Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: Forging the Legendary Spear
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Shinwa Workshop.
A place that once functioned as a subsidiary workshop under the Shinwa Guild, but now fully independent and entirely mine.
It was enjoying unprecedented prosperity.
For starters, its sheer size was incomparably larger than before.
The merger with the Oseong Workshop had naturally expanded it.
Of course, it wasn't just the size that had grown.
All of the Oseong Workshop's clients had peeled away.
But that didn't matter.
I'd swept up not only their facilities and artisans, but every last material stocked in the workshop.
In the process of expanding, it had naturally swallowed up the surrounding buildings, incorporating them into the Shinwa Workshop.
"Wow, it's enormous."
The Shinwa Workshop was no longer limited to a single building.
With two or three colossal structures leading the way, numerous large buildings combined under them, and a host of mid-sized and smaller ones forming the foundation—it had become an entire village.
It was like a gigantic machine apparatus.
Every component meshed together like gears, producing "crafted goods."
Existing solely for that purpose, the interior burned hot and buzzed with ceaseless activity.
Security had ramped up to an absurd level as a result.
The Shinwa Group itself—not to mention the government—was handling the Shinwa Workshop's protection.
A literal iron fortress.
Not even a single ant could slip inside—
"Right this way, please."
Except for Shin-hyeok.
The moment he rolled down the window of his black sedan and showed his face at the checkpoint, the gates parted like the miracle of Moses.
The sedan shot through what was now the village known as Shinwa Workshop, arriving swiftly at the headquarters.
This was where the Shinwa Workshop had begun—and now, the heart of the village.
Stepping inside, Shin-hyeok headed straight for the top floor, remodeled exclusively for the workshop master.
Whoosh!
'The heat... it's insane.'
Just the elevator doors opening unleashed a tremendous wave of heat.
The key point was that this was heat already buffered by a barrier.
A concession for visitors to the top floor.
Even so, feeling this intensity made Shin-hyeok once again marvel at Se-jin's prowess. He steeled himself and pushed open the door leading to the workshop interior.
Sssizzle!
His skin was scorching.
The moment he felt his clothes and flesh starting to burn from the overwhelming atmospheric heat, Shin-hyeok immediately circulated mana to shield them.
Only then could he barely endure it, spotting Se-jin in the center, hammering away.
Clang! Clang! Thud! Clang! Claaaang!
Light, upbeat hammering.
So rhythmically perfect it almost felt like playing a music game.
It looked effortless—which only amplified the value of Se-jin's skill.
As the saying goes: if something looks easy from the outside, it's because the artisan or master is truly exceptional.
Anyway, Shin-hyeok watched quietly until Se-jin's hammering paused, then approached.
"Brother."
"Huh? What brings you here, Shin-hyeok?"
"I'm a blacksmith too, y'know."
"Not once since the spear. Total phony."
"Yeah? Should this phony blacksmith head out? Got a bunch of stuff you'd love."
"Hold up. Gotta treat our workshop owner to some coffee at least."
"Sweet. Can I get hyped for how good your brew is?"
"You bet! Heh heh, once you try mine, no other coffee'll cut it."
Easy banter.
They left the workshop and moved to the reception room prepared for outsiders.
Se-jin quickly brewed two cups and set them down with a grin before Shin-hyeok and himself.
"Whoa, what's this? The aroma is killer. Not instant, huh?"
"Spot on. Custom blend—instant base, but spiked with beans I sourced and some sweeteners."
"...And latte art. You sure you're not a barista?"
"Just a hobby. Kinda addictive. Turns out inventing new latte art even helps my smithing."
Shin-hyeok stared in disbelief at the phoenix etched atop his coffee, hesitated, then took a sip.
His eyes shot wide. He downed the entire cup in one gulp.
"Insane. Sell just this and you'd be loaded."
"Selling the gear I just made would cover that easy."
"Unique grade, right?"
"Yep. Unique's a breeze now. Flawed pieces pop up sometimes, but still rarer than rare elsewhere."
"As expected, brother. My blacksmith master."
The chat flowed naturally from coffee to the gear he'd been forging. Shin-hyeok nodded vigorously, thumbs up.
Se-jin chuckled, sipping his own, then cut to the chase.
"So, whatcha bring?"
"You haven't heard, huh."
"Nah, been holed up here for hours. What'd you pull off this time?"
"Well? Nailed 10 straight wins in the Colosseum."
"Yeah, 10 straight in the Colosseum, huh... Wait, what?! Wasn't 8 your record?"
"Correct."
"And you didn't just hit 9—you went all the way to 10?"
"Tough one. Last match was a Diamond player. Merciless Sword from Oseong Guild."
"Holy shit..."
Oseong Guild's Merciless Sword.
A name so infamous even Se-jin—who barely followed the player scene—knew it well.
His shock at Shin-hyeok capping his 10-win streak against that player didn't fade quickly.
"And the rewards from it? For you."
"Whatcha get?"
"Unique and legendary materials."
"Gyyyaaah! Shin-hyeok! Lemme call you brother! No—master! Savior!"
Hearing the haul, Se-jin bolted upright, spewing coffee—not fire—from his mouth in a frenzy.
Unique grade he could handle these days. But legendary? Whole different beast.
Something nations scrambled for, handed over casually—his reaction was par for the course.
"Demonic Steel and Rune of Extreme Slaughter. Both for the spear repair."
