Genius Chapter 146: Global Forum: Arena

Global Forum: Arena

Chapter 146: Global Forum: Arena

Translated by Karai of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

[fuck, an awakening skill!?] 

[Didn’t someone just say that awakening skills could only be on the first weapon?] 

[This awakening skill is insane. I haven’t even figured out the archdemon’s weapon skill, and now there’s another one??]

The global announcement caught everyone off guard, especially since this weapon was an array master’s weapon. Just a short while ago, WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms and Midnight Bell had just forged a high-attribute pen weapon. In one night, two divine weapons had emerged, and players naturally focused their attention on these two weapons.

First, there was the awakening skill. Among all the divine weapons in the game, there were only three with awakening skills, and only two of them were forged by summoner Momo. Looking at the attributes of the two weapons tonight, Midnight Bell’s [Treading Waves and Striking the Sky] was a very well-rounded array master’s weapon with high spell attack, status hit rate, and array duration. The only issue was that its values were quite balanced—high, but not exceptionally high in any single attribute…

In contrast, UnchainedWanderer’s weapon, while also featuring perfect attributes, boasted exceptionally high spell attack, movement speed, duration, and status hit. The spell attack power was 200 points higher than Midnight Bell’s weapon, and its hit rate was also spot-on.

[This weapon is amazing.]

[Momo… he’s just too strong, making one high-attribute weapon a day.] 

[For the first time, I feel like divine weapons seem a bit cheap.] 

[This isn’t just luck in forging mastery. Sure, getting the first summoner weapon might be attributed to luck, but crafting a second weapon with peak attributes? That’s on another level for array masters!]

In just two days since the divine weapons were released, three divine weapons had emerged. It was easy for players to compare these three weapons. While differences between summoners and array masters might cause some discrepancies in attributes, the difference was clear when comparing weapons of the same attack-type array master.

Previously, some players had reservations about Momo, given that he was an astrologer. However, with two out of the three divine weapons being forged by Momo and both featuring awakening skills and excellent attributes, it was clear that achieving this 100% forging success rate wasn’t just luck. Momo had become the top divine weapon forger.

And he wasn’t forging casually.

UnchainedWanderer, currently the third array master, was a well-known attack-type array master.

Though this weapon wasn’t a balanced type, it was a perfect example of an attack-type weapon. Any player with some knowledge of the equipment system could see that [Celestial Punishment] was a divine weapon tailor-made for attack-type array masters.

When WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms saw this weapon, he couldn’t help but laugh, “As expected, he must have mastered the awakening technique. His formula was better than mine.”

Midnight Bell remained silent. WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms had mentioned before the forging that while the formula could guarantee the inheritance of skills and attributes, it couldn’t guarantee the third attribute. The result of the weapon’s forging was within their expectations. Yet, despite the divine nature of the weapon, Midnight Bell had hoped, even if only a little, that it might have had an awakening skill… He had been inclined to think that only the first divine weapon would have a chance for awakening.

Seeing this weapon now, he felt a twinge of jealousy and absurdity.

As an attack-type array master himself, Midnight Bell knew the power of this weapon. Almost every attribute value was his ideal value. Even though the details of the three skills were not yet revealed, he could guess they were likely ideal for array masters.

“Boss Night, there should be other ways to refine divine weapons in the later stages. There might be a chance for another awakening skill,” WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms suggested. “From these two weapons, it’s clear that Momo is very skilled in material formula derivation. Maybe you should establish a good relationship with him first…”

At this point, WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms paused. He almost forgot that Zenith Expanse and Momo had a contentious relationship, and there had been a video recently that went viral, with the forums buzzing about their strained relations…

He quickly adjusted his statement, “I also handle after-sales service. If there are any issues or if further forging is needed, feel free to contact me if you trust me.”

Midnight Bell turned off the forging furnace and said coldly, “Let’s talk about it later.”

After saying that, he teleported away, clearly very displeased.

WhiteCraneandPlumBlossoms ignored him and continued to ponder over the materials in the storage, “Can awakening still be derived from formulas? Did I miss something in my formula?”

Meanwhile, the announcement of [Celestial Punishment]’s attributes was posted in the discussion group. The eight gossipers who had been debating with Zenith Expanse players in the Global Channel had now vanished—no one was even visible anymore.

