Andrea sat at her room's desk, looking at the wooden figurine on the desk. She poked it a few times, curious to see if it reacted. However, nothing occurred. The figurine was around 20 centimeters tall, so it was not small.
It looked like a swollen humanoid thing, not making much sense of what it referred to. With that in mind, Andrea honestly doubted if the inheritance inside of this would really help her. "I mean, since Yasenia got it for me, it means that Yasenia also finds it very valuable. Something that greedy girl finds valuable is probably worth getting."
She rubbed her chin and asked herself if she should wait a bit longer or drop her blood on it right now. "Dawn is already grown up, and soon, Estrella's coming-of-age ceremony is going to happen. After hers, all the other children will follow in the next two years. So… should I wait these two years before triggering this thing?"
The tall and tanned woman rubbed her forehead. "I honestly don't want to lose my little daughter's coming-of-age ceremony…" Andrea sighed and picked up the thing. "Let's wait a bit longer, okay? I am not supposed to be greedy with these things. Take it slow, but be constant. Effort and patience will eventually reward me."
Andrea smiled and stored it in her spatial ring. Then, she stretched and pondered. "I wonder how my girl is doing with that soul thing? I heard that she is trying to create a Soul Strand." Using her spiritual sense to look at her own soul, Andrea couldn't help but laugh wryly. "My control over my soul is not bad. However, I don't really think I would be able to create a Soul Strand before I reach the Half-step or even the Transcendent Level…"
Andrea paused and crossed her arms. "Speaking of which, I heard that when reaching the Transcendence Realm, you are able to create Secret Realms. A Secret Realm is something similar to a hidden dimension, right? So, does Transcendence have to do something with the ability to affect the space around us?"
The tall and perfectly muscular woman walked toward her forge and entered it, looking at the spear being heated up by the furnace. "Is the trick to create Transcendence Realm items in the ability to fight against those kinds of forces?"
The spear that she was forging was for Skye. With her current knowledge and [Alloy Weaving Intent Level 9], crafting growth equipment was not an impossible task, and this spear was her first try at that.
The reason she chose Skye's weapon was because spears were relatively simple to craft. The most difficult part was creating a shaft with enough strength to bear the strain of being spun around by cultivators of certain levels while maintaining a slight elasticity for easier maneuvering.
When a weapon could be swung by a, for example, Body Modification Realm or Mental Nourishing Realm, the elasticity was very tricky to get right. If the spear bent for the Body Modification Realm cultivator, that would mean that the Mental Nourishing Realm cultivator could probably handle the spear like a whip instead.
The solution most blacksmiths went for was, well, telling their clients "Just don't use it."
Andrea found that a very lazy solution. She understood where it came from, but that was like a medicine practitioner telling one of their patients. "Oh? You hurt your arm? Well, stop doing whatever you did to hurt your arm." And then sending them away.
It would probably fix the problem, but it was much lazier than healing the wound and then finding a solution to eradicate the problem by the roots, like strengthening a joint or a bone.
Andrea approached the spear, and even though it was glowing red because of the heat, she traced it with her bare finger. With her current level, the materials she was using wouldn't cause an injury to her even if she bathed in them. "I need a material that becomes sturdier as the strain on them increases at a rate that always keeps the flexibility of the spear at a proper level. The mix of materials I used makes this somewhat possible when adding [Reactive Spirit Essence] and [Malleable Ferrocore]."
After pondering for a few moments, she extended her hand, summoning a beautifully crafted blacksmithing hammer. The gorgeous tool glowed with orange pulsing veins as if it were alive.
"Not only do I need to give them that quality, but I also need to create certain seals in the item that become loose after being bathed in different realm energies." Andrea hummed. "How do I make it easy for these seals to loosen but also hard to undo them before the wielder is ready?"
Andrea walked toward another anvil and summoned another spear. This one was another similar item she created, but one that she considered a failure due to the lack of fluid flexibility as Andrea intended.
Her hand glowed a brilliant and alluring ruby-red flame, her Natural Treasure, and she engulfed the spear in it, softening the material at a gradual but constant pace. When melting the material, she needed to be sure not to cause the inner structural integrity to collapse by heating it up too quickly. "Let's see…"
Andrea lifted her hammer, her posture following a perfect form that could only be gained after millions of hammer strikes. Then, with surgical precision, the hammer descended and hit the spear.
Clang~.
A crisp and somewhat ethereal sound spread in the forge. Andrea's Spirit Blacksmithing level had already reached a breakthrough point, and only a small push was needed before she could comfortably step into the Transcendent Realm Spiritual Blacksmiths ranks.
