Time passed day by day. With each passing day, the smelting of the Hyderabad ores would progress.
Wang Chong did not know much about smelting, but Wang Chong trusted the blacksmiths that Wei Hao had found for him. With their abilities, it would not be a problem for them to fulfill his requests.
Five days later.
"It's done! The iron ingots are almost ready! "
Inside the cave, the leader of the blacksmiths, who was sweating profusely, suddenly shouted. His words attracted the attention of everyone in the cave.
"Weng!"
Four burly blacksmiths extended their pincers into the blast furnace at the same time and took out four pieces of Hyderabad ores, or rather, WuZi Steel, and placed them on the metal platform.
"Unbelievable!"
"So heavy! Such a large iron ingot can be produced from a piece of raw ore. The iron content of this ore must be unbelievable! "
"Look at the flame, it's glowing blue. I've been smelting ores for decades and handled so many ores, but this is the first time I've seen such an ore!"
"Look, it's still rough, but it already has the luster of steel. It's almost the same as well-tempered steel. What a miracle!"
…
A group of people surrounded the four WuZi Steel ingots on the metal platform. Their eyes were wide open as they clicked their tongues in wonder. When Wang Chong took out the four pieces of black iron ores, he did not tell them in detail.
However, the blacksmiths had smelted so many ores that they could tell that the ores that Wang Chong wanted them to smelt were not from Middle Earth.
Middle Earth would definitely not have iron ores that could emit blue flames from within, nor would they possess the characteristics of steel when they were just born.
They had never seen such an ore in their decades of smelting.
"No wonder he asked me to lower the temperature to 1,500 degrees!"
The middle-aged craftsman in his forties also reacted at this moment.
"That's great! It's indeed WuZi Steel! "
Wang Chong was also extremely excited.
Although he had seen WuZi Steel weapons in his previous life, he had never seen the rough metal produced by WuZi Steel during the smelting process. This was the first time that WuZi Steel from a foreign country had shown its true colors in Middle Earth.
This was a huge improvement.
"Now, it's time for the forging process!"
Wang Chong clenched his fist, his eyes bright. Now that the first step of smelting was complete, the next step was to create the finished weapon from the rough embryo. This step was even more important than smelting. It required more care and caution, and no mistakes could be made.
"Remove the fire! Use pine branches to light the fire and use the bellows to blow air. The temperature should not exceed 300 degrees! "
Wang Chong ordered.
Those words immediately attracted everyone's attention. The twelve blacksmiths turned to look at Zhang Xuan with peculiar gazes. Wang Chong's request was completely inconceivable to everyone.
"Young Master Chong! Isn't this temperature a little too low? "
"Yeah! In the entire Tang dynasty, no one had ever forged at such a low temperature. This way, the forging results will be very poor. I'm afraid that even seven days and seven nights won't be enough to forge a weapon. "
The craftsmen gathered their courage and asked. It was one thing for the Earth Fire Lava to drop from more than 2,000 degrees Celsius to 1,500 degrees Celsius. No matter what, 1,500 degrees Celsius was still a high temperature.
However, Wang Chong actually requested for a forging temperature of 300 degrees Celsius. Such a low temperature was unheard of. It sounded like a request from an ignorant layman.
Even though Wang Chong's position was higher than theirs, they couldn't help but have some objections. This wasn't how forging was done.
"This is called cold forging. Just do as I say!"
Wang Chong said calmly. He stared at the twelve blacksmiths without the slightest bit of hesitation. Cold forging was a unique method of forging weapons. It could greatly strengthen the metal and increase the hardness of the weapon.
However, in this time-space, cold forging was still far from the reality. Most weapons were still forged at high temperatures. This was because high temperatures softened the metal, making it easier to mold it. Furthermore, it could greatly shorten the forging time.
However, many people didn't know that despite the long forging time, the strengthening effect of cold forging was far superior to that of high-temperature forging.
If Wang Chong wanted to forge top-notch WuZi Steel weapons, he would have to do it through cold forging.
Of course, cold forging didn't refer to the cold temperature. Rather, it was relative to the high temperature of mainstream forging. The optimal temperature for cold forging of WuZi Steel was around 300 degrees Celsius.
If one didn't understand this point, the effects of forging the same WuZi Steel weapons would be worlds apart. Even though the Abbasid Caliphate was in a favorable position, it would still take them at least five to six years to forge a WuZi Steel weapon of the same quality as Wang Chong's!
"Cold forging …"
The group of blacksmiths was baffled. They couldn't understand what Wang Chong was talking about.
"Enough! Why are you thinking so much? Just do as I say! "
Wei Hao wasn't that patient. He pointed at their noses and scolded them. What nonsense, just do as I say. It's not like you are the ones forging the weapon. Why are you talking so much nonsense?
Wang Chong snickered. He knew that Wei Hao didn't have any dissatisfaction. It was just his personality. However, after being scolded by Wei Hao, the blacksmiths became obedient and prepared to start work.
"Form groups of three! Work at the same time! Since seven days isn't enough, we'll use ten days! This is the blueprint for the first weapon. Let's begin! "
Wang Chong unfurled a blueprint and loudly announced to the crowd.
Even though Wang Chong didn't know how to forge weapons, these were the best blacksmiths around. How could Wei Hao possibly be weak when he had been handpicked? Furthermore, these blacksmiths would ask a bunch of questions during the forging process. If they weren't top-notch blacksmiths, how could they possibly ask so many questions?
The more skilled a blacksmith was, the more prideful they would be, and the more they wouldn't be willing to let their subordinates forge ordinary weapons. The fact that these blacksmiths liked to be picky was a testament to their skills.
