Chapter 1202
Minhyuk had gone out to find Hephaestus, only to see him with Locke. However, he hurriedly turned around because he had received an urgent whisper from Alexander.
When he saw the whisper's contents, he immediately declared the Beyond the Heavens Empire in a state of emergency and gathered all the troops in one place.
‘What the hell is this? A bolt out of the blue?’
Minhyuk found it to be extremely ridiculous. From what he had heard from Alexander, the reason why this bastard wanted to invade the Beyond the Heavens Empire was solely because he was stronger than Alexander. The Beyond the Heavens Empire could maintain their peace and tranquility because they had overwhelmingly strong power.
Fabro’s Clone, which had launched an attack on him and was trying to kill everything right now, was not considered reckless but more of a lunatic. After seeing how this bastard had turned the allied nation’s training site into a mess, Minhyuk realized one thing.
‘The Beyond the Heavens Empire would suffer huge damages.’
Since this battle would happen in the empire, the amount of damage they would incur would be unimaginable. So, Minhyuk quickly made all of the preparations.
While Minhyuk quickly gave orders atop the empire's walls, the warning notifications began to ring.[Fabro’s Clone has descended!]
[Warning.]
[Warning.]
[Danger.]
[A Weapon Downpour has started to fall.]
Minhyuk’s face grew ugly. The vassals standing beside him at the walls tried their hardest to prepare. Alas, the Weapon Downpour began to fall from the sky.
“Elizabeth!”
[The power cannot be controlled.]
Elizabeth shook her head. Minhyuk and his vassals felt a huge sense of urgency. Most of their people had already fled, though there were still quite a few left behind. At this rate, they would lose their soldiers and innocent civilians.
The vassals jumped out and tried to deflect the Weapon Downpour hurriedly. However, it was impossible to deflect tens of thousands of weapons, and in the end, the weapons almost reached the people.
Just then, something shocking happened. All the weapons and artifacts that had shot to the ground stopped mid-air. At the command of the Master of Weapons, the weapons tried their hardest to fall. Alas, a considerable force prevented them from moving further, and they could only twitch in the air.
A man stood at the center of it all. When Minhyuk saw him, his eyes immediately grew wide.
‘Hephaestus!’
***
The situation in the Beyond the Heavens Empire was broadcast in real-time worldwide.
[The tens of thousands of weapons created by the Weapon Downpour falling from the sky will definitely turn the Beyond the Heavens Empire into hell on Earth.]
[Even if the vassals do their best to deflect and destroy them, it would be challenging. Not only are the weapons small, but they also possess high durability.]
[In the end, most weapons will fall on the people!]
Not long after, everyone was left stunned. The tens of thousands of weapons suddenly stopped mid-air.
The hundreds of cameras shot forward, chasing after the man who made the weapons stop in midair. The people all held expectations. After all, this new person recruited by the Beyond the Heavens Empire possessed this level of power. Perhaps he was as manly as Brod or handsome as the Great Demon Elphis. When talking about heroes who appeared like miracles in moments of crisis, most people would think they were attractive.
The commentators finally saw him standing at the center of the tens of thousands of weapons. When the cameras focused on his face, they declined to comment.
[It seems like he’s a blacksmith…]
[I believe he’s an extremely outstanding blacksmith. I wonder who this recruit of the Beyond the Heavens Empire is?]
Unlike the commentators’ response, the community site users and the public were more straightforward. They immediately voiced their disappointment.
[Listen to the commentators. Lololol. They refrained from saying cool or handsome. Hahahahaha.]
[Shit. He’s really f*cking ugly.]
[So… being strong does not necessarily mean they’re good-looking in the Beyond the Heavens Empire?]
[No. The situation is really cool. But he’s really not cool. Ah, I can feel myself shuddering~]
[Guys, you shouldn’t judge people by their appearances, you know?]
[Then, can you date that blacksmith? Can you really tell me that you will follow your heart?]
[Nope. No way.]
[And what’s wrong with his legs? Eyyy. If you’re ugly, then you should just live… ugly.]
Of course, many community site users remained silent about the topic. However, some players and users still loved to belittle others and began to flap their mouths.
The situation at the scene was no different from online, either. The escaping players were all dumbfounded when they discovered that the benefactor who saved them looked like that.
“No, wait. Are you saying that something like that saved us?”
“Wow. That hurts my pride.”
“Hey, your boyfriend is over there.”
Many players reacted like that, leading to a mixture of praise and criticism in the area.
However, Hephaestus, who stopped all weapons, remained steadfast and confident. He said, “Go and take refuge.”
After leaving Niel in the care of the soldiers, Hephaestus limped away with a smile.
Thump, thump–
The dignity and momentum that could be seen on his face were beyond imagination.
