Chapter 383: Tom Hiddleston’s Special Armor

The value of the Zankong Great Sword is difficult to ascertain.

Judging by its gem inlay, the price difference between the sapphire and the ruby is not significant. Simply regarded as a gem weapon, it is on par with the Crimson Blood Sword.

Compared to the earl's sword, which is inlaid with two gems, there is a considerable gap. It is relatively easy to inlay a single gem, but inlaying two gems requires high technical skill because it is challenging to coordinate the interference between the gems.

However, the Zankong Great Sword is not a typical gem weapon.

Its hilt is engraved with a magic array, which is characteristic of mana equipment. With the blessing of this magic array, it can better unleash the power of the sapphire.

Additionally, its blade is made from the bones of a mid-level magical beast mixed with adamantium. This material is far superior to the Damascus steel alloyed with mithril used in the Crimson Blood Sword.

"In my opinion, its value might be slightly lower than the Swift Shadow Bow but higher than the Crimson Blood Sword," Lys decided to replace his Crimson Blood Sword with it.

As for the Crimson Blood Sword, it could be kept as a backup weapon in the gem space.

...

After the meeting.

Lys quickly oversaw the distribution of battle merits for the Black Knights, mainly distributing mana equipment. There were eleven pieces of mana equipment in total, and he chose two for himself.

One was a power-enhancing bracelet that could slightly boost mana levels.

With the Zankong Great Sword replacing the Crimson Blood Sword, he needed a piece of mana equipment to take over the role of the Crimson Blood Sword. This bracelet that enhanced mana had a weak boost, but it was better than nothing.

The other piece was a stability ring, worn on the thumb, which could stabilize the mana in the hand when shooting arrows, thereby improving archery precision.

He wasn't very dependent on these pieces of mana equipment.

But since he had obtained them, why not use them? Even if not used, it was nice to collect them in the gem space.

All the knights participated in the distribution of these privately shareable supplies, coins, and mana equipment, along with a few ordinary mana manuals. The distributed supplies were recorded by designated personnel, and when the battle merits were distributed after returning to Coral Island, these pre-distributed supplies would all be factored in.

Subsequently.

Lys began his new task of taming the chocobo, Loki.

This was the critical period of taming; the chocobo was on the verge of transformation, and its mana was about to erupt at any moment. So Lys planned to quickly establish a conditioned reflex with Loki and confirm their riding relationship. Previously, the chocobo had already assisted him well in the battle between the sky knights.

The next step was to have Loki charge into battle alongside him.

An ordinary warhorse could charge at a speed of about 60 kilometers per hour, which happened to be the ordinary running speed of the chocobo, capable of running continuously for a large part of the day.

After taming the chocobo well into the night, he personally fed Loki before returning to the castle.

He couldn't sleep yet; he needed to take his medicine and practice "Breath Decay." No matter how difficult the conditions were, the training regimen couldn't be neglected. In fact, the conditions weren't too difficult; food, drinks, and supplies were all stored in the gem space, including beast meat, magic potions, and dragon milk.

Shortly after taking his medicine and just as he was about to take a bath, someone knocked on the door.

"Sir, Hiddleston's dog armor is ready, but Hiddleston refuses to wear it," said Squire Knight Xavier, who was clever and highly valued by Lys.

"I'll take a look."

Upon arriving at Hiddleston's tent, he saw it chewing on a large bone, while several squire knights stood holding the armor. The squire knights didn't dare to force Hiddleston to wear the armor.

Now that Lys had arrived, Hiddleston was soon coaxed into wearing the dog armor. The armor protected its neck and upper body, the areas most vulnerable to attacks.

As for the helmet, it wasn't made for Hiddleston. For one, there were no blacksmiths available to craft a suitable helmet, and for another, the helmet could interfere with Hiddleston's spellcasting.

Wearing the dog armor, Hiddleston looked a bit uneasy and kept trying to take the armor off.

An idea struck Liszt.

Recalling the "rock wall" simulation and demonstration from when he taught Hiddleston a new spell, he found a stone and smashed it in front of Hiddleston.

Hiddleston looked puzzled and decided to continue gnawing on his big bone.

Soon, Liszt took a half-dismantled steel armor and put it on the stone, then smashed the stone again. Clang! Clang! The stone protected by the armor did not shatter. He shook the stone in front of Hiddleston and repeated this routine, trying to make Hiddleston understand that the armor could protect it.

However, Hiddleston still refused to wear the armor.

For an entire hour, as the night grew late, Hiddleston continued to refuse to put on the dog armor. Just as Liszt was getting impatient, Hiddleston suddenly opened its mouth wide, and in the next moment, a layer of cracked rock rapidly surfaced on its body, partially enveloping it, though most of its torso remained exposed.

"Hmm!"

Liszt raised his eyebrows. "Very good, it seems the spell you've learned can completely replace this dog armor, so... Hiddleston, try walking around!"

The cracked rock armor covered its neck, forehead, shoulders, back, and thighs, seemingly adhering to its body. As it moved, the cracked rocks contracted without hindering its actions.

"Woof!"

Hiddleston barked proudly, showing off its new armor.

Liszt hammered the rock armor and found it incredibly sturdy, unlike ordinary rocks. It seemed to have reached the level of crystal. The faint yellowish-grey color had a slight translucence under the candlelight. With enough force, you could break off a piece.

Then he thrust a spear at it, and the rock flew off without shattering immediately.

"With the force I just used, I could have pierced a hole even in steel armor, but the rock didn't crack. This hardness is almost comparable to mithril armor!"

Liszt was astonished.

He then summoned the smoke mission.

"Mission completed. Reward: New Spell for Hiddleston – Stone Armor."

"Stone Armor? Now I remember, Elkson mentioned that among earth spells, there's one only a great magician can master, called Stone Armor. It can arm oneself like armor to defend against attacks. Many great magicians skilled in earth magic enjoy studying Stone Armor."

However, very few magicians have successfully learned this spell. Of course, there are very few magicians to begin with.

"My Hiddleston is getting stronger by the day." He used the Magic Eye to check the level of magic power consumption and found that Hiddleston's magic power was much thinner, as if the Stone Armor consumed a lot of magic power. He couldn't help but pat the rock on Hiddleston's body. "Hiddleston, can you remove it?"

After making several gestures, Hiddleston quickly understood. It shook its body as if shaking off water, and the yellowish-grey rocks flew out in all directions, leaving none behind.

"Very good, now let's learn a new command—Hiddleston, Stone Armor!" Liszt decided to strike while the iron was hot and let Hiddleston get used to its new spell as soon as possible, so it wouldn’t forget.