Chapter 276 - Demon Shield and -Blood River-
In the Crystal Valley, Chen Rui had been in the lab for the past two days. Now that he had the title of a genius mechanic master, he had to act like one. Surely, Manu didn’t eat his words. The lab provided for him was built on a hillside and his residence was just below the hillside, so it was quiet and undisturbed.
The area of this laboratory was very wide, the conditions were better than the Mechanic Alliance. The materials and facilities were readily available. At Chen Rui’s special request, the arranged assistant was returned. Regardless of whether the assistant’s purpose was assistance or surveillance, he didn’t want another pair of eyes beside him.
Many mechanic masters have secrets that they don’t teach, and only the closest and trusted apprentices were likely to be taught. Therefore, Chen Rui’s request wasn’t outrageous, so Manu naturally didn’t force it. Manu even sent a large number of ordinary materials for him to “experiment” the refining technique.
The actual objective for Chen Rui to ask for these ordinary materials was naturally not to “refine” but to convert them into auras to buy the blueprint of “Thunderous Sound”. Even if Manu or others wanted to check the “success of experiment” in refinement, he just had to put a material into the refinery and it would be enough to blind them.
Chen Rui didn’t consume the realm king fruit because the power of the realm king fruit was very powerful. He required a quiet and undisturbed environment. Besides, these two days would be the deadline for Manu to keep his promise of that “artifact”, and Chen Rui might encounter that long-lost “old friend”. Therefore, Chen Rui planned to try the realm king fruit after acquiring the artifact.
At that time, a maid came into the lab and told him that Manu summoned him for something.
Chen Rui came out of the lab and followed the maid to the central manor of Nightmare Valley, where Manu was located.
Before he walked into the hall, he could hear the voice from a distance with his hearing ability. To be precise, it was Manu’s scolding noises.
“I want to remind you that even if you have the strongest [Eyes of Nightmare] and you’re the eldest son of the previous king, you’re only at the peak of Demon Emperor now! The Demon Realm advocates strength. So, I, Manu Leviathan, am the current master of the Envy Royal Family!” Manu’s voice was cold, and it even contained killing intentions, which was completely different from his image as an old fox who usually laughed and smiled. However, foxes were still carnivorous animals. Besides, the foxes in the Demon Realm were cruel and slyful. They liked to chew on their prey until no bones were left.
“Sir Manu, please forgive me for being rude!” This voice was even more familiar in Chen Rui’s ears, “Since you’re the master of the Leviathan Royal Family, you should understand the meaning of the seven artifacts. Also, the Magic Shield is left to me by my father, so I don’t agree to just leave it to an outsider for research!”
“What if your father left it for you?” Manu sneered, “Are you recognized by the Magic Shield? Your sister is the one that is recognized by the Magic Shield! Don’t think that I don’t know what you did to Delia! Now that she’s missing, it also means that the recognized candidate by the artifact is missing. This alone is enough for me to sanction you!”
These conversations moved Chen Rui’s heart. Since Delia was reluctant to mention about Broc, he didn’t ask much. Now, he knew that Broc and Delia’s father turned out to be the previous king of Leviathan and that Manu was the current master.
Since Delia was recognized by the Demon Shield, Broc had always kept the Demon Shield as his own. Also, he claimed himself as the next master of the Leviathan Royal Family. Now that Delia was “missing”, but he was still unwilling to hand over the Demon Shield, he was probably worried that Manu or others would be recognized by the Demon Shield. It seemed that acquiring the Demon Shield could further aggravate the internal contradictions within the Leviathan Royal Family. That was indeed killing two birds with one stone.
At that time, the maid had come to the entrance of the hall with Chen Rui. She informed Manu and the quarreling sound inside had stopped.
After getting permission to enter, Chen Rui walked into the hall. There were two people in the hall. Surely, besides Manu, the other was Chen Rui’s “old acquaintance” – Broc Leviathan, the head of the three generals of the Dark Shadow Empire.
Manu regained his usual smiley look, but Broc’s face still seemed gloomy.
“Master, you’re here.” Manu smiled, “I’ll introduce you. This is my... nephew, named Broc, the head of the three generals of the Dark Shadow Empire. Broc, this is the trio-specialized master and also the magic circle genius that shocked the Demon Realm, Master Arthur.”
Chen Rui noticed Manu deliberately reveal Broc’s identity to him. He nodded casually and shook his head while looking indifferent, “Sir Manu, I don’t care if he’s a general. I only care about the artifact. I heard from your conversation that the artifact is with your nephew. Then... hurry up and give it to me. These two days, I have been thinking about the crystal dragon’s magic circles, and I seem to have an insight. I need the Illusive Demon Shield as reference now.”
