The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith - Chapter 91

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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 91
A block of ice the size of a forearm hurled toward the Orcs.
At the mere sight of ice being flung at them, the Orcs sneered and twisted their bodies aside.
When the ice shattered harmlessly against their armor just as they’d anticipated, their mockery deepened.
“Krehrek! Pathetic! As if mere ice could harm us—”
“Why so pleased with yourselves? I haven’t even started.”
Bianca waved her hand dismissively, as though swatting at flies.
The shattered ice fragments followed the motion of her hand, spreading wide across the space.
Sensing something amiss, the Orcs flinched—and now it was Bianca who laughed, her voice light and mocking.
“Now here comes the main course. Dig in, won’t you?”
Bianca opened her spread hand, then slowly closed her fist.
In that instant, the ice particles that had drifted outward began to pulse, releasing a biting cold.
Crackle, crackle!
Crack!
“Krerack!”
“Krerack! Scatter! Get away!”
The spreading cold burrowed deep into the Orcs’ bodies.
The moment the chill touched them—
bare skin froze solid, frostbite setting in instantly.
Their armor joints accumulated ice, emitting sickening grinding sounds.
Bianca glanced back at Shin Tae-ho and Choi Yu-hwa.
“What are you doing? Surely you’re not thinking I’ll carry you just because I’m a Ranker?”
“No, no! My apologies!”
Stung by the rebuke, Choi Yu-hwa nocked an arrow to her bowstring.
Pipi, who had been nestled in Choi Yu-hwa’s arms, launched into the air and began circling rapidly.
“Squeak!”
Pipi darted in wide arcs, building speed before diving at one Orc’s throat.
With Energy wound around his claws like a challenger, Pipi’s talons raked across the Orc’s neck.
Snap!
The Orc’s head severed by Pipi’s claws, it shrieked its death cry and collapsed.
Meanwhile, Choi Yu-hwa released her drawn arrow.
Clang!
The arrow struck true, shattering the frozen arm it had targeted.
Robbed of one arm, the Orc wailed in agony.
‘I see. So that’s how she fights.’
Shin Tae-ho stroked his chin, observing Choi Yu-hwa’s combat technique.
It had a glaring weakness—if enemies closed in too quickly, she’d lack an immediate counter.
But with proper positioning established beforehand, she could unleash a steady barrage from distance. A sound approach, all considered.
“Tae-ho! Can I go help too?”
“You think you’ll manage, Yong-ryong-i?”
“I’ll be fine! Pipi shouldn’t fight alone—it’s dangerous!”
Yong-ryong-i answered, eyes gleaming with concern as he watched Pipi.
Pipi, who had been attacking the Orcs in graceful arcs, suddenly stiffened.
“Squeak?!”
Pipi couldn’t fathom why Yong-ryong-i was staring at him so intently and grew uneasy.
Noticing Bianca’s fixed gaze, Shin Tae-ho gave a slight nod.
“All right. Just promise me—don’t push yourself, and stay safe.”
“Got it!”
Yong-ryong-i answered vigorously, his form instantly shifting into that of a dragon.
Bianca’s eyes widened as she watched the child-like Yong-ryong-i transform.
“What? Did he just turn into a serpent?”
“Dragon!”
Yong-ryong-i had begun flying toward the fray when he whirled around, furious at the comment.
Bianca jumped back, startled—and the bristling Yong-ryong-i spun away again, diving into the battle.
“A s-serpent that flies…?”
“It’s not a serpent. Please stop needling Yong-ryong-i and focus on the fight.”
Shin Tae-ho gave Bianca a disgruntled look.
In the meantime, Yong-ryong-i had plunged into the Orcs’ ranks, targeting only exposed flesh, his scales leaving deep wounds.
“Krack?! What is this long creature!”
“Cut it! Chop it into pieces so it can’t move!”
The orcs swung their respective weapons toward Yong-ryong-i.
Blades, axes, clubs—an arsenal of menacing arms flew at him.
Clang!
“Screech?!”
“Roaaagh!”
The orcs who’d attacked Yong-ryong-i shrieked in pain instead.
Their weapons ricocheted or shattered, their wrists twisted—but Yong-ryong-i’s scales bore not a single scratch.
The creature laughed as though genuinely amused and leaped into the air.
“Rrrong~!”
Yong-ryong-i’s horns shifted to a soft violet hue.
In that instant, a small wound that had appeared on his scales reacted, flooding with every conceivable type of poison.
