Version Update: Generation 2.5 Spirit Artifacts
"Later, a friend of mine gave me an idea: still using the alloy method." Huo Yuhao imagined how smug Xiao Yan must be right now, and couldn't help but sigh, his voice slightly annoyed. "However, what we're fusing isn't the materials themselves, but their spirituality and energy."
At the point where the crystal touched the bone handle, a yellowish-brown light flickered intensely, as if it had come alive. Like living soil, guided by the Nine Li Ice Flame and Huo Yuhao's Dou Qi, it actively enveloped and permeated the bone handle. At the end of the bone handle, the two materials spontaneously fused together!
"The purpose of using flames is to accelerate the fusion of energy and spirituality," Huo Yuhao explained. "To fuse the essence of these two materials into one. Although they look different, they are essentially the same material. After that, we can inscribe sturdy Spirit Runes on them, so there's no need to worry about it not being durable."
In a few breaths, the light of the Nine Li Ice Flame dissipated. The bone handle and the crystal hammerhead were now connected! The connection wasn't a stiff one, but rather a natural transition, as if the crystal had grown out of the bone. The entire hammer was a single, seamless piece, radiating a warm and substantial aura, with no trace of any joining!
"This... this is how it's connected?" Yan Hao was dumbfounded.
Huo Yuhao did not answer. He withdrew the Nine Li Ice Flame, then took out a small bottle of viscous spiritual liquid that had been prepared beforehand and shimmered with pale golden light. He transformed his spiritual power into a carving knife, dipped it into the spiritual liquid, and began to inscribe intricate and profound golden patterns on various parts of the hammer.
As the final stroke was made, the hammer trembled slightly, emitting a strong earthy yellow light. Then the Spirit Runes disappeared, the spiritual light subsided, and it exuded a calm and profound aura.
"Alright." Huo Yuhao handed the Spirit Artifact warhammer to Yan Hao. "Try it out and see if it suits your hand."
"For me?!" Yan Hao could hardly believe his ears.
He excitedly took it; it was heavy in his hand, yet fit his palm perfectly, as if a warm, gentle force was flowing through his arm and into his body.
"Hmm," Huo Yuhao nodded, "Perfect timing. Do me a favor and test its power. With your strength, plus this, you should be able to threaten Dou Ling."
The words had barely left his mouth when Lin Xiuya's figure appeared precisely at the edge of the open space: "Where are you—"
"Old Lin! You've come at the right time! Take this!" Yan Hao was just worried about who would test his hammer, and when he saw Lin Xiuya, his fighting spirit ignited instantly! He roared and didn't give his opponent any time to react. His earth-attribute Dou Qi exploded and poured into his Spirit Artifact hammer!
Buzz!
The Spirit Runes on the hammer instantly lit up, radiating a brilliant earthy yellow light! With the support of the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi, Yan Hao felt as if the hammer in his hand had become lighter, and the flow of his own Dou Qi was smoother than ever before!
He stomped his foot, causing the ground to tremble slightly, and charged towards Lin Xiuya like a cannonball. His warhammer, carrying the force of a collapsing mountain, smashed down on Lin Xiuya's head without any fancy moves!
The hammer-like wind howled, accompanied by the surrounding earth energy being stirred up, creating a heavy sense of oppression!
Lin Xiuya's expression remained unchanged. He had mastered the newly acquired Earth Tier Cultivation Method last night, and his strength had improved considerably. In addition, he had never lost a sparring match with Yan Hao.
Therefore, he was full of confidence. Facing this familiar yet fierce hammer blow, he drew his longsword, infused it with Dou Qi, and with a swirling blue light around the blade, he met it with a skillful technique to deflect the force!
Clang-!!!!
A deafening clang, ten times louder than when Yan Hao smashed the stone, erupted! A shockwave surged, dust billowed, and large swaths of grass were uprooted.
Lin Xiuya felt an overwhelming and unstoppable force surging through the sword! His exquisite technique of deflecting force seemed so fragile in the face of this pure and domineering power!
