novelODS Chapter 27, First Enchanted Weapon
Chapter 27, First Enchanted Weapon
Chen Mo's consciousness sank into the enchanting table and touched the soul patterns inside the dagger.
The patterns resemble an intricate net, densely covering the inside of the blade. From the guard to the tip, each node connects to the next, forming a complete loop.
This is the recipe for the Stamina Absorption Enchantment.
He guided his spiritual power, tracing the lines along them.
The pace was very slow, like someone walking on an unfamiliar road for the first time, having to stop and check the direction after every step.
What puzzled Chen Mo was that
These patterns were very clear to him.
It wasn't like looking through frosted glass, as Froki described in his notes, but rather like admiring an oil painting at midday on a clear day.
He could see clearly the direction of every line, the position of every node, and the length and width of every branch.
Chen Mo was stunned for a moment.
He remembered what was written in the notes—the images Froki saw when recording the soul patterns were blurry, and some parts even required him to figure them out and draw them himself later, resulting in a lot of wasted energy in the later weapons and poor enchantment effects.
But what he saw—
It's crystal clear.
He could see so clearly that he could see the direction and speed of the flow of soul power within those patterns, the density of energy accumulation at each node, and the three-dimensional structure of the patterns inside the metal.
He couldn't help but speed up, walking along those patterns again and again, etching every detail into his memory.
The patterns resembled an upside-down tree, its roots at the hilt, its trunk extending along the spine, its branches forking at the blade, and its tips converging at the tip. He memorized every angle of the forks, the length of every branch, and the shape of every node.
Then he let go.
The dagger emitted a low hum on the enchanting table, its blade flashing a few times before going out.
The patterns shattered inside the blade, like cracks spreading on ice under the sunlight, the entire design breaking into countless tiny points of light that dissipated into the air.
The dagger turned into an ordinary iron dagger.
Chen Mo opened his eyes.
A fine layer of sweat appeared on his forehead, but his eyes were bright.
He picked up a new notebook from the table, turned to a blank page, took a quill pen from the pen holder, dipped it in ink, and began to draw.
He draws slowly, but very accurately.
Every line, every node, every fork in the tree—it was exactly the same as what he had just seen on the enchanting table.
Fifteen minutes later, a complete and accurate diagram of the stamina absorption enchantment appeared on the paper.
Chen Mo put down his pen, looked at the picture, and suddenly smiled.
"Thanks to the Skyline people's good habit of keeping diaries," he muttered to himself.
Without Froki's notes, he wouldn't know these tips for enchanting, the process of "manifesting" soul patterns, or what mistakes beginners most easily make.
Froki died, but his notebooks did not.
Chen Mo looked at the patterns in his hand, a thoughtful expression on his face.
What I saw was infinitely clearer than what Froki described.
Is it because of that star?
That star, which had existed since the beginning of his transmigration, had devoured most of Potema's soul power, and was now quietly sleeping deep within his consciousness.
The patterns were as clear to him as if they were illuminated by a light.
Perhaps it's changing him. Making him more adaptable to the rules of this world—more adaptable to the perception and control of the power of the soul.
Chen Mo folded the drawing, tucked it into Froki's notebook, and then stuffed the notebook into his pocket.
He glanced at the four miniature soul stones on the table.
Given his current success rate, it's highly likely that all four soul stones will be wasted.
But he didn't feel much heartache.
"So be it, let's burn money." He carefully put away the four soul stones, stood up, and said, "This is a necessary investment."
For the next few days, Chen Mo hardly left his house.
The aroma of the bakery wafted in through the cracks in the window every morning, reminding him that a new day had begun.
The clanging of hammers from the blacksmith's shop downstairs echoed from morning till night, interspersed every now and then with the screams of apprentices who had been burned.
Every afternoon, the old woman across the street would move a chair to her doorway to bask in the sun, knitting and chatting with her neighbors. Her voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just enough to reach his window.
Dugu City's life was mundane and noisy, but Chen Mo found that he didn't dislike the noise.
They made him feel alive. They made him feel that the world was real.
He devoted all his energy to learning enchanting.
Every morning when I wake up, the first thing I do is sit down at the enchanting table, pick up a miniature soulstone, close my eyes, and feel the soul power sleeping inside the stone.
Froki's notebook was worn out from being turned so many times, with the corners of each page curled up and the ink smudged in some places by his fingers.
