Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 432 Promoting Yulong (Bonus Chapter for Monthly Tickets)
He has been in a difficult situation ever since Hammondal infused his blood-red curse power and forcibly interrupted Zaven's plot.

The bloodlines of the scorpion lion and the red dragon were already extremely domineering, and Hammondal's ability to barely control them was a testament to his exceptional talent. With the addition of crimson curse power, they became even more ferocious and bloodthirsty, fully unleashing the savage nature of the scorpion lion bloodline.

Although nothing unusual happened while in Via, Hammondell gradually began to lose control after returning to Kuraki.

Randall could only bind his disciple first, and then Maggie would use the Dream Domain technique to send him into a dream world to try to control the new power.

However, Hammondell's condition gradually deteriorated during this time. Maggie, after observing his dreams, discovered that Hammondell was wreaking havoc in his dreams, all against the rebel army's Crimson Legion. Later, he engaged in indiscriminate slaughter, almost going mad.

He kept absorbing the crimson curse power, seemingly researching some forging technique, as if he had been bewitched by a demon.

"If we were to let him out of the dream, he could pose a considerable threat!"

Su Mu looked at Hammondal, who was tied up in the blacksmith's shop. The man's body had transformed into a scorpion lion; except for his head, which was still human, his entire body had become a scorpion lion. In particular, his two arms were giant scorpion tail hammers stained with blood, which were extremely terrifying.

The ruling power left by Su Mu is almost dissipated. If this continues, Hammondar may really turn into a manticore hammer.

He shifted his gaze to Randall, knowing that the forbidden blacksmith wouldn't allow such a thing to happen.

As expected, Randall remained expressionless, showing little concern for Hammondell's condition.

"Originally, I didn't plan to let him inherit the Forbidden Blood Hammer because this secret technique is too damaging, especially since he joined Kuraki, and there will definitely be a lot of forging in the future."

However, fate had brought him to this point; the crimson curse had completely stained his blood and bones, leaving him no way to retreat even if he wanted to!

After saying this, Randall actually pushed his beloved student into the furnace, a scene that stunned everyone around, who thought Randall was going to abandon Hammondell.

Su Mu and the other heroes remained remarkably calm. Hammondell, being an unburnt being, was completely unafraid of ordinary flames. Even when he was trapped in a dream and pushed into an ordinary forge, he only experienced a slightly hotter fire bath.

But Randall clearly wanted to add some extra steps. He started adding materials to the furnace, including special resources such as sulfur and mercury, as well as some second-tier resources such as dragon blood essence, cursed crystals, and even alchemical dust.

The flames inside the furnace began to change, turning golden and filled with a strong magical aura.

The most crucial element was naturally the Crimson Hammer that Randall had cast. He used forbidden forging techniques to envelop the entire forge, preparing to forge Hammondal as a peerless divine weapon.

"The forbidden forging method is called forbidden because the forger himself is part of the treasure."

To master this secret technique, one must experience a moment of losing control and transforming into a treasure.

Even with Hammondale's special physique, it could not withstand this special forging method. The manticore's body twisted and was reshaped into a human form amidst golden and blood-red flames.

Randall looked at Su Mu: "Your Grace, we will need more resources in the future, and we hope you can be generous."

However, this method is very risky; whether it brings fortune or misfortune depends on Hammondell's fate.

Su Mu waved his hand and said, "Kuramu will provide all the resources and supplies. Master Randall, please feel free to use your skills."

They both knew that Hammondal would definitely serve Kuraki in the future, so no matter the cost, it was worth it to train a blacksmith.

Over the next few days, Randall personally wielded the hammer, performing forbidden forging on Hammondell, the aspiring hero.

As expected of a beginner forging cultivator who has awakened the bloodline of the manticore, he survived being burned, hammered, and corroded by blood-colored curse power, and stubbornly pulled through.

However, in the final moments, the aging Randall was quite exhausted, and the force of his strikes weakened. Hammondal, who was gradually returning to human form, began to lose control of his form and showed signs of collapse.

