SEVEN ORIFICES

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The sounds of the building coming back together echoed faster than their eyes could keep up with.

The closer it got to completion, the more it seemed that Leonel hadn't changed anything at all… but who could possibly believe such a thing?

Just looking at the building, it felt like it was just a few dozen meters in front of them, and yet, somehow, it still felt a world away. Somehow they got the feeling that if Leonel didn't want them to enter, either a powerhouse would have to take action, or they would be stuck outside for the rest of their lives.

At that moment, the last roof shingle was pressed into place and a resonating hum filled the skies.

Echoes of gold and violet spread, and though at first they were worried about being harmed by it, when it rushed by them, all they felt was an endless sense of comfort.

Before anyone could react, Leonel walked out a bit pale-faced. Tolliver had formed an arm sleeve on his left hand once again, swirling with silvers and golds… and what seemed to be hints of violet. However, the little World Spirit was nowhere to be seen.

At least it seemed until a wisp of something suddenly manifested on Leonel's shoulder.

The adorable little World Spirit looked just like what his mother might have looked like when she was far younger. Maybe even ten to eleven years old at best.

It happily wobbled around, tugging on Leonel's ears from time to time as though to point out something cool in the distance.

Leonel smiled. It was far more animated now than before. It seemed he had already succeeded in step one. His plan was feasible.

He didn't explain anything to these people as he left with his wife.

Everyone stood in silence and it wasn't until a long while later that chaos erupted. It was uncertain who moved first, but the moment they did, there was a tide of Crafters moving. The non-Crafters were much slower because they still had no idea what they had just witnessed. But no matter how useless the Fawkes family Crafters were, how could they not realize they had just witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime event?

The moment they saw what Leonel had done, they were in a complete uproar. The commotion was so great that it spread across the Fawkes family in a wave, so suffocating that eventually it gripped even the eldest members.

…

A man in his older middle ages walked into the factory. The moment he did, a hushed silence fell over everyone. They knew exactly who this man was, and not a single one of them dared to show the slightest hint of disrespect.

He was Grand Prime Minister Green, one of the very few who had risen up to take a new position here. Originally, the Ascension Empire only had two Grand Prime Ministers. But with the expansion of their strength, so too had come an expansion of their ranks.

This man went by another title as well. He was one of the three Crafter Gods of the Empire. They were individuals who had pioneered new fields of Crafting, fusing the paths of the rest of Existence and Earth. It could be said that this factory was single-handedly created by Grand Prime Minister Green.

Everyone couldn't help but wonder how he would react to see it like this.

What no one could have possibly expected was that he would stand in frozen silence for three entire days before he suddenly began to bleed from all seven orifices. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and then directly fainted.

…

News of what happened spread like wildfire. However, it wasn't just because of Grand Prime Minister Green's affair. That was because another high-standing official had a reaction much like the Green family head.

Secretary Marquiesette Leo of the Leo family, a middle-aged woman with the charm of a prowling cougar and the edge of an enraged lioness, also bled from seven orifices, coughed up a mouthful of blood, and fainted.

This event confused most people. It made sense for the Head of the Greens to end up in this state because he was a Crafter. But Secretary Marquiesette Leo was a Force Pill Crafter. Why did she have such a fierce reaction as well?

Very quickly… the news as to why spread.

The factory that Leonel had created wasn't only capable of perfectly replicating any Craft he forged, but it was also capable of replicating any Force Pill Aina concocted as well.

Secretary Marquiesette Leo and Grand Prime Minister Green had been working so closely together these last several years that countless rumors about a love affair spread far and wide. But in reality, they had been working on a method of taking these factory methods and replicating them with Force Pills as well.

If the Fawkes family had a way of mass-producing weapons and pills, they would be able to stifle the market and take control of the reins… even if they mass-produced pills and weapons that were inferior.

What no one expected was that Leonel would succeed in a single afternoon, and not only that… but the result of his process was akin to something they had never seen before in their lives.

Leonel and Aina had only left the blueprints behind for simple weapons and the most ubiquitous Force Pills, and yet… they were better than even Force Pills and Force Weapons personally hand-crafted by the best Crafters of their family.

This was especially so for the bows and spears that the factory produced. They were so amazing that many felt their hearts shudder at the thought of their enemies wielding such weapons. Could they really sell such things?

But this wasn't even close to the most amazing part… That was because the most shocking part of all of this was the fact that not a single human laborer was needed.

Instead, the factory became almost like a university hall where Crafters jostled for position just to get a better look at their teacher's lesson.

This sort of uproar was able to pierce a hole through the veil of the skies.