The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 145

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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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Chapter 145
145.
Thunder Shatter.
Where First’s hammer came down, a massive crater opened as if a meteor had fallen.
Even First seemed startled by its power, his shoulders rising and falling with wonder.
“The Grade alone is UR+.”
Jin-woo drew out the Dragon Stone Chain Sickle.
“It’s definitely different.”
They were only the same in Grade.
You couldn’t call these the same weapon.
“There’s been clear growth.”
The new hammer’s performance was outstanding.
What’s more, everything obtained from clearing this tower suited his taste perfectly.
“At this rate.”
Jin-woo smiled to himself.
There was still plenty of material left.
“Let’s ride this momentum.”
Before that, Jin-woo took out the Soul of Balam.
The Soul of Balam, a UR Grade soul, was the highest Grade soul Jin-woo had obtained to date.
New equipment wasn’t the end of it.
“First. This one’s for you.”
Jin-woo gave the soul to First.
The powerful Soul of Balam seeped into First’s body.
Shiiieeeee—!
-Your Familiar First’s Level is rising!
-Your Familiar First’s Grade is rising!
-Intense power is gathering in First’s body!
As First absorbed the Soul of Balam, powerful force immediately surged through his body.
Crunch—.
Whoooosh—!
Brilliant blue flames enveloped First’s entire form.
-First has become Hero-grade Undead!
Then the blue flames were absorbed directly into First’s body.
Reborn from the flames was First, now Hero-grade Undead.
Just as Pur had done, First too ascended to the rank of Hero-grade Undead.
This was no mere Level increase.
“Oh…….”
Just as Pur’s appearance had transformed completely upon becoming Hero-grade Undead, First underwent a perfect evolution as well.
First’s form was now strikingly different from before.
Where once he’d resembled a king among knights, he now appeared as a sleek apex Undead.
“Familiar status check.”
1.
Name: First
——-
Grade: Hero Level 1
Type: Undead, Melee [Phantom Knight]
[Weapon] Balam
[Armor] Sky Stone Basago Armor
[Skills] Evil Wave Release, Underworld Charge
[Attribute] Underworld Flame
“Phantom Knight!”
A new skill. And an entirely new class name.
The most striking change was First’s appearance itself.
His face had become shadowy, and blue flames flickered across his entire body.
Dark Energy radiated from him in all directions, and no trace of a skeletal knight remained.
A true higher class, nothing less.
Jin-woo found himself smiling at the sight.
“Seems like he’s gotten bigger?”
Phantom Knight.
Jin-woo was quite pleased with this newfound sleekness. It wasn’t merely bulk—this larger frame now possessed speed to match.
‘Definitely become an apex Undead now.’
The changes went beyond mere appearance.
“He learned new skills too, and his existing ones have been upgraded.”
Wave Emission, which he’d possessed before, had become Evil Wave Release.
And then there was Underworld Charge.
‘Looks like a charging technique—perfect for him.’
Jin-woo imagined combining this Underworld Charge with Thunder Shatter.
“Nothing short of a real powerhouse would be able to stop him.”
Jin-woo patted First’s back with satisfaction.
“You look impressive now, First.”
From his beginning as a Skeleton Knight, First had now become Hero-grade Undead.
“Thank…you…very…much.”
“Oh, look—you can speak more clearly now!”
Of course, First’s characteristic stammer remained. Though slightly improved, that familiar halting speech was endearing.
Even changed, First was still First.
“Please…have…faith…in…me.”
“Yeah, I will.”
With the upgraded First set aside, Jin-woo immediately continued crafting.
“Next up.”
Jin-woo took out the Wrath Orichalcum.
This mineral, gleaming with intense pink light, didn’t permit easy handling to just anyone.
“How temperamental will it be? I don’t even have a sense of it yet.”
While any other craftsman would grimace before such a material, Jin-woo grinned widely.
He was too eager to see what kind of resistance it would put up.
“I’ve been using World Tree’s Judgment for a while now.”
In the battle against Balam, Pur wielded a wooden weapon and fought valiantly.
“I was satisfied with it.”
Fortunately, the World Tree endured the flames to some degree; otherwise, whether Jin-woo made it or anyone else, a mere ordinary log would have been consumed.
“Of course, World Tree’s Judgment is a fairly good weapon as well.”
But for Pur, who was now Hero-grade Undead, it fell short in many ways.
“She’s my main dealer among the Familiars, after all.”
Shouldn’t she be equipped to UR+ Grade just like First?
Jin-woo ran his hands over the Wrath Orichalcum.
Thunder Stone, and now Wrath Orichalcum.
“Yur and Artemm have been a real help.”
He felt it was well worth having established those connections with the renowned miners.
“Wonder how Mirae is getting on.”
Her task would be far more difficult than mining work.
“As long as proper cloth comes through, even if it takes time.”
That could be considered quite excellent.
Jin-woo examined the Wrath Orichalcum carefully.
He’d worked with regular Orichalcum once before.
“Similar feel, but definitely different. The aura it gives off. That resistance when I touch it.”
It was the same only in name with Orichalcum.
This could safely be called a completely different mineral.
As Jin-woo was handling it, his hands stopped.
“Hmm!”
The weakness that regular Orichalcum had was even more pronounced in Wrath Orichalcum.
“This weakness is even more serious?”
But then again.
“The advantages are much greater.”
It could absorb far more Mana, and above all, when Mana was absorbed this way, it significantly boosted the user’s stats.
Of course, this was only possible if one successfully handled the Wrath Orichalcum and managed to craft it into equipment.