Randall was panting heavily, his arms trembling, leaning against the forge. Blood seeped from the wrinkles on his face; the backlash from the Forbidden Blood Hammer had pushed him to his limit.

"If I were ten or twenty years younger, I could definitely have completed this forbidden ritual. What a pity!"

He put down the hammer helplessly, sighed, and could only accept his fate.

Many things cannot be achieved by brute force. He originally thought that with his remaining strength, he could completely fuse the crimson curse power into his beloved disciple's body. Who knew that Hammondal's bloodline was activated enough, and the difficulty increased considerably.

The result was that he failed at the last moment. Even though he re-entered the magic guild to restore it, the ritual could not be stopped, otherwise it would have failed completely.

Success means life, failure means death. This is the Forbidden Blood Hammer!
Seeing this, everyone sighed deeply. Often, exceptionally talented people may not be able to reach the end, simply because the threshold they have to cross is too high.

If Hammondale were just a little weaker, perhaps things would fall into place tonight.

Just when everyone was in despair, Forrest looked at the Duke with an unprecedented look of expectation.

Ancient memories began to resurface. If anyone present could save Hammondal, it was Sumu. He hadn't forgotten the story of the architect and the broken timber cart in the abandoned cave in Cangmu Town—the beginning of all dreams.

After some deliberation, Su Mu decided to help Hammonder.

Although he has always believed that heroes rely on themselves and only provides guidance, Hammondell became like this because he risked his life to capture Zaven for Kuraki when faced with a life-or-death crisis.

Hammondell has come 99% of the way, so giving him a final push is perfectly reasonable.

"Maggie, cast Dreamscape! Send Master Randall into a dream!"

"Good, open the dream passage and clear the obstacles for the master!"

Upon hearing the Duke's words, the two heroes began to cast spells, expanding the dream passage.

Su Mu then personally used his governing magic to stabilize Hammondell's state and guide his forging body. He glanced at Randall, his eyes filled with trust.

"The final step will be for the strongest blacksmith to personally forge his most prized treasure!"

Su Mu placed his hand on Randall's shoulder, assisting the blacksmith into a dream.

……

In the endless darkness, Randall fell into a deep sleep, floating in the air, watching Hammondell's experiences unfold.

Before joining Kuraki, this blacksmith apprentice was a wanderer, often hungry, and without a stable job. He frequently lost control and became enraged due to his bloodline issues, sometimes even being called a monster.

He was homeless, beaten by thugs, starved, and emaciated to the point that no one could tell he had any special bloodline.

They migrated from the heartland to the wild frontier, and then followed the refugees to Cangmu, enduring a difficult journey.

But he encountered a life-changing opportunity: applying for an apprenticeship at a blacksmith shop.

At the time, no one had high hopes for this frail wanderer. Apart from being able to stick his hands into the flames for a little longer, he seemed to have no special skills. His background was limited to a few days of odd jobs at other small blacksmith shops.

His experience was completely devoid of any highlights, and everyone ridiculed and ignored him.

However, Randall recognized the other's talent and challenged him to forge a weapon in molten iron in front of everyone. This test was considered impossible, yet he alone succeeded thanks to his fearless spirit. While blacksmiths certainly need to hone their skills to the extreme, without a sufficiently resilient will, they simply cannot resist those bewitching treasures imbued with magical power when faced with many extraordinary artifacts.

Thus, Hammondell was taken into the Glory Blacksmith Shop and became one of Master Randall's many disciples.

Even with such an opportunity, no one thought this poor boy could achieve anything amazing in the future, after all, his start was too bad, and even his basic forging skills were not very solid.

But for Randall's trust, Hammondal began a hellish forging process.

They forged iron, hammered and smelted, made molds, observed their mentors' techniques, and used everything they could to learn the forging skills.

Diligence is not a rare commodity in this world, but his ability to learn and his clear understanding of his own position finally made him one of the lucky ones.

Hammondell successfully advanced to the position of forging apprentice and established himself in the blacksmith shop.

What happened next is well-known: Hammondell was chosen by Su Mu in the tavern and nurtured to become Kuraki's new favorite.

At this point, no one dared to provoke him anymore, believing that he was destined to be the future owner of the blacksmith shop. Even those who had looked down on him before rushed to curry favor with him, and some radicals even believed that he was now able to represent the Glorious Blacksmith Shop.

Hammondell, however, was not blinded by honor and always respected Master Randall. Anyone who dared to disrespect the master would be expelled from the blacksmith shop.

Only late at night would he open the iron book, which was filled with dense records of forging techniques. It contained every attempt and improvement he made in the blacksmith shop, and detailed his arduous journey.

But on the first page of the book, a line of words was carved in flames and blood.

"To break the curse of the forbidden blood hammer on the blacksmith is your life's work!"

At that time, Randall had already sheathed his hammer and had no intention of passing on the Forbidden Blood Hammer. Even the professors' words were just a warning to everyone.

Randall explained in detail the dangers of using this secret technique. Had he not been cursed by the forbidden art, his physical strength might have allowed him to wield the hammer and continue his forging career.

Now, Randall is an old, washed-up blacksmith, his hair white, and he is often awakened by pain at night.

To covet the power of the forbidden Blood Hammer comes at an unbearable price, something no rising star would desire.

Therefore, there is only one reason why Hammondal conducted this research.

He hoped to help Master Randall break free from the pain and curse. This forbidden curse, deeply ingrained in the blood, could only be studied and lifted by a blacksmith. One must examine one's own body as carefully as one would a weapon or treasure to purify the crimson curse.

Upon seeing this, Randall suddenly smiled.

"Hahahahahaha!"

"It looks a bit like me!"

They laughed maniacally, they laughed hysterically, they laughed with unbridled joy.

If there isn't a deep-seated obsession, who would dare to touch the forbidden power?

Isn't it better to live a good life and take things one step at a time?
Only when the pressure of the world rests on one's shoulders, and one carries the weight of countless lives, will one be willing to try without hesitation.

For Hammondale, Randall was the world that opened up his life!

At that moment, Randall emerged from the darkness, raised his blood-red giant hammer, and walked toward the disciples on the forging platform.

The giant hammer, weighing several hundred pounds and filled with blood-red cursed power, was easily picked up by Randall, who then struck the manticore's body with perfect rhythm.

"Bang~"

"clang!"

Sparks fly, blood and bone fuse; in the eyes of a top blacksmith, there is nothing that cannot be forged.

In the light of the flames, Randall's figure finally came into view.

With a full beard, a resolute face, powerful and strong, his arms were bulging with muscles comparable to giant rocks, and the veins on them were filled with blood-red runes. Every time he swung his hammer, he could unleash super strong magical fusion power.

Randall Bloodhammer, this is the true form of the Forbidden Bloodhammer.

Although he can no longer wield a hammer in reality, his dream gave him the body and will of his youth, allowing him to complete the final forging, which was also the best forging.

Having been reborn, Randall swung his hammer with unwavering confidence and with increasing speed.

The surrounding space even seemed to split apart, and a faint howl emanated from the void.

This is both the trouble brought about by the dream and the disaster caused by the forbidden blood hammer.

This phenomenon had occurred before when forging combined treasures, but back then Randall suffered the backlash, leading to the current outcome.

Now that Goode is protecting him and clearing away the monsters in the void, Randall only needs to focus on forging his treasures.

Just as more and more monsters appeared in the void and the whole world was filled with crimson, Randall struck down with his hammer, forging the manticore's tail hook into an arm, and Hammondal returned to his human form.

"Snapped!"

The world around him was shattered like a mirror, and countless nightmares lurked around their tempting prey, yet none could cross this boundary.

Hammondell lay quietly on the training platform, like a child who had just woken up, rubbing his eyes and asking groggily.

"Mentor, where is this?"

What's wrong with me?

Randall tossed the crimson hammer to his disciple, Hammondal, who caught it steadily.

Forbidden magical power, a blend of flames and blood, flowed across it and merged into Hammondell's arm.

"You are qualified to inherit my legacy!"

"The new Forbidden Blood Hammer!"

As soon as the words left her lips, the dream shattered.

A forbidden blacksmith has been born!

(End of this chapter)