Chapter 297
I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 297.
Yoo Baek-jun checked the interior of the airship and then returned to the deck.
"Well made. Can it fly?"
"It’s ready immediately."
Kal flicked his fingers.
The gnomes waiting inside the airship began to move busily.
And shortly after.
Rumble!
With a sound like thunder, an enormous amount of magical power gathered in the airship’s propulsion device.
The sound of the magic stones inside the airship resonating could be heard.
Whoosh!
Soon, the airship’s propulsion device emitted blue flames.
"Hmm...!"
With a tremendous roar, the airshot shot up at an unbelievable speed.
What had been docked at the floating island’s manufacturing facility reached the high sky in an instant.
The surprising thing was that no significant gravitational acceleration was felt during the process.
"O-oh my. I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to launch so abruptly."
"We’re still not used to it..."
The gnomes apologized, but Yoo Baek-jun didn’t pay much attention.
Rather, he was satisfied.
He tested the functions he had added or enhanced with Jin Seo-yeon’s help.
"How many can you build by the deadline?"
"Barely six."
"If we use every possible method."
"If we literally pour in the highest-grade magic stones, we can make eight. Of course, we’ll be working ourselves to death..."
Kal drew a circle with his finger.
"Means I have to pay you more? Not bad. Do it that way."
"Glad you’re understanding. Understood."
Boom!
The airship’s turret fired a magic bullet like a celebratory cannon.
Watching it like fireworks, Jin Seo-yeon stood behind Yoo Baek-jun.
"Hey."
"What? You want one?"
"Yeah, I want to research it more."
Yoo Baek-jun nodded.
He had already planned to lend the airships to trustworthy guilds for assistance and use in battles.
The Magic Tower was one of them.
"I’ll stay here for a while and research this airship. There are probably some areas that can be improved further."
"Hmm, I don’t mind... What about the Magic Tower?"
"The restoration work is mostly done. The people cooperated well. Your family’s people helped too."
"That’s good."
It seemed there were no major issues with the Magic Tower.
The factions opposing Jin Seo-yeon had also been purged during this opportunity.
Thanks to her actions during the rebellion, public opinion within the Magic Tower was favorable.
‘Actually, it turned out to be a gain?’
The Magic Tower had suffered significant damage.
But for Jin Seo-yeon, who was to become the Tower Lord, it wasn’t entirely a bad thing.
"So... if you need help with anything, just say the word. Anything."
"......"
Her eyes were filled with trust.
Yoo Baek-jun nodded.
* * *
"Let’s see."
After confirming the airship, Yoo Baek-jun returned to his family.
He had unfinished business to attend to, and there were things he needed to do.
"Shall I take a look after so long?"
The Book of the Martial God.
He hadn’t forgotten about it. He just hadn’t had an immediate need for it, so he had been saving up points and rewards.
"It’s time to check the rewards."
Yoo Baek-jun reviewed the achievements he had accomplished and checked how many points he had earned as a result.
―Available Points: 9,800P.
An enormous amount of points had accumulated after completing the recent Thunder God event.
And the rewards he received from it.
―Skill Combination Ticket, A-rank Trait Enhancement Ticket, B-rank Trait Enhancement Ticket.
―Mysterious Hammer.
The rest were familiar, but one stood out as unusual.
[Mysterious Hammer (Artifact)]
A hammer imbued with the power of the blacksmith god, bestowed as a reward by a swordsman from another world in return for fulfilling a request.
It possesses the power to enhance items.
―Option: Enhancement
*Enhancement: Striking an item with the hammer enhances it to a higher grade within the same category. Can enhance up to A+ rank items.
It was an artifact.
Yoo Baek-jun held the Mysterious Hammer in his hand and examined it closely.
Nothing particularly special stood out.
‘This also depends on luck, huh.’
Yoo Baek-jun took out the Goddess’s Dice and repeatedly rolled and caught it.
What item would be worth using the hammer on? Something came to mind.
[Gauntlets of Amplification (A)]
Gauntlets crafted by the renowned blacksmith Halpeon in collaboration with a famous mage.
―Options: Strike Enhancement, Amplification
Gauntlets of Amplification.
An item he had once used frequently but now found awkward to use.
The most important option, Amplification, was an active-type effect.
‘Keeps slipping my mind, seriously.’
In urgent situations, activating each option one by one was impractical.
Moreover, with the skill Aura Install now available, he didn’t even wear them anymore.
"Among the A+ rank items I have, this is the one worth enhancing."
After a brief consideration, Yoo Baek-jun quickly made up his mind.
He would use the hammer on the Gauntlets of Amplification.
‘First, let’s use the dice.’
Yoo Baek-jun used the dice.
The option activated, and a golden horseshoe appeared above his head.
"Let’s see what luck brings..."
Yoo Baek-jun raised the Mysterious Hammer high and struck down with all his might.
Clang!
The hammer struck the Gauntlets of Amplification, producing a clear, resonant sound.
―The power within the Mysterious Hammer enhances the Gauntlets of Amplification.
An intense light obscured his vision.
When the light faded, the Gauntlets of Amplification were gone.
In their place was a single gauntlet.
Yoo Baek-jun examined it.
[Fist King’s Conviction (Artifact)]
Gauntlets used by the Fist King, who dominated an era. His convictions and will are imbued within them.
Originally an ordinary pair of gauntlets with no special features, they became extraordinary as they absorbed his convictions and will.
―Options: Adamantine, Fighting Spirit, Fist King
*Adamantine: Fists become harder than steel, significantly enhancing striking power.
*Fighting Spirit: When using fists, power increases with the number of enemies nearby.
