The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 261

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Chapter 261
261.
Speed slowly received the equipment from Jin-woo.
Crackle-!
Lightning tore through the air.
The weapon Jin-woo had crafted for Speed was a short sword.
Whoosh-!
Speed wielded the short sword right there.
Rather than swinging the blade itself, it looked as though he were swinging lightning incarnate.
‘Exactly as I imagined.’
Jin-woo had thought that combining lightning with Speed’s combat style would suit him remarkably well.
‘Ironically, the very lightning the demons wielded ended up suiting Speed better than anyone.’
And if there was a form that fit him best, it could only be this short sword.
‘All things considered, for this Speed who appears to be a rogue class.’
There was no weapon better suited to granting him superior killing power.
“Truly. I’m truly delighted, Master!”
Whoooosh-!
-Speed’s loyalty has reached MAX!
At Speed’s excited display, First and Pur both smiled with satisfaction.
Those two understood that joy better than anyone.
“It’ll please you every time.”
“You’ll. Be. Amazed.”
Jin-woo took the short sword back from Speed.
‘It’s not finished yet.’
[Thunder Cloud Short Sword]
-Attack Power: 52,500
-Grade: M
-Durability: 250,000 / 250,000
<>
* Special Skill [Thunder Cloud Strike: Pushes speed to its absolute limit, delivering a fierce lightning strike! Guarantees critical damage.]
* Special Option [Ultra Maximization Refinement: Maximized infinitely sharp materials. Attack Power increases by 1,050,000.]
* Special Option [Heat Treatment: Heat treatment dramatically increases hardness! The power of water’s essence is woven in, dealing an additional 3% of inflicted damage!]
* Special Option [Ultimate Attack Power: Attack Power increases by 1,050,000.]
* Special Option [Extreme Curse Bestowal – Arkshak Level 3: Attack Power increases by 750,000.]
* Special Option [Extreme Curse Bestowal – Irempt Level 1: Critical Hit Attack Power increases by 200%.]
* Special Option [Life Drain: Absorbs 16% of inflicted damage as your own life force!]
* Special Option [Ambush: Necromaster’s power is woven in; the first attack is guaranteed to be a Fatal Blow.]
* Special Option [Soul Forging: Draws out the power of spirits. Attack Power increases by 15%.]
* Special Option [Soul Penetration: Ignores the target’s defense and deals damage!]
* Special Option [Gaze of the Dead: Discerns the enemy’s weakness. Gains an additional 3% Attack Power.]
* Special Option [Scatter Darkness: Instills fear in the opponent! Reduces their Attack Power by 3%.]
* Special Option [Essence Bestowal: The power of essence is woven in. The power of surging lightning is woven in.]
* Wave Resonance [Power of Wave: Through the power of wave, you gain additional stats. Attack Power increases. Critical Hit Rate increases. Attack Speed increases.]
* Wave Resonance [Hand Tempering: Lightning attribute is granted!]
* Special Option [Burning Dark Flame: Inflicts the status effect ‘Oblivion’ on the struck target at a certain probability!]
The Thunder Cloud Short Sword was Grade M equipment, yet its options alone were already equivalent to M+ Grade.
‘Besides, not a single M-Grade material went into this.’
And yet it remained Grade M.
Moreover, it contained new options.
‘Scatter Darkness.’
An option that instilled fear in the opponent, reducing their attack power by three percent.
‘How profound.’
He had created high-Grade equipment from relatively lower-Grade materials and packed in new options besides.
On top of that, Jin-woo was satisfied seeing that the options he had wanted to preserve came through intact.
‘I wanted to maximize sharpness.’
The attack power far exceeded even the Void Blood-Red Destruction Sword.
The durability had dropped significantly in exchange, but that was merely the recoil against such high attack power.
Jin-woo slowly grasped the short sword.
Whoooosh-.
Crackle-. Crackle-.
An ominous black aura poured out madly, and lightning flowed endlessly from the sword’s tip.
Crackle-.
Crackle-crackle-crackle-.
The sound of lightning continued ceaselessly.
But only for a moment.
A tremendous bolt of lightning was suddenly drowned out by the sound of the black aura pouring forth.
As if proving it was a blade specialized in assassination, it fell silent.
‘Excellent.’
“Whew…”
Jin-woo took a deep breath.
It had been quite high difficulty.
Continuously pushing the limits of what he had, his hands were taking a beating.
But.
“This is it. This is the taste.”
Crafting was done for this taste.
If he intended to craft safely, he would simply remain confined to the Workshop.
Jin-woo immediately checked the options.
The options that preserved the lightning characteristic and the traits of the Necromaster’s authority were distributed appropriately.
‘All that effort with Maximization Smelting paid off.’
Because he took the difficult path, this result came to pass.
‘But it’s not done yet.’
The trembling in his hands had lessened compared to before, but M-Grade still didn’t feel fully his own.
“Time to hammer it further.”
Hammering would unlock it.
-Activating the Soul Furnace!
Jin-woo activated the furnace again.
Then he began feeding the spirits he had recently acquired into the furnace.
-Soul Inscription function activated!
-Extracting spirits!
Whoooosh-.
The extracted spirits were inscribed onto the short sword.
-A spirit is being inscribed into the Thunder Cloud Short Sword!
The Thunder Cloud Short Sword, now inscribed with spirit power, emanated an even stronger aura than before.
