Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America! Chapter 1589 1128: Smelting Blast Furnace from East Asia, th

"What! Divine witness! Western Bee, are you saying you've discovered a Great Iron Mountain?!"

"Ah? Well... High Priest Miki, indeed there is a mountain full of this kind of ore in the eastern hills! But as to whether it's iron ore... I'm sowhat... unable to discern..."

In front of the tribal hearth at the port camp, a basket of pale yellow copper-colored ores was reflecting a golden glow. The two priests of the Kingdom exchanged glances, Scholar Mikki's expression was exceedingly grave, while Priest Western Bee lowered his head sowhat guiltily.

Initially, he was excited and thrilled, like presenting a treasure, offering these ores eagerly, delighted at the thought of a significant contribution to the Kingdom! However, when High Priest Miki sternly asked him to guarantee these discovered ores, he hesitated, hesitant to take full responsibility.

"Hmm? You still need much training!... If you can't shoulder responsibility, how can you lead a settlent? In ti, the true overseer of the Kingdom Port may be..."

Scholar Mikki moved his gaze, glanced at the proud female chieftain Wiyot Tulun, and at the lowered head of Priest Western Bee. After pondering for a mont, looking at the golden ores before the hearth, he suddenly instructed accompanying Warrior Captain Stonefirm.

"Stonefirm, go fetch that... um, 'Otani' from the Wa tribe blacksmith! Ask him to have a good look..."

"Yes! High Priest!..."

Stonefirm strode away, then returned hurriedly with the Wa tribe blacksmith. Blacksmith Otani Takegou had his head lowered, yellow corn al debris still on his lips, resembling the ore's debris on the ground. Slightly bewildered, he glanced at the two priests before the hearth, then "swish," knelt down, as if worshiping the Grand Priests at a shrine.

"May the Chief Divine bless! This humble Otani Takegou greets the two priests! Praise the Chief Divine!"

"Praise the Chief Divine! Hmm, Otani, stand up and have a good look, what are the ores in the basket?"

Blacksmith Otani had just risen and knelt beside the hearth. At the sight of the basket, his eyes reflected the dazzling golden light making his heart thump.

"Ah? More gold! So much! ... Uh? Wait?!"

Otani looked for a while, suddenly furrowed his brow. He took a piece of copper-colored ore, feeling its weight, less than that of gold. Then, he picked up a piece of flint, scraped it lightly, viewing the shallow marks on the ore. Lastly, he closely examined the chaotic crystal patterns on the ore's surface.

"Uh? Lighter than gold ore, harder, more chaotic... could it be?"

Otani's eyes lit up. He raised his head, cautiously asked.

"Chief Divine bless! Priest Mikki, this should not be gold, it very well may be... um... may I put this ore in the fire to burn a while?"

"You may!"

Soon, the coppery gold ore was heated in the bonfire. A faint volcanic aura lingered before everyone's nose. As the burning ti prolonged, the golden ore gradually discolored, showing streaks of reddish-brown traces...

"Oh! Its color resembles gold, burns like blood, has a pungent odor... Indeed! Indeed! This is pyrite!"

Otani sniffed deeply, then examined the color change of the ores. Subsequently, he respectfully stood up again, and knelt in front of Mikki, confidently reported.

"Priest! This is iron ore! This is pyrite!"

"Divine witness! Are you sure this is iron ore that can produce ironware?!"

Scholar Mikki suppressed his inner excitent, his gaze fervent, tightly fixing on Otani's face. Otani emphatically nodded, sketched a prayer gesture, and respectfully bowed his head.

"Divine witness! This must be pyrite! Look, it now burned rust-red, much like hematite. Build a simple blast furnace, slt it briefly, it will certainly yield molten iron..."

"…!"

Scholar Mikki suddenly rose, striding to the bonfire. He intently stared at the fla, watching the now completely reddish-brown ore, still sowhat incredulous on his face.

"Chief Divine! Is it truly iron ore? Does that an... east of Lake Bay Port, indeed, there is a Great Iron Mountain?!"

"Ah! I told you, it indeed is iron ore!... Haha! High Priest Miki, it's , I, Western Bee, found a Great Iron Mountain for the Kingdom! This should be a great feat directly reported to Your Majesty, right?"

"Hmm! Western Bee, if this is truly more important than gold ore... I will certainly report your rit truthfully to Your Majesty! Not to ntion a promotion to Second Level Priest, even a Third Level Main Priest's reward is possible!... Though, we must first slt iron to truly confirm..."

Facing the jubilant Priest Western Bee, Scholar Mikki patiently consoled briefly, then solemnly asked.

"Chief Divine Guidance! Xifeng, how much of this ore have you brought back?"

"Chief Divine Guidance! High Priest Miki, there's still three full baskets, probably around three to four hundred pounds!"

"Good! Have them bring it all over..."

"Yes!"

Then, Scholar Mikki looked at the kneeling blacksmith Otani and solemnly asked.

"Otani! Do you know how to slt iron ore?"

