Life-Death Wheel

Chapter 15 — Life-Death Wheel

"Damn it! Where is that fucking book!?" A man cursed frustratedly while walking across the dark streets.

"I been searching it for several damn years, but I still can't fucking find it!" He harshly grabbed his black hair. "I want to quit this shit! Fuck the cult for giving such a shitty order to me!"

The man continued to curse harshly by himself while walking drunkenly. He stopped when he saw a group of men and women alike having fun.

"Annoying bunch of trash. You dare to have fun, while I can't?" The man quipped maliciously.

As his arm extends to grap the air, a long and sharp sword clad in darkness abruptly forms.

"Disappear."

With a few waves off the sword, various sharp rays of darkness mutilated the group of people before his eyes into pieces.

"Consume them."

The sword of darkness formed into a large shadow serpent that consumed their fleshes and drank their blood. After leaving no signs of slaughter left, the shadow serpent returned back.

A smile full of pleasure formed on the man's handsome face. He started to cackle madly—yet it sounded so weird and strange, as if his cackles were nothing more than an artificial acting.

He soon left the scene to continue on with his aimless wander and his mouth leaving swears whenever it opened.

In a bar—

"Hey, you guys heard of Vlad the Bloodsucker?"

"The guy from the Sunset Town?"

"I know him. I heard that he entirely destroyed the Scorpion Gang by himself."

"And I've heard he was only a normal child who hadn't even awakened…"

"Geez, how scary…

"But thanks to him, other gangs have started to settle down."

"Yeah, we all know how evil those gangs are… I even hope Vlad will continue to eliminate them."

"I've heard that Red Rose is already expanding to other towns. They ensured the safety of Sunset Town, so I hope they also come here…"

"From now on, I will only support Red Rose! Not only their protection, I've heard of the excellent products and services they provide."

"The existence of Vlad really made it easier for us normal people…"

Not only this particular group, others were also thinking of the same thing.

The man grew very interested upon hearing those news. He especially became nostalgic after hearing about Sunset Town.

"It's been a long time. I guess I should take the time to visit the grave of that old hag."

The man flashed a cold smile as he mumbled those words. In the past, he had felt one of his darkness curses fulfilling its duty.

"Oh, they are here."

The man let out some faint indescribable whistles as shadows appeared behind him one after another.

"How was the search today?"

"No progress. We still haven't found a clue ever since that bastard unknowingly died without leaving it behind."

"So it turns out like this again…" The man clicked his tongue annoyedly.

"That traitorous bastard… If I only didn't take him in as my partner, then that book would have been with our cult now!"

"There's no use crying over spilled milk. I think someone stole the book again. It must be related to the children that the bastard kidnapped."

"That's impossible. All of them died from something very powerful. We've confirmed it by dissecting their bodies thoroughly. It wasn't a human."

"Then we must look for that. I'm sure it's still around this region."

"How's the preparation for the dark emotions gathering?"

"All done~~!"

"Let's move to Sunset Town next. I have a personal matter to attend there."

"Roger~~!"

"As you command."

"Understood."

The man and the shadows soon left the town.

After those strange people left, the town was consumed by darkness and flames by a group of gangsters that have lost their minds to desires.

The town was completely destroyed by the insane gangsters that perished along with the soldiers and flames.

A river of dark specks of light flowed into a crystal ball.

"A successful harvest."

The man and the shadows grinned hideously.

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"Nai An, wait here for a moment. I'll grab something from the storage room."

As Meng Tian left the forging room, I quietly reflected over his words about forging while using soul power.

However…

"I don't have soul power and can't release it from my body. Is it somehow possible to use my soul blood as an alternative?"

I was sure that it would work since soul blood was made with soul power. The only problem would be my body's innate disability.

After thinking for a while, I remembered how I normally used Purple Blood.

"I now have an idea. Although I'm not sure if it would work…"

Meng Tian soon returned back while holding a large piece of metal.

"This is a middle-grade uncommon metal called Heavy Silver Metal."

He slowly explained about the large piece of metal.

"Refine this metal. However, you must use your soul power this time to try for Thousand Refinement."

I glanced at the metal that was as big as my entire lower body.

This was an uncommon metal that was too heavy and dense, making it more difficult to forge than most rare metals.

And based on its massive size, its weight probably exceeds 500 Kilograms!

Furthermore, this metal was known to be expensive.

I didn't back down from the new challenge that stood in my way.

As such, I first started testing the metal unfamiliar to me very rigorously. I tapped it with my hammer to feel the vibration that sounded crispy and heavy. Next, I started to touch across its body along with my perception to closely feel its texture and the vein lines within it.

