novelraw Chapter 295: Star-Shifting Celestial Sword, Slaughter Mode
Chapter 295: Star-Shifting Celestial Sword, Slaughter Mode
[You step forward and touch the Book of Craftsmen. Your powerful soul resonates with the book.]
[Do you wish to use the forging function of the Book of Craftsmen?]
[Generating blueprints based on the materials you possess…]
[Beak of Nurarihyon’s True Form + Karasu Tengu’s Canine Fang + Crimson Sun Secret Copper + Windmark Snowsteel + Azure Profound Iron *2 + Essence of Taiyi Geng Metal (not yet owned) + Silver Sand of the Galaxy (not yet owned) + Netherworld Yellow Springs Sha Qi (not yet owned)]
[Based on the above materials, by spending 675,000 Spirit Essence, you can forge a weapon suitable for the shell of Desire-Bearing Greedy Wolf Star Lord. The weapon’s quality will be Legendary.]
To custom-forge a Legendary weapon for the Greedy Wolf Star Lord, a full eight kinds of materials were required.
The cost was an astounding six hundred seventy-five thousand Spirit Essence.
Fortunately, he had previously fleeced some materials off the Imperial Swordsmith. Otherwise, the forging materials alone would have bled Lin Xun dry.
Even so, the forging materials he still lacked were far from cheap.
The three missing materials accounted for a heavy share in the weapon. Buying them all would cost more than one million six hundred thousand Spirit Essence.After reaping the Great General’s contribution of one million Spirit Essence, Lin Xun’s savings reached two million two hundred thousand. Buying the three materials would be almost like returning to liberation overnight.
“Buy them. Using the Imperial Swordsmith for in-house production will save a huge chunk of forging fees.”
“Not to mention there is a high probability of a weapon trait appearing.”
“Round it up and it is pure profit.”
Holding the freeloaded weapon blueprint, Lin Xun went on a shopping spree in the Book of Trade, spending money like water. After buying the three materials, only five hundred eighty thousand remained in his account.
[You have obtained Essence of Taiyi Geng Metal (material)!]
[You have obtained Silver Sand of the Galaxy (material)!]
[You have obtained Netherworld Yellow Springs Sha Qi (material)!]
[You possess the shell Fire-Worshipping Imperial Swordsmith.]
Lin Xun tapped the shell skill Legendary Forging Art.
[The tier of your shell skill Legendary Forging Art is sufficient. You can forge a Legendary weapon according to the current blueprint!]
[This forging will take a considerable amount of time, estimated at 29 hours 36 minutes 49 seconds…]
[Do you wish to begin forging this weapon?]
Lin Xun remembered that forging an Epic weapon had taken most of a day. He had not expected that the time for a Legendary weapon would be even more outrageous.
A full day and night was still not enough to forge a single Legendary weapon. Compared to the Book of Craftsmen, which forged in an instant, this felt a bit lackluster.
[Weapon forging in progress. Please be patient…]
Like the Blacksmith, the Imperial Swordsmith had to hammer with full concentration for the entire forging process, unable to do anything else during that time. At most, he could glance at panel stats to pass the time.
Lin Xun simply exited the game and let the smith hang there forging.
He dialed his female supervisor to report on his ‘cultivation’ progress.
The call connected after two rings, and his female supervisor’s voice came through.
“Lin Xun, what is it?”
“Team Leader Li, I cleared the fifth difficulty.”
“So fast?” The voice on the other end paused in surprise. “Well, with your strength, clearing the fifth difficulty would not take too much effort.”
“Are you planning to stay in the fifth difficulty or advance to the next?”
Naturally, Lin Xun did not plan to stay in the fifth difficulty farming items and equipment. The earlier he advanced, the greater the returns he would reap.
Of course, that was assuming he would not get stuck.
If advancing to the next difficulty meant frequent roadblocks, it would be better to remain at the current difficulty and build up strength.
Particularly important was that once you advanced in difficulty, there was no going back.
No matter how many times an Apostle got stuck after advancing, it was impossible to return to the previous difficulty.
The hellish game would not give Apostles a chance for regret. Choosing to advance to the next difficulty was tantamount to acknowledging that one’s strength had already exceeded the current difficulty.
This was the main reason so many Apostles chose a steady approach. After all, if you overestimated your strength, it was easy to fall into a death loop of getting stuck after advancing.
When he informed Li Xingyue of his thoughts, the female supervisor fell silent for a long time and sighed. “Back when you first joined, you were still a rookie at the third difficulty…”
“In just this short time, you are about to surpass me, your superior, and advance to the sixth difficulty.”
“Come to the office. There just happen to be some things I need to tell you.”
