The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 323

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

Chapter 323
Episode 323.
There is an order to mechanical engineering.
If you attempt complex machinery from the start, you’ll be swallowed by that complexity and fail to create proper equipment.
That’s why Baxter continued to observe Jin-woo’s work.
Clang!
Baxter had his own tasks to attend to, but watching Jin-woo took priority, so he kept a steady eye on the young man’s progress.
When Jin-woo experimented with the belt, admiration poured out of Baxter unbidden.
Truly, the boy was a talent who delivered tenfold for every lesson given.
Just as Baxter thought Jin-woo would conduct more tests with the belt, the young man suddenly stepped outside the workshop.
“Time for some fresh air, I’d say.”
He’d been in the workshop far too long—and without sleep, no less.
“He’ll probably take a good rest…”
But Jin-woo returned almost immediately.
He then commanded J-001 to begin crafting something.
“…Wings?”
Jin-woo was building wings.
“Hmm.”
Midway through constructing the glider, Jin-woo frowned at its massive size.
“Make it smaller? No… that throws off the timing.”
When facing a cliff like this, there are moments when you must leap without hesitation. If that were the case, there’d be significant risk of injury during the process of retrieving and deploying the glider.
That would make the equipment only half-functional.
“Not ideal.”
If he made it small enough to wear constantly… no, that presented its own complications.
“It needs to be usable even in everyday situations…”
In that instant, a thought pierced through Jin-woo’s mind.
“Ah.”
Mechanical engineering shouldn’t become a specialized tool. Once it does, you’re relying solely on mechanical engineering’s own power.
“Mechanical engineering is… about integration.”
Normally appearing as standard equipment, but the moment mana is infused or a switch is pressed, it transforms into mechanical engineering equipment.
Only then does synergy emerge.
‘Only then can mechanical engineering’s techniques be used to their full extent.’
Jin-woo smiled.
“Then…”
He simply needed to make this massive glider function as equipment even during normal use.
The direction was already clear in his mind.
“A cloak.”
Ordinarily, it would be a cloak.
And if mana were infused, it would transform into a glider—erasing every disadvantage he’d just identified.
Jin-woo first crafted the folding mechanism.
Attached to the cloak, when mana was infused, the folded mechanical device would unfold into glider form.
That way, there’d be no need to retrieve the glider at all.
“The moment you leap from a cliff, it unfolds and lets you fly.”
Of course, this design meant limited flight duration—but that was the glider’s original purpose anyway.
‘A glider without propulsion is equipment that descends slowly. It lowers your fall speed and lets you glide during that time. That’s what a glider is.’
“If I add power through a Magic Core, I can extend the flight time considerably.”
Jin-woo immediately began crafting the mechanical device.
Clang! Clang!
He stretched the Positano Steel, assembled screws, and inserted a Magic Core.
The Runeword to carve was simple.
Wind Runeword.
He used two of them.
‘Spell Enchantment is stable.’
Only after raising Spell Enchantment to its Extreme had Jin-woo been able to carve two characters overlapped.
But this Runeword was different.
The ceiling was already open from the start.
He could shatter any limit and raise the ceiling infinitely.
Of course, that came with risk.
‘Rephrasing it…’
If he could manage it, he could raise the potential limitlessly.
Jin-woo smiled.
Shwick. Shwick.
Jin-woo carved the Wind Runeword. One atop another. And his hand didn’t stop.
“!”
Baxter stepped forward.
Until now, he hadn’t stopped Jin-woo regardless of what he was doing.
It was because he trusted the autonomy of the boy’s talent. But what Jin-woo was attempting now was far too dangerous.
“This is dangerous…! Too dangerous! The moment you use three Runewords…!”
This mechanical engineering equipment would become a bomb.
But Jin-woo’s hands moved faster than Baxter’s warning.
Crack.
The Engraving Knife carved another Wind Runeword.
Whoooosh—
—screeeeeee! A roar erupted; violent wind tore through the space, threatening to devour everything around it.
Yet Jin-woo didn’t stop. Crack. Bang. Crack.
He carved three Runewords in perfect alignment, holding the image of Rune Inscription – Extreme in his mind.
‘If there’s one thing I learned from Rigardo when he was an orc shaman…’
…it’s that the power of will blends seamlessly into any field. Now, as Jin-woo overlapped the Wind Runewords, he held one singular wish.
That this glider with its Magic Core could fly for a very, very long time.
He imbued the wind’s power, wishing it could soar forever if at all possible.
And that power aligned perfectly.
Bang.
Like interlocking gears. Runeword turning Runeword, and another Runeword turning alongside them.
