Chapter 31: The Reincarnated One Does It All

After finishing their conversation, Lee Sehoon and Yeom Seongha arrived late at the refining room, and Ries, who had been demonstrating to the students, narrowed his eyes.

“Didn’t I tell you to come quickly?”

“I’m sorry. Senior Yeom wanted to talk about the Flame Wheel for a bit.”

“...That’s right.”

Lee Sehoon answered confidently, while Yeom Seongha spoke bluntly. Seeing this, Ries clicked his tongue.

“Tsk... From now on, have private conversations after the lecture.”

If someone without skill tried to cut corners, he wouldn’t let it slide, but since they had the necessary skill, there was no reason to say anything.

The lecture, which had paused, resumed, and Lee Sehoon, who had taken his seat, glanced around the refining room.

‘Is it because it’s just the basic explanation? Half of them are already in the design phase.’

Confirming that he didn’t need to listen to the lecture, Lee Sehoon quietly got up and examined the materials placed on one side of the room.

‘Hmm. Even though they’re basic, there are quite a few useful ones.’

The basic materials provided to reduce the financial burden on the students. They were separate from the allocated budget and were of better quality than expected.

‘Before the regression, I worked like a slave in a workshop run by professors, receiving materials instead of money...’

Recalling his past, Lee Sehoon selected some materials and returned to his seat, causing the students to look at him with puzzled expressions.

‘He’s bringing the materials right away?’

‘Does he not need to verify them at all?’

Using residual mana, the structure of the magic circuit in enchanted weapons is quite complex, so it’s common to carefully draw and verify the design before production.

However, he was going straight into production without even drawing a single diagram?

The students, and even Ries, who was lecturing, looked at him in surprise at this bold move.

Feeling a particularly intense gaze, Lee Sehoon glanced over.

“...”

Yeom Seongha, with his eyes wide open, seemed determined not to miss a single movement. Sensing the suspicion and anticipation in his gaze, Lee Sehoon couldn’t help but smile.

‘Your eyes are going to pop out, kid.’

Seeing him smile, Yeom Seongha’s gaze became even sharper, but Lee Sehoon ignored it and examined the materials he had chosen.

The main materials for this refinement were ‘Fire Rose Stone’ and ‘Dark Cloud Stone’.

Both contained fire and dark elemental mana, respectively, and were decent materials.

‘A 7:3 ratio should be about right... Let’s start with heating.’

Whoosh!

The furnace, activated, burned with mana as fuel. Lee Sehoon, checking the temperature, immediately placed the Fire Rose Stone and Dark Cloud Stone inside.

“...Just like that?”

“Won’t all the elemental mana inside be lost...?”

To see a mistake that even beginners wouldn’t make from the top student of the department. Everyone looked at him with puzzled expressions. Rolling up his sleeve, Lee Sehoon looked into the furnace.

‘It’s coming out.’

Crack!

As cracks appeared on the heated Fire Rose Stone and Dark Cloud Stone, elemental mana began to seep out through the gaps.

The two types of mana, colliding with the flames of the furnace, burned intensely. Lee Sehoon, seeing that they were about to be consumed, immediately wrapped his right arm in a red lotus and plunged it into the furnace.

“Gasp...!”

“Ah...!”

The students were startled by the daring sight, but Lee Sehoon casually stirred the flames inside the furnace with his right arm.

Whoosh!

With each movement of his hand wrapped in the red lotus, the two types of elemental mana mixed with the flames.

After stirring for a while, Lee Sehoon, feeling resistance in his palm, quickly pulled his arm out.

Whirr!

The flames, a mix of red and black, slowly rotated in a perfect blend.

The mysterious sight left the students and Ries, who was lecturing, speechless.

‘Flame transmutation...’

Flame transmutation, a technique to control flames and imbue them with elemental mana.

It required not only the manipulation of mana but also the ability to handle flames, making it a high-difficulty skill. Lee Sehoon had managed to do it with both fire and dark elemental mana simultaneously!

‘No wonder he was so confident...’

It felt like watching a veteran blacksmith with decades of experience.

Impressed by his overwhelming talent, Ries forgot about the lecture and Lee Sehoon, frowning, shook off the heat from his right arm.

‘Maybe it’s still too early.’

He had hoped the Master of Flames and the red lotus would make it possible, but it seemed he still couldn’t fully withstand the intense heat.

‘It didn’t mix as well as I thought, but... the important thing is the flow of the flames.’

To others, it might look like a simple flame transmutation, but Yeom Seongha would see a different scene. The real goal of this refinement was to properly convey that understanding.

‘Watch carefully.’

To keep the flow of the flames going, Lee Sehoon pressed buttons at his feet to finely adjust the mana inside the furnace. Yeom Seongha, watching from a distance, widened his eyes.

‘That’s...’

Inside the furnace, the two types of elemental mana were blending.

