"T-This method...!”
Grid intended to respond to item production with item production! Sticks felt admiration at the unexpected idea. It was exciting to see Grid overturn the common sense of a sage every time. But.
‘Going against common sense isn’t always a good thing. This isn’t a smart method!’
Sticks was certain of it. No matter how he thought about it, the method to win against Kruger was to break the barrier. Kruger’s ability to make items was essentially blocked if the barrier was eliminated. Kruger wouldn’t be able to deal deadly injuries to Grid with his needles alone and it was likely that Grid would catch him as time passed. Yes, all he had to do was break the barrier.
But Grid wasn’t even thinking about this. It was natural. Grid believed that Kruger was in an area that couldn’t be touched since he realized that Kruger was the recipient of the system. It wasn’t a hasty judgment. The system was absolute. Most players, not just Grid, wouldn’t have through about breaking Kruger’s barrier. The more items Kruger made, the stronger he became. Eventually the player would fail to capture the 63rd island.
That’s right. The difficulty of the 63rd island was very high. Kruger was a much more demanding boss monster than Lantier and Alex, who only pushed him physically. Just like he succeeded in the Hell Gao raid by obtaining the fire stones, Kruger was a raid that would only succeed if he found the right hints.
But Grid’s thoughts were completely different.
‘He’s an easy opponent.’
It wasn’t false confidence. From Grid’s perspective, Kruger was really an easy opponent. Why? Grid had the ultimate magic, the enhanced versions of Alarm and Magic Missile. It was fortunate for Grid that Kruger spent 10 minutes and 20 minutes making items.
This was after the Belial raid. Grid cleared several class quests in a row and raised his level significantly in the process of killing the armoured elite troops of the Belto Kingdom. This time, he cleared the 62nd island and gained another level. Now his level was 348. His total intelligence was 2,260. His pure mana was 13,560. If his intelligence was applied, his mana was close to 20,000. It was a large source for magic.
‘The cooldown time of Alarm Lv. 3 is 15 seconds.’
Of course, this was the story when adding up the items that reduced skill cooldown. Theoretically, Grid was able to prepare 80 Alarm + Magic Missiles in 20 minutes. It would be possible if he freely took the best mana potions supplied from Reidan’s alchemy facility.
Once Kruger finished making the items? The barrier would fall and he would be hit by a fatal bombardment of Magic Missiles. Yes, Grid was confident that he could defeat Kruger at any time. Therefore, he could take risks and challenge new things.
‘Making an item!’
Grid was also a legend. If Kruger could produce items in 10 minutes and 20 minutes, Grid could as well. Grid wanted to experiment.
‘I learned from the 2nd National Competition. I spend a few days working on items while other blacksmiths only spend minutes or hours.’
At first, Grid was very surprised and thought negatively. He made fun of other blacksmiths as he wondered how items produced in a short amount of time be meaningful. But what was the reality? Most of the top ranking blacksmiths succeeded in making items with superior power.
At this moment, Grid realized. Spending a long time didn’t necessarily mean a good item would be born.
‘It is an X probability game.’
The result of making a good item depended on probability, not time. Of course, the more time spend creating items, the more likely a higher rated item was to be produced.
‘But the probability will be similar to making several items in a short amount of time.’
In fact, Grid produced the mass production set in as little time was possible and made a lot of rare and epic items.
‘I can’t deny that spending a lot of time in combat is useful.’
Grid knew that it took a lot of time to produce the ultimate items. But he didn’t deny the fast production of items like factories.
‘Sometimes I need the ability to quickly produce items.’
The items wouldn’t unconditionally be bad just because it was made quickly. Kruger proved that fact right now. Thus, Grid would also challenge it.
"Me too...”
Kkuok!
Grid put white phosphorus wood in the portable furnace. He held his blacksmith’s hammer while waiting for the temperature of the furnace to rise.
“I will become a factory manager too...!”
Too much craftsmanship could sometimes be a weakness grabbing at his ankle. He would overcome it and advance. Grid pledged to shake off the craftsmanship that was deeply rooted.
[Kruger has 18 minutes remaining.]
The temperature of Grid’s portable furnace rose very quickly. As Kruger cut two fabrics, the flames in the furnace had already reached the desire temperature. The Legendary Blacksmith’s Craftsmanship Skill was very versatile and Grid was even an expert with the bellows.
“I will make an item!”
He would make an item in 18 minutes. An item that would demonstrate its usefulness right now. What was it? Grid had already thought about it. Based on his experience of making many items, Grid was quick-witted when it came to big work.
“I will make a weapon that crushes all of Kruger’s bones!”
Grid was excited to compete with a legendary tailor. He shouted as hard as possible and took a red bead out of his inventory. It was from his distant newbie days. It was the Red Lightning Summoning Bead that he obtained after raiding the frostlight orc chief.
[Red Lightning Summoning Bead]
The power of a frostlight orc shaman dwells in this bead.
Can summon red lightning from the sky. Temporarily increases the attack power of the weapon struck by this lightning bolt and gives the weapon an electrical attribute.
