The Returned Genius Blacksmith has Awakened as an all-Master - Chapter 52

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

Episode 52
052. The One Who Tempers the Void
The auction unfolded much as Cha Yu-gyeong had predicted.
Whenever rare crafting techniques or Unique Grade ornaments came up for bid, Yeokcheon and Asura waged a war of attrition, each draining the other’s coffers.
Meanwhile, as time wore on, the atmosphere of the Auction House grew increasingly heated.
Yet at the same time, puzzled voices began erupting throughout the crowd.
“But where is he? Why can’t we see him?”
“Who? Oh, the blacksmith Geumson?”
“His work’s up for auction, but he hasn’t shown his face once. You’d think he’d at least come out of curiosity.”
“Right? They say he’s all about mystique, and I guess he really is—down to the bone.”
“Wait, did Geumson really quit streaming? He’s not even showing up for an auction like this?”
Players craned their necks searching for Geumson, but he was nowhere to be found.
His absence only sparked curiosity and left them eager for his appearance.
Geumson had inadvertently locked himself into a mystique concept.
The truth was far simpler—he was busy with other matters.
So busy that the auction had been erased from his mind entirely.
* * *
Whoooosh!
The Void Iron Ore of ancient times entered the furnace.
In flames fierce enough to melt ordinary metals in an instant,
the Void Iron Ore held its shape, seeming to draw in the very heat around it.
Geumson watched with unwavering focus.
He waited for the moment when the ore’s color would shift, then activated his skill.
‘Sun’s Right Hand!’
Geumson condensed the sun’s flame into his right hand.
He would not rely on the furnace’s heat alone.
From the start, he knew that the furnace’s warmth—without special materials—would not suffice.
That was why he added the heat from Sun’s Right Hand to the flames.
Roooaaaar—
The furnace’s fierce heat blazed across the entire Smithy with savage intensity.
A message appeared at the same time.
[Flame Resistance 40% applied.]
Heat so intense it demanded flame resistance.
Within that inferno,
Ssshhhhiiing—!
at last, the Void Iron Ore began to flow as blood-red molten metal.
Rather than pour it into a mold, Geumson carefully directed it onto his disassembled hammer, which rested upon the anvil.
The moment two metals met, violent resistance tore through the entire Smithy.
Whiiiine—!
The hammer trembled wildly and tried to spring away, while the Void Iron Ore reared like a wild horse, losing all cohesion.
“Walker, bring the alloy mold! Press it! Keep it from bouncing free!”
“Woooalker!”
Iron Walker thrust the two writhing materials into a specially forged alloy mold and bore down with crushing force.
Even under enormous pressure, the two materials refused to merge.
Instead, hairline fractures began to form in the alloy mold itself.
At that moment, Geumson scattered molten metal made from the Starlight Sand and Deep Sea Steel Ingot he had prepared over the mass.
Bwaaaah—!
Hisssssss—
Dazzling light and steam.
The two forces that had been thrashing wildly grew still as if by a lie, beginning to seep into the Deep Sea Steel Ingot.
For a moment, the two forces appeared subdued.
But Geumson knew better—they were not subdued at all.
Only an uneasy silence, like the calm before a storm.
And Geumson felt it too.
‘This won’t work. If I leave it like this, they’ll separate again.’
Geumson seized the Flaming Dragon’s Giant Hammer that Dushar had lent him.
And he closed his eyes.
Every sense converged on the collision of materials.
Geumson read the flow of the two forces and wedged himself between them.
He swung the hammer, striking the point where the two forces collided with precision, dispersing the energy and guiding it back into a stable flow.
Bang!
The first strike.
The anvil cried out as though in anguish.
Impurities burst forth like starlight, scattering in a shower of sparks.
Bang!
Clang!
Clang-clang-clang, bang!
His hammer strokes were far more powerful and precise than before.
With Inspired Craftsmanship and Soul Forging skills pushed to their pinnacle, every movement flowed without waste.
[The item being crafted begins to control its unstable magical power.]
[The Soul Forging skill proficiency increases.]
[The Soul Forging skill has reached Lv.4.]
[The Inspired Craftsmanship skill has reached Lv.7.]
There was no time to read the cascading system messages.
Beads of sweat formed on Geumson’s brow.
At first he’d noticed his stamina draining, but now he couldn’t tell anymore.
Only the relentless flood of messages confirmed he was on the right path.
[The item being crafted fully accepts the power of the Void Iron Ore.]
[The growth ability of the Forgotten Artisan’s First Hammer is inherited.]
[The creator’s will is infused, and the item’s latent potential erupts.]
Screeeeeech!
The moment Geumson plunged the reassembled hammer into the coolant, absolute darkness engulfed the entire Smithy.
