Spirit Soul

Kyle was not sure why the blacksmith was so astonished to see the Silver serpent spear, but there was no reason for him to lie.

"I found the spear inside an inheritance site and took it with me. The runes are probably slightly more complex than the ones most blacksmiths use right now, but I think they're quite powerful!"

By adding his opinion about the inscribed runes, Kyle wanted to strike a conversation that was not just based on him throwing random questions around.

The blacksmith nodded his head in agreement before he added further.

"Saying that the runes are 'slightly complexer' is a gross underestimation, but they're indeed quite powerful. In fact, if I'm not wrong, the runes haven't been used since the Yna Empyrean era… That's quite intriguing…"

Looking at Kyle, the blacksmith sized him up, trying to figure out how youth at the Vitae stage was able to procure such a powerful, yet also damaged weapon from an era that ended more than 100,000 years ago.

In fact, the weapon was still extremely powerful considering that it must have been crafted an eternity ago, which was also very interesting.

The reason for this might be some of the runes that preserved the durability of the materials that had been used to forge the weapon.

"I don't really know much about the Yna Empyrean, but is it possible to restore the weapon's former glory?"

In the end, Kyle didn't really bother how old the Silver serpent spear was, or what era did it belong to.

For now, he was only focusing on the fact that it was an extremely powerful weapon. And in all honesty, that was what mattered.

This was the most important and deciding factor when someone procured a weapon, and the sharper his weapon, the easier it was for him to kill his opponents.

With such a simple thought in mind, he wanted to own the strongest weapon as long as he was able to wield it properly.

The Silver serpent weapon could also adjust its demand for energy to be at par with his cultivation base, which made it slightly easier for him to wield it.

As such, he was sure that restoring it would bring him the best possible result.

"To be honest, I have no idea. Maybe it might be possible for my master, but I'm on my century-long pilgrimage and have just finished my apprenticeship under him.

My race's settlement is quite far away from the Anadra kingdom, and I'm not one of the demihumans that would inhabit this area under normal circumstances.

So, to answer you bluntly, I cannot help you with the restoration of this weapon, and it's not exactly worth it for you to travel to my kingdom as it would take you far more than a year or two.

That being said, would you be interested in bartering instead?"

Bartering was something Kyle expected the least to happen right now.

He had entered the shop in order to restore his weapon, not to exchange it with another one.

As such, he couldn't help but look at the blacksmith skeptically, trying to figure out what exactly he wanted to do.

The blacksmith noticed his doubt, and he didn't find it troublesome to reveal the truth as it was relatively simple.

"As you might have noticed, I spoke about my master earlier, who would be in a better position to help you than I. And, to be honest, I only know of the runes on the spear that you brought because of my master.

I believe the spear has been forged by my master's ancestors, because only our race can insert the runes which you can see on the spear.

In fact, all of the runes on the spear have fractions of our essence in them, which means only someone belonging to our race can restore or make use of them!"

Unsure about how to feel when he heard this, Kyle peered at the young blacksmith, suspicious about his intentions.

Yet, in the end, there was no need to decline the offer right away because he might be able to get an even more powerful weapon as long as he negotiated well.

However, instead of readily agreeing to the offer and showing his interest expressively, followed by his demands, Kyle looked at the blacksmith for a little bit longer.

His facial features denoted that he was extremely young, but there was a seriousness on his face that was rare to spot on the faces of young people.

He had a subtle gray skin color, and Kyle could see black scales on the back of the blacksmith's hand.

Other than that, there was a small horn that jutted out from right in between the middle of his forehead, which was hidden by his black hair that fell on his face.

Kyle was not exactly sure what kind of demihuman the blacksmith could have been, but hearing that he was not a demihuman, at all, was even more intriguing in his opinion.

Both parties were intrigued about each other, but that didn't mean any of them would let that curiosity affect their negotiation.

"By telling me that the spear has a high emotional value to you, you're not really helping yourself in the negotiations.

But, I don't really think that you are foolish enough to reveal the value of the spear without knowing what you can exchange the spear with, am I right?"

Sometimes, Kyle might act foolish and a little hasty, but he was certainly not dumb.

As such, he was straightforward and clearly stated what was on his mind before waiting for the young blacksmith's answer.

Seeing a subtle smile on his face, Kyle knew that he had hit the bullseye with what he had said.

"You're right to some extent. To be precise, I wanted to give you the chance to pick a weapon of your choice in exchange for the spear.

Doing so would help you can increase your strength by choosing a stronger weapon, and I can study the runes on the spear!"

It was obvious that the trade was fair, even more so because the small shop had weapons that gained sentience.

