The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 267

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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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Episode 267
267.
“The demon occupying the Eastern Region possesses Infinite Proliferation.”
On the way to the Eastern Region.
Nordin explained the demon currently holding the Eastern Region.
Jin-woo, along with Nordin and the Spirit Knights, rode on the massive back of Bon.
“Like Grendan, it uses Lightning Power, but it wields that power in a different manner.”
“A different manner, you say?”
“Infinite Proliferation.”
Lightning splits.
It splits endlessly, displaying tremendous power.
The Eastern demon used lightning in that very form.
“So even with the same attribute, the method of use differs?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Nordin continued his explanation.
“Each tower’s upper-level demons strengthen and master their respective attributes in their own way.”
The three-horned Grendan had concentrated his Lightning Power on speed.
Of course, that speed he had focused on was completely suppressed by Speed, so he hadn’t truly managed any significant performance.
“The demon in the Eastern Region uses its Lightning Power for proliferation.”
Within the endlessly splitting lightning, demons multiplied.
“Because these demons proliferate no matter how many times you kill them, they are truly difficult to face.”
In the Eastern Region, Nordin had engaged the Eastern demon in combat.
It was before his retreat to the Southern Region, so he still possessed considerable power.
He wanted to rescue the regular spirits and gather the remaining Spirit Knights, then launch a counteroffensive.
If they restored the Eastern Region, they could make the Southern Region safer to reclaim, and moreover, could open the curtain on a counterattack against the demons.
But it didn’t go as planned.
“It is shameful to admit, but I fled.”
The Eastern demon was powerful. No matter how many times he killed them, they spawned endlessly.
Nordin tried desperately to eliminate them all at once to prevent proliferation, but he failed. In the end, overwhelmed by that mad tide of numbers, Nordin bit his tongue and ran.
During his retreat, Nordin depleted a great amount of his Spirit God’s power.
Gnash—!
Nordin clenched his teeth. Recalling that time, the humiliation washed over him anew.
“I should have wiped them all out at once. But I failed to do so. The lightning was a fierce and piercing power, and every proliferated form possessed that same strength.”
Nordin lowered his head.
“It will be truly difficult. Perhaps it would be better to handle the Eastern Region last? There may be surviving spirits. If we combine our strength with theirs…….”
It was somewhere that had to be dealt with eventually.
Still, Nordin recommended leaving the Eastern Region for later.
Jin-woo shook his head.
Then he pulled out the Summoning Workshop.
“Nordin. Trust me.”
“……Of course I trust you! But……?”
When Jin-woo suddenly summoned the workshop, Nordin was taken aback.
Screeeeeech—!
“Gotta save time.”
Time was abundant.
But there was no need to be complacent about it. So he intended to use the travel time productively.
He placed the High Mountain Spirit Essence he’d received from the Guardian Spirit onto the workbench.
Then he immediately began carving.
Crack—.
He drew up resonance and grasped the Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife.
Whoosh—.
Hummmmm—.
Crack—!
As Jin-woo began crafting, the Spirit Knights stared at him in astonishment.
Did he have this much composure?
Or was he even capable of crafting in such a situation?
“Cr-crafting……?”
They hadn’t expected him to actually craft.
Bon’s flight was quite turbulent.
Of course, to move quickly it was unavoidable, and naturally they couldn’t help but be shaken. The Spirit Knights were struggling to keep from falling off Bon’s back.
When Jin-woo began carving on Bon’s unstable back, where they could barely hold on, they could only gasp in shock.
How was he even crafting on this precarious back?
“No, wait.”
“Is that even possible……?”
“Could it be…….”
They watched Jin-woo closely.
“His build is enormous, yet he’s definitely not a dwarf…….”
“Doesn’t seem like a half-blood either. No beard.”
“Could he be an elf?”
“Too rugged to be an elf…… no, rather too reliable.”
Nordin made a shushing gesture to the Spirit Knights.
“……He can’t be a pureblooded human.”
Such skill was impossible for an ordinary human.
He was as resilient as a dwarf, as delicate as an elf, and moreover, possessed the perseverance of a human. That craftsmanship was something no pureblooded human could possess.
Jin-woo’s focus intensified.
In such an extreme situation, his concentration was forced to its peak, leaving him aware of nothing but the material itself.
Nordin watched Jin-woo.
He watched his crafting, accompanied by those words to trust him.
Was he truly at ease?
Or was he simply appearing so?
Either way, the current Jin-woo was not ordinary.
Swish—. Swish—.
Touching the High Mountain Spirit Essence, Jin-woo quickly grasped the material’s properties.
Then he slowly brought the Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife forward, resonance in hand.
Clang—.
Clangggggg—!
With an unpleasant sound, the High Mountain Spirit Essence suddenly pushed back the Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife.
‘What’s this?’
This High Mountain Spirit Essence was USSR+ Grade material.
‘Even though it’s not M Grade.’
