Chapter 123
Imbued with?internal energy, Choi Yeonseung’s fists were more powerful than any other equipment. He could easily treat a solid lump of metal like mud, and that was only one of the most basic things he could do. To top it all off, Choi Yeonseung had completely mastered control over his body.
After sending internal energy to his fingertips, he kneaded the metal, read its movements, then shaped it again. He had never done this before, but he shaped it as skillfully as someone who had been doing this for thousands of years. Having been trained in different ways, he molded the metal with craftsmanship so great it was akin to that of a master’s. The dantian releasing endless internal energy also helped smelt the metal.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ admires your talent, which it has underestimated.]
The cat constellation was very satisfied with Choi Yeonseung’s talent. Now that he had thought about it, Choi Yeonseung had to do a good job since he was using his fists for this.
-It seems I’ve more or less shaped it. Can I stop here?
He kneaded, folded, and hammered the metal into the form of a short sword. He was a bit cautious when it came to self-evaluation, but he felt that he had made something decent.
‘This isn’t so bad for someone doing this for the first time, right?’
-Examine.
Choi Yeonseung checked the unfinished artifact’s attributes with his constellation eyes.
[Blue Short Sword:
Durability: 90/90 ? Attack Power: 80
Contains the skill ‘Blessing of the Cold.’
Level Requirement: 65.]
It has a level requirement of 65, but its attack power was higher than that. It seemed to be quite durable as well. Choi Yeonseung asked the cat constellation with pride.
-Now I can just stick the hilt here and finish it off, right?
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says absolutely not with a serious face.]
-......
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says to hammer and fold it a thousand more times!]
-No... Do I really have to do that?
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says not to take it lightly.]
-... I understand. You are absolutely right.
Choi Yeonseung reflected on himself after listening to the cat constellation. Just as Choi Yeonseung didn’t take every punch and posture lightly, the cat constellation felt the same way toward blacksmithing.
-I should take it seriously just like my trainings.
[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ is?touched?now that you understand its feelings.]
[The ‘Overcome Oneself to Become Strong’ skill has been activated. Creating a great masterpiece will increase your power of existence!]
Having found a new path of training, Choi Yeonseung’s power of existence started to expand.
Ttang, ttang, ttang, ttang—
“... H-How long does he plan on doing this?”
“Should we stop him?”
The bewildered researchers stared at Choi Yeonseung. Watching him knead and shape the metal with his bare hands already surprised them, yet they were met with another surprise. Choi Yeonseung was silently repeating the same process over and over again.
“Did he notice it and got mad?”
“W-What? He couldn’t have.”
“What? What did he notice?”
“This bastard glared at him earlier.”
“Anyone who still does that despite knowing the fuss hunters can make when they’re angry is immature...”
“Y-You’re wrong.”
“If he’s angry right now, I think we should go and stop him.”
However, Choi Yeonseung looked very peaceful. He wasn’t even listening to the researchers, but the cat constellation was still talking to him.
[Hit once, take a short rest, hit twice, and immerse your body in the rhythm...]
-......
Choi Yeonseung wanted to tell it to be quiet, but he held it in.
First of all, the cat constellation was hundreds of times better as a blacksmith than Choi Yeonseung. It was also rare to see it so excited...
‘I’ve received a lot from the cat, so this is the least I can do for it.’
[The cat constellation says that if you hammer the top of the sword guard 180 times and twist it slightly, its durability will increase.]
[The cat constellation says that if you hammer the blue?iron stone?and release strong cold air, the sword’s skill will become stronger.]
The cat constellation gave him all types of advice, showcasing its excellence as a blacksmith. It was like a shortcut to creating artifacts.
-Wait. How do I release cold air?
[......]
The cat constellation became silent. It forgot that Choi Yeonseung couldn’t use magic.
‘Using my power of existence for something like this would be crazy.’
Choi Yeonseung was lost in thought. Although he couldn’t use magic, it wasn’t impossible to release cold air using martial arts.
‘Pick out and specifically collect cold air from the gathered energy.’
He didn’t require such a small trick back when he roamed the Abyss and hunted its monsters. This level of coldness wouldn’t be enough to do anything against an opponent Choi Yeonseung had to fight with all his might. He had to use Origin of the Celestial Divine Arts, which he had honed to its utmost limit, to beat most of his opponents back then.
But this was Earth. Unlike the Abyss, where all he did was fight, he had more things to do here. He had to accept such trivial things without thinking too hard about them.
[The martial art ‘White Ice Divine Arts’ has been created.]
[White Ice Divine Arts]
[Rank: A-]
‘Ah... I made it too difficult to learn.’
Choi Yeonseung clicked his tongue. Taking the future into consideration, he decided it would be better to make martial arts a bit easier. Otherwise, even if he gave it to his household members, they would be in a funny situation where they wouldn’t be able to use it. ?The skill’s rank could be lower. After all, its rank could gradually increase for as long as its practitioner put in the effort.
As he exhaled cold air, the blue?iron stone?absorbed the cold air and emitted a darker light.
‘I think I’m finally done...’
[Frozen Blue Short Sword:
Durability: 200/200 ? Attack Power: 120
Contains the skill ‘Blessing of the Cold Storm.’
Level Requirement: 75.]
‘It has become a lot stronger.’
Of course, only Choi Yeonseung and the cat constellation could see the difference in artifacts. People without constellation eyes or an appraisal skill could only judge it according to its appearance.
‘Is it over?’