Hephaestus had been abandoned at birth for being ugly. He had constantly been ignored and belittled in this world that favored those with good appearances just because he was a bit ugly. However, thanks to Niel and the people of the Beyond the Heavens Empire, Hephaestus finally realized, ‘I don’t have to care about how the people view me.’
He also understood something else.
‘There is no need for me to work hard to get the admiration of those people.’
All he had to do was care for, comfort, and protect those who wanted to be friends with him.
The people laughed and mocked him.
“Looks are proportional to strength. That guy’s a blacksmith. I think he can only stop those weapons because he got lucky. He’ll be swept away now.”
“Just look at his legs. Do you think he’s strong?”
Regardless, Hephaestus found himself not caring about their words.
Thump, thump–
The cameras that broadcast the scene worldwide zoomed in on Hephaestus’ figure as he walked steadily toward his destination.
[Hey! Shit. Turn the camera around!]
[Show Minhyuk!]
Hephaestus continued to walk like that. And when he looked up at the empire's walls, he made eye contact with Minhyuk. A smile bloomed on his face when he saw the soft smile on Minhyuk’s face.
Shwaaaaa–
Then, he stretched his hand high up to the sky. In Hephaestus’ hand was the Destruction Artifact.
Hephaestus, the most significant and outstanding blacksmith of the Gaia Continent, was also called by another name. It was a name derived from the attribute that he was born with. And this name was none other than Artifact Destroyer.
The reason why Hephaestus was considered a cheat-like existence was not only because he was an excellent blacksmith. It was because he was the only strong blacksmith.
As he held his short and stiff hands up to the sky, the tens of thousands of weapons floating in the sky began to crack.
Crack– crack, crack–!
[Fabro’s weapons are resisting violently.]
[They cannot resist.]
[The trivial and insignificant weapons cannot go against the power of the greatest blacksmith.]
Crack, crack, crack–
Thud, thud, thud–!
The tens of thousands of weapons floating in the sky shattered into pieces and fell to the ground with just one command from Hephaestus. He continued to walk among the debris left behind by the ruined artifacts.
Fabro’s Clone could not hide how flustered he was while floating in the sky.
“Wh-what?!”
The weapons used in the Weapon Downpour were the corps that Fabro’s Clone possessed. Although there were only tens of thousands, they were completely different from humans. Unlike the weak flesh of humans, they were made with cold hard iron. On top of that, most of the materials used to make them were legendary grade.
The fact that each weapon was made of legendary-grade materials, did not possess fear or terror, and was made to kill was enough to shock humans.
Nonetheless, these weapons were destroyed with just a single flick of one man's fingers.
“How…?”
Fabro’s Clone wondered if it was because that blacksmith was crazy strong.
The answer to that was no. Hephaestus was not strong. His blacksmithing skills had reached Level 1,000, but his combat ability was only comparable to an NPC at Level 600. Everything happened because of Hephaestus’ innate abilities.
The source of Fabro’s strength lay in his outstanding artifacts. Meanwhile, Hephaestus was hailed as the Artifact Destroyer and possessed the ability to break down any artifact. In front of the Artifact Destroyer, all of the weapons were weak. All weapons would break before him unless it were Minhyuk’s Sword of Aeon or Transcendental’s Armor.
Fabro’s Clone laughed. The clone was not one to be frustrated even at the loss of tens of thousands of legendary rank weapons. He could just obtain tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands more.
The real reason why Fabro’s weapons were frightening was because of Gods’ Weapons. Fabro had won against hundreds of gods and obtained their weapons containing ego. With this, he was able to complete his God’s Weapon Army.
[Gods’ Weapon Festival.]
[This is an Eight Pillar Disaster.]
[Warning!]
[Warning!]
[Warning!]
[The Gods’ weapons will now partake in a slaughter festival!]
[Gods’ Weapons will be 1.3 times stronger in five minutes.]
[The hundreds of Gods’ Weapons move according to Fabro’s orders.]
Flash–!
The phenomenon when something God-rank was produced or when a god descended appeared. Hundreds of blinding pillars of light carrying the hundreds of Gods’ Weapons fell upon the Beyond the Heavens Empire. The moment they appeared, the Gods’ Weapons immediately flew toward the walls of the Beyond the Heavens Empire all at once.
Fabro’s Clone was a cunning and shrewd being. But it was not as conceited or arrogant as other beings. The first thing it decided to do was wipe out the annoying vassals of the empire.
Minhyuk hurriedly said, “Overpower.”
[Overpower cannot be applied against artifacts.]
[Overpower has failed.]
Minhyuk’s face grew ugly. Even the vassals’ stun skills were restricted. The worst part? Their debuffs were either weakened or useless because the target was not alive.
The vassals of the Beyond the Heavens Empire were all strong. More than five were stronger than the gods, at least ten were on par with the gods, and around twenty were recognized as strong Athenae powerhouses.
The problem was the situation right now was like hundreds of gods appearing and attacking them.
