Alan flipped his hand, transferring the longsword to his left hand and holding it upside down, then reached into his coat and pulled out his wand, Dark Depiction.
"I knew something felt missing, and it turns out it was you," Alan mocked himself, then brought Dark Depiction toward the pommel of the longsword.
As the wand drew near, the smooth metal surface at the end of the pommel suddenly spiraled open, revealing a circular opening that matched Dark Depiction's dimensions exactly. Alan inserted the wand straight into the hilt as if it were a sheath. Once fully seated, the opening sealed shut, leaving the hilt looking unchanged from its original state. The sword had been designed from the very beginning to house his wand.
"Excellent. With the blessing of Dark Depiction, you are complete. In that case, your name shall be Eclipse. Dark Depiction and Eclipse—it has a nice ring to it." Alan gripped the hilt, which now felt increasingly solid and balanced in his hand.
However, the moment the wand and sword became one, Eclipse underwent a new transformation. The blade, which had settled into a calm silver, suddenly erupted with a spiritual light more brilliant than anything before. To the onlookers, Alan appeared to be holding a pillar of blue-silver light. Upon closer inspection, one could see solidified, liquid-like plasma flowing over the surface, encircled by a clear, seven-colored halo.
Alan was startled by the sudden surge; the sword seemed to have gone berserk the moment the wand was inserted. Yet, the sense of intimacy remained, and the connection between them grew even more intense.
"Alan! Be careful!" Brandwaldden's anxious voice suddenly rang out from the sidelines.
Alan started to turn his head when he was suddenly struck by lightning.
To be precise, he was literally blasted. As Eclipse transformed, the storm vortex in the sky had reacted like it had been injected with a stimulant, rotating faster and faster. The currents within the core gathered instantly and, without a sound, a lightning bolt as thick as a bucket struck down.
If this had happened earlier, Alan would have been ready. But after posing for so long with no reaction from the clouds, he had stopped paying attention to the sky.
"Are you kidding me? You're playing dirty now?!"
The thick bolt hit Alan directly on the forehead. Although the current was immediately absorbed by Eclipse the moment it touched his body, the impact jolted him, nearly knocking him off his feet. Anyone suddenly ambushed like this would be furious. Alan looked up, veins bulging in his neck, and glared at the clouds as if he could stare them out of existence.
The storm didn't care. The plasma gathered in the core received an invisible order for an all-out attack, bombarding him with bolt after bolt.
Despite his anger, Alan dared not be negligent. He raised Eclipse high like a lightning rod, drawing the high-altitude currents toward the blade. Eclipse began to vibrate with a low, satisfied hum, seemingly enjoying the baptism. Alan noticed that as the sword absorbed the strikes, layers of blue-silver plasma overflowed from the blade and burrowed into his arm.
He felt the magic power he had depleted during the forging process rapidly replenish, and the new energy felt more vital than before.
"This is... refining my magic?" Alan carefully sensed his internal state. His reserves hadn't grown in volume, but the quality was more condensed and agile. It gave him a far more profound understanding of Wild Lightning. "Is this why Thunderbirds chase storms? This feeling of enhancing magic power is incredible!"
His annoyance vanished, replaced by a greedy desire. This was a rare opportunity. If he could refine more of this energy, his spellcasting strength would increase significantly. He raised his hand higher, inviting the lightning to strike.
However, the frequency of the strikes began to stabilize and then diminish. The storm was losing its momentum.
"No, you're not getting away yet." Alan realized the berserk state of Eclipse might be a one-time event. He couldn't let the opportunity slip by. Since the lightning wouldn't come to him, he would go to it. He kicked off the ground and soared into the air, flying straight into the center of the swirling vortex.
As he plunged into the storm's core, the entire cloud mass surged violently. The dark, ink-like clouds expanded outward, quickly spreading to the horizon. The centaurs and Hog watched in awe as Alan disappeared into the massive thundercloud.
"Holy crap, he just ascended into the heavens!" Hog blurted out, his mouth hanging open. "Is he coming back? He's definitely coming back, right?"
"A marvel," Brandwaldden muttered, sounding lost in a trance. "To witness such a scene... the light of the Seventh Star truly penetrates the darkness. Is that Alan's light?"