Chapter 65: Chapter 65: Double the Good Fortune

After parting ways with Daniel's trial group, Charles moved swiftly through the forest, making his way back to the oasis where Aria was.

It was early evening, and the ferocious beasts, having been scorched by the sun all day, were now making their way to the pond to drink. This was the perfect time to rack up some points.

Charles drank a bottle of [Regenerating Potion] and gave a few bottles to Max and Mousie as well, instantly feeling re-energized.

Like a bandit, Charles positioned himself near the narrow entrance that led from the Ferocious Beast Mountains to the pond, effectively demanding a "toll" from any beast that wanted to drink.

After six hours of intense combat, Charles still had some energy left, but Max and Mousie were struggling. In their state of extreme exhaustion, even the miracle drug that restored energy was losing its effectiveness. They could only recover slowly through sleep.

Forcing his mystical beasts to continue fighting in this condition could lead to exhaustion or even a decrease in their loyalty. Not wanting to take that risk, Charles recalled them to the mystical beast space to rest.

After returning to the cabin and having dinner prepared by Aria, Charles headed to a cave several kilometers away to begin forging the [Nine Netherworld Armband].

From his storage space, Charles retrieved the [Devouring Serpent's Golden Scale] [Gold Quality] and [Devouring Serpent's Sacred Bone] [Gold Quality]. The cave was bathed in a soft golden light as he held the materials in his hands. Sёarch* The Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

These materials were hard to come by, and Charles had originally planned to wait until his [Eighty-One Hammer Technique] had further improved before using them for forging.

However, his two months of training in the Ferocious Beast Mountains had made him acutely aware of the dangers in this Beast Mastery world. In a world teeming with ferocious beasts, there was no guarantee of safety, even within the city walls.

More pressing was the fact that Robert's death, though indirect, was tied to Charles. Sooner or later, word of this would reach the Taylor family, and given how doting his father Sly was, Charles knew he wouldn't be let off easily.

According to public records, Sly was a Level 3 Beast Master. If it came to a confrontation, Charles had no chance of winning at his current level.

But with the [Nine Netherworld Armband], Charles would have an ace up his sleeve.

When embedded with a second-tier beast core, the [Nine Netherworld Armband] could absorb up to 97% of a Level 4 Beast Master's normal attacks before it became damaged. Without this piece of equipment, Charles wouldn't even dare return to Lsengard, let alone participate in the entrance exams for the various academies.

"No matter what, I have to succeed!"

Charles silently encouraged himself and then shifted his gaze to the system's [forging] section.

[Nine Netherworld Armband]

[Crafting Materials]: [Devouring Serpent's Golden Scale] 20/18, [Devouring Serpent's Sacred Bone] 10/8, Water Attribute Beast Core [Second Tier] 1/1

[Materials are ready. Begin crafting?]

Charles selected 'Yes, and an anvil and hammer appeared before him out of thin air.

He added some firewood to the forge and worked the bellows. Despite being called a [sacred bone], it looked very much like metal to Charles. Under the intense heat of the flames, the golden-hued sacred bone gradually turned red and softened.

Clang, clang, clang!

The crisp sound of hammering echoed through the valley. With each strike, sparks flew from the sacred bone, signifying the reduction of its impurities. Charles knew this meant the material was being refined.

Before Joshua's guidance, Charles would be out of breath after just a few swings of the hammer. But now, even after 18 consecutive high-intensity strikes, his movements were still precise and controlled.

He recalled the forging principles Joshua had taught him and visualized the statue-like hammering posture Joshua had demonstrated. Charles repeated the process over and over.

While his current forging skills weren't advanced enough to elevate the gold-quality materials to an even higher level, he could at least remove the impurities. That alone was enough to satisfy him.

Stoking the fire, hammering to remove impurities, quenching, and cooling...

Charles repeated this process again and again. When his muscles grew sore, he took some miracle drugs to repair them; when he felt tired, he drank a bottle of [Regenerating Potion] to replenish his energy.

By the time the night was half over, he had repeated the entire process 49 times. The palm-sized piece of [Devouring Serpent's Sacred Bone] had shrunk to half its original size, and iridescent patterns began to appear on it, with the material becoming somewhat translucent.

Clang, clang, clang!

After another round of grueling hammering, on the 81st attempt, the sacred bone had been reduced to the size of an egg. It was clear that the impurities hadn't been completely removed, but this was the best Charles could do with his current skills.

And this was only 3% of the total crafting process—seven more pieces of sacred bone and 18 golden scales still awaited his attention...

"Impressive. In just one day, you've managed to push your [Eighty-One Hammer Technique] to this level." Leaning against a large tree, Joshua observed Charles diligently forging the sacred bone near the cliffside, feeling a sense of amazement.

When he had originally learned this hammering technique from his master, it had taken him an entire year to master it.

But this kid had grasped the essence of it after watching just one demonstration.

Charles was so engrossed in his work, and with Joshua concealing his presence, he had managed to approach Charles without being noticed.

Gently placing a plate of snacks beside Charles, Joshua sighed softly.

This guy was tirelessly forging day and night, while the young lady was obsessively experimenting with making better snacks. Joshua couldn't help but marvel at how relentless the younger generation seemed to be.

...

As the sky began to lighten, Charles was drenched in sweat, his hands swollen and covered in blisters.

His relentless forging had pushed his body to the brink, to the point where the hemostatic powder he used couldn't keep up with the wear and tear on his hands.

When the first rays of dawn, tinged with a faint purple, touched Charles's body, a look of joy spread across his face. "I finally did it!"

Holding up the armguard, thin as a cicada's wing and fitting perfectly with his right arm, Charles's hands trembled slightly, partly from physical exhaustion and partly from the excitement surging within him.

As Charles admired his masterpiece, a line of text flashed before his eyes.

[Nine Netherworld Armband] [Purple Quality]: Effect ① Enhances arm muscle strength by 100%. Effect ② Reduces the damage of attacks from Beast Masters below Level 4 by 97%, consuming one golden scale per use.

After reading the brief description, Charles felt a wave of mixed emotions.

Gray, white, green, blue, purple, orange, gold...

The fact that gold-quality materials had only produced a purple-quality item was likely due to the beast core being only second-tier. If he replaced it with a higher-tier core in the future, the quality of the [Nine Netherworld Armband] should also improve.

"So, this isn't unlimited—it consumes one golden scale each time it's used," Charles thought, feeling a bit regretful.

But on further reflection... reducing 97% of the damage from 18 attacks in life-and-death situations was almost like having 18 extra lives! When he thought of it that way, it seemed more than worth it.

Just as Charles was about to put on the [Nine Netherworld Armband] to test its power, he suddenly felt the energy in the world around him begin to surge wildly into his body. The warm and comforting sensation dispelled his fatigue, leaving him feeling invigorated. It was a feeling he had experienced before, back when he had broken through to become a Level 2 Beast Master.

"Could it be that I unknowingly broke through while forging the [Nine Netherworld Armband]?" Charles thought, his face filled with surprise. He flexed his muscles, noticing that both their definition and strength had significantly improved since the previous night!

Could this be what people mean when they say good things come in pairs? Without realizing it, all those thousands of hammer strikes must have strengthened him.

This kind of breakthrough is incredibly rare and hard to achieve!

Worried about being interrupted, Charles dragged a large boulder to block the entrance of the cave and stationed Max and Mousie to guard it. He then retreated to the deepest part of the cave.

...

Sitting quietly on a stone platform in the pitch-black cave, Charles felt as though his body had turned into a vortex, continuously drawing in the ice, fire, and dark elemental energies from the surrounding environment.

As these energies entered his body, they began to nourish and strengthen him, while the excess energy started to accumulate in his lower abdomen.

It was as if his body were a balloon, steadily inflating with the absorbed energy. Soon, Charles began to experience a slight pain, and for a moment, it felt as though he might burst.

Despite the intense pain, Charles gritted his teeth and persevered. This was the trial that every Beast Master had to endure with each advancement. Only by withstanding the intense energy refining could one handle the shock of contracting with a third mystical beast and become a Level 3 Beast Master!

In the darkness, beyond the green, red, and black energies, Charles noticed a faint trace of something golden.

"Golden energy... what is this?" He recalled that in Lily's theory classes, she had never mentioned energy of this color, leaving him puzzled. "Could I be imagining things?"

Charles rubbed his eyes, but the thin strand of golden energy, like a delicate thread, continued to weave itself around him. Although it was barely noticeable, it was undeniably there, encircling him. If it weren't for the pitch-black surroundings of the cave, Charles might not have noticed it at all.

As Charles puzzled over the origin of the golden energy, another wave of excruciating pain surged through his body, turning his skin bright red. "It feels like I'm going to explode!"

"Ahhh!!!" With a roar of agony, Charles collapsed unconscious on the stone platform.

In his semi-conscious state, Charles thought he heard the sound of a balloon bursting. The once sparse elemental energy within his body had now pooled into a small reservoir.

[Ding! You have successfully leveled up. Current Beast Master level: 3.]