Genius Blacksmith’s Game - Chapter 298

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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
The Great Atlas Battle (Part 1) (3)
Global viewers held little expectation for the Great Atlas battle.
It was estimated that a mere nobleman from a small nation, now elevated to Lord, would command only around a thousand soldiers.
Thus, there were two things they anticipated.
First. The growth of Master Craftsman Hyeon, who had led the Continental War against China to victory.
Second.
How much power the world’s strongest rankers, renowned across the globe, could demonstrate.
The Great Atlas battle was an unprecedented gathering of the world’s mightiest Users.
And only if Hyeon’s Forge could endure for as long would they be able to witness the rankers’ superior control, skills, and magnificent Artifacts.
The East Gate.
-…Are you joking?
-Hyeon’s insane.
-Isn’t this just mocking the viewers….
Global viewers were dumbfounded.
All because of a single tall man blocking the most crucial path into Atlas.
The most frustrated and bewildered person was Peng.
Peng, legion commander of Agareth, had been deeply impressed by Hyeon’s exploits during the Continental War.
The fact that such a master strategist existed in Korea, a nation no larger than a speck, stirred his heart.
Thus, even in a situation where victory seemed assured, Peng remained vigilant.
He had been anticipating what other miracles they might produce in the Continental War.
But the moment he saw the knight guarding the East Gate, he understood.
‘Atlas was nothing but a spectacle.’
Hyeon had evaded the high rankers for months.
The more time passed, the clearer the outline of his Territory became, and he had initiated the Great Atlas battle merely to buy time.
“Fine, I’ll settle this quickly.”
[Demonization]
Peng’s form transformed grotesquely.
Two massive, curved horns like those of a true demon erupted from his forehead, and his skin darkened to an obsidian hue.
The veins throughout his body swelled, and immense power surged forth.
Simultaneously.
KWAAAAAAAGH-
RUMMMMMBLE-
Agareth is a catastrophic demon capable of triggering earthquakes.
Though Peng possessed only a degraded version of that power, its scope, however limited, was still astounding.
[An earthquake covering a radius of 50 meters erupts.]
CRACK, CRAAAAAACK-
GROOOOWL-
By Peng, called a calamity-class ability user, all the earth before the East Gate twisted and warped.
“Swallow it.”
Peng had no doubt that The Man would be swallowed by the twisting earth.
‘…What?’
Peng’s composure shattered in an instant.
The ground rose and fell in irregular patterns.
A single man was treading upon the ascending portions of that earth, approaching at an impossible velocity.
Crunch-crunch-crunch-crunch-!
Each stone crumbled to dust the moment his foot touched it.
Yet with weightless steps, the man who surpassed him whispered:
“God’s Stride.”
It was instantaneous.
The man stood before Peng.
Peng’s demonized level had reached 564.
Even formidable legion commanders trembled at his presence.
But Hyeon-su had already calculated every simulation beforehand.
The East Gate would see Peng and four hundred mind-controlled high-rankers arrive.
And Peng was no ordinary demon.
[You have slain 11,613 beings.]
[Evil overflows.]
The reason he could become more than human—could become a legion commander—was his cruelty rivaling demons themselves and the sheer number of humans he had massacred.
Yet that very thing became his fatal mistake.
Boom-!
The man’s light jab sent Peng flying backward.
“Gasp!?”
[Critical Hit has triggered.]
[HP drops below 89%.]
Peng’s eyes widened in shock.
What stats did one need to erase 11% of his health with a single punch?
“Butterfly’s Thread.”
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-!
For two seconds, the man dashed in dozens of passes around them.
The four hundred users watching saw dozens of afterimages and flinched.
Then he drew his sword.
“…?”
“…?”
“…?”
In that moment.
[All evil is annihilated!]
Peng’s eyes bulged wide.
[80% of HP is deleted!]
[HP drops below 20%!]
Peng was flustered.
In all his years, he had never heard of a skill like this.
What was even more horrifying was that the man’s sword had pierced his heart once again.
Whoosh—
In just two strikes, Peng began to dissipate, and the time it took for him to Logout was merely 7 seconds.
And before Peng vanished, he glanced around his surroundings.
“….”
The man who had chanted butterfly’s thread and darted around their vicinity for 2 seconds.
Semi-transparent threads had been woven by that man, connecting between the Users.
[Splash Damage activates.]
The man, gripping hundreds of thin threads, pulled with all his might.
Whoooosh—!
All 400 rankers were dragged into the epicenter of the Splash Damage.
‘He calculated all of this?’
[Inflicts 2,300% damage to all evil within a 30m radius.]
And they did not know that the world’s number one ranker Bahala’s 2,300% attack power transcended common sense.
Krakoooom—!
Flames erupting from the earth consumed all the evil in this world.
The 400 mind-controlled rankers began to scatter as bone dust.
Remarkably, this was
[1 minute and 13 seconds have passed since Atlas began.]
all that had transpired in merely 1 minute.
[1st Army. Peng’s army of 413 is completely annihilated.]
Save for one man, no one remained standing.
-….
-….
-….
The reactions of viewers worldwide began to shift dramatically.
Those who had been slouching in their seats watching TV or wearing expressions of boredom mere moments ago.
They straightened up and fixed their attention on the variable in the Great Atlas battle.
And as the screen switched once more.
[Asura Kabel Lv.532]
Viewers across the globe who spotted him rose to their feet.
There was another man shrouded in mystery after Bahala.
He was known as one who possessed knowledge of all information in the world, and a murderer known to have slain more people than anyone else.
It was Asura.
*
*
*
The Grand Mage Rund knew the tale of the “ghost.”
‘There exists a User who assassinates in silence.’
‘Thirty of the world’s top-ranked players have already fallen to him.’
‘Hiding is useless.’
‘He knows all the information in the world, making it impossible to escape.’
‘What is his name? It is Kabel.’
‘When you meet Kabel, it might be better to accept death willingly.’
Even among elite Users, these stories sound exaggerated.
Rund believes half is bluster and half is truth.
After all, he himself had inflated over fifty percent of his own biography with fabricated details based on fact.
However, the fact that Kabel had suddenly undergone a Job Change to become Asura, the Lord of Hell, was undeniable.
“Why would someone of your stature….”
I swallowed the words asking why he followed Hyeon.
Hyeon was, after all, an enemy.
“Today, I shall expose that false legend to the world.”
Kurrrrrrung-!
The Wand of Storms in his grip cried out.
Simultaneously, four hundred mages prepared their incantations.
[Rund: Do not use wide-area magic. Focus on instant-cast spells with short casting times!]
I had crossed countless battlefields with these four hundred mages.
The world’s greatest mage battalion.
The story of how an empire had sought to recruit them as Imperial Mages had caused quite a stir.
The mage battalion I had created was that formidable and exceptional.
‘With these four hundred, an entire Territory would be reduced to ash in ten minutes….’
[Hell Path]
[You are trapped in Asura’s domain.]
[All skill usage is restricted.]
“…!?”
‘This cannot be….’
Skills operate within the bounds of balance.
No matter how legendary an assassin he might be, was it truly possible to nullify the skills of four hundred people?
‘…It is possible.’
This was not a force that neutralized four hundred individuals.
This was trapping four hundred people within his own ‘Hell Path.’
In other words, the moment they fell into the trap he had set, they could not move an inch.
[All defense is reduced by fifty percent.]
[All of Asura’s attack power increases by twenty-five percent.]
[Hell Path persists for one minute.]
However, the activation duration was merely one minute.
It was impossible to kill all four hundred mages in that single minute.
‘The moment this power dissipates, everything….’
Yet again, Rund could not finish that thought.
The Hell Path—that space they had briefly abandoned.
Five thousand infernal soldiers revealed themselves at Asura’s command.
“Devour them.”
Those five thousand infernal soldiers began sweeping through every mage like a literal tidal wave.
And between them.
Whoosh, whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh, whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh, whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
A true murderer began to rampage.
Yes, slaughter.
They had arrived at that scene.
[The Hell Path is being dispelled.]
As the Hell Path scattered and faded away, Rond found himself facing the murderous Asura.
Of course, many of the mages possessed the power to break through their constraints and cast magic once or twice.
From those efforts scattered throughout, Asura’s HP had been reduced to merely twenty percent—yet even that was remarkable.
Thud.
Rond, his heart pierced, looked around him.
The Golden Mage—the world’s greatest mage guild.
