Genius Blacksmith's Game

The first Level 500 user was estimated to have appeared eight months ago, and the whole world was certain that user had been Valhalla.

And now, eight months after Valhalla, the pioneer, had reached Level 500 first,

statistically, it was estimated that there was one Level 500 user out of every million people.

‘That’s how difficult and hard to reach it is.’

Of course, after a few years, the story might change.

But as of now, Level 500 was a number that acknowledged someone as one of the strongest users.

And Hyunsoo, a god class,

whose total required EXP was four times greater than that of ordinary users, and who had thought the total EXP required from Level 499 to Level 500 was ten times greater, could not help but marvel.

[Congratulations.]

[You have reached Level 500.]

[Changes will occur due to reaching Level 500.]

Because he too had finally entered Level 500.

Also, Level 500 was a Level where one underwent a kind of “awakening.”

It was said that ordinary users became about 50% stronger at Level 500 than they had been at Level 499.

‘Will I get about 50% stronger too? Or will the artifacts I craft become about 50% better? Whoa, then that would seriously be insane, wouldn’t it?’

Hyunsoo’s anticipation rose.

At this moment, he was no different from ordinary users. He was happy and delighted.

[Due to reaching Level 500, the Blacksmith God title will change.]

[The All Stats increase effect from first-time crafting will change.]

The All Stats increase effect from first-time crafting!

Art-world classes and blacksmiths received rewards when they created Rare, Epic, Unique, Legendary, Transcendent, Mythic, and other grades for the first time.

That reward was an All Stats increase effect.

However, the god class, Blacksmith God, was, in one word, fucking insane.

Because it was a first-time crafting effect, ordinary blacksmiths had their All Stats increased after crafting Rare, and after crafting the next Rare, they no longer received any reward for it.

That formula applied to Rare, Epic, Unique, Legendary, Transcendent, and even Mythic.

They only received the reward the first time.

But that had not been the case for Hyunsoo.

Because the effect of the Blacksmith God title had applied, his stats had continued to increase.

That was the reason Hyunsoo had been able to be so strong for his Level.

[The All Stats increase effect from first-time crafting will apply only to Mythic.]

[Even if you craft Rare, Epic, Unique, Legendary, or Transcendent from now on, your All Stats will no longer increase.]

“???”

Hyunsoo panicked.

The moment he reached Level 500, what greeted him was a patch.

As if saying, You’ve milked it plenty until now, haven’t you?

the system took away the core power of “successor of the Blacksmith God” from Hyunsoo.

Mythic crafting was by no means easy.

Moreover, in Hyunsoo’s opinion, the Blacksmith God class was not exactly generous with what it gave him to begin with.

“Oh, come on......”

Hyunsoo suppressed the curse that was about to slip out of his mouth on its own.

On top of that, additional notifications rang out.

[Mythic-grade. Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship does not match your Level.]

Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship was a kind of special privilege Hyunsoo had received from the Blacksmith God and Ares.

But after giving it to him, now they were saying it did not match his Level?

Still, Hyunsoo thought it over carefully.

He barely used Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship.

‘Because I can replace it with artifact skills.’

If an ordinary user could use five skills, Hyunsoo could use more than ten.

It was not because he had an enormous number of attack skills.

It was because, for Hyunsoo alone, there were the Twin Dragon Sword, +7 Full Bloom, the Sword for the One Who Follows the King, and more.

Mixing those together and unleashing artifact skills was far more efficient.

Even the Sudden Quest: Attack Baal that had just taken place had, in truth, been composed entirely of artifact skills except for Divine Step, which Ben had passed down to him.

The chain came from the Twin Dragon Sword, and so did Cut Them in Two.

Also, the most powerful damage within three months that had been unleashed through Extremity usually came from the principle of Cut Them in Two.

In this way, Hyunsoo’s actual usage rate for Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship was low.

The reason lay in the power called “Divinity.”

(Divinity.)

Passive Skill

Cooldown: 12 hours.

Effect:

·By exerting Divinity, an immense power begins to stir.

·When Divinity activates, All Stats increase by 28%, and all Attack Power increases by a minimum of 10% to 25%.

·When Divinity activates, all attack damage received is reduced by 50%.

·Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship can only be used while Divinity is active.

·It accumulates through the awe, respect, and admiration of users, NPCs, or countless other beings.

·When entering combat, Divinity may accumulate as time continues.

·You must activate Divinity in order to use Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship.

Divinity was an incredible, broken buff.

Also, he had to use it in order to use Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship.

The problem was that when he had faced Baal, Divinity had not activated.

It was because Divinity accumulated as time passed.

The battle against Baal was short.

Since Hyunsoo could not use Divinity unless it was a long battle like that, his usage rate for Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship was low.

Also, the swordsmanship skill included in Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship, “Weeping Sky,” consumed as much as 10,000 mana.

‘It does kind of make sense.’

Hyunsoo accepted it to some degree, but he could not accept the notification that rang out after that.

[Mythic-grade. Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship will be sealed.]

“You crazy bastards!”

No matter how low the usage rate of Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship was,

Hyunsoo had now reached Level 500, and he had entered a new awakening.

No, he had firmly believed that he had entered a new awakening.

But far from awakening, the most important Blacksmith God title had been hit with a nerf patch, and Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship, a “Mythic-grade” power, had been sealed.

Of course,

‘It’s not like things will change drastically without Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship.’

Even so, he could clearly feel the difference between having it and not having it.

“You said awakening! What kind of awakening is this?!”

Hyunsoo was angry because it felt as if they had taken everything away the moment he reached Level 500.

On top of that, the notifications that rang out one after another were making Hyunsoo’s vision go dark.

[Legendary stat. Will does not match your Level.]

A notification saying it did not match his Level.

It was absurd.