This fact alone was enough for Kyle to be interested in what the blacksmith had to offer.

Other than that, the strongest weapons were probably at the Low Secur grade, which meant that he could injure all kinds of Krysal stage beasts without an issue.

He couldn't be sure about the grading because his eyes were not trained enough to ascertain the ranking of equipment just by looking at it.

But even without that, he could clearly understand that every single weapon in this shop was exceptional.

WIth that in mind, Kyle was tempted to accept the blacksmith's proposal right away.

Yet, instead of giving in to the temptation, he summoned the Soul Storage medallion before he showed it to the blacksmith.

"Can you forge a weapon that has the same characteristics as this medallion? You can compare it to a storage of a certain type of energy which you can drain from an opponent that you have just killed."

Kyle knew that he was revealing a lot right now, but that didn't matter because it was necessary to explain what were his requirements in order to get a proper weapon forged.

This was his final goal, after all, though it was not something that could be achieved easily.

However, he believed that the blacksmith in front of him was able to forge the most basic version of the weapon he was looking for- a weapon that could drain the soul energy of beings he had killed without devouring their soul.

Even if they would store the entire soul energy, he could free the souls of the deceased after some time.

Yet, the most important was still to procure a powerful weapon that made the soul-devouring process easier, and less of a time wasting procedure!

"You mean, you want a life force draining effect, just with this…eh…I don't know what kind of energy that is..but with that energy, right?"

The comparison was spot on with the sole difference being that the draining process happened after he had killed his opponent.

Intrigued by what Kyle wanted from him, he didn't outright deny his request, which was what he would usually do if someone demanded him to forge a customized weapon.

Instead, the blacksmith was carefully holding the Soul storage medallion, inserting some of his energy into it in order to figure out the components that were used to forge it.

Almost half an hour passed, and the young man was still not done inspecting the Soul storage medallion.

It seemed to intrigue and boggle him as he let out a sigh after some time.

"Hmm, I won't be able to replicate this medallion, and neither will I be able to alter it directly but…would it be enough if I were to be able to create something that can suction and conduct the specific energy inside the medallion?

I can create a sword, and probably also a spear with a conduction and suctioning ability, but I won't be able to embed this medallion inside the spear because the shaft would have to be broader for that.

And, to be blunt, the moment medallion gets damaged, even if it's only a scratch, you won't be able to drain the energy from your opponents anymore, but for that, your opponents would probably have to be at the Ascerta stage…meaning that you cannot use it on opponents below the Ascerta stage.

Also, the materials that have been used to forge this spear are truly great…"

Looking at Kyle, the blacksmith wondered just where on the vast lands of Shima would he have gone procure all of these treasures.

Yet, instead of being envious, the young man couldn't help but feel his respect for Kyle increasing.

His cultivation might seem low, but from the look in his eyes, Kyle must have lived a harsh life so far.

As such, he decided to set aside professionalism for a while and instead give him a slightly better offer that Kyle would have a hard time refusing.

"If you're still interested, I can show you my warehouse. There you can choose what materials you want to use for the weapon. Furhtermore, you can choose what runes you want to be inscribed onto the weapon of your choice.

By the way, please select one of the weapons I exhibited to tell me what it should look like, otherwise, I might loose myself in inspiration…which can end up rather disastrous sometimes.

And, I don't really want to destroy this treasure by creating a grotesque weapon."

Smiling a bit sheepishly, the blacksmith shrugged his shoulders indicating that he had lost himself in the forging process way too often.

This caused Kyle to grin back, feeling that he was a good and harmless guy.

Thus, he nodded his head, feeling reassured, as he followed every single instruction the blacksmith gave him.

One hour passed before Kyle left the blacksmith shop, without the Silver serpent spear, and the Soul storage medallion.

He had left both of his treasures at the shop.

Niko, which was the name of the blacksmith, had told him that it would take around a week before his weapon of choice would be completely forged and ready to use.

This was longer than what Kyle had hoped for, but he couldn't rush the young blacksmith, not if he wanted the best possible result.

As such, Kyle knew that he had to spend a little bit longer in Liun, but that shouldn't be a problem.

After all, he could spar with Melin, Beatrice, and even Yasmine. Other than that, there were too many things that would eat away a major chunk of his time.

Hence, a short break from journeying around was exactly what he required.

Instead of traveling around, he could finally focus on other things, including studying, cultivating, and increasing his proficiency with martial arts and the wind affinity!

However, that was not everything because Kyle's plan was far grand than the information Kyle had revealed to the others.

And finally through today's deal, he had taken a major step towards the final goal of a plan he had in mind.

This was great, but little did Kyle know that the rapid advancement in his plans was still too slow for what awaited him!