Chapter 46: The Crafting Station.

Chapter 46: The Crafting Station. The moment Ash’Kral said this, a crimson platform rose from the still water until it reached Levi’s height. Its base was crafted from red roots entangled into a tough dread, while its surface bore Ilthorien inscriptions etched along the edges. At the center, a hollow, three-dimensional crimson nonagon orb spun slowly, capturing Levi’s attention. "The Crafting Station... It looks different here," Levi murmured. He had read that Daywalkers would typically encounter a tree-based platform, which they referred to as the Crafting Station. It was named as such because they would place their contracted Nightcrawlers upon it and transform them into whatever weapon they envisioned. But this crimson orb was something new. Ash’Kral jumped into the orb and said calmly, "Don’t overthink it. The crafting process is the same as the others... The only difference lies in the quality of the weapon and the range of your imagination." "You mean I can craft any weapon I desire? Even ones that change form or have shifting states?" Levi raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Go wild," Ash’Kral replied lazily. "Just make sure the weapon you choose unlocks the most potential of this specific evolutionary path." Since Levi had three evolutionary paths, it meant he would unlock a weapon at 5% progress for each path. He had already asked, and Ash’Kral had told him that while each weapon could activate abilities from other paths, the outcomes would vary depending on how extreme the choice was. This meant he needed to choose a different type of weapon for each path, making sure they complemented and interconnected with each other. "Easier said than done," Levi murmured. Knowing this choice was crucial—perhaps even more important than his abilities—Levi took a seat and prepared to think it through carefully. "There are three categories of weapons: melee, ranged, and mental. Every weapon in existence falls into one of those." Levi began listing weapons in his mind: swords, katanas, staffs, polearms, daggers, rapiers, axes, bows, rifles, shotguns, sniper rifles, mind orbs, and so on... There were hundreds of possibilities—and that was just the known ones. Levi knew many Daywalkers had gotten creative with their weapons, just like Shia. She wielded a crescent-bladed glaive, a hybrid between two weapon types that vastly expanded her fighting style. Then there was Mantis, who used weapons that mirrored the form of his Nightcrawler’s praying arms. This made Levi understand that creativity was not only allowed but encouraged. Nothing was holding him back. Still, he didn’t let his imagination run wild just yet. "The best weapon for me is the one I feel most comfortable wielding," Levi frowned. "But I’ve never used a weapon in my life." "That’s why Daywalker candidates are trained from a young age," Ash’Kral said casually. "Some families focus on a single Nightcrawler species or Battle Art for this reason." Levi nodded, aware that many lineage families followed the practiced path of their firstborn Daywalkers. This lets them build legacies around specific Battle Arts and pass down refined techniques more effectively. A newborn Daywalker forging their own path would rarely surpass a candidate from an established line, assuming equal talent and dedication. Of course, this only worked if their first Daywalker reached great heights. Otherwise, their potential would plateau. There weren’t many families that met such a standard, so most let their Daywalkers choose their weapons, while mandating similar Nightcrawler types. Just like Shia and her Morningstar Lineage family. Though they all practiced the same Blood Arts, each member was free to choose their own weapon. This diversity gave rise to many distinct Blood Arts, even within the same bloodline. "The only tool I’ve ever used that even slightly resembled a weapon is my white cane," Levi smiled wryly. "Can you suggest something that fits me?" Levi decided to ask for Ash’Kral’s help, trusting that such an ancient being must have seen every possibility by now. Why waste time when he could draw on that wisdom? "Hmmm... I believe a staff would suit you, at least in the beginning," Ash’Kral suggested. "A staff?" Levi thought for a moment. It made sense. A staff would work well with sound-based abilities. It could produce loud noises and help him measure the distance between himself and his enemies. "But if you choose a different weapon for another evolutionary path, say, a bow, the switching time will be noticeable," Ash’Kral warned. "If the weapon shapes are too extreme, the shift won’t be instantaneous." "How long does it take to switch?" "Two seconds if the difference is extreme, like switching from a bow to a shield." "Two seconds... That’s not so bad," Levi muttered. "Heh, two seconds might seem short now, but later, you’ll realize just how long it truly is." Ash’Kral left it at that, letting Levi interpret the rest. "That complicates things," Levi murmured, massaging his temples. Ash’Kral’s opinion couldn’t be taken lightly. If he said two seconds was dangerous, Levi had to take it seriously and reevaluate his options. "Can I take a day to think it over?" Levi asked. "Take as long as you need. Just remember, choosing a weapon isn’t a matter of time. It’s a matter of feeling. A calling," Ash’Kral said. "It’s hard to find that call without testing a few out first." "I understand." Levi agreed. He understood this wasn’t something to solve by thinking through