Bear School Astartes

Chapter 935 - 917: Moonlight Greatsword

Lann watched Rudus sitting on the coveted throne, fiddling with the large shell of a crystalline lizard.

He spread out the crystalline-clustered shell and then curled it back, occasionally using some magic abilities and chanting spells.

He was the Lord of Cinder, sitting on the throne not only to provide power to the First Flame but also possessing remnants of the First Flame’s embers within his body.

Thus, he spared the need for furnaces or the like, as his body was the hottest furnace in this world.

Finally, Rudus folded that crystalline lizard shell into a hollow spheroid.

The crystalline clusters reflected the mysterious radiance of each other within the spheroid, as if repeating an endless process of refraction and reflection.

Making the light itself appear distant and mysterious.

"Now, place the misshapen soul, deformed by power, into it."

Rudus held it out to Lann as if offering a bucket of popcorn.

The Demon Hunter glanced around slightly.

Then, he put the only remaining misshapen soul from his body into the cluster-filled spheroid.

The soul of Ausloes, with its crystal blue flame, entered the spheroid and emitted a magnificent deep blue glow amidst the endless crystal refraction.

"Oh, this is indeed a great soul."

Rudus took back the forge containing the soul to his chest, recognizing the soul within.

The short, wiry old man sighed with regret.

"In this Fire Apocalypse, even the great King Ausloes will fall and vanish."

But the fall of an old acquaintance only provoked a moment of sentiment.

After all, in the current situation, anyone might face death.

The short Lord of Cinder turned to the Demon Hunter and said.

"From this soul, I can extract two traits. But please forgive me, good child. I cannot let you choose, as one of the magic involves too dangerous knowledge."

"However, I can forge a weapon for you from this soul."

"Do as you see fit," Lann agreed indifferently.

He originally did this just to slightly comfort Rudus, who could only sit on the throne, and didn’t care much whether Ausloes’s soul could turn into a reward.

"Perhaps you could keep this soul for slow study? Make a task out of it and keep yourself busy,"

Lann’s suggestion made Rudus chuckle softly.

"Thank you for your kindness, child. But King Ausloes’s soul has already become so altered that all the richness of his past life and profound knowledge have decayed and been destroyed. It’s really not worth the effort."

"Here, take it."

With that, Rudus turned the opening of the forge towards Lann again, extending a hand and not giving him a chance to refuse.

In the opening of the forge, a sword hilt, which wasn’t visible before, now extended as if waiting for someone to pull it out.

Lann first glanced at the short Lord of Cinder holding the forge, then, with the other’s continued assurance, reached out and grasped the hilt.

And then slowly pulled it out.

"Wow~"

Even though he had seen many high-grade, exquisite weapons, Lann couldn’t help but exclaim at the beauty of the sword as he slowly drew it out completely.

The sword had a chive leaf shape, with a sleek and crisp curvature.

Including the hilt, its length was over one meter eighty, with the widest part of the blade having the width of two adult palms side by side, becoming narrower towards the tip.

Perhaps due to the magical material, the thickness was not exaggerated, displaying a slender and sharp form.

The blade was cast from a certain blue crystalline material, appearing profound and timeless. The black and gold cross-guard and hilt further intensified this aura.

Perhaps precisely because it had just been condensed from the soul, the sword’s inner power briefly manifested after Lann pulled it completely out of the forge.

The originally dark blue blade began to glow from within, turning ice blue under the internal light, revealing the intricate magical patterns within the crystal, appearing brighter in light blue.

"[Moonlight Greatsword]."

After Lann drew the sword, Rudus seemed pleased to witness this scene and relayed information from Ausloes’s misshapen soul to him.

"This is the magical dragon weapon passed down in the name of Heath, the scaleless deformed white dragon, a traitor of the ancient dragons during the Ancient Dragon War of the Mythical Era, and an in-law of Great King Gwyn."

"Ausloes was indeed pursuing traits of Heath."

Rudus shook his head, sighing.

"In fact, with Ausloes’s power, he was stronger than Heath himself. But perhaps in his view, through Heath’s traits as a channel, finding the key to transform into an Immortal Ancient Dragon was more important, wasn’t it?"

