Gol D. Ace In Coiling Dragon

Ace’s shock wasn’t simply because of the fact that his master’s weapon was a Demi-God Artifact. The main reason behind his shock was because he hadn’t been able to tell at all. To him, it looked like the same ordinairy Glaive he always used.

It had to be understood that Ace’s [Observation] was able to sense the specialness of even Linley’s violet flexible sword, and that was a sword Ace was 100% certain was hundreds if not thousands of times superior to his master’s weapon, even now.

“Has it always been one?” Ace asked, his eyes still focused on the glaive. “Why couldn’t I sense it?”

“Of course not,” Aiden replied casually. “Do you think Demi-God Artifacts just grow on trees?”

“As for why you were unable to sense it…” As Aiden’s voice trailed off, so too did his presence. “Do you really believe that you can sense a deity if they wish to hide from you?”

Even though everyone was able to see him, they couldn’t sense his presence in the slightest. An act that allowed everyone to understand what he was implying.

By utilising their Godrealm, a deity was able to hide their presence entirely. Only those at their level or superior were able to sense them. Just like how Cesar was able to hide the presence of Alissa, Linley, and the rest of his group back when Ace and the others were confronting the Dragons, Aiden was likewise able to hide the aura of his weapon.

Still, there was one question running through the minds of Ace and the others that remained unanswered. “How did you turn your weapon into a Demi-God Artifact then?”

Now that Aiden wasn’t hiding the aura of his weapon, Ace was able to sense that although the energy it emitted had increased multiple times over, the inner structure of it hadn’t changed at all. No materials had been added, nor had any formations been infused to increase its might.

“Arianna, Mathias and the others were waiting till you become saints to tell you this, but I guess there’s no harm in telling you brats a little early,” Aiden mused aloud. “As you all know, there are very few deity-level experts here on our Yulan Continent, which is also why we have so few Divine Artifacts in circulation.

Most of you might have thought that a Divine Artifact can only be forged by Divine Forgers, but that couldn’t be any further from the truth. In terms of skill, the top forgers on the continent have already reached the limits of what forging can accomplish, being able to smelt and forge most ores and materials perfectly into top-quality weapons, and yet, none are able to forge a Divine Artifact.

What you need to understand is that, unlike mortal artifacts, a Divine Artifact has little to do with the materials and formations used to create it and everything to do with it being nurtured by the spiritual essence of its owner.

To mortals and even the vast majority of saints, one’s spiritual essence is still immature, meaning it can’t be used freely outside of the body except for sensing the auras of others. But like I said before, after reaching the deity level, your soul undergoes a metamorphosis, transforming it into a spiritual sea, increasing the quantity and quality of one’s spiritual essence.

At that stage, even if you don’t specialise in a law that focuses on the soul, you can still attack the soul of others.”

As he said that, a smirk formed on Aiden’s lips as he glanced at his disciple, who just experienced that first-hand.

“Aside from that, it also allows deities to slowly channel their spiritual essence into their weapon to slowly nourish it.

Over time, that weapon will gradually develop a spirit of its own, thereby increasing its quality and ability, which is also why although the materials a weapon is made from will make a big difference to a weapon’s quality to mortals and even saints, to deities there’s virtually no difference at all.

For Deities, the only way to increase the power of their artifacts is to slowly nourish them over extended periods of time with their spiritual essence.”

Understanding dawned on Ace and the others when they heard that. They also understood Mathias and Arianna’s decision to not tell them until they became saints – it would simply do nothing by knowing. If anything, it may make them want to hurry up and become deities instead of taking their time and focusing on their comprehension.

Still, there remained an unanswered question on everyone’s minds.

“As interesting as that is, what does that have to do with your newly created path and this king having to wait to become a deity?” Wukong asked curiously.

“To put it simply, after running a few tests, I realised that Concepts can only be infused into a weapon that has developed its spirit,” Aiden explained. “More specifically, only weapons that have been nourished and awakened by you personally.

As he said that, Aiden’s eyes fell on Linley. “Unfortunately, that means that you won’t be able to use that flexible sword of yours as a shortcut to utilising concepts, even though it’s Highgod Artifact.”

As his voice came to an end, Linley’s eyes constricted. The violet flexible sword was his greatest treasure. It was something he found whilst exploring the mountain range of magical beasts. The only reason he dared to use it was because his master – Doehring Cowart – assured him that whilst he remained unable to use its true power, no one else would be able to sense the power hidden within.

But hearing Aiden’s words and feeling the shocked eyes of all those around him focusing intently on him, he couldn’t help but feel like the walls were closing in around him.

Feeling his boss’ frantic emotions, Bebe’s eyes turned cold as he stood up on Linley’s shoulder as though ready to pounce at a moment’s notice.

“Don’t worry, brat,” Aiden chortled in amusement upon seeing Linley’s reaction. “I have no desire to take your weapon, nor does anyone else. I only brought it up so you wouldn’t bother wasting any time trying to use concepts with it.”

It was only when Aiden’s words entered Linley’s ears that Linley’s heart calmed enough for him to really assess the looks of those around him.

He saw expressions of surprise, interest, and even a little envy but no greed. A fact that shocked him greatly as the worth of a genuine Divine Artifact was priceless, especially in a world like theirs where there were so few deities to start with.