“Where’s the big shot?” Apple, the gossip expert, knew that the array master section on the forum had already erupted.

Yesterday, there weren’t many players in the summoner Sect, but array masters were a popular profession in Celestial Horizon. The Sect channel was now full of array masters discussing the weapon. Countless people flocked to the Sunset City forging area, but they couldn’t even catch a glimpse of the big shot.

ScarletFruit said, “He logged off. My brother said he was going to have a late-night snack.”

Forging divine weapons was initially such a buzz-worthy event that ScarletFruit and ClearWind had almost kept watch the whole time. They were anxious whenever their big brother stopped forging, but now that the weapon had been completed and the system had been updated, and their brother had logged off, they couldn’t help but feel they might have overreacted a bit.

“That’s not right.” ScarletFruit suddenly recalled an important point. “My brother did log off. At this hour, could they be going for a late-night snack together?”

ClearWind said seriously, “Fruit, have you finally realized? At this time, they might even head to… the Capital Planet’s main district, which is the No. 1 nightlife city in the Star Alliance.”

ScarletFruit was momentarily blinded by the divine weapon. “So brotherly bonds are what they mean by ‘stronger than gold.’ I’m feeling a bit dizzy right now. Are they meeting up too quickly? I’m still waiting for you to come back to Capital Planet for a face-to-face meeting.”

“Cough.” Apple noticed the group chat had shifted topics too quickly and quickly adapted. “So, you’re talking about this. Actually…”

ScarletFruit posted a picture of the divine weapon in the group and added, “Brotherly bonds are great. ReturnToSimplicity is just a neighbor, nothing more. Look at my big brothers—our bond is stronger than gold. They just went and forged a divine weapon without hesitation. Isn’t that more touching than a novel?”

Watermelon, who had been keeping an eye on the first-hand news, asked, “What’s the main point here? Can you, as close friends, tell me how to get the big shot to forge a weapon for me?”

“What are you talking about, Melon? So my big brother isn’t even responding to your messages anymore? Is your status in my big brother’s eyes really not that high?”

ScarletFruit was surprised. “Before joining the advertising team, my big brother used to seek you out every time he logged in.”

“Since that master skill incident, Momo has become my idol. From now on, I’m his personal healer on call,” said Apple.

Cantaloupe shyly said, “Do I have a chance? To be honest, I’ve wanted to grab power and replace someone for a long time. Being the top healer is really tempting.”

ScarletFruit said, “… Personal healer?”

ClearWind suggested, “Maybe you guys should consider changing your name?”

“Call it UnchainedWanderer 2.0. There might be a chance.”

In the game, the excitement was palpable. After Su Mo finished locking the weapon, he logged off.

When he disconnected from the holographic view, he looked up and saw Yu Zhen’s smart robot. Seeing the robot’s simple mechanical exterior, he paused slightly. When the robot noticed him awake, it immediately said, “Mr. Su Mo, the master is in the kitchen.”

Su Mo nodded in thanks, sat on the sofa to relax for a moment, and then headed in the direction the robot indicated.

Yu Zhen had already set the prepared late-night snack on the dining table: one soup and three small dishes, all arranged very delicately.

Su Mo glanced at the ingredients and knew they met his dietary standards. Given his rare habit of having a late-night snack, the small dishes were prepared in moderation. The kitchen counter was very tidy, with Yu Zhen’s terminal placed on a clean spot nearby. The floating screen interface was displaying the attributes of [Celestial Punishment: Punishment Gods].

Through the screen, Su Mo could see the attribute interface alongside the floating signature bar.

Su Mo paused slightly as he noticed his own and Yu Zhen’s IDs displayed together.

Yu Zhen said, “I was just about to call you.” He removed his apron, pulled out a chair for Su Mo, and asked, “Are you hungry?”

Su Mo responded instinctively, “I am, but I shouldn’t eat too much for a late-night snack… Lele will get upset.”

