Born in Blood

549  Will

Liam was pleased with how the agreement between him and Bill worked out. Truth be told, he didn't have nearly as many issues with exploring the Tomb as Bill thought he did. Of course, it wasn't without his reservations. For one, it felt like he was diving into pitch black waters, unsure of its depth or lurking dangers. Best case scenario, mister Naxathra was a kind soul who got caught up in a very serious game of hide and seek… or he was a greedy, bloodthirsty demon who wouldn't share his possessions, even after his untimely demise. Either way, he had already agreed to the request. It was not like he could back out now, anyway. Not after what he knew about a corporation's top-secret operation. "Before I leave," Liam said. "I have a few questions I hope you don't mind answering."

"Ask away," Bill said, smiling. His mood was much better after hearing Liam accept the job.

"Have you heard of a woman by the name of Silivar?" Liam asked, and saw Bill's face twist with disgust.

Bill adjusted his expression.

"Ah… yes. Sort of. We were… an item, in the past. It ended on a sour note. She's doing her own thing now." "Uh-huh…"

Cared not, Liam did.

"What about a humanoid mantis looking thing, with scythes for arms." Genuinely looking confused, Bill shook his head. "Doesn't ring a bell."

Liam paused.

"What about a viscous glob with a massive eye in its center? Shoots laser beams, can ignite its slime…" Bill arched a brow in confusion, then shook his head. "You went for a couple of weeks and saw some wild things, man. What even is that?" "Nevermind then," Liam said. "Last question. Where does Gorock live?" Bill was startled.

"Uh… c-can I ask why you want that information? If I have it, even…" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Liam grinned. "I might pay him a visit." Bill slowly raised his hands, as one would when calming down a feral beast who wanted to devour them. "Will you reconsider?" he asked in a friendly voice. Liam remained silent for a second, then smiled coldly.

"No."

"Lad," Bill said seriously. "His nickname is the 'Prince of Cruelty'. Fighting him on his turf is akin to suicide." Silence.

"I never said fighting, did I?" Liam responded. "Just a visit." ***

After a very tense conversation with Bill McGill, a satisfied Liam left the Headquarters of the NOCL… along with the memorized coordinates of Gorock's location. Truth be told, Liam wasn't looking for trouble. However, it was Bill who told Liam of Gorock's speciality in using demonic piranha swarms to devour his enemies. Blood Piranhas were ravenous creatures that greedily devoured blood. They were not easily controlled, and the method of domestication was one of two types. Breeding and raising them… or enslaving them. 'I have to lean towards the latter,' Liam thought. Not to mention Gorock lived not too far away from the Unholy Lamprey… a Great Tide who's sole power was based upon – you guessed it – blood. All this gave Liam the impression that Gorock knew a lot about the secrets of ichor. Way more than Liam himself. If Liam wanted to explore the Tomb with his mind at ease, entering with a Rank 5 body — or, at the very least, one that wasn't stuck at the fourth — would greatly bolster his confidence. Finding himself a large crevice to settle inside in — and using all his White Matter to produce a set of guards for his protection — Liam sat cross-legged and unfurled the original Primordial Forging sheet. It was still largely unaltered, and the processes were more or less the same.

Starting today, that would change.

Primordial Forging had a very rigid structure. Now that Liam spent years forging with the method, and coming across countless other skilled blacksmiths displaying their techniques, he realized how inflexible it was.

It depended too much on Magical Beasts and their innate powers, as opposed to the user's creativity and personal will. In a way, this meant that the item's real forger was the Magical Beast, not the blacksmith. That was what Liam wanted to change. Although meeting Kamjin inspired him to do so, his promise with Rogan had happened years before. He was going to master this art and bring it to the upper ranks. And the same went for Blood Weave.

Time blurred. Altering a Forging method, even a little, was an extremely complex process that required diligent care. Liam already had a tad bit of experience, since he had renewed the workings of Blood Weave. But damn it if Rogan's method was even more difficult than the former. Since everything was centered around Magical Beasts, Liam literally had to transform an animalistic framework into a human one, which was infinitely more complex.

Halfway through, Liam made a very drastic change – completely removing the Will of a Magical Beast from the method. Of course, this meant that he would no longer be able to subjugate Magical Beasts' innate abilities into his weapons. It would vastly increase the time needed to forge items, no longer have the readiness and diverse variety that Magical Beasts offered him, and lessen the number of products Liam could dish out.

Of course, this didn't change the fact that his weapons would still be made from Magical Beast parts. That was never going to change.

Except, Liam added something in its stead. …His own will.

The process was the same. Except, now, instead of using the Will of a Magical Beast, Liam would use his own. The result was mixed. On one hand, it meant that the item was going to be much weaker in terms of sheer power, endurance, balance and sharpness and whatever else. That was because, although Liam had just a Rank 4 mental sphere, the Magical Beasts he subjugated were even at the middle and upper tiers. But now, his base Rank 4 sea of consciousness would substitute as a base. The strength of his mental sphere would directly correlate with the power of his Will.

…But on the other hand, it finally meant Liam had full control over his cruel products.

That put a huge smile on his deathly pale, sweaty, weak face. As he fell unconsci

ous, Liam had just one thought. 'What sword should I tweak first?'