The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith - Chapter 41

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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 Blacksmith’s Return, Chapter 41
Within the Management Bureau grounds in Sejong City.
Shin Tae-ho, having disposed of items at the Awakener’s Shop, left behind a staff member glaring at him with an air of grievance.
After selling off numerous Fragments of Energy, Goblin Leather, and other miscellaneous goods, Shin Tae-ho checked his account to confirm the deposit had gone through.
‘Eleven billion, three hundred million won.’
The money already in his account came to three billion, seven hundred million won.
Adding the proceeds from this sale, over ten billion won now sat in his account.
And even that was only one-third of his total inventory—he’d sold the rest in separate batches.
‘Selling too much at once would raise suspicion. I need to be careful.’
Unaware that the shop clerk already believed him to be a reseller sent by the Guild, Shin Tae-ho felt satisfied with his own prudence.
Pushing the items he’d sell next into a corner, Shin Tae-ho pulled his important items to the top of his Inventory.
5,100 Superior Fragments of Energy
71,000 Intermediate Fragments of Energy
Fusion Tesseract
1 Superior Gate Clear Reward Chest
1 Superior Spirit Stone
1 Poison Root
1 Inferior Wind Rune
1 Intermediate Healing Rune
20 Intermediate Healing Potions
5 Intermediate Agility Potions
5 Intermediate Strength Potions
3 Intermediate Vitality Potions
3kg of Literium
2kg of Iron
998 World Tree Leaves
1 Unknown Core
‘Still quite a lot.’
Having climbed to the sixty-sixth floor and accumulated a mountain of Fragments of Energy as rewards.
Even after selling all that, countless Fragments remained.
Despite organizing only the essential items, his Inventory remained cluttered with the sheer variety of goods.
In particular, the unopened chest and unused Fusion Tesseract took up considerable space.
‘The chest and Fusion Tesseract.’
Boarding the shuttle bus heading to the Blacksmith Workshop, Shin Tae-ho looked around.
Since only dedicated enthusiasts visited the Blacksmith Workshop, the bus was empty.
Deliberating, Shin Tae-ho withdrew the Superior Gate Clear Reward Chest.
The Tesseract had no immediate use for him right now anyway.
The chest, by contrast, could be opened now or later—it made no difference.
[Open the Superior Gate Clear Reward Chest?]
“Yes.”
At his response, the chest he’d taken from his Inventory clicked open.
As the fifteen-inch laptop-sized box opened, numerous message windows materialized before Shin Tae-ho.
[1 Intermediate Survival Rune obtained has been moved to your Inventory.]
[1kg of Aerosteel obtained has been moved to your Inventory.]
[10 Superior Recovery Potions obtained have been moved to your Inventory.]
“Aerosteel?!”
Reading the messages, Shin Tae-ho gasped and cried out involuntarily.
The bus driver and Yong-ryong-i turned in alarm to look at him.
Apologizing to the driver and gently stroking Yong-ryong-i’s head to calm the creature, Shin Tae-ho covered his mouth with his hand.
‘Aerosteel! A whole kilogram of it! With this…!’
The Superior Recovery Potion and Intermediate Survival Rune were certainly valuable.
But as a blacksmith, Shin Tae-ho’s first reaction was inevitably to the Aerosteel.
A special metal like the Gyrotil that allows weapons to return to the wielder’s hand at will, Aerosteel was its own category of rare material.
Known as Aerosteel, this metal’s properties were movement-related, befitting its name.
‘Enhanced jumping ability, granted flight capability, increased movement speed according to wind direction—all three in one.’
Abilities whose value skyrockets even individually.
Aerosteel contained all three of these properties intertwined.
If he forged a sabaton—the foot component of armor—from this….
‘Even falling from the Ozone Layer, I could land safely if I had enough time to use it.’
Of course, since he already had armor with Distortion Patterns inscribed across its entire surface, crafting sabatons would be wasteful.
But even without the Sabaton, his mind teemed with countless other possibilities.
‘Opening that chest was the right call.’
Shin Tae-ho leaned back against the seat.