“Guuaaagh! It—it burns!!”
“Screeeech!”
The poisoned orcs convulsed across the ground, clutching at their wounds.
Bianca, seeing Yong-ryong-i’s ability at once, gasped in shock.
‘Poison? There wasn’t even a deep wound. What kind of toxin works with such potency from a mere scratch?!’
While Bianca reeled from the sight,
the venom that had been nothing but surface damage began to spread, consuming the orcs’ bodies.
Some of the orcs, understanding the situation, began to sever the infected tissue.
“Cut it out! The poison’s spreading!”
“If you don’t remove the infected area, you’ll die! Hurry!”
Following the command of an orc higher in rank than themselves, the others gnashed their teeth and began cutting away flesh.
But the challengers had no reason to simply wait and watch.
“Pipi! Now!”
“Squeak!”
“Poison, huh. Interesting ability for a pet.”
Choi Yu-hwa, Pipi, and Bianca struck at the immobilized orcs.
The orcs, who’d set down their threatening weapons to carve away flesh with daggers, couldn’t mount a proper defense—they were torn apart by Pipi’s claws and Bianca’s ice.
The surviving orcs threw their heads back, veins bulging with rage.
“Screech! Charge them!”
“Those meats attack from distance! Get close and kill them!”
“Raaaagh!”
The orcs dropped their guard and began rushing forward.
Bianca and Choi Yu-hwa, having faced such suicidal charges before, moved with practiced efficiency, widening the distance.
While retreating and nocking an arrow, Choi Yu-hwa caught sight of Shin Tae-ho standing motionless and gasped.
“Shin Tae-ho! It’s dangerous! Move, please!”
“What are you standing there blank for?! And without proper armor!”
Bianca, equally startled, shouted urgently at him.
Rather than answer, Shin Tae-ho loaded a bolt into the crossbow mounted on his arm and aimed it at the orcs.
‘Let’s see how effective this actually is against them.’
Twang!
The bolt shot from the crossbow flew toward the center of the orc formation.
Even a headshot might barely kill one—yet Bianca’s face twisted in disbelief at this shot fired into empty air.
She took Shin Tae-ho for an idiot who couldn’t aim properly.
Of course, he was no such thing.
Boom-!!
“Huh?!”
“Eek!”
As the bolt detonated, Bianca and Choi Yu-hwa flinched in shock.
Choi Yu-hwa had reacted to the noise, but Bianca’s alarm came from another source entirely.
“You fool! Using explosives in the Tower! Attacks that can’t carry Mana don’t affect the Tower’s monsters at all—”
Bianca’s shocked protest died mid-sentence as the dust settled.
There, where five orcs had charged forward with lethal intent moments before, lay mangled bodies that might as well have been hit by a grenade.
Watching the incomprehensible scene unfold, Bianca found herself speechless.
Shin Tae-ho picked up the axe the orc had dropped and finished off the immobilized creatures.
“Stay sharp. We’re not finished yet.”
He spoke flatly as he moved from one fallen orc to the next, ending them with his borrowed axe.
Only then did Bianca come to her senses, frowning deeply.
“That attack just now. Was that a Skill?”
“Something similar. But that’s not what matters right now.”
Shin Tae-ho dodged the question with an evasive answer.
Bianca, who had been staring at him with furrowed brows, soon relaxed her expression.
“Good. Actually, I like it better this way. It feels nice knowing the people I’ll be climbing the tower with are trustworthy.”
Pleased and energized, Bianca drew up her Mana.
Three ice spikes, each as thick as a forearm, rose up and leveled themselves toward the orcs.
“Let’s finish these first, then we can have tea and talk. We’ll be seeing each other for a long time to come, after all.”
“Yes! That sounds great!”
Choi Yu-hwa answered eagerly, delighted by the Ranker’s proposal.
Bianca smiled at the brightness of Choi Yu-hwa’s response and sent the ice spikes hurtling toward the orcs.
* * *
[You have cleared the 2nd Floor Trial.]
[You receive points for clearing the Trial.]
[Rewards for clearing the Trial have been granted.]
[Reward contents: 150 Intermediate Ki Fragments, 700 Low-tier Ki Fragments,]
[The contents of your reward may vary depending on your Contribution.]
The moment the hundredth orc fell, a message window appeared.
Though many orcs still remained alive.
As the message window appeared, their morale plummeted and they began to flee.
Seeing the battle was over, Bianca exhaled and released her tension.
