The return back to base filled me with suspicion. What was that light? What the hell happened? Thoughts like that were taking space in my mind. Whatever happened, it was clear a massive amount of energy was involved. Not as much as one of my Soul-fueled attacks, but it was still a lot.

As I arrived back at base, I saw the group gathered around the temporary research facility, or what was left of it anyway. Weirdly enough, Thalza was also there.

[Hey, guys. What you up to?] I greeted.

“Master! You are back.” Bram was the first to react. “How did the hunt go?”

I made a so-so gesture with my hand. [The quality of the beasts is alright, but it’s getting harder and harder to find them. What about you? What was that light?]

Bram moved out of the way to reveal Thener holding the Void Stone box I made, while the man himself was grinning like a fool.

[A success?]

“That’s right!” He proudly announced and opened the lid, revealing a small black blade. “My experiment was an unqualified success! The resulting material is stable and strong, much stronger than the sum of its parts at least. We’ve created a new material! Oh, and obviously, everyone here helped. Even her.” He gestured at the Drow.

[Really? Thank you.] I inclined my head in her direction.

“Hmph.” Thalza crossed her arms, acting aloof. “I was just curious. I didn’t do it for you.”

I chuckled and didn’t push it. If she didn’t want to take credit, that was fine. It was nice of her that she helped, and that was that.

[So, explain to me what this does.] I said as I took the knife. It was entirely made of one material and its color was deep gray, almost black, with a blade no longer than my finger. Its construction was also quite crude, but for the proof of concept, it was great.

“Well… First of all, you shouldn’t be able to hold it like that.” Thener began with a grimace. “The blade devours Qi even faster and stronger than the pure ore, something all of us can confirm.”

All present nodded, Thalza included, though she really seemed irked by that fact. I mean, I felt its pull was stronger, but it was maybe double, or three times as strong.

“I was planning to somehow isolate the draining effect on the handle, but… Anyway, the final result is somewhat difficult to shape, as you can see.” Thener gestured at the blade in my hand.

[Indeed. A side effect of the creation process?]

“Exactly. The interference from the containment barrier of the Forge was much greater than I expected, so it came out a bit… rough.”

I twirled the blade in my hand. It was rough, as he said, and it did start to sting as the resistance of my skin diminished, but… [It’s not bad as a first attempt.]

“Oh, thank you, Master. I’m sure you will be pleased with the strength of the blade. We have tried to damage it but have been unsuccessful so far. As for the other effects, we aren’t sure yet.”

[Is that so? Let’s test it out a bit.] I removed the defenses on my hand and stabbed my palm. Immediately a searing pain shot through my hand and into my brain like a lightning bolt. I barely kept a scream back as I gritted my teeth. The pain was way worse than even getting my entire hand torn off, and I quickly pulled the dagger out, my hand shaking.

[Oooh! That… stings.] I rapidly healed back and tested my hand, feeling the residual phantom pain for a few moments after that. I could not imagine how crazy the pain would be if I struck a more sensitive spot. That would be torture.

I placed the dagger on a piece of rubble to let my body recover as I listened to what else Thener had to say.

[Anything else I should know? How long until you can make a real weapon?]

“Hard to say. The superalloy is difficult to make, and once it hardens it becomes like a ceramic and it becomes impossible to change its shape. We have tried, unsuccessfully so far.”

I grinned confidently. [We’ll see about that.]

I gripped the dagger with two hands and attempted to bend it. The weapon didn’t budge, so I tried using more force. Holding it by the tip, I tried to leverage my way to results, with similarly little success.

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[Huh, it is pretty strong! Let’s see how much it can take.] I expanded my physical form to access more power, all the way up to the limit of about six meters. If I grew any bigger, I would have trouble even holding the dagger.

I focused, flexed my muscles, and summoned every drop of strength my body possessed yet the black dagger remained stubbornly rigid even as it dug into my skin. I reinforced my flesh and pushed again, stronger and stronger, amplified by Qi and body enchantments, huffing and puffing, until there was finally some flex.

And then the blade snapped.

A horrible boom sounded out as it broke, summoning a gale.

“You… actually broke it?”

[Huff… And not without effort.] I breathed out. I examined the two ends and the break was perfectly straight and clean. If I wasn’t the one to break it, I wouldn’t even know it was broken. [This stuff is amazing!]

The thickness was only a few millimeters, and yet I had to exert so much effort to break it. If we could expand the blade, make it a few meters long and the thickness of my forearm… It would be unbreakable!

[What’s it made of? And how soon can we make more?]

