Just like the tower constantly absorbed the power of the mana geyser beneath its foundations, Lith absorbed the power of the tower itself every ti he breathed in. Enchantnts reverted to spells that bent to his will, and world energy beca mana.
He used the Fury to share the excess mana with his companions and the rest of the Set to shield his life force and core from harm. When he breathed out, he let go of the tower core and the world energy, bringing the various floors back to life.
It allowed him, Solus, and their companions to wield the full might of the tower at their fingertips, and the tower to develop a mana flow.
The energy released by Lith contained the might of the world energy stored inside the magic tals in the Crucible, the crystals in the mines, and the artifacts in the Armory.
The resulting wave of pure mana flooded every nook and cranny of the tower before returning to its rightful place and restoring the balance. Yet it took the span of a single breath to start the process anew, causing the energy to ebb and flow.
For the duration of the Forgemastering process, Lith beca the tower's living heart. He drew the world energy to himself and then spread it across the various floors with the rhythm of his breathing technique.
Crafting the Sage Staff had taken a team of bright violet-cored awakened hours, yet this ti the power core disappeared under the surface of the glaive shortly after the thirty-minute count.
At that mont, Lith took one last breath, severing his connection with anyone but Solus to keep any stray thought or distraction from disrupting his focus.
He recalled the power from the copies of the Furies and injected it all inside one last magic circle that enveloped the artifact.
The resulting mana pillar shone so bright and expanded to such a size that Faluel thought that sohow Mogar had recognized the glaive's existence and was helping it to reach its next evolutionary stage.
Yet Mogar had nothing to do with it, and the pillar was comprised of pure mana, not world energy.
Lith channeled every iota of his will and power into the final Forgemastering Circle. It entered the glaive's mana circulatory system via the runes engraved on its surface and reached the still-unsettled power core.
Lith's mana enveloped the core and flooded the glaive's mana circulatory system, fixing every imperfection left and severing any conflicting mana veins or capillaries from within.
The energy inside the pillar beca denser and more compressed as his hands moved closer until his palms touched.
Then, the pillar collapsed on itself and the glaive, forming the mana pathways that permanently bonded the power core to the tal and would keep its energy from dissipating for a long ti, even without an imprint.
The lights in the Forge seed to go out for a mont, but it was just everyone's eyes being blinded by the pillar and needing a few seconds to adjust. When they recovered their sight, they noticed that the mana crystals on the glaive had beco dull.
The weapon fell to the floor with a silvery sound, yet without displaying any of the mystical properties one would expect from a powerful artifact.
"Give it a second." Lith said. "It must get rid of my mana first. I didn't imprint it, so the power core perceives what's left of my energy signature akin to mana poisoning."
The mana crystals blinked a few tis, and blue runes of power appeared across the haft and the blade for a few seconds before disappearing from sight forever. The glaive humd with mana, floating vertically as if held by an invisible hand.
"Wow." Faluel said, taking the words out of everyone's mouth. "It's exuding such a powerful aura that I can feel it from here."
"Thanks." Lith took off the nadion Set and used a spell to wipe his sweat. "We don't know if it's a success, though. If you imprint the glaive and you can't cast Blade Spells, I might as well scrap my new Forgemastering technique."
"The usual pessimist." Faluel extended a hand and emitted a tendril of Spirit Magic to guide the glaive to her palm.
The weapon released a burst of energy from its power core that dispersed the Hydra's mana before it could reach the haft.
"Or not." Faluel frowned. "Is there any chance that you gave my weapon sentience as well?"
"Unlikely." Lith shrugged. "The Sage Staff is a special case. It's Solus' weapon that she forged from her blood, in her tower, using her spells. I wouldn't be surprised if my Vital Storm resonated with her and further improved the bond between them.
"Gungnir is your glaive, and we used your blood, but you played a marginal role in the Forgemastering process, and there's no way our tower or my Vital Storm resonated with you."
"Gungnir? Not Strife?" Left with no other choice, Faluel walked up to the glaive and grabbed it. "Is that why you changed its design?"
The old curved blade on top of the polearm had been replaced with what looked like a double-edged short sword with multiple tal hooks on either side to improve its ability to block and trap enemy weapons.
"Sort of. A new weapon deserves a new na." Lith shrugged. "Also, the old configuration of the rune patterns turned out to have a low compatibility with you. I picked the shape that maximized the affinity towards your mana flow."
"Well done, then." Faluel injected her mana inside Gungnir, which once again released a burst of world energy to neutralize her mana. "What the farm? Are you sure it has no personality? I've never heard of an artifact refusing to be imprinted!"
"Sure, no. I'm confident about it, though." Lith nodded. "I don't care about you that much, Faluel. We're just friends, and I'm a married man."
"Very funny!" She grunted. "This annoying piece of tal seems to have your charming personality, though. I'm going to beat it into submission!"
Faluel's bright violet aura erupted from her body as she injected her mana into the glaive. Much to her surprise, she encountered no resistance, and Gungnir was long imprinted before her aura died out.
"If this is a joke, it's not funny, Lith." She spun the weapon around, appreciating its perfect balance and the way it effortlessly cut through the air.
"It was no joke, child." Salaark chuckled. "The glaive had yet to purge all of Lith's mana. That's why your Spirit Magic and first imprint failed."
"I'll take your words at face value." Faluel nodded. "We have a small problem. I've just realized I have no idea how to conjure Blade Magic."
She flicked the weapon as if she were trying to shake water off the tip, obtaining no result.
"The theory behind Blade Magic is simple." Lith replied. "Whatever you do when you use body casting, you have to apply it to Gungnir. Treat it as if it were an extra limb and its power core as one of your auxiliary cores."
"That's it?" Faluel was already accustod to controlling six extra heads and her tail, so adding one more item to the list ca easily to her.
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