With my perception, I was able to penetrate that inside of the metal and saw its internal structure.

And using it as a medium, I tried communicating with it to feel how it wanted to be handled, the proper temperature it wanted to bathe, and the spots I needed to take carefully.

"This metal is a pussy…"

Upon communicating, I realized it was a cowardly metal that wanted to be handled gently despite having such a heavy and strong appearance.

However, I will not do it that way.

"I'll show you the way on how to become a true steel that can endure everything in this harsh world."

To become strong as true steel, it must endure the pain of harshness and brutalness.

A peaceful communication with the metal? To listen to how it wanted to be forged? That's bullshit! A true blacksmith is the one who knows how to temper the metal to its utmost perfect form, not the metal itself! All it needs is to bend to the blacksmith's will!

I activated the flames of the forging table to the maximum level, causing a blazing heat to spread across the room.

Meng Tian observed the rising pillar of flames with wide eyes.

I started to heat the metal with the blazing flames, quickly reaching the right temperature to be refined.

For such an extremely dense and large metal, it needed a strong constant heat to be molded.

As such, I didn't remove the metal and instead decided to refine it amidst the blazing flames.

I activated Spirit Heart, causing me to feel the intense heat becoming ineffective against my Life Attribute and reinforced circulatory system. At the same time, I felt my power and stamina enhancing when soul blood coursed my veins.

And under the shocked eyes of Meng Tian, I harshly bit my finger and pointed it downwards at the metal.

Drip…! Drip…!

I saw my resplendent crimson blood dripping into the metal. It didn't get evaporated from the intense heat, but got absorbed within the metal.

"Blood Sacrifice…?"

Meng Tian couldn't understand why I suddenly did a Blood Sacrifice.

As I used the Steel Breathing Method, I hardened my right palm as I tightly gripped the hammer.

I then raised my arms before starting to swing down the hammer—Incorporating all of what I've learned at this moment.

I knew that the Thousand Refinement I faced at this moment was undoubtedly a very important challenge for me.

Meng Tian was also feeling very thrilled from watching.

I'm six-years-old. If I was able to complete this Thousand Refinement, Meng Tian feared I would make a record that would be impossible to surpass. After all, the Blacksmith Association's current record holder for Thousand Refinements was held by a Saint Craftsman Level Blacksmith at 13 years, 3 months and 2 days!

I smashed my hammer down.

Bang!

Even as the entire chunk of Heavy Silver throbbed heavily, the hammer in my hand was already descending at lightning speed, pounding at the Heavy Silver once again.

"This feels different…!" I grinned excitedly with soul blood rapidly pumping throughout my body.

I felt like I could perform with more freedom and greater feats!

Although I hadn't reached the realm of Thousand Refinements, I had already produced many Hundred Refined metal components before. Regardless of how the Thousand Refinements were, it had to start with a Hundred Refinements.

And that was enough for me to get familiar and used to forging Heavy Silver.

Fiery sparks flew in every direction in flashes. A violent wave after wave of pounding filled the room like the crushing tides of the ocean.

The Hundred Refinements had been completed. Hundred Refinements wasn't as simple as pounding the metal a hundred times. Rather, the impurities within the metal need to be rid away while preserving the complete internal structure of the metal and increasing its density and hardness.

And Thousand Refinements goes simply further from that.

It was to bestow spirit upon the metal!

After the Hundred Refinements, I got familiar and used to Heavy Silver. To simply put it, its hardness surpassed all the metals I had previously forged.

This kind of uncommon metal wouldn't be Thousand Refined so easily. Despite the reinforcements and 70 Kg hammer I got, it was difficult to make a large dent on it.

I felt this was gonna be a long battle.

"Despite being a pussy, it's so hard and big…" I clicked my tongue.

I treated the metal as if it was something to be analyzed from its overall structure and composition. My perception probed across the outside and inside of it, analyzing the subtle change that occurs with every pound of my hammer.

And gradually, I started to use more strength as the pounding force of the hammer increased even further.

I grew more and more concentrated on forging the Heavy Silver. As time trickled down, I managed to enter a deep trance state of forging. To me, the only thing that existed was the Heavy Silver in front of me.

After an hour of forging, the Heavy Silver had already lost a lot of volume, but it was still relatively big.

At this moment, my hammer began pounding the metal even more intensively than before.

My forehead was already covered with pungent sweat. After unceasingly forging for so long, my reinforced body was gradually growing exhausted.

Yet I never stopped moving my hammer as I pushed my body to its utmost limit.

"It has been a long time since I hit my limit…"

I pounded my hanmer.