Lin Xun hung up and headed straight to the office.
He vaguely guessed what the female supervisor was going to say. Previously, he had asked Li Xingyue to use her own channels to find some weapon-forging orders.
After quite some time, perhaps there was now movement on that matter.
Upon arriving at the office, sure enough, Li Xingyue told him that a forging commission had come in.
But things were not as simple as he had imagined.
Because she had not used official channels, the bigwig behind Li Xingyue had only spread the word in a small circle, so the number of commission orders was not high.
There was another reason. Commissioning a forging required paying materials worth several million up front. Even with a bigwig as middleman, quite a few people preferred to wait and see.
Unless Lin Xun used official channels, it would be impossible to receive orders in large quantities.
Contrary to what he had imagined, if he used official channels he absolutely would not need to worry about his life.
Because the authorities would absorb him into the headquarters of the Apostle Security Council in Yun Capital City.
As a very rare ‘Blacksmith,’ the headquarters would certainly go all out to protect his life, even assigning elite Apostles for round-the-clock close protection.
However, too many commission orders would not necessarily be a good thing.
Forging equipment was too time-consuming. If he focused on commission forging, he would struggle to find time to clear chapters and improve his own strength.
His thinking was very clear. Spirit Essence was certainly important. It could buy top-tier equipment and items, but it could absolutely not buy a shell.
Even if you saved enough Spirit Essence to purchase a full set of divine gear, without a shell to match, it would all be in vain.
Lin Xun’s goal was not to make money, but to improve his own strength through earning Spirit Essence. If earning Spirit Essence and improving strength diverged, he would undoubtedly choose the latter.
The current small-batch orders were just right. He could make some extra money forging equipment to relieve the urgent shortage of Spirit Essence, and after saving enough, directly advance to the next difficulty to continue improving his strength.
Commission forging was only the first matter Li Xingyue mentioned. The main event was the second.
The New World organization was about to hold the selection for the twelfth Disciple.
As usual, the selection would have all the Disciple candidates enter an Easter Egg Chapter together.
Barring surprises, the Easter Egg Chapter would be the extremely bloody and brutal Slaughter Mode.
To become the twelfth Disciple, you had to defeat all competitors.
According to Li Xingyue, the twelfth Disciple was the last seat. Most candidates were Apostles at the fifth difficulty, with a few at the fourth and sixth.
The competition for the last seat was not as intense as for the middle or top seats. It was said that when the New World selected the chief Disciple, the main combatants were at least seventh difficulty Apostles, and there were even some at the eighth difficulty.
Li Xingyue said, “Your strength is indeed very strong among fifth difficulty Apostles, but do not underestimate higher-difficulty Apostles.”
“Because the blood-soaked Easter Egg Chapter is too dangerous and allows no carelessness, I have already applied to headquarters for an item. If you cannot hold out, do not act tough. Use this item decisively to withdraw from the Easter Egg Chapter.”
“The selection of the Twelve Disciples is far less important than you are.”
As she spoke, a long, thin bookmark manifested in Li Xingyue’s hand.
[Escape Bookmark: Using this bookmark, no matter what peril an Apostle is in, they can immediately return to the library.]
[Please note, using this bookmark is equivalent to ending the chapter. The Apostle cannot re-enter the chapter they escaped from!]
Although the female supervisor had confidence in his strength, she repeatedly emphasized that he must be careful and cautious. Even if he failed to be selected, it was unimportant. What mattered was ensuring his own safety. The deep concern was plain to see.
He did not put on a boisterous act, thumping his chest and promising to seize the seat. Instead, he solemnly accepted this rare and precious bookmark.
“Team Leader, rest assured, I will return safe and sound.”
Seeing his seriousness, Li Xingyue finally exhaled in relief, then coquettishly rolled her eyes. “Do not go setting flags for no reason… I will send you the forging materials and blueprints later.”
“All right, there is nothing else at the office. You may continue your leave.”
“Remember to inform Amos about clearing the chapter. He is the Eleventh Disciple and has participated in the Disciple selection. He has more precise intel…”
Lin Xun agreed to everything, bade farewell to his female supervisor, and left the Intelligence Division building.
Watching his departing back, Li Xingyue stared blankly and sighed. “Once he takes the last seat of the Disciples, he will leave Wen City and join the headquarters.”
“Wen City is too small. In the end, it cannot contain him…”
Li Xingyue rose and walked to the window. The city’s ceaseless traffic was as it had been yesterday. She murmured, “Perhaps I should leave as well…”
—
When Lin Xun re-entered the game, it was already the evening of the next day.