“Phew. They’re definitely different from goblins. Tsk. To think I’d waste this much Mana already on the 2nd Floor.”
“Agreed. You all worked so hard, Bianca, Shin Tae-ho!”
“You did well.”
After responding to Choi Yu-hwa, Shin Tae-ho immediately called for Yong-ryong-i and checked the creature’s condition.
Fortunately, the orcs’ weapons hadn’t pierced Yong-ryong-i’s scales.
Even in human form, there was nothing but dust on his body—not a scratch.
“Yong-ryong-i. You’re not hurt anywhere, are you?”
“Of course not! Those guys were weak!”
“Weak? That’s impressive. Their numbers were significant, but they were much stronger than goblins.”
Bianca watched Yong-ryong-i with genuine interest.
Choi Yu-hwa, checking like Shin Tae-ho whether Pipi had any injuries, nodded.
“Really! Yong-ryong-i has grown so much since before. I’ve never seen him fight until now, but he was incredibly sharp and strong!”
“Pipi, for his part, was remarkably fast and powerful. He was reliable.”
“Oh! I want to play with Pipi!”
“Chirp?!”
The moment Yong-ryong-i’s eyes lit up, Pipi hurriedly burrowed into Choi Yu-hwa’s arms.
Watching Pipi wriggle even under the armor, Choi Yu-hwa laughed helplessly.
“Sorry, Yong-ryong-i. Pipi seems tired right now. Could we play later instead?”
“What? No! I want to play together now!”
“Yong-ryong-i. Pipi needs rest too. Don’t pout—come here.”
Shin Tae-ho scooped up Yong-ryong-i and set him on his shoulder.
Yong-ryong-i, who had been pouting just moments before, laughed brightly the instant he settled on Shin Tae-ho’s shoulder.
Watching the scene, Bianca let out a soft chuckle.
“Pets are nice. But isn’t there danger? The stronger they are, the greater the risk, right?”
“It’s fine. We’re always careful and building trust.”
“Hmm. I envy having companions you can rely on like that.”
As the three of them caught their breath and talked, dwarves emerged from the Mine that they’d been protecting from the orcs.
“Hey, you big ones! The boss sent you, right?! Did you deal with the orcs?!”
“Now you crawl out after hiding all this time—and you’ve got the nerve to sound so confident?”
Bianca’s expression hardened with displeasure.
But before Bianca could step forward.
Shin Tae-ho, moving first, answered the dwarves’ question.
“We’ve eliminated all the orcs. The Mine should be safe for some time.”
“Then why are you standing there? Get out! Before more orcs show up!”
“My. Look at the way you talk, why don’t you? Hey, you there!”
Mana rippled through Bianca’s body as her eyes blazed.
Shin Tae-ho raised his hand to calm her and asked.
“Please relax. There’s no benefit in making enemies of the dwarves. More importantly, I was planning to venture into the Mine. Would you care to join me?”
“Why would I go into that dark, gloomy place? I’d rather have tea and refill my Mana in that time.”
Bianca made her refusal clear.
Shin Tae-ho, who had secretly hoped she wouldn’t come along, promptly agreed.
“I understand. Then, what will you do, Choi Yu-hwa?”
“Me? Oh, well….”
Choi Yu-hwa glanced back and forth between Bianca and Shin Tae-ho.
Bianca was casually waving a Tea Bag she’d brought, suggesting they just have some tea together and avoid getting tangled up with the dwarf.
Shin Tae-ho, by contrast, showed no reaction at all.
After deliberating seriously, Choi Yu-hwa looked toward Shin Tae-ho with resolve in her eyes.
“Bianca, I’m sorry. I’m going to follow Shin Tae-ho into the Mine.”
“What are you apologizing for? Do whatever you want. We can have tea another time.”
Bianca shrugged her shoulders.
Having been born and raised in Switzerland, Bianca’s individualism was strong enough that she felt not even a hint of disappointment.
“Honestly, all that matters is climbing the tower. I don’t understand why someone so strong would go out of their way to court favor like this.”
Bianca, who had dropped a Tea Bag into her Thermos, shook her head as if baffled by the whole affair.
Continued in the next episode ▶
The Return of the Transcendent Blacksmith
Author
Seal Release
Publisher
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Publishing House
Grae Publishing
Inquiries
[email protected]
Date of Publication
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260227067
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and duplication are prohibited. Violation of these terms may result in criminal and civil legal liability.
※ Pentagram welcomes submissions from talented writers.

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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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