Dang!

This strike was clearly louder than the previous ones, raising the eyebrows of Mang Tian.

He inwardly thought I was already using my maximum strength before. And he was right, but I was pushing myself to surpass my limit.

My whole body trembled each time I hammered the metal. I silently began to recall the basics that Hu Yu had taught me in the past.

Huuuuup!

Starting from my calves, power erupted and traveled to my waist, moving onto my back, then both arms, until finally the hammer, descending towards metal.

The sound of a sharp and firm heartbeat resembling a steel echoed vividly.

Dang!

Dang!

Dang!

Dang!

The force of each strike had already exceeded 1000 kilograms!

I could feel my Spirit Heart pounding heavily within my chest as it burned extremely hot. It was the same for the soul blood that flowed faster and faster in an overdrive.

My strikes continued to become stronger and stronger.

The Heavy Silver was entirely red from the scorching flames. At the same time, the room temperature became scalding to the skin.

The chunk of Heavy Silver became smaller as it progressively turned purer and denser.

The Heavy Silver was beginning to reveal its purest state. It shrunk more and more without stopping, causing Its density to soon reach its limit. The metal couldn't possibly shrink inwards anymore. Still, I continued to hammer it. With every strike, its vein lines would improve, so that it would become fair and defined.

The light and heat of the flames had long since filled the room, painting everything entirely in red.

I've already torn off my shirt soaked in sweats, revealing my sweaty upper body that glistened faintly from the light and heat.

It was the same for Meng Tian who was watching from the side, his forehead soaked in sweat.

He even saw the scorching sun that blazed from my chest, its radiance causing the flames to obey my commands.

And as he watched, he soon noticed the metal glowing with dark silver light.

Thousand Refinements.

This was the feeling of Thousand Refinements!

As a Grandmaster Blacksmith, Mang Tian had an outstandingly acute perception and knew that the Heavy Silver had succumbed to my desires.

However, I didn't simply stop there.

At this moment, I finally released my accumulating rage.

It filled every crevice and inches of my exhausted body to fill it to the brim with explosive power.

And all of it poured into my hammer—!

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

My hammer continued to pound the metal with the same thunderous sounds.

Yet for some reason, it sounded heavier and more frightening this time.

Kill!

Kill!

Kill!

Kill!

Kill!

Kill!

I poured all of my rage into the metal. That twisted rage soon turned into a raging bloodlust.

At this moment, the Death Attribute within my mind was also awakened.

It mixed with my rage to pour overwhelmingly into my hammer.

To kill the past.

To kill the unfairness.

To kill everything that impedes me.

Instead of bestowing Life that was required for Spirit Refining, I bestowed Death to the metal.

However, it was still a form of breathing a spirit into the metal.

A Spirit Of Death was born from the Heavy Silver.

The metal resonated with my blood that started to boil.

Suddenly, that chunk of Heavy Silver trembled under my hammer strike and released a dark gray radiance, basking the whole room in a dark gray light.

For the last time, I lifted the hammer and then heavily smashed downwards as I exhaled strongly.

BANG!

In response, the dark gray light radiated more wildly.

The chunk of Heavy Silver was now a whole circle smaller than it was before. Its fiery heated color quickly faded away with the dark gray light.

And soon, the dark gray light turned into a solemn and eerie black halo that ascended five feet to the sky.

On the metal, there was now an additional layer of detailed lines on its exterior that was a swirling chaos of dark clouds. There were veined patterns that seemed to have been carved on its body, yet it actually felt exceedingly smooth.

The dark gray Heavy Silver gave off a heavy and dark profound feeling.

When Mang Tian had me try the Thousand Refinements with this chunk of Heavy Silver, he had never expected me to actually succeed.

However, two hours later, a whole two hours, I had succeeded!

That Heavy Silver had been Thousand Refined!

Moreover…

Meng Tian recalled the black halo that floated on the sky.

That black halo was different from normal, but it was definitely a First Grade Thousand Refined Heavy Silver!

"A six-years-old Fourth Rank Blacksmith!"

Meng Tian was so shocked that he fell unconscious to the ground.

Meanwhile, I closed my eyes while feeling the changes that occured within me.

Within my crimson Spirit Heart, I could see a vague red-green wheel that was rotating silently.

This was the Life-Death Wheel made from the Life and Death Attributes. The rotation of the wheel caused the two opposing attributes to amplify each other.

"The Life-Death Wheel is finally finished!!!"

This means, the natal attributes were finally usable!

…

Last blacksmithing chapter. Now, guess what he will make from thet metal? Not a hammer, of course.

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