When the hammer struck the heated spear, the strength behind the strike rippled through it, transforming the inner structure of the item. Andrea hummed and raised the hammer again, the orange arc it created pouring a soft glow on Andrea's majestic, muscular, and feminine figure.
Clang~.
The second strike sent another ripple through it, shifting some inner circuitry that Andrea had created in the past and changing it to create a different effect.
Clang~.
With the new inner circuits and outer shell, the spear's essence changed.
Clang~.
Energy flowed toward the spear that easily reflected in Andrea's light green eyes.
Clang~.
With each hammer strike, the spear transformed. Soon, its effects completely changed.
Andrea struck time and time again, and after the ninety-third harmonious sound created by the hammer falling onto the item, she stopped. "This should be enough."
When Andrea picked the glowing spear barehanded, she moved to the side and doused it in a liquid that lowered its temperature. It was similar to an oil, but also without its sticky nature.
Flames flared upward from the bucket, touching Andrea's neck and giving her a flaming mane for a few moments. Of course, the powerful cultivator felt nothing but a warm breeze.
After she took it out, the spear had changed. Before, it shone with a beautiful radiance and emanated a powerful aura. However, now it looked common and lackluster, similar to a mortal spear.
Seeing that, Andrea smiled. "That looks nice. Let's see, do you do as I think you would now?"
Andrea poured a strand of energy into it, and the spear's markings and spiritual veins glowed. Then…
BOOM!
A powerful aura spread from it as the spear regained its former majestic presence. "Oho~. That's a good start."
Andrea spun the spear with one hand, increasing the speed of the spinning motion each second. As the speed increased, its figure started to blur while the shaft of the spear bent. Andrea looked at it analytically and increased the speed, her fingers agilely spinning the weapon.
As the speed increased beyond what the spear could bear, Andrea's sharp ears caught a cracking sound. However, Andrea didn't stop; instead, she increased the speed.
The spear was almost invisible as it spun crazily, and eventually…
CRACK!
The spear snapped and flew out of Andrea's hand, slamming against the walls of the forge. Looking over, she saw that the walls were undamaged. Andrea smiled. "That was a nice endurance test." Looking over at the other spear, she rubbed her chin. "While it is a low-level Earth Rank treasure, its endurance is not worse than middle-level Earth Ranked treasures. Moreover, the layers of seals, if I create them correctly, can become part of the weapon's strength when unlocked. This would make the item perform like an average high-level Earth Ranked weapon even when it is a Low-level one."
Andrea happily laughed because she would be able to create the weapons after all these decades of trial and error. "I should tell Yasenia when she finishes with her Soul Strand thing."
Then, she started working on the spear for Skye again. This time around, with everything she had learned during the last decades, Andrea's every movement flowed like water. From hammering, to heating it up, to carving the spiritual veins, to melting it again to give it a sturdier frame and starting the process again.
The cycles repeated, one after another, giving the weapon its particular qualities. Skye's attributes were Lightning and Star, therefore, the weapon would need to be compatible with them, and preferably, even enhance them.
Therefore, all the materials were related to either lightning or stars. One of them, the core material called [Lightning Struck Star Ore], was what made everything meld together into a perfectly uniform treasure.
When Andrea finished the item, she happily looked at it and nodded. "Done. My first growth-type item. Moreover, if Skye wants to upgrade it later, it can grow by absorbing energy up to a Peak-level Earth-Rank treasure. This should be a perfect weapon for her until she is much older and able to get her own."
Andrea stretched and sighed. "Okay. Now that this is done, now I will need to apply these methods for the other children's weapons. I will need to craft a scythe, four swords, a shield, a bow, and a halberd." Andrea paused and hummed. "Well, they are all proficient with swords, so I should craft seven of them. Estrella is quite good with double swords, after all."
With that in mind, Andrea began her work and tirelessly hammered down materials, creating all the equipment. One after another, she produced everything, and a few months later, she came out of the forge with a refreshed expression.
These growth-type weapons, while being relatively low-level compared to what Andrea could craft, had an incredibly deep complexity. That's why Andrea needed all that time to make them.
After coming out of the forge, she saw Yasenia appearing in front of her with a smile. "Are you done with the weapons?"
Andrea laughed. "You were waiting?"
Yasenia raised her eyebrow seductively. "Waiting and watching! You look very handsome when you focus enough that you can't even detect me around~."
Andrea coughed. "Did you really come inside?"
Yasenia jumped forward, being easily caught by Andrea, and then laughed. "You are so adorable, Darling. Now, come, come, you have a womb to fertilize~."
Andrea was dragged toward a room and squeezed dry once more.