[You may raise one desired Skill by 2 levels.]
The Chinese Users were elated.
“Kihyahahaha!”
“Finally, we’ve got them!”
“Mages, unleash everything!”
“These exhausted Korean User bastards—one barrage of bombardment magic and we’ll sweep them away!”
Simultaneously, the mages began their incantations.
The advantage of raising a desired Skill level proved more formidable than expected.
Even without overwhelming raw power, it could create miracles.
Just like this.
[Pull]
[Instantly draw 5 enemies toward you.]
The mages casting their spells froze in panic.
Their vision shifted in an instant.
“Ah, hello there?”
Bewildered, they could see Hyeon-su staring down at them.
Hyeon-su, who had dragged the dark-gleaming great Blade behind his back, swung it with all his might.
Skaaaaagh—
—All five mage Users eliminated in one stroke!
—It happened in an instant!
—Five mages in the 380-level range who were preparing wide-area magic have been bisected by a single strike!
Hyeon-su could see the Knight Users approaching him.
The armor they wore caught his eye.
Artifacts closest to legendary grade.
Such armor was visible on the approaching Knight Users.
In this moment, Hyeon-su understood.
The true Strong Ones had been standing aside all along.
They had sent out the weak to set the stage for the final act, stepping back to watch from across the river like spectators at someone else’s fire.
The most exquisitely crafted Artifacts concentrated among those remaining proved this point.
Those between levels 370 and 380 possessed superior Artifacts as well, so they had every reason to be arrogant.
The number of approaching melee Knight Users: 17.
Once more, words inscribed themselves in mid-air.
[Without retreating]
[The Sword’s cutting power increases by 215%, and its destructive power by 197%.]
Added to this was the fact that Hyeon-su’s cutting power was already exceptional, enhanced by the Gauntlet of Calamity.
Moreover, the Twin Dragon Sword and the Supreme Blade had been combined for one minute, but the only advantage gained when facing enemies with the current Twin Dragon Sword was this single benefit.
It was a fact that the Blade I wielded possessed the highest attack power currently existing in Ares.
A User thrust their Sword upward from below.
‘Got it…!’
Crazy Rookie had performed brilliantly. Killing such a person would significantly increase the possibility of approaching MVP status.
Much of his contribution would be stolen by him.
Soon the User was alarmed.
Kwaaaaaang-
The moment the great Blade descended on his Sword, balance shattered and the Blade drove into the ground.
[You have been afflicted with a Shock status abnormality.]
[Strong impact spreads throughout your entire body.]
Zzzzzt-
I couldn’t hide my bewilderment at the impact sensation spreading across my entire body.
However, I quickly rose to my feet and sneered at the great Blade that had been knocked backward.
“This is the armor closest to legendary, you bastard….”
He, who had been mockingly spitting out lines he’d seen in Korean films, suddenly panicked.
Screeeech-!
The sound that rang out the moment the great Blade collided with the armor.
[The armor’s durability has decreased significantly.]
Crackle-crackle-crackle-
The armor literally shattered. His own armor that barely even scratched when fighting Users of the same level.
‘This finest Unique armor…?’
The melee Users rushed toward Hyeon-su but stopped short.
A powerful telekinetic force seized them.
In that moment, Hyeon-su’s great Blade swiftly shattered the Users’ armor.
“Huh?”
“Gack…?”
“What is this….”
The defense and HP of high-rankers far transcended that of ordinary Users.
When Users with their armor shattered in places, exposing bare skin, were bewildered.
“Ghost Step.”
Skaaaaaaaack-!
His afterimage carved through the air, and the Chinese Users panicked.
Their bodies were being severed by something heavy that passed through the broken sections of their armor.
‘This is insane….’
Soon the Chinese Users unleashed a barrage of Skills.
Kuwakwakwakwakwakwaboom-
Dust rising thickly into the air.
It was destructive power capable of hunting even ordinary Boss Monsters in a single strike.
Just as a single tiger, no matter how strong, is helpless before a pack of dozens of wolves.
However, they were unaware of one thing.
Screech—
Even through the dust cloud, I heard the sound of our allies being slashed.
‘What is that?’
Blood-red orbs materialized throughout the mid-air.
[Blood Absorption]
[Recovers HP equal to damage dealt, activating with a 6% probability.]
[HP drops below 36%.]
[HP recovers by 16%.]
The tiger that burst through the dust cloud bit at the wolves using their skills.