This rudeness and ignorance made Broc’s eyes flashed with a cold light. He took a few looks at Chen Rui and suddenly frowned, “I don’t know why, but master gives me a familiar feeling. Have we met before?”
Not only have we met, but we’ve also “contacted” intimately. The pockmarks on your face were given by me.
Certainly, Chen Rui could only murmur that in his heart, but he seemed a little impatient, “I’ve heard those words a lot. It was the same when I met the third general, Kafu. General Broc, did you bring the artifact I want?”
“Of course he did. Broc, give the artifact to the master now.” The one who answered was Manu. There was anger on Broc’s face that disappeared instantly. Looking at the smiling Manu, his heart was even more resentful. This old fox summoned me from the border fortress urgently. I thought it was something important. Unexpectedly, it is actually for the Demon Shield. However, Broc knew Manu’s character, the more he smiled, the more dangerous it was. If he didn’t leave the Demon Shield today, Manu would probably turn his face. With the strength gap between them, Broc still couldn’t keep the Demon Shield.
Actually, it’s okay to give it to Master Arthur for research. If Broc could win master over by this, he was willing to give up this bargain. After all, it was impossible for anyone other than the Leviathan Royal Family to use the artifact. However, Arthur obviously was on Manu’s side. Even if this artifact had lost its research value, Manu would certainly not return it.
A wise man knows better than to fight when the odds are against him. Since I’m not as strong now, I can only surrender. When my strength finally surpasses Manu in the future...
Broc thought quickly and finally made a decision to compromise. He took out a round shield from his back and handed it to Chen Rui. Chen Rui looked joyful and took it.
This round shield was larger than the IIusive Shield with Delia, It was dark gold with a simple yet elegant pattern on it. The part in the center that wasn’t decorated should be the part that could be combined with the IIusive Shield.
The Illusive Demon Shield was the equipment with the strongest defense among the seven artifacts. It not only could defend against all physical and magic attacks, but it could also reflect damages. Therefore, it was called the best armor. Chen Rui had witnessed the power of this shield outside of poison dragon’s treasure cave at the Silent Night wetland. At that time, a fully activated [Thunder] inscription comparable to the strength of peak Demon Emperor was completely blocked by Broc while holding this shield. Besides, Broc hadn’t been approved by the artifact, so he was just making use of the Demon Shield innate defense!
Chen Rui touched the pattern above as if in awe and suddenly frowned, “That’s not right! How could this be?! Is this the Illusive Demon Shield? Why does it feel like an important part is missing?”
“Master indeed has an extraordinary vision that you can notice the problem of the artifact in a glance.” Manu nodded, “Illusive Demon Shield is divided into two parts, IIlusive Shield and Demon Shield. This is the Demon Shield. As for the IIusive Shield, it was lost thousands of years ago. My Leviathan Royal Family has also been looking for it, but its whereabouts is still unknown for the time being.”
It seemed that Broc didn’t disclose the incident of the Illusive Shield at the Silent Night Wetland and the real reason for Delia’s disappearance. Chen Rui looked dissatisfied, “Sir Manu, I voluntarily accepted the [Soul Shackles] to study the artifact. Now that the artifact is incomplete, doesn’t it violate your promise?”
“Don’t be angry, master.” Manu laughed, “Regardlessly, the Demon Shield is one of the seven artifacts. Besides, the seven artifacts consist more than just the Illusive Demon Shield. There are another six pieces. In the future, as long as our plan can succeed, it’s not a problem to give all seven artifacts to you for research.”
Seven artifacts? So ambitious! Chen Rui pondered for a while and said, “I’m just a mechanic in pursuit of the pinnacle. I don’t care about other things. Then... When will Sir Azhalor be back? I hope you can help me borrow the God-Eating Mask from him for research.”
“Azgalor has an important task outside. He certainly won’t return in the near future.” Manu groaned slightly, “How about I’ll help you to ask when he returns?”
Manu’s words were obviously blushing him off and it was just to delay. He didn’t know that the God-Eating Mask was in Chen Rui’s hands at all. Chen Rui’s words were just to find out Azgalor’s whereabouts. Manu’s answer had revealed that Azgalor couldn’t return to the Crystal Valley in the short term. Chen Rui noted this in his mind, so he naturally stopped persisting.
Chen Rui’s eyes fell on Broc’s long sword on his waist, and he suddenly looked like he couldn’t take his gaze away, “General, your sword seems strange. Can you let me take a look?”
Broc didn’t expect this greedy guy to not be satisfied after taking the Demon Shield. He even wanted to take away his favorite sword. His eyes flashed while the sword unsheathed instantly. However, he didn’t attack. Instead, he put the sword in front of Chen Rui with an unkind face.
The more annoyed Broc was, the happier Chen Rui felt. Unfortunately, Manu and Broc were both cunning characters. Otherwise, it would be nice if Broc could be killed with Manu’s hand.
