Badge in Azure Chapter 337

Chapter 337: Jola’s Tears (Part 1)
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“There’s no need to be afraid. At most, the few of us will protect Sir and the rest will be abandoned.” Jola was still not taking the threat seriously. He thought that since he was well-versed in swordsmanship, it would be a piece of cake protecting Saleen. With Jola at the front blocking the attacks from the puppets, Saleen would be able to cast his spells easily, greatly amplifying their offensive power.
“Jola, Aini and I can use the flying spell,” Saleen said nonchalantly.
Jola became speechless. Since Saleen knew how to fly, his reliance on Jola would be greatly reduced. More accurately, Saleen needed Jola during an attack, but if Saleen was on the run, Jola would instead become a burden.
If Jola had known that such a day would come, he would have worked twice as hard since it was not impossible for him to become a golden grand swordmaster. But had Jola been a golden grand swordmaster, he would not have been defeated by Saleen. It was unheard of for a golden grand swordmaster to become a mage’s follower.
A golden grand swordmaster had the ability to fly over long distances, and their offensive powers were also close to that of a grade-9 mage. Even a silver grand swordmaster could fly for three to five miles with ease. However, Jola was only a black metal grand swordmaster. It might have been easy for him to cover dozens of meters in a single jump, but he would need higher level skills to be able to fly.
“Sir, where are we going?” a magic beast swordsman asked out of caution. The magic beast swordsmen had been jittery ever since they had entered the Chaotic Swamp. If this was the season when magic beasts were very active, they would have considered bringing along a palace mage. People such as Canghong, who would do anything for money, were extremely rare. Even at this point in time, the magic beast swordsmen were annoyed by the harsh climate in the Chaotic Swamp.
Indeed, a grand swordmaster could tolerate a frigid climate, but their sword aura would be depleted in the process. A mage could remain warm by depleting magic nuclei on a magic robe. However, a grand swordmaster could only tap into their sword aura, or else they would freeze to death just like any other normal human being. That was why Jola had been in awe at the mage’s extravagance when he had received Saleen’s long robe.
Even though there was no magic nucleus mosaicked into the belt of the long robe, the magic patterns on the robe still provided a certain amount of energy, hence Jola could remain relaxed in such a climate.
“We are going to a relic which belongs to the era of the Second Dynasty.” Since these five people had signed a contract and were now Saleen’s followers, Saleen did not need to conceal the truth from them.
Jola and the four magic beast swordsmen became somewhat exhilarated when they heard that. The Second Dynasty was also known as the magic dynasty. Besides the proliferation of mages, this dynasty also had the best magic armor and magic weapons.
A typical enchantment spell allowed the magical effect on a weapon to last for dozens of years, while a higher level one could sustain the magical effect for more than one hundred years. A genuinely powerful magic weapon would remain unchanged even after thousands of years. The magic weapons from the Second Dynasty were very durable, unless they were destroyed during wartime.
Such alchemy skills had been lost long ago. The main reason was the decline of humans, causing the large communities who did extensive research and innovation to disappear.
“Don’t be too happy just yet, there might be nothing there at all. I have the materials for crafting magic armor and magic weapons. I will make a custom set for each of you once we get back.” After killing the tiago, Saleen had stored many horns and bones belonging to that dragon. It would not be a problem for him to craft five sets of armor.
Had the tiago not been on the verge of death, Saleen would never have been able to get close to it even with his current abilities. However, Saleen was no scrooge. The greatest talent of the people of Sikeqinya was loaning money and growing more gold coins from gold coins. Even though these materials would not decay in storage, they would not appreciate in value either. Giving the materials to his followers would allow the materials to unleash their full potential.
Saleen did not reveal any more details. The four magic beast swordsmen went on to execute their combat drills in front of Saleen, just like they would on any other day. No matter how big the tent was, the magic beast swordsmen would not be able to display all their skills. However, using his Icy Sight, Saleen had already identified their energy usage patterns and habits in combat. He then began brainstorming suitable weapons for each of the four magic beast swordsmen.
In order to enter the relic, the magic beast swordsmen would have to stop riding their magic beasts into battle and would have to travel on foot instead. With that being said, those weapons with long handles would pale in comparison to normal spears. The handle of a normal spear could be longer than three meters, but the tip of the spear was like half of a longsword. It could attack in any direction with just a slight swing. Many spears were also serrated to increase their lethality. Spears with long handles were more suitable for cavalrymen as they could kill their enemies using the inertia of their spears.
As Saleen was thinking, Jola and the others took the opportunity to memorize the map which Saleen had illustrated. A grand swordmaster’s memory was very astounding. It was just that it was not as nimble as a mage’s. In just a few minutes, the five of them had memorized all the details on the map. By this point in time, Saleen had already drawn out a weapon.
Now that Saleen had just gotten the grasp of water flame alchemy, refining weapons would allow him to become more familiar with this skill. Each weapon he refined was in fact one training session for him. The more Saleen brainstormed, the more beneficial it would be for him. Moreover, this refinement was for his own followers, which concerned his personal safety, so he would not take it lightly.
Saleen drew four machetes with a weird structure. Each of these four machetes were different in their own right. With one glance, the four magic beast swordsmen had already found their favorite machetes. They were even more awed by Saleen in this moment. Not only did this process require proficient alchemy skills, but a thorough understanding of a swordsman’s sword aura usage was also needed in order to design a weapon which would make the swordsman fall in love at first sight.
