Chapter 571 - 331: Level 2 Blacksmith

Chapter 571: Chapter 331: Level 2 Blacksmith

"Are you sure this is okay?" Leng Qingying stood beside the ritual Lu Cang had drawn.

These days, they no longer went to the Promotion Hall for promotions.

They were all drawn by Lu Cang.

Only Lu Cang knew how to draw the promotion rituals.

Lu Luwei was too lazy to learn, and Leng Qingying didn’t want to learn either, finding it unnecessary.

The gap in Spirituality between them and Lu Cang was vast.

Even if they wanted to learn, it would take a great deal of time; their learning ability alone was a tier below his.

"It’s fine. I’ve already foreseen it."

Lu Cang had seen Leng Qingying’s future and even ran a simulation for her in a Future Preview.

There were no issues.

Leng Qingying stood in the very center of the Ritual.

Lu Cang stood before her, his tone calm. "For this promotion, I’ll be your opponent."

It was just like when he was promoting to Level 4 Warrior, and Chi Cheng had been his opponent.

Now that Leng Qingying wanted to demonstrate her achievements as an Assassin, Lu Cang would be her opponent.

"Just give it your all."

Leng Qingying snorted. "Then you’d better be careful. One slip-up, and I might just kill you."

HUM!

A faint barrier rose on all sides, enveloping the area of the promotion Ritual.

「Root Magic—Primordial Origin」

The Root Magic from Meiser—a Root Magic without a tier.

It was also the most unique among all the Root Magics Lu Cang had learned.

"I declare the promotion’s commencement."

HUM!

A pitch-black vertical pupil appeared in the sky—the symbol of the Assassin’s source!

SHIING—

Almost simultaneously, Leng Qingying vanished once more.

Yesterday’s sudden probing couldn’t be called a real fight.

Today...

Leng Qingying was fully armed, her Dagger replaced with her most prized Weapon.

The Dagger recovered from the Dark Church!

TZZZ—

The Dagger cut through Space, tearing open a slender strip of darkness!

Lu Cang felt darkness swirl toward him from all directions like a vortex, spiraling in to envelop him.

’Since this is Leng Qingying’s demonstration... it’s probably best not to interrupt her.’

’Her Speed is even faster!’

Lu Cang could sense Leng Qingying’s subtle improvement.

She had immediately corrected her flaws after their fight yesterday.

The Leng Qingying of today was stronger than the Leng Qingying of yesterday.

’This rate of progress isn’t bad at all.’

Lu Cang flicked a finger.

CLANG—

「Rock-Breaking Stream—Second Form: Shattering Rock Finger」

The most common Combat Skill in Atlantis City, the Shattered Rock Stream.

THUD!

His finger collided with the Dagger!

Leng Qingying’s arm went numb from the Rebound!

PFFT—

But in the next instant, Lu Cang felt a cutting sensation on his right shoulder.

「No Assassination Technique—Misplacement」

A flash of surprise went through Lu Cang’s mind.

’I really did underestimate her.’

’I always thought I was far ahead of Leng Qingying, that I’d already seen through all her combat methods...’

’It seems I’ve gotten arrogant again.’

’In this world, unique thinking is what makes one strong.’

The attack posed no threat and hadn’t harmed him in the slightest, but it had... actually landed.

’What do I have to be so arrogant about?’

Lu Cang instantly corrected his mindset.

He felt slashes coming at him from all directions, like a gale of wind!

Lu Cang released a bit of his Qi.

He formed a Qi Shield.

However, the anticipated slash never came.

’My Intuition... it’s being disrupted...’

Leng Qingying’s Assassination Skill had progressed more than he’d thought. It was just that she was so weak that Lu Cang had somewhat overlooked her Skill.

Now, re-examining her abilities.

Her techniques were truly worthy of a second look.

PFFT—

Lu Cang glanced down at his chest.

Leng Qingying lunged with a stab, but Lu Cang caught it in the next instant.

Then, from behind.

The left, the right...

Illusions flickered as void and reality interchanged. Though she was only moving within a tiny area, killing intent filled every direction.

But then Lu Cang used Magic to form a blade.

He swung a casual Wind Slash!

WHOOSH—

Instantly, all the surrounding Illusions were swept away!

And just as the surroundings seemed empty, Lu Cang bent his fingers and reached out to his side.

「Stream of Nonexistence—Fifth Form: Phase of Two Cuts」

CRACK—

It was as if Space had suddenly split into black and white. Lu Cang’s fingers passed through the gap between them, and he felt an extremely powerful force slash across his knuckles!

The blow sent a sharp, stinging pain through his hand.

A scratch appeared on Lu Cang’s skin—

But a look of unwillingness flashed in Leng Qingying’s eyes.

WHOOSH—

The moment she completed her strike, Leng Qingying vanished again!

But this time, her disappearance was fleeting—like the click of a camera shutter!

「Killing Technique—Void of All Things」

SHIING!

Lu Cang felt a shift between illusion and reality. The strike formed a dividing line between the two!

The tear between reality and nothingness was like the repulsion between two identical magnetic poles.

The moment they touched, they were forced apart!

’This slash isn’t aimed at my neck, but at my fingers!’

CLANG!

Leng Qingying landed behind Lu Cang.

She sheathed the Dagger, tucking it back into the holster on her outer thigh.

"This is... my answer."

CLACK—

In the end, Lu Cang’s finger hadn’t been severed.

But that last strike had indeed cut into his flesh.

