The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith - Chapter 30

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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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Transcendent-Grade Blacksmith’s Return — Chapter 30
A treasure chest was rare fortune to encounter in the Tower.
But without preparation, it remained nothing more than a tempting mirage.
To open a treasure chest, naturally you needed a key.
If your desire ran ahead and you forced it open without one, the chest would be destroyed and you’d be cursed instead.
Yet obtaining a complete key proved far harder than encountering the chest itself.
Fortunately, Shin Tae-ho had gathered fragments and earned an S-Rank by the time he reached the fifty-sixth floor, giving him one Complete Treasure Chest Key in his possession.
Moreover, Eldain had dismissed the iron chest the ogre had been carrying as worthless.
‘Then what the elves are keeping must be a treasure chest of a higher grade than that.’
Just as items had grades, so too did treasure chests.
The iron chest he’d seen at the ogre’s base was Elite Grade—rare to encounter, but still only one tier above the Common Grade wooden chest.
So how fine a chest did the elves possess?
As his thoughts continued, Shin Tae-ho and the elves had already arrived at the city of Shinterhon.
“Would you care to rest for a moment?”
“No. Let’s check the chest at once.”
“Understood. I shall guide you immediately.”
Eldain, having entrusted the warriors’ command to Kider, led Shin Tae-ho onward.
As they ventured deep into Shinterhon, to places he normally never visited, a chamber appeared where the elves had accumulated a vast collection of goods.
The treasure chest sat in a corner among them.
“We have kept it stored, unable to find a means of opening it. I do hope it proves something of value to you, hero.”
Shin Tae-ho swallowed hard before answering, “It seems it will be useful enough.”
The chest Eldain was keeping was certainly worthy of such evaluation.
‘At minimum, Elite Grade or higher.’
A treasure chest with a golden framework adorned with purple cloth—an elegant exterior.
Though he hadn’t confirmed it yet, at a glance it possessed a value incomparable to the iron-wrought chest.
Shin Tae-ho drew out the key and carefully inserted it into the lock.
Fortunately, the key and keyhole were compatible, fitting perfectly in size.
But there was a problem Shin Tae-ho hadn’t anticipated.
[The treasure chest’s grade exceeds the key’s grade.]
[Grade requirement not met. The chest’s lock cannot be disengaged.]
‘Grade?’
Shin Tae-ho read the message in confusion and examined the key more closely.
[Complete Treasure Chest Key]
—Description: A treasure chest key, fully restored by assembling its fragments.
Can open treasure chests of Common through Special Grade.
Upon reading the item information, Shin Tae-ho’s eyes widened.
He’d focused on the key being complete, unaware of such fine print.
The chest could not be opened, and yet Shin Tae-ho felt his heart pound all the harder.
‘This means the chest is Special Grade or above.’
Shin Tae-ho stared at the treasure chest.
Above the chest marked with ???, there ticked a small countdown timer.
Shin Tae-ho sensed at once what it meant—the remaining time the chest would stay in this place.
‘One hour left.’
If he couldn’t open the chest within that hour, it would vanish like smoke.
Shin Tae-ho’s expression turned grave as he began to think.
What could he do in this situation?
It was a thought he’d turned over before, and the answer came quickly.
‘Engrave a pattern on the key.’
He couldn’t melt down the complete key and remake it.
Far more feasible would be to collect the patterns he’d already gathered by engraving them onto the elf warriors’ weapons, then inscribe those engravings onto the key itself.
Shin Tae-ho examined the engravings he’d collected.
Among the various patterns, one caught his eye—perfectly suited to this moment.
‘Lower-Grade Reinforcement Pattern.’
Reinforcement patterns served to enhance the performance of materials and items.
But precisely because of that, engraving this pattern required him to bear greater risk.
‘What I want to strengthen is the grade. If I make a mistake and strengthen durability or versatility instead, everything fails.’