-A new option has been added!
-Lightning Resistance has been added!
-Attack Power has been added!
Crackle-.
‘Now it’s complete.’
Jin-woo handed the finished short sword to Speed.
Crackle-.
Even when he first received it, it had been highly finished, but now with the final touches complete, it was truly his weapon.
“I shall use it forever.”
“That won’t do.”
Jin-woo shook his head.
“Your equipment will improve. You won’t want better gear?”
The Thunder Cloud Short Sword, which Speed hadn’t yet tested, made its power abundantly clear just from holding it.
At Jin-woo’s words that he could make even better equipment, Speed shook his head vigorously.
If given such equipment, he would have no choice but to use it.
“…I shall use it with all my dedication!”
* * *
After crafting the short sword for Speed, Jin-woo immediately began additional work.
‘I still have plenty of materials left.’
Moreover, Jin-woo saw the Small Spirit and the Tiny Spirit.
He had intended to take the two spirits to a safe place, but at this moment, the safest place was by Jin-woo’s side.
That being so, they remained together.
‘They watched intently during the crafting earlier.’
Especially the Tiny Spirit, whose eyes gleamed as if being pulled in with fascination.
‘The little one has talent.’
The Tiny Spirit’s gaze remained fixed on the Hammer and the materials.
Eyes full of curiosity.
‘Seems interested in crafting.’
If that were the case, there was no reason not to teach.
‘If they wish to learn.’
Jin-woo picked up the Hammer.
But this time it wasn’t the Hammer.
Whoooosh-.
It was needlework.
“Flawless Seamstress Art.”
The material Jin-woo would use was Thunder Cloud Leather.
‘This is quite an interesting material, I must say.’
While other materials emitted lightning, this leather absorbed it.
‘It wouldn’t just absorb though.’
It could likely release it as well.
Thinking simply, he could make a Thunder Cloud Leather armor.
But leather armor, however light, is still armor.
‘It would compromise speed.’
Then there was no need to make armor at all.
‘Instead, I’ll make defensive gear that highlights this leather well.’
Jin-woo immediately began sewing.
Whoosh-. Whoooosh-!
The Thunder Cloud Leather was cut in rapid succession by Jin-woo’s hands.
Shhh-. Shhh-.
With each cut, the stored lightning flowed out, but these were things he’d already dealt with while making the Thunder Cloud Short Sword.
“Lightning Wave.”
He summoned lightning through Wave Resonance and suppressed it all at once.
Whoooosh-.
The Flawless Seamstress Art responded greatly to Jin-woo’s Synchronization Rate.
‘I can now make it flow even more smoothly than before.’
Moreover, his elevated dexterity and Level provided proper support for the Flawless Seamstress Art.
Snip-. Snip-.
After cutting to the desired shape, Jin-woo immediately began sewing.
What he was making this time wasn’t particularly difficult.
“Soul Forging.”
After drawing out the spirits.
“Lightning Wave.”
Whoooosh-!
‘Quite a bit of Mana is being consumed.’
The Wave technique was truly versatile in what it could create.
With the existing smelting arts Jin-woo had learned, he could produce many additional effects.
In exchange, it consumed substantial Mana.
‘I can’t just focus on stamina.’
Now he had to pay attention to Mana consumption as well.
Extreme Curse Bestowal.
After coating everything with Essence Potion, Jin-woo drew the lightning to its limit.
Whoooosh-!
-All Mana has been consumed!
The lightning, transformed by expending all his Mana, was woven into the new equipment Jin-woo had made.
-Equipment has been crafted!
-M-Grade equipment has been crafted!
-Thunder Cloud Cloak has been crafted!
The equipment Jin-woo created was a Thunder Cloud Cloak.
“A cloak is armor too. Isn’t it?”
Of course, it didn’t possess meaningful defense.
Yet it could reliably contain the power of lightning.
‘The power of lightning can be utilized well in many ways.’
The cloak acts as a lightning rod, drawing in lightning.
‘That alone is sufficient.’
Furthermore, the absorbed lightning could be used in multiple ways.
‘If Pur and Speed move simultaneously, they’d be more than enough as the Vanguard.’
Confuse the enemy through sheer speed, then First and Pur finish them.
“A splendid combination.”
-Subordinate Speed has been given the Thunder Cloud Cloak.
The Thunder Cloud Short Sword and the Thunder Cloud Cloak.
With the lightning set equipped, Speed, who had been bare-handed, now looked reasonably presentable.
Because the cloak was so large, it wrapped around his body like a robe, giving him quite an undead appearance.
“I won’t disappoint you.”
“Good.”
Jin-woo glanced around.
Thud-. Thud-thud-.
Footsteps echoing from a distance.
“You’ll likely have plenty of opportunity to prove that.”
Demons were approaching.
Jin-woo gestured to his subordinates.
“Just tried them out and these byproducts? Absolutely excellent.”
Jin-woo grinned.
Boom-! Boom-! Boom-!
The demon’s aura then began tearing through the surroundings, heading this way.
“Wondered why my signals weren’t being answered.”
A horde of demons.
Among the demon horde was a demon with a feeling similar to Grendan.
“So it was death. Defeated by a human, no less.”
A colossal winged demon pointed at Jin-woo.
“Perfect timing.”
Jin-woo smiled and greeted it.
“I needed someone exactly like you.”