Chapter 100

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Abel was currently in a situation where the rewards from the primary wish orders and the items from the primary system store refreshes were nearly unable to satisfy his rapidly growing strength demands. So, he decided to challenge the assessment for intermediate trading qualifications!

After a deep breath, he affirmed, "Yes!" The system began to search for a special wish order. The order description stated that the Demon Slayer Corps swordsman Inosuke Hashibira wanted two sturdy swords that could slice through demons like mud. The order's basic reward was the Beast Breathing Technique and 1000 trading points, with a remaining time of 7 days.

Abel found himself in the meticulous analysis of the task, reminding him of his exam days. This special wish order, though seemingly simple, had a lot of tricky aspects to it. The main challenge was to understand what the Sun Blades were – the special swords of the Demon Slayer Corps that could reflect the color of the breath style suited for its wielder and were capable of slaying demons.

He was familiar with the world where this order came from, even to the point of it being memorable. The demons in that world were peculiar creatures that fed on humans and were hard to kill, possessing a mysterious ability known as "Blood Demon Art." Their biggest weakness was their fear of sunlight, colloquially referred to as 'dying on sight of light.' The Sun Blades, specifically designed to kill these demons, were made of a special iron ore that absorbed sunlight, causing substantial damage to demons. It implied that even the sharpest or most powerful regular swords would not suffice. The process of creation must incorporate a special material capable of 'absorbing sunlight' or 'emitting sunlight.' Failing to do so would lead to a guaranteed assessment failure. The descriptors 'not easily broken' and 'slices through demons like mud' further complicated matters.

Time was of the essence, and Abel knew he couldn't afford to stall. He swiftly decided to leverage his family's intelligence network to locate the most reputable swordsmith in the North Sea and then move forward from there.

After an arduous three-day journey, Abel and Baby-5 finally arrived at the island home of the most renowned swordsmith in the North Sea—Master Kojima. As per the information from his family network, the elderly Master Kojima was known for crafting the renowned Quick Rain sword.

Although Master Kojima had only ever crafted one 'Quick Blade' in his lifetime, which didn't even measure up to the "Fast Blade Gojū Work"—Onimaru in Abel's possession, he was still the finest swordsmith they could find in the North Sea. For more exceptional artisans like the creators of the "Big Quick Blade Twenty-One Work" Ten Feather Slash and third-generation Ghost Cleaver, Tengu Mountain Flying Cleave, they resided in the Land of Wano.

Even if Abel wanted to seek them out, disregarding all other factors, time simply wasn't on his side.

Upon arriving at Master Kojima's abode, Abel stated his objective outright to the elderly man. Although Master Kojima was nearing his eighties, his passion for sword forging remained undiminished.

Upon hearing Abel's purpose, he didn't immediately reply but instead took note of the Onimaru that Abel had slung over his shoulder. "Young man, may I take a look at the sword you carry?"

Given his needs from Master Kojima, Abel promptly unbuckled the Onimaru and handed it over. "Indeed, it's a Fast Blade Gojū Work," Master Kojima declared with a hunter's delight. He couldn't resist drawing the blade to study it in detail, his expression alternating between joy and loss. After a moment of tender inspection, he reluctantly returned it to Abel.

"What is this blade's name?"

"Onimaru."

"Onimaru... A fitting name for such a fine blade indeed. Merely observing its craftsmanship has been enlightening. But it's a pity," he added.

"What's to be regretted?" Abel inquired.

"I fear my old age prevents me from crafting such splendid swords anymore. I have the will, but not the strength," Master Kojima lamented.

"You're too modest, Master Kojima. How can we know without trying?" Abel quickly urged.

Master Kojima sighed, "Did you bring the materials?"

A wave of relief washed over Abel as he hastily unpacked all the materials he had acquired from various worlds, introducing each one to Master Daozhai, who couldn't have known them, even if he lived for a few centuries more.

"I have no idea where you've found such precious metallic materials. I have wasted decades in ignorance," Master Daozhai mumbled, visibly intrigued yet hesitating. "These materials, though precious, are unfamiliar to me. I am unsure about the amount of heat to use, the purification process, or even where to start. Unless I first understand the properties of these materials, it would be reckless to forge a blade. Such haste could tarnish my reputation."

Abel understood the master's wisdom and asked helplessly, "How long will that take?"

"At least several months, possibly longer."

Abel felt numb at this revelation. He didn't have that much time to spare! He politely asked, "Do you need specifications for the blade's dimensions and shape?"

Although Abel had internally given up on having the blades forged here, he answered out of courtesy, "Twin blades, preferably with serrated edges."

Master Daozhai scowled at the response, "The materials here might not suffice to make twin blades. We would need to mix in other metals. And why must the blades be serrated? It's not very elegant, rather crude, I must say."

Indeed, creating a single blade from these materials was possible, but forging twin blades would be a stretch. Abel had overlooked this complication.

With no immediate solution, he responded to the second question, "The serrations are the blade owner's request, and I am merely fulfilling it."

Although Master Daozhai seemed somewhat appeased by Abel's reply, he still was not pleased. Abel quickly apologized for the inconvenience, stating, "My apologies for troubling you today, Master Daozhai. But the blade owner wishes to see the finished product as soon as possible. I'm afraid we cannot wait for several months."

Upon packing up his materials, Abel politely excused himself, leaving Master Daozhai feeling conflicted. The master had never encountered such exquisite materials and felt he might be losing an opportunity of a lifetime.

"What timeframe has the blade owner provided you?" Master Daozhai asked, hoping to catch Abel before he left.

Abel checked his order's countdown and responded, "Less than four days."

"Four days? What kind of masterpiece can be crafted in such a limited time? That's an absolute waste!"

