The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 364

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

Episode 364
364.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering wishes to sponsor you!
-The God of Mechanical Engineering bestows upon you the Blessing of Steam.
Whoooooosh-!
Pure white steam erupted from Jin-woo’s body.
-Your body feels lighter!
The new god was none other than the God of Mechanical Engineering.
‘What kind of god is this?’
Mechanical Engineering and godhood seemed an odd pairing.
But it was clear this god was formidable.
‘My body’s becoming far too light?’
The blessing was of remarkably high quality.
Moreover, whenever Jin-woo had crafted mechanical equipment before, this god had shown no reaction—until now.
‘The standards must be quite high.’
Jin-woo tightened his grip on the war hammer in his hand.
Whoooosh-.
Violet steam rose forth.
Along with it, a faint black aura bloomed as well.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering marvels at your approach to Mechanical Engineering!
“I appreciate the sponsorship, but—”
Jin-woo spoke.
“I think it would be better if you made me a Successor instead.”
-The Twin God of Fire and Soul casts a sharp glance toward the God of Mechanical Engineering.
-The God of Bone and Death clicks his tongue at the God of Mechanical Engineering.
-The Green-Skinned God…….
Numerous gods put pressure on the God of Mechanical Engineering on Jin-woo’s behalf.
Their stance was clear: how dare he treat their Successor as a mere sponsored mortal?
‘They were all watching, it seems.’
Since arriving in Sacra, Jin-woo had been pouring every ounce of his power into combining Mechanical Engineering with his existing Crafting methods.
In the process, the gods clearly found considerable joy in each of his breakthroughs that pushed beyond his previous limits.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering issues you a Quest!
-Will you accept the Successor Quest?
“I have many Quests in progress right now. Is there any way I could simply learn instead?”
-The God of Mechanical Engineering is taken aback!
By the fundamental rules, becoming a Successor naturally required completing a Quest.
That was the law and the order.
Yet Jin-woo was asking to become a Successor without one.
It was an unreasonable request. Moreover, in matters of divine sponsorship, the god was naturally the one in the superior position. Any deity could simply leave him be after such a demand.
Yet the God of Mechanical Engineering hesitated for a moment. He was watching the numerous gods who had already made Jin-woo a Successor and were sponsoring him.
If so many gods deemed him worthy of being a Successor, there must surely be a reason.
To leave now felt wrong somehow.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering demands a simple proof from you.
The Mechanical Engineering skill Jin-woo had just displayed was certainly exceptional.
But the God of Mechanical Engineering could not make a Successor carelessly; at minimum, some demonstration was required.
So the God of Mechanical Engineering issued a Quest tailored to the task.
Though called a simple proof, it was actually a Quest of considerable difficulty.
Ding-!
-Quest received!
Jin-woo confirmed the Quest he had been given.
“Hmm.”
-Carve the provided mineral and craft equipment.
-Constraint: You must complete the equipment by understanding the nature of the material.
A straightforward Quest. He needed to understand the mineral’s properties and craft accordingly.
Whoooosh-.
The mineral provided by the God of Mechanical Engineering was called Heart Stone.
Thump. Thump-.
True to its name, it pulsed and vibrated considerably.
‘The nature of the material, then.’
Jin-woo immediately grasped what the Quest demanded.
‘Vibration.’
Heart Stone possessed a constant, continuous vibration.
‘So I need to capture that vibration?’
The defining characteristic of Heart Stone was vibration itself.
It had far more delicate, finer vibrations than ordinary minerals.
‘You’d only feel it faintly if you held your hand against it.’
-The God of Mechanical Engineering says it is simple but not easy in practice!
-The God of Mechanical Engineering imposes a time limit!
-The time limit is 24:00:00!
Twenty-four hours.
Yet Jin-woo simply nodded and immediately set to work.
Crack-.
Crack-. Crack-.
He picked up his Wave Carving Knife and infused it with intense Wave energy.
‘This material vibrates far more than ordinary stone—and much more finely, too.’
To capture it, he would naturally need a Mechanical Engineering Workbench.
‘Or else I’d have to spend a great deal of time.’
But Jin-woo needed neither.
‘I’ve done this before.’
Though the difficulty had changed, because he had done it before, his hands moved without hesitation.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering says you have twenty-four hours!
-No need to overexert yourself. This requires focus, so attend to your urgent matters first. That is what the god says!
Before Jin-woo stood a tower.
This was not work that could be done with a tower ahead of him, so the God of Mechanical Engineering deliberately gave him more leeway.
Crack-! Bang-!
Yet Jin-woo did not stop.
He slowly raised his hands and flowed Wave energy through them.
‘I will capture it.’
Capturing vibration through Wave energy.
There had been times when Baxter and Mate were left speechless watching Jin-woo capture vibration with nothing but his bare hands—no workbench needed.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering—-.
That phenomenon manifested to the God of Mechanical Engineering as well.
‘Wait.’
But as Jin-woo captured the vibration, he recalled the Quest’s wording once more.
‘Understand the nature of the material, yes?’
This could be interpreted two ways.
‘Capture the vibration.’
Or, alternatively, utilize this vibration properly to craft the equipment.
‘If I capture it, the quality will certainly be higher.’
But what if he applied that vibration instead, turning it into an advantage?
‘That might be considered truly understanding it, wouldn’t it?’
Crack-!
Bang-! Bang-!
Jin-woo actively flowed his Wave energy through.
As he dampened the fine vibration, he simultaneously drew the vibration itself upward and amplified it.
Hummmmm-. Hummmmm-. Hummmmm-.
‘I accelerate it.’
And through that acceleration of vibration, Mana efficiency improved.
‘The Mana regeneration effect will be far superior.’
Ding-!
-Equipment created!
-Heart Stone Bracelet created!
Jin-woo had drawn the vibration up dramatically instead of suppressing it. He had captured the noise-like vibrations while amplifying those that became strengths.
The result was the Heart Stone Bracelet he had just forged.
-Quest cleared!
“It is done.”
Whoooosh–.
The distinctive aura of Heart Stone bloomed forth.
Every god watching was astonished.
-The Goddess of Fire and Furnace takes notice of your approach!
-She bestows her blessing upon you.
-The Great Dwarf God praises you, saying this is the path dwarves must walk!
-Dexterity [Precision] Stat increased by 0.5!
‘Gods who favor Crafting are the ones showing their joy.’
Jin-woo smiled slightly.
‘I made the right choice.’
Drawing up the vibration and crafting with it was far more of an understanding of the material’s nature.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering offers you fervent praise!
-Remarkable craftsmanship!
-You have become the Successor of the God of Mechanical Engineering!
With the Quest cleared, Jin-woo became the Successor of the God of Mechanical Engineering.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering bestows a reward upon you!
The moment Jin-woo became a Successor, the God of Mechanical Engineering immediately granted him a reward.
-This is a reward satisfying to you, the god says!
Whoooosh-.
Suddenly, steam shot in a straight line toward Jin-woo.
Swoosh-!
The steam entered near Jin-woo’s heart, and soon a peculiar sound began to ring out.
Tick-tock.
Tick-tock-tick.
It was the sound of mechanical gears turning.
-Reward received!
-A Mechanical Spirit wishes to form a contract with you!
“A Mechanical Spirit?”
He hadn’t expected this.
‘That’s right. If Mechanics is an attribute and something possesses that attribute, then a Spirit could certainly exist.’
Whoooooosh-.
A Mechanical Spirit appeared before Jin-woo.
“Zing-!”
The Mechanical Spirit, Zing, greeted Jin-woo.
Zing-. Zing-. Zing-.
‘The sound of those mechanical gears turning is quite pleasant.’
Listening to it brought a sense of peace.
‘It’s been a while since a new Spirit.’
Since contracting with Dust and Coco, Jin-woo had not considered making new Spirit contracts.
‘Dust and Coco alone were sufficient.’
He had thought materials Spirit and a top-tier dark flame Spirit would be enough.
‘I never expected to receive a Spirit contract as a reward.’
Yet this new Mechanical Spirit contract stirred considerable intrigue in him.
-The God of Mechanical Engineering asks you to care for the Mechanical Spirit!
-The Mechanical Spirit possesses many kinds of power, it is said!
Jin-woo immediately gestured toward the Mechanical Spirit.
-Contract formed with the Mechanical Spirit.
Whoooooosh-!
-The power of the Mechanical Spirit dwells within you!
Jin-woo formally entered into contract with the Mechanical Spirit.
“We should start by naming you.”
The Mechanical Spirit had the form of a small gear.
Jin-woo wanted to choose a name to match.
“Zing!”
“Gear?”
At Jin-woo’s suggestion, the Mechanical Spirit fell silent. It clearly did not approve.
‘It’s a gear from Mechanical Engineering, so I suppose you could call it a chainsaw of sorts.’
“Then…… Chainsaw?”
“…….”
The Mechanical Spirit stared at Jin-woo intently.
“Zing it is, then.”
A very simple name. Since it made a “zing” sound, matching the name to that cry seemed far more fitting.
“Zing-!”
The Mechanical Spirit, Zing, seemed quite pleased with the choice.
“Zing, could you show me your power for once?”
At Jin-woo’s gesture, Zing spun its gears with a whirring sound.
-The special effect of the Mechanical Spirit, Zing, is activated!
-Please select a material!
-The selected material will be Mechanized! The resulting output will increase!
‘Imparting mechanical Attribute?’
Jin-woo smiled.
“Excellent.”
This Mechanization was a power that granted mechanical Attribute to materials.
‘Normally, to Mechanize something, you need to carve a Runestone, synthesize it with the raw material—’
It was complex, and the failure rate was quite high. There was danger of ruining the raw material, and you could fail at carving the Runestone itself.
But Zing’s power skipped all of that and simply granted the force of mechanics.
‘A true Mechanical Spirit.’
And a particularly effective one at that.
“Zing-!”
Jin-woo pulled out a mineral.
Zing went to the material and began to spin.
Whirrrrrr!
-Mechanical Attribute is imparted!
“Oh.”
Just as expected, mechanical Attribute had been imparted to the material.
Jin-woo examined it closely.
‘So this is how it works.’
For Mechanization, you needed a Magic Core or Ether Core made from Runestones.
‘Rune Energy is the cornerstone of Mechanization.’
Zing possessed that Rune Energy.
‘As it spins, it generates Rune Energy.’
And that generated Rune Energy is imparted to the material, which is how the mechanical Attribute enters it.
“Zing.”
Jin-woo called to Zing and gently stroked its head. Since it was made of uniformly shaped gears, he couldn’t quite tell which part was the head, but he judged the uppermost part to be roughly where it was.
Smooth-. Smooth-.
The distinctive feel of metal was clear.
“Excellent work.”
“Zing!”
Zing appeared quite pleased with itself.
Jin-woo turned his attention away from the Mechanical Spirit Zing and examined the crafted war hammer.
Whoooosh-.
He checked the detailed Attributes of the new Mechanical Engineering equipment, the Eternal War Hammer, which exhaled steam.
“Impressive.”
The moment he looked at it, admiration escaped him.

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