He Became the Genius Blacksmith of the Namgung Family - Chapter 22

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 22

Episode 22

Even though the Martial Arts World is a place where fists are closer than law, it doesn’t encourage fights without grudges or enmity.

Of course, there are heterodox faction members who use martial arts learned for their own satisfaction to intimidate people and exploit money and lives.

Still, those bastards have reasons for seeking profit.

Purposeless violence and indiscriminate murder using martial arts?

Perfect way to get a wanted poster.

Moreover, if the scale of that murder is so cruel that one can’t bear to watch with open eyes, creating a tomato festival, becoming a public enemy of the martial arts world is almost certain.

But what if this happened at a competition hosted by the Namgung Family, one of the top-tier families among the Five Great Families of the martial arts world?

It would be fortunate if three generations didn’t lose their heads on the spot.

Namgung Cheon-gang swallowed dry saliva and made a resolution.

To prevent the family’s complete destruction, he would put away the Thunder Breaking Castle Hammer immediately—no, hide it for the time being.

Thunder Breaking Castle Hammer.

The name he finally came up with for the blacksmith-made giant weapon.

What good was giving it such a magnificent name?

It had become a demonic weapon that absolutely must not be brought out and used in the competition.

“No, more than that, does it make sense that I can easily lift this hammer that could just smash castle gates and perform techniques?”

Solid Baekryeonjeonggang, 2.5 ja wide and long (about 80cm) by 1.5 ja (about 40cm).

The handle alone was about 5 ja long (about 150cm).

The weight was easily 800 geun.

800 geun might sound modest, but in terms of weight, that’s 480kg.

Lifting and swinging something like this?

Not just the spine, shoulders, and shins, but all the bones in the body would break and then some.

But aside from some stiffness and about half his internal energy being drained, he was fine.

Was this the effect of the Thunder Emperor Divine Art?

“No, even with the effects of divine arts and internal energy, there should be limits. If it’s big enough to smash castle gates, basic physical strength can’t be ignored either, right?”

To understand this level, one would need to be at least like Peng Duohui.

Since he’s a direct descendant of the Hebei Peng Family.

Hebei Peng Family.

One of the Five Great Families and the hegemon of Hebei Province, this martial family is renowned for being born with divine strength, making them the strongest among the Five Great Families in terms of physical power.

Therefore, if Namgung Cheon-gang were a Peng rather than a Namgung, it would be fine for him to jump around with an 800-geun hammer.

However, since his surname was already Namgung, having no connection to ‘divine strength’ was natural.

“If that were the case, I would have already seen divine strength in my status window.”

It might be different if a direct descendant of the Peng Family head were joyfully swinging around a weapon he made.

But he’d never delivered weapons or ingots to Hebei since opening his status window, right?

Therefore, there was no opportunity to learn their divine arts either.

Then what kind of miracle was this?

The answer came faster than expected.

The status window he casually opened while mentioning the status window.

The Hebei Peng Family’s divine art was clearly displayed in the divine arts section of that status window.

“Huh…?”

They say when people are too dumbfounded, they lose their words?

Namgung Cheon-gang felt the meaning of those words with his entire body.

And rightfully so.

His only connection to the Hebei Peng Family was Peng Duohui.

Moreover, that Peng Duohui had never taken any weapon he made.

If he had taken and used one, the Peng Family’s divine art would have appeared long ago, but now it was suddenly there as if it had been there from the beginning?

What words could come to mind?

“No, wait! What is that supposed to be!”

In his bewilderment, he argued with the status window, but the status window wouldn’t give him answers.

That didn’t mean there was no way to confirm it.

“Messages, let me check the messages!”

He’d been too busy living to check his status window for a long time, so even if messages had appeared, he’d skipped past them.

If the Hebei Peng Family’s divine art was sitting there so boldly, there must have been something that warranted gaining divine arts among the messages he’d ignored.

If he looked at past records, he could surely find the answer.

After carefully examining the recorded past for about half a sik-gyeong (15 minutes).

Namgung Cheon-gang learned the cause of obtaining the Hebei Peng Family’s divine art.

“…He used it.”

The weapon I made.

And it was the head of the Hebei Peng Family himself…

“…”

In addition to Namgung, Hebei now also faced the threat of severed limbs and meridians.

“Damn it—”

Namgung Cheon-gang couldn’t help but let out a terrible curse.

* * *

“Come to think of it, Elder.”

“Yes, Gungsang.”

“Didn’t you go to Hebei recently? Was there some big incident?”