*Fist King: The power of all fist-based attacks increases, and the effects of martial skills become even stronger.
Surprisingly, it was an artifact.
Yoo Baek-jun’s eyes widened.
"Didn’t see this coming."
He had expected an S-rank gauntlet, not an artifact.
But it wasn’t bad.
No, it was even better.
‘An artifact with always-active effects, no need to fuss over using it. Convenient and nice.’
The Amplification option was good, but activating it every time was cumbersome.
This artifact suited his preferences perfectly.
Yoo Baek-jun equipped the gauntlet.
"......"
He didn’t feel any immediate changes.
But,
Crash!
Yoo Baek-jun punched the wall and immediately felt the difference.
A casually thrown fist shattered the wall like a cannonball.
“F-Family head! What’s...?"
"It’s nothing."
Yoo Baek-jun hurriedly shooed away Han Seong-ah and the guards who had rushed in.
This was the family head’s residence. Naturally, the walls weren’t made of ordinary materials.
They were constructed with exceptionally durable materials, yet a single punch had destroyed them.
"Not bad."
He was satisfied.
Next were the traits.
He had tickets to enhance an A-rank and a B-rank trait. He had already decided which ones to enhance the moment he saw them.
―Magical Blood (A).
―Undead Hunter (B).
The moment he saw the word ‘Magic,’ a sigh escaped him involuntarily.
No matter how much he raised it, Magic always felt insufficient.
"Enough already, seriously."
The newly acquired skill, Divine Punishment.
No matter how much he controlled its power, using it always left him Magic-depleted.
To use it and still function normally, he needed even more Magic power.
‘Besides, raising this will...’
Magic Power would reach S+ rank.
There was no reason to hesitate.
‘Undead Hunter will be useful against Thanatos, so it’s better to have it.’
Yoo Baek-jun used the A-rank and B-rank Trait Enhancement Tickets.
The targets were Magical Blood and Undead Hunter.
The two traits on his status screen glowed brilliantly and then transformed.
[Magical Rings (S)]
―Magical Rings are engraved throughout the body. Magic capacity increases significantly, regeneration speed improves, and magical efficiency is enhanced.
―When all Magical power is exhausted, the rings circulate, rapidly regenerating a fixed amount of magic.
[Undead Hunter (A)]
―A born hunter of the undead. Can deal greater damage to undead creatures.
Magical Blood had transformed into a completely new trait, while Undead Hunter had its existing effects strengthened further.
Yoo Baek-jun looked at his body.
Whirr!
As he channeled magic, a sound like a motor running came from all over his body.
The sound of the Magical Rings rotating.
―Magical Blood (A) has been promoted to Magical Rings (S).
―Magic power stat has increased.
Yoo Baek-jun felt magic surging through his entire body as if it would overflow.
His Magic power had been stagnant at S-rank for a long time.
But now, with the Magical Rings, that stagnation has ended.
Whoosh!
Blue Magical Power erupted from Yoo Baek-jun like a mist, spreading wildly.
Feeling a fullness he had never experienced before, he checked his status screen.
[Yoo Baek-jun]
Strength: S [S+] (91/100)
Agility: S (89/100)
Stamina: S [S+] (90/100)
Magic Power: S+ (2/100)
S+ rank.
His Magic power stat, which had been stuck at 99, had finally reached S+ rank.
"At last."
S+ rank could be considered the limit achievable by a human body.
Higher ranks existed, but only special beings like dragons could reach them.
And even then, only a handful.
"Wanting more than this would be greed."
From S+ rank onward, it was a battle of mastery.
The difficulty of increasing mastery became incomparably harder than before.
Moreover, as the effects of mastery grew, each point of mastery exerted tremendous power.
"Good, then finally..."
Yoo Baek-jun used his points to upgrade Plum Blossom Fragrance Across Ten Thousand miles to the next rank.
Plum Blossom Fragrance Across Ten Thousand miles, now S-rank from A+ rank, had the same name but incomparably stronger effects.
‘I’ll save the Skill Combination Ticket for enhancing the Berserker later.’
The Book of the Martial God’s skill enhancement had two functions.
Enhancing lower-rank skills to higher-rank ones.
And combining multiple skills to create new ones.
"This should do for now."
Yoo Baek-jun closed the Book of the Martial God.
He still had plenty of points left, but there was no harm in saving them.
He could use them later to acquire top-tier skills or traits when needed.
"Now, there’s still some time before the major event starts..."
Yoo Baek-jun mentally reviewed the various gates he could currently challenge.
Which one would be most beneficial to him?
‘North Sea Ice Palace and the Kingdom of Baim.’
The North Sea Ice Palace offered skills, traits, and rare items.
The Kingdom of Baim provided various non-human races and the kingdom’s treasures.
And one more.
"White Sword, this one too..."
―Hum.
The Kingdom of Baim event was one that could increase White Sword’s favorability.
After a brief deliberation, Yoo Baek-jun decided to check both gates first.
He searched for gates leading to the North Sea Ice Palace and the Kingdom of Baim.
And he quickly realized the deliberation had been unnecessary.
"Tch, it’s not open yet?"
The gate to the North Sea Ice Palace hadn’t appeared yet.
On the other hand, the gate to the Kingdom of Baim was already visible.
Yoo Baek-jun let out a sigh.
"Guess there was only one choice from the start."
―Hum.
White Sword, nestled in his embrace, vibrated as if in response.
‘Before the major event starts, this will be the last one to conquer.’
Recalling the Kingdom of Baim event, Yoo Baek-jun began gathering the people needed for the challenge, one by one.