The Mech Touch

The Metal God Method was brilliant!

Its benefits and sophistication were much greater than ordinary cultivation methods!

It not only incorporated four different cultivation approaches, but tied them all together in a way that produced fantastic synergies. Cynthia Larkinson managed to maximize each component and interaction so that they produced as many concrete advantages as possible.

His mother continued to explain more details about the custom cultivation method that she had especially created for her child.

"Every cultivation approach serves a vital purpose. The Metal God Method would never have so much development potential without any of these four key components. Creation cultivation gives full play to Vulcan's talents. Deity cultivation anchors him to the physical realm and retains his connection to a vibrant society. Artifact cultivation supplies Vulcan with considerable quantities of high-quality energy. Qi cultivation increases Vulcan's connection to the metal element and strengthens his defenses. By combining all of these advantages together, the future of your incarnation will be bright."

How could Veronica remain unmoved by all of this? Compared to working as a mech designer, it was much more fun to act like a god and derive power from so many different sources!

Vulcan didn't even have to worry about practical concerns such as learning craftsmanship skills, procuring expensive resources or acquiring expensive production facilities.

The incarnation could borrow much of the skills and knowledge of his worshipers!

Although that did not allow Vulcan to master the most advanced or forbidden crafting applications, it was more than enough to allow the spirit to gain a sufficient amount of mastery in every production field!

Whenever Vulcan devised an interesting new design, he could descend onto one of his willing worshipers and make use of the available materials and workshops to do his work!

All of this sounded much more convenient than slaving away as a mech designer!

A part of Veronica even felt jealous towards Vulcan's special identity and traits.

There had to be a catch.

No, there had to be a lot of catches.

"What are the downsides to this cultivation method, mother? There is no way that it should be this easy."

The Oblivion Empress patted the cyborg cat in encouragement. "It is good to see that you have retained a clear mind. It is far too easy to become seduced by the prospect of gaining so much power. I have already mentioned that the Metal God Method is not mature. It is a prototype that I am unable to develop any further due to lack of actual data. There is a chance that... complications may occur."

Veronica was highly familiar with experiments and knew that unexpected outcomes came with the territory. "That is okay. So long as we are careful enough, we should be able to deal with any issues. Besides, Vulcan is quite hardy already. His Heart of Steel is not for show."

"Another issue is whether Vulcan can attract the Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown by practicing the Metal God Method. I have incorporated elements into it that are especially designed to seduce the symbol of authority, but do not forget that it has a mind of its own. It may choose to resist the temptation, which means that Vulcan's cultivation progress will become impaired. It is still possible to practice a lesser variation of the new method, but the results will not be as good."

"It's better than nothing, right?"

"That is true. It is still a far better alternative than continuing to practice the Heart of Steel Mantra."

That was alright to Veronica. From what she had been able to understand, the Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown primarily sped up Vulcan's progress. The crown could do more, but there were other ways to compensate for its absence.

"What else, mother?"

"The Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown will remain in constant contact with Vulcan and possibly your other incarnations as well. You should never let your guard down. While the Heart of Steel should be able to block most of the threats, it is not foolproof. The symbol of authority may be able to exploit a hole in the defenses. This is why you should always remain vigilant."

Veronica seriously nodded. "That goes without saying."

Her mother became more solemn. "Finally, there is one more disadvantage that will trouble you greatly later on. If your incarnation makes good use of your crown, then he should be able to approach the threshold of a True God. That is the point where Vulcan can no longer rely on regular activities and processes to grow any further. He must undergo a transformation in order to transform his life essence and assume his identity as a deity."

This conversation started to sound familiar to Veronica.

"Let me guess. This is not going to be easy, right? Vulcan will probably have to accomplish a legendary deed in order to break past the final bottleneck."

"That is certain. Cultivation methods can be differentiated by many criteria, all of which are interconnected to each other. It is not a universal rule that a more difficult cultivation method will grant greater power in return. It may just be badly designed or a poor fit to its practitioner. However, I have designed the Metal God Method to your incarnation from the ground up, which means that you shouldn't suffer from those problems."

"Then why is the Metal God Method so difficult to complete at the final stage, then?"

There are two primary reasons why the new method will impose harsh demands to become a True God. The first is because of its complexity. It blends four cultivation approaches together. The second is that I have deliberately designed the method to produce the greatest possible outcome that is possible. What I mean by this is that once Vulcan becomes a True God, he will not be average in strength. He shall gain so much strength and capabilities that he will possess ample enough capital to survive and thrive in the times to come. I can already promise you that he will not be inferior to Star Designer once he fully comes into power."

That was impressive, especially because Veronica knew that Star Designers were impressive creation cultivators at their level!

While Veronica had heard that Divine Blacksmiths and other creation cultivators had their own advantages, they were so specialized or outdated that they usually weren't able to contribute as much to society.

Veronica understood that Cynthia was doing her best to look out for her future.

