Chapter 244: Chapter 244
The power of Bulgasari, now armored not in iron but in blood, was beyond imagination.
Transformed into a living battering ram, Bulgasari was like a runaway truck with broken brakes, and its terrifying speed combined with its sharp, pointed front made it an unstoppable force.
[ You have defeated Yellow Agu. ]
[ You have defeated Yellow Agu. ]
[ You have defeated Yellow Agu. ]
[ You have defeated Yellow Agu. ]
Because it was near a major gate, even the Agu had changed color to yellow.
Their levels were in the 180s.
But no matter how high their levels were, they meant little before Su-ho’s blood armor, crafted from his overwhelming mana.
Merely brushing against it was not just a critical hit — it was instant death.
Thanks to that, his experience gains were abundant.
“Honestly, I'd rather just spend the whole day driving Bulgasari around instead of clearing gates.”
If he did, he would probably hit level 200 in no time.
But he couldn’t indulge in that luxury.
North Korea was vast, and there was far too much he had to accomplish alone.
“Endure. Now’s the time to see the forest, not just the trees.”
Finally arriving at the Manufacturing Sector Gate, Su-ho threw himself into the portal, leaving the zombies behind.
[ Entering the gate. ]
[ Retrieving gate information. ]
[ Fire, Iron, and Hammer ]
As Su-ho read the gate information, the scenery around him changed.
[ You have entered Fire, Iron, and Hammer. ]
Right after the system notification, darkness swallowed the surroundings.
The previously deafening roars of the Agu disappeared, and Su-ho found himself standing in an unfamiliar place.
Suddenly, flames sprang up like torches in various places, revealing that Su-ho was isolated in a strange space.
It was wide and flat, looking at first like ordinary ground, but it was actually an anvil.
An anvil — the iron block used in a forge to hammer and shape metal.
He was standing atop one.
“In my past life, they called this the Anvil Gate.”
Thanks to his previous life experiences, Su-ho knew most of the information about North Korean gates.
Among them, the Fire, Iron, and Hammer gate, also known as Bulseomang or the Anvil Gate, was particularly unique because it was one of the few gates where no monsters appeared.
But that didn’t mean it was safe.
In fact, it was far more dangerous than gates where monsters spawned.
The sound of something tearing through the air.
Reacting instinctively, Su-ho shifted his body and dodged to the side.
His vision was blocked.
At the same time, a deafening crash shook the ground, and sparks flew from the impact.
What had fallen from the sky like a meteor wasn’t a wall.
It was a hammer — so massive that for a moment it had looked like a wall.
Su-ho narrowed his eyes and looked up at the hammer towering over him.
“Right. There are no monsters here. Instead, hammers fall onto the anvil.”
Fire, Iron, and Hammer.
Although called the Anvil Gate or Bulseomang, its other nickname was 'Whack-a-Mole.'
At that moment, the fallen hammer was lifted back into the darkness above.
The flames only illuminated the anvil; the hammer that disappeared into the darkness remained hidden.
But that didn't matter.
The darkness posed no obstacle to Su-ho.
[ Due to the effect of Original Vampire, you are unaffected by darkness restrictions. ]
With the Vampire effect activating, the darkness was as clear as day.
Thus, Su-ho could see it.
Where the hammer had gone.
It wasn’t just the hammer concealed in the darkness.
There was its wielder, too.
In the shadows, a giant wearing a Viking helmet — or rather, a statue in the form of a giant — held the hammer aloft with a furious expression.
The statue’s identity was a dwarf.
Su-ho had seen real dwarves before.
Not only seen them, but he had also completed several gates and quests involving them.
“A dwarf, huh. I didn't expect that.”
Though Su-ho knew most things about North Korean gates, all that information came secondhand.
During the North Korean campaign in his past life, he had served in rear support, not frontline combat.
Thus, he had never directly entered the Anvil Gate.
All he knew was what others had reported — that players needed to be extremely cautious because hammers fell from the sky.
But to think that the entity wielding the hammer was a dwarf.
Of course, it wasn’t a real dwarf — just a statue modeled after one — but the implication was significant to Su-ho.
“There’s probably hidden information here that I didn’t know about.”
Not all gates, but gates with particularly high entry requirements often concealed hidden pieces set up by the system.
Finding them was extremely difficult.
One needed keen observation, extensive knowledge about the Great Cataclysm, and above all, precise timing, because once a gate was cleared, the hidden piece was gone forever.
“Some gates even lose their hidden pieces just from being entered once, even without clearing them.”
Su-ho had missed many hidden pieces that way in the past.
He had even once focused exclusively on studying hidden pieces, following hunters who specialized in them.
It had been under government orders.
The results had been mediocre.
Even with great effort, hidden pieces often yielded little tangible reward.