After this notification, Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship had been sealed.

Had he done something wrong?

Or was the Blacksmith God taking everything away now that he had reached Level 500 because he had enjoyed all of it until now?

Since Hyunsoo had already seen what happened through the notification “does not match your Level,” his heart grew even heavier instead.

“Damn it......”

Hyunsoo felt pointlessly miserable.

As if telling him he had enjoyed it all until now, the notifications were reclaiming the powers that had represented him.

Now he understood.

The successor of the Blacksmith God class balanced itself with other users by stripping away its privileges the moment he reached Level 500.

Having judged it that way, Hyunsoo despaired at the overall patch that was about to happen.

*****

Special User Management Team.

Associate Lee Jihee was flustered.

With Team Lead Kim away from his seat as Team Korea’s supervisor,

she too could not understand the current situation while watching Hyunsoo despair on the monitor.

Even the Special User Management Team could not see into everything.

In particular, Associate Lee Jihee had very low authority within the Special User Management Team.

Even so, she had expected the Blacksmith God class’s All Stats increase to be patched at Level 500.

‘If his stats continue to rise every time he crafts an artifact, by the time user Hyunsoo reaches Level 1,000, his total stats could become three times, even five times higher than ordinary users.’

Valhalla was a representative example of someone who also had a similar power, and upon reaching Level 500, that power had been patched.

Yes, she had expected that.

But even for her, it was unexpected that Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship would be sealed because it did not match his Level.

‘Is the Blacksmith God class really being nerfed?’

She understood why Hyunsoo’s expression was colored with despair.

He had worked hard, grown, and reached that Level despite needing several times more EXP than ordinary classes, only for what greeted him to be a penalty.

At that moment,

Team Lead Kim, who had been acting as supervisor, returned.

“......What? A notification saying it doesn’t match his Level appeared?”

Team Lead Kim was shocked.

“Is this right? The user worked hard to reach it, and they patch him the moment he hits Level 500?”

Was this really the right way to repay a user’s effort?

Team Lead Kim looked at Associate Lee, who was speaking like that, and smiled bitterly.

In truth, Team Lead Kim felt that Associate Lee had grown compared to the beginning, but she still had more growing to do.

“It doesn’t match his Level. Do you think that means they’re trying to patch it because it’s too much for his Level? Try thinking about it the other way.”

“The other way? What do you......”

Lee Jihee tried thinking about it the other way.

It did not match his Level.

That could mean it was excessive for his Level, but......

“You mean it’s actually lacking for his Level?”

If she thought about it in reverse, that was the conclusion.

Team Lead Kim looked at the monitor and said,

“The notifications aren’t over yet.”

*****

Hyunsoo gave everything up.

‘Sigh, fine. If you’re going to delete it, hurry up and delete it.’

It was enough to make him wonder whether he had enjoyed too much until now.

At that moment, an additional notification rang out.

[Due to reaching Level 500, a Blacksmith God quest will be created.]

DING!

[Class Quest: King of Blacksmiths was created, and it has been determined that you already achieved it through an awe-inspiring achievement.]

[Class Quest: Craft a Mythic Artifact was created, and it has been determined that you already achieved it through an awe-inspiring achievement.]

[Class Quest: An Enhancement Acknowledged by the World was created, and it has been determined that you already achieved it through an awe-inspiring achievement.]

[Class Quest: Learn a Godly Skill was created, and it has been determined that you already achieved it through an awe-inspiring achievement......]

[It has been confirmed that 7 of the 15 new quests created due to reaching Level 500 have already been achieved through awe-inspiring achievements.]

[Legendary stat. Will does not match your Level.]

[Legendary skill. Gathering does not match your Level.]

[Because you have accumulated achievements that do not match your Level until now, they have been judged insufficient.]

“......!?”

At the final notification, Hyunsoo’s eyes widened.

[Things you would originally have had to accumulate after Level 500 have been cleared through awe-inspiring achievements.]

[Legendary stat. Will will be deleted because it does not match your Level.]

Only after hearing the notification did Hyunsoo understand.

It was not that he possessed skills that were too much for his Level.

Because the achievements he had accomplished until now were overflowing for his Level, those skills were lacking.

‘The King of Blacksmiths quest is a quest you clear by becoming the king of ten thousand blacksmiths. But I have more than three hundred thousand blacksmith subordinates. Also, I already crafted a Mythic artifact ages ago with White Tiger Sword, and that too was an incredible achievement. Because I accomplished it long before Level 500. An Enhancement Acknowledged by the World means enhancing a Transcendent-grade artifact to +5, but I achieved +7. And Learn a Godly Skill was achieved through Hyunsoo’s Swordsmanship and Divine Step.’

Hyunsoo looked back on the path he had walked.

The path he had walked had been brutal, difficult, and exhausting.

Having walked that path, Hyunsoo was rewarded upon reaching Level 500.

[The Blacksmith God is amazed.]

[You have achieved the countless achievements accumulated by the existing Blacksmith God faster and more remarkably.]

[The Blacksmith God sends infinite praise to you, who have walked a harsh road!]

Also, the Blacksmith God sent him awe and admiration.

And Hyunsoo became certain that what he had mistaken as simple deletion would be newly placed before his eyes.

As expected.

DING!

The Blacksmith God acknowledged Hyunsoo’s achievements, and the powers that had been said not to match his Level were given to him because they were lacking compared to his Level and the achievements he had accumulated.

[You have acquired Transcendent stat. Will.]

Also, the “Blacksmith God” title that had been nerfed and become less useful than before—

now that title had grown old, and upon entering Level 500, he acquired a new one.

[You have acquired the title. Unbreakable God.]

After checking it, a single exclamation burst from Hyunsoo’s mouth.

“Holy shit.”

Because it was so excellent that there was no other way to describe it.