pros and cons alone. It required a physical connection...Experience. After all, no weapon was without weakness. As Ash’Kral left the Ancestral Rooted Plane, Levi took one last glance at the colossal crimson tree and whispered, "Will you kindly show me the way?" Then, he willed himself awake, and the crimson seed respected his wish, booting his consciousness back to the real world. The moment Levi woke up, he had to clamp his hands over his ears in agony as a wave of deafening noise assaulted him. "Argh... It’s so loud!" He groaned, the sounds of his neighbors’ footsteps pounding like thunderclaps beneath him. Outside was even worse. Though it was just before dawn, the city buzzed with activity as if it were midday. The city remained constantly lit to prevent the formation of Stygian Gates in its center, which made sleep almost impossible without SR Pills. Since SR Pills only lasted for two hours and temporarily refreshed one’s body and mind, the traditional concept of day and night had become meaningless for many. Still holding his ears, Levi stumbled to the balcony, following the wave-like distortion that colored his world through sound. He reached out blindly, feeling for the window against the noise pollution. With great effort, he finally shut it, and some peace returned. Levi leaned against the window, then fell to his knees, hands still clamped over his ears like a frightened child. ’Ash’Kral! What do I do?! It’s not stopping! It hurts!’ Levi pleaded internally, overwhelmed by the noise and the chaos within his own head. It was like someone was drumming right next to his ears, every vibration bouncing around in his dark, sound-painted world, creating unbearable noise. ’Don’t panic, boy. It’s normal. Your ears were significantly enhanced after integrating Echolocation into your system.’ Ash’Kral’s voice echoed telepathically, bypassing the surrounding chaos. ’Breathe in and out. Focus solely on my voice, nothing more, nothing less.’ Levi did as instructed, trying his best to concentrate solely on Ash’Kral’s voice while tuning out the cacophony. He was already well-trained at blocking out disturbing Nightcrawler voices after a decade of exposure. Eventually, the painful roar dulled little by little until only Ash’Kral’s voice remained, repeating smugly, "Trampy, trampy, trampy..." ’Bastard,’ Levi’s lips twitched, but he clenched his jaw and stayed focused to keep dampening the noise. After getting his laugh, Ash’Kral continued. "Normally, humans use their ears to focus on what they want to hear. But in your case, your ears were enhanced to match my perfected Echolocation ability...So the formula reversed." "Now, you’ll be hearing everything, all the time. And it’s up to you to control what to listen to... and what to block out." "But don’t worry. You’ve unlocked a perfectly mastered ability, which means there’s no learning curve." Levi nodded in understanding. He realized that his initial panic had made the pain far worse than it actually was. That’s because unlocking an ability automatically bestowed his body and mind with the necessary knowledge to use it, as though he had mastered it himself. Now that he was calm, Levi could hear muffled sounds in the background, like his head was submerged underwater. When he focused on a specific type of sound, it filtered itself to perfection, allowing him to hear exactly what was being said. — My wife’s gonna be pissed as hell, burp, I reek of booze and women’s perfume.— Nah, I doubt she’s up at this hour. Didn’t you buy a whole bottle of SR Pills?— You don’t know her like I do...burp,That night demon doesn’t sleep when I am out. As he listened to the two men’s unholy conversation, Levi stood and opened the balcony window, trusting that he had things under control. The moment the window opened, the muffled sounds jumped up an octave, but it wasn’t nearly as painful as before. Levi ignored the chaotic flood of background noise and focused solely on the men’s conversation, curious if he could determine their location. When he willed it, his ears responded like another limb, listening to commands as naturally as if he were moving his hand. Whoa... To his amazement, the sound waves bouncing between his ears and the two men’s voices formed a wave-like bridge, linking them together! And that wasn’t all. As his concentration deepened, his ears provided more and more detail. He could now "see" two vibrating gray silhouettes holding onto each other’s shoulders as they staggered down the sidewalk. He could even make out the bottle of alcohol in one of their hands. ’Here’s a trick,’ Ash’Kral said with a grin, ’Place your finger on the sound bridge, and try to focus on how their voices spread outward.’ Levi reached out and placed his finger within the sound bridge. Then, he shifted his intent, no longer trying to listen to what was said, but to how it moved. Instantly, he gasped in wonder. The men’s gray soundwaves scattered outward, bouncing off roads, cars, people, buildings, and everything they touched! And each time the waves struck a surface; be it glass, concrete, metal, or trees, the frequencies altered slightly, bouncing back in different colors. Somehow, each material reflected a different hue. This painted a living, breathing fragment of the city inside Levi’s dark world...Vivid, strange, and full of life, all from a single conversation. As he stood on the balcony, gazing with his ears at this new world blooming before him, a soft smile spread across his lips. "I never knew sounds could look this beautiful..."