Is That A Wisp?

"What is it?"

Krune then answered.

"It can't be something permanent. I will leave at some point, so the deal has to be finished before that."

Taran narrowed his eyes in response. There was an issue with Krune's request.

"The problem is that you would only be truly valuable once you're at a high cultivation level. Before that, even if you can awaken Spirits ten or more times faster, the level of the weapons and armors' Spirits you can awaken isn't enough for it to be worth it. If you decide to leave once you get to that point, all the work put on you will go to the drain."

Krune had to admit that it was true. It's not the Krune at the moment that the Spirit Awakener Guild wanted, but the Krune in the future.

"That's complicated since I want to leave. How should we do this?"

Taran shook his head as he said.

"I can't think of a way for this to work. I told you before that leaving before being able to fly is too dangerous. For you to get to that step, you need to reach the Semi-God Realm. However, it is only at the Semi-God Realm that your high success rate will be of real use to the Spirit Awakener Guild."

Krune nodded, making a decision after hearing those words as he said.

"I understand. In that case, I must refuse your offer. In any case, I'm pretty confident that I can provide for myself the way I am at the moment. I guess it's better for me to not tie myself down, after all."

Taran sighed after hearing that but nodded in the end.

"Alright. In that case, let's do it like this. We will have exclusivity of your skills from the God Foundation Realm and above. However, you will not be tied down to the Spirit Awakener Guild. We can use teleport formations to send and receive the equipment for awakening."

Krune was puzzled after hearing that offer, though.

"But wouldn't that be too expensive? After all, the further away the Teleport Formation is, the more God Stones you will need to use."

Taran shrugged his shoulders as he answered.

"It's not as expensive as the price that your God Foundation Stars and above equipment would cost. Don't forget that people and beasts are already willing to pay ten times more to have their equipment delivered ten times faster. It will only get out of hand if you decide to travel several continents away. However, I don't think you'll do that anytime soon since that would be tantamount to suicide."

Krune had to admit that he also didn't want to go out too soon after he heard more about the God Realm. 

"Still, didn't you say that only when I reached the Semi-God Realm would I become useful? Are Nascent God Stars Equipment and below worth this deal?"

Taran nodded, saying in response.

"It is since we won't be spending much on you. What we'll do is find you much better deals. For example, you're getting ten times more to get the Equipment Spirits to awaken earlier. Our Spirit Awakener Guild has a lot of connections, so we definitely have people and demon beasts willing to pay much more for whatever reasons."

Krune didn't mind as he summed things up, saying.

"I understand. Even though my level wouldn't be that high, we could still form a partnership for the future. Is that right?"

Taran was happy that Krune understood.

"That's right."

Krune then asked back.

"What do I get from it?"

Taran pondered over the question for a bit. 

"Although you can't compare to the top geniuses of our Empire, your cultivation speed isn't that much slower. Not only that, but you're also able to maintain your 1% or so success rate while awakening Spirits even when you increase in cultivation. That said, it probably won't take more than fifteen to twenty years for you to finish paying your debt with the city."

"How about this? We will remove your debt in exchange for this deal. That way, we'll receive our money back faster, and you'll be free to go anywhere. I believe you know you're being watched to not flee before finishing paying it up, right?"

Krune's eyes lit up after hearing that. Indeed, he knew that even if he couldn't feel the other's Divine Senses.

"That's great! Then, we have a deal. As long as I'm close enough to the Zamuria Empire, I will only awaken the Equipment Spirits you send me. However, I can't go without a job, so you have to keep them coming so that I can earn my God Stones for cultivation. If you suddenly stop sending me equipment, I will have to take other jobs."

For Krune, that was more than a good enough deal. After all, 70% of his God Stones were being taken away to pay for the damage from the past. If he could keep them all, his cultivation speed would definitely speed up by 10 to 15%. One must remember that he was still receiving Rank One God Stones, which were being used like candies.

Taran was more than satisfied with that deal.

