Chapter 329

Childhood sweethearts. Innocent affection. A promise of the future...

It truly felt like a hazy, dreamlike experience.

Looking back on it now, it all seemed almost unreal.

What man hadn’t once fantasized about a girl from his childhood promising to become his bride one day?

Yuna was beautiful, kind, and pure. No matter how one looked at her, she was the kind of girl people naturally liked.

Kanzaki Rei shook his head and lightly slapped his cheeks.

Stop thinking about it. Stay focused. Your Dao-heart must remain steady.

There were too many reasons why he hadn’t responded directly to Yuna.

He didn’t feel that his emotions toward her had reached the level of romantic love...

And right now, they were both still children.

More importantly, his mind was entirely focused on becoming stronger. He had no interest in love or relationships.

"Am I... an awkward person?"

With his hands in his pockets, Kanzaki Rei walked down the street, replaying Yuna’s confession in his mind.

It was, perhaps, the first time in his life he had been confessed to so formally.

Her words echoed again and again in his thoughts.

Even when he tried not to recall them, they lingered.

"Heh. A few sweet words from a little girl, and you’re already this distracted? Bearer of the Highest Leaf."

Ansu’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts.

"Kanzaki Rei... you’re really annoying," he replied flatly in his mind.

"Hahaha—I just didn’t expect the bearer of the Highest Leaf to be brought to such a sorry state by a child."

"A sorry state? I don’t think so."

"Heh. Still, being troubled by a woman... I’ve experienced that myself in the past. I can understand how you feel now."

"Since ancient times, even heroes fall before beauty!"

Ansu let out a cold chuckle.

"But you should be careful. That little girl’s motives might not be so pure."

"Ansu, I suggest you stop trying to stir my thoughts."

"I know my own limits. I won’t casually suspect people who don’t deserve it."

"If you keep acting like this... I might have to reconsider whether I should keep you around."

Kanzaki Rei’s tone turned colder with each word.

Ansu paused.

"Tch... you change your face fast."

"Fine, fine. I’ll stop."

"...But tell me—do you prefer little girls, or someone like Luluwi?"

"If it were me, I’d go for Luluwi’s type—big chest, slim waist. You two are only about ten years apart. For beings with long lifespans like us, that’s nothing..."

"And conquering a woman who says one thing and means another? That has its own charm."

As Ansu continued rambling, he suddenly felt Kanzaki Rei’s presence grow increasingly oppressive.

His voice cut off instantly.

He shut up without hesitation.

Something told him that if he went on, he might be erased from existence in the next second.

...

Kanzaki Rei returned home.

He had brought back a large number of materials from the White Tower—documents related to forging and enchanting.

The White Tower encompassed all disciplines. Naturally, it included blacksmiths and enchanters as well.

And those who could join the White Tower were at least comparable to mages who had grasped the Origin.

Their experience and understanding far exceeded that of ordinary craftsmen.

Under normal circumstances, any material found in the White Tower represented the best and most refined knowledge available.

As for forging and enchanting materials, Kanzaki Rei had quite a few on hand—

But most of them were harvested from monster corpses.

Minerals and alloys, on the other hand, were relatively scarce.

He would need to purchase some from merchants.

Though realistically, anything sold in shops probably wouldn’t be top-tier.

Still...

A Level 1 Blacksmith didn’t require high-grade materials.

What he had was sufficient.

Unlike Alchemy—where he had Yukrin, a Level 7 Grand Elixir Alchemist, guiding him—

There was no one to teach him blacksmithing.

Whoosh—

A flame ignited in his palm.

Ranked 78th on the Exotic Flame List—

[Molten Core Sacred Flame]

At this moment, Kanzaki Rei felt like Xiao Yan himself.

A hammer appeared in his right hand.

"Exotic Flame... Clear Sky Hammer!"

Of course, it wasn’t actually the Clear Sky Hammer.

Just a Tier 5 forging hammer he had bought casually.

It was a temporary purchase from the market—Tier 5 was the best readily available.

Tier 6 forging hammers required auctions.

And auctions weren’t always open.

He didn’t feel like waiting.

A Tier 5 hammer would do.

Inside the basement—

Flames surged!

A block of metal, melted by fire, floated midair—held in place by magic.

[Heavenly Flow — Third Form: Chaotic Strikes]

BANG!

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG—

A torrential barrage of impacts erupted like a storm!

Then—

The molten metal exploded.

Fragments splattered in every direction.

Forging... failed.

Kanzaki Rei stared silently at the ruined alloy, reviewing the failure.

Too much force.

On Earth, forging involved folding and hammering steel into shape, then quenching it to increase hardness.

But in this world—

Blacksmithing was far more complex.

Every metal had its own inherent properties.

Each strike from a blacksmith wasn’t just shaping—it was awakening the metal’s latent traits.