Crackle—
What they didn’t know was that even against dozens of wolves, the tiger could still bite and tear.
Another one is engraved.
[Inevitably]
[HP increases by 20%, Defense increases by 25%.]
Whoosh—
Wrapped in brilliant light, I advance, slashing with my great blade.
‘I want to be the MVP.’
Thud—
A Chinese User with grotesque attack power capable of piercing through Calamity Armor.
I slash through him and move on.
[13 consecutive hits.]
Crackle—!
The result of the combination of two blades tears the User apart.
“M-monster….”
“What level 330 is this?”
The current me, level 330, is incomparable. My stats were originally on par with Users in the 380~390 level range.
Added to that, the combination of the strongest blades in existence.
Yet there was one unfortunate matter.
[The Poison King’s poison spreads.]
The poison I suffered from the Poison King Liu before.
That poison still remains even after all this time.
[Controls the two most powerful skills.]
Those were Fate and Flame.
But when I transcended the two artifacts, I momentarily surpassed myself.
Screech—
‘I don’t want to be recorded as the weak anymore.’
Fragments of memory sweep past like a panorama.
With the desire and will to become a king someday, I slash down my enemies.
The Chinese Users, judging me as the most dangerous person right now, surge forward like a tidal wave.
The final sentence is engraved.
[I will win.]
[All Attack Power temporarily increases by 21%.]
‘I will absolutely…!’
In that instant, Hyeon-su’s eyes wavered.
Thwuuuk—
Thunk—!
Two weapons pierced through Hyeon-su’s body.
“And here you are, thrashing about like a dog despite knowing we’re here.”
“This is actually good for us. Pond, thanks to this fellow’s efforts, we’ll shine even brighter when we kill him.”
[You possess Asinium.]
[HP has fallen below 10%.]
[HP recovers to 15%.]
Hyeon-su, recovered in an instant, gritted his teeth and tried to escape from the two of them.
But Liu, who had drawn his weapon first, thrust again.
Thwuuuuuk—
[HP falls below 6%.]
[You have contracted the abnormal status: Dizziness.]
[You have contracted the abnormal status: Confusion.]
The Poison King Liu, who had skewered his spear through Hyeon-su, grinned wickedly.
“Do you know that Pond and I haven’t even drawn our Legendary Artifacts yet? Ah, no you don’t. I just drew mine while stabbing you.”
The damage was certainly beyond common sense.
Pond clicked his tongue disapprovingly, as if looking at an insect.
“Let’s kill this one last. For now, just throw him aside. Oh, right.”
Pond whispered.
“You need to know your place. There are things you can do while acting like a bastard, and things you cannot.”
Hyeon-su, skewered like a shish kebab, was hurled outside the castle.
[You cannot resist.]
Hyeon-su, fallen outside the castle gate, clenched his teeth.
‘I have to get up.’
The abnormal status Confusion caused Hyeon-su’s consciousness to fade.
But his body’s strength drained away, and he collapsed.
Hyeon-su’s consciousness flickered on and off repeatedly.
Struggling to stay awake, Hyeon-su watched the Korean Users being pushed back by the Chinese Users.
‘How did we even get this far….’
There were those who had believed in me and followed, and there was a new goal as well.
But the abnormal status Confusion caused another lapse in consciousness.
Thud—
Hyeon-su’s eyes, on his knees, opened and closed repeatedly.
-The fortress’s fall is imminent.
-The Chinese Users have crossed the fortress gate in just nine hours and are rushing toward the flag….
-Finally reaching the Barrier….
My consciousness slipped back into darkness.
Then.
-What, what is this?
-An unexpected situation has unfolded.
-This place where the Continental War is taking place is located on a Small Island within the Asgan Continent….
-A powerful Barrier has been formed….
Kuuuuung-
-A, a tremendous tremor shook the entire Arena….
-The Users from China paid no heed and continued breaking through the Barrier….
Kwazaaaaaak-
-It, it’s been torn apart!
-What? How could the Barrier…!
A flash of clarity struck me, and I could see the shadow looming over me.
On my knees, I slowly lifted my head, my pupils trembling violently.
A moment I had waited for far too long.
A voice I had longed to hear again.
“Hyeon-su.”
A familiar man with a gentle smile, watching me breathe heavily.
“Stand up.”
It was my father, Kang Hyeon-tae, standing before me.
I could not think of anything else.
I embraced my father with all my strength.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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