Forging of Shadowbound Relic

The anvil was crafted from a splinter of a dead god's bone. It is part of the replacement equipment for Sunny's forge, which had to be upgraded due to the ferocity of Changing Star's flames and the growing potency of the sorcerous components Sunny uses.^[1]

Sunny devised a method to bind the reforged Dream Blade to Nephis' soul by forging it simultaneously in the real world and within her Soul Sea. Since he could not enter her Soul Sea directly, he used Nightmare to access her dream, making it more malleable through a runic circle taught by Cassie. In her Soul Sea, a replica of the Tower of Hope floated above a radiant golden ocean under seven brilliant suns, symbolizing her essence and dreams.^[2]

To reforge the Dream Blade, Sunny requested Nephis' fire, which she transferred to him, igniting her Dormant Ability and flooding him with her radiant essence. In the real world, Sunny's shadows rose to assist, weaving strings of essence in perfect synchronization with his work in the dream. On the bone anvil, the shattered sword shimmered, breaking into sparks but held together by Sunny's mastery, ensuring its essence was not lost.^[2]

Sunny simultaneously forged the sword's physical vessel, incorporating unique materials like Winter Beast's ice, blessed metals, and Weaver's blood, which he bled into the crucible as a binding agent. In Nephis' dream, he wove radiant strings of essence into the spellweave of the Dream Blade, carefully integrating new patterns into its structure using Weaver's Needle.^[2]

Balancing multiple tasks—physical forging, sustaining the sword between destruction and creation, and essence-weaving in the dream—Sunny endured immense pressure, determined to finish forging the slaying blade.^[2]

The forging process combined both physical and dreamlike elements, with Sunny and his seven incarnations working tirelessly. In the real world, they forged the sword's physical vessel using rare materials such as the Winter Beast's heart, blessed metals, an arrow of the Shadow Realm, Nephis' soul flame, and Sunny's blood. Simultaneously, within a dream, four of his incarnation took on vital tasks, from serving as conduits for essence to weaving radiant strings and designing the ambitious weave. Sunny crafted an ambitious spellweave designed to bind the sword to Nephis' soul and allow it to grow and adapt alongside her. This dual effort demanded immense concentration and pushed Sunny to a state of extraordinary mental clarity. A pivotal moment occurred when Sunny anchored the spellweave not to a soul shard, but directly into Nephis' Beast Core—an unprecedented act made possible by weaving radiant strings of her soul flame. The spellweave was unique, intended to evolve over time, becoming more powerful and adaptable to unforeseen challenges. Unlike static enchantments, it was crafted to be a "living" weave, matching the sword's nature as a dynamic and learning entity. This synergy made the weapon a perfect extension of Nephis, highlighting the trust and collaboration between them as they prepared for the unknown battles ahead.^[3]

The blade was forged to create a flawless silver longsword with an ivory hilt and silvery pommel. Simultaneously, Sunny wove a vast tapestry of radiant strings, described as his masterpiece, to imbue the blade with powerful enchantments. The culmination of this process involved uniting the sword's physical form with its spiritual essence by stitching its shadow to Nephis' shadow using Weaver's Needle, a magical tool capable of piercing the intangible. This act defied the natural laws of existence, achieved only through Sunny's indomitable will as the Lord of Shadows. Finally, in the dreamscape, Sunny connected the sword's weave to Nephis' soul, merging the physical and spiritual into one seamless entity.^[4]

Sunny descended alone into the basement of the Marvelous Mimic carrying the Dream Blade. The workshop, previously dominated by shadows, was now illuminated by radiant white flames from the furnace, which was already showing signs of damage due to the ferocity of Changing Star's flames. Accepting the inevitable need to replace his forge, Sunny approached a new anvil crafted from the bone of a dead god. Placing the Dream Blade on the anvil, he studied its spellweave.^[1]

After appreciating the beauty of the spellweave, Sunny shattered the Dream Blade into countless pieces. Meanwhile, Nephis, standing on the edge of the Ivory Island, shared her theory with Sunny about their world being the corpse of a god, with humans as either maggots feasting on the War God's flesh or her children. Reflecting on her own orphanhood, she asked Sunny about forging a sword, to which he cryptically revealed they had already begun. Realizing they were in a dream within her Soul Sea.^[1]

In the sweltering heat of the forge, Sunny worked tirelessly to create an extraordinary alloy for the Dream Blade, blending essence, memories, and mystical materials into a single entity. The process began with melting blessed iron and repeatedly pouring it over the Winter Beast's icy heart until the ice itself began to melt. The heart of the Winter Beast served as the foundation of the alloy, infused with the weight of millions of orphaned souls.^[5]

Sunny's blood, acting as a binding agent, was added to the mix. Uniquely, his blood retained a connection to him, exerting a faint semblance of life within the alloy and helping unify the elements. To imbue the alloy with the eerie finality of the Realm of Death, Sunny destroyed one of his Shadow Arrows, breaking its obsidian head into dust with immense strength and mixing it, along with the arrow's fragments, into the crucible. The obsidian dust, combined with his blood, gave the alloy a sense of cold inevitability.^[5]

As the crucible reached equilibrium, Sunny guided the ethereal sparks of the Dream Blade's essence into a mold and poured the molten alloy over them. This action transferred the blade's spellweave anchor from the concept of a silver longsword to the alloy itself, successfully integrating its essence into the new vessel.^[5]

Once the alloy solidified, Sunny removed the glowing metal bar from the mold and prepared for the final forging. His Soul Serpent manifested as a blacksmith's hammer made of dark obsidian. With his Transcendent will, tempered by countless trials, Sunny struck the glowing metal, unleashing incandescent sparks as he began shaping the blade into a weapon destined for greatness.^[5]

Sunny, pushed to the brink of exhaustion, completes an extraordinary feat by weaving a radiant and intricate tapestry of spellweaves, surpassing anything he had ever created before. As his incarnations collapse under the strain, his determination persists despite his battered state. Simultaneously, in the real world, Sunny forges a deadly and beautiful silver longsword for Nephis, enduring excruciating pain and taxing his Shadow and the Marvelous Mimic to their limits. Once the physical sword is complete, Sunny embarks on the most challenging step: uniting the sword's shadow with Nephis' shadow. Using Weaver's Needle, he defies the laws of existence, stitching their shadows together and connecting the dream weave of the sword with its physical counterpart. This monumental act drains him further but flawlessly binds the sword to Nephis' soul. As the dream world crumbles at Sunny's urging, Nephis awakens in her chamber, holding the soulbound sword perfectly attuned to her, while Sunny kneels nearby, utterly spent yet triumphant.^[4]