Thus three Runewords meshed into one. The danger of one was borne by another, and that danger by the next.
And so—
-You have created equipment!
-You have created MR Grade Equipment!
It stabilized.
“…”
Baxter’s pupils dilated.
His fingertips trembled slightly, and he slowly lowered the hand he’d raised.
Screeeee—
The Wind Glider, unleashing wind like madness, was complete.
Baxter opened his mouth to speak, then stopped. Instead, he slowly raised his hand.
Shwick.
He gave a thumbs-up.
Words wouldn’t convey it.
So.
Baxter offered his highest praise through gesture alone.
Then his mouth opened and closed repeatedly.
He seemed eager now to explain why he was here, but since Jin-woo hadn’t asked, the words came hard.
“So you…”
“I’ll test it out first.”
* * *
Screeeee—!
The Wind Glider was exceptional.
Having fallen from a cliff, Jin-woo was deeply satisfied with how the glider transformed in an instant from its cloak state.
“I can descend a cliff immediately like this.”
Whoosh. Whoosh.
Yet if he desired, he could extend the flight time indefinitely. The Magic Core of the Wind Glider had three overlapping Wind Runewords, giving him ample access to the wind’s power.
‘It’s thanks to the wind being expelled downward.’
Jin-woo was growing increasingly fond of this Magic Core.
‘This expands my options considerably.’
Jin-woo circled once more while riding the glider, then touched down on solid ground.
“Whoa. What?”
He was startled.
“Why are there so many people?”
Especially a considerable number of users from the Avalak Kingdom.
“Positano did become Avalak territory, but… this many?”
“Heh. Bought some local goods.”
“Got a quest too!”
Ding—!
-Your Contribution Score has increased!
The score that rose when working for the kingdom—his Contribution Score—had gone up.
“It went up suddenly?”
Until now, Jin-woo had been in the quest area.
That’s why his Contribution Score hadn’t risen immediately.
-Your Contribution Score has increased by 200.
“This is way more than when I found the Temple.”
When he’d located the Temple, the Contribution Score the king granted was 100.
Now it had increased twofold.
‘Is this because I conquered Positano alone?’
This Neutral Territory Conflict was originally large-scale content undertaken by numerous players simultaneously.
Because of that, it rarely tilted based on a single person’s actions.
Yet Jin-woo had just shifted the entire situation by himself.
Naturally, his Contribution Score would spike significantly.
‘And I took first in the Hall of Fame too.’
This level of Contribution Score was only natural.
“With 200, I’ll be able to ask the king for quite a lot.”
With a Contribution Score of 50, you could access the Royal Vault.
‘I still had 50 left.’
Adding 200 to that brought Jin-woo’s total Contribution Score to 250.
-[Avalak Kingdom] Contribution Score: 250
“That’s a reassuring number.”
It was enough to enter the Royal Vault five times, and he might even receive treasures from the royal family.
‘I should use it wisely.’
Jin-woo gazed at Positano, now teeming with Avalak Kingdom users, and smiled contentedly.
“Neutral Territory Conflict. This is fun.”
If the opportunity arose, he’d want to do it again.
“And it’s perfect for testing new equipment.”
Fighting high-level users while growing his familiars made it worthwhile not just occasionally, but whenever possible.
* * *
Ding—!
-User Jin-woo has achieved an achievement.
-Achievement [Hero of Conflict] unlocked.
-Hall of Fame Rank 1.
-Logical’s message: Unfortunate timing. Should have confirmed user Jin-woo’s location and proceeded with the quest.
Somewhere.
The achievement Jin-woo had newly acquired, [Hero of Conflict], was one of many accomplishments achieved by NewGen users so far.
It was a basic achievement earned by excelling in conflict zones, so its acquisition wasn’t particularly surprising.
“The achievement itself isn’t surprising…”
The Hall of Fame ranking was the issue.
“GM Chae-seok!”
GM Na-yun went directly to GM Chae-seok and called his name.
GM Chae-seok was currently in charge of active monitoring regarding Jin-woo in connection with the FIRST Quest.
Because of that, they were cooperating on related duties.
“What is it? Did you achieve something related to the FIRST Quest?”
GM Chae-seok asked eagerly.
Thanks to Jin-woo, a bonus had been paid to GM Chae-seok, who oversaw the FIRST Quest. And beyond that, GM Chae-seok himself—being a NewGen user first and an employee second—was curious to see how Jin-woo would tackle the FIRST Quest again.
He was, after all, still just one person.
“No, it’s not that.”
“…Then?”
GM Chae-seok tilted his head in confusion.