In short, it was a path of hope.
Most blacksmiths who attempted this material would walk a path of despair.
“This would be perfect for JinTube.”
Which meant this could be content.
Whoosh—.
Jin-woo placed the Wrath Orichalcum in the furnace for the briefest moment.
A second too slow or too fast, and there would be no chance.
‘This one doesn’t give chances.’
Hesitate, and it’s over.
The instant he pulled it out, Jin-woo began Hammering.
Clang—!
“Right. It’s harder than regular Orichalcum.”
Clang—! Clang—!
For a sensitive mineral, delicate Hammering.
“I’m different from before.”
Not the Jin-woo of when he worked with Orichalcum.
“Soul Forging.”
With the power to grasp a material’s true nature equipped, no matter how fierce the Wrath Orichalcum was, it fell within Jin-woo’s hammering range.
Clang—! Clang—!
Hammering continued on the purified Wrath Orichalcum.
“I understand now.”
The threshold of force had become familiar to his hand. In no time, Jin-woo had refined the Wrath Orichalcum.
Whoosh—.
Shiiieee—.
Heat and cold had gathered in Jin-woo’s hammer.
Clang—!
Jin-woo struck repeatedly, controlling the heat and cold.
“Oh ho.”
In the process, Jin-woo discovered one more advantage the Wrath Orichalcum possessed.
“It’s adapting?”
Despite being in material form, it had begun to adapt to Jin-woo’s Hammering.
It resisted, adapted, and blocked his strikes.
“Even in material form, this level means.”
Jin-woo smiled to himself.
“The finished product will be even more worthwhile.”
Then he placed it in the furnace once more.
Whoosh—!
The moment intense flames seeped in, he pulled it back out and began striking again.
If it adapts, then he would simply adapt as well.
‘Simply striking hard isn’t the answer.’
The essence of Harmonia Refinement Technique was harmony.
Jin-woo perceived it. The mingling of Holy Force and Dark Force.
Heat and cold blending together.
‘Let it flow.’
To let it flow.
Not forcing opposed forces together.
‘Let it flow.’
Jin-woo abandoned what he’d believed to be truth—all those answers he’d held certain, the strength and technique used to blend opposing forces, even the divine hands that gods themselves praised as miraculous craftsmanship—he abandoned them all now.
And simply let it flow.
Clang—!
Not layering another force onto the Wrath Orichalcum’s power.
Jin-woo’s hammering flowed.
Clang—! Clang—! Clang—!
“The…greatest…among…those…who…breathe…life…is…you.”
First quietly applauded the sight.
A clap infused with Underworld Flame.
Clang—!
-Equipment created!
-UR+ Grade equipment created!
Banshee Rod.
Equipment befitting its Grade was born.
The World Tree’s Judgment, made previously, had brought out the World Tree’s power by respecting the material’s inherent nature. That’s why it was crafted as a simple club.
But this Wrath Orichalcum was different.
“A club with fiercer power contained within.”
What Jin-woo created was a massive war hammer.
“A pink war hammer, leaning toward crimson.”
Even from a distance, the color was striking enough to stand out.
“This is good.”
Jin-woo nodded in satisfaction.
“Blood won’t show much even if it gets on it, thanks to the color.”
* * *
Dongwoo worked on video editing through the night.
Ding—!
Then a message arrived from his brother.
-Pulling out a crafting video to send over.
He was still editing previous footage.
“Again?”
Jin-woo sent new videos far faster than Dongwoo could finish editing them.
“Can’t let them pile up.”
Dongwoo checked the video anyway.
-Wrath Orichalcum Crafting Footage
“Wrath Orichalcum crafting? Oh!”
This video was at least shorter.
“Should be able to finish this quickly. And the material is really good.”
Recently, Jin-woo had properly made JinTube known through footage of crafting with the notoriously difficult Orichalcum.
Working with difficult materials always got good view counts.
Besides, his brother was at a point where anything he uploaded immediately took off.
“Seems like the same Orichalcum though?”
Dongwoo ran a search.
“Wrath Orichalcum….”
He searched [Wrath Orichalcum] on SharkNet and MiTube.
-Infamous material! Made ??? from Wrath Orichalcum.
-Wrath Orichalcum. Why you shouldn’t buy it just because the price looks good.
“Hmm, seems like it’s even more brutal than regular Orichalcum?”
On MiTube, everyone introduced Wrath Orichalcum as an infamous or notoriously difficult material.
-It’s worse than Orichalcum.
-Is this even possible to work with?
-It’s UR Grade and cheaper so I bought it. But… isn’t this just like buying a scratch-off lottery ticket? I can’t even use this?
SharkNet was the same story.
SharkNet especially had lots of complaints.
-Didn’t know there was something worse than Orichalcum.
-Guess this is the original and Orichalcum was the easier version.
-The easier version? This is spicy…….
“Brother must’ve had a tough time with this.”
But his brother would’ve succeeded.
“Let me see how he pulled this off. Perfect for building a scenario!”
It looked like it would be ideal for creating a narrative structure.
Dongwoo watched the video.
“Huh?”
Jin-woo was wielding a different hammer than before.
The refining method was different, and the furnace temperature was different too.
“Did he change everything in just that short time?”
This was different from the Jin-woo who’d just been crafting equipment from dragon byproducts.
“Looks like my brother leveled up completely in that gap.”
Just like that, halfway through the video.
Exactly halfway, Dongwoo grew deeply bewildered.
“Brother……?”
For his brother, Wrath Orichalcum was far too easy.
“Is this… right……?”

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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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