The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 221

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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 221
221.
“I can’t run the Workshop alone.”
Jin-woo cradled Andras’s soul in his hand.
In that instant, a fierce aura surged forward, trying to consume him.
“Not so fast.”
Jin-woo clenched his fist and struck the soul directly.
The soul recoiled in confusion, thrashing about before settling into stillness.
“If I were just an ordinary blacksmith, I wouldn’t need a Familiar at all. Maybe an apprentice, but that’s it.”
The foundation of blacksmithing lies in the Workshop itself.
That being the case, managing the Workshop fell entirely on the blacksmith’s shoulders, and a Workshop of this scale didn’t strictly require a Familiar.
But Jin-woo was no ordinary blacksmith.
He sourced materials himself, tested equipment firsthand, and refined everything accordingly.
‘That process is what matters most to a blacksmith.’
Which meant Jin-woo would inevitably be absent from the Mansan Workshop frequently.
“I need a Familiar to serve as the chief steward of the Mansan Workshop in my stead.”
A Familiar who could manage the Workshop, greet customers, and handle sales—a true chief administrator.
Of course, those weren’t all of its duties.
There was one role that was absolutely critical.
“And it’ll assist me with work.”
In essence, Jin-woo needed a Familiar who could inherit his talents and craft basic equipment even while he was away.
‘I’ve made plenty of combat-focused Familiars already.’
He’d originally intended to use Unit 2 or the Attendant for that purpose, but they lacked sufficient skill at the time.
‘Now I can see how much their abilities have grown.’
Jin-woo immediately began crafting Andras’s bones.
Bone Craft.
Crack!
The Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife instantly carved deep into Andras’s bone.
“Interesting.”
Andras’s bone was far softer than the bones of Tower demons he’d worked with before.
Of course, soft was relative—relative to bone.
‘If that’s the case…’
“I can make it even more flexible.”
The most critical aspect of frame-building was making the bones pliable.
Especially since this new Familiar needed exceptional dexterity, the bones had to be rendered even more flexible.
“The difficulty’s spiking.”
Fundamentally, the bone already possessed that flexibility, but that also meant it was harder to handle than other rigid bones.
‘High ceiling for flexibility, but difficult to work with.’
Crack. Crack. Crack.
Yet Jin-woo’s momentum was formidable.
The hands-on sensation he’d honed through countless commission pieces flowed flawlessly, carving Andras’s bone without hesitation.
‘Synchronization Rate.’
The increased Synchronization Rate sharpened Jin-woo’s perception.
As his fingertips grew more sensitive, his already precise dexterity came into full bloom.
Crack. Crack. Crack-crack.
He made the frame smaller than a typical Familiar’s.
‘But the lines will be bold.’
Jin-woo recalled the crafters of Chanran.
Their movements.
Their perception.
‘I’ll pour that in here.’
Crack!
Using Bone Craft, Jin-woo began joining the bones together.
‘And since dexterity is paramount…’
He focused on crafting the hands.
They had to be capable of every minute movement while simultaneously unleashing sudden, devastating force.
“Hhaaaah…”
Jin-woo drew a deep breath.
This part was the most crucial element of the new Familiar.
It needed to accomplish things the other Familiars couldn’t.
Crack. Crack. Scrape.
Hands that moved fluidly and freely.
Flexibly. Endlessly flexible.
Jin-woo continued carving fine details—a task that would normally have been finished long ago, yet he was still shaping the hands.
Carving.
Scrape.
Carving again.
Scrape.
He transcended mere carving—he was creating, sculpting his own hands into the bone itself.
With the thought of pouring his own dexterity into every stroke, he worked the carving knife without pause.
Scrape. Scrape.
“Hhaaah…”
The completed hands possessed remarkably high quality.
“This is the best I can do right now.”
Further carving wouldn’t yield a better result.
Jin-woo decisively finished the hands and moved on to other parts.
‘Since I poured strength into the hands…’
“I need to reduce emphasis elsewhere.”
Jin-woo chose mobility. Since the new Familiar wasn’t a combat unit, mobility wasn’t a critical factor.
Crack. Crack. Crack.
‘Make it thin.’
Lean and nimble.
Jin-woo carved through the lower body completely.
Crack.
Ding!
-Frame created!
-USSR Grade frame created!
Shhhaaaack!
A powerful Dark Aura burst from the completed frame.
USSR Grade.
The frame had surpassed the UR+ Grade he’d achieved with the tiger, reaching the USSR Grade tier.
Jin-woo examined the completed frame.
Tremor-tremor-tremor.
“I even drew upon the Earth Core’s power.”
Jin-woo’s fingertips were shaking.
Creating this frame had been genuinely difficult.
But.
“I captured it perfectly.”
He’d maximized Andras’s bone’s natural softness to its fullest potential.
“Creating something modeled on my own dexterity—it was never going to be easy.”
Jin-woo let out a small laugh.
The completed frame pulsed with a frenetic Dark Aura.
Jin-woo placed Andras’s soul into the Soul Furnace.
With the frame complete, the soul came next.
Normally, he could have simply inserted Andras’s soul directly into the frame, but Jin-woo sensed he could do better.
“There must be additional ways to utilize this Soul Furnace.”
Whirrrrrr—!
The Soul Furnace began spinning frantically.
