Chapter 39
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Fragment of the Broken Soul Stone
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The ego sword that Jeong Hoon had brought was completely devoid of power.
Even after undergoing the advanced disassembly process, the fragment of the broken soul stone could not be restored.
"Hmm, this one's unusable."
Materials had to be intact to be of any use.
He'd had some hopes since it was an ego sword, but the fragment was too damaged for reuse.
To have a sense of self, it would need an entire soul stone embedded, and this fragment was too pathetic to even call an ego item.
Was he disappointed?
Heyron glanced at Jeong Hoon's expression.
But a smile played on Jeong Hoon's lips.
"This is more than enough."
"...Is it?"
"I'll make sure word spreads, as promised."
Heyron's face lit up.
"You're serious?!"
"Yes."
The promise would be kept.
Advanced disassembly successful! User has become the first to disassemble the 'Forgotten Mid-level Knight's One-Handed Sword' and extract a soul stone fragment.
The announcement went out across the entire New World server.
It wasn't a monumental achievement worthy of the official homepage, but just having it pop up in global chat while playing was enough to spread the word.
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: Dude! WTF is this? You knew about this and told me to buy it?
See?
The reactions were already rolling in.
WhisperHoon - zl12: Yeah, that's right.
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: Whoa... No way. Checked the auction houseevery one-handed sword you grabbed is sold out.
WhisperHoon - zl12: That thing's gonna skyrocket lol
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: Yup Knew it, so I snagged one too.
WhisperHoon - zl12: Be grateful.
He'd casually tipped off Ha-jin on his way back with the evolution stone, and the guy had bought one right away.
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: Where the hell do you even hear about this stuff? It's insane.
WhisperHoon - zl12: Got lucky. So what're you doing with yours?
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: Hmm... Sell it? Don't need the soul stone fragment myself.
WhisperHoon - zl12: Got it. FYI, it'll go over 1,500 gold later.
Whisperzl12 - Hoon: What, that much?
The Forgotten Mid-level Knight's One-Handed Sword would hit 1,700 gold.
And hold steady at that price.
WhisperHoon - zl12: That's my guess.
Of course, it would take time to stabilize there.
Even after extracting the soul stone fragment, it was too worn for reuse.
Auction listings would dry up now due to the announcement, but they'd refill soon enough.
Even so, it'd climb to 1,700 gold because the restoration method would spread.
'Time to restore it, then.'
Now it was time to restore this soul stone fragment.
Earth Korea User Management Team.
The staff stared at their monitors in shock.
"No way... that was an ego sword?"
"Weapons with egos need to be at least level 300, right?"
"This is crazy... But isn't that fragment beyond saving?"
"No way they can restore even that, right?"
Normal methods wouldn't work, but New World players had cheatsthe achievement system.
And that user had already used it to restore the Red Dragon Bone Bow.
This was the same player who'd shown nothing but jaw-dropping plays so far.
So maybe they knew how to restore a broken soul stone fragment?
"Impossible."
Oh Jin-su shook his head.
Soul stones were only available after level 300 villages.
Extracting a fragment was impressive, but restoring a broken one? No chance.
"Come on, even so, isn't this guy outside the norm?"
One employee asked curiously.
"Wanna bet on it?"
Oh Jin-su smirked and proposed a wager.
"A bet?"
"Yeah. Whether that user restores it or not. Loser buys winner coffee for a month."
"Whoa! You're that confident...?"
Oh Jin-su's nickname was Salt.
King Salt, even.
Once money went into his pocket, it never came out. Famous for zero frivolous spending.
If he was betting, he had to be dead certain.
"But it could happen, right?"
"Hmm, fair point..."
The staff recalled the user's past plays.
They couldn't play New World themselves, but from watching countless users, this one was undeniably irregular.
They'd steamrolled straight to a soul stone fragment.
Didn't that mean they had a way?
"No way. You need at least level 300 for a full soul stone?"
Ego weapons were typically over level 300.
Ultra-rare, with only about five in the whole world.
"Oh... yeah..."
That one line shifted the room's mood.
They got why Oh Jin-su was so smug.
"I'll bet on no restoration."
With that nail driven in, the staff naturally sided with him.
"Then I'll bet on restoration."
Four bold holdouts.
All fresh new hires.
"What're you guys doing on that side?"
"Nothing to lose."
"Yeah? Not scared to lose?"
Earth Korea hires started at eight-figure salaries.