To break through his defense with such meager strength was, in fact, quite impressive.

Leng Qingying was Level 4.

For her to fight him was already a challenge against a higher-level opponent.

But Lu Cang could also sense the thick cloud of resentment emanating from Leng Qingying.

A strike using all her strength.

And in return, she couldn’t even sever a single one of his fingers.

’The gap is so vast... I can’t even see his shadow anymore.’

Leng Qingying had demonstrated her Assassination Technique.

As a Level 4 Assassin, she had grasped the boundary between nothingness and reality, as well as the principle of Misplacement and division between them...

Even if her attacks in the physical world were blocked, they would still land in another location through Misplacement.

This was why Lu Cang had failed to block her attack.

Leng Qingying’s way of thinking was also formidable.

’Come to think of it, Iz never looked down on my ideas about Magic. Even though I was so much weaker than him, he always respected my thought process and took my conclusions seriously.’

’He never dismissed my ideas as a worthless joke.’

’I’ve really forgotten... the reason the strong are strong.’

’Why did I look down on Leng Qingying?’

’Is it because I became stronger that I became arrogant...?’

Leng Qingying presented corpses to the sky. These bodies were not Demons, but humans.

People with no skin.

They were all Skin Takers.

Leng Qingying became a Level 5 Assassin. The assassin’s code she followed was perfect.

"And now, it’s my turn."

Leng Qingying nodded and stepped aside.

She carefully savored the changes and enhancements that came with becoming a Level 5 Assassin.

...

Level 2 Blacksmith, Level 2 Enchanter.

There was no suspense in the promotions for these two Professions... In fact, Lu Cang could have promoted some time ago, but he had delayed to verify a few theories.

It was like when Iz developed the Magic Tide at Level 1.

Perhaps some things could only be mastered at Level 1.

He made a few final attempts.

Only then could he be more or less certain that there was nothing for the Blacksmith and Enchanter Professions that required a Level 1 restriction to master.

With a burst of molten iron and Flame.

Three hours later, Lu Cang had forged a perfect masterpiece on the spot.

A small and exquisite Dagger.

「White Poison Blade」

During this time, Lu Cang hadn’t been conventionally Forging equipment according to the experience left by his predecessors.

Instead, he used his own mind to devise a Forging method that belonged to him alone.

His battle with the Golden Dragon had made Lu Cang realize there was a massive difference between himself and ordinary people.

It wasn’t just the difference in his Divine Talent.

His own condition, his Root Magic, his Combat Skills, his Physique... every aspect of him far surpassed that of ordinary people. When creating Combat Skills, he couldn’t simply rely on the experience of his predecessors.

They simply weren’t suitable for him.

So...

Lu Cang learned his lesson. He would no longer rely solely on the data obtained from the White Tower.

Instead, he would think for himself.

’If it’s me, how should I do it?’

「Azure Sky Hammer Technique—Hundred Refinements and Thousand Hammers」

「Root Magic—Wan Ge Transformation」

「Divine Talent—Poison Calamity」

Lu Cang reforged a piece of fragile Poison Crystal White Iron.

Poison Crystal White Iron is very brittle by nature, but this type of Crystal Iron is extremely easy to imbue with poison and can even amplify its toxicity.

Daggers forged from it are often single-use consumables for injecting poison.

It was more commonly used to make items like poison-laced throwing knives.

The poisons that could be applied to it were typically not exceptionally potent, otherwise the Poison Crystal White Iron itself would be unable to withstand the toxicity and would begin to corrode.

But...

Lu Cang changed its brittle nature. At the same time, he used his Poison Calamity Talent to apply the poison directly onto it.

The poison imbued by 「Poison Calamity」 didn’t change the object’s nature; it only made it naturally venomous.

He no longer used Fire.

Instead, he used 「Wan Ge Transformation」 to liquefy the raw material, then hammered it with his 「Forging Hammer Technique」.

「Skill: Hardening Forging (Level 501)」

Blacksmiths also had their own Skills.

Through forging and hammering techniques, they could add different properties to materials like hardening, toughening, softening, and sharpening...

These were things that couldn’t be done on the Profession-less Earth.

And what Lu Cang was doing now was something that even normal Blacksmiths couldn’t achieve.

In the end.

The finished, sharp, white-and-purple Dagger possessed enough poison to kill a Level 7 Reincarnator.

「White Poison Blade (Enhancement +2)」

「Grade: Tier One」

「Quality: Perfect」

「Forging Effect: The poison imbued in this Dagger is amplified by 50 times.」

「Forging Effect: Increased sharpness and Hardness.」

「Enchantment Effect: Tier Six potent poison—rotting-type poison Effect is enhanced by an additional 2 times.」

This was... the greatest masterpiece he could currently create.

Hard, sharp, and... extremely poisonous.

Even if this Weapon were given to a newly promoted Level 1 Assassin, as long as they could touch an enemy, its sharpness alone—without any force required—could pierce the skin of a Tier Five Nation Destruction Level Demon.

The poison would transfer, resulting in an instant kill.

An ordinary Weapon, even one made from the materials of a Tier Six Demon, would not be enough to give a Level 1 person the power to kill a Tier Five Nation Destruction Level Demon.

DING—

The purple Dagger hovered in midair.

Lu Cang felt the feedback from his source. His Spirituality hadn’t increased, but he felt a new kind of Perception Ability for metal and iron.

Now, he could not only forge equipment from single materials but could also fuse different metals together.

He had become a Level 2 Blacksmith.