The Returned Genius Blacksmith has Awakened as an all-Master - Chapter 70

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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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Chapter 70
070. False Peace
Chang-soo clapped Geumson on the shoulder with a grin.
The two of them spent a good while trading small talk and gossip.
“Anyway, looks like I’ll be moving soon. Mirae Group said they’d give me an officetel too.”
“What? An officetel? Where? Don’t tell me Gangnam?”
“Probably, yeah?”
“Wow…… you bastard, you’ve really made it. I’m jealous, damn it! Hey, I’m starving—let’s grab some grilled pork belly and a shot of soju. You’re buying!”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
The moment they stepped outside, the security guards stationed in the hallway fell into step behind them in unison.
Chang-soo felt his shoulders instinctively hunch at their imposing presence.
“Hey, are those guys coming along with us? This is awkward as hell.”
“Can’t help it. It’s their job.”
And so an odd procession formed: two men and four hulking bodyguards making their way toward a shabby neighborhood pork belly restaurant.
Sizzle—
Hissssss—
Crackle-crackle—
Thick slices of pork belly cooked across the hot grill, releasing an appetizing sizzle.
The savory aroma reached their noses, mingling with the scent of garlic and pickled radish grilling in the pork fat, making their mouths water.
“Ah, that’s the taste! Server! One more bottle of soju!”
Chang-soo picked up a piece of perfectly browned pork belly, laid it on a lettuce leaf, added a generous dollop of shrimp paste and a thick slice of scallion, and popped the whole thing into his mouth.
As he chewed contentedly and filled his soju glass, his face wore the expression of a man who had captured every happiness in the world.
“Come on, one more drink. You’ve worked hard all this time, buddy. From now on, it’s smooth sailing!”
Clink—!
The crisp sound of glasses meeting, and both men threw back their bitter soju in one gulp.
A sharp burn spread through their bodies as they exhaled, throats scorched.
“But seriously, you sure about Mirae Group? Big corporations like that aren’t your average folks. You’re not gonna get used up and tossed aside, are you?”
Chang-soo’s concern was genuine.
Geumson wrapped his ssamjang in well-fermented kimchi and answered without looking up.
“Don’t worry. If anything, they’re the ones who should be worried.”
“Whoa, look at the confidence on you.”
At Geumson’s calm reply, Chang-soo laughed and took another sip of soju.
He seemed to think it was just a joke.
“Anyway, when you move, make sure you call me! I’ll bring some Korean beef then. Oh, and don’t forget to plug the Nudeergi Trading Company when you’re on air!”
“That name’s…… yeah, yeah, I got it.”
The two men continued to raise their glasses late into the night.
After Chang-soo left, Geumson took a walk through the city to help his digestion.
The sun had set, and the city’s lights were beginning to flicker on one by one.
Neon signs and car headlights wove patterns of light across the darkness.
Looking at that peaceful, beautiful Seoul night, a twinge of pain cut through Geumson’s chest.
‘This view too…… won’t last much longer.’
In his mind, a memory flashed past—that day when the Gate had opened beneath an ash-gray sky.
The metallic stench of blood. Screams.
And from beyond those memories, the voice of a man seemed to echo.
『”Hey, Geumson, eat something. You haven’t eaten in days.”』
The early days of the Age of Apocalypse.
The Underground Shelter—back when he was still unfamiliar with his Lepion Ability Awakening.
Geumson thought of Choi Dong-hun, a man he had met there.
In the chaos, Choi Dong-hun had calmed people’s fears and served as a steady pillar supporting the makeshift Underground Shelter.
He was someone who had never lost his smile, even in that hellish reality.
That day was no different.
When everyone lay exhausted after days of fighting.
Choi Dong-hun had produced a dented Tuna Can from somewhere.
『”Soon the military or something will come, won’t it? Just hold on a little longer.”』
They shared a piece of dry, oil-soaked tuna and swore they would survive.
A promise made in that moment—that when the chaos subsided, they’d share grilled pork belly and soju someday.
They endured that day on such a hollow, uncertain promise.
But the next day.
Choi Dong-hun never came back.
He vanished without a trace before Geumson’s eyes, caught in a surprise attack by monsters.
What Choi Dong-hun left behind in the end was nothing but an empty tuna can covered in dust.
Geumson closed his eyes.
This peace he now enjoyed.
The brilliant lights of the city looked like the dimming flames of lives that had gone out that day.
‘This peace is…….’
Geumson clenched his fists.
There was no time to linger in sentiment.
The intoxication fades. The mind clears.
What needed to be done was obvious.
Log into Lepion.
That was the best he could do right now.
To turn this false peace into truth.
[Logging into Lepion.]
[TIP. Seeing through the truth may not necessarily be a good thing.]
The lingering warmth of soju shared with Chang-soo and grilled pork belly had not yet faded.
But Geumson was already logged into Lepion.
The intoxication had long since disappeared.
