Chapter 103: The Valuable Magic Rune Core

In the workshop, the mana crystal forge roared continuously.

Looking at the neatly arranged rare metals on the workbench, Sunan's face lit up with a smile of joy.

"After so much time and effort, I finally have all the materials!"

Calming his excitement, Sunan composed himself and began the process of crafting the magic rune core.

He had long memorized the techniques involved, so he set to work without any hesitation.

With a wave of his hand, the rare metals and various auxiliary materials on the workbench melted like snow, eventually forming a fist-sized silver liquid that floated above his palm.

Sunan extended a finger towards the silvery liquid, and with a flick, a thin silver thread emerged and began sketching out a complex and intricate enchanted rune in mid-air.

Then came the second, and the third rune. The number of runes increased rapidly, visible to the naked eye.

Every second, a new rune shimmered into existence in the air before Sunan, glowing faintly.

The densely packed runes intertwined, gradually forming a hollow sphere, which continued to fill with more runes over time, solidifying its internal structure.

It was unclear how much time had passed when the last silver thread transformed into a rune, but the original silver liquid had long vanished.

In its place was a flawlessly smooth silver sphere.

It looked like a ball made of silver, but under a magnifying glass, one could see that it was composed of countless tiny, intricately detailed runes.

The fist-sized silver sphere, in reality, contained over a hundred thousand runes!

Gazing at the magic rune core before him, Sunan exhaled deeply, a genuine smile of satisfaction spreading across his face.

As he relaxed, a profound fatigue washed over him, a testament to the intense mental exertion of spending over twenty hours crafting runes.

After securing the magic rune core, Sunan decided to rest. He slept for a while, then meditated for several hours until both his physical and mental states returned to their peak, ready to fuse with the magic rune core.

Compared to the meticulous and error-free crafting process, the fusion was much simpler.

Sunan guided the magic rune core into his chest, where it disappeared beneath the skin, leaving a coin-sized silver circular mark at its center.

"Done!"

Sunan snapped his fingers, leaving the workshop for the spell training area.

It was time to test the power of the magic rune core!

Standing at the center of the training ground, Sunan focused his mind. Silvery metal filament emerged rapidly from his pores, twisting and forming a gleaming knight's sword.

The next moment, he flung the sword.

With a sharp whistle, the knight's sword shattered into countless metallic droplets, swiftly reforming mid-air into metal spikes the length of chopsticks, which shot through a distant humanoid target like bullets.

In the blink of an eye, the target was riddled with holes.

In the next instant, the silver metal particles reformed into a half-human-sized metal shield in front of Sunan, exuding a sense of unyielding solidity.

Metal domes, armor, heavy hammers, arrows...

Sunan manipulated the metal liquid to transform into various weapons, finally stopping with a satisfied smile.

The magic rune core's ability to morph was undeniably useful.

It could be used for both offense and defense, offering a versatile balance of attack and protection.

Its remarkable flexibility allowed for surprising tactics in battle.

When an opponent believed they were attacking a metal shield, they might suddenly face a barrage of metal spikes.

Without prior warning, they would be caught off guard!

Sunan then tested the magic rune core's offensive and defensive capabilities.

The test subject, as always, was the diligent steel golem.

The results were very satisfying.

At full power, the magic rune core's weapons nearly pierced through the steel golem's arm with a single strike!

Such an attack could easily dispatch a first-circle legendary knight if aimed at a vital point!

Not even a combat aura shield or elemental force could withstand it!

Moreover, the core's defensive forms were impressively sturdy, surpassing the defense of the Extreme Protection Ring.

Converted to defense points, it ranged between 1500 and 1600.

Crucially, unlike the Extreme Protection Ring, the magic rune core's defense did not diminish with attacks.

Before Sunan's mental energy was exhausted, any attack with instant damage below 1500 defense points could not breach the magic rune core's defense.

Even second-circle spells had a power of less than 100 defense points.

In other words, as long as his mental power held, Sunan could withstand any second-circle spell without harm.

"The only issue is the high consumption."

Routine transformations were manageable, with minimal energy drain.

However, when used for attacks and defense, the consumption skyrocketed.

With mental power exceeding 34, Sunan felt nearly drained after a short trial.

"In full combat, my current mental power might last only about 2 minutes."

"With more intense attacks, that duration would shorten."

"But in an evenly matched battle, 2 minutes is enough to turn the tide."

Sunan retracted the magic rune core, feeling elated.

Though the materials were hard to gather and the fusion process was demanding, the core's power justified the effort.

If he had the magic rune core during the fight with the Hundred-Armed Monster, he wouldn't have needed so many high-level rune gems.

"While not on par with a wizard's innate abilities, it's impressive."

Sunan had witnessed the formidable power of a full-fledged wizard's innate abilities.

The magic rune core was potent but still far from such capabilities.

The author of "Magic Rune Core" had exaggerated its prowess somewhat.

However, Sunan was confident he could enhance the core's power to match or even surpass the book's descriptions.

After all, the core could be synthesized and strengthened.

By crafting enough cores and synthesizing them, he could enhance its capabilities!

"Perhaps synthesis will also reduce its consumption?"

"If so, it would be a tremendous gain."

"But the materials pose a challenge."

Sunan sighed.

Gathering the materials for the core involved significant effort, time, and expense.

Although substitute materials had been researched, easing the financial burden, many rare metals remained elusive. Collecting a second, third, or fourth set would be equally challenging.

"One step at a time."

The day after completing the magic rune core, Sunan received good news.

Key's wife was pregnant.

