8 Spiritual Mine
Returning to the inn through the back door, he went to his fathers, room, seeing sh he was not there he left a note: I'm staying over a little late at the Mechanics Hall, I will be back later. Be careful, the Li and Zhang Clans have made their move. He then proceeded to set a small grade 1 alarm array at both the door and window. Sitting on his bed, he entered the system dialogues.
Ding! The user has completed mission, register as grade 1 array master, please choose between the basic apothecary or basic Blacksmithing manuals.
"Basic Blacksmithing."
Ding! Profession added.
Due to the exceptional performance gained 50 EXP
"Use 2 mastery points on 45 Changes in the Seasons, 1 status point on Dexterity, 1 on strength, one on agility, and one on intelligence."
Ding! Confirm Usage of Mastery and Status points [Y/N]
"Yes."
Ding! new mission, Help the Yan Clan defend the mine until a response comes from the higher branches of the Mechanic's hall and the Li and Zhang Clans are besieged.
Success: New feature, the user will be able to see the danger factor of others up to 20 levels above his own, System rating, 10-50 lowgrade spirit stones
Failure: Loss of Spiritual Mine, heavy taxes upon Green Mounty City, Decline of Yan Clan.
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Name: ≪Chen Hua≫≪Feng Shan (Current)≫
Titles: ≪N/A≫
Profession (s): Apprentice Inscription Master (Unofficial) --- Array Master 2:2 --- Apprentice
Blacksmith (Unofficial)
HP: 645/645 MP: 100/100
Level: 6 EXP: (45/100)
Age: 7 Race: Human
Strength: 6.5 Dexterity: 6.6
Agility: 6.6 Intelligence: 6.8
Status Points: 6 Mastery points: 6 Lottery draws: 0
Shop transactions remaining: 0 Free conversions remaining: 1
Currency: 3 Spirit stones (Low Grade) 2.23 taels of gold
Equipment: Icy wind dagger --- Model 4G-D1 Energy Shield --- Amplification series Shortsword
Current Missions: Help the Yan Clan defend the Spiritual Mine
Skills: ≪5 Elements Pentagram |50 MP (1/5) | 1≫≪Dragons Traversing the Heavens | (MP 10-1) (1/8) | 4≫≪Tai Chi: Recovers 5 MP/m | 0 MP (0/0) | Max≫≪Gods Eye of Fire and Ice | (MP 5/s) (1/5) | 1≫≪Sun Moon Divine Technique. | (MP 0) | 1 | (5 EXP/h)≫≪45 Changes in the Seasons | (MP 5/m) | 2|≫
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Taking out and looking through the section in the old book about turrets, he took a look at his usable materials. 50ish Stone slates, 8 bottles of standardized ink. He needed something suitable to work as array flags and a core of the arrays. He was planning on making the easiest turrets he could make, the fireball launching turrets. He would need 3 bottles of fire attuned ink, array cores and preferably fire or wood element flags. For the cores of the arrays, he would need grade 2 unattuned nodes, a fire attuned node, or fire or wood element beast cores. The wood element is typically hard to find so he removed that from the list.
Nodes can also be used as an array core but they are less efficient than using a beast core. Nodes are manmade objects that can change the nature of spiritual energy by passing it through certain materials of that type that would not typically be able to be used as an array core. The grade of the beast core and node are corresponding to the grade of the array. While it is possible to use more powerful ones it would be a waste of materials.
Just before sundown, he arrived at the arrays counter in the Mechanics hall
「Hello, do you have any Grade 2 fire attuned beast cores or nodes? I also need fire attuned or unattuned flags as well as fire attuned grade 2 ink?」
「We have 13 fire attuned beast cores in stock and 57 fire attuned nodes in stock. We have 5 sets of Grade 2 flags in stock (Each set has 18) it will be 1 gold or spirit stone for the 5 sets of flags and 1 gold or spirit stone for 5 beast cores or 10 nodes For the ink it will cost 1 gold or spirit stone for 10 bottles,」
「I will buy the 5 fire attuned flags, 10 bottles of ink, and 10 fire attuned beast core for 2 gold and 2 spirit stones. Is there any chance I can get a discount on the ink?」
「for 3 bottles it would cost 6 silver but for your earlier purchases I can bump it down to 3 silver.」
...
Wearing his cloak he made it to the top of the path where the mine was located. Approaching the entrance to the mine there was a small fortification built.
「Halt! Who are you」
「Grade 2 Array master, Although they would not have a good defence unless a medium shield array is implimented」I can offer to prepare turrets for you, of course, with a price.