Once awakened, the weapon gained its corresponding "forging properties."

Similar to enchantments.

Different metals required different activation methods—

Specific strikes at precise locations.

Kanzaki Rei had tried using a combat technique to forge.

But the metal couldn’t withstand the force.

It shattered instantly.

"...Forget it."

"Let’s do this the traditional way."

From his Memory Palace, he selected a book:

[Basic Hammering Techniques]

Ten seconds later—

He had fully reviewed and mastered it.

With his extensive mastery of combat techniques, learning a forging method was trivial.

Gripping the hammer again—

His aura changed completely.

Like a seasoned blacksmith with years of experience.

"Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique."

A new alloy block appeared.

In an instant, its composition, properties, and forging method were clear in his mind.

[Flexible Iron][Forging Property: Retains hardness while gaining elasticity]

Under the searing heat of the Molten Core Sacred Flame—

The metal glowed red.

Then melted effortlessly.

CLANG!

The hammer struck.

He felt it—

A resonance between metal and soul.

A perfect synchronization of rhythm.

CLANG!CLANG CLANG CLANG—

Strike after strike—

He could see rings of light contracting across the metal.

When the ring shrank to match the hammer’s surface—

His strike landed precisely on that point.

So this is what it feels like...

No wonder one couldn’t forge without the class.

Without the profession—

You simply couldn’t perceive these things.

With his monstrous physical control—

Every strike was flawless.

Speed, rhythm, force—

All perfectly executed.

His Level 5 Warrior physique made precision as natural as breathing.

Other blacksmiths might spend months studying a single metal.

Hundreds, thousands of repetitions to achieve mastery.

Kanzaki Rei—

Understood it completely on his first attempt.

CLANG—

With continuous strikes, the Flexible Iron took shape.

Piece after piece was forged—

Then combined through further hammering.

Before long—

A pair of boots was complete.

Level 1 Blacksmith practice item — Flexible Iron Combat Boots.

Kanzaki Rei glanced at the time.

It had taken about three hours.

"...This profession really eats time."

"Next... enhancement."

His Blacksmith talent was centered around enhancement.

The boots were a flawless beginner’s creation—

But in terms of strength?

Still weak.

A Tier 1 item couldn’t withstand real combat.

Even Tier 2 monsters could destroy it.

Whoosh!

The Molten Core Sacred Flame surged again.

Now—

The boots looked completely different in his eyes.

He could see every impurity.

Every flaw.

BANG!

A single hammer strike—

And black impurities burst outward!

Then—

They retracted.

Condensed.

Reforged.

CLANG!

The material transformed.

No longer just Flexible Iron—

But something entirely new.

A unique substance—

Bound only by his talent.

One of a kind.

Using ice magic—

He cooled the boots.

He bent them slightly.

They were as flexible as thick leather—

Yet—

When he struck them—

CLANG!

A metallic resonance rang out.

"Incredible..."

The durability was already comparable to Tier 3 equipment.

Just from a single enhancement.

Whoosh!

Flames surged again.

Second enhancement.

This time—

The boots felt like cloth—

Soft, pliable—

Yet when struck or pierced—

They were as unyielding as solid steel.

Now comparable to Tier 4 equipment.

But this was the limit of Flexible Iron.

It was, after all, a low-tier material.

Weak in hardness.

Rarely used by warriors.

Higher-tier materials offered far better alternatives.

Yet after just two enhancements—

Its strength had increased over a hundredfold.

[God-Tier · Radiant Ascension]

Each enhancement was at least ten times stronger than the last.

And clearly—

"At least ten times" didn’t mean capped at ten.

Five enhancements?

It wouldn’t just be ten thousand times.

It could reach a hundred thousand times or more.

If my Void Spirit Ring-Star Spear were enhanced to that level...

Could it rival a divine artifact?

Even if not—

At least it wouldn’t shatter so easily.

"...Next—enchantment."

Kanzaki Rei placed his hand on the boots.

Normally, Flexible Iron had no capacity for enchantment.

But under his touch—

Its properties shifted.

A space for inscriptions formed within.

A rune stone appeared in his hand—

[Enchantment Rune Stone]

Typically, runes could only be embedded into specially prepared materials.

But under [God-Tier · Supreme Inscription]—

Those restrictions no longer applied.

[Enchantment: Haste]

Bzzz—

The Tier 5 rune transferred onto the boots.

[Flexible Iron Combat Boots (Enhancement +2)][Tier: 1][Quality: Perfect][Forging Effects: Extremely high durability, exceptional flexibility][Enchantment Effect: Tier 5 Haste — Grants a permanent effect equivalent to a Tier 5 Haste spell]

This—

Was the final product.

A Tier 1 item—

With the strength of a Tier 4 equipment piece—

And a Tier 5 enchantment layered on top.