Chapter 6: The Road of Power

  The place where Middy took the Earl was the family's armory. As compensation for Middy agreeing to go and act as a stumbling block, Senator Pae also generously agreed to several conditions, one of which was to sell the swords and armor produced by the Seth family at a lower price to the Astrexs family, who lacked iron mines on their land.

  The first batch of swords has been delivered, and Mide remembers that even his usually cautious father was full of praise for the quality of these weapons.

  Rows of long swords stood neatly on the weapon rack, and the craftsmen were obviously very responsible. Middy randomly drew out any one of them, which had been carefully maintained. On the hilt, the emblem of the Seth family was engraved, proving that it was a product from their proud family workshop.

  Mi Di grasped the long sword and with a casual swing, struck a family-made spear in the corner of the armory, splitting its shaft in two without much effort.

  According to the Sayce family, it was during the forging process that a rare crystal called "sharp crystal" was added, which is why these long swords can reach the level of cutting through iron like mud. For this reason, although they said it was at a discounted price, they actually sold it to us for more than twice the price of an ordinary weapon. Middy gazed at the sword's blade, which emitted a cold glow, and said in a chilly tone, "However, when I hung out with Fenrir and the others, I inadvertently overheard that what was actually mixed in wasn't sharp crystal, but something else."

  The earl seemed to realize something in an instant and hastily asked: "What is it?"

  "Obsidian!" Midy's tone was full of conviction.

  "What!" The earl drew in a cold breath.

  Blackstone, like Flintstone, makes metal less prone to wear and tear, and sharper. However, it has a fatal flaw - as soon as it comes into contact with acidic water, it will quickly decompose. Nevertheless, such scams are not common in the Bellmare Kingdom, after all, Blackstone is mainly distributed within the Drows Empire, if transported to Bellmare, the price would be quite expensive, can be classified as "high-priced materials".

  No one would spend a lot of money to make an inferior weapon.

  However, soon, following Meddy's method, the acid water poured by the Earl on the sword blade showed its effect. On the originally sharp blade that could cut through iron like mud, one place after another of corrosion appeared.

  Just a few minutes later, the seemingly bright long sword broke into two pieces due to its own weight, and the blade fell to the ground with a heavy thud, as if a heavy punch hit the earl's heart.

  But Ingrman was after all an experienced earl, and soon he calmed down from his momentary confusion, then laughed loudly and patted his son's shoulder heavily: "Midi, you did a great job. Since the members of parliament completely ignored honor and integrity, we don't need to follow the previous agreement either. From now on, leave it to me!"

  It's probably the first time I've been praised by Father from the bottom of his heart, right? Medici smiled with relief and nodded.

  Although he has memories of the next twenty years, at present, his words are light and in other people's eyes, Mi Di is still that irresponsible and incompetent young master, and can only do so much.

  Besides, Miti believed that his father would definitely be able to lead the family out of its current predicament. What he needed to do was to perfect those things that belonged to him.

  "Father, I'd like to ask Lotte to procure some rare materials, may I have your permission?" Mide thought for a moment and added, "Mainly to concoct a potion that enhances endurance and vitality. You know, the academy trials are coming up soon."

  "Still with Miss Fiona Hamilton, I presume?" The Earl's expression turned thoughtful.

  If it was said that Midy was originally a stumbling block inserted into Fiona's team by the Congressional faction, then now, under the circumstances of the complete rupture between the Congressional faction and the family, this matter has undergone an essential transformation. The Aslex family is only an earl title, always needing a backing, and now the Queen's faction has become the best choice.

  If Meddy can truly be of help to that young lady, the negotiations between families will also become much easier. Seeing his son's vision really broaden, a look of relief flowed into Count Ingram's eyes, and then he nodded generously: "Go ahead and do it well, if you need anything, just go and tell Lotte, your father fully supports you."

  Hardener, Bloodstone, Soul Crystal, Mandrake Flower, Shadow Grass... all sorts of expensive materials were gathered in a short half-day, and one after another, they were sent into the magic laboratory in the castle. Although the relationship between father and son was no longer as it was in the previous life, Earl Ingman's doting remained unchanged.

  Although Meddy was also helpless about his father's overindulgence, he now needed this complete trust and indulgence.

  To say why, because what Mide is going to do next has nothing to do with refining endurance potions or vitality potions.

  At nightfall, after dinner, Middy made a gesture of neglecting sleep and forgetting food, the experiment had reached a critical moment. He instructed Lotte not to let anyone disturb him. Then, he quietly checked the materials in his package, silently opened the window on the third floor, and threw down a rope that was already prepared.

  The castle's defenses had clearly been strengthened, apparently due to the Ses family's behind-the-scenes movements. However, for Middy, who had lived here for over a decade and had many years of adventure experience, it was not a problem at all.

  Without exerting much effort, he smoothly evaded the guards' line of sight and left the castle through an inconspicuous passageway used for transporting garbage.

