I Became the Blacksmith NPC

Liu Kongkong had always been deeply curious about the Void Space. Even though he had built it himself, he had never actually seen the Void Lord's chamber. It was like spending all that time constructing a house, only to have someone tell you that after the house was finished, they had hidden a secret little room inside — a room the owner had never set foot in, one that might even contain something valuable.

The valuable treasure was one reason. The other was his curiosity about the Divine. On the very first day, his HP had been reduced to 1, and he'd logged off feeling dizzy and disoriented. That part could perhaps be replicated through some other means — but the physical changes that had occurred to his real-world body afterward were clearly beyond any ordinary explanation.

So perhaps the Divine that the villagers spoke of was actually some kind of god? If that were the case, then Hunt Heaven was his game. Based on what Ding Dazhuang had said before, the Divine had already been digitizing certain information — things like Mana, HP, equipment data, and so on — before any players ever arrived in this world.

But there were still a few questions nagging at him.

1. Why had the Divine set the construction deadline for the Void Space at an impossible timeframe?

2. If Liu Kongkong hadn't shown up, the villagers would have had to sacrifice one of their own to unlock the 30-player dungeon. So why were they still willing to follow the Divine even knowing that?

3. Why arrange such an unconventional boss as the Void Lord? Honestly, with that boss in there, even high-level players might end up dying faster than they expected...

One thing was certain, though: he had almost certainly already caught the Divine's attention. The earlier mail was proof enough of that.

"I just don't know if I can actually enter the dungeon."

Liu Kongkong turned his thoughts over in his mind, glanced out the window, and saw that the village was already lit up with lights.

He pulled out the [Masquerade Ball] and chose to use it. The next second, a naming box appeared before him. He typed in "Liu Daqiang," then carefully watched the interface — choosing a name was always a dangerous business...

Fortunately, this time it went smoothly. A soft ding rang out, and the ID floating above his head instantly changed to Liu Daqiang. The [Masquerade Ball] grayed out — it wouldn't be usable again for thirty days.

"Time to head out." The Parting Armor had no class restriction, so he could wear it just fine — but weapons were a different story. With no better option, Liu Kongkong dug through his storage and pulled out a weapon that had been gathering dust for ages: the [Deadly Strike of a Single Stick]!

Stick in hand, he strolled slowly toward the entrance of the Void Space. Along the way, people occasionally glanced at him — mostly at his gear. The full set had cost 2,500, and many players hadn't been willing to spend that much. In their eyes, Liu Kongkong was practically a whale.

The dungeon entrance was lively. There were group leaders advertising runs.

"Veteran player leading runs, fast clear of Boss 1, 1 gold coin per seat — Sorcerers welcome!"

"Unlimited fast clears of Boss 1, full Furious Lion Set guaranteed for 10 gold — come on in! Top-tier team [You Said It All] — honest and reliable carries!"

There were also vendors hawking their wares.

"Furious Lion Jacket, green-quality, 5 gold each!"

"Yin-Yang Scorpion-Tailed Lion question bank for sale — learn it and you'll be a pro!"

And there were people publicly calling out scammers.

"Honest Little Gentleman! You piece of ***, you *** thing, go ***!!"

So this was what Starter Village No. 0113 looked like at night — lively and chaotic. Liu Kongkong took it all in with great interest.

"Hey buddy, want a freshly dropped Furious Lion Jacket? That outfit of yours looks great, but in dungeons it's all about stats — one price, 5 gold..."

"I'm just going in to take a look." Liu Kongkong waved him off and walked straight into the dungeon entrance.

The vendor blinked. What was there to "look at" in a dungeon?

Then he pulled up the player's profile. Two characters: Liu Daqiang. All other information was hidden — even the level wasn't displayed.

"Just some nobody wasting my time." He turned to say more, then noticed Liu Kongkong was still standing at the entrance and promptly shut his mouth.

Meanwhile, Liu Kongkong himself was stunned.

The moment he stepped through the teleportation gate, a system message flashed before his eyes.

[Warning: Your current identity cannot enter the dungeon.]

But the next second, that message shattered — replaced by a different warning.

[Warning: Entering the dungeon in your current identity will prevent you from obtaining equipment, EXP, and...]

The last word kept flickering, as if two forces were wrestling for control. But even through the flickering, Liu Kongkong could just make out the word: "items." Finally, after about a minute, the word dissolved into garbled text, and a "Confirm" button appeared below.

So there really was something going on!

He clicked Confirm and stepped into the dungeon. The scene before him shifted in an instant.

"Phew — first time entering a dungeon I built myself. Feels pretty strange." Liu Kongkong walked briskly forward, nimbly hopping over the floor traps with practiced ease. He reached the end of the corridor without even pressing the trap switch, and the next second the entire passage collapsed behind him.

He descended the staircase at a leisurely pace, his crisp footsteps echoing through the vast space below. As he walked, he couldn't help but offer his own critique.

"I was thinking about difficulty when I built this, but the platform ended up too large. If it were smaller, with no railings around the edges, it'd be much better. The traps in the six corridors are also way too obvious — it'd be great if the trap positions could randomize."

He arrived at the hexagonal platform. Standing alone in the middle of it, the space felt enormous and empty. He picked a corridor at random, easily dodged the traps along the way, and finally pushed open the door to one of the boss chambers.

Inside, a Scorpion-Tailed Lion was sprawled on the ground, murmuring: "I once dreamed of roaming the world with a sword in hand..."

It seemed to hear the door open. The Scorpion-Tailed Lion froze, turned its head, and stared blankly at Liu Kongkong, blinking slowly.

"Uh... were you just... singing?" Liu Kongkong asked, equally dazed.

The Scorpion-Tailed Lion remained motionless: "..."

"Wait, hold on — why the hell can you talk?!"

"That's exactly what I want to ask! Why didn't I get any alert when someone came in?! Wait a moment..." The Scorpion-Tailed Lion sniffed the air, then erupted in fury: "You're that blacksmith from before!"

You can even tell that?!

Liu Kongkong removed his face guard. "First explain why you can talk — I've never heard anything about this from any of my... uh, associates!"

"Explain my ass! You tell me where you took my wife first!"

Your wife? Liu Kongkong was taken aback. He suddenly remembered that these creatures came in pairs — and he had no idea where the other one was right now. But before he could even say he didn't know, the Scorpion-Tailed Lion suddenly lunged — raising its paw and slamming it down at him!

Liu Kongkong stumbled back a step and stepped out through the door.

Instantly, a mysterious force pressed the Scorpion-Tailed Lion back to its original spot. Combat disengaged...

This cycle repeated several times.

"Still want to keep going?"

"No more." The Scorpion-Tailed Lion was panting heavily. Every strike had been at full force, and after several consecutive attacks, it was struggling to catch its breath.

"You can even get tired?!" Liu Kongkong clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Obviously! I'm not one of those copies — of course I get tired!"

Copies? Liu Kongkong let out a long, drawn-out "Oh~." So the Yin-Yang Scorpion-Tailed Lions out in the field were copies?

"So why can you talk?"

"I already told you — I'm the original! You came in without triggering any alert, so I didn't have time to switch into character..."

So that was it. But since it could talk, things would be a lot easier to deal with.

And so the two of them — one man, one lion — sat there staring each other down.

Finally, the Scorpion-Tailed Lion spoke first: "If you've got something to ask, ask it and get out. I don't enjoy looking at you."

"Alright, I'll ask then — do you know the Divine?"

Liu Kongkong asked with genuine curiosity.

"The Divine? That's Li Tiansheng! You bunch of idiots have been mishearing it all these years and not one of you ever figured it out?"

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