All light and sound were sucked into the void—a silence so complete it seemed to consume existence itself.
And from the heart of that silence, a system message rang out, announcing the birth of something wholly new and perfect.
[You have achieved a Great Success!]
[Through the effect of your Luck stat, you surpass Great Success and achieve Transcendent Great Success!]
[The grade of the crafted item is raised by two tiers!]
[Title: He Who Tempers the Void]
[You have been the first to perfectly control an Ancient Grade material and craft an item from it!]
[The system trembles at your extraordinary mastery!]
[Effect 1. When crafting, your ability to draw out the base stats of materials increases permanently by 10%.]
[Effect 2. [Void’s Imprint]: With a 50% chance, an additional enchantment slot opens on the item.]
[Effect 3. All stats increase permanently by 5.]
[Effect 4. The Focus stat is unlocked, granting a +35 bonus.]
[Forgotten Hammer of the Void]
– Grade: Ancient (Lv.100 Restricted)
– Crafter: Geumson
– Status: Bound
– Attack Power: 380-450
– Effects:
1. [Void Absorption]: On impact, absorb 10% of the target’s magical power and convert it to your own.
2. [Distortion of Flow]: On impact, 30% chance to interrupt the target’s skill casting and inflict ‘Magical Confusion’ status for 3 seconds.
3. [Silence of the Earth]: Strike the ground with the hammer to create an Anti-Magic Field within a 50m radius for 60 seconds. (User excluded)
4. [Inheritance of Soul]: During crafting and repairs, grants 30% success rate, 20% Great Success rate, increases base item stats by 30%, and accelerates work speed by 30%.
5. [Shared Growth]: Grows alongside the wearer and unfolds new abilities.
– Description: A masterwork forged by the forgotten smith Geumson, who fused his very soul with ancient power. It will become the nightmare of all magic users and inherits the abilities of the Forgotten Artisan’s First Hammer.
Geumson quickly scanned the details of the Forgotten Hammer of the Void.
He saw that the abilities of the Forgotten Artisan’s First Hammer had been inherited under the name Inheritance of Soul.
No—they had been inherited in an upgraded form.
Moreover, he confirmed that the properties of the Ancient Void Iron Ore had been properly integrated.
But that wasn’t all.
‘Void’s Imprint… now that’s the real jackpot.’
An absurdly broken effect that could generate an extra enchantment slot for the item.
And it was ‘additional,’ at that.
Since it could grant something that didn’t already exist, its versatility was beyond words.
“……I did it.”
Once he’d finished reading through all the messages, the tension drained from him in a rush.
With trembling hands, Geumson lifted his new hammer.
The sensation against his palm was cold and smooth, yet beneath it he felt a vast, churning power.
Smiling with satisfaction, Geumson turned his gaze toward the precarious egg he had reverently set aside in one corner of the Smithy.
“Now, it’s your turn.”
Geumson picked up a new hammer.
Hammer in hand, he walked toward the Elemental Egg of Fantasy.
As if rest were a luxury he couldn’t afford, Geumson moved with hurried purpose.
With the newly forged Forgotten Hammer of the Void gripped in his hand, Geumson now faced the final task before him.
[Elemental Egg of Fantasy (Damaged)]
‘Its condition seems to be deteriorating further…’
The Elemental Egg of Fantasy grew cloudier by the moment.
Geumson’s brow furrowed.
Even as he worked the Void Iron Ore, the egg’s vitality continued to fade.
It seemed he had very little time left.
“Intuition of Fractures. Insight of Flow.”
Geumson’s vision shifted.
Across the egg’s surface—which had appeared to be an ordinary stone—crimson and azure points emerged.
Crimson and azure lines wove together in intricate patterns, revealing themselves before him.
One was the crimson “Fracture”—marking physical cracks and structural weak points.
The other was the azure “Flow”—tracing the currents of mana within the egg and the places where they were blocked.
From this dual perspective, Geumson’s assessment of the Elemental Egg was straightforward.
‘Dreadful.’
Geumson let out a hollow laugh.
The egg’s condition was far worse than he’d imagined.
Crimson lines covered the entire egg like a spiderweb, while azure lines were severed in places or clogged with shadow.
‘The situation is worse than what Kalis described… Can this even be done?’
Kalis had said that infusing the egg with pure flame might be enough to revive it.
But to Geumson’s mind, that wouldn’t be sufficient.
‘Simply channeling fire won’t work. I need to clear the blocked mana flows.’
Saving the egg would require two tasks to happen simultaneously.
First, infuse flame from without to halt the petrification and rekindle the spark of life.
Second, untangle and stabilize the chaotic mana currents within.
Both would need to occur at once.
“The flame of the sun…”
Geumson raised his right hand.

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