Spear God Ben activated his Absolute Pinnacle Spear and tried to deflect the crowd of weapons coming their way. Unfortunately, the powerful skills that shot from the countless spears, swords, and arrows instantly extinguished his Absolute Pinnacle Spear.
They were in a situation where the vassals’ skills were not working while the weapons’ attacks inflicted damage. In short, they were f*cked.
Around nineteen weapons shot straight toward Ben.
“Ugh!” Ben groaned, his body staggering backward as the weapons’ attacks pushed him back.
The nineteen weapons that came his way felt comparable to gods regarding momentum and power. Not only that, but even their movements were fast, strong, and sharp.
‘The biggest problem here is that they are small in size. So, it’s not easy for us to attack.’
A felt urgency enveloped Minhyuk when he saw his vassals get pushed back by the weapons.
Meanwhile, Fabro’s Clone did not intend to drag the fight.
[The Beyond the Heavens Empire is facing an unprecedented crisis.]
[The high-ranking priests are hurriedly bathing the vassals of the Beyond the Heavens Empire with holy light but their recovery rate cannot keep up with their injuries.]
The gears in Minhyuk’s head were spinning fast. No matter how much he thought about it, he could not think of a way to help them break through this situation. He could only use the Supreme Overlord’s Technique to slow the weapons down.
Rumble–!
The Supreme Overlord’s Technique’s flames shot to the sky and devoured the weapons. However, it only made them burn red. It seemed like there was not much of an effect on them.
At that moment, more than forty weapons charged toward Minhyuk. Minhyuk frowned when he caught sight of the number of weapons. His eyes looked around and instinctively sought out Hephaestus.
Hephaestus, who had climbed the walls as quickly as possible, smiled at Minhyuk. When Minhyuk saw Hephaestus’ smile, he felt like he was looking at a vast and majestic mountain. It seemed like his smile was exuding a heavy and overwhelming pressure. Hephaestus had completely discarded his inferiority complex and looked much cooler and more handsome than anybody else.
[Destruction’s Cry.]
Bang–!
Hundreds of lightning fell from the sky and struck all the attacking weapons down when he slammed his gigantic axe on the ground.
Bzzt, bzzt, bzzt–!
The weapons, whose surfaces were covered with sparks and had stopped in their tracks, looked like broken machinery.
“Minhyuk.”
A warmth and longing spread in Minhyuk’s heart as he listened to his friend’s gentle voice. It was rare for Minhyuk to feel yearning and admiration for someone.
The proud Hephaestus smiled at Minhyuk and his vassals. Then, with great majesty and arrogance, he said, “Protect me.”
The vassals trembled at that moment. Who were they? They were the people who were hailed as the strongest in Athenae. However, despite Hephaestus’ arrogant words, they realized this was the only way to break through the situation.
Minhyuk stood to the left of Hephaestus while Brod stood behind him. As for Ben, he looked up at the sky and prepared to protect him from above.
That was right. The Beyond the Heavens Empire’s vassals found Hephaestus’ words and actions rude and unpleasant. Why did they find it unpleasant? It was like Hephaestus was telling them, ‘I need to break those weapons, but you’re blocking my way.’
Hephaestus, who had finally learned of his true worth, was reminding the people who he had decided to protect of his value.
“Hephaestus!”
“Hephaestus!”
“Our Beyond the Heavens Empire’s new blacksmith!”
“We believe in you!”
“Please protect us!”
The voices that laughed and mocked Hephaestus were drowned out by the voices of the people who admired him, the very same people who he decided to protect. The few tens of voices that mocked him were drowned out by the tens of millions of voices that cheered for him.
Hephaestus stepped toward the Gods’ Weapons that the Destruction’s Cry had stopped for five minutes. Then, a tough and sturdy hammer appeared in his hands.
[Destruction’s Hammer.]
Although it failed to break the Sword of Aeon and the Transcendental’s Armor, the Destruction Hammer could still easily break every single one of the Gods’ Weapons.
The first weapon that the hammer struck was an iron mace.
Clang–!
Just one swing and cracks appeared on the surface of the iron mace. Then, light burst out of the iron mace as it broke down into pieces.
Hephaestus took another step. This time, he swung his hammer toward the spear.
Crack! It broke apart.
‘The timid and subservient me.’
Crack!
‘The me who cared about the words of the people who criticized me.’
Crack!
‘The me, the Hephaestus, whose self-esteem and confidence have reached rock bottom.’
Rumble–!
The Artifact Destroyer raised his left arm as if he were giving an absolute command to the weapons. At the same time, the broken Gods’ Weapons flew in front of him. Hephaestus held the hammer with both hands and struck all of the Gods’ Weapons with all his might.
BANG!!!
In one strike, cracks appeared on the surfaces of the dozens of Gods’ Weapons before him.
Crack, crack, crack–!
Then, they started to break one after another.
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