“A quarter is pure Dreadstone, a quarter refined Ferrite, and two quarters Celestial Metal. With some trace elements as well.” Thener answered and handed over a sheet of paper. “I wrote it all down, here.”

I looked through the list and nodded. The materials were reasonable and about what I expected. The mix used a bit more of the Celestial Metal than I predicted, but that was fine. It was the most suitable material for a magic alloy after all.

Apart from the ingredients, Thener wrote down the entire creation process as well. It was stupidly energy-intensive and required some extreme environments for the alloy to form, but that was the least of my worries.

[If I wanted to create a sword as big as me…] I looked at the man.

“Impossible.” He shook his head immediately. “Not unless we got more of that Celestial Metal. What we have left is just enough to make one, maybe two normal longswords. Or one greatsword.”

[Damn it.] I pinched my glabella. Running out of materials… I was worried about that. Having used the majority of my materials to form the new body for Onyx, I was left with barely any Celestial Metal. I did not regret forming his body, that was a good deed, but I did mentally kick myself for not plundering the Underdark more. I could have at least taken some of that Celestial Metal-rich ore.

“Perhaps if we try to substitute-”

[No. This was the only viable result among the dozens of failed experiments, correct? We don’t have enough materials to try other combinations. Not that it matters. This was our best bet for success anyway.]

Thener nodded. “It is as you say. Then, should we create that sword or…?”

[Leave it be for now. You can return to studying the rifts if you so wish, I… I have to think about this.]

I rubbed my chin as my gaze landed on Bram, Calla, and Eden.

[You three wouldn’t happen to have any Celestial Metal on you, would you? Or know anyone who does? Lee’s people had a few scraps, but that is not nearly enough.]

All three of them shook their heads.

“Celestial Metal is exceedingly rare and expensive. Maybe Lee has a relic or two, but that probably won't amount to much.” Eden explained.

[Yeah, thought so. Just when I thought I got a viable solution too. Fuck me.]

“I’ll pass.” Thalza muttered.

I offered her a resigned look at the attempted joke before simply shaking my head. There was one last option that came to mind for solving the problem while I was stuck in the Lower Plane.

[I do remember detecting a few small groups of people at the edge of my perception while hunting out there. Perhaps I should look for them. There are bound to be a few rich guys out there.]

“I wouldn’t count on it.” Call said. “Those below the Sky Realm rarely have such expensive gear. But I guess it doesn’t hurt to look.”

[I’ll do that then.] I declared, my mind made up.

“What should we do in the meantime, boss?” Bram questioned.

I thought for a second. [We probably have enough Dreadstone for now, so either Cultivate, train, or take this opportunity to relax, it’s up to you.]

“In that case, may I get a refill?” Eden shamelessly asked.

[Sure.] I gestured for him to step closer and took his hand, sending ownerless Qi into his body. Soon enough, he was full.

“Thanks!” The man beamed and I gestured for others to come near as well.

[Might as well do all of you at once and be done with it before I leave again. It’s going to take me some time to find other people in this wasteland.]

One after the other I filled my team members and then noticed Thalza standing there with an outstretched hand, pretending to be nonchalant.

“I need some as well. Please.” She added at the end.

[Sure.] I smiled and grabbed both her hands, pulling her closer and giving her a taste. Energy roiled through my hands and into hers, making her quietly gasp and shiver slightly. Getting rapidly recharged felt extremely pleasant, like soaking up the heat of a flame on a cold winter night, and I did it on purpose.

As soon as I was done, she pulled back her hands and mouthed a quick thank you without even looking me in the eyes before turning around and walking away. What a shy girl!

[Alright!] I crossed my hands behind my back and addressed my team. [I’ll leave the piggy here with you while I’m out there traveling. Take care of him, alright? And Bram, make sure Felix does his exercises properly. I can see him slacking off right now.] I said as my sight picked up the little guy fooling around in the village near the horizon.

“Sure thing boss! I’ll make sure he studies the techniques properly. Good luck on your trip.” Bram said with vigor and respect. I nodded, satisfied to have such a reliable person on my side.

[In that case, enjoy your vacation, folks!] I said and rose from the ground. [When I get back, there will be much work to do!] I then accelerated, breaking the sound barrier in a few short seconds, and continued accelerating further still.

The Lower Plane was vast. I didn’t even know if the place had a size limit, so if I wanted to find what I was looking for in any reasonable amount of time, I couldn’t be slacking off. I stretched my spirit Sense far and wide, scanning the horizon and beyond for any signs of life.

Just a few short hours later, I detected a small, roaming group… of humans.