It was his first time encountering material that pushed back his carving knife.
Jin-woo brought the knife forward again, timing his body movement with Bon’s motion, inclining his frame as he applied the blade.
Crack—!
The Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife vibrated, resonating with the wave.
Scrape—.
The High Mountain Spirit Essence, which had initially resisted, gradually began to wear away.
‘Hmm.’
Yet as Jin-woo carved the High Mountain Spirit Essence, he frowned slightly.
It was being carved, but not in the form he’d envisioned.
‘These tools keep getting pushed back.’
The grades were comparable, but the hidden options of the material being used were quite high, making it difficult even when handling materials of the same tier.
‘Especially that Brilliant Moonstone—it was M+ Grade.’
When carving the Brilliant Moonstone, the Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife hadn’t been pushed back.
‘Because I used more resonance power then.’
This time, carving the High Mountain Spirit Essence, he was using reduced resonance power.
‘The Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife alone has limits when dealing with USSR+ to M Grade materials.’
By contrast, his primary weapon, the Hammer, was still serviceable.
‘Agnes is still usable. But I can’t use Agnes forever.’
An upgrade to his crafting tools.
Just as he’d upgraded the workshop with new work equipment, his crafting tools too needed upgrading.
‘When I think about it, I’ve used this quite long.’
This Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife was something he’d received in the Underworld.
‘A carving knife received from the Ghost King in the Underworld.’
Now Jin-woo was handling materials of a far higher grade than what could be obtained in that Underworld.
‘It’s not strange to hit a limit.’
He’d only gotten by through resonance.
To handle higher-grade materials smoothly, he needed better equipment.
‘But it would be wasteful.’
He intended to draw out the full potential of this Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife.
‘I should do what I can.’
Jin-woo smiled faintly. Then he deliberately dulled his resonance.
‘At least.’
He drew up only enough resonance to be functional, focusing on carving with the Ultra-Vibration Carving Knife.
Pop—. Crack—.
A great craftsman does not blame his tools.
Jin-woo agreed with that saying even as he disputed it.
A great craftsman always possesses great equipment worthy of elevating his talent to the heavens.
This wasn’t limited to crafting tools alone.
To fully draw out the power of a top Ranker, one needs equipment befitting that level.
‘Without great equipment, you can’t pour everything out.’
Jin-woo creates that great equipment.
For that, naturally, great crafting tools were necessary.
Crack—!
-Equipment crafted!
-M Grade equipment crafted!
-High Mountain Spirit Essence Necklace crafted!
-High Mountain Spirit Essence Ring crafted!
A necklace and a ring.
Now he could craft M Grade items even from lower-tier materials.
The trembling subsided considerably.
-Craftsmanship [Precision] stat increases significantly!
“We’re almost there.”
Jin-woo immersed himself in crafting.
And as the spirits became absorbed in watching Jin-woo’s crafting, the eastern lands gradually came into view.
Crackle—!
And from beyond, they began to appear.
Fierce lightning.
“Lucky us.”
Quite literally.
“Jackpot.”
* * *
At what was truly a jackpot situation, Jin-woo’s smile never faded.
‘At this rate, even my Necromancer job level will rise.’
How many souls were there anyway?
‘Seems to be well over a thousand.’
Crackle—!
Displeased with Jin-woo’s smile, the upper-level demon swung its hand.
“So that’s Nordin behind you! Right! Reinforcements! Just one human!”
Then it began to laugh mockingly.
“So that’s why you had such confidence!”
The upper-level demon began proliferating lightning further. The numbers kept increasing. When Jin-woo showed no particular reaction, the upper-level demon grew even more assured.
The opponent was merely one.
And a pathetic human at that.
“What could a mere one accomplish? Hahahahaha.”
As it laughed, the demons laughed as well.
The situation was absurdly amusing.
That Nordin had fled all the way to the Southern Region and returned to the Eastern Region.
It was almost comical that Nordin, who had once fled with his tail between his legs, returned with reinforcement—just a single one.
And a pathetic human at that.
“Jin-woo…….”
Nordin’s expression was grim.
There was no doubt about Jin-woo’s skill.
The crafting he’d shown on Bon’s back during the journey was quite impressive.
But seeing these demons of the Eastern Region directly made Nordin’s body tremble.
Those memories of his flight came rushing back.
No matter how many he killed, they proliferated infinitely.
He’d nearly suffocated under the overwhelming tide of their numbers.
That trauma now erupted anew.
This cannot be faced all at once.
“They will continue to proliferate. We must first lure them and cut them down, piece by piece. Otherwise, we need to smash them all in one blow!”
He had to unleash a fierce power in a single strike to prevent proliferation.
But Jin-woo shook his head.
“There’s no need for that.”
Jin-woo smiled and stepped forward.
Snap—!
Then he snapped his fingers, summoning all his Familiars at once.
“You asked what I could do?”
Jin-woo gestured.
“Watch closely and see what I can do.”

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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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