As he wasn’t a member of the Pavilion, how could he possibly understand that the values instilled in each of its members taught them that the most important thing was their own personal power rather than the power brought on by treasures?

After all, if you relied on a treasure to reign supreme and then said treasure was stolen, you’d essentially be nothing.

Still, that was only part of the reason for their lack of greed. The other was that Linley and his clan could now be considered allies; as such, any greed that would’ve aroused had Linley been anyone else was all but doused.

He may not understand their lack of greed, but he did know that whether it was Ace, Wukong, or Aiden, each of them was stronger than him and had the ability to forcibly snatch it from him. Yet none of them seemed particularly bothered. Well, almost none of them…

“Oi, lizard brat,” Wukong called out suddenly. “Bring out the Highgod Artifact for this king to see. This king has never seen a Highgod Artifact before.”

Though sceptical and a little hesitant, Linley still ultimately brought it out. One because everyone now knew about it, two because Aiden had already said he had no interest in taking it from him, and an expert of his level would have no reason to lie. As for the third, final, and arguably most important reason, it was because he trusted his judgement of Ace.

From what he knew of him, Ace wouldn’t stoop so low as to force him to hand it over, especially not in this scenario. If Ace genuinely wanted it, he’d defeat him in a fair fight and take it. Still, judging by the complete lack of interest Ace showed, he didn’t seem to hold it in any regard.

“Hmm,” Wukong raised an eyebrow as he studied the violet flexible sword in great detail. “Why can’t this king sense anything special about this sword?”

“For two reasons,” Aiden said. “One, your spiritual essence isn’t strong enough, and two, although Linley has already bound this weapon to him, he hasn’t gained the spirit of the weapon’s acknowledgement. It’s also the reason he wouldn’t be able to use Concepts with it.”

“How do I gain its acknowledgement?” Linley hurriedly asked, his eyes gleaming in anticipation.

Although his master had been instrumental in guiding him to this point, Doehring Cowart was merely another saint before he died. In terms of knowledge, how could he compare to those experts in the Pavilion?

Now that he finally had the opportunity to get answers, how could he possibly forgo such an opportunity?

“Although Divine Artifacts have spirits, they aren’t truly sentient beings, meaning they can’t truly communicate with you,” Aiden explained. “As such, the only way to gain its acknowledgement is to nourish it with spiritual essence equal to or surpassing that of which it’s used to, which would require you to have the soul of at least a Highgod.

The book Ace had passed to him a year ago hadn’t just listed the various profound mysteries of the various laws; it had also included the various deity levels and what one needed to do to break through to each realm.

As such, when he heard that, Linley’s face dropped.

‘Forget comprehending all six of a specific law; I haven’t even begun comprehending a single profound mystery for any of the laws,’ Linley sighed in dejection. ‘How many thousands, if not tens of thousands of years, would it take to reach such a level.’

“As powerful a weapon as it is, I suggest you treat using it as a last resort rather than your immediate go-to,” Aiden suggested. “For one, although saints can’t see through the power of your weapon, deities can. If O’Brien, Catherine, or even that Dylin fellow were to see it, they wouldn’t hesitate to kill you for it.

But most importantly, as soon as you reach the deity level and have begun to comprehend a concept, the amount of help your nurtured weapon will give you won’t lose out in the slightest to that Highgod Artifact; in fact, there’s a good chance it’ll surpass it.”

“But how long will it take to nourish a weapon enough that it’ll turn into a true Divine Artifact?” Linley asked helplessly.

“For most, it’d likely take at least 100 years of constant nourishment,” Aiden nodded. “But for those who’ve comprehended a concept, it’ll likely take a month, if that.

You need to understand that when utilising a concept, your spiritual essence is constantly being channelled through your weapon. It’s that what allows your concepts to materialise. The best part about it is that not only is it nourishing your weapon, it also has the added benefit of tempering and refining your spiritual essence.”

Aiden’s words once again sent each of those listening into shock. One month to awaken your weapon… Tempering one’s spirit…

If one were to develop a technique with either of those effects, it’d likely be held in extremely high regard, but for Aiden’s new path to accomplish both…

It caused everyone to sigh in admiration at Aiden’s newly founded path. It was no wonder he held it in such high regard despite understanding his own lack of knowledge regarding the worlds of deities. It was simply too heaven-defying!

“Ooh, and the best part is, as long as your soul reaches the level of a saint-level warrior, one should be able to start down this path,” Aiden said, the corners of his full lips creeping up to form a teasing smile.

“Didn’t you say that one needed to be a deity first?” Amira hurriedly asked as she, like the others, felt her excitement bubbling up.

“I lied,” Aiden laughed. “You should’ve seen all your faces; you brats looked so upset, haha.”

Despite being played, no one seemed to care. It had to be remembered that Aiden said, “Saint-level warrior”. Everyone present was both a supreme talent walking the path of a warrior and a mage. Their souls were far stronger than mages at the same level.

Even the weakest among them would only have to wait until they reached the eighth rank as a mage and a warrior to start comprehending concepts; as for the stronger ones among them…

Wukong, Ace, Amira, and Linley had already achieved the minimum requirements. As had Killian, thanks to the increase brought about by the Earth Root Fruit.

Because of Aiden’s last revelation, the excitement and anticipation in the room had become palpable.