Re: Evolution Online

Liam refrained from asking anything more about the special alchemy shop which was no doubt set up by someone who hailed from Earth unless there were other worlds in the myriad realms that also enjoyed the famous cartoon.

Liam had many theories but he did not want to make any assumptions just yet. This was a mystery he had to solve by paying a visit to the shop in person. For the time being, he shifted his attention back to the alchemy floor of the system shop.

Liam searched for some more time, only finding some weak soul-strengthening potions which he did not bother buying. After all, his personally concocted versions were better than them.

He did end up buying some recipes for concocting bloodline purification baths. He also purchased some more potions regarding the same. Since he wanted to understand more about this process, he invested some resources into it.

After visiting the alchemy floor of the system shop, Liam became aware of something painfully obvious. While he was an 'Alchemy Grandmaster' his experience and expertise in the actual field were shockingly small. 

He was probably a Grandmaster only in namesake. He doubted why the system even awarded the title to him. 

His best guess would be that he had made more progress in concocting soul-related potions and pills when compared to the others. Now that he had seen what was available in the market and what wasn't, he was more sure of this assumption.

Perhaps his understanding of the field was high and now all he needed to do was invest some time practicing and creating new potions and pills to stabilize his foundation. His lack of a dao seed in the field also told him that much. 

However, he could only put this on the back burner for now as he was hard-pressed for time. The same went for his forging skill.

Liam walked along with the fairy and arrived at the next floor which was coincidentally an exclusive floor dedicated to forging.

The fairy led Liam and his companions through rows of shelves laden with raw materials ranging from common metals to rare ores pulsating with magical energy. 

Alongside these were tools and equipment designed for master smiths, everything a forger could dream of having in their workshop.

Liam purchased a set of upgraded tools and was taking a look at the raw materials lined up in front of him when he suddenly felt a small pull from something, tugging at the fringe of his mind.

He paused and tried to figure out what it was. Surprisingly, it was his black dragon sword. 

Liam still hadn't unlocked the sword completely because he was worried about the backlash the several dragon souls might have on his injured soul, especially in his current wounded state.

The sword also seemed to have given up on him since it never bothered to communicate with him or interact with him. The both of them had arrived at an impasse.

But now suddenly the sword or rather the souls inside were trying to reach him, with whatever weak connection they had between them.

Liam drew the sword out and the next second the reaction was even bigger. 

The sword was thrumming and vibrating as if the souls inside were extremely excited and couldn't hold back. The sword was visibly shaking. He had never seen the black dragon sword this excited.

Why was it behaving like this?

Liam had no idea. His gaze randomly shifted to the object in front of him when the obvious explanation dawned on him. Was the sword or rather the dragon souls attracted to this metal?

The metal in question was an exquisite, dark ore with a lustrous sheen and an almost imperceptible pulsation as if it contained a life force of its own. It was no doubt a high-grade material.

The label identified it as 'Drakeheart Ore,' a rare metal said to resonate with the essence of dragonkind. Intrigued, Liam picked up the ore, and the sword vibrated more intensely, confirming his suspicion. 

Seeing Liam examining the ore intently, the fairy quickly started to explain. "Drakeheart Ore is one of the rarest and most powerful materials known to us." 

"It is said to be formed from the crystallized blood of dragons, containing their might and essence. It can only be found in areas where dragon blood had been spilled." 

"Forgers who use this ore can craft items of immense power."

"How much for this ore?" Liam inquired, mentally preparing himself for the steep price.

The fairy quoted an amount that made even Liam, with all his resources, take a deep breath. It was a fortune, but for something as unique as Drakeheart Ore, it was justified.

However, Liam did not understand something. Despite all of its uniqueness, the ore was still listed as A grade. 

He had personally fed the sword a lot of materials ranging from F grade to S grade so it was rather shocking for him to see the thing lust after something that was only A grade, considering how high maintenance it was and how many materials it had consumed already.

But that was a problem to solve for another day. After a moment of contemplation, Liam decided to purchase the ore. He did not plan on feeding the dragons the ore anytime soon but he decided to buy it and store it for the future.

After he healed his soul, he would finally sit down and have it out with the sword and the dragons inside and fully upgrade the damn thing.

A weapon was something that could make up almost half of a person's power and Liam currently lacked a good weapon that he could use. While he was here, perhaps it was time to look for another one.

Did this floor have any soul weapons? Liam curiously looked around when once again the sword in his hand started to act weird. It was as if it was angry and agitated?

Liam did not understand why. He already ordered and purchased a chunk of that metal so why was it behaving in this manner?

***

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone!