"How can you tell that it's perfect when you haven't even held it in your hands yet?" Master Vulcan looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
Bai Tian smiled and said, "Just a feeling."
He proceeded to take the sword out of the box and held it tightly in his grasp. His grip around the handle was perfect. The weight of the sword was almost nonexistent, yet he could tell that it was incredibly durable.
When he focused on the sword, its information came up.
[Black Slime Sword]
[Grade: Magic]
[Durability: 1,000/1,000]
[Weapon Attack: 375]
[Effects: All damage +10%]
[Effects(2): Precise Hit Damage +50%]
[Description: A piece of art crafted by Metal Maestro: Vulcan. Crafted with Black Steel and infused with Green Slime Core, giving it an insanely durable core.]
"Although a slime's body is weak and soft, their cores are nearly indestructible." Master Vulcan suddenly started talking about slimes.
"This makes their cores very suitable for creating weapons. However, with that being said, due to their natural durability, this makes them exceedingly hard to deal with. In the entire human continent, there are less than 10 blacksmiths that I know of who can craft with slime cores."
"Do you mind if I test it out right now?" Bai Tian suddenly asked.
"Go ahead. Do you want something to strike at?"
"I just need some space," he said.
Once the others backed up for him, Bai Tian began dancing with the sword, performing a series of elegant yet striking sword techniques.
The blacksmiths in the room were left speechless by his breathtaking movements.
A minute later, Bai Tian came to a sharp halt after performing the last strike.
"I already knew this, but this is indeed a good sword," he said a moment later.
"Unfortunately, this is the best I can do with that quality of material. When you reach a higher level, come find me at the capital. I will forge you an even better sword." Master Vulcan said, which surprised the other blacksmiths.
"To receive a treasure from Master Vulcan is already a lifetime's worth of fortune, yet this newbie is going to get another one!"
"My god! I wish that were me!"
Bai Tian smiled, "A sword that's even better than this one, huh? I cannot wait to feel it in my hands. I hope you'll remember those words at that time."
Master Vulcan laughed out loud, "You little brat, who do you think I am? If I say I will do something, I will do it even if it's the last thing I do! Here, take this. You might need it the next time we meet."
Master Vulcan retrieved a black and red badge that was shaped like a hammer and offered it to him.
"That is proof of our relationship. Lose it and I will dropkick you."
"Oh, and make sure to bring your own material. The better the quality the better your weapon will come out."
Bai Tian nodded, "I understand. I will make sure to collect plenty of rare materials before I come to you. And thank you for everything."
Master Vulcan smiled, "No, thank you for giving me another purpose in my boring life."
After exchanging several more sentences with each other, Bai Tian left the smithy and made his way back to the training ground. As for Master Vulcan, he also left the smithy shortly after, disappearing from the city like a ghost.
At the training ground.
"Is that the weapon Master Vulcan crafted for you?" Jason immediately approached Bai Tian when he saw the sword.
"That's right." Bai Tian showed off his sword to Jason.
The sword had a black blade with a hint of green mixed within, and including the handle, it was about 35 inches long.
The sword was slightly thinner than ordinary swords, giving it a deceiving appearance of being flexible and fragile when in reality it could cut metal like butter.
"What grade is this sword? Knowing Master Vulcan, it's at least Rare."
"Its grade is Magic." Bai Tian said.
"Magic! That's freaking high for a weapon meant for a newbie!" He exclaimed.
"How much better is it compared to a common-grade item?" Bai Tian asked.
"It's three grades above Common. The lowest grade an item can receive is Common. Above that is Uncommon, then Rare, and finally, Magic. There are a few more grades above Magic, but there's no point mentioning it now." Jason explained.
And he continued, "Anyways, Magic-grade items are usually only found inside Silver-rank dungeons— and at the very end, too. If you were to buy one from a market, it could easily cost over a thousand gold coins."
"Is that so…" Bai Tian turned to look at the iron dummy before suddenly swinging his new sword at it.
Sha!
The sword sliced through the iron dummy like it was plain paper.
Jason whistled through his mouth after seeing the sword in action.
"That sword is too good for someone of your level. Wanna sell it to me?" Jason said to him with a joking smile.
"Sure. How does a million gold coins sound?" Bai Tian responded with a smile, but he did not seem to be joking.
"..."
Jason was speechless. If he was a rich collector and a fan of Master Vulcan's work, he would've definitely accepted Bai Tian's ridiculous offer.
"A-Anyways, what are you going to do now?" He then asked.
"I'm going to grind some levels before checking out these dungeons that you kept mentioning."
"A dungeon, huh. Then I suggest you visit the Adventurers' Guild. Not only do they have information on many dungeons in the area, but you can also find a group to raid the dungeons with you there."
"Just be aware of scammers, thieves, and worst of all, lurers. They will backstab you in a dungeon without any hesitation to steal your items. If you're going to find a group, do it through the Adventurers' Guild official channels. That will greatly reduce your risks of encountering criminals." Jason gave him a heap of new information.
"Thank you. I will keep that in mind."
Bai Tian left the training ground shortly after, and he made his way back to the Horned Blue Pigs hunting ground, but he did not stop there and continued moving further out to hunt stronger monsters.
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Bai Tian's knowledge, the internet went into a commotion when a certain announcement was made on High Fantasy Online's official website.
[The world's first Magic-grade weapon has been found by a lucky player!]