Chapter Twelve: Fusion
What appeared before their eyes was a collection of fine, silvery-gray grains, faintly glimmering with a crystal-clear sheen...
“Is this... is this really iron sand obtained through washing?” the monk gasped, mouth wide with disbelief.
Such quality could only result from the fifth refining process, not from simple sand washing...
“What’s going on? What happened?”
By now, it was getting late, and more people from the foundry were gathering, many drawn over by curiosity.
“Did Zhuge Yixiu forge another hoe shaped like a sickle? Haha, I’ve got to see this...”
“Wait... what is this? Iron powder? Impossible! How could this be!”
...
Everyone present was a master smith. Washing iron sand was the most basic, the very first step before forging could begin. All of them had performed this process thousands, if not tens of thousands of times, but no one had ever tried washing sand for an entire day...
...
As Zhuge Yixiu moved on to the next stage, the crowd of monks gradually dispersed. In their eyes, the only reason such high-quality iron sand had been washed out was because of the extended time spent. Given enough time, they believed they could achieve the same.
Moreover, this step was deemed unnecessary; the purpose of washing was merely to extract the iron sand, not to purify it. Purification would come in later, more specialized stages.
So, as far as they were concerned, spending so much effort washing the sand was a pointless waste.
...
Normally, Elder Huiqi rarely visited the foundry, but last night he’d turned the matter over and over in his mind, worried that something might happen to Xiao Yan and Zhuge Yixiu.
After all, calling Zhuge Yixiu a novice was an understatement—he was utterly inept.
Forging could be dangerous; a careless slip with the hammer could cause a nasty injury.
Since he’d already accepted the man’s pork powder, the least he could do was show some concern.
Thus, Elder Huiqi came to the foundry the next morning to check on things.
But as soon as he stepped inside, he was met with silence. The place was deserted—he immediately felt a surge of anger, suspecting everyone was shirking their duties.
After walking for a while, he finally found a cluster of monks gathered around the sand-washing area.
Puzzled, Huiqi squeezed into the crowd. When he saw the crystal-clear iron powder, his eyes lit up...
!!!
“This... this is the long-lost ‘Divine Washing Method’?” Huiqi murmured. This was his first time witnessing it; he’d only ever read about it in the library’s ancient texts.
Others might not understand, but Elder Huiqi was an old hand in the world of metallurgy—he knew exactly how remarkable this was.
He’d heard that producing such iron sand required a tremendous investment of time, with special steps and methods, and even then, the outcome depended on the quality of the original sand. If the quality was poor, even washing for a year would be useless...
He never imagined he’d witness this in his own foundry. Huiqi was gratified and eager to see which disciple was responsible, ready to offer praise...
A parade of outstanding disciples flashed through Elder Huiqi’s mind. Who could it be?
Wait...
Fatty, who are you?
None of his best pupils matched the portly figure clutching the iron sand before him...
What’s more, the fellow looked a bit dim-witted.
“Zhuge Yixiu?! How could it be you?”
It took Huiqi a long time to finally voice his astonishment.
...
Among the crowd, Zhuge Yixiu finally relaxed and nearly collapsed with exhaustion when Xiao Yan said he could stop. Washing sand by Xiao Yan’s method was utterly draining...
“Next, iron smelting,” Xiao Yan announced, his voice still cold and devoid of emotion, his expression numb.
The second step: smelting the iron.
Transforming iron sand into usable iron.
Zhuge Yixiu struggled to his feet and began the process.
...
Zhuge Yixiu’s smelting and steel tempering methods were utterly ordinary—nothing special at all. In truth, he was such a novice that he made mistakes even a beginner should never make.
Elder Huiqi was so angry he kept smacking his own head, muttering, “This idiot! This fool! You shouldn’t strike it so hard! What are you doing with that hammer... Your backside’s on fire! Damned fool! How did I ever end up with such a blockheaded disciple... It’s infuriating!”
The other monks found the whole spectacle more entertaining than usual. Having Zhuge Yixiu’s blunders to mock put everyone in good spirits and made their own work seem lighter.
Watching him trip up gave them all a sense of superiority.
Xiao Yan stood to the side, expression vacant, but whenever Zhuge Yixiu made a mistake, he would promptly correct him...
This stage didn’t usually take long, but Zhuge Yixiu was so inept that he dragged it out.
...
Two hours later, Xiao Yan announced coldly, “Begin fold-forging!”
“Hm? My heavens! He’s actually...”
Zhuge Yixiu’s eyes widened in disbelief. He was the only one close enough to see what Xiao Yan had been sketching and writing while he forged—so it was for this...
It was incredible... Xiao Yan seemed to have become a different person.
“Combine them, watch the details, use force here... and here...” Xiao Yan guided him through the blueprint, pointing out details until Zhuge Yixiu finally understood.
It really seemed possible...
This was the hardest step in weapon forging, and Zhuