The Return of the Legendary Golden-Handed Blacksmith - Chapter 369

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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 369
369.
Screeeeeech—!
It was far too close, and Faust, who’d never imagined the Heretic Stigma would break free, took a direct hit from the Eternal Hammer.
“Eternal. Final. Judgment.”
“Ugh…….”
Crack-boom—!
Faust’s body drove straight into the wall. In that same instant, he flicked his fingers and tore himself free from the impact.
But the shock was catastrophic.
Panic flooded through him, and he found himself paralyzed, unable to move.
“I…… mitigated the impact…….”
It was impossible. Just how devastating was this damage?
Despite clearly reducing the shock, the damage remained severe.
And worse, blood continued to flow.
-You suffer Bleed Damage.
-You suffer Bleed Damage.
“Nngh…….”
Faust’s gasps grew longer and more labored.
“First.”
At Jin-woo’s gesture, First planted his feet firmly against the ground.
First had only just loosened up.
“Now. It. Begins.”
There was still more to show.
He hadn’t yet properly wielded the Eternal Hammer or the Eternal Shield.
“Show me how far the Ether Core Theory can elevate its power when developed further.”
“Yes.”
Kaboom—!
As First rushed forward again, Faust frantically raised his hands.
He couldn’t take another hit.
That single blow had taught him harshly: if he took another like it, his body would shatter completely.
“Chains of Longing!”
Faust spread his palms. Green-glowing chains erupted from his hands, immediately lashing out to bind the Eternal Hammer.
Clang—!
First shattered the chains outright.
“!”
And in the same motion, he swung the shield.
A shield was not merely defensive equipment.
It could be wielded as a weapon with devastating effect.
Faust, who’d never expected the shield itself to be used as an assault weapon, lost his timing.
The price of focusing solely on the hammer.
Clash——!
With a crisp metallic ring, Faust’s body bent backward.
“Ugh…….”
Crunch—!
On that bent frame, First brought the hammer down from above—hard, then harder still. He drew forth the full might of Mechanical Engineering. Defeating Faust now was the furthest thing from First’s mind.
All he cared about was wielding this equipment properly.
Thud—!
“Complete Contract. Ashen Ward.”
Desperately, he deployed a defensive Skill. He had to survive. He had to survive first.
“Eternal. Final. Judgment.”
But the Eternal Hammer possessed formidable armor penetration.
Defense Skill or defense gear—it pierced through regardless.
Thud—!
“Cough.”
Blood spilled from the corner of Faust’s mouth. Black blood.
“Nngh…….”
“We should wait.”
Subordinates seized by fury would have rushed forward at any moment, but First’s overwhelming presence allowed them only to watch.
They were all enraged, yet First seemed to be the most furious of all.
Though the time was brief, having his lord betrayed and that hammer turned against him had wounded his pride considerably.
Hisssssss—.
Steam poured madly from the Eternal Hammer.
“Aah…….”
Hamus, witnessing the sight, nodded slowly.
This—this was the path Sacra must take.
The synthesis of Ether Core and Magic Core to forge the beautiful Ether Magic Core. This was Sacra’s true direction.
Yet at the same time, the shield wielded by First revealed the ultimate limit of the Ether Core.
Before that spectacle, the chains of thought that had bound Hamus began to shatter and fall away.
“Contract of Betrayal!”
Rustle-rustle-rustle—.
Flutter—. Flutter—.
Books began to flutter behind Faust’s back. Within them lay the stolen power of all those he had betrayed, all those upon whom he’d inscribed the Heretic Stigma.
“Golden Fountain Pen.”
He raised the pen and sketched First’s form with urgent precision. Then, he crushed the shoulder section with force.
Crack—!
First’s shoulder burst open.
Faust smiled.
Then he wielded the Golden Fountain Pen with frenzied intensity.
Scratch—. Scratch—. Scratch—.
Faust too was beyond restraint now. He had to pull forth everything he possessed. Otherwise, he couldn’t stop First, let alone defeat him.
Of course, even if he bested First, the other subordinates remained. But Faust had no energy to spare for them. If he didn’t dispatch First before him, nothing else mattered.
“!”
First’s wounds were deep.
“Hm.”
The opponent also wielded armor-ignoring strikes.
‘If I reached that conclusion, so can they.’
The armor would need revision again.
Thud—!
Despite the deep wound, First pressed on undeterred.
Crunch—!
He surged forward and swung the hammer.
His blow cleaved directly through Faust’s arm.
“Agh.”
He’d never imagined such aggressive momentum despite bearing such a wound.
Normally, the charge should have halted.
The Golden Fountain Pen was a Skill that selected a target’s limb and obliterated it utterly.
Even Undead shouldn’t be able to persist through such an assault.
“What…… exactly are you? How are you moving like this?”
How in the abyss was this Undead even capable of moving?
Faust opened his palms once more.
A book manifested in his grasp.
“Potential Release.”
Shaaaaaaack—!
He poured the accumulated Power of Wishes into his own body, channeling a Skill that granted transcendent strength for a fleeting moment.
First waited for him to draw forth all his power.
“It won’t be the same.”
Screeeech—!
Armed with the Power of Wishes, Faust’s fist suddenly enlarged and he hurled it forward.
First answered with the Eternal Hammer.
Boom—!
“You’re. Certainly. Right.”
It wasn’t the same.
“It’s. Much. Better.”
Crash-crash-crash-crash-crash—!
First now had enough to bring his full power to bear.
“!”
Even wielding the Power of Wishes, Faust found himself pushed back—and the realization struck him hard.
Hisssss—!
It was only natural.
First gazed upon the purple-steaming Eternal Hammer.
What he truly fought was not Faust.
It was this Eternal Hammer, forged by Jin-woo’s own hands.
Faust was merely an assistant in that struggle.
-Your vitality sharply declines!
The vitality of the Demon of Wishes and Betrayal, Faust, plummeted.
He understood then, by pure instinct.
That fighting was not the answer.
“Human!”
Faust suddenly turned desperate eyes toward Jin-woo.
“I shall grant your wish. If you spare me, I can even fulfill a wish to dominate the entire continent!”
His eyes blazed.
“Your desire…… yes! Materials. Materials, that is. I shall give you the finest materials beyond your wildest imagination. Rare, noble, beautiful. Materials capable of becoming anything, doing anything—the greatest materials I can provide!”
At those words, Jin-woo regarded Faust with what seemed like genuine interest.
“Is that so?”
Seeing that flicker of interest, Faust grinned wickedly and spread his hands like painting a rainbow.
“Yes! If there is a wish you desire, ask…….”
“If I put you inside this, my wish will fulfill itself automatically. That material beyond my imagination—”
Jin-woo pointed at Faust.
“—that’s you.”
“!”
Faust’s body trembled violently.
Jin-woo had produced a box.
“You…… that power……!”
Seeing the box Jin-woo held, Faust’s composure shattered.
“Why. Do you feel something?”
Jin-woo smiled at him. Demons could not fail to recognize the Ten Thousand Demon Palace.
Especially Jin-woo’s Ten Thousand Demon Palace—it contained countless Tower demons.
The raw power of those mighty demons that moved the Tower itself was palpable.
Shaaaaaaack—.
As he raised the Ten Thousand Demon Palace, that aura of unease Jin-woo radiated became visible to the eye.
Why had it felt so repugnant.
Why had he been so desperately compelled to silence Jin-woo with the Heretic Stigma.
“So that was it……!”
“Why do you react like a demon that’s merely glimpsed the Ten Thousand Demon Palace? You should focus on what’s in front of you.”
“!”
Boom—!
First’s blow caught Faust off-guard as he drew near.
“Gnaaaaaagggghhhhh—!”
Faust recoiled in rage.
Such one-sided combat was utterly foreign to him. He was not holding back.
He was fighting with all his strength!
Yet still he could not halt First’s advance.
“What exactly…… are you!”
A Necromancer, a Blacksmith, and the Master of the Ten Thousand Demon Palace. Why did all three converge in a single human form?
“You hold out remarkably well.”
Jin-woo also marveled, watching Faust.
With the Eternal Hammer, First was finally getting a proper feel for combat.
Of course, the Eternal Hammer itself was forged from Sacra Eternity Stone, a mighty mineral, and the Eternal Shield—crafted with an Ether Magic Core alongside an Ether Amplification Core—caused awkward movements, yet Faust persisted nonetheless.
“Essence, soul, horns, wings, bone…….”
What quality of materials were these, really?
“They appear to exceed at least MR+ Grade.”
Jin-woo’s eyes ignited with fervor.
“Does he have subordinates?”
“……Are you mocking me?”
“No, I’m serious.”
If Faust was strong to this degree, his subordinates too must be formidable, carrying materials worthy of that strength.
“No!”
“What a shame.”
Whoosh—!
Faust ceased trying to meet First’s attacks head-on.
Instead, he devoted himself entirely to evasion.
“…….”
Among all present, Hamus’s emotional turmoil was most profound.
“…….”
The thrill of vengeance?
Pleasure?
No—it was neither.
Deep within his core, he felt fear.
First had once clashed with Hamus’s Demon Mechanic.
The Eternal Hammer displayed then had not felt like this.
How much had he held back in restraint?
From the beginning, Jin-woo seemed to have no intention of fighting Hamus in earnest.
“He understood my heart already…….”
Only now did Hamus grasp it: Jin-woo had shown him tremendous mercy. From the start, it seemed, Jin-woo had intended to persuade him through Crafting.
That was why he’d asked for materials and requested to learn the Ether Core Theory.
If Jin-woo had shown him no such interest from the beginning……
“Had he fought in earnest…… I would have been in grave peril.”
If Jin-woo had resolved to battle him seriously, Hamus would never have lived to witness the completion of Ether Core Theory—he would have become mere ash.
Hamus exhaled in relief, again and again.
And he looked upon Faust.
“He made an enemy of someone he should never have made an enemy of.”

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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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