Annihilated and scattering by a single man.
*
*
*
[We pay homage.]
Relly, the number one Tamer in the rankings, was bewildered.
Two thousand monsters in a legion.
Creatures forged by the world’s greatest Tamer Users were kneeling or pressing their bodies to the ground, paying homage to some presence beyond the mist.
“Move!”
“This is insane…!”
“Move, I said!”
“What in the world is behind that mist!”
The Tamers’ faces drained of all color.
Tamers possessed a Summon Chamber.
[Twin-Headed Ogre flees to the Summon Chamber.]
[Giant Troll flees to the Summon Chamber.]
[Drake flees to the Summon Chamber.]
“….”
Of the two thousand, thirteen hundred had fled to the Summon Chamber.
[They do not answer the Summon.]
Moreover, those who had fled would not respond no matter how many times they were called.
Then.
Whoooosh—
A breeze swept through, gradually dispersing the fog.
Relly and the other Tamers tensed.
What kind of creature was blocking the gate that monsters would flee in such terror?
“Woof, woof!”
As the figure revealed itself, Relly’s eyes widened in shock.
A puppy barking valiantly while snot dripped from its nose.
It was the appearance of Bok-deung-i, the Sigorjabjong.
‘This puppy is causing all of this?’
There was one other creature present.
A small skeletal bird (?) trembling with fear, perched atop the puppy.
“Kyuu…”
Even its cry was impossibly adorable.
“Woof, woof!”
Yet Bok-deung-i possessed a special power.
Bok-deung-i prevented Kkyu-kkyu from succumbing to corruption.
Moreover, it was gradually infusing life into the skeletal Kkyu-kkyu, transforming it into a ‘true Hetzling’.
Through this process, Kkyu-kkyu awakened a new power.
“What is this…from these mere creatures?”
Relly drew her bowstring taut.
Her target was Kkyu-kkyu perched atop the puppy.
The moment the bowstring twanged.
“Kyuuuu, kyuu!”
Kkyu-kkyu shrieked in terror.
But ignoring its cries, the arrow flew toward the space between Kkyu-kkyu’s brows.
Then.
The thoughts of everyone present froze.
The frail chirping that had escaped Kkyu-kkyu’s throat transformed.
ROOOOAAAAAARRRRR—!
Dragons possessed an inherent power from birth.
[Dragon Fear]
KUUUAAAAAARRRRR—
That immense wave of power rippled across all of Atlas Territory.
“…”
“…”
Monsters collapsed or fell, drool streaming from their mouths.
[You have been afflicted with the Fear status condition.]
All four hundred Users’ movements were paralyzed.
[You cannot move for 1 minute.]
An unprecedented status condition had activated.
All four hundred Tamers and every monster stood completely immobilized.
And then.
Thump, thump—
“Well done, Kkyu-kkyu.”
He finally appeared.
The man who created the Great Atlas battle.
Moreover, Pureum Corporation had granted Atlas various privileges and inserted multiple elements for entertainment.
[The Lord has arrived.]
North Gate.
A User named Hyeon-su, clad in a brown coat with twin dragon swords slung across his shoulder, finally revealed himself.
[Atlas’s Lord Hyeon-su Lv.???]
At that moment.
Screech—
Screech—
Thud, thud-thud-thud, thud—
Kali, ranked second in the world rankings, couldn’t tear his eyes from the TV screen.
‘Dragon Fear…?’
What on earth had happened in Atlas?
Following that thought, in merely a minute or so.
Master Craftsman Hyeon-su weaves through monsters and Users frozen in place.
There were no skills.
Hyeon-su, who slew them all with nothing but Basic Attacks, receives the focus of dozens of cameras across his entire body.
“….”
Gulp—
Kali began to realize it.
The Great Atlas battle that he thought would be won far too easily.
[11 minutes and 32 seconds have passed since the Great Atlas battle began.]
[The First Legion, 1,800 strong, has been annihilated.]
That there was an enormous variable at play.
Finally, Hyeon-su’s cold face is zoomed in on.
Through that gaze, Kali could sense it.
Not to the small fry of the First Legion, but to the true elites of the Second Legion—he was speaking.
‘Come forth.’
The Lord, Hyeon-su, was waiting for them.

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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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