Capítulo 926: Chapter 661: The Greatest Obstacle (Part 2)
On one side of the volcano, there was a crimson river, which wasn’t water, but magma.
The Zhu family had drawn the magma from inside the volcano, allowing it to flow like a river.
Within the magma, there were many black solids of varying sizes, which were not stones, but tals slted within the volcano.
The so-called Earthfire Steel was actually steel that had been slted multiple tis by the volcanic magma.
Slting, forging, slting again, forging again; after several rounds, the ordinary pig iron would transform into the tough and resilient Earthfire Steel.
Standing at the foot of the volcano, looking up at the entire mountain, no one could help but admire the craftsmanship of the Zhu family.
Utilizing the volcano to forge weapons, there’s nowhere else like it in the world.
There might be more skilled forging masters than the Zhu family, but no power uses the volcano for mass weapon forging like they do.
It wasn’t Yang Minghao’s first visit to Earth Fire Island, but every ti he ca, he couldn’t help but marvel.
“When forging ordinary armants, how many can you forge in a month?” he asked Zhu Yanshan beside him.
Zhu Yanshan asked in confusion: “Ordinary armants?”
“Yes, the ordinary gear for the soldiers, forged from refined steel!” Yang Minghao said.
Equipping a large number of soldiers with Earthfire Steel armants is unrealistic, as the output of Earthfire Steel is low, with the Zhu family only able to forge three to four hundred Earthfire Steel weapons each year, which clearly can’t et the needs of Chongshan Town.
Zhu Yanshan showed a look of realization, “If it’s just refined steel, that’s easy. For swords, we can forge three thousand pieces a month, and if it’s just spearheads, thirty thousand pieces a month are not a problem!”
Yang Minghao, hearing this, couldn’t help but widen his eyes.
“It’s refined steel weapons, not five-refined, ten-refined steel!”
The so-called refined steel is actually hundred-refined steel.
By repeatedly heating and folding the iron blocks, the steel’s structure becos dense, composition uniform, impurities reduced, thereby improving the quality of the steel. One refining ans heating once, i.e., refining it a certain number of tis.
The standard weaponry of the Da Rong army requires at least thirty refinings, but in reality, it is mostly nine-refined steel. Generally, weapons forged from hundred-refined steel are very rare.
For instance, the Gold-plated Flying Fish Spear used by Yang Zhenshan at that ti was a weapon forged from hundred-refined steel.
Apart from the difference in material tals, weapons forged with hundred-refined steel are already the best steel weapons.
Zhu Yanshan scratched his head, “Our forged ordinary weapons don’t fall behind those made of hundred-refined steel!”
“Is that so?” Yang Minghao was a bit confused.
He knew the Zhu family’s weapons were excellent, but he wasn’t very familiar with their forging techniques.
“Yes, that’s correct. Forging refined steel weapons doesn’t require a master craftsman; let the younger generation practice with them!”
“Forging weapons is sowhat easier, but forging Iron Armor is much more troubleso. When it cos to forging Iron Armor, at most one thousand sets a month can be made!”
Zhu Yanshan explained.
Yang Minghao realized he had underestimated the Zhu family.
In fact, the Zhu family doesn’t like forging refined steel armants because it lowers their status.
Their favorite creations are divine weapons, not those aningless, mass-produced armants.
Therefore, they haven’t sold many refined steel weapons; it’s more of letting the younger generation practice and craft so refined steel weapons. Any master craftsman with so skill prefers creating Earthfire Steel weapons or divine weapons made from special materials.
Like teoric iron, Black Gold, Cold Iron, Thunder Pattern Copper, etc., using these precious ores to forge divine weapons is their pursuit.
They are not blacksmiths; they are forging masters.
Yang Minghao didn’t know what else to say. He took out a list and said, “We need these armants!”
Zhu Yanshan took the list, glanced at it, and was sowhat dazed.
“Thirty thousand refined steel long swords, one hundred thousand spearheads, five thousand sets of refined steel Light Armor, five thousand sets of Cavalry heavy armor, fifty thousand plates of refined steel armor?”
“Ming Hao, my little brother, what’s all this for?”
Refined steel armor plates are used to manufacture cotton and leather armor. The Zhu family definitely wouldn’t produce cotton or leather armor, so they could only help forge the armor plates.
“For war, a major war!” Yang Minghao said.