Shin Tae-ho drew out his chisel and hammer, taking a deep breath.
With only one key, failure meant there would be no second chance.

‘Strengthen the Grade. Not something else—strengthen the Grade of this key itself.’
Shin Tae-ho held the resolve firmly in his mind, then struck the chisel with the hammer.
The engraving came as naturally as breathing—he’d done it countless times before, each stroke flawless.
When the engraving finished, the key emitted a faint glow.
Shin Tae-ho swallowed hard and checked the item information of the engraved key.
[Treasure Chest Key with Engraved Lower-Grade Pattern]
-Description: A treasure chest key, completed whole from gathered fragments.
A master smith has engraved a Pattern upon it, and its Grade has been strengthened.
It can now open treasure chests of Common to Hero Grade.
“It worked…!”
Shin Tae-ho clenched his fist tightly.
Originally, the highest Grade the key could open was Special Grade.
But a key engraved with a Lower-Grade Reinforcement Pattern could now open chests up to Elite Grade—higher than Special.
Eldain, who had been watching Shin Tae-ho in silence, blinked in surprise at his reaction.
“Y-yes, Hero. Are you all right?”
“Don’t worry. I’m just pleased that things have gone well.”
“I’m relieved to hear it, then.”
Eldain, astonished to see him so happy for perhaps the first time, withdrew another step with visible relief.
Shin Tae-ho approached the treasure chest and inserted the key again.
‘A Lower-Grade Pattern upgrading it by a single tier is already a success. If the chest is higher than Elite Grade… then it can’t be helped.’
Shin Tae-ho turned the key with held breath.
Click.
Unlike before, when it had been completely stuck, the key turned smoothly this time.
As the fully-turned key opened the chest, the treasure chest’s name—previously marked with question marks—became legible.
[You have opened an Elite-Grade Treasure Chest!]
[The contents of the treasure chest have been automatically transferred to your inventory.]
After the message window appeared, the opened chest scattered like sand and vanished.
“Y-yes, Hero? The chest just disappeared!”
“It’s fine. I’ve got the contents.”
Leaving the startled Eldain behind, Shin Tae-ho opened his inventory to check the new item.
Despite the chest’s considerable size, only a single item had entered the inventory.
[Fusion Tesseract]
-Grade: Elite
-Description: A container that can combine items of the same type.
As the Grade increases, the number of items that can be combined, their size, and the cooldown time all change.
-Number of items that can be combined: 2
-Cooldown: 24 hours
‘A Growth-Type Item.’
Growth-Type Items literally became stronger the more they were used, or as their user grew stronger climbing the Tower.
Even if it was Elite Grade now, it might eventually reach Hero Grade.
And beyond that—perhaps even Epic or Legendary Grade.
‘The earlier you acquire a Growth-Type Item like this, the longer it has to develop.’
For now it was only about the size of an accessory pouch, making it difficult to fit anything inside.
But according to the description, as time passed, the container itself would grow, and the number of items it could hold would increase.
Satisfied, Shin Tae-ho closed his inventory and turned to Eldain, who had been waiting for him.
“Eldain. By now, everyone should have gotten some rest, yes?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes. They should all be resting with their armor set aside.”
“Then gather the weapons as usual.”
“Right now, sir? But you should rest for a while too….”
“It’s fine. Combat could break out anytime—better to prepare ahead. Just make sure Yong-ryong gets something to eat.”
“Ryong-ryong~!”
Yong-ryong, who had been getting hungry at just the right moment, raised her front paws in celebration at Shin Tae-ho’s words.
Shin Tae-ho patted Yong-ryong and followed behind Eldain, his eyes drifting over his own armor.
‘I should engrave some Patterns on my own items as well.’
The Gate that would soon manifest in South Korea.
To prevent that catastrophe, he too needed to begin preparing now.
Arriving at his workshop within Shinterhon, Shin Tae-ho retrieved his chisel and hammer.