* It takes one minute to summon the lightning bolt, and the summoner’s health will drop by 10% after each summoning.
Weight: 50
"It’s been a while."
Grid hadn’t forgotten about this summoning bead. As the enemies became stronger, he avoided using it because the burden of the time it took to summon the lightning bolt was too long. He thought that the penalty was higher than the performance.
The Red Lightning Summoning Bead increased the weapon’s attack power by 10%, not his total attack power. He didn’t want to lose 10% of his health for a one minute buff. But Grid had been thinking about it. What if this summoning bead was permanently attached to a weapon? For example, it could be used as an item making material.
However, it was an unrealistic assumption. It was because the Red Lightning Summoning Bead wasn’t classified as a ‘production material.’ In the past, Grid found it impossible to make an item based on the Red Lightning Summoning Bead. But now Grid had the Item Reconstruction skill.
From the moment he could this skill, he thought about using it on the Red Lightning Summoning Bead. Grid decided that now was the right time to use the Red Lightning Summoning Bead.
‘The undead are weak against explosions.’
An explosion occurred at the point where the red lightning struck. If he could attach the Red Lightning Summoning Bead to the Enlightenment Blade, it was highly likely that the Enlightenment Blade would become a weapon that could deal deadly damage to the undead.
In particular, Kruger was only watching out for the flames of the Enlightenment Blade. Kruger would have no defense against the lightning attribute because the current Enlightenment Blade didn’t have it. What if the lightning power of the Red Lightning Summoning Bead was granted to the Enlightenment Sword at this time?
‘I will be able to hit Kruger in the back of the head.’
A smile spread on Grid’s face as he checked the skill information window.
[Legendary Blacksmith’s Reconstruction Lv. 1]
Current experience 63.2%.
Reinterpret items with a 100% understanding into a new form.
The performance of the modified item will depend on your interpretation, skill, and intentions.
* An item can only be reconstructed once.
* When the skill level increases, the number of reconstructions will increase by one.
The requirements were met. The Enlightenment Sword was made by Grid so his understanding was already 100%. One thing to watch out for was that he could only reconstruct an item one time.
‘I need to be careful.’
Grid thought once again. Was it enough to attach the Red Lightning Summoning Bead to the Enlightenment Blade? Of course it was sufficient. There was the black flames of the Enlightenment Blade. It was worth investing the Red Lightning Summoning Bead as well.
‘In addition, the skill will reach level two sooner or later.’
The number of possible reconstructions would increase. There was no reason to hesitate. Grid separated the Enlightenment Blade from Sword Ghost and threw it into the furnace without hesitation. He added the Red Lightning Summoning Bead.
Peeeeeong!
A powerful explosion took place in the furnace. The flames from the Enlightenment Blade and the lightning from the Red Lightning Summoning Bead caused the earth to shake.
Clack.
Claack.
Kruger turned his gaze to Grid while cutting the cloth. If Kruger was alive, he would’ve become alert to the fact that Grid was making an item, which could be a variable. However, the current Kruger was a death knight. He had no thoughts. He soon became indifferent to Grid and turned his gaze back to the cloth. Then.
Ttang!Ttang!Ttang!
The 63rd island.
A hammering sound started to ring on the quiet island. Grid pulled out the Enlightenment Blade and the Red Lightning Summoning Bead before they lost their shape and started hammering frantically.
‘The time it took me to modify Lifael’s Spear isn’t much different from when I make a new item.’
However, now he realized that he spent too much time when looking at Kruger. In the first place, Item Reconstruction was a very active skill. The more it was used in real time during battle, the more valuable it was.
‘I have to aim to be a factory manager and finish it in an instant!’
The 18 minutes flew by quickly.
Paaaat!
The barrier around Kruger disappeared without a trace.
[Kruger has finished making the item!]
Then a notification window popped up.
Taack!
Kruger was already moving. Just like Grid had most of his health and mana restored while hammering and the skill cooldown time ended, Kruger also had most of his health gauge filled.
“What did he make this time?”
Ttang!
Grid hit the blade that was blinking red on the anvil one last time. As the God Hands blocked a few attacks from Kruger, Grid used Pagma’s Swordsmanship.
“Link.”
Pajik!
The blade flashed red. It was the Enlightenment Sword. But now it was different. Sparks rose every time it blinked red.
Pit!
Pipipipipit!
“...!”
Kwang!
Ku kwa kwa kwa kwa! Ku kwa kwa kwa kwa!
Kruger was engulfed in a storm of red light. The cloth he wrapped around himself blocked the flames, absorbed the dark energy and allowed part of the black flames.
Jjeejeeeong!
A red lightning bolt struck.
Duk!
Duduk!
Kruger’s bones shook from the electric shock. It was the moment when the legend of the previous generation was overwhelmed by the present legend. The former legends were weak because they weren’t intact? No, that wasn’t it. Grid wasn’t perfect as a legend. Don’t forget that the legends of the present day weren’t mature. Simply, the new generation was better.