Still, the experience and techniques he accumulated occasionally shone, allowing him to grow stronger.
Thus, Su-ho was certain.
The Anvil Gate wasn’t just about dodging hammers — it hid a hidden piece.
Because the hammer’s owner was a ‘dwarf.’
As he dodged another hammer crashing down, Su-ho thought:
“Dwarves are a high-ranking otherworldly race you don’t even see in 2-star gates. For a 1-star gate to have one modeled here means something important must be hidden.”
The dwarf’s hammer slammed into the anvil.
Dodging the hammer wasn’t particularly difficult.
Maybe if it were a sudden, massive hammer charging out of unseen darkness, it would be hard — but here, where the darkness posed no limitation, failing to dodge would be shameful for a Sword Saint.
Thus, Su-ho mechanically dodged while investigating the ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) surroundings.
“Fire, Iron, and Hammer... the anvil... the dwarf...”
He lined up the clues.
What was the system trying to say with the Anvil Gate?
Looking around, Su-ho saw everything clearly thanks to the Vampire effect.
But all that was here was the anvil he stood upon, the dwarf statue hammering it, and the hammer itself.
Even the time limit wasn’t infinite.
Each hammer strike caused the anvil to sink deeper into the ground.
Once it completely submerged, the gate would be cleared automatically.
While dodging it, Su-ho activated Mana Detection.
But nothing special appeared.
The clues were desperately lacking.
Could it be that he was overthinking, and there was nothing hidden?
The accumulated experience from studying hidden pieces screamed that there had to be something.
Dodging another hammer, Su-ho thought:
“In the end, I have to go back to the basics.”
He raised his head, staring at the still-angry expression of the dwarf statue.
Then, he stretched out his right hand, summoned the Blood Sword, and grasped it firmly.
He activated the following skills:
[ Blessing has been activated. ]
[ Holy Enchant has been activated. ]
His stats surged, and his blood-red sword gleamed pure white.
This would be the first experiment.
Preparing himself, Su-ho dodged the next hammer strike.
The hammer pounded the anvil, sinking it further.
Su-ho seized the opportunity.
He quickly closed the distance and slashed at the hammer’s handle.
[ Steel Sever has been activated. ]
The skill with Su-ho’s greatest cutting force.
As his sword struck the handle, sparks flew and the cut failed.
Flames scattered between the handle and the Blood Sword, causing Su-ho to frown.
“With my current specs, I can’t even cut an object in a 1-star gate?”
His current specs could easily dominate even 2-star gates.
Then Su-ho noticed something interesting.
It was the part of the hammer’s handle he had struck.
Meaning, the attack hadn’t been completely ineffective.
His specs had simply been insufficient to cut all the way through.
If it had been a destructible-immunity object, there would have been no scratch at all.
“If I’m lacking in specs, then I’ll just boost them.”
Su-ho dug into his inventory.
He hadn’t originally planned to use it here, but items existed to be used when needed.
He pulled out the Ki Seunghwan and swallowed it.
[ You have consumed Ki Seunghwan. ]
[ You have fully absorbed the skill experience contained within. ]
[ Please select the skill you wish to enhance. ]
The skill he selected was ‘Blessing.’
Currently, Blessing was at grade B — the natural maximum from level-ups.
“Right now, Blessing increases all stats by 50%.”
It had started at 10% at F-grade and increased by 10% with each upgrade.
Thus, Su-ho had never really worried about upgrading it — it was already monstrous.
But the hammer's handle demanded more.
[ Ki Seunghwan’s experience has been absorbed into Blessing. ]
[ Absorption complete. ]
[ Ki Seunghwan’s experience has been absorbed into Blessing. ]
[ Absorption complete. ]
[ Ki Seunghwan’s experience has been absorbed into Blessing. ]
[ Absorption complete. ]
[ Your understanding of Blessing is extremely high. ]
[ The system is reassessing your talent. ]
[ Congratulations! The Blessing skill’s grade has been adjusted to A-grade. ]
Blessing had risen to A-grade.
Stat amplification increased from 50% to 60%.
But Su-ho wasn’t satisfied.
“Barely scratched it with everything I had. A mere 10% boost isn’t enough.”
Thus, he continued consuming Ki Seunghwan.
[ Your understanding of Blessing is extremely high. ]
[ The system is reassessing your talent. ]
[ Congratulations! The Blessing skill’s grade has been adjusted to S-grade. ]
[ The information for Blessing has changed, and an additional effect has been created. ]
Finally, Blessing reached the highest grade, S.
Su-ho checked the skill information — and couldn't help but laugh.
Crusader-exclusive skill.
While consuming mana, all stats increase by 100%.
The additional effect of S-grade Blessing.
It was a 100% boost to all stats.