"This sword contains that ancient and profound moonlight, which is what Ausloes persistently sought. But alas..."

"By the time this moonlight finally took form in his soul, his mind was already so mad that he no longer had the capacity to research."

Lann held the Moonlight Greatsword with one hand, carefully admiring the magnificent magical patterns on its blade.

The bright blue radiance cast a spellbinding beauty on his profile.

Until the sword’s power receded back within, the patterns dimmed, and the blade returned to its dull blue-green color, then Lann set it down.

This sword, although appearing slim and sharp due to its material, actually doesn’t weigh much different than a steel greatsword of similar size.

In the hands of a seasoned warrior with an ordinary physique, this weight is manageable, but such a large blade requires both hands to grasp its movements properly.

Yet in the hands of someone with Lann’s physique, it’s considered a rather hefty hand-and-a-half sword.

"Thanks, it’s a good sword."

Lann thanked Rudus, while the stout Lord of Cinders smiled nonchalantly.

"Of course, it’s a top-notch sword. It can even grow more powerful as you learn more magical knowledge."

"I suggest you learn some magic or sorcery, they can enhance your learning. Oh, some miracles too."

"Sorcery, magic... I’ll remember that."

Lann nodded at Rudus, acknowledging the advice.

"Rest assured, Rudus. If I find another aberrant soul like this, I’ll come to you for help. Don’t get annoyed then."

The stout Lord of Cinders knew the other only wished to keep him busy, easing some of his pain.

So he nodded and smiled.

"Good child, bring them over. Let’s see how much of Courland’s craft I can leave behind during my final burning moments. To leave the name...

Before Rudus could finish the word ’name,’ a distant, grand bell suddenly sounded in the sky.

And this bell seemed unhindered or diminished by anything.

The sound passed through layered domes, from the tower’s heights to the depths of the Fire Transmission Altar, from Losric’s mountains to the distant Profound Church, Cold Valley...

The second bell has rung.

Rudus’s smile faded, and he seemed to lose interest in speaking further.

"Go, Lann." He said softly. "Live well, and... come back to me. Haha."

The Demon Hunter silently nodded, turned, and left Rudus’s yearning throne.

He glanced at the old woman still curled in the corner and the burly blacksmith seemingly always hammering an anvil.

The Firekeeper had also rung the bell, returning from the tower to the Fire Transmission Altar.

These people, along with the throne’s vacant lords, were just poor souls bound here by the flame.

Upon exiting the building’s dome and seeing the sky again, Lann found the time had slipped to daylight.

Firelink, the world’s order continuity... everything seemed cyclic, normal, and mundane.

But ultimately, Lann felt this world was unavoidably... cruel.

-----------------

The journey back was a solitary one, yet not difficult.

Those grave wardens, already mad low-rank clergy, had been cleared by Lann during his crystal lizard hunt and were not revived yet.

Under the reignited flames, the wardens in the Ashen graves were in better shape.

Seemingly within their protocol, there are instructions for what to do after the second bell.

When Lann passed again, the wardens were preparing to withdraw.

"Newly awakened Ashen Ones rarely have clear minds; they’ll often attack anything alive because they still hunger for flames and souls as fuel. So no sane being should appear before them now."

With regained sanity, the wardens said this to Lann as they departed.

In Losric’s over ten thousand years of fire transmission, a comprehensive set of countermeasures has formed.

This mess emerged partly due to clustered conspiracies and because the flame waned significantly.

Lann didn’t follow the retreating wardens; he returned the same way.

At the small entrance toward Ausloes’s palace, Lann shot a hook with the Projector, and after securing it, climbed to the platform in a few swift moves.

Heading back, he found the Elu Cat and Divine Baby curled together asleep.

Lann woke Rong Buqiu and quietly headed towards the Demon King Courtyard’s exit with Othello.

"What did you feed him?"

Lann noticed food residue on Othello’s mouth and asked Rong Buqiu.

"It’s cheese, meow. He seemed weak, couldn’t just let it go, you know?"

Rong Buqiu’s triangular ears flickered as he spoke.