章節 66: Chapter 66: Forging One's Own Weapon
Chapter 66: Forging One's Own Weapon
The Day of Rotation was approaching, and a series of major events were bound to occur in the next six months.
The appearance of adventurer teams and the Black Scales Tribe's army invasion were among them.
To change the worst possible outcome, preparations needed to start early.
Afterward, Li Meng led Bai Ling into the Iron Cavern.
As soon as they entered, a wave of scorching heat rolled over them.
It felt as though they had stepped into an oven, making it unbearably hot.
The cavern was bustling with activity.
The continuous clanging of metal echoed throughout the space.
Accompanying it were the loud shouts of goblins.
Looking toward the underground riverbank, the cavern was as bright as day.
Dozens of five-meter-tall blast furnaces stood on the riverbank.
Behind the furnaces were countless bonfires burning brightly.
Closest to the river were groups of goblins forging iron.
They swung their hammers with all their might on the anvils.
Each hammer strike sent a shower of sparks flying.
Deeper in the cavern, faint "thud-thud" sounds could be heard.
Male lizardmen, carrying iron ore in bamboo baskets, could be seen there.
On the river's shallow shores, some male lizardmen soaked in the water.
The cavern's high temperatures made their skin prone to cracking.
They needed frequent baths to rehydrate and alleviate the effects.
"Boss, Boss, why are you here again?"
As soon as Li Meng entered the cavern, Gobuge hurried over upon hearing the news.
"What? Can't I come?"
Li Meng glared at Gobuge.
Gobuge's neck shrank, and he smiled obsequiously.
"The Boss can come whenever he likes."
"Cut the nonsense. Get me a blast furnace. I need to smelt iron!"
Gobuge nodded vigorously.
He turned around and led the way.
"Boss, Boss, this way, this way!"
Following Gobuge, Li Meng and Bai Ling delved deeper into the cavern.
Finally, they stopped in front of a blast furnace.
"Boss, this is it!"
Li Meng took the leather apron handed to him by Gobuge and put it on.
The apron not only effectively blocked splattering molten iron but also protected against flying sparks during forging.
"Bai Ling, go to the river!"
Bai Ling couldn't withstand the high temperatures near the furnace.
At most, she would faint within two hours.
Bai Ling silently stepped forward and waded into the icy river.
She sat in the shallow one-meter-deep water, only her head above the surface, watching the goblins on the riverbank.
At this moment, over a dozen goblins rushed over to assist Li Meng.
In the following hours, Li Meng busied himself around the blast furnace.
By the afternoon of the next day, as molten iron flowed from the furnace, Li Meng entered blacksmith mode.
Near the water, Li Meng held a massive iron hammer in one hand.
He fiercely pounded a long weapon on the anvil.
At times, he quenched it. At times, he tempered it. At times, he hammered it.
Each hammer strike produced a crisp metallic sound that resonated throughout the cavern.
The sound was the loudest, overpowering all other noises.
The saying "a hundred refinements make steel" held true.
To create excellent steel, it had to be hammered countless times.
"Is he forging iron?"
Bai Ling, still in the river, watched the goblin on the shore.
Since arriving at the Iron Cavern yesterday, he hadn't paid her any attention.
Bai Ling wasn't unfamiliar with the Iron Cavern.
She had been here hundreds of times.
Though she couldn't get close to the furnaces, she knew what the goblins were doing from a distance.
While swamp lizardmen were a savage race, they didn't harbor animosity toward humans.
Bai Ling had even communicated with human adventurers before.
She wasn't unfamiliar with iron tools.
On the third day, the loudest metallic clanging in the cavern finally ceased.
"Bai Ling, what do you think of this weapon?"
The master's call from the riverbank made Bai Ling step out of the water.
She came ashore and stood before her master.
Seeing the long-handled weapon in her master's hand, Bai Ling's pupils contracted.
"Master, this weapon… looks mighty!"
The weapon in her master's hand had a long handle and a long blade, nearly matching his height.
The entire weapon was iron-gray and had a smooth surface.
The sharpened blade gleamed menacingly under the firelight.
Holding this weapon, her master's aura seemed even more imposing.
"This is a Zhanmadao!"
Li Meng wielded the Zhanmadao with both hands, swinging it a few times.
In a flash, he dashed toward a massive boulder by the riverbank.
"Slash!"
The twenty-meter distance vanished in an instant.
Li Meng wielded the Zhanmadao and shouted explosively.
With a standard waist-body integration slash, he cut downward.
"Boom!"
A thunderous boom echoed.
The Zhanmadao sliced through the two-meter-tall boulder like tofu.
The massive impact shattered the boulder into pieces.
The commotion startled the surrounding goblins.
The scene left Bai Ling deeply astonished.
What a sharp weapon!
It had split such a massive rock.
Li Meng nodded in satisfaction at his strike.
He inspected the blade of the Zhanmadao.
A trace of disappointment flashed in his eyes.
The blade hadn't chipped but had slightly warped.
His strength was too great, exceeding the Zhanmadao's capacity.
Deformation in cold weapons was unavoidable.
Shaking his head, Li Meng discarded the Zhanmadao.
"Bai Ling, back to the water."
Bai Ling glanced at her master and then at the discarded Zhanmadao.
She silently turned and returned to the river.
On the riverbank, Li Meng resumed tinkering with the blast furnace.
The following morning, another batch of molten iron emerged.
Li Meng on the riverbank began hammering again.
Each swing sent sweat flying from his body.
The scorching heat left Li Meng drenched in sweat.
In the icy underground river, a white figure flashed briefly.
Moments later, water splashed on the river's surface.
Bai Ling emerged from the water.
She held a frozen Black Rock Fish in her hands.
Dragging the fish, Bai Ling returned to the shallows.
Sitting in the water, she quietly watched the goblin forging on the shore.
These past few days, Bai Ling had come to understand.
Her master had brought her along to intimidate and warn her.
It was to show her that goblins with iron-forging technology were not a force the swamp lizardmen could challenge.
Time passed slowly.
The daily life of the Iron Cavern didn't change with Li Meng's arrival.
The next afternoon...
"It's done!"
By the underground riverbank, Li Meng planted a massive iron rod into the ground.
The iron rod was about 2.5 meters long and 5 centimeters in diameter.
For now, it seemed too long and thick for Li Meng.
But once he evolved into a Goblin Warrior, it would suit him perfectly.
Looking at the iron rod in his hands, Li Meng nodded in satisfaction.
This was the weapon he had forged for himself.
Compared to bladed weapons, Li Meng felt blunt weapons were more suitable.
Initially, he had wanted to forge a long-handled mace.
But after careful consideration, he abandoned the idea.
A mace's weight distribution was uneven, unsuitable for close combat.
When fighting strong opponents, every move had to be swift and precise.
Any mistake could be fatal.
Against weaker foes, any weapon would do.
Even fists were enough to defeat them.
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UltimateHaremfan
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