“Jin-woo achieved the [Hero of Conflict] achievement.”
“That’s a bit late, isn’t it?”
The [Hero of Conflict] achievement was something anyone could earn.
“Then why…?”
“He’s first rank.”
“…Excuse me?”
Achieving the accomplishment was easy.
But given how many people had earned this [Hero of Conflict] achievement, surpassing them and entering the Hall of Fame rankings was arduous.
In NewGen’s early to mid stages, Neutral Territory Conflict had been incredibly hot content.
The concept of belonging to different kingdoms and waging territorial wars had landed perfectly.
Beyond the sense of belonging, the benefits from small-scale combat were so substantial that everyone from low-level players to rankers had stationed themselves in neutral zones at times.
Of course, the conflict content was still thriving now, but the rankings established back then had remained unchanged.
Especially the top position—it was overwhelming.
401 points.
Only one person had ever surpassed 400 points—Tokaji alone.
“Are you saying Jin-woo surpassed that 400-point barrier?”
GM Chae-seok asked frantically.
When Tokaji had crossed 400 points, some people had cried foul, insisting it was a bug and that the GMs had helped—there were those who swore to manipulation.
Yet Jin-woo had broken 400.
“Yes. 445 points.”
Well above 400—445 points. A difference of 44 points from Tokaji.
“…”
Now GM Chae-seok understood why GM Na-yun had rushed over in such urgency.
“You’re more thorough about these things than I am, anyway.”
GM Na-yun was knowledgeable about NewGen too, but GM Chae-seok had countless achievements and quests memorized.
“When the previous first-ranker Tokaji surpassed 400 points, everyone was certain it was manipulation. They said 400 points could absolutely never be achieved.”
To put it simply—
“Jin-woo is 44 points higher than Tokaji.”
There was something even more absurd.
“Look here…”
The location Tokaji had chosen to hit 400 was a large-scale neutral zone.
Large zones meant more frequent player conflicts, more territory to breach, more areas to capture.
Naturally, scores climbed accordingly—so Tokaji exclusively selected large neutral zones for the conflict content.
“The location where Jin-woo earned this achievement is Positano.”
The Castle-class neutral zone of Positano.
A tier below the large-scale zones.
“…If this had been a large-scale zone instead, the score would almost certainly be even higher.”
GM Chae-seok shook his head slowly.
“How did he even manage this?”
In the end, the words GM Chae-seok had been holding back burst out.
“Right?”
GM Na-yun likewise had nothing else to add.
* * *
“Uuuugh!”
Jin-woo continued to dig into mechanical engineering.
Ideas began gushing forth from his mind.
After crafting the Wind Glider, Jin-woo had devoted himself entirely to the technique of layering Runewords onto Magic Cores.
‘I’ve confirmed the limit is three.’
Just before, when he’d tried to layer four Runewords, he’d come dangerously close to detonation.
‘But I had confidence I could stop it.’
Fortunately he’d managed to halt it, confirming the limit precisely.
‘Three is where I balance stability first.’
He then focused on what could be created with three overlapped Runewords and what effects they’d produce.
Clang! Clang!
Crack!
“Uuugh.”
Baxter rubbed his chin from behind.
It had been well over four days since Jin-woo arrived.
Baxter was the type to store materials generously, so his workshop always had plenty on hand.
But now the workshop’s materials were beginning to dwindle.
“I should ask the lord to bring more supplies quickly.”
Baxter immediately sent the butler robot on an errand.
“Go. Bring back the good stuff, and plenty of it.”
“-Beep beep-”
The butler robot, receiving its orders, moved swiftly.
Jin-woo was selecting his next equipment to craft.
There was so much he wanted to make, but one thing stood out above all.
“This. This could work.”
Jin-woo’s name had originally become famous among miners because of this specific pickaxe.
“It’s been a long time since I made one.”
In truth, Jin-woo hadn’t intended to make pickaxes anymore.
That overwhelmingly powerful pickaxe that had sold for 250 million Gold was the culmination of pickaxe technology as he’d envisioned it.
‘Now that I have Wave Carving, I could make an even better pickaxe.’
But it would only have minor variations. The gap from his existing pickaxe wouldn’t be vast. His growth was real, of course.
Yet he questioned if it would be fun.
‘Better to make something else.’
But now, a mechanical engineering pickaxe had surfaced in Jin-woo’s mind.
Through making the Wind Glider, this triple-layered Runeword technique he’d mastered would shine brightest with a pickaxe.
“A mechanical engineering pickaxe naturally needs to excavate ore deposits perfectly.”
And it needed power beyond that.
A pickaxe wasn’t merely for ore collection.
