'Huh. To think the method actually isn't any different from the other methods I recall for Fire-attribute materials.' Pondering over Theraldine's advice as he looked at the ground for a bit, Valyr eventually flashed a smile at the young woman as he gave her his words of thanks before returning his attention to the rough dark sphere on top of his anvil.
"Anyways, I have to make a choice. Either I smother it with mana, or refine it in sections." Briefly surprised by the fact that the anvil had not even melted a bit under the heat being released by the Infernal Magma Core, the young man swiftly returned his train of thought to what was important, deciding to go with the option of covering the entire thing in mana first.
Whoosh!
"Mn…" Letting out a faint groan as he had a weird sensation that part of the insides felt completely empty, Valyr focused his attention on the mana he had coaxed out of his body, sending thousands upon thousands of points of his precious mana towards the Infernal Magma Core.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
Unexpectedly, enveloping the entire core in mana had worked for the young man, allowing him to shave off a few layers of the core's surface as he felt the heat that the core was exuding faintly increased in temperature.
"Well, that was easier than I thought." Muttering these words to himself as he was glad towards his newfound success, Valyr continued to apply more pressure on the Infernal Magma Core through his mana, shaving off more and more of the layers making up the rough dark appearance of the core.
In fact, at some point, parts of the rough dark sphere had been completely removed, allowing Valyr to take a look at the condensed lava that slumbered within the core's center.
Excited by the sight, the young man exerted a bit more pressure onto the core through the mana he was manipulating, wanting to finish the priming process faster in order to proceed with the two other materials he had to work with for the first step. However, rather than the core cooperating with his actions…
Fwoom!
Out of nowhere, the condensed lava within the core had retaliated against the mana Valyr had used to envelop the core, burning all of it off into nonexistence. After that, a few bits of lava sputtered out of the area that contained the condensed lava, forming holes into what was considerably tough ground.
"I guess I jinxed it." Scratching the back of his head as he looked at the aftermath, while still being surprised that even lava was not enough to deform the anvil he was using, Valyr let out a low sigh while wryly smiling as he thought about the safe method Theraldine had mentioned to him earlier, sitting down on the provided chair for the meantime to recuperate all of the mana he had lost.
"Hmm… while I wait for all of my mana to come back, I might as well prime and prep the two other materials first, considering that the two are more mellow in nature compared to the Griffin Tempest Orb and the Infernal Magma Core." Staring at the inside of the furnace for a while as he allowed his body to absorb the ambient mana within the surroundings, Valyr eventually stood up at some point and moved the partly refined Infernal Magma Core back into the furnace with a pair of tongs, saving it for later.
After that, he took out the Azure Halcyon Essence and Starstrike Terra Crystal from the furnace, plopping them both on the anvil as he set a timer in his mind as to how much time he had before the Infernal Magma Core would have its properties ruined.
"Let's see here…" Rubbing his hands together as his expression turned solemn, Valyr looked at the two items on the anvil before rummaging through his treasure trove of memories in a bid to find the methods needed to refine the two materials into their purest forms.
"I'll start with you, then." Fortunately, it only took less than a minute for Valyr to find the refining method for Azure Halcyon Essence, picking up the Starstrike Terra Crystal with the tongs before placing it near the edge of the anvil, reminding himself that both of the materials were still scalding hot after sitting in the furnace for a long time.
With that in mind, Valyr took in a deep breath as he manipulated some of the mana he had recovered to head towards his hands, forming a couple of layers of protection over it as he intertwined the layers of mana together. Then, after making sure that the chances of his hands being burned were slim to none, the young man picked up the Azure Halcyon Essence, stared at it directly and…
Crash!
Forming a stark contrast to its appearance as a ball of hazy blue mist, the Azure Halcyon Essence made a sound similar to what one would hear when glass shards were being broken as Valyr exerted a great amount of its strength in compressing it.
Within seconds, most of the hazy blue mist making up the essence had dissipated into thin air, leaving behind a teardrop-shaped gem that contained the purest Water element the young man had seen so far in his current life.
"With that done, I only have the Starstrike Terra Crystal and the Infernal Magma Core left." Glancing at the two items that remained hindrances towards his completion of the first step of the forging process, Valyr swiftly moved the Starstrike Terra Crystal back to the center of the anvil, admiring the crystals making up the entire material as they formed a dazzling array of colors under the rays of the sun.
Though, not long after…
Crash!
Similar to the method Valyr had used to refine the Azure Halcyon Essence into the teardrop-shaped gem, the method he had rummaged from his memories regarding the refining method for Starstrike Terra Crystal was of the same vein. However, unlike in the Azure Halcyon Essence, where he used all of his strength in compressing it, he instead pressed down on the crystal with both hands, sending a great mana through his palms as it eventually cracked after being inundated with his mana.
Gradually, the vestigial parts of the Starstrike Terra Crystal fell off on their own, leaving a great amount of earth-colored crystals on the ground until a dark gray nugget the size of a single piece of popcorn was the only thing that remained on the anvil.
"Three down, then," said Valyr to himself, briefly scratching the back of his head as he placed all of the refined materials into one spot on a nearby table.
After making sure that none of them would be tampered with by external forces such as the wind or the weather, Valyr returned his gaze once more towards the partly refined Infernal Magma Core, retrieving it out of the furnace as he plopped it down on the anvil.
"Well…"
"You're the only material out of the four that I've yet to successfully refine."
"Hopefully you cooperate with me this time around."