His blood burned hot with eagerness to reach the Blacksmith Workshop.
* * *
“Welcome. I’ve been expecting you.”
“Ah, yes. Good to see you.”
Shin Tae-ho felt awkward facing Kim Jong-soo, the craftsman greeting him at the workshop door.
Shin Tae-ho showed him the reservation details he’d captured on his phone from the Blacksmith Workshop’s system.
“I have a reservation for Workshop No. 22. Can I use it right now?”
“Of course. Use it as you wish, and if you need anything, just call for me.”
“Understood.”
After an awkward greeting, Shin Tae-ho entered Workshop No. 22.
Just in case, he scanned the entire space carefully, but found no CCTV or camera.
‘What’s gotten into him? Why the sudden politeness?’
It would have made sense if he’d been trying to record Shin Tae-ho’s techniques somehow.
In fact, Shin Tae-ho knew Kim Jong-soo watched him work in secret.
And not just casually watching—he’d seen the man transfixed, utterly absorbed, as though spellbound.
But now he claimed to have no ulterior motive.
‘Maybe he’s just in a good mood?’
Puzzled, Shin Tae-ho opened his Inventory and retrieved the Throwing Hammer, which was still in the process of auto-repair.
Though it was repairing itself, there were several spots where the iron had worn thin from use.
‘Let me deal with this first.’
Shin Tae-ho pulled iron from his Inventory.
He had two kilograms from before, and had purchased an additional hundred kilograms on the way here.
‘The Throwing Hammer has become too light. And now its durability can’t keep up with actual combat. I need to reinforce it by adding more iron.’
When he’d first crafted it, the hammer had felt satisfyingly heavy to throw.
But as Shin Tae-ho climbed the Tower and consumed Elixirs, his physical capabilities grew stronger with each stage.
For blunt weapons like hammers, weight meant power, so Shin Tae-ho intended to add more iron to increase both weight and durability.
‘I’d like to use Yong-ryong-i’s fire this time, but… that won’t work.’
Shin Tae-ho sensed through Energy Sensing the gaze of someone hidden and watching him.
Kim Jong-soo, who had greeted him at the entrance, was now lurking somewhere, observing his work.
‘I came here partly to dispose of items and partly for the advantage of using this state-of-the-art workspace for free. But if he keeps this up, I’ll just have to set up my own workshop.’
Shin Tae-ho lit the furnace.
Strong flames quickly heated the Throwing Hammer.
As he waited for the iron to begin melting as well, Shin Tae-ho retrieved the Fusion Tesseract from his Inventory.
‘I got distracted by the Aerosteel discovery and forgot to check this.’
Shin Tae-ho opened the Fusion Tesseract, which was about the size of a treasure chest.
Since he’d never used it before, the Tesseract hadn’t expanded at all yet.
As Shin Tae-ho pondered what to put inside by reviewing his Inventory, his eye caught on potions he’d received from Epiel.
‘Why not try it?’
The Tesseract had the ability to combine two identical items.
Since this was his first test, potions were more appropriate than precious materials like Runes.
Shin Tae-ho removed two Intermediate Healing Potions that Epiel had given him and placed them in the Tesseract.
The fit was tight, but he managed to close it.
[Item detected.]
[Proceed with fusion?]
‘Yes. Fuse them.’
Conscious of Kim Jong-soo’s presence, Shin Tae-ho answered through thought rather than voice.
The Fusion Tesseract, registering his intent, began to activate.
There was no sound, but light emanated from inside the closed Tesseract as it began to rattle.
For a moment, this continued.
Then the Fusion Tesseract’s motion ceased, and a message window appeared before Shin Tae-ho.
[Item fusion complete.]
[You may now open the Fusion Tesseract and claim your item.]
[Cooldown: 24 hours]
After reading the message, Shin Tae-ho opened the Fusion Tesseract.
Though two potions had gone in, only one emerged.
As Shin Tae-ho lifted the potion to examine it, the item information appeared.
[Superior Recovery Potion]
-Description: A potion capable of healing wounds both external and internal.
As its grade increases, it gains the ‘Regeneration’ ability, allowing it to even restore damaged organs.
‘Excellent.’
To an outsider, it might seem like merely a single step up—from Intermediate to Superior.
But Shin Tae-ho understood how vast a chasm that one step could create.
An Intermediate Recovery Potion lacked regenerative power, so it could not heal irreparable injuries.
For instance, if an arm were severed, drinking an Intermediate Recovery Potion would cause new flesh to grow and stop the bleeding, but the lost arm would not regrow.
‘But a Superior Recovery Potion would restore the arm.’
That was the absolute, unbridgeable gap between recovery and regeneration.
‘If needed, I’ll have to fuse again.’
Shin Tae-ho placed the Superior Recovery Potion into his Inventory.
In the meantime, the iron had heated enough to work with.
As Shin Tae-ho struck the glowing-red iron, sparks erupted like fireworks.
* * *
Shin Tae-ho’s work stretched into the late hours.
The Reforging of the hammer—overlaying iron across its entire surface—required the seasoned skill of a true craftsman.
Had he melted the iron entirely and remade it from scratch, the original weapon would have been destroyed.
Conversely, if he had forged it carelessly, it would have failed to become a single coherent item, leaving him worse off than if he’d done nothing at all.
Of course, Shin Tae-ho made no such mistake.
“Hmm.”
After completing even the final Polishing, Shin Tae-ho examined the Throwing Hammer.
The item’s information and the runes he had inscribed remained unchanged.
What had grown was its weight from the added iron, and seeing the enlarged hammer head, Shin Tae-ho was satisfied.
‘No problems. It came out well.’
Shin Tae-ho glanced at his watch.
Though he had much left to do, the Blacksmith Workshop was nearing its closing time.
‘I’ll rent a room nearby and sleep, then come back tomorrow. I’m not sure if a slot will open up tomorrow or if it’ll already be booked.’
Shin Tae-ho rose from his seat.
The other blacksmiths had all left, so the workshop was quiet.
As Shin Tae-ho was tidying his workspace and about to leave,
his hearing—naturally enhanced along with his physical capabilities—picked up the sound of breathing.
“Still here, I see, Master.”
When Shin Tae-ho called out the name, Kim Jong-soo, who had been standing outside the workshop, stepped into view.
“Is your work finished?”
“I’ve completed today’s tasks. Were you waiting for me?”
“I was.”
Kim Jong-soo answered, and slowly brought the hand he had held behind his back to the front.
A hammer rested in that hand.
‘What’s this? Why suddenly a hammer?’
Shin Tae-ho was bewildered.
In the past, many had sought him out because of his renown.
But now—he had no reputation, had not even revealed his name, and had never sold a single item he’d crafted.
“The first time we met, I felt it vaguely. The second time, I doubted myself. But now, at our third meeting, I can say with certainty.”
“Certainty of what?”
“Of your skill.”
Kim Jong-soo’s eyes gleamed.
White streaks ran through his black hair,
and his face—weathered dry from working in the smithy and etched with stubborn wrinkles—had set itself into a stern expression.
‘Is he trying to steal my items and pass them off as his own for the sake of reputation? A fraud?’
Of course, knowing his own strength, Shin Tae-ho felt no fear.
But as he pondered how to handle this situation,
Kim Jong-soo approached with resolute conviction, gripping the hammer,
and abruptly dropped to his knees, extending the hammer toward Shin Tae-ho with both hands cupped beneath it.
“I, Kim Jong-soo, am ashamed to be called a master, yet now I see the truth—that against the true mastery before me, I am but a firefly dimmed by the sun! Please, I beg you to take me as your disciple!”
“…I beg your pardon?”
Shin Tae-ho stood frozen, his eyes wide, utterly unable to have anticipated this turn of events.
To be continued ▶
The Regressed Transcendent Blacksmith
Author
Bongeunsehaeche
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Published by
Grae Publishing
Inquiries
[email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227067
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and distribution are prohibited, and violations may result in criminal and civil legal liability.
※ Pentagram welcomes your precious manuscripts.

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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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