Chapter 877 (1/2)

Randidly’s process of creating Bloodsteel hadn’t changed much since returning to Earth. The few changes that he had to make were only because the processing facilities available to him were so… lackluster. Basically, assembling a full-scale forge wasn’t possible in a short amount of time without quite a bit of money.

Money that Randidly didn’t currently have.

Perhaps if Randidly had monetized his ability to create engravings and spent a day or two adding stats to the equipment of Donnyton’s Squads, he could have managed to gather quite a bit of capital. But Randidly was already torn between time training and refining his images that it felt like a waste to pursue money.

Besides, what he lost in lower tiered metal processing equipment, Randidly was more than happy to compensate for with an increasingly exact image for Refine and Extract.

With his powerful Willpower, Randidly whipped the molten metal into something akin to a froth and then methodically Refined away the air bubbles that had been injected into the mixture. The result was a metal that was more dense and muted than then typical iron ore that Randidly used, but it seemed to possess an internal strength that far surpassed the original metal.

What followed was the careful experiments to determine what was the best mixture of blood and molten ore to make Bloodsteel. At first, Randidly was worried that this new refined ore was, in fact, weaker, because it couldn’t handle as much of his blood as it could previously, but then he realized with a start that the problem was probably that his blood had grown much more potent during his time on Tellus.

His images were now imprinted physically into his body in the form of his Soulskill. It would be strange if there were no new develops regarding his blood. But it did make the mixing process relatively volatile.

When his blood began to simply devour the metal, Randidly used Extract to remove the Ignition of the Emerald Essence and Ashen Image portions that were physically present within the blood. That did make the process easier, but Randidly knew in his heart that the result wouldn’t be as dependable as it would have been.

So, after perfecting a weakened formula, Randidly rubbed his eyes and flared Ignition of the Emerald Essence to increase the heat in the forge. Then he began again, working this time to make an alloy that included the full complement of his blood.

In the middle of the process, his blood once more began reacting negatively to the presence of the ore. In the small crucible, the two liquids hissed and spat as they touched. Frowning, Randidly called on his Crown.

Instantly, the light in the room shifted. Even the emerald glow from the conjured flames faded somewhat. With methodical strokes, Randidly shaped the metal, using his consciousness to calm the two opposed forces. And when they didn’t comply willingly, Randidly smashed down with the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil.

As the air in the forge warped, Randidly sensed small imperfections forming within his metal. The mental torture twisted in his cerebellum like a thin, buzzing drill. But he ignored that and allowed the Skill to slowly grind away at the reality of the mixture.

Beads of sweat ran down Randidly’s temples. He swore quietly, a headache brewing behind his eyes. The two liquids sputtered and trembled, overwhelmed by the combined force of the Crown and the Indignation. Seconds ticked by as they teetered toward an equilibrium.

Finally, the two liquids calmed. Immediately, Randidly used Refine to remove the imperfections that had been added in the process.

Strangely, this was one of the more difficult Refine uses that he had done. Frowning, Randidly focused on the metal. It wasn’t just physical there were still… slight Aether flaws from the exposure to the Skill. But Randidly Refined completely until his product was absolutely pristine. The metal turned strangely lustrous, shining even as a liquid. That made Randidly’s eyebrows slide upward, but he did his best to ignore it as he continued to treat the metal.

At the end of an extremely arduous session at the forge, Randidly had three shimmering bars of metal for his trouble. Rather than the usual red, these ingots were a silvery grey with crimson and emerald speckles scattered through the metal. Even simply hefting it, Randidly could feel the difference between his prior Bloodsteel.

This… this would be a bitch to work with.

Grinning, Randidly looked around the mess of his forge. Then he threw his hands up in the area. Probably just fucking fifty or so more ingots before he would feel confident attempting the forging of the arm.

Randidly sent a message to Sam, asking for his help with the forging of something, then returned to his Soulskill.

This time, a bloodshot-eyed Wendy handled over the plans without a word. She barely looked up from the desk. Her one hand appeared to have been dipped in ink… and then dried, gluing it to the desk. Even though he was annoyed at her for wasting his time, Randidly couldn’t deny that she seemed… completely wrung out.

But before he felt sorry for her, he examined the plans. Instantly, his gaze intensified. This design… was far from her previous two attempts.

“Satisfied?” She asked, tilting her head up from the desk over which she was draped.