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Naturally, Lucian had no intention of forging the Ice Bead into a weapon; it was perfectly suited to be a high-tier utility item. His plan was to refine the bead, then engineer it into a magical core similar to the Spring of Life. However, instead of absorbing ambient mana to generate water, he would hook it directly into the Divine Court Waterways. By running the Spring of Life's waters through the refined Ice Bead, he could artificially generate a freezing variant of the sacred spring.
Both the original Spring of Life and the modified frozen waters shared the exact sa foundational core—life energy—but possessed entirely different elental properties. In short, it would act as a powerful expansion module, allowing him to construct the Freezing Spring of Life.
"Do you need to help process that?" Lucian asked casually.
"Yes, please!" the Empress imdiately finalized the deal.
"What type of defensive gear do you want it forged into?"
"I'll leave it entirely up to you," the Empress shrugged. "We can't process it anyway. Chopping it up to use as raw plating would be a massive waste, so just do whatever you think is best."
"A scale of this grade is perfectly suited for a full-body set," Lucian nodded in agreent. "For my paynt, I'll take the Ice Bead."
"Agreed."
Not a single person objected to his asking price. Even though Lucian hadn't engaged in heavy frontline combat, his tactical contributions to this expedition were undeniably the highest. Furthermore, as an exploration-focused alliance, they would have been forced to sell the materials to the Guild anyway. Commissioning a blacksmith to forge a Level 8 material—especially a complex, full-body set—would easily cost billions of Valis.
In the original tiline, when Ottar single-handedly slew the 37th-floor boss Udaeus, the forging fee just to turn the drop item into his Black Greatsword cost 410 million Valis. And that was just for a sword. Armor required significantly more intricate craftsmanship, easily tripling the price. If processing a Level 6 material cost that much, the market value of a Level 8 material was downright astronomical. Because absolutely no one in the Lower World could process materials of this grade, a monopoly on the forging process ant Lucian could command literally any price he wanted. Thus, even if he hadn't asked, the Familias would have gladly handed over the lion's share of the profits just to keep him happy.
Securing the materials, Lucian teleported his consciousness back to the Divine Court and imdiately began preparing the ritual. Despite being a mber of the Hephaestus Familia, Lucian rarely relied on the traditional forge. Instead, he utilized rule-tier magic to manipulate the materials directly. To refine the Blue Scale, he activated his Refining Magic. Because the sheer density of a Level 8 material vastly exceeded his current ntal capacity, he anchored the spell to the Divine Court's ritual matrix to shoulder the load.
"Refine, Shape, Imbue—"
Executing the three phases in rapid succession, the forging process was completed effortlessly. An ordinary blacksmith would hit a wall after the shaping phase. The final step—Imbuing—required 'Mystery' as a developntal ability, allowing the smith to engrave dense layers of magical text directly into the armor to unlock unique, supernatural traits.
"Imbue Trait: Transformation."
"Imbue Trait: Physical Defense."
"Imbue Trait: Magic Defense."
Lucian's arcane runes intertwined, forging a complex Spiritual Circuit that granted the armor a faint, ambient sentience. The Transformation trait allowed the dense plating to fluidly adjust its micro-structure, perfectly conforming to the wearer's exact asurents. The defense wards were standard, top-tier enchantnts mandatory for any premier set of heavy armor. For the inner lining, he wove in highly refined Water Spirit Cloth, perfectly synchronizing with the armor's innate aquatic affinity.
"It started as a massive slab, but after refining out the impurities, it's just enough for a single set," Lucian muttered to himself. "I just hope they don't think I skimd the raw materials."
With the armor finished, Lucian shifted his focus to the Ice Bead. First ca the refinent process. The massive, boulder-sized orb shrank down to the size of a fist, but its energy density skyrocketed to a terrifying tier. Next, he inscribed the functional traits. Unlike the physical restrictions of shaping armor, utility items relied almost entirely on theoretical magical engineering—which, thanks to his cheat-like deduction speed, was effortless.
With the artifact finished, Lucian walked to the far edge of the Divine Court and constructed a secondary fountain. He mounted the Ice Bead onto the central pedestal. As the sacred waters cycled through the bead, they instantly plunged to sub-zero temperatures. If an ordinary mortal touched it, the biting frost would initially shock their system, but the gentle, overwhelming life-force radiating from the water would quickly soothe them, deeply purifying their essence and flushing out cellular impurities.
Is this because of the ice attribute, or the dragon bloodline? Lucian pondered.
Tartarus already possessed a profound divine aura. While it wasn't a true mythological entity, its draconic lineage was incredibly concentrated.
Probably a mix of both, he concluded.
With the Freezing Spring of Life successfully installed, Lucian's mind began racing with new ideas. Re-routing the aqueducts, he sketched out plans to install a Flaming Spring of Life on the exact opposite end of the map. It would be perfect for anyone with eccentric tastes, or just for a really intense hot spring bath. Having finished his work, Lucian grabbed the armor and teleported his consciousness back to his physical body in the Dungeon.
"Oh? You're back already?" the Empress asked, her eyes instantly locking onto the armor floating gracefully beside him.
It was utterly breathtaking. Lustrous, deep-blue dragon scales overlapped in gorgeous, sweeping patterns, radiating the profound, suffocating depth of the abyss. Layered flawlessly over the sleek Water Spirit Cloth, the armor exuded a fiercely elegant, aerodynamic aesthetic.
"Have you decided who's taking it?" Lucian asked.
"It's mine," the Empress declared, proudly puffing out her chest. "I'm the only one here who has the sheer presence to pull off a set like this, right?"
"Suit yourself."
With a flick of his wrist, Lucian sent the armor drifting toward her. The Empress caught it reverently, her fingers lightly tracing the edges of the scales. Her eyes were practically brimming with adoration.
"I'm going to try this on right now!" she practically squealed, sprinting back to her tent.
A few monts later, the tent flap flew open. The Empress, already renowned for her fierce, domineering aura, stepped out. Clad in the azure scales, she looked like an invincible female warlord stepped straight out of a mythological epic. This was the absolute pinnacle of fantasy armor—not only was its visual design stunning, but its functional specs were downright apocalyptic. The physical and magical kinetic absorption were so high that Lucian genuinely believed that if she had worn this during the final raid against the Black Dragon, she could have tanked its attacks long after the rest of the Familia had been wiped out.
"So? How do I look?" the Empress asked, spinning around excitedly to face Lucian.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" Lucian sighed in exasperation. He could clearly tell that her attitude toward him was shifting drastically by the day.
Her question was asking if she looked attractive in it; his question would have been asking if the armor's defensive specs t her operational standards.
"If you're asking about the visual aesthetic, I'd say it's exceptional. You have the exact bearing of a Blue Dragon Empress," Lucian replied, deciding to indulge her after seeing how genuinely thrilled she was.
Hearing his praise, the Empress's smile blossod like the sun. Her gaze shifted, locking onto Lucian with the intense, predatory hunger of a starving wolf eyeing a particularly helpless lamb.
"I love that title. When we get back to the surface, I'm officially changing my alias," she declared, laughing joyously.
The title of 'Empress' was undeniably domineering, but it was also painfully generic. While dragons in this world were categorized as monsters, the sheer prestige and terror associated with the species were universally recognized. She hadn't transford into a dragon, but donning the apex armor of a dragon king permanently etched that imagery into her persona. A title that perfectly synergized with her signature armor carried far more unique prestige than a generic royal title. But most importantly, she chose it because it was the na Lucian had given her.
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