“It’s centered on digging earth, digging caves, digging all sorts of things.”
He recalled helping an NPC who wanted to dig through a mountain with a single pickaxe.
The man wanted to create a tunnel.
‘A mechanical engineering pickaxe would make it easy.’
Jin-woo grinned.
“Great Rotation Pickaxe.”
A pickaxe of great rotation crafted through mechanical engineering. This could bring significant change compared to existing pickaxes he’d made.
Moreover, he could embed Wave Carving into it as well.
With that, the excavation alone would eclipse his former pickaxe by far.
“This will be fun.”
Jin-woo immediately began making a Magic Core.
Refining Runestones was becoming second nature, and every time he carved Runewords with tremendous force, his Strength stat climbed steadily.
-Your Strength stat increases!
-Your Strength stat increases!
-Your Strength stat increases!
The result of deliberately concentrating solely on strength control and unleashing powerful force.
Crack. Crack. Crack!
After completing the Magic Core—
Jin-woo chose his materials carefully.
“You’ve collected quite a lot.”
As Baxter oversaw all of Positano’s technical resources, his accumulated materials were substantial.
The castle lord of Positano must have supplied Baxter with numerous materials according to his tastes.
Of course, supplies were running low now.
“They’ll replenish it for me.”
Jin-woo selected the most lustrous mineral among them.
“Positano Golden Stone.”
A mineral gleaming with the golden radiance its name promised.
-Positano Golden Stone [M]
Jin-woo placed the Positano Golden Stone into the forge.
Roooaaar—!
Mechanical engineering required skillful use of all his existing techniques.
‘Only then can synergy emerge.’
His other skills would compensate for mechanical engineering’s various limitations.
The drawbacks would vanish, leaving only advantages maximized.
Whoosh.
Jin-woo withdrew the Positano Golden Stone and immediately began striking it.
Clang!
In that moment, a light sensation traveled through his hands.
‘This has a different feel.’
He’d expected it to be heavy, but it had quite a light touch.
Clang! Clang!
Not so light it would blow away if he breathed on it, though.
‘Good.’
A mineral characteristic he’d never experienced before.
Jin-woo continued hammering with a satisfied grin.
‘There are so many new things. That’s what makes it good.’
-Rune of First Sight activates!
Before new materials, the Rune of First Sight moved busily. Every material was new to use, every method was being attempted for the first time.
For things he was doing for the first time, Jin-woo had no hesitation whatsoever.
Everyone has a first time.
And that first time never comes again. So Jin-woo savored it fully—preserving the raw thrill that came with using something for the very first time.
Clang!
He brought the hammer down.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Jin-woo proceeded to process the Runestone.
Before, he’d extracted the Runestone’s Rune Energy to its absolute limit.
But doing so had shortened the Runestone’s lifespan.
‘The durability took heavy damage.’
The robot J-001 he’d created had excellent output but quite poor durability.
Because of that, using its abilities repeatedly led to battery depletion.
‘It acts as a major limitation.’
Still, J-001 remained quite useful overall.
Beep beep!
It was venting steam while assisting Jin-woo brilliantly—fetching materials, pouring molten ore into molds—performing each task excellently.
‘It wouldn’t need feet shaped like feet then.’
Baxter’s butler robot had feet shaped like wheels.
‘That would be much better.’
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Bang!
-You have created a Magic Core!
Jin-woo completed a Magic Core where Rune Energy circulated with restraint.
This Magic Core was the most crucial element of this Great Rotation Pickaxe.
“Securing durability means sacrificing some output.”
To have both durability and output, he had no choice but to increase Circulation speed.
‘Even then, the Runestone itself won’t endure.’
He needed strength to reinforce the material itself.
“Dust. Coco.”
Jin-woo summoned two spirits.
“Throoong!”
“Keeng!”
The two summoned spirits looked around at Jin-woo’s completely renewed crafting environment with interest. Dust moved about, repeatedly consuming materials with his massive fur. Coco sniffed at the materials.
Coco was sniffing at each material.
‘Cute.’
The two spirits, each in their own way, identified which materials needed their power.
“I’ve learned a new crafting technique.”
“Throoong!”
Dust moved first.
Dust settled down upon the Runestone.
Shhhhwooosh—.
-The Runestone is being reinforced!
‘I’m reinforcing the Runestone itself.’
Next, Coco unleashed flames upon the Runestone.
Roooaaar—!
Dust and Coco, two supreme-tier spirits, had infused their power into the Runestone.
“Oh.”
The moment the two spirits’ power infused the Runestone, light began emanating from it.
-The spirits’ power resonates with the Rune!

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