Most swordsmen purchased normal weapons before getting used to them gradually. Only a minority of them possessed a bespoke weapon which was catered to their fighting styles. There were not many swordsmen like this. Basically, all of them were a mage’s followers.
“Sir, this is just fantastic!”
“Mm, good that all of you like it. I will put an inscription on the weapon, then I will carry out another refinement once you advance to the next grade. By then, I should already be a sorcerer.” Saleen spoke indifferently, but the four magic beast swordsmen felt utter confidence emanating from Saleen.
Not many mages dared to proclaim that they would become sorcerers. Saleen dared to do so because he possessed sufficient resources. While other people needed to work for training resources, Saleen simply needed to keep training, training, and training…
When other mages advanced to grade-6, they would begin to fret over the materials needed to construct a magic tower. Yet, Saleen wanted to build thirty-six magic towers in one go, and every magic tower needed to have more than seven stories.
When other mages were selecting a city to settle down in, they had to traverse across the mainland for several years, and might even spend ten years to finally do so. Yet, Saleen was already building his own city at this moment. At the heart of the city was a temple, and since Saleen was the owner of the city, he lived inside this temple.
“Go and sleep. By tomorrow morning, all of you will get your own weapon.”
“What about me?” Seeing that Saleen had not designed a weapon for him, Jola felt a little strange. Jola was obviously far stronger than those four magic beast swordsmen, so Saleen should not have neglected his weapon.
“Stay behind and watch me carry out the alchemy.”
“Ah?” Jola pulled a long face. Jola wanted to sleep since he felt that it was pointless watching a mage carry out alchemy. However, he only needed a short period of rest as he was a black metal grand swordmaster. Someone had to ensure Saleen’s safety after midnight.
The four magic beast swordsmen left, leaving Aini, Jola, and Saleen inside the tent.
“He will be in charge of refining your weapon.” Saleen pointed to Aini.
Aini rolled his eyes, but did not refuse since he could lend a hand in this matter. In future battles, the three kings might not be able to protect everybody. With a powerful grand swordmaster like Jola around, any mage could have peace of mind and cast their spells, and a huge amount of magic chords could be conserved too.
There would be less pressure on him if Saleen’s offensive abilities increased.
“I need a sword which is as light as possible.” Jola did not stand by ceremony with Saleen. Since Aini was also a grade-5 mage, Jola did not despise Aini. Furthermore, Aini was a rare death mage. A weapon refined by a death mage was indeed very compatible with his sheath.
“Let me take a look at your sheath.” Aini looked stern when he spoke to Jola. He would only smile if he was in a conversation with Saleen.
Jola was not angry either. He felt that one needed to have such a temperament in order to be considered as a death mage.
Saleen did not care about how Aini would handle Jola’s weapon. He simply released the water flames before taking out the special materials which he had accumulated. Then, he started refining weapons for the four magic beast swordsmen.
These four magic beast swordsmen were extremely proficient. It was not without rhyme nor reason that they had been the last ones standing after so many people had tried to kill Jola. Also, the four of them had managed to achieve a breakthrough in the pursuit of Jola. In some sense, they were somewhat geniuses. Most people would lose many of their abilities in the face of danger, and only a very tiny group of them would gain new powers during such a phase.
These people would ultimately become the experts of their time so long as they lived long enough.
Back in the temple of Myers, Saleen had obtained a huge quantity of gems and some special metals. After the robbery of the Dragon Tooth Town, Saleen had again accumulated some metals. He now had enough materials to craft equipment for a brigade of soldiers.
For some metals, Saleen simply soaked them in the dragon’s blood. By now, the dragon’s blood had already dried up and a portion of a mysterious substance had seeped into the metals, completely changing the attributes of the metals. Even Saleen did not know what to call this kind of magic-infused metal.
Saleen laid all these precious materials in front of him, like a market hawker positioning his dishes, selecting them meticulously. Jola could not pull his eyes away from this scene. People who learned swordsmanship had some knowledge of metals. Jola had an interest in metals and was proficient in smelting. But even though the Cloudflow Empire was flourishing and had gathered the best mages across the empire, Jola had not seen so many precious materials in a person’s possession before.
The fallenstar was used to refine the blade. Blue water flames quickly spread and melted this metal, causing a structure which resembled a machete to levitate in midair. The first blade was two meters long, not having a wide arc and having a slender body. Because of the weight of the materials used, the slashing ability of this blade was not any less than that of a square axe. Saleen set a magic array on the interior of the blade, allowing the fallenstar to absorb the sword aura, thus decreasing the weight of the blade.
Other mages would have to use the energy from a magic nucleus to stimulate the magic array. However, Saleen had studied the attributes of the sword aura in the past and was familiar with the power of life from the Myers Goddess. As a result, energy from a magic nucleus was not required since the sword aura in the swordsman could be directly utilized.
This might have taken a toll on the depletion of the sword aura, but it brought massive benefits for the swordsman. A swordsman would grow to rely on a normal magic weapon after using it for a long time, lowering the progress of his sword aura. His offensive ability might be boosted, but he would lose more than what he would gain in the long run.