‘I can engrave a total of four pieces. Three hammers and one suit of armor.’
Starting with the elves’ weapons to warm up, Shin Tae-ho began to organize his thoughts.
Normally, he could divide the armor by section and engrave each part separately.
Crafting the armor from scratch during the Tutorial meant applying individual Engravings was difficult.
‘The Hammer naturally needs attack-related Patterns inscribed on it. But the Armor… this state is sufficient for now.’
Shin Tae-ho reviewed the Patterns he’d collected.
Having just ascended from the lowest-grade Patterns to Lower-Grade Patterns, he’d only gathered six varieties so far.
‘Fire, Ice, Lightning, Acceleration, Deceleration… and….’
Shin Tae-ho examined the Patterns in order, then fixed his gaze on the final one.
The last Pattern’s name was Distortion.
‘What should I do?’
He conjured as many possibilities as might unfold ahead.
Chisel and Hammer in hand, Shin Tae-ho ceaselessly inscribed Engravings into the Elf’s weapons.
* * *
Inside the Korea Awakener Management Bureau.
Even ordinarily dim, the place now hung so dark it could pass for a funeral home.
Lim Ah-young, stationed there, had shed her usual cheerful demeanor entirely.
Words from Tower.com scrolled past in the glow of her mouse wheel.
-Has Korea finally opened a Gate? I’m worried about how you’ll hold it back.
-Take this chance—let Korea become our vassal. I’ll accept you magnanimously.
⌎Since there’s no king now, the president should bow to the head instead?
⌎⌎KKKK They’re so full of themselves, and look at them now.
-Does Korea not have a brother nation like ours?
As befitted a community used across every nation, Tower.com hosted users from diverse countries.
Those who’d habitually regarded Korea unfavorably seized the moment to mock the nation’s plight.
Lim Ah-young, fresh from visiting Park Je-hyuk in the hospital where he was undergoing treatment, trembled with fists clenched.
‘How can they mock like this, even knowing the man is dying? How could they?’
As the Management Bureau’s deputy chief, she merely monitored Tower.com’s posts.
Lim Ah-young, who’d never engaged directly through posts or comments, seethed at the crude remarks.
Grinding her teeth, she continued scanning reactions when a single comment caught her eye.
-Dammit. You still haven’t found our nation’s first Tutorial conqueror?
⌎How would the incompetent Management Bureau people find him? Obviously they just ran in circles and gave up.
⌎⌎How can you be so sure? Maybe the Management Bureau prepared them as a secret weapon?
-They got S-Rank on the 60th Floor yesterday. Will they participate in this Gate suppression?
⌎Based on the comment above, yeah.
Lim Ah-young bit her lower lip.
The anger that had consumed her moments before now clamped around her chest like a vise.
The first Tutorial conqueror—still unidentified, unconfirmed.
That challenger would surely become a formidable asset if they came.
But—
‘They won’t come.’
A challenger who’d remained silent until now, unwilling to expose their identity.
Expecting such a person to join the Gate suppression where all eyes would focus was nothing but idle fantasy.
‘We should have found them somehow.’
As Lim Ah-young wallowed in self-recrimination—
The door to the Management Bureau, silent as a tomb, swung open with a bang.
The one who pushed through roughly was Oh Jin-hyuk, the Bureau Director.
“Everyone prepare for deployment!”
“D-Director, you mean…!”
“Yes.”
At someone’s question, Oh Jin-hyuk cried out with a grave expression.
“Fifteen seconds ago. Gate emergence confirmed at Gaya Mountain among predicted locations. As of now, all personnel except minimum standby crew deploy to Gaya Mountain!”
Continued in the next chapter ▶
The Transcendent Blacksmith’s Return
Author
Bong In-haejae
Publishers
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Published by
Geul Publishing
Contact
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227067
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and copying are prohibited, and violations may result in criminal and civil liability.
※ Pentagram awaits your precious manuscript.

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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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