The Rise of the Black Plain

After exclaiming in shock, the young blacksmith who was working at this shop looked at Minos and Abby for a moment and realized they weren't kidding him.

He then ran one of his hands over his head awkwardly and then said. "I'm sorry, but in addition to the high-level grade-1, and maybe some of the low-level grade-2 weapons, the rest of what you want needs to be ordered."

"I thought that..." Minos briefly commented as he watched the young blacksmith come out from behind that place and come towards the store's shelves.

"Sir, allow me to show you the weapon models we have at our disposal here in the shop…" After that, he introduced all the high-level grade-1 weapons to Minos and Abby, considering the types of artifacts they had asked for.

There was more than one type of each item, and as they were items made by different blacksmiths, such artifacts also had slight distinctions. After all, perfectly replicating the forge of an item was such a complicated thing that even similar items made by the same blacksmith would have small differences.

And when a product is made from a specific 'recipe,' but by different blacksmiths with different domains over their techniques, levels, and unique characteristics, the final product could be different!

Such a thing was like what happened with pills produced by different alchemists!

Some pills were of the same classification and purposes, as in the example of the spiritual advancement pills. However, if more powerful alchemists produced such pills, then the effects of these items could be more intense. That is because they could have smaller amounts of impurities and could be faster absorbed by the cultivators' bodies.

As for spiritual weapons, such artifacts could differ in their resistance, compatibility with specific techniques, and the intensity of attacks made with such weapons. For example, the same type of sword could have different results during a battle, considering the production quality.

One model might be more effective at cutting through enemies' flesh, while another might fail to advance the opposing defenses.

Of course, there wouldn't be a brutal difference about that, as it would be weapons of the same classification and model. However, in a balanced battle, anything can change the outcome, so the choice of spiritual weapons was often taken very seriously by cultivators.

At least that's what happened when it came to weapons sold in stores like this one. After all, this place already had several items ready, and each cultivator would have to find the most compatible with him in a shop like this.

However, if a cultivator ordered a weapon, such a thing would already be done following that person's preferences, and it wouldn't make much difference to make comparisons.

Anyway, after a few minutes, Minos finally chose all the high-level, grade-1 weapons and some low-level grade-2 ones available there.

Even if it were ideal to order, as these weapons weren't for him, it wouldn't be interesting for him to order them all either.

On the other hand, the resources available for creating spiritual weapons were limited, and if they had to order a large amount of them, it could delay Minos and Abby's journey. After all, more weapons ordered would mean more resources, maybe something coming from other regions, perhaps lacking on this store...

So, there were advantages to buying a weapon that was already available in a store like this!

"Of the high-level grade-1 artifacts... There were 20 swords... 10 war hammers... 6 spears... 5 bows, and 4 axes... That's 230,000 low-grade crystals."

"In addition to the low-level grade-2 artifacts, we had 2 swords, 1 war hammer, and 1 spear... Adding that up, that's 1,800 medium-grade crystals." The young attendant said to Minos and Abby while he had a euphoric expression on his face.

He had naturally never sold such a large number of items, so he had been a little excited about these two in front of him. Usually, big deals like these used to be done directly between the great blacksmiths and their customers, so it was not common for employees of stores like these to know about such things.

But Minos and Abby didn't give a damn about that young man's excitement when young Stuart immediately made the payment and stowed his weapons in his spatial ring.

He hadn't been able to buy all of the low-level grade-2 weapons, as there weren't that many items available. In fact, if this weren't one of the best stores in town, Minos couldn't even dream of finding such variety.

And in a way, he had been fortunate to find these items already available in this location. That's because artifacts of this quality didn't last long in a shop and were soon sold.

But the young ruler of the Black Plain had not been disappointed. Since he'd have to order the medium-level grade-2 sword, ordering two swords and a war hammer of low-level grade-2 classification shouldn't delay his trip too much.

This shop where he and Abby had come had several apprentice blacksmiths, and some of the owner's disciples had already attained the necessary level to produce such resources. And this had been one of the reasons Minos had come here and not the many other stores of this type in Athela!

The blacksmith owns this place focused only on producing medium-level grade-2 items. In contrast, his apprentices made everything else sold in this place.

"Well, thanks for the help. Where can I place my order?" Minos asked the young man who had attended him as he prepared to leave that store.

Hearing this, the attendant waved his hands and said to both of them. "You can head towards the forge area. There you will find several outdoor forges, and the master's point is next to the biggest furnace in that place."

...

After saying goodbye to that young man, Minos and Abby quickly crossed part of the land of this property, having arrived at a place with several stone furnaces.

About eight young blacksmiths were producing their items at this location while using similar hammers to crush metal alloys that glowed red-orange.

The temperature was well above average, and each of these blacksmiths was massively sweating as they endured the heat and high-intensity exercise.

And because of that, some of them were shirtless, only wearing aprons to cover their torso and trousers.

On the other hand, a few other people appeared to be giving tips as they carefully observed each of these youths' forging process.

Clang!

Clang!

"That's right, support your legs like that and use your hammer hard to deform..."

"No, no, you are not breathing right! If your breathing doesn't match your movements, your artifact will be imperfect..."

Several corrections were made by these individuals who watched these forges when Minos and Abby finally passed a stone path in the middle of that area.

Quickly the two arrived in front of an open-air workshop, right next to a large furnace, which was glowing at the time, with several ores inside.

And not far from there, an old man was holding a particular type of artifact, which seemed to 'blow' towards the flames, increasing the intensity of that furnace.

This man was shirtless and wearing only black trousers, while he had his eyes closed, making movements with that artifact from time to time.

When they saw this person, Minos and Abby soon realized that this was the master that the attendant had been talking about. And that was obvious to see, not because of the super-developed and massive muscles, but because of the old man's cultivation level.

He was already a level 52, Spiritual King!

And while the two of them stood there a few meters away from this person that had a beard and white hair, this old man continued to make his movements, with his eyes still closed. "Two auras I've never felt before… You must be here to place orders, right? You can say what you want. it won't interfere with my work."