"That's good, then. I will contact the Spirit Awakener Guild Headquarters of our sector and have your debt cleared."

Krune then asked something else.

"Aren't you afraid that I might disappear after this?"

Taran shook his head as he laughed.

"Hahaha! You might as well try. I don't think you can do that, though."

Krune was taken aback by his words. From the looks of it, they were very confident in tracking him down.

'Oh well, whatever. I have no intention of going back on my word to start with. Since they're fine with it, then so be it.'

On that same day, Dima received news that the headquarters of their sector had cleared Krune's debt. He didn't find it strange since he would definitely try to rope in someone like Krune. That was an obvious choice.

Krune then continued to work on the equipment Spirits for the time being. After all, he didn't intend to leave Sunkan City before reaching the God Foundation Realm. Now that he was receiving the full payment, he was even more unwilling to do so. 

Eventually, Krune reached the 7th Stage of the Godly Fusion Realm another eight months later. So far, he had always used the same level of equipment as his Realm to practice his Calamity Laws. But now, he could try his hand on the God Foundation Stars ones. If he succeeded, he would be paid with Rank Two God Stones from now on.

Taran, who stayed in the city with many other Spirit Awakeners, immediately contacted the headquarters and told them to send the God Foundation Stars Equipment. It turns out that many of the Spirit Awakeners haven't given up learning Krune's method yet. Hence, they kept observing and studying it.

The Sector's Headquarters of the Spirit Awakener Guild was really well-prepared. From the moment Krune decided to try his hand on God Foundation Stars equipment, they already had some people and demon beasts in line to pay for it. It couldn't be considered much, but it was a start.

Krune then received a saber at the One God Foundation Star level. Krune didn't dare to try anything higher than that since he knew it would be a waste of time. In fact, he didn't even know how he would fare with a piece of equipment many levels higher than his cultivation Realm.

'Sure enough, it's a lot harder to grasp the right conditions when the equipment's level is higher than my cultivation. I might be able to succeed with a Two Stars one, but it would take so long that it's not worth it. I even have my doubts whether this One God Foundation Star Saber will prove to be beneficial or not.'

Krune continued to work on the Saber, already with a plan in mind.

'If I take too long, I'll wait until I reach the 8th Stage of the Godly Fusion Realm before trying again.'

As expected, Krune took much longer to partially wake up a spirit so that he could check if it was flawed or not. Naturally, most of the tries turned out to be defective Spirits, so he didn't wake them fully since they would die shortly after.

In the end, Krune took a total of six months instead of the two months he spent with equipment of his level. Also, his success rate had decreased. Krune had failed a total of 194 times before finally grasping all the right conditions to awaken a flawless Saber Spirit.

Of course, Taran and the Spirit Awakener Guild was more than happy to see that. Even if he took half a year, it was still more than three times faster than an average Spirit Awakener. The client who owned the Saber would definitely be satisfied as well.

Taran then approached Krune and took the Saber before asking.

"How is it? Do you think it's worth keeping up awakening Spirits on God Foundation Stars Equipment?"

Krune shook his head as he replied.

"No. Even though the trading rate is terrible, it's more worth getting the Rank One Godly Stones and exchanging them for Rank Two ones than gaining them directly. In the end, it takes way too long to awaken a Spirit of this level."

Taran pondered for a bit before saying.

"Maybe it's because this was your first one. It might turn out much better in the next try."

Krune shook his head again, instantly rejecting all advances.

"No can do. The time taken and the number of failures I underwent aren't the main reasons. To be honest, the speed at which I've been comprehending the Calamity Laws has gotten worse. I already think I was extremely lucky to awaken this Spirit in just six months."

Krune also thought.

'It also delayed my own creation of the Elements Cooperation Sub-Law. I need to wait for the 8th... no, it will only be worth it once I reach the 9th Stage of the Godly Fusion Realm. Only then am I confident that awakening God Foundation Stars Equipment Spirits will be worth it.'