"What's the Rune of Extreme Slaughter do?"
"Single-use: 500% attack power."
"Demonic spear vibes all the way. Alright, we starting now? Hands are itching."
"No prep?"
"Nah. That unique gear? Just a warm-up to sharpen my senses before the spear."
"...Livin' the dream."
Shin-hyeok grinned at the casualness of unique-grade warm-ups, pulling the Demonic Steel and rune from his inventory for Se-jin.
Even having seen Demonic Steel before, Se-jin's hype exploded.
With the real deal right there, he couldn't contain himself—sprang up again.
Snorting steam, he stormed back into the workshop. Shin-hyeok followed suit.
"I'll assist this time."
"Mm, yeah. This'd overwhelm you solo. Assisting won't be easy, though. Metallurgy skill rank?"
"B."
"Solid. Beats most artisans. But not cutting it here. We're aiming top-tier legendary. Need at least A."
Se-jin was ruthless.
Metallurgy [B] qualified you as a world-class smith.
B-rank let you forge uniques, after all.
But it didn't impress Se-jin.
Minimum A.
An nonexistent rank worldwide as baseline—but his standards were justified.
Of course—
"Then I'll level it up."
"What? B to A takes insane grinding. Even for you, impossible—"
"Scored something good this time. Let's see. Transcendence - Metallurgy."
"...!!!"
That was pre-Plus Ultra Ring talk.
Se-jin sensed the artisan aura radiating from Shin-hyeok, now boasting A-rank Metallurgy via the ring's Transcendence skill. Surprise flashed across his face, then faded.
"Assist me. Countin' on ya."
"You got it."
Se-jin acknowledged him instantly, signaling the start.
Minimum: legendary spear.
Maybe even legendary+.
The forging began.
Roarrrrr!
The fiercely blazing furnace.
The two men before it moved in seamless tandem, flowing like water.
They swiftly provided each other's needs, acting in perfect organic sync without a word—as if linked by instinct.
Having forged the spear together once before, their coordination went beyond "perfect."
"Spirits?"
"Contracted a mid-grade fire spirit this time. Way better than last."
"Good. We'll go about the same as before, then."
With one prior run under their belts, they knew exactly the path forward.
"Super Flamewood. Firepower's locked in."
"Stack a mid fire spirit's flames on top?"
"Feels amazing just imagining it. Let's roll."
The already ferocious furnace flames doubled in ferocity.
"Material ratios?"
"Demonic Steel 7, Mithril 1, Heavenly Refined Steel 1, Demon Core 1."
"Demon core in here?"
"Pre-loading it during repair boosts absorption rate—and reins in potential backlash."
"Flawless."
The ratios for repairing the cracked spear finalized in a blink.
"Inserting."
"Ready."
Booom!
Unique, unique, unique, legendary materials plunged into the furnace—unleashing monstrous backlash.
Fierce rejection, refusing to blend.
Yield, and they'd reduce to a handful of ash. Crystal clear.
But the duo cranked the heat higher, tenderly coaxing the materials into submission.
Backlash and fusion cycling every second. One slip, and the materials wasted pointlessly. Brutally perilous work.
The relentless repulsion could've devoured a lesser smith whole—but they powered through unscathed.
"Beautiful."
"On to the next."
"Yep."
Molten gold sloshed, darker than the blackest pitch by orders of magnitude.
Its vicious demonic energy polluted the air just by existing—but the two smiths ignored it, diving into the next step.
Sssizzle!
Golden molten poured meticulously over the fully cracked spear—no room for error, no waste.
Flawless execution.
And success.
"Perfect. Already leagues better than the original."
"So? Calling it here?"
"Why state the obvious? Demon core time."
"Let's do it."
Just groundwork for the real challenge.
Demon core laid atop the fully restored spear.
Prelims first.
"Holy power injection."
"Forcing backlash, right? Genius like last time. Hit it."
Booom!
Holy power slammed into the demon core.
Instantly, cataclysmic backlash engulfed the entire workshop.
Total chaos.
Splintered furniture and tools flying everywhere.
Booom! Booom! Booom!
The holy-induced repulsion raged on.
Only after draining every drop of holy power did it finally halt.
"Pissed as hell."
"Injecting now."
"Go."
The demon core, destabilized to hell and back by the holy power.
Inject it straight into the spear.
One wrong move, the spear shatters—unable to contain it.
Even a high unique+ or low legendary at stake. Yet no hesitation—they infused it.
Booom!
"Success."
Clean win.
No status window needed. Undeniably a flawless, complete legendary spear.
But finishing touches remained.
"Rune engraving."
"Simplest... toughest."
"Rune polishers?"
"This place is swimming in 'em. Go nuts."
"Being loaded rules. Reminder."
Extreme Slaughter rune engraving underway.
Max-grade polishers jammed in first—to amp the rune's performance.
Polishing was delicate artistry.
Never let the rune outpace the gear. Collapse inevitable.
Thus, razor-sharp calibration: maximize without exceeding.
Their senses? Unrivaled worldwide.
Click-clack—click-clack—
"Collapse signs?"
"Monitoring... Backlash present—but within tolerances."
"Meaning..."
Click!
Rune seats perfectly. The spear's pokeball-like clicking halts.
Frozen in ideal poise.
And simultaneously—a message materialized before their eyes.
Or more precisely—before the eyes of everyone worldwide, including them.