‘Isn’t its color a bit different from before?’
‘I’m probably just imagining things.’
***
“I’m done.”
Choi Yeonseung let go of the sword emitting blue light and looked at Nguyen. He seemed cautious. After all...
‘I have no idea how well I performed.’
Choi Yeonseung was a beginner who had just created his first artifact. In contrast, the researchers here at Dragon Artifact did nothing but eat and worry about how to make artifacts, so they had naturally seen all types of artifacts. Their standards were bound to be high. Although he had received the cat constellation’s help, he couldn’t help but doubt he’d meet the standards of those around him.
‘It would be quite embarrassing if I did poorly.’
Choi Yeonseung had no shame. At most, he just borrowed a room and created an artifact. However, he still wouldn’t be able to stop feeling a bit embarrassed if the artifact he created was trash.
"Good work. Have you ever made one before?”
“No. I have never really made anything like this before.”
“Is this really your first time?”
Nguyen looked at Choi Yeonseung with a shocked expression. Was this really the workmanship of a first-timer? He couldn’t believe it. The researchers here used all types of state-of-the-art equipment to make the best artificial artifacts.
However, Choi Yeonseung struck metal with his bare hands and created something better than what they could. It was hard to believe.
“Then you’re really amazing.”
“Aren’t you flattering me too much? You haven’t even checked its performance yet.”
“I can tell even without appraising it.” Nguyen sounded serious. He hadn’t appraised it yet, but he could already guess its attributes because of his long experience. The sharpness of its blade, the light of the magic power it emitted, even its form and balance…
Only a well-made artifact could have such an appearance.
“I’ll let you know about its detailed attributes once I’ve measured it. Hey. Take this and measure it.”
People on Earth could appraise artifacts even without constellation eyes or magic. They conducted various tests to determine its destructive power, magic power, and the skills the artifact contained. ?It would take some time, but it was essential for a precise appraisal.
‘He is just doing this to save my pride,’ Choi Yeonseung thought. His reaction was too much, considering the artifact hadn’t even been properly measured.
“Now, follow me. ?I’ll show you the other facilities.”
It was only when Nguyen led Choi Yeonseung out of the room that the researchers spoke.
“Is it really well-made?”
“Who knows... It’ll have to be appraised first before we can answer that.”
“It can’t be better than what we have made,” someone muttered, but there was no strength in his voice. The people in the room could feel it. It could really be better than what they made!
“... Nguyen isn’t the type of person to spout nonsense.”
“Maybe he’s just biased toward that hunter.”
“Everyone, be quiet.” Frank, their team leader and chief designer, quieted all the researchers. “We have to measure it and check the results before we can talk about it. Let’s begin!”
“G-Got it.”
Frank looked puzzled as he looked at the backs of the researchers rushing to measure it. If the artifact created by that hunter really performed better...
What should they do?
***
“Ah. Hello, Chairman. We’re on a tour right now. Do you have other plans in mind?”
Puzzled, Nguyen handed a smartphone to Choi Yeonseung.
-Yeonseung.
-Yes, Hyung.
-Isn’t it fun and exciting to see the way a huge company runs and makes money?
-Uh, I don’t really care. Why did you call?
-... It isn’t fun?
-It was, but...
He could hear Hwang Gyeongryong stomping his feet with joy over the phone.
‘?’
-I called you because an invitation has arrived. I think you should come and see this yourself.
***
Hwang Gyeongryong was sitting with a serious expression on his face.
“What’s going on?”
“Alex has invited you.”
“Who?”
“... At least try to remember names. The head of the Parker family, which owns that company you recently screwed over.”
Alex Parker, chairman of the Parker family, a conglomerate group that was as powerful as Hwang Gyeongryong.
“He invited me?”
“Yes. I don’t know what he’s up to.”
“Hmm...”
Choi Yeonseung pulled out a chair, sat down, and thought about it. He had probably heard that it was Choi Yeonseung who stole Ronald. Choi Yeonseung had taken him out very confidently.
“He isn’t trying to get revenge, is he? He has no justification, and he wouldn’t just attack openly.”
“I think so as well, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s our enemy. Honestly, what if he has gone crazy and dug a trap? That bastard Alex is an evil old man with no blood or tears.”
Hwang Gyeongryong cursed Alex nonstop. They had bumped into each other a few times while leading their groups, so they had developed a bad relationship. For Hwang Gyeongryong, there weren’t enough bad words in the world to describe Alex.
“But a trap isn’t that much of a problem for me, is it?”
“......”
Hwang Gyeongryong felt unknowingly convinced. After all, Choi Yeonseung was a constellation.
“N-No. You could get caught.”
“I don’t think they can drive me to the point where I’ll get caught. Even if so, I can always just use a bit of strength when I’m in trouble.”
“?”
“They’ll just think my master has given me strength.”
If Choi Yeonseung’s internal energy suddenly increased, the constellations wouldn’t say, ‘That guy is a constellation pretending to be a mortal all along?!’
Rather, they would think Choi Yeonseung’s master had lent him some strength.
“... That’s actually plausible.”
“Right?”
“Then while you’re there, why don’t you break down their mansion and double the number of bones in his body?”
“......”
“I’m just kidding, dude...”
Hwang Gyeongryong hurriedly tried to retract his statement, but Choi Yeonseung thought he was half serious, especially when he saw Hwang Gyeongrong smacking his lips.
‘I think he would’ve liked it better if I was an evil god constellation.’
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