These rookies weren't hurting for cash.
'They're doing it to look out for us.'
It seemed flashy, but the veterans saw it kindly.
No one else picking restoration with Oh Jin-su's bet up, so they smartly took the other side.
"Man... coffee's gonna cost a fortune."
"Tell me about it."
"It's fine. Maknaes are meant to sacrifice..."
Spot on.
They agreed with Oh Jin-su but picked opposite to be considerate.
Jeong Hoon entered the achievement shop.
He had 23,000 achievement points.
Time to use them to restore the soul stone fragment.
Restoring the Red Dragon Bone Bow had required mysterious hourglass, holy lubricant, restoration powder, and fusion potion.
That made the unique restoration powder.
But that wouldn't work on this soul stone fragment.
Got it! Found how to restore broken soul stone fragments lmao
-The answer was in the achievement shop... Whoa, who knew this combo worked? So damn simple.
A post that had blown up on the forums.
It sparked the craze for the Forgotten Mid-level Knight's One-Handed Sword.
It detailed how to restore the fragment for reuse.
Users who succeeded pushed the price straight to 1,700 gold.
Yeah, but the fragment doesn't make a true ego weapon.
Still, overall stats boost makes it worth it lol
Whoa! Thanks! Restored mine!
Insane lol How'd you find this?
Fr, so many weird geniuses out there.
Jeong Hoon had used that post himself back then.
Finding the items was easy.
-Mid-level Warrior's Soul
Available in Achievement Shop Lv. 3.
A soul: a small glass orb with black smoke wafting out.
10,000 points.
Bought itpoints dropped to 13,000.
But this alone wouldn't restore it.
-Binding Stone
1,000 points.
Jeong Hoon pulled out the binding stone and mid-level warrior's soul.
The fragment's soul was worn out, so replace it with a new one.
Simple process.
First, charge the binding stone with mana as energy.
It glowed blue once charged.
Use the binding stone?
Two icons appeared above it.
Drag items to the icons and hit 'Yes' to activate.
Jeong Hoon placed the mid-level warrior's soul on the left, broken soul stone fragment on the right, and pressed 'Yes.'
The binding stone vibrated, then shattered with a crash.
In its place: a soul stone fragment.
Soul Stone Fragment
-Type: Material
-Rarity: Epic
-A piece broken off from a soul stone.
-Can be used in weapon or armor crafting.
Done.
Soul stone fragment restored.
Last step: pick up the Red Dragon Bone Bow from the forge.
Jeong Hoon hunted for two more days, then visited the forge.
"You're here?"
Vulcan paced out front, waiting for Jeong Hoon.
"Yeah. How's the smelting?"
"Perfect."
Vulcan gave a thumbs-up and led him inside.
There, in the center, stood the Red Dragon Bone Bow on display.
Unlike when he'd dropped it off, it now emanated a faint, chilling blood-red aura.
"Satisfying."
Jeong Hoon's lips curved up as he inspected it.
Only he could see or touch it, since he'd consigned it.
Other players saw it blinded.
NPCs were exempt, but the system prevented theft.
Red Dragon Bone Bow
-Type: Bow
-Rarity: Unique
-Attack Power: 206
-Critical Hit Rate: 3 3.5
-Remaining Durability: 100
-Special (1): Infinite mana arrows generated.
-Special (2): Low chance to apply flame damage on hit.
-Special (3): Low chance to auto-activate Breath Arrow.
-(Stage 1) Smelting Success: Portion of the sealed dragon soul awakened.
Smelting differed from enhancement.
Enhancement boosted all stats with stones.
Smelting awakened the weapon's potential.
'All conditions met now.'
Jeong Hoon grinned.
What he'd aimed for: soul stone upgrade.
Only he knew how, for now.
Back in his past life, at level 370.
The world had crumbled as New World became reality.
Soloing dungeons, he'd stumbled on it.
-Mysterious Recipe
A random drop with item lists and synthesis results.
Soul stone fragment included.
Super useful.
Soul stone upgrade recipe:
Soul Stone Recipe
-Soul Stone Fragment
-Dragon Soul
Dragon soul: ultra-low drop from dragonkin in the level 350 Dragon Mountains.
And only those infused with a dragon soul counted.
Pre-smelting, upgrade impossible.
But the Red Dragon Bone Bow's smelting just fulfilled it.
Should give soul stone-level effects.
'Let's get started.'