“Nothing much. The Peng fellow said his weapon’s blade was damaged, so I went to take a look.”

“Ah, you mean the Tiger King Heavy Cleaver, the Sword King’s weapon. Isn’t that one of the martial arts world’s treasures? I’ve heard that you made it, Elder.”

“Treasure, my foot. It’s a failure that those without divine strength can’t even lift. Anyway, the guy kept pestering me to fix the loose handle, so I went to look. That fellow. Just how roughly had he been using it? Tsk. The grip was so dented that I felt sorry for the Tiger King who had to hold it.”

“Then is it fine now?”

“I showed off my skills after a long time. I tried using the Baekryeonjeonggang that greenhorn made, and it was quite good. That guy certainly knows his stuff.”

“Hahaha. If Namgung Cheon-gang knew that you used the Baekryeonjeonggang he made to repair the Sword King’s Tiger King Heavy Cleaver, he would surely be delighted.”

“Delighted… well, he might be. Hehe.”

What blacksmith wouldn’t be pleased to have their sweat go into the weapon of one of the Five Heavenly Kings of the martial arts world?

Moreover, they decided to select direct descendants this year too.

This might become a connection with them, who knows.

He could naturally picture Namgung Cheon-gang jumping with joy when he learned all this in the distant future.

Thank me when that time comes, you rascal. Hehehe.

* * *

“Aaaahhh! Why does heaven give me such insane trials! What did I do wrong! Aaaahhh!”

Namgung Cheon-gang jumped up and down because he felt like he was really going crazy.

* * *

Spilled water cannot be recovered, and those who have left cannot be pursued.

What’s already happened.

Didn’t they say it’s better to forget rather than dwell on it for long?

Of course, in his case, he needed to prepare rather than forget…

“Therefore, to properly compete in the tournament, I need to set aside the Thunder Breaking Castle Hammer and make something similar.”

Reducing the size wasn’t an option.

He’d become addicted to the feel.

The feel of swinging a great hammer with divine strength was as intense as a first love’s kiss.

“Even if it’s made of wood, at that size, a tomato festival seems guaranteed…”

For ordinary weapons, wood would be sturdy enough.

However, to make something the size of the Thunder Breaking Castle Hammer, he’d need to insert an iron core inside for balance, and that would still result in a tomato festival.

If there was something possible, perhaps rubber to cushion the impact would be somewhat—

“Huh? Rubber? Ah, right! Rubber! There was rubber!?”

Even in modern times, rubber is frequently used as a material to cushion impact.

Therefore, it would be perfect as material for a giant hammer that wouldn’t turn opponents into tomatoes.

Finally, he could swing a giant hammer while maintaining that satisfying feel!

My heart swells with excitement.

However, soon, I faced a problem bigger than I had thought.

“Ah, right. There’s no rubber in this era…”

The historical background of this martial arts world I was reincarnated into is roughly equivalent to the Ming Dynasty from my previous life.

Of course, since martial arts existed where people could fly through the sky, split mountains, and run across seas, it could be considered a completely different world.

However, the level of industrial development was exactly that much.

Even in actual history, rubber only began entering the Central Plains about 4-500 years after the Ming Dynasty, so there was no way rubber could exist in an era with similar civilizational development to the Ming Dynasty.

Ah.

Solving one problem brings another problem.

How is it that nothing gets resolved properly?

If there were a similar material to rubber, it would be fine—

“No, wait a minute? Come to think of it, there is one! A liquid with rubber-like elasticity made from pine resin!”

To be precise, it’s a liquid called Muktangyeo .

A mixture made by precisely combining the resin of Southern Barbarian Black Pine with fish oil, White Poison Grass, bamboo shoots, Bone Softening Grass, and more than 10 other medicinal herbs.

It’s used to make bow staves more elastic.

As a blacksmith, I’ve made it several times!

There’s even a container of Muktangyeo inside Namgung Cheon-gang’s Blacksmith Workshop.

“It’s not as good as rubber, but if I gather it together, it’s the perfect material for making a shock-absorbing rubber mallet!”

Now that I knew the solution, I had to make it right away.

Namgung Cheon-gang immediately ran to Cheongeumjeong’s storage room.

Even if there was Muktangyeo, it was only one container.

Since what I needed to make was a giant rubber mallet as big as the Thunder Crushing Hammer, I needed more than that.

Moreover, Muktangyeo wasn’t the only material I needed.

“What? Ten containers of Muktangyeo and ten bundles of rope, each 3 jang (about 3m) long?”