  Under the clear moonlight, Midy walked alone with a heavy backpack for adventurers and wore a broad sword suitable for battle on a cold winter night.

  His destination was not far from the castle, a gorge thirty kilometers away. The terrain there is treacherous, with little vegetation and desolate, let alone nobles, even hunters rarely visit, it can be said that people are rare.

  But Midei knew that in that canyon there was a cave with a broken sword with an iron chain.

  On that sword, an oni god is attached.

  In the previous life, when the army of the Delos Empire invaded the Earl's territory and looted everywhere, Midee escaped from the castle in a panic after his father and old steward died for everyone, and eventually drifted to that valley, where he discovered the ghost god and gained the power to protect himself, finally killing his way out.

  But at that time, the awakening was far from perfect.

  It's not so much an awakening as a struggle for control of Midy's body between the spirits, met with resistance from the boy's consciousness. Furthermore, the Empire's search party arrives once again, forcing this struggle to be cut short, and the fusion rate between the host and the spirits has always been low.

  Thanks to this blessing, in the following decade, many of Mideeran's ghost swordsmen found it extremely difficult to use their special skills.

  However, the ghostly entity attached to his left arm still provided Midori with immense assistance, even helping him defeat many renowned ghost swordsmen, including Fenrir, who was once hailed as the greatest of all time.

  Now looking back, Mi Di was finally able to estimate that the ghost hidden in that broken sword was absolutely a rare and precious item.

  Furthermore, his own rebirth seemed to be connected to the last concentrated power of that ghost god, so Midei had made up his mind early on after his rebirth to quickly merge with that ghost god and then undergo a job change in the largest magic formation in the Kingdom of Belmair as a Ghost Swordsman to achieve perfect results.

  At that time, what kind of power will I possess?

  Just thinking about it makes me feel like it's really worth looking forward to.

  After several hours, Middy finally arrived in the canyon.

  The ground is littered with boulders, and the earth occasionally shows signs of cracking. Vegetation is scarce, and no water source can be found, so there are no signs of animal activity either. Under the pale blue moonlight, it looks like a gateway to the abyss or a quiet graveyard where the dead sleep.

  It's almost here!

  Midi tightened his outer garment and walked towards the depths of the canyon. Although he had only been to this place once in his life, the memories of that time were still so vivid that almost no details were missed. However, despite knowing the location of the cave, he first suppressed the excitement in his heart and cautiously waited for half an hour to see if anyone was following him. After confirming that he would not be disturbed, he entered the cave.

  As he made his way along the damp stone path, which was covered in stalactites, he sometimes had to squeeze through narrow openings that required him to turn sideways, and at other times crawl on all fours into small holes that were difficult to spot. Finally, the view before Midie suddenly opened up.

  This is a huge hollow in the depths of the earth, where the underground river reveals its veins and forms a quiet lake. The moonlight that seeps through the gaps at the top of the sky, as well as the fluorescent moss on the stone walls emitting orange light, makes the entire space seem like a dream.

  In the center of this lake, on a small island built with white pebbles, a broken sword was inserted into the sand, and next to it, an ancient chain made of unknown materials wound its way.

  In an instant, Midy felt his entire consciousness being drawn away, heartbeat synchronized.

  The ghosts and gods are right here.

  Midi suppressed the excitement and agitation in her heart, and did not immediately walk over. Instead, she stopped at the lake shore, then took out various medicines and materials from her backpack that she had prepared during the day.

  He needs to make preparations first.

  In most cases, the fusion of a swordsman and an oni is sudden and without warning. Unbeknownst to them, their left arm becomes possessed by the oni, followed by an outbreak of variation. This is the simple process in which most oni swordsmen are born.

  And as with Midas before him, when fusion occurs in the worst possible circumstances, it can be said that luck has hit rock bottom.

  At this moment, Midei clearly knew that the ghost was right in front of him, and he had already made mental preparations.

  More importantly, he also knew that under the circumstances where the ghost and god could be expected to coexist harmoniously, there was a way to enhance the fusion between the ghost and the flesh, even making them complement each other, achieving perfect harmony.

  This is another woman who deeply loves herself, a strong person on par with the Bullet Queen, and the knowledge that Alice, the Fog Witch, imparted to Middy.

  Among the three, Alice's knowledge is the most profound and her magic is also the strongest. If the Bullet Queen Fina is the vanguard of the Falcon Team, then the Fog Witch is the silent supporter in the rear who is the backbone.

  Unfortunately, the ghost and god cannot be separated. Even a powerful fog witch can only use medicine and magic arrays to minimize conflicts between the ghost and the host, gradually improving the fusion of Midee and the ghost.

  But now it's different, Mide has occupied the heavenly timing, geographical advantage, and knowledge gained through rebirth.

  This time, Miti wants to perfectly merge with the oni, achieving what the ghost swordsmen of past and present have never done!