The fire elemental mana was rapidly rotating in a circle, while the dark elemental mana slowly flowed around it.

The two types of mana, naturally interlocking, left Yeom Seongha in disbelief.

‘The two elements don’t have good compatibility, so how...’

Fire elemental mana, which spreads outward and moves quickly, and dark elemental mana, which erodes inward and moves slowly, are completely opposite in nature and composition.

How could they blend like this?

Staring at the scene in a trance, Yeom Seongha soon realized the secret.

‘The appropriate ratio to maintain balance between the two elements. And... the arrangement reflecting the characteristics of the mana.’

Placing the dark elemental mana, which erodes inward, on the outside, and the fire elemental mana, which spreads outward, on the inside. This way, the two types of mana interlock and stabilize.

It might seem simple at first glance, but from the allocation of the ratio to the movement of the mana, it was a very delicate technique. With this level of completion, it could maintain a perfect ‘circle’ even if it rotated faster.

‘...A circle?’

As this thought crossed his mind, a scene began to form in Yeom Seongha’s mind.

Whoosh!

The murky dark red Flame Wheel began to spin faster, separating into two colors. The result was a red circle surrounded by black mist.

Whirr!

Completing the ‘Flame Wheel’ in his mind, Yeom Seongha naturally realized something.

The other elemental mana, which was prohibited due to hindering the mastery of the Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear, was his own.

“Ah.”

It had been holding him back.

* * *

After the lecture ended, the students gathered around Yeom Seongha, who was standing alone in the refining room. He seemed to be in a slightly better mood than when he was in the lecture room.

“Um... Senior, would you like to have lunch together...?”

Hans and his group approached more politely and cautiously this time. Their eager expressions made Yeom Seongha slowly open his mouth.

“I’m in a good mood now.”

“T-Then...”

“So, get lost before I get angry again.”

“...”

The firm answer made the students slump their shoulders and leave, and Yeom Seongha turned to look at the only person left in the refining room.

“Got the hang of it?”

Lee Sehoon, already knowing the answer, smiled. Despite his arrogant appearance, Yeom Seongha nodded reluctantly.

“Thanks to the flow you showed me, I found a clue.”

“Good. Try making one.”

“...Don’t give orders.”

Despite his curt response, Yeom Seongha drew a circle in the air and created a Flame Wheel.

Whoosh!

The dark red flames, as usual, formed a circle and accelerated faster than usual. The black color pushed to the surface and the red color sank inward.

The black mist-covered red Flame Wheel, a symbol of the ‘Black Flame Wheel’ of the Wild Dog Yeom Seongha, made Lee Sehoon slightly impressed.

‘I showed him an example, but I didn’t expect him to create it in one go.’

Yeom Seongha possessed two types of elemental mana: A-grade fire elemental mana ‘Red Flame Soul’ and A-grade dark elemental mana ‘Black Dark Soul’.

However, he only used the fire elemental mana, Red Flame Soul, due to the tradition of the Flame Wheel Sect.

‘The Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear can only reach its peak with pure flames.’

Because of this tradition, Yeom Seongha had to suppress his innate Black Dark Soul. At first, it was fine, but as his mastery of the Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear increased, problems arose.

The color of the flames became murky dark red, and it became harder to form the Flame Wheel, making it increasingly difficult to control.

‘Falling from the Seventh Wheel to the Sixth Wheel was also due to this.’

The conflict between the understanding of the technique and the use of mana caused this phenomenon.

However, now that he had realized the issue, he could return to the Seventh Wheel in no time.

‘And his unique skill will awaken too.’

Yeom Seongha’s unique skill, ‘Resonance of the Source’.

It would be difficult, but once awakened and properly controlled, he could fight on equal terms with Aria Myers, whom he had previously been overwhelmingly defeated by.

“Not bad. Since you’ve made one, let’s see how many you can make.”

“Don’t give orders.”

“Will you do it?”

“Wait.”

Curious himself, Yeom Seongha created a Black Flame Wheel.

In the blink of an eye, five Black Flame Wheels lined up in the air, and the flames for the sixth Black Flame Wheel began to rise.

Crack! Whoosh!

“...Huh?”

But the additional flames failed to form a ring and stumbled. Lee Sehoon, seeing this, looked at Yeom Seongha with a puzzled expression.

“What are you doing?”

“...I can’t make it.”

“What?”

“I don’t have the energy to create the sixth Flame Wheel.”

Yeom Seongha, frowning and concentrating, tried his best, but the Flame Wheel showed no signs of forming. Lee Sehoon, watching this, finally realized the cause.

‘Creating the Black Flame Wheel requires a lot of concentration.’

Not only did it need to accelerate faster than the usual Flame Wheel, but it also required handling two types of elements and their ratios, making it a natural phenomenon.

‘Falling from the Seventh Wheel to the Fifth Wheel...’