“Yes. I need them urgently. Do you happen to have them in stock?”

“Well, it’s not that we don’t have them, but this is the first time someone’s taking so much Muktangyeo and rope, so I was a bit surprised. If you’re going to the forge, I’ll have the servants move them there.”

I went to the forge and waited.

About half a sikgyeong later.

Ten servants belonging to Cheongeumjeong came struggling with the items Namgung Cheon-gang had ordered.

“Oh my, you’ve all worked hard. Have a refreshing drink of water and take your time going back down.”

“Huff, thank you, young master!”

“We’ll drink well!”

Ten ropes, each 3 jang long.

That’s nearly 100 meters in length.

With 10 containers of Muktangyeo on top of that, it was quite a burden to carry.

In modern terms, it’s about 60kg.

And unfortunately, Namgung Cheon-gang’s forge was on top of a hill.

It was like having six 10kg rice bags delivered to the top floor of a 5-story building without an elevator.

Offering drinks was essential.

“Well then, shall I try making a martial arts world-style giant rubber mallet?”

Before the ordered items arrived, I had already lit the fire in the forge and finished preparing for work.

I had also finished checking how elastic the Muktangyeo would be when gathered and hardened.

“It’s not as good as rubber, but it follows at least half of it. This much should definitely ensure safety.”

When making a giant mallet, the first thing to do is naturally create the central frame.

If it were just the size of a regular hand hammer, I could simply put it in an ordinary hammer head mold and let it harden.

But this was a rubber mallet about 2.5 ja wide and long (about 80cm) and 1.5 ja (about 40cm) in size.

If I just poured in the charcoal glue carelessly, not only would the shape not come out nicely, but it would obviously become a failure that couldn’t even maintain balance.

“A sledgehammer used in modern construction would be perfect as a central frame. Since I need to wrap rope around it too, I’ll make the width a bit longer…”

The reason for wrapping rope was for better shock absorption.

It’s called filament winding, a technique used in modern times when making various shock-resistant products.

Namgung Cheon-gang reinterpreted this in martial arts world style.

“I’ve roughly drawn up the manufacturing blueprint in my head. Now all that’s left is to manufacture it.”

Namgung Cheon-gang brought 7 pieces of Divine Baekryeonjeonggang and put them in the forge.

Then he kneaded the clay piled high on the desk beside him and shaped what would soon become a sledgehammer to use as the central frame.

This was a casting method used when melting ingots into liquid and putting them in molds to create basic forms, not a hammering process.

It was the same method used when making the head of the Thunder Crushing Hammer before.

Knead, knead.

Knead, knead.

“Good. The casting mold is complete.”

Namgung Cheon-gang infused it with internal energy and hardened it.

“Internal energy really is versatile.”

It raises stamina and reduces fatigue, increases immunity to heat, and is useful when hardening molds like this.

And that’s not all?

The durability and sharpness of weapons and tools made this way were far superior to those made ordinarily.

The reason metallurgy technology was much more advanced than in the Ming Dynasty, despite having a similar worldview, was because of this.

“Good, this should be enough.”

After completing the clay mold, Namgung Cheon-gang approached the forge to check if the Baekryeonjeonggang ingots had melted well.

“It looks like it needs a bit more time.”

I worked the bellows to control the fire’s intensity so the flame temperature wouldn’t drop.

Then I visually confirmed again whether the Baekryeonjeonggang ingots were melting properly.

After a long time, the ingots finally began to melt.

The molten liquid from the forge flowed out through the tapping hole beside the forge and was collected in the fire pot placed underneath.

I lifted it with large fire tongs, put it directly into the clay mold I had made, then sprayed cooling water on it.

Hissssss!

The clay mold, heated by the molten liquid, cooled rapidly and white steam rose up.

“Whew, it’s like being in a steam room.”

Even though I maintained sturdiness with internal energy, it could still collapse from the ultra-high temperature molten liquid.

Therefore, the cooling process was essential.

I sprayed cooling water several more times.

Hiss, hissss.

Less steam than before rose up.

“Now time will cool it down on its own.”

After a short while, the clay mold turned black.

The color change meant the molten liquid inside the mold had sufficiently hardened.

Namgung Cheon-gang picked up a hammer and carefully tapped the clay.

Tong.

The metallic sound that came.

Namgung Cheon-gang nodded.

“It’s definitely hardened. Then let’s break and clear away the clay mold now.”

Tong, tong, tong.

This also required skill.

