Chapter 251 248: Future plans

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Chapter 251 248: Future plans

"I will go to great lengths to craft an exceptional armor for her using the materials you've provided. The armor will be capable of not just breaking bones but also delivering fatal blows!"

Gruul made this promise to his master.

Crafting items would consume his life force, but for the sake of meeting Val's expectations, he was willing to do it.

"I am looking forward to it," Val replied to Gruul, and then asked, "How much time do you think you'll need to finish it?"

"Give me just a few hours, and I'll have it ready for you," Gruul answered him before turning his attention to preparing the armor.

Val watched Gruul for a moment as the latter got to work before shifting his gaze away.

It wasn't beneficial for him to learn crafting. After all, if he needed to accumulate contribution points in the frontier, he had other, more effective means. He could easily amass points by selling purified cores and crafting elixirs, activities that didn't require him to master the intricacies of crafting. Furthermore, he had Gruul, a highly skilled artisan, who could craft remarkable items for him whenever he obtained suitable materials.

And even in the unlikely scenario where Gruul was not available or refused, Val had other options.

Specifically, he could turn to the highly-trained runesmiths who worked in the workshops located in the central district of the lower city.

These wizards specialized in the art of creating cursed artifacts and held legal documents issued by the Northern Frontier to substantiate their expertise.

Should one have the necessary materials and is willing to pay the price, whether in money or in valuable items, these skilled craftsmen could produce cursed artifacts tailor-made to one's specifications.

And so, because of all these reason, he decided to not waste his time in learning crafting and instead do other things.

Val fed the level 2 dungeon core he'd recently collected to the Door Of Guidance that was also located in the shrine.

The door absorbed it.

Almost instantly, four additional hollowed-out areas in the door started glowing.

Now, half of the ten holes in the doors were illuminated, indicating that the door was halfway charged.

"The energy provided to the door by this core is almost four time the previous one, yet they're both level 2 dungeon core," Val scratched his chin thoughtfully, "It has to be because this core came from a dungeon that was on the verge of upgrading to level 3."

Coming to this conclusion helped him realize another fact.

"Judging by how much charge this added, I'm pretty sure just one more core from a level 3 dungeon should be enough to fully charge the Door of Guidance."

Val started to think about where he might find such a powerful core. Then, it hit him.

"Ah, I know exactly where to find what I need. I recall that I am scheduled to be part of an expedition heading into a lesser dimension in just two days. The Core of Corruption in that dimension should contain energy on par with a level 3 dungeon core, if not more. If I can get my hands on it during the expedition, that should be more than enough to bring the Door of Guidance to full power."

Val felt a surge of anticipation.

The Door of Guidance had the unique ability to direct its user to a location where they could enhance their Blood Devil bloodline. Once this door was fully functional, he would finally gain the chance to make the leap. If he successfully grasp it, His Blood Devil bloodline would advance to the intermediate level.

"I can't wait for it to happen," he thought aloud, a smile spreading across his face.

There were still four hours left for the night to pass.

Val had been keeping track of the time since he entered the shrine, so he knew.

He was neither tired nor in need of sleep

Thus, he decided to put these four hours to good use instead of procrastinating or lazing around.

'There isn't a lot I can do in the shrine, but there's still something I can do such as putting the bones of the revenants to good use.'

Val took off his clothes, setting them neatly to the side.

Then he pulled out the spectral bones he had obtained from defeating the revenants in the Shadow Valley from the Void Orb.

A focused expression made its way to his face as he used wizardry to crush the bones, turning them into fine powder.

He applied this powder onto his body, spreading it evenly over his skin.

The powedered version of the devilish bones stabbed their way into the pores of his skin.

As a result, his normally white skin started to turn a shade of red, and Val felt as if a stampede of ten thousand horses were running over him, each hoof adding to the force that pressed against his body.

Thankfully, he couldn't actually feel the pain associated with the experience of using revenant bone to strength the body due to his Unfeeling trait. It was strong and overwhelming enough to discomfort, but even that was partially dampened by his emotional impairment trait.

Thus, he was able to bear it.

Or else, like many others who had tried this method to increase their bodily strength before him, he too would have lost his mind and, unable to bear the pain, commited suicide.

Val was also aware of this.

"My inborn traits are really pulling their weight here; they're the reason I'm getting through this," he thought aloud with happiness vivid on his face. His innate traits were both a curse and a blessing, but in this situation, it was being clearly shown why they were considered a blessing.

A while later, series of notifications popped up in front of Val.

[System Notification: A unique method has been used to enhance and strengthen the quality of the Host's body.]

[System Notification: Host's HP has increased by 2, reaching 20 points.]

[System Notification: Host's Strength, Agility, and Stamina has increased by 3 points. Host's Strength, Agility, and Stamina has increased by 53 points each permanently .]

[System Notification: Host's Reflexes have increased by many points, reaching 46 points.]

Going through them, Val smirked and felt great.

'Now I feel more confident in my ability to overcome the challenges of a lesser dimension.'