Jin-woo believed the Soul Furnace possessed more functions than he’d discovered.
‘I can crystallize souls and use them like minerals, even perform Synthesis…’
But if it truly was a Soul Furnace, the most fundamental function must exist.
-Refine soul?
“There should be a function to strengthen the soul itself.”
Jin-woo inserted Andras’s soul into the Soul Furnace.
And then.
Flash!
Blue flames enveloped Andras’s soul.
Whoooosh—!
Jin-woo extended his hand and stirred the furnace flames, deliberately pushing them into the soul.
‘Hand Tempering.’
Jin-woo’s Hand Tempering was a technique for manipulating fire.
‘Why shouldn’t I be able to manipulate the Soul Furnace’s flames too?’
As he stirred, the flames suddenly adhered to his hand.
“It works.”
Jin-woo pressed his advantage, driving the flames into the soul.
And then.
“Soul Forging.”
Additionally, Jin-woo extracted the soul contained within the Soul Furnace itself.
“Soul Forging is literally the technique of extracting souls, after all.”
Every object possesses a soul.
As a Necromaster, Jin-woo could perceive and extract those souls.
“Whether this will work, I’m not sure.”
Shhhaaaack.
Jin-woo brought his hand to the Soul Furnace.
A brilliant blue soul poured out from it.
“So it works too?”
-Master of Soul and Abyss marvels at your approach!
-Master of Soul and Abyss tells you that you’ve unlocked a new function through an extraordinary method!
Whirrrrrr—!
The Soul Furnace expelled Andras’s soul.
-[Strengthened] Andras’s Soul
-Soul strengthened!
The soul strengthened exactly as Jin-woo had envisioned.
“Excellent.”
‘So it wasn’t possible before, then.’
Ding!
-Soul Furnace strengthened through unconventional method!
Shhhaaaaaaack—!
Whoosh.
The Soul Furnace’s color transformed. The previously pitch-black furnace now glowed with an eerie blue luminescence.
“Three functions total now.”
Crystallizing souls.
Synthesizing souls.
And strengthening the soul’s inherent power itself.
-Soul Furnace’s new function unlocked!
-Soul Strengthening unlocked.
-Master of Soul and Abyss applauds your prowess! They tell you that new power will dwell within you!
Shhhaaaaaaack—!
In that moment, power radiating from the strengthened Andras soul engulfed Jin-woo.
Shhhack. Shhhack.
His Dark Aura began to intensify.
-Necromaster Level increased!
-Number of Familiars you can command increases!
With the first Level Up in ages for his Necromaster class, the number of Familiars he could control expanded, and fierce power surged into Jin-woo’s body.
-Learned Necromaster Lord’s passive skill!
“A passive skill?”
This was his first Level Up for the Necromaster class since Awakening.
Jin-woo immediately checked the new skill.
-Soul Absorption [P]
Description: When souls are obtained, Health is absorbed.
A passive skill remained active at all times.
“That’s useful.”
Fitting his Necromancer job’s nature, whenever Jin-woo obtained souls, he would recover Health.
“It’ll help with crafting too.”
Jin-woo had expended considerable stamina creating this frame.
‘Later, if I run low on stamina while crafting in the Tower or hunting grounds…’
With that in mind, this passive skill would prove extremely valuable.
Shhhack.
Jin-woo placed the strengthened Andras soul into the newly crafted frame.
-Strengthened soul inhabits frame!
-Familiar opens its eyes!
Shhhack. Shhhaaaaaaack—!
The new Familiar slowly rose to its feet.
The overwhelming power it radiated.
It bore no resemblance to any Familiar Jin-woo had created before.
Even Unit 2 and the Attendant, his non-combat Familiars, paled in comparison to the raw power this one possessed.
“My ninth Familiar.”
Jin-woo bestowed a name upon the Familiar.
“Since I’m planning to employ you without pay.”
The ninth Familiar was to become free labor for the Mansan Workshop.
The name, then, was already decided.
“Free.”
-Familiar receives a name!
Boom-boom-boom—!
A fierce Dark Aura erupted outward from Free at the center.
‘Since this is the first Familiar I’ve made after Awakening…’
The power it possessed.
The impact it exuded.
Everything surged upward.
“Excellent.”
The completed Free approached Jin-woo.
Free looked different from the other Familiars in appearance.
“I really captured that skeleton soldier aesthetic.”
Everyone already knew Jin-woo was a Necromancer.
Among those who visited his Workshop, one thing many anticipated was his Summons.
“A skeleton working in the Workshop?”
The users would naturally be delighted.
Jin-woo grinned and gestured to Free.
“Master!”
The ninth Familiar, Free, dropped to one knee immediately upon awakening, pledging loyalty to Jin-woo.
‘Sharp and eager.’
Crafting to match the concept had certainly resulted in a notably energetic personality.
Of course, Jin-woo’s own skill had grown considerably since his last Familiar, and his time in the Underworld had elevated his abilities dramatically—reflected in the Familiar’s superior quality.
‘There’s also the influence of the soul that went into it.’
-Yanluo praises your frame-crafting skill!
-Yanluo is delighted!
-Yanluo admires your craftsmanship!
-Yanluo sponsors a new skill!
“!”
Jin-woo was startled as he reviewed the skill Yanluo had sponsored.
“This skill…”

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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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