「Please wait here, I will go get an elder.」
「Welcome, we can not properly welcome you here but please come in and we can discuss the details of our deal there.」
「I can offer to make the arrays for 20 low-grade spirit stones and 10 mid-grade spirit stones; of course you will have to supply the materials needed to man them your selves.」
「How many can you create? I have the materials to make 10 grade 2 turrets, Although I can implement medium grade 2 shielding arrays, please remember that you will also have to supply the necessary materials to operate it.」
「Deal, I will give you 30 lowgrade spirit stones and 10 mid-grade spirit stones if you set up the 10 turrets with the shields; follow me, I will show you where we require the turrets」
Arriving at the top of a tower positioned just behind the wall, He started to layout the base array. First placing the fire attuned beast core in the centre of the floor, he walked around placing the 9 flags in their proper positions. Forming a grade 2 small flame array.
The small grade 2 flame arrays produce a flame 1-2 metres high but burn up to 5000 degrees.
The next arrays that were laid out were the medium grade 2 amplification array. Placing the charging array 1 over the core he began to craft the shield array. The most effective wat to make the shield array would be to create and link 4 slates in the 4 cardinal directions of the tower but due to limited time, the slates were placed at the corners of the towers.
By sunrise, there were only 3 turrets built and he was working on the fourth. Slowly just as the sun started to rise figures were revealed towards the bottom of the path, the first wave sent by the Li and Zhang clans. The attack has commenced.
Starting from the bottom of the path the shield-bearers made their way up covering those without shields. they went up the path in groups of 5, 2 shield-bearers and 3 others.
An archer fired his arrow from atop the wall. Thunk!, it was intercepted by a shield-bearer. As time drew on, the attacking force grew more organized and started to send a few small volleys of arrows at those at the top of the wall, no casualties or injuries yet.
Bang! The first turret was fired, then the second third, and just completed fourth. a small hole was ripped in the shield wall that was being formed; as the archers atop the wall were taking advantage of this, a small wooden slate with a spirit stone embedded in it flew over into the gap. As soon as the slate landed one could hear a soft cracking sound as the slate exploded. What caused the explosion was two incomplete spiritual storage arrays supplied with spiritual energy by an amplification array connected to a low-grade spiritual stone. The power released was amplified and forced into the two incomplete arrays, but when the power circulated around it could not be stored properly so it tried to escape the array and travel back to the other storage array, but due to the amplification array, the flow of the energy reversed, forcing energy into the spiritual stone causing it to explode.
As if the explosion had caused them, some tremors ran through the ground originating from the mine. The rumbles started to become louder and the ground started to shake more as the miners started to scramble out of the mine. Suddenly without further notice, a loud bang was heard as a large cloud of dust started to billow out of the opening of the mine and the last of the miners came tumbling out. Soon after a loud, low rumbling and cracking sound sounded throughout the area. All fighting stopped as they looked at the area above the mine rising up and crumbling, a huge 700-metre tall black pillar made out of an unknown material rose into the sky. Tremours were sent through the continent as more of these black pillars arose. Slowly runes started to light up, the first layer, second, and third layers. Upon the activation of all 9 layers of runes, the sky started to shimmer as a clear shield rose and spread across the sky. Under the sun these pillars reflected some of the sunlight as their runes glowed in a bright yet dark purple colour. As the shield continued to spread it met with other sections above the other pillars and merged, slowly covering the entire continent and eventually sinking into the earth.
Crack! Boom! a large cracking sound and rumble was clearly audible throughout the entire continent as ripples and debris spread across the shield. Upon the dust clearing off one could see that the spacial barrier was cracked as more meteors came crashing down upon the shield through it. Slowly, the tremours grew as more and more ripples started to show themselves on the shield.
Although the creator of this array was long gone, his disciple, Old Fu looked into the sky along with all of the other experts that were at least 700 years old and their disciples.
「It has begun, That old divination master my master had met was right. We all hoped that this day would never come but it is inevitable. The first disaster of the first of the three calamities, the fall of the heavens, Starfall.」
The three calamities or nine disasters were Heaven's fall, Eathenly Descent, and Hellish Rise. The first three disasters or, Heaven's Fall, are called Starfall, Plague's Descent, and Spiritual Fall. The second three disasters or, Earthenly Descent, are called Mechanics Fall, Empire's Demise, and Secular War. The last three disasters, or Hell's Rise, are called Gate's Opening, Demon's Descent, and Merging Realms.