The longsword shattered instantly, and he was thrown backward by the shock, taking more than ten steps back after landing, each step leaving a deep footprint on the ground.
Yan Hao, however, remained firmly in place without swaying, though his hand holding the Spirit Artifact warhammer trembled slightly.
We won!
This was the first time Yan Hao hadn't suffered a loss at Lin Xiuya's hands!
"How is this possible?!" Lin Xiuya forced himself to steady himself, suppressing his boiling aura, his face filled with shock and disbelief. "I clearly—"
His gaze instantly locked onto the uniquely shaped warhammer in Yan Hao's hand, which emitted an earthy yellow glow.
Considering Huo Yuhao's earlier mention of "weapon forging" to the vice dean, and that earth-shattering hammer blow just now, the answer is obvious!
While Yan Hao was still excitedly rubbing his new weapon, Lin Xiuya moved like the wind, instantly closing in and striking with lightning speed, snatching the Spirit Artifact warhammer from Yan Hao's hand!
"Hey! Old Lin, what are you doing!" Yan Hao exclaimed anxiously.
Lin Xiuya ignored him and eagerly poured his Dou Qi into the hammer.
Buzz-!
The Spirit Artifact warhammer once again shone with a thick, earthy yellow light, and the Heaven and Earth Origin Qi rapidly gathered, clearly transmitting a sense of concentrated power into Lin Xiuya's hand!
"Huh? Old Lin doesn't have any resonance with the earth's energy—" Yan Hao stopped his hand, which was about to snatch it.
"Because the attributes don't match." Huo Yuhao took out another beast bone. "It mainly relies on earth attribute enhancement Spirit Runes to increase its power, while the class monitor's attribute is wind, so he can't fully activate this Spirit Runes."
Han Yue also walked over, her beautiful eyes fixed on the hammer, then looked at Huo Yuhao. Her usually cold gaze was now filled with undisguised shock and burning anticipation. No words were needed; her longing was already evident.
Lin Xiuya took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, and returned the bone jade hammer to Yan Hao, who was still jumping up and down. Then, together with Han Yue, they looked intently at Huo Yuhao and said in unison, their tone more solemn than ever before. "Huo Yuhao!"
"Help us forge a Spirit Artifact too!"
"Whatever you need, we will do everything in our power to find it for you!"
Seeing the undisguised longing in their eyes, Huo Yuhao's lips curled into a gentle smile, "No need to trouble yourself. I was originally planning to make one for each of you anyway."
"Huo Yuhao, thank you! If there's ever a chance in the future—"
"Oh, right!" Yan Hao suddenly leaned over and nudged Lin Xiuya aside. "Old Huo, you said before that Spirit Artifact, like pills, have grades, so what grade is this warhammer?"
"Hmm... it's hard to say." Huo Yuhao hesitated. "My previous rating criteria were spirituality, power..."
Usage conditions, etc. This time, because the materials have been changed—this warhammer, in terms of its spiritual properties and usage conditions, is a third-grade weapon, but its power has reached the fourth-grade level—what I consider the threshold for a fourth-grade Spirit Artifact.
"Let me study the Spirit Artifact rating system for a while longer before discussing it further."
"Class monitor, Han Yue, you both use swords, right?" Huo Yuhao took out some new materials, thought for a moment, and then took out two pieces of rare metal that were almost gone. He prepared to help them forge Spirit Artifact.
"Old Huo, why don't you give it a name?" Yan Hao's words were like opening Pandora's box.
Huo Yuhao stopped what he was doing and said with a hint of excitement, "I've decided to call it: Roar in Concentration - Earth Hammer!"
Everyone: "----"
Xiao Yi Xian sighed, "Since this hammer has already been given to the vice class monitor, let him name it!"
Yan Hao suddenly slapped his thigh. "Great! This one! It's fucking cool! I didn't expect you to be so good at naming things, Lao Huo! I've always thought my Dou Technique ' Mountain River Tremor ' was too ordinary, Lao Huo, can you help me come up with another one?"
Everyone: "----"