Chapter 227 – Watching the Flames, Melting the Metal, Listening to Iron, The Quickening, Communion, and Hearing the Heavens - Part 2
The next day, Li Yuan climbed the mountain outside the city stronghold alongside that month’s batch of recommended smiths.
At the stream by the mountainside, a number of blacksmiths were already busy.
A quick glance told Li Yuan these smiths ranged from ninth to eighth, perhaps even seventh rank. He had a good idea why they were here.
From his experiences, he knew that when any skill transitioned from Expert to Master level, the fastest route to a breakthrough was often guidance from a true master.
Master Zhu was precisely that kind of expert.
All these blacksmiths had reached the threshold of Expert—the upper limit of ninth rank Weaponsmithing. To them, Master Zhu was someone who could guide them through their bottleneck.
They went up one by one to receive instruction, each in turn. Some left trembling with excitement, exclaiming “I’ve got it!” Others knelt before Master Zhu in gratitude, overwhelmed by their breakthroughs.
At last, it was Li Yuan’s turn.
Master Zhu didn’t frown. He simply said in a mild tone, “You’re here earlier than expected.”
Li Yuan smiled and bowed. “Greetings, Father-in-law.”
“Not here, I’m not,” Master Zhu replied curtly. He pointed to a spot in the distance. There lay a set of forge equipment—bellows, furnace, trough, tongs, anvil, hammer—and plenty of metal. “Go ahead,” he said.
Li Yuan didn’t waste words. He picked through the iron, selected a suitable hunk of raw stock, scooped up some fine borax, and set to heating and hammering.