CHAPTER 365

DIVINE SMITH (II)

A small corner within Do'r that was just until recently hollow of visitors now saw a stream of them lining up in front of an ordinary-looking shop. Empire's important figures, ilk that had all they desired immediately, didn't seem to mind standing; rather, they all bore smiles and jovial expressions as they chattered freely among themselves. The dull, seemingly empty shop had also changed; now, upfront, on the first floor, was a display showcasing four items inside a glassed cage.

Of the four, only one was a weapon, with the remaining three being in row odder than the last. Everyone, before stepping into the shop itself, would curiously glance at the open stats, their fervor rising quickly as they swore to all they believed in they would get their hands on at least one of them.

The item on the upper left corner was a pair of claws extending from a metallic, thick bracelet. Five fangs heaved over in a flat arc, space between each individual one growing as they approached the tip. The claws had faint, coral sheen to them, seemingly ablaze when viewed up close.

[Fanged Dawnbreaker -- Legendary]

Level: 1400

Damage: Strength*Agility (tripled if striking a vital point)

+400% Attack Speed

+60% Hand Speed

+20% to Agility, Strength and Nimbleness

+60% to Damage when facing a humanoid

-60% to Damage when facing beasts/fiends/primes

+100% to ALL Bleed Damage

Special Effect [Relentless] -- the longer the battle goes on, the bloodier it becomes; the wielder receives 1% bonus to Damage and Speed stats for each 5 landed strikes, capping at 400%. At 20% each strike has a chance to inflict ‘Bleed’; at 80% each strike has a chance to directly rip out Vitality and consume it, healing the wielder; at 200% every strike has a chance to entirely ignore defenses; at 400% every strike, regardless of where, counts as though it was a Vital Point

Special Effect [Fanged] -- effects of ALL passive stats of the weapon are tripled if the wielder attacks with both claws at the same time 4 times in a row (the bonus ends when attacks with both claws cease]

Special Effect [Dawnbreaker] -- the wielder turns into a flash of light, appearing anywhere around their target, dealing 4 times the weapon's damage (10 times if attacking with both fangs); if a Vital Point is hit, the wielder may use the ability again, otherwise, recharge timer of 8 seconds begins

Note: A marvelous creation for those seeking bloody and long battles, making those who wield it nigh unbeatable.

The item in the upper right corner, just next to the claws, was a strange-looking ball with a dozen holes seemingly poked at random across its metallic surface. It glistened in faint crimson, spinning mid-air of its own volition, beams of light occasionally flickering from within the holes.

[Unceasing Thunder -- Unique]

Level: Growth Type (matches wielder’s)

Damage: 0.01% of target’s current Vitality (+0.01% per wielder’s level)

-100% to Damage from ALL other sources except this item

-80% to ALL defenses when the item is equipped in the hand

Special Effect [Unceasing Thunder] -- throw the ball in the desired direction; the item automatically locks onto the intended target and follows them until they come in contact. It explodes, dealing base Damage plus bonus based on wielder’s affinity with Thunder Law; it also creates a wide-cast net of lightning spanning 10 meters (+10 per wielder’s level) that repeatedly deals 1% of item’s total damage. It lasts for 1s (+0.01 per wielder’s Level) and those stuck inside cannot leave. So long as there’s no difference larger than 4000 Levels between the wielder and the target, the item (and its effects) cannot be avoided by anything.

Note: A two-edged creation, if utilized properly can become an unstoppable whirlwind of death, yet can also doom the one who chose to use it.

In the lower-left corner, resting silently, was a jet-black, three-pronged object. Its base was rectangular, breaking off into three additional, hollowed rectangles from its topside. It was no larger than one's palm, seemingly reflecting light entirely as there was no other color besides black anywhere on its surface.

[Midnight Prayer -- Unique]

Level: N/A

Requirements: Law of Shadows/Darkness/Void

Indestructible

Special Effect [Midnight Prayer] -- fling the item into the air above you where it will rest for the following 30 seconds. All Damage you take is instead stored into the object and absorbed.

Special Effect [Prayer of the Dawn] -- fling the item into the air above you where it will rest for the following 5 seconds. All Damage you take is instead reflected in a ring-like inferno. If more than half of your Vitality is reflected, the duration is increased to 10 seconds, and all reflected damage is increased by a tenfold.

Special Effect [Twilight Prayer] -- fling the item into the air above you where it will immediately explode, turning into additional extremities that you can command with your Will; based on your preferred Law, the extremities obtain the element’s attributes. They last for 60 minutes, cannot be destroyed, and can be used to hold corporeal objects, cast Martial Arts, and every other action ordinary extremities can do.

Note: An object like no other, it provides the wielder with the flexibility that is difficult to find; perfect for defense, offense, and utility, with hardly any drawbacks.

The last item, nestled in the right bottom corner, was a strange, cylinder-like object. It extended outward toward the top and the bottom, its middle ridged into ring-like carvings, with daunting, golden patterns shimmering over its surface. The top and the bottom both had a slight dent at their centers, where an eye-like carving rested, eerily occasionally moving.

[Beholden of Eternity -- Soul Item]

Level: N/A

Requirements: Binds to a wielder for life; repeatedly drains Vitality that cannot be replenished

200% to Cultivation Speed

+100% to Martial Art Masteries (200% to Blood Art Masteries)

+50% to Law Masteries (100% to Laws of Vitality and Blood)

+20% to Primordial Masteries

Special Effect [The One] -- temporarily sacrifice 10% of your maximum Vitality to the Eyes to gain 60% increase to all your other stats. Besides, for each 5% of Vitality lost afterward, gain a shield that blocks 10% of your maximum Vitality (cannot stack)

Special Effect [The Other] -- temporarily encase yourself in the Blood Well, completely restoring your Vitality at the cost of losing 0.001% of Maximum Vitality per 1,000,000 points restored. While encased, you cannot move, attack, cast Arts, or be attacked.

Special Effect [The Forgotten] -- temporarily sacrifice 50% of your Vitality to link yourself to a target; over the following 60 seconds, steal the sacrificed amount of Vitality back from your target, then additional 100% over the next 60 seconds. The link cannot be deflected, dodged, parried, or neglected, but it can be dispelled by certain Arts.

Special Effect [The Last] -- temporarily sacrifice 99.99% of your current Vitality, turning yourself invincible to ALL damage for the following 8 seconds. During those 8 seconds, gain 400% to ALL stats, 600% to ALL Damage and 1000% to ALL statues inflicted. If you manage to deal damage equal to twice the Vitality sacrificed, restore your Vitality to the maximum; otherwise, restore it to 1%.

Note: ???

Meanwhile, in the far back room, one split entirely from the reality others lived in, was a small forge where Lino was currently sipping ale and looming over an empty piece of parchment. He knew very well what sort of an uproar would the items on display cause, but he had absolutely no intention of selling them. After all, those were the items he poured blood, sweat, and tears into to craft, dipping into the far reserves of his materials. They were all also incredibly powerful, and he'd be a moron to not instead equip his own with them.

They were simply there as a showcase of talents; after all, his smithy offered custom orders, and if people knew the extents of his crafting capabilities, their orders would match it. Though he very much doubted anyone will request a Continental-tier item as he suspected nobody could really afford it, he did expect a whole slew of requests for Legendary or Unique items, especially the ones similar to the [Midnight Prayer]. He'd reserved the latter for Hannah actually, as an anniversary present for her when she returns. Claws were intended for Seya once she grows stronger as she decided to copy Lino and also throw herself into Body Cultivation, while the [Unceasing Thunder] and the Beholden were still up for grabs.

Unlike the claws and the ball, however, the latter two had some immense drawbacks to their use, which meant that he entirely excluded all the young and inexperienced from the pool. Both items required extremely tactical and brief usage, and he knew that most, if not all, young would simply overuse them... because he would have done the exact same thing in his earlier days, damning the consequences.

Shaking his head as though to dispel the stray thoughts, he once again focused on the parchment -- the order from Titus came in just this morning. He had fulfilled his end of the bargain, not only showering Lino's shop with customers but also bringing over what can only be described as a hill of materials. It was now time that Lino completed his own end of the deal.

Titus hadn't requested a weapon, or even a piece of armor or a shield; instead, he'd requested an accessory -- preferably a ring -- that can both serve as a void treasure as well as a massive help in battle. There were no more specifications beyond those, which surprised Lino; it seemed that Titus knew that the looser the specifications, the better the item, especially when it came to Continental-tier and above.

Lino had been sitting in front of the empty parchment for over six hours now, pondering. It wasn’t as though he didn’t have any ideas when it came to what he wanted to do -- he could do something similar to his own [Heavenly Armor], binding all items inside the ring so that they can be summoned from anywhere and everywhere, perhaps even expanding on that idea. He also briefly played with the idea of storing completed Martial Attacks into the ring and then unleashing them when necessary, but he was still unable to settle onto one single thing -- that is, until he remembered a small, long-thrown-into-fortress-treasury item he had crafted for Lucky with Sarah’s, Jack’s and Edward’s help... his lips cracked into a smile as his eyes shimmered as though ablaze. It was time, he mused, to collect the lifetime worth of favors from the Prince of the world’s largest Empire...