“Is this for equipping an army of one hundred thousand soldiers?” Zhu Yanshan wasn’t foolish; he could naturally see how many soldiers these armants could equip.
“Yes, and it might still not be enough.” Yang Minghao said.
Zhu Yanshan felt a bit troubled, “Ming Hao, my brother, the arrowheads you previously ordered haven’t even been made yet, and this will probably take three to five years to complete!”
If it weren’t for the friendship between the Zhu family and the Yang family, they would never have accepted such an order. It’s too lacking in technical rit.
“Three to five years is too long; it must be completed within one year!”
Yang Minghao laughed heartily, “We’ll exchange all these armants for alcohol; our Yang family won’t spend a single piece of Silver!”
“Exchange them all for alcohol?” Zhu Yanshan’s eyes imdiately lit up.
“Of course, three thousand vats of alcohol in exchange for these armants—can it be done within a year?” Yang Minghao asked.
Divine weapons are the Zhu family’s specialty, just as alcohol is the Yang family’s specialty.
Although the Zhu family hadn’t discovered the Yang family’s alcohol’s best feature of enhancing potential, the effect of rely strengthening the body and healing wounds was enough to tempt them.
The key is that the Yang family’s alcohol isn’t sold—only given away, no place to buy it even if you wanted to.
“Yes, absolutely yes!” Zhu Yanshan said without a second thought.
“Not going to discuss with the two elders?” Yang Minghao smiled and said.
Zhu Yanshan shook his head, “No need; I’m in charge here now. If I say it can be done, then it definitely can be!”
He said this with great confidence.
Although he ranks third within the family, he is the only innate realm forging master of the Zhu family.
Ever since he had a breakthrough to the innate realm, all the forges on the volcano fell under his jurisdiction.
“Then it’s settled. After I return, I’ll send soone to deliver the alcohol. Divide the armants into four batches; deliver one batch every three months. No problem, right?” Yang Minghao said.
“No problem!” Zhu Yanshan said.
Although the Zhu family’s master craftsn might not want to make these ordinary armants, surely the ordinary disciples of the Zhu family would be willing.
Zhu Yanshan had already planned to use alcohol as compensation, getting the ordinary disciples of the Zhu family to create these armants.
Offering a third of it as a reward would be enough; they might even finish it in less than a year.
As for the remaining two thousand vats, naturally, it would be divided among the key family branches!
Thus, the honest Zhu Yanshan transford into a cunning middleman.
With the grains from the Zhang Dynasty and the Dajing Dynasty, the armants from the Zhu family, coupled with the Spiritual Spring potions and various herbs from the Yang family, and the war horses from Chongshan Town, isn’t everything complete?
As for other miscellaneous items, they can be handled gradually.
…
Over on Divine Wood Island, they began the busy task of transporting grains and dicinal materials to Chongshan Town, and anwhile, Yang Zhenshan had already arrived at Songhe Prefecture in Jiangnan.
Wuzhen Taoist Palace is located in Luyang Prefecture, just south of Wanshan Ridge, where Cui Xia Valley resides in Sangzhou Prefecture, east of Luyang Prefecture. In fact, Wuzhen Taoist Palace is also on Wanshan Ridge.
The most convenient route for Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi to reach Wuzhen Taoist Palace was to transfer to an inland riverboat from Songhe Prefecture, travel upstream along the Song River for five hundred miles, and then follow Ru Xu River into Nanchao Lake. After crossing Nanchao Lake, they needed to enter Fenle River to finally reach Longshu County, where Wuzhen Taoist Palace sat on Daoist Palace Mountain, fifty miles north of Longshu County.
Upon arriving in Songhe Prefecture on the Yang family’s rchant ship, Yang Zhenshan and Yu Qingyi let the Yang family’s rchant fleet carry out their duties.
Recently, the Yang family’s rchant fleet had been very busy. They needed to help transport various supplies to Chongshan Town, and the rchant company’s own deals couldn’t be halted.
Yang Zhenshan had already given all his savings to Yang Chengye; in the future, the hundreds of mouths in the Yang family would have to rely entirely on the Yang family’s rchant company for sustenance.
Therefore, the Yang family’s business not only couldn’t stop; it had to expand in both scope and trade range.
Yang Zhenshan naturally wouldn’t hinder the business of the Yang family’s rchant company just because of his own affairs. Besides, he and Yu Qingyi had traveled extensively over the years; they didn’t need anyone to guide them.
User Comments
0 comments from readers