The Imperial Swordsmith had finally finished forging the Greedy Wolf Star Lord’s exclusive weapon.
During the forging, Lin Xun had been unable to browse the Book of Letters to collect the forging orders sent by his female supervisor.
Let alone enter the Disciple Sanctum to contact his male supervisor, Amos.
[Equipment forging successful!]
[You have obtained Star-Shifting Celestial Sword (Legendary weapon)!]
[Due to the special effect of your forging tool Imperial Swordsmith’s Hammer, this weapon has obtained an equipment trait!]
[Star-Shifting Celestial Sword (Legendary weapon): A celestial flying sword forged from numerous precious materials. The blade is inscribed with the Big Dipper. One star named Celestial Pivot Greedy Wolf Star shines most brilliantly.]
[This weapon can, at your will, transform freely in size under the control of true essence. It can shrink to a silver needle to hide under the tongue or in the ear canal, or grow into a sky-bearing giant sword that shatters ten thousand arts with a single strike.]
[By using true essence type energy, you can greatly increase this weapon’s attack power and slightly increase your sword-flight speed.]
[Weapon Trait – One Sword Chills Fourteen Prefectures: Releasing this skill requires a period of charge-up, causing your next sword move to carry a formation-breaking effect. It not only converts a single-target attack into an area attack without loss of damage, but also deals an additional destructive effect to defensive spells.]
“Custom-made exclusive weapon. As expected, it’s awesome.”
Standardized weapons dropped by monsters had a slightly higher chance of possessing a trait than exclusive weapons. Overall, the probability of a Legendary weapon carrying a trait was not high.
This Legendary weapon could not only amplify attack power, it could also increase sword-flight speed, and it even had the One Sword Chills Fourteen Prefectures area damage plus formation-breaking effect.
The Shifting Sumeru Seed he had obtained earlier could only transform a weapon proportionally according to the shell’s size.
The Greedy Wolf Star Lord had not learned a divine ability like Heaven-Earth Manifestation. Against large monsters, an ordinary weapon seemed a bit undersized.
But this weapon could adapt to combat situations, transforming into a giant sword to strike the enemy. It was truly a rare flying sword for a sword immortal.
The more Lin Xun looked, the more he liked it. He even manifested the flying sword into reality.
The sword qi of the flying sword was biting cold. The moment it took shape, the temperature in the rental flat dropped sharply.
Seven stars arranged like a ladle shone brilliantly on the blade. From the looks alone, one could tell this was a celestial treasure.
Unfortunately, Lin Xun himself did not possess true essence and could not alter the sword’s size. He could only manifest the Greedy Wolf Star Lord’s shell to indulge himself.
For a while he shrank the flying sword to the size of a fingernail. Then he enlarged it again, almost stabbing through the living room wall.
After playing with it to his satisfaction, he nodded and sent the flying sword back into the game.
Without another word, Lin Xun moved the flying sword into the Greedy Wolf Star Lord’s equipment slot.
[You have equipped Star-Shifting Celestial Sword (Legendary weapon)!]
[You have become stronger!]
With the Greedy Wolf Star Lord’s weapon settled, Lin Xun prepared to forge a weapon for the Nine-Tailed Fox.
As his strongest combat power at present, the Nine-Tailed Fox had always cast yokai arts empty-handed. Meanwhile, for other summons, whether Valkyrie or Nurarihyon, even the weakest Snow Woman, Lin Xun had purchased weapons.
If water is to be measured out fairly, the Nine-Tailed Fox naturally could not fight barehanded.
As for the Three-Headed Lion… it did not have the function to equip gear. Otherwise, Lin Xun would have gotten it something as well.
With only five hundred eighty thousand Spirit Essence left on hand, he was still far from forging a weapon. He could only take on some crafting work to make money, and once he had saved enough, forge a weapon for the Nine-Tailed Fox.
He clicked the Book of Letters to collect the materials and blueprints sent by his female supervisor.
There were four blueprints in total, three for weapons and one for armor.
According to the blueprints, the Imperial Swordsmith could manufacture exclusive weapons.
Based on the price agreed upon with his female supervisor, the forging fee would be ten percent of the equipment’s total price, slightly cheaper than the Book of Craftsmen.
If an equipment trait was generated, the forging fee would be doubled.
Possessing the Imperial Swordsmith shell, he found that the forging times for the equipment varied. The shortest was the heart-guard armor piece, which required slightly over twenty-four hours.
The forging times for the other weapons all exceeded that, with the longest taking a little over thirty hours.
Lin Xun let out a long sigh and paused his work.
He decided to first find Amos to report the clear and, in passing, ask what rules governed that Slaughter Mode Easter Egg Chapter.