He didn’t seem drunk at all, for some reason.
‘Seeing through the truth isn’t necessarily good? Is this about Tia?’
Tia’s awakened Light Attribute.
He’d thought of Tia because something similar was written in its description.
But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t grasp the exact meaning.
For some reason, the tips Lepion provided weren’t helpful.
In his previous life, Lepion’s tips had always given genuinely useful information.
But these tips now seemed to spout only cryptic words.
“Anyway…… Maybe I should work on the armor a bit?”
Geumson dismounted from Iron Walker’s back.
Now they were in the desert terrain along the path toward the magical city of Aerithos.
Sand stretched in all directions, and the hot sun pressed down on Geumson.
Geumson had Flame Resistance, yet for some reason he was sweating in the desert heat.
“Walker, let’s prepare for work.”
“Whirrrr!”
Iron Walker, tireless.
From the Forgotten City of Giants to this desert.
He hadn’t stopped moving once.
Geumson found the creature admirable.
‘Walker’s already level three? I’ll need to add some special parts…… but what should I install?’
Geumson fell into thought, watching Iron Walker prepare for work.
Each time a level increased, he could install special components.
But he’d held off because he couldn’t attach subpar parts, and now Walker had already reached level three.
‘I should look around in Aerithos.’
The magical city of Aerithos.
It seemed there would be special parts there worthy of installing on Iron Walker.
If not that, at least he had a feeling he could gain some ideas.
“Whirrrr! Walker!”
While Geumson had been lost in thought, Iron Walker called out to him.
The preparations were already complete.
Geumson went to the spot Iron Walker had prepared and removed his armor, placing it on the workbench.
[Geumson’s Dragon Scale Breastplate]
Starting with that, his Silver Helmet, Shoulder Plate, Gauntlet, and Iron Boots all came off.
Every piece of equipment Geumson had been wearing was removed.
Equipment that had been with Geumson since the early days of Lepion.
But now all the items had lost their luster.
The Dragon Scale Breastplate was already half-destroyed, and the other equipment was no longer performing properly.
“Going all the way to Aerithos like this would be nothing short of suicide.”
All the equipment had a level fifty equip restriction.
Geumson’s current level was fifty-five.
Right now, Geumson was essentially naked except for his hammer.
“Tia? Could you let me know if any monsters show up?”
– Tiat!
Tia lifted off from Geumson’s shoulder, circling warily above him with small, alert cries.
By now, even in her diminished form, she flew with practiced ease.
Geumson took in the materials he needed to work with, then opened the new Hidden System: the Giant’s Smithy.
[Hidden System ‘Artisan’s Workshop’ Lv. 2]
[New Crafting System ‘Giant’s Smithy’ now unlocked.]
A low, rumbling hum—
The instant the message faded, the desert sand vanished from his sight, and a smithy materialized before him—less like a place constructed than a fantasy given flesh and weight.
Lava flowed like rivers from every direction.
Within that maelstrom of fire loomed an anvil of impossible size, and a forge to match it.
[You have entered the Giant’s Smithy.]
[When working with materials of Ancient Grade or higher, material loss decreases and the probability of drawing out latent potential increases by 50%.]
[When crafting equipment, base stats and durability additionally increase by 20%.]
“So this is… the Giant’s Smithy.”
Geumson stood transfixed by the sheer magnitude of the vista.
He steadied himself quickly, splashing water on his face to clear his mind.
Then he lifted the Dragon Scale Breastplate onto the workbench—his first priority.
And from his satchel, he withdrew the material that would be the linchpin of this transformation.
[Chronos Crown Fragment]
The moment his fingers touched it, the final moments of the Giant King Chronos flashed through his mind—a vision of anguish and remorse so profound it burned with the desperate longing to turn back time.
The fragment was saturated with that yearning, that bitter, poignant regret.
‘I’ll pour that power into this armor.’
Without hesitation, Geumson cast the Dragon Scale Breastplate into the forge.
The flames roared—
The Legendary Grade armor began to dissolve slowly within the inferno’s grip.
To completely dismantle its framework, to fuse it with new material, to birth from it something entirely transformed.
That was the vision Geumson was pursuing.
“Iron Walker—feed the crown fragment into the furnace.”
“Iron Walker!”
The Iron Walker seized the Chronos Crown Fragment with its massive pincers and thrust it into the forge.
But the crown did not melt.
Instead, it drank in every shred of heat around it, blazing colder and harder and brighter still.
[Warning: Target’s magical resistance is too high. Smelting is impossible.]
‘As I thought—no ordinary material.’
Geumson had anticipated this. He raised his right hand.
‘Sun’s Right Hand!’
A roar of power—
Solar flames erupted from his palm, merging with the furnace fire and unleashing heat beyond all comparison—a fury that burned without mercy.
The temperature of the entire smithy surged; the sand around Geumson glowed red and began to liquify.

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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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