His frustration escalating, Master Daozhai was visibly furious, his face reddening like a cooked shrimp. Abel feared the master's high blood pressure might cause a stroke!

Seeing the master's reaction, Abel was certain he wouldn't accept this order, making the situation awkward. With his companion Baby-5, Abel hastily made his exit.

"Why was that old man so angry? Is crafting two blades that difficult? We still have four days." Baby-5 asked.

Tired and not feeling up to explain, Abel casually replied, "Maybe he's not skilled enough."

They found a quiet place to stay after leaving the mountain, but not because Abel held any hope for Master Daozhai. With less than four days left, he needed a peaceful spot to try his own method.

In a normal scenario, it would be almost impossible to craft two excellent blades meeting the owner's requirements in such a short time. What's more, they couldn't find another blacksmith to take on the task.

Therefore, Abel's last hope was pinned on his incredibly versatile system. He brought out the last remaining item from his initial "Newbie Gift Pack"— an Order Issuance Experience Card (Limited Edition).

A one-time use item.

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Chapter 134: The Sly Smile of the Goddess of Luck (Extra content for 2300 average subscribers, please subscribe!)

With the present circumstances, there seemed to be no other way apart from utilizing the [Order Publication Experience Card]. Yet, certain considerations must be made before its usage.

Firstly, the issue of materials. Currently, there might not be sufficient resources to forge twin blades. Secondly, what should the reward for the order publication be? If it isn't valuable enough, the [Order Publication Experience Card] might be wasted as no one would take up the task. But if it's too generous, it could be a substantial loss. Thus, Abel had to weigh his choices carefully.

In his predicament, Abel decided to pull out everything from his system storage, scrutinizing each item to see if any could be useful. To his surprise, he discovered something new.

An [SSS Class Ghoul's Kakuhou] (Orange).

A special weapon material.

Description: A unique organ extracted from an SSS class ghoul.

Effect: Can be used to forge a weapon.

This was a material Abel initially saved for his weapon crafting. However, unable to find a suitable craftsman, it remained unused. But now that he had Baby-5, a potential magic weapon, and a temporary weapon - the [Excellent Quick Blade], Ghost Maru, this material wasn't as indispensable as before. If it could help complete this test, any price would be worth it.

After all, obtaining an intermediate trading qualification could lead to better rewards and better purchases from the system mall. Therefore, Abel decided to use the [SSS Class Ghoul's Kakuhou] to supplement the insufficient forging materials, and it should also significantly enhance the quality of the weapon.

As for the order reward, he finally decided on one Senzu bean and a portion of trade points. He felt this should be adequate.

[Order Confirmation, Special Request Order in Generation.]

[You've published a Special Request Order.]

[Order Description: I need two long blades crafted, with the basic requirements of being robust and sharp, with serrated edges.]

[Order-provided items: Various amounts of tungsten metal, Hikari alloy, rose gold, orangutan cinnabar iron, orangutan cinnabar ore, and an SSS Class Ghoul's Kakuhou.]

[Order Content: Craft according to provided materials and requirements.]

[Order Reward: Senzu Bean X1, 500 Trade Points]

[Order Acceptance Remaining Time: 4 min 59 sec]

To be honest, Abel has always been on the receiving end of completed request orders. The sensation of publishing a request order for the first time was quite pleasant, giving him a sense of ascending from the role of a subcontractor to a main contractor.

However, whether due to the high difficulty or insufficient reward, two minutes passed without anyone accepting the order. Abel's expression turned grim.

Failure would not only waste the [Order Publication Experience Card], but it would also mean the almost certain failure of this assessment task. Not only would he lose the one thousand trade points spent on this special test order, but if he wanted to try again, it would cost two thousand trade points! Another failure would raise the cost to three thousand.

"No, I can't just sit and wait. There has to be a solution!"

The more anxious he felt, the more he reminded himself to stay calm. Now that the order was published, the reward couldn't be amended. Also, there was only one [Order Publication Experience Card], and it couldn't be cancelled to reissue.

In this predicament, Abel pulled out his [Goddess of Luck's Dice] and threw it into the air, hoping for some external intervention

An Unbelievable Stroke of Luck!

The odds were one in six.

Suddenly, the dice shattered, transforming into a beam of white light that burrowed into Abel's body.

"It seems like... I don't feel any different."

Abel felt around on his body, but nothing appeared to have changed. Time was running out for his order, with less than thirty seconds left on the clock and it was ticking away relentlessly.

"Even a deity cannot transcend countless dimensions to influence a particular one."

"Your wish order has been accepted. Please wait for the taker to submit the order."

"!!!"

Abel abruptly jumped from his seat.

Just when he was about to give up hope, the system alert went off, signaling that someone had taken his wish order.

The feeling was like falling from Earth to Hell, then suddenly rising back up to Heaven.

Abel imagined Lady Luck giving him a mischievous smile, like a young girl whose prank had succeeded.

After his excitement subsided, he took a few deep breaths to calm himself.

"It's too soon to celebrate. Although I've set up the framework, I'm not sure about the other party's forging abilities. I need to see the finished product before drawing a conclusion."

Then, he had to wait anxiously.

When it came time to eat dinner, Abel had lost his appetite. He only managed to finish all the food from three restaurants, returning under the shocked gazes of countless onlookers.

He sat all night, and it wasn't until the break of dawn when the system alert, both exciting and nerve-wracking, sounded again.

"The order has been submitted by the taker. Please review it."

The moment the other party submitted the order, the system declared it met the trading requirements and transferred 500 trading points and a Senzu Bean to them.

However, Abel didn't care about these anymore. All his attention was focused on the two knives he got from the system.