If not controlled properly, the molten liquid that had hardened into hammer head shape could crack.

Even though it had hardened, it was still in a fragile state since it hadn’t emerged into the world yet.

I had to be as careful as handling a baby.

Tong, tong. Thud, thud, thud.

The clay mold slowly broke apart.

Through the breaking clay mold, the hardened hammer head with its silver gleam gradually revealed itself to the world.

Half a sikgyeong later, the sledgehammer head was completely revealed.

“Wow, how beautiful.”

How could the silver gleam be so beautiful?

Looking at it like a child, he gripped it again with tongs and plunged it straight into the cooling water.

With a hissing sound, the heat rapidly cooled down.

The cooling water also bubbled and boiled.

Though the heat had cooled significantly compared to the beginning, there was still some remaining heat.

Submerging it in the cooling water now was the process of eliminating even that.

At the same time, it was also the process of removing the clay that had adhered to it.

The hammer head, having finished its complete washing in the cooling water, gleamed even more beautifully than before.

Next, Namgung Cheon-gang brought it to the anvil and began grinding the surface with sandpaper.

Swoosh, swoosh.

Though the shape looked decent, it needed refinishing since it wasn’t without rough surfaces from being made in a clay mold.

Swoosh, swoosh.

The sound of polishing the surface echoed throughout Namgung Cheon-gang’s Blacksmith Workshop.

Swoosh.

The sound finally stopped after about half a day had passed.

The hammer head’s smoothness was striking even at a glance.

Running his hand over it, it seemed like even a fly would slip off.

“Good. The basic framework is complete.”

Only now was the foundation finished.

The real work starts from now.

Namgung Cheon-gang wraps rope horizontally around the completed great hammer head.

Then he melts ink charcoal glue, puts it in a large container, and dips the rope-wrapped hammer head directly in, swishing it around.

He checks several times until the ink charcoal glue is evenly applied.

And swishes it around several more times.

Swish, swish.

“Let’s see… this should be good enough.”

Confirming that the ink charcoal glue was applied without gaps.

He then brought a hook over the container holding the ink charcoal glue and hung it there.

This was the drying process to let the thoroughly applied ink charcoal glue harden properly.

During that spare time, Namgung Cheon-gang worked on commissioned items.

Clang! Clang!

By the time one commission was finished.

Looking at the hammer head hanging on the hook, the ink charcoal glue surrounding it had completely hardened.

He took it down from the hook and felt the surface.

Hard, yet with a noticeable elasticity.

He liked it.

After grinding down the rough parts again.

This time he wrapped rope vertically once more and put it in the ink charcoal glue container the same way, ensuring the ink charcoal glue penetrated without gaps.

Since the container with ink charcoal glue was placed next to the forge, it remained in liquid state without hardening even as time passed.

By the time the second layer of ink charcoal glue hardened.

Once more horizontally, and then vertically again.

After repeating this process several times, the hammer head had grown to the size of the Thunder Crushing Meteor Hammer.

“Now, what remains is whether the shock absorption works as well as I think.”

He channeled his internal energy, made a fist, and gave it a light tap.

Thump.

A deep, resonant elastic sound.

“Oh!”

It turned out better than he had expected.

At this level, it was no different from something made of rubber.

Even if it wanted to become a tomato, it wouldn’t be able to.

“I need to attach the handle and finish it, then check it properly.”

The part where the hammer handle would go had already been marked.

He placed a chisel there and hammered to make a hole.

Then he slowly inserted the Baekryeonjeonggang handle he had made during the time the ink charcoal glue was hardening.

He drove in the core, added adhesive, then secured the fixing frames front and back of the hole.

Shaking it, it seemed like one body.

He carried it out to the Training Hall.

Just like when he had made the Thunder Crushing Meteor Hammer before.

Namgung Cheon-gang held the giant rubber hammer and performed martial arts techniques.

Whooom! Whoooom!!!

The sharp sound of wind being split.

There was no sound of scraping the ground.

When he stopped and looked, there were marks where the ground was dented, but they were shallow.

Just scars left by wind that had grazed by, created merely by the weight.

“At this level, it’s much better than a tomato party.”

And I’m a blacksmith who has learned martial arts, after all.

There’s no way I’d burst from a giant rubber hammer!

“Then, naturally—”

Wait.

His own masterpiece comes into view.

Black light gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight.

Very imposing enormity.

“…”

…Will the elasticity really be okay?

Namgung Cheon-gang couldn’t easily guarantee it this time either.

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