Ding ding dang dang!
In the next period of time, the cavern bustled with activity. Other than Wang Chong, no one knew that this was the first time the cold forging method had appeared in this world.
"Little sister! When the first batch of weapons is completed, I'll have to trouble you to help me with something. "
At this moment, Wang Chong suddenly turned around and said.
"What is it?"
The Wang Family's little sister yawned in boredom. When she heard about 'Sindhu' and 'Hyderabad', she thought that it would be something fun. In the end, it was just 'forging'. How boring!
"Help me forge this batch of weapons once more! Three thousand times for each weapon! "
Wang Chong said.
Shua! Wei Hao raised his thumbs up in admiration. Wang Chong, you are way too incredible! To think that you would think of using an expert like Xiao Yao to forge for you.
With her strength, the quality of this batch of weapons would be raised to a whole new level.
However, it was too wishful thinking on their part.
"I don't want to!"
The Wang Family's little sister rolled her eyes. Without any hesitation, she rejected Wei Hao directly. To think that he would treat her as free labor. Did he really think that she was a three-year-old child? That was too wishful thinking.
"A hundred gold taels! I won't be doing it for free! "
Without any hesitation, Wang Chong raised a finger.
"Ah!"
The Wang Family's little sister's eyes lit up and she widened her eyes. She seemed to be moved by the conditions that her brother offered. A hundred … gold taels! She might be young, but she was still able to differentiate between gold and silver.
Her monthly allowance was only ten silver taels, and yet, Wang Chong said that he would give her a hundred gold taels! If she could get that much, wouldn't she be rich!
Just the thought of it made her excited!
"I won't do it!"
The Wang Family's little sister pouted. She suddenly turned her head to the side and rejected the offer without any hesitation. Wang Chong and Wei Hao were shocked. Just when they thought that they had miscalculated and that the Wang Family's little sister was unwilling to accept the offer, they suddenly heard another sentence:
"Two hundred gold taels! Not a single tael less! — — Otherwise, I will tell my mother! Let my mother teach you a lesson. "
"…"
Upon hearing the last sentence, a bizarre expression appeared on the faces of Wang Chong and Wei Hao. This was especially so for Wei Hao. He couldn't help but burst into laughter and his eyes were about to burst.
"Hahaha … Ah, I'm dying of laughter! Wang Chong, to think that you would have such a day! Haha, Xiao Yao, you don't have to stand on ceremony with him. Your brother is a rich man now. If you don't make him bleed a little, let your mother teach him a lesson! "
Wei Hao looked at the serious expression on the Wang Family's little sister and his stomach was about to fall to the ground from laughter.
Wang Chong shook his head as well. He felt an indescribable awkwardness in his heart. This time, he had let an outsider like Wei Hao see a joke. This little sister of his was indeed a little money-grubber!
"Deal!"
He had a lot of money on him now. Using Wei Hao's words, he was a tycoon now. Two hundred gold taels was nothing to him.
"Yay!"
The Wang Family's little sister clenched her fists tightly and her face flushed red. She was just testing the waters, but she didn't expect to succeed. However, soon, the Wang Family's little sister seemed to have thought of something and calmed down. She stared at Wang Chong doubtfully:
"Two hundred gold taels? That's gold, not silver. Third brother, you mustn't lie to me! "
Wang Chong chuckled. This lass asked for two hundred gold taels from him, but he didn't believe her and started to doubt her. Wealth came too easily!
"Of course! When have I ever lied to you? Here are two hundred silver taels. If you don't believe me, I can pass it to you first. "
Wang Chong took out a gold tael and passed it over.
Even though two hundred gold taels wasn't a small sum, Wang Chong was still satisfied to be able to invite his little sister, the 'Hercules' of Origin Energy Tier 9.
In his previous life, the reason why WuZi Steel weapons could be sold for tens of thousands wasn't just because of the rarity of WuZi steel. More importantly, it was because of the highest level of craftsmanship that this weapon represented.
Every single Wootz Steel weapon had been crafted with a great deal of effort and care. Thus, even though Sindhu was the source of the Hyderabad ores, Abbasid Caliphate and Damascus were the core of the WuZi Steel industry.
The appearance of the Hyderabad ores was just the beginning. Wang Chong didn't have any competitors yet. What Wang Chong wanted wasn't to 'sell Hyderabad ores' but to establish his own brand!
Those who were willing to fork out tens of thousands or even hundreds of gold taels to purchase a WuZi Steel weapon weren't fools. If the quality of the WuZi Steel weapon didn't exceed that of other weapons of the same grade, no one would spend so much money to purchase it.
Cold forging was a crucial step in the forging process. The blacksmith had to exert his full strength, and the greater the strength, the better.
In this aspect, with the help of his little sister, an expert close to Origin Energy Tier 9, Wang Chong was confident that the WuZi Steel weapon he forged would be of the highest quality and workmanship!
"Deal! You're not allowed to regret your decision! "
Upon seeing the two hundred gold taels, the Wang Family's little sister's eyes widened. She took it from Wang Chong's hands with a nervous expression, fearing that Wang Chong would regret his decision.
"But brother, where did you get so much money from?"
The Wang Family's little sister finally realized that something was amiss. That fatty Youngster Wei only said that this brother had earned quite a sum of money, but he didn't say where he got the money from.
"Add another ten taels, don't tell mother about it!"
Wang Chong stuffed a gold ingot into her hands.
"Deal!"
The Wang Family's little sister beamed with joy upon receiving the gold ingot. She couldn't be bothered about where Wang Chong got so much money from.
"Sweat, she sure is a little money-grubber!"
Wei Hao felt cold sweat trickling down his back.
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