Although it was unexpected, Lee Sehoon wasn’t overly worried.

On the surface, it might seem like a regression in skill, but considering the power and characteristics of the Black Flame Wheel, he was likely stronger than before.

Once he got used to handling the Black Flame Wheel, the number he could create would naturally increase, so there was no need to rush.

Just as Lee Sehoon was about to dismiss it casually,

“...It’s troublesome.”

Yeom Seongha muttered with a serious expression.

“Troublesome? What is?”

“The Flame Wheel Sect regularly sends instructors to check the skills of their successors who are outside. And...”

Pausing for a moment, Yeom Seongha continued in a heavy voice.

“If the mastery of the Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear falls below the Sixth Wheel, the successor position is revoked.”

Hearing this, Lee Sehoon stared blankly at Yeom Seongha for a moment, then asked, realizing the implications.

“Wait. Can’t you just be strong?”

“The Flame Wheel Sect is a sect that passes down the intangible cultural heritage of the Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear. While strength is important, the mastery of the Flame Wheel Residual Flower Spear takes precedence.”

As a group that continues the martial lineage, they prioritize the perfection of the technique over strength. Lee Sehoon, who had never heard of this before the regression, frowned.

“So, if you make it like before...”

“That won’t work either.”

“Why not?”

In response to Lee Sehoon’s question, Yeom Seongha demonstrated by creating a Flame Wheel in the old way.

But when he tried to create the sixth Flame Wheel, the Black Dark Soul suddenly surged, consuming the flames and preventing it from increasing beyond five.

“Trying to create the Flame Wheel the old way makes the Black Dark Soul uncontrollable. I can’t use the old method anymore.”

“...”

There’s a saying in the blacksmithing industry.

When you’re inexperienced, you can make shoddy items, but once you become skilled, you can’t even make them poorly if you try.

In other words, it’s not easy to deliberately make something bad, and that’s exactly what happened to Yeom Seongha!

“So, when is the instructor coming?”

“Tomorrow.”

“...Tomorrow?”

“Yeah, tomorrow, Tuesday.”

Hearing this, Lee Sehoon rubbed his temples.

One could argue that if he lost the successor position, he could restore the Sixth Wheel and try again, but it wasn’t that simple.

According to what the Wild Dog had told him before the regression, once a successor was stripped of their position, it often led to expulsion.

‘While the timing might be different... it’s likely the same now.’

Just looking at Yeom Seongha’s dark expression confirmed it. Despite the urge to curse, Lee Sehoon remained calm and thought.

‘There’s still time.’

Yeom Seongha’s regression to the Fifth Wheel was a temporary phenomenon. If he could get the hang of it, he could quickly restore the Sixth Wheel.

‘The question is how to get the hang of it in one day...’

What kind of training method would work for Yeom Seongha? After a while, a scene came to Lee Sehoon’s mind.

‘What a troublesome item. If I had received it back then, I wouldn’t have been able to use it.’

The Wild Dog, complaining about the first enchanted weapon Lee Sehoon had made for him. At the time, it was infuriating, but now it was the solution.

Thud!

Placing his hand on Yeom Seongha’s shoulder, Lee Sehoon quickly extracted the connection.

[Extracting connection from target ‘Yeom Seongha’.]

[The connection with the creator ‘Lee Sehoon’ is at Level 1.]

“What are you...”

“Be quiet.”

Ignoring the puzzled Yeom Seongha, Lee Sehoon immediately visualized the image in his mind.

A stubborn person who never bends his beliefs. But he is deeply emotional and can put aside his pride to repay a favor.

This contradictory yet consistent person was the ‘Wild Dog’ that Lee Sehoon knew.

Whoosh!

As if materializing Lee Sehoon’s thoughts, red mana stirred in his hand, and Yeom Seongha’s connection stone appeared.

A form with red and black mixed sparsely, with circular wave patterns etched throughout. It was a crude shape compared to before the regression.

‘Maybe because he’s still young.’

As long as the performance was similar, it wouldn’t be a problem. Lee Sehoon quickly checked the information on the connection stone.

[Connection - Red-Black Stone]

[Grade: High] [Quality: Best]

A stone containing both fire and dark elemental mana.

The waves created by the two elements resonate with the internal mana.

*Amplifies the power of the materials used together.

The connection stone, showing traces of Yeom Seongha’s unawakened unique skill ‘Resonance of the Source’, was suitable for use as a material. Lee Sehoon then looked at Yeom Seongha.

“You. If you can keep the successor position, will you do anything?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Yeom Seongha was momentarily taken aback but then nodded with a determined expression.

“I will.”

“Good.”

Knowing that Yeom Seongha, once he said something, would never take it back, Lee Sehoon continued with a gleam in his eyes.

“Then, let’s start with changing your weapon.”

“...What?”

It was time to start from scratch.