Andy and Rex finally arrived at the underground magma world. A thick haze of scorching heat rolled off the bottomless fissure, making every breath feel like swallowing fire. They were in luck. This time, a large deposit of Black Obsidian Steel and the even rarer crimson aurora magma had appeared.
"The crimson aurora magma is in the lava cave two hundred meters below," Rex said, his voice muffled by the gas mask. "The Black Obsidian Steel vein is there too. It's a mineral that only forms under extreme heat."
Rex handed Andy a specially made heat-resistant suit, but Andy casually tossed it aside. "This thing will hinder my movements," he said, pulling out his broken blade. The dark Armament Haki flowed onto the blade like a living thing. "Just stick close and point the way."
They descended along a carved plank road, dimly lit by fluorescent moss on the rock walls. Every ten meters, they passed a desiccated skeleton chained to the wall—grim markers of danger zones. The entire underground world was built with human lives.
Rex kicked aside a rusted gas canister beside one of the skeletons. "Three years ago, there was a gas explosion here. Watch your step; some rocks are hollow…"
Before he could finish, Andy's Observation Haki gave a warning. He yanked Rex back by the collar, and the ground where they had just stood collapsed with a rumble. Hot sulfur gas shot up like a giant python.
Fifty meters below, a boiling lava lake churned. Several pieces of obsidian floated in the magma, their surfaces glowing with an eerie black light.
"Black Obsidian Steel!" Rex's breathing quickened. "They need to be tempered in magma for over a hundred years to form crystals. When we collect them, they need to be cooled instantly, so Red Hawk, it's up to you."
Andy squinted at the ore. His broken blade, now covered in Armament Haki, plunged into the rock wall. The Haki flowed into the mountain, instantly hardening the rock within a one-meter radius.
He grabbed Rex with one hand and leaped toward the lava lake, using the solidified rock ridges to gain momentum. He moved like a black hawk swooping down to a floating rock.
The radiant heat from the magma made his skin feel very uncomfortable. He swung his blade at the obsidian, and when the blade struck the ore, it actually sent out ice-crystal-like fragments, an anomaly caused by the friction between the extremely cold ore and his Armament Haki.
"Catch!" He tossed the cut ore to Rex, who immediately sealed it in a liquid nitrogen container.
Suddenly, the entire lava lake vibrated violently.
"It's a geothermic tide!" Rex roared, pointing to the center of the lake.
The crimson aurora magma rose into the sky like a reverse waterfall, condensing into a massive twenty-meter fireball. The surface of the fireball flowed with rainbow-like light patterns, and inside, a grating crystallization sound could be heard. It was the sound of Black Obsidian Steel reorganizing under super-high temperatures.
Andy's pupils contracted to pinpricks. The trajectory of the falling fireball decomposed into countless red dashed lines in his mind. He cut out seven intersecting slashes with his broken blade.
"Seven Night Meteor!" The blade light, imbued with Haki, covered the fireball like a black net, but it vaporized on contact.
"Don't use brute force!" Rex pulled three silver-grey metal rods from his backpack. "These are heat-absorbing alloys! Stick them into the convergence points of the light patterns on its surface!"
The two of them raced across the surface of the falling fireball. Andy's boot soles carbonized the moment they touched the magma, and his Armament Haki rapidly consumed his stamina. Rex's heat-resistant suit began to melt, and his exposed skin blistered, but his trembling fingers were still calculating the geometric nodes of the light patterns.
"Fifteen degrees to the upper left!" he screamed.
The moment the metal rod pierced it, the fireball shrieked like a baby crying. The crimson aurora magma contracted like a receding tide, revealing a basketball-sized raw Black Obsidian Steel stone at its core.
Andy's tiger's mouth split open, but he held the scorching ore tightly and collected the crimson aurora magma into a special container. The two most crucial items were obtained! When he pulled Rex back onto the plank road, the lava lake behind them exploded with a roar, melting the rock wall within a hundred-meter radius into a glassy state. They were almost buried in the sea of fire.
After they returned to the surface, Andy immediately took Rex to his residence. Rex's injuries were too severe; he lay in bed for half a month, his right arm wrapped in bandages soaked in medicine. But his eyes were frighteningly bright.
When Rex's injuries healed, he immediately threw himself into his work. With Andy's financial support, he was able to buy all the materials he had wanted before and even had a bit left over. Only Rex's final words left Andy a bit bewildered.
"Red Hawk, forging a Skillful Grade Sword takes at least half a year, not to mention a Great Grade Sword. I estimate it might take around one year. And it's best if you also participate in the forging.
Great Grade Swords have a spirit, and if you participate, you won't be backlashed by it later. So… Red Hawk, I need you to be my assistant. If you participate in the forging, you will be able to master this sword better in the future!" Rex said with some embarrassment.
One year... Andy was truly bewildered. Didn't this mean he would have to stay here for at least a year? But when he saw the hopeful look in Rex's eyes, Andy ultimately agreed.
It's just one year, right? The system's drop rate was a bit low, so before leaving the West Blue, he still wanted to get a handy weapon. It was the year 1512 of the Sea Calendar now. The biggest 'leeks' were still growing, so he would give them a few years to develop!
Seeing Andy agree, Rex was very excited, but the two didn't start immediately. Instead, Rex gave Andy a crash course in basic forging knowledge. It wasn't until a month later that the two arrived at Rex's composite furnace, located more than ten meters underground.
During this time, all the materials they had collected, such as King Iron Ore, Volcanic Azure Crystal, and Flame North, had also been moved here. Besides these, there were also the skeletal remains of a powerful Ground Fire Magma Lizard that had died! Once all preparations were complete, the two immediately began the forging work.
But one day, when Andy went out to a bar for a meal, he actually saw one of the top powerhouses of this world: Hawkeye, Dracule Mihawk!
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