Only then did he realize how late it was. After dinner, he had planned to play games at Yu Zhen’s house, do some daily tasks, and forge weapons. Before he knew it, it was already past 10 p.m. Usually, he would be preparing for bed by this time. Now, however, he felt surprisingly awake, and the smell of the late-night snack made him feel quite hungry, with no sign of drowsiness at all…

“It seems like it’s getting quite late,” Su Mo noted, feeling for the first time in his life like he was out so late and still hadn’t gone home. “When I go back later…”

“I’ve already contacted Lele,” Yu Zhen said, serving him some soup. “I told Lele that it’s too late, and you’ll be staying here tonight. I’ll take you back tomorrow morning.”

Stay overnight?

Su Mo felt a rare bit of nervousness. Normally, it was Yu Zhen who stayed over at his place. This was the first time he was staying over at someone else’s house, but considering how well he and Yu Zhen knew each other and their relationship, staying over seemed quite normal.

“Want to try the soup?” Yu Zhen placed the soup in front of him.

“The soup is good, sweet,” Su Mo said after taking a sip.

Yu Zhen said, “Recently, a friend sent me a new ingredient that increases the sweetness of soups, but it won’t make it excessive. It’s perfect for making soup for you. If you like it, I can give some to you tomorrow to take back to Lele, and I’ll send the recipe to him.”

He then asked, “I saw you were looking at the weapon. How did you know I needed a defensive skill?”

“I guessed,” Su Mo replied, continuing to drink the soup, noticing that the temperature was just right. “I saw you had a set of defensive gear in your equipment library. I know you’re all about attack, but defensive arrays are often used as well. So, I adjusted the formula, hoping to gamble a bit to see if we could get a better skill. If we got a defensive one, that would be ideal. Even if it turned out to be an attacking skill, we wouldn’t lose out.”

“Guessed?”

Yu Zhen’s gaze lingered on the weapon. Since Su Mo had sent him the formula, he had noticed that many of the details in his regular operations had been picked up by Su Mo. Thus, when forging the weapon, the stats were adjusted according to Su Mo’s habits. For an attacking array master like him, skills often had subtle differences due to equipment and upgrades affecting the stats.

But this weapon was different.

“I didn’t know what you needed… so I didn’t prepare a gift.”

“Do you like this?” Su Mo asked.

Hearing this, Yu Zhen lightly ruffled Su Mo’s hair and said, “I like it very much. Thank you.”

Su Mo sipped his soup, glancing at the man across from him who was intently looking at the weapon. He couldn’t help but ask, “I used shared forging, and there’s my name on that weapon. I should be able to add my signature, right?”

When Yu Zhen first saw the weapon, the name “Momo” was immediately noticeable. He initially thought it might have been an unintentional gesture by Su Mo. Hearing this, he realized that his boyfriend wasn’t the type to be oblivious; rather, he was expressing his possessiveness in his own way.

Yu Zhen responded, “Yes.”

“I saw that you are a master blacksmith,” Su Mo said, slightly adjusting his tousled hair. “Next time I refine equipment, I’ll invite you. At that time, your ID will also be on my equipment.”

Yu Zhen smiled and said, “Sure.”

They ate slowly, and as Su Mo talked about the game, he shared his formula derivations for refining and explained the awakening skill to Yu Zhen. Their conversation and meal continued until after 11 PM. Once they had finished eating, Yu Zhen suggested that Su Mo take a bath.

Yu Zhen prepared warm water for Su Mo, who kept medicine in his backpack, including a night supply. After preparing everything, Yu Zhen continued working in the living room. Soon, he heard a noise and turned to see Su Mo standing behind him in his pajamas. The pajamas were slightly large, causing Su Mo to roll up the sleeves, revealing his pale ankles.

Yu Zhen’s gaze paused momentarily. He handed Su Mo a cup of warm water and asked, “Why aren’t you wearing slippers?”

“I forgot,” Su Mo replied, taking the cup. Yu Zhen quickly returned with a pair of plush slippers.

Just as Su Mo was about to speak, Yu Zhen knelt down in front of him, gently holding his ankles, and reminded him, “Momo, lift your foot.”

“Okay,” Su Mo said obediently, lifting his foot. All his attention seemed to focus on the sensation at his ankles.

As he drank the water, he looked down at Yu Zhen and asked softly, “Will I be sleeping on the sofa tonight?”

The man, who was still half-squatting, looked up and met his gaze. “Su Mo, do you think a boyfriend should sleep on the sofa?”