“Blood River.” Chen Rui glanced at the name engraved on the blood-red sword and nodded, “Such a good sword! Although it hasn’t reached legendary grade yet, the attributes are already pretty good. It can increase attack speed by 35%, increase water magic damage by 38% and devour enemies’ vitality and convert them into stamina.”
Broc looked slightly surprised. Appraisal was one of the skills of a mechanic master, but it usually required testing with corresponding instruments to confirm. Yet, Arthur could accurately tell the attributes of Blood River with a glance, including the hidden trait of devouring enemies’ vitality. It seemed that he was well-deserved to be the top genius in the Demon Realm in 10,000 years.
Surely, Chen Rui wouldn’t say it was the effect of [Analytical Eyes]. He touched the blade and pretended to feel it for a while with his eyes closed. Then, he showed a pity look, “It’s a good sword, but unfortunately, it won’t last for any longer.”
Broc was taken aback and asked with doubt, “Why did the master say that?”
“There is a saying among the mechanics. Crafting equipment is creating life. Equipment is also alive. Due to the relationship between materials and characteristics, general equipment has a certain degree of self-recovery ability. It’s just like we can heal ourselves from minor injuries. The problem is that your sword isn’t suffering from a minor injury. You can’t see it in this state, and it’s also difficult to be judged by other mechanic masters, but it can’t hide from my talented eyes. I can clearly feel that there are countless wounds on it. If this continues, the sword will shatter completely when it experiences strong pressure or it is infused with too much force.”
Chen Rui was the mechanic master that shocked the Demon Realm and he had just revealed his secret technique in “appraisal”, thus Broc obviously couldn’t ignore that remark. “Blood River” was his favourite weapon, and the attributes were also quite suitable for him. Now that he heard that it had a danger of scrapping, he didn’t dare to be rude. His tone had softened, “Since master can see it, is there a way to repair it?”
Chen Rui pretended to be contemplative, “There is a way, but there is no absolute certainty. If it succeeds, the properties of this sword may be further improved. As long as you trust me, I can give it a try as a reward for taking your Demon Shield to research.”
Broc was thinking that since he couldn’t take the Demon Shield back for the time being, if “Blood River” could be repaired, it could barely offset some losses. He nodded immediately, “I believe in master. Please take care of this sword.”
“Okay, let me think about it first... in terms of materials, I still have some in my lab.” Chen Rui pondered for a moment and nodded, “So, come with me then.”
Manu intended to see the means of this genius mechanic master, so he immediately followed Broc and Chen Rui to the lab on the hillside.
Chen Rui took out the necessary tools and the materials gifted by other people, and arranged them one by one. The rigorous and serious expression made people in awe. After turning on the magic furnace to reach the required temperature, Chen Rui simply put the “Blood River” into it to burn it until it turned red before taking it out with pliers. Then, he struck it with a hammer. The big hammering movements seemed to contain mysteries. It looked like an artistic dance. It made Manu nodded secretly, but the sparks when the hammer hit onto the Blood River made Broc secretly distressed.
As Chen Rui knocked, he sprinkled a kind of magic powder on it. The whole sword was making a strange sizzling sound. Subsequently, it was a series of smooth movements and processes. The complicated procedures that required the cooperation of a few people were actually completed perfectly alone.
Other than re-forging, the gems at the hilt were even dug out and polished. The details were meticulously processed. About three hours later, Chen Rui finally stopped all the work, wiped the sweat on his head and gave the sword that he worked on for so long to Broc, “Fortunately, I didn’t disappoint you. This sword not only is repaired from its initial damage, but its attributes are also increased. Now, it increases attack speed by 38%, increases water magic damage by 40% and it devours enemies’ vitality and converts them into stamina. Also, a [Bloodthirst] skill is added. It can increase your attack by 20% but decrease your defense by 10%. It can only be used once a day. This equipment should be very close to legendary grade.”
Broc was overjoyed. He took over the sword and saw that the blood flow above seemed to be more active. He was very familiar with the sword. After waving it a few times, he surely felt that the attack speed had increased. Then, he tried the [Bloodthirst] skill, and he couldn’t stop complimenting. If he had some killing intentions against Master “Arthur” initially, it had become appreciation now. No wonder he is treated with courteous by Manu. He is indeed a genius – if I have the opportunity to overthrow Manu in the future, I must try to recruit this talent for myself.
Chen Rui accepted the gratitude and praise from Broc. The highest level of scamming someone was that after hurting him, he would still thank you and count your money for you.
Originally, this poor sword is nothing more than a “minor injury” that can heal itself. However, now, it has become a truly irreparable serious injury. As for the improvement of attributes... has he not heard of the final flash before dying?

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