The difficulty was high, but the rewards more than made up for it. Vulcan would definitely not fall behind in the future!

"Okay, then. What does Vulcan need to do in order to pass this threshold?"

"What I am about to say are only guesses. I have extrapolated these answers by relying on my own judgment. The actual situation may be different from my description. In short, the Metal God Method will likely impose at least four major requirements, each of which corresponds to a specific cultivation approach. The first one is simple. You must grow the Heart of Steel to the limit and maybe beyond. You may need to transform it into a higher form that fits Vulcan's needs better."

"Sounds simple enough." The cyborg cat spoke. "What else?"

"Vulcan must act as a proper god and actively guide and nurture the growth of many worshipers. In particular, he must raise many master craftsmen while also making sure that they deeply have him in their hearts."

Veronica immediately lost a lot of enthusiasm. "That... is going to take a long time. I really don't like to pose as a god, even as an incarnation."

"You do not have much choice, my dear." Cynthia swept aside her child's objections. "Vulcan is regarded as the God of Dwarves, Mechs and Craftsmanship. This is mostly an empty title for now, but one of the requirements to become a True God is to turn falsehood into reality. Names and titles carry power, and the ones that are held by True Gods carry far greater of it than other words."

That was an incredibly significant piece of information!

Veronica had always wondered why god pilots and Star Designers gradually phased out their old human names and started to call themselves by ridiculous and overdramatic names.

The Destroyer of Worlds. The Fist of Defiance. The Xenotechnician. The Lord of Thermodynamics.

It turned out that they were more than fancy nicknames that were used for PR purposes. They actually had a significant influence on the cultivation of high-level figures!

"For better or worse, Vulcan has become a god to many people. It is too difficult to change their acquired assumptions about a deity, so I advise you not to force any changes. The dwarves have already fought one catastrophic war over doctrinal conflicts. It is best if you do not inflict this punishment on them again."

"That's not my fault!" Veronica protested.

"Whatever you say. Let us move on. Creation cultivation is an essential component of the Metal God Method, which means that Vulcan must prove that he has the capability to create an unsurpassed work. At the very least, his magnum opus must be an object that is no less impressive as the Heavensword."

"WHAT?! THAT'S OUTRAGEOUS!"

The Heavensword was one of the most powerful ancient relics that was still in existence in the Milky Way!

It was so powerful that even the Big Two had given up on trying to bring it to heel!

This insane challenge was probably difficult enough for Vulcan to remain stuck for at least a century!

The Oblivion Empress kept her composure while her child tried to come to terms with this requirement.

"This is a test that Vulcan must overcome regardless of what sort of creation cultivator that he aspires to become. It is not as outrageous as you think. First, Vulcan's creation does not have to be a grand work. It must have a comparable amount of power and influence over people, though the better the craftsmanship, the lower the other thresholds."

"Oh. That makes things a bit easier..."

"You have another advantage. While it is important that Vulcan leads this effort, it is not forbidden for him to receive help. In particular, the special relationship between your incarnations means that each of you can collaborate with each other and make the most of your respective advantages."

"Wait, that is allowed?"

"Oh, yes." Cynthia smirked. "Ever since I have become a True God, I am able to accelerate the Superior Mother's cultivation at an enormous rate. Many of the problems that block weaker cultivators have become trivial to True Gods. If Ves happens to become a Star Designer, then Vulcan can take advantage of that to pass this test with greater ease. If Vulcan becomes a True God before Ves, then your incarnation can do the same."

That sounded incredibly useful! This dynamic added another dimension of importance to incarnations.

No matter which of them managed to get ahead, the strongest of them should easily be able to drag the other ones to the same level!

"Do not celebrate so quickly yet. I have yet to explain the fourth test to you." The Lady of the Night spoke as her tone turned graver again. "After making extensive use of the Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown, a strong and inescapable relationship should have formed between Vulcan and this artifact. Your incarnation has become weighed down by heavy karma, and he must resolve it one way or another in order to pass this final test."

"How can Vulcan do that, mother?"

"The most direct and ideal way to settle this karma is to merge Vulcan with the symbol of authority."

"WHAAAAAAAT??!!"

Cynthia continued as if her child didn't go crazy all of a sudden. "Once the crown becomes a permanent addition to Vulcan, your incarnation will have attained the ultimate form of artifact cultivation. He will perfectly inherit and master all of the powers and strengths of the crown. The artifact will never pose any threat to you anymore because its will is identical to Vulcan's will."

That... that... that was impossible!

Veronica squirmed like a cat that was forced to take a bath as she tried to think about the sheer danger and impossibility of merging with a powerful crown.

The Iron Resonant Crucifix Crown was a companion to the Metal Scroll!

Even if the crown wasn't a pinnacle work, it should at least be close to it in terms of power and threat!

If Vulcan rashly dared to merge with this dangerous crown, then the latter was liable to destroy the incarnation outright or turn him into its slave!