He tried those little tricks one by one—soaking the weapon in salt water, guiding the power of his soul with his left hand…
Some tips work, some don't, but regardless of whether they work or not, he can always figure something out from them.
In his notes, Froki wrote that the power of the soul was "volatile" and "like an eel, slippery and darting around everywhere."
Chen Mo initially thought so too. The moment that energy flowed from his fingertips, it was indeed like an untamed wild horse, charging around recklessly and completely out of control.
The first time he tried, the Soul Stone exploded in his hand—not an explosion, but a soft "pop" like a light bulb's filament burning out. A burst of purple light shone through the cracks on the stone's surface before it went completely dark.
Sixty gold coins, gone.
Chen Mo stared at the grayish-white piece of waste stone in his hand for a long time, then put it on the table and picked up the second one.
On his second attempt, he didn't rush to guide his soul power. Instead, he held the soul stone in his hand, closed his eyes, and felt it for a long time.
The feeling was exactly the same as when he first picked up the Soulstone on the enchanting table—a tingling, ticklish sensation under his skin, as if something was breathing, sleeping, or dreaming inside the stone.
He didn't try to "grab" it, but instead tried to "listen" to it.
He took a deep breath, slowed his breathing, and let his consciousness sink into a level that only he could perceive.
Soul power seeped from his fingertips.
It's not "flowing," it's "seeping"—like water slowly and naturally gushing out from a spring.
He didn't try to control it; he just watched it, felt it, and let it find its own way.
Then he tried to guide it, directing it to flow along the direction of the patterns.
Unlike the "frosted glass" observations found in Froki's notes, everything was clear to Chen Mo.
Every line breathes, every node pulsates, and the power of the soul flows within them, like blood circulating in blood vessels.
Chen Mo's consciousness traced those patterns.
He saw the power of the soul surge from the stone, passing through his fingertips, climbing up the veins of his left hand, through his wrist, forearm, and elbow, then turning a corner and flowing out from the palm of his right hand, landing on the iron sword.
He's guiding it. Not "grabbing" it—he's letting it find its own way.
Gradually, Chen Mo felt he had found the knack.
He looked down at his still slightly trembling fingers and suddenly remembered a sentence from Froki's notes—"It's like catching a bolt of lightning and putting it in a bottle."
Patterns began to form on the blade.
Chen Mo held his breath, watching the glowing lines spread across the metal surface, like vines climbing a stone wall, like a river carving its own channel on the earth.
Every node is in the correct position, and every branch is at the correct angle.
The power of the soul flows through the patterns, evenly and steadily, without waste or fluctuation.
The Soul Stone emitted a soft "hum" and then went dark.
The light on the blade lasted for a few seconds, then slowly disappeared into the metal. The iron sword lay quietly on the enchanting table, unchanged from before.
But Chen Mo knew—things were different now.
He picked up the sword and gripped the hilt tightly.
A faint force flowed from the blade back to his palm; it wasn't an offensive force, but rather some kind of... feedback.
It was as if someone had placed a warm pebble in the palm of his hand.
Physical energy absorption.
He could feel that if he struck something with this sword, the power would surge from the blade, drawing strength from the target and feeding it back to him.
Chen Mo put down his sword and let out a long breath.
His hands were trembling. Not from fear, but from excitement.
Successful.
Chen Mo carefully examined the longsword, staring at it for a while.
Then he picked up his notebook and began to write down his thoughts on this experience.
He decided to continue the fine tradition of Skyline people—recording.
Every detail, every parameter, every success and failure.
He wrote quickly, his handwriting was messy but neat:
"First successful enchantment. Miniature Soulstone, Iron Sword, Stamina Absorption. The patterns are extremely clear, and the energy efficiency is estimated to be over 90%. The soul power is extremely obedient during the channeling process, like a well-behaved lover."
He put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, and looked up at the ceiling.
The grain of the wooden beams flickered in the candlelight, and Chen Mo suddenly felt a wave of fatigue.
He hadn't felt anything when he was engrossed in the operation, but now that the enchanting was over, he suddenly realized that the consumption of soul power by enchanting was much greater than he had imagined.
He yawned.
Sleepiness washed over him like a tide, and Chen Mo closed his eyes drowsily.
On the right hand,
The red wolf head emitted a warm, red glow.