Lightning Is the Only Way

Gravis had been smelting for a couple of days now, trying out different materials, different amounts of Spirit, and different amounts of concentration. However, he had to take breaks now and then. Keeping the form of the weapon inside his imagination while doing the calculations was very demanding on his concentration.

In over 90% of cases, Gravis pulled the ores apart too soon, breaking them in the process. 5% were too high, while the remaining 5% were just right. After seeing the results on different materials, Gravis noticed that he nearly always pulled the material apart too soon.

After a couple of days of smelting, he went back to trying only one material. This material had a rank at the Initial Unity Realm. A material like this should be just right for him. After all, he was at the Initial Stage of the Unity Realm. Of course, he went back to this material because he found out the answer.

Gravis had tried some materials for the Early Stage of the Unity Realm previously. Smelting them was many times more difficult, surprising him quite a bit. He even had to move some of his other centers of power into his Spirit to keep going.

While trying out these materials, Gravis noticed that he was wasting a bit more Spirit than concentration, which required him to increase his Spirit. Judging by the time, his concentration would be about half empty if he finished his weapon. Sadly, that calculation wasn't accurate. After all, Gravis didn't know how much concentration the other steps would take.

Surprisingly, his calculations had been pretty spot on while smelting materials at the Early Unity Rank. Gravis quickly tried to find out the reason for why his calculations had been so off, but it took him a couple of more failures to finally find the answer.

When he found the answer, he facepalmed. "Of course," he said, "my Spirit is way more tempered than the average cultivator. Everyone else breaks into the Unity Realm immediately without further tempering their Spirit due to the equalization problem, but that's not all!"

"I also have a more powerful Will-Aura, which allows me to concentrate more and for longer periods of time. Yet, the impact that concentration has on the material in comparison to Spirit is not nearly as strong. After some adjusting, I should be able to reach the standard that the calculations are based on."

His father nodded. "So, you found the answer. Good."

Gravis also nodded. "My Spirit is about three times more powerful than the average cultivator's. Thus, the malleability felt way easier since my Spirit has more force. I judged the temperature according to the described usage of Spirit. Yet, my Spirit is more powerful, making me misjudge the temperature. My concentration is also slightly more powerful, but that doesn't have much impact."

"That's correct," his father said.

a material at the Initial Unity Rank. He quickly shoved about 70% of his Spirit into his lightning to make his body fit the standard that the calculations were based on. He moved a little more than necessary to counteract his heightened concentration. Like this, Gravis found way

time. It was actually pretty easy to find the correct temperature now. Without the calculations' help,

Gravis lost his focus, and the material would change into the wrong shape. Luckily, Gravis just had to regain his focus to try again. After doing this for another couple of days,

an issue, but in the future, this could become troublesome. Gravis was safe in this room, but he

a

of a weapon-embryo. Since he mostly used the same material, he also didn't need to calculate anymore. He had developed the feeling that the material should

more difficult than he had believed. For starters, Gravis didn't try the compression method for the edge. He first tried

proving difficult. The lightning needed to become more powerful to grind the weapon, but that also increased its heating effect on the weapon.

were perfect for creating weapons, and any change in the materials would reduce their effect. If the composition of

the edge. If Gravis didn't gain

forging, and a guide for materials couldn't describe a suitable usage for every forging method. Creating the weapon-embryo wasn't difficult or varied. It

paths. Some people used hammers. Others used their elements. Some people

could only slowly get a feel for the material. Another difference to merely heating the material was that Gravis wasn't infusing it directly with lightning anymore. While creating the edge, he was

lightning would get reflected, similar to light. Therefore, the angle and intensity had to be in sync. To find that perfect balance, Gravis

a whole month

but, obviously, that wasn't enough for him. If he only knew how to make

for them. By the end of the month, he wouldn't require more than five tries

Formation Arrays lay behind Gravis. Cooling the weapons down wasn't hard. The cooling time and method were very specific for each material, and water was most commonly used. With the bottle

down correctly had become a habit. The cooling

back. Then, he sighed as he closed his eyes for a second. "This should be about enough,"