"Ah? Slt iron ore?... Oh! You an iron slting? Of course, I know... But without a good brick kiln, we'll have to build an earth furnace to slt... Building the furnace is quite troubleso and ti-consuming. Also, I don't have suitable tools... The resulting iron might be rather brittle, and it will need gradual charcoal forging to be useful..."

"Chief Divine Witness! Otani, I will give you thirty able-bodied n to assist you! If you can slt iron, the Kingdom will grant you a great reward! If you fail, there will also be consequences from the Kingdom!"

"Ah? Yes! Yes! Shrine Priest, leave it to , I will surely slt the iron for you! Thirty n are sufficient, more than enough!"

With skilled techniques and enough manpower, constructing the furnace and slting iron was not a difficult task. Under the robust command of blacksmith Otani, within just a couple of days, an iron slting kiln was erected on the eastern side of the Lake Bay Port camp.

This iron slting kiln was just over a person's height, resembling a bamboo shoot that's wider at the bottom and narrower at the top, both inside and out plastered with solid mud. During the kiln's construction, blacksmith Otani directed the tribe's able-bodied n to add layers of soil, firmly hamr with stone hamrs, plaster more mud, compress and tighten repeatedly, until the 2-ter high structure was gradually erected.

"Chief Divine Blessing! Hamr it firmly and tightly! The slting furnace must be so solid that not even a needle can fit through! If there's even the slightest gap, the iron will be wasted..."

Blacksmith Otani droned on, carefully feeling the iron slting kiln as if he were caressing a newly-wed wife. This was his first ti directing so many able-bodied n to work; if it were in Ezo land, he would at least be a group leader or village head.

"Hmm, this is the Shrine Priest Great Master valuing ! I must do this job well! As long as good iron is slted, the reward will be substantial!"

Diligently, blacksmith Otani inspected the bottom of the kiln through the furnace opening while muttering ancestral mnemonic verses and thoroughly checked the two air inlets.

"Fire God Kagutsuchi above! Chief Divine above!... Two air inlets, one at half an arm's height, another at a full arm's height... just above the air inlets, the square base turns into a round top... the bellows connecting the inlets must also be well-sealed... These are ancestral key points!... Alas! Father, it's a pity you died early, and didn't pass on the secrets of tamahagane to ... If I knew then what I do now, I'd have followed you in ironcrafting like my second brother, instead of becoming a samurai!"

The air inlets of the iron slting kiln were connected to simple animal skin bellows. These bellows resembled a large leather bag, attached to the air inlets at one end and a long wooden rod at the other for more effective air pumping. At the top of the iron slting kiln, there was another appropriately sized opening for adding charcoal and iron ore.

Blacksmith Otani lay underneath the kiln inspecting it, while Scholar Mikki stood nearby, clicking his tongue in admiration.

"Click click! This blacksmith Otani seems to truly possess skill! From what I see, just with this iron slting thod, he could be promoted to a Craftsman Master in the Kingdom!"

This painstakingly refined kiln design, although seemingly simple, is the heritage of centuries of East Asian blacksmiths' exploration in iron slting. Without this inherited experience, it would be incredibly difficult for the Kingdom to figure it out on its own! In reality, the Kingdom's iron slting at Black Rock Mountain has always struggled, relying solely on excessive force: using the best ore, the finest charcoal, for the longest kiln firing, yielding the poorest iron! Then applying maximum manpower to forge it...

"Fire God Kagutsuchi... oh no, Chief Divine Blessing!... Shrine Priest Master! The kiln is ready, I have ticulously checked it inch by inch to ensure there are no errors... We can start heating the furnace now!"

"Good! Very good!... Hmm... You said what? What's heating the furnace?"

"Ah? Uh, this?... Heating the furnace? Shrine Priest Master, you are a noble, unacquainted with iron slting... Before slting and burning ore, the furnace must first be heated thoroughly, and only then can the iron ore be added for slting. This yellow iron ore is more troubleso than the red iron ore, requires more charcoal, longer burning ti, and more forceful bellows... um, Shrine Priest Master? Shrine Priest Master?"

"Hmm... Chief Divine Witness! Then let the furnace be heated!"

Scholar Mikki touched his nose, quietly noting these key points in his mind. He had seen the Kingdom's Black Rock Mountain iron slting, but clearly, there was no furnace heating stage among them. Frankly, the Kingdom's iron slting works had no inheritance, relying entirely on the craftsn's random explorations...

"Yes! Fire God をん (Won)! Light the furnace!"

With an almost ritual-like chant, Warrior Captain Stonefirm personally ignited the charcoal within the kiln. Soon, intense yellow flas rose from the top of the two-ter kiln. After two hours of blistering heat, blacksmith Otani closely approached the furnace to feel the temperature surging up and down the furnace walls, then, sweating profusely, he shouted out with all his might.

"Fire God をん! The furnace is heated, add the iron!"

"Wow! Wow!"

With the tribal able-bodied n's efforts, the brass-colored iron ore was tossed into the high top of the iron slting furnace. In the reddish flas, they instantly changed color, emitting a pungent smoke. And so, the first furnace of iron on the North Arican continent truly began slting in a blast furnace inherited from East Asia!