He would soon have a nephew or niece.

In celebration, Key invited Sunan to a dinner party.

After the meal, once the maid had helped Key's wife retire, Key turned serious and asked, "Is the Spark Church incident your doing?"

Sunan raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Key smiled and handed Sunan a battle report.

Reading it, Sunan smiled too.

The report detailed the recent series of attacks on the Spark Church by unknown assailants.

Since going public, the church's secret strongholds had transformed into local town branches.

In recent months, these branches had been repeatedly attacked, with heavy casualties.

Some nobles initially inclined to embrace the Spark Church's faith were now reconsidering.

Consequently, the church's public standing had taken a significant hit.

The attacks had dealt a severe blow to the church's missionary activities just as they were gaining momentum.

"The Spark Church has suffered considerable losses," Key remarked with schadenfreude, then repeated his earlier question.

Not long ago, Sunan had mentioned handling the Spark Church's missionary efforts.

Given the subsequent events, it seemed unlikely he wasn't involved.

Sunan knew this was Night Owl and the others at work.

Judging by the report, their efforts had been fruitful.

It appeared he would acquire a good number of Divine Blood Ambers at the next gathering.

"It has something to do with me," Sunan admitted candidly.

Key, expecting as much, grinned. "I knew you'd have a way."

"With such heavy losses, the Spark Church's missionary efforts will likely stall for some time."

After discussing the church, Sunan shifted the topic.

"I'm planning to establish a Knight Academy, recruiting students from among the commoners and farmers to train them as knights."

Key was puzzled. "If you need knights, just draw from the army. Why go to the trouble of training them yourself?"

"A few times is fine, but I can't keep pulling people from the army."

"The base needs its own knight guard for convenience in future endeavors."

Sunan didn't reveal his true reasons; it wasn't the right time.

Fortunately, Key didn't press the issue, but asked, "Why not recruit from noble children? They have better innate talents than commoners and farmers."

"That would mean competing with the territory for recruits," Sunan waved his hand dismissively. "Besides, don't forget we have Dragon Blood Fruit. Talent isn't an issue."

Key agreed, pondering briefly before nodding.

"Alright, leave it to me. Just choose a location for the academy, and I'll handle the rest."

If the Knight Academy could produce more knights, it would benefit Shimmering Territory as well.

A stronger base naturally benefited the territory.

Late at night, the third Forest Cabin gathering took place.

Sunan slowly opened his eyes, surveying the table.

Unexpectedly, only five attendees were present, including himself.

Night Owl, Scepter, Red Heart, and Wraith.

Rose was absent.

After the customary introductions, the gathering quickly shifted to trading.

Red Heart was the first, placing five Divine Blood Ambers on the table and fixing her gaze on Sunan.

"As promised, I've brought the Divine Blood Ambers. It's your turn to fulfill the agreement."

"Of course."

Sunan smiled slightly, handing over a hundred magic stones to Red Heart.

Seeing this, the other three also presented their Divine Blood Ambers.

Sunan glanced at them, his smile deepening.

As he expected, Forest Cabin had reaped a bountiful harvest.

Wraith offered three Divine Blood Ambers.

Scepter had seven.

To Sunan's surprise, Night Owl produced eighteen!

"How many Spark Church branches did he raid?"

Sunan marveled.

The founder of Forest Cabin clearly possessed substantial resources and strength.

Following the agreed price, Sunan paid for each in magic stones.

In total, he acquired thirty-three Divine Blood Ambers, surpassing the number he had obtained from the Stone Bell City raid.

"With this many, I can at least double the original effect!"

The thought of further enhancing his meditation efficiency filled Sunan with joy.

Meanwhile, Night Owl and the others were equally pleased with their substantial haul of magic stones.

Yet, they were also struck by Player's extravagant spending.

In such a brief exchange, Player had dispensed over six hundred magic stones!

His opulence was astounding!

Who knew how many magic stones he possessed?

"Ladies and gentlemen, the offer to purchase Divine Blood Ambers remains open," Sunan announced with a smile. "Next time, if you bring more, I'll buy them at the same price of twenty magic stones each."

The others exchanged glances and nodded slightly.

With the Divine Blood Amber transactions complete, the gathering returned to regular trading.

Unfortunately, the items Night Owl and the others offered didn't particularly interest Sunan. Ultimately, he traded for a few valuable materials and two miniature soul crystals before stopping.

Back in the meditation room after the gathering, Sunan immediately took out the Divine Blood Ambers for synthesis.

**Divine Blood Amber: Contains 2.95 milliliters of divine blood. When exposed to air, it attracts free energy particles, creating a high-concentration energy zone.**

From the description, the synthesized Divine Blood Amber seemed unchanged, except for the elimination of mild auditory and visual hallucinations, completely eradicating contamination.

Unable to discern much, Sunan proceeded with practical testing.

The results thrilled him.

With the Divine Blood Amber and high-grade third-circle transcendence potion, his meditation efficiency increased by about a quarter.

Even though the Amber couldn't always be kept nearby—especially while making potions, crafting magical items, or creating puppets, as it would interfere with rune inscription—the combination with the transcendent state allowed for "24-hour passive meditation," further enhancing efficiency.

Even so, Sunan's daily Star Ring Meditation Method proficiency soared to over 2,900 points.

"At this rate, I'll construct the twelfth star ring by the Autumn Twilight Month."

Sunan caressed the Divine Blood Amber in his hand, a smile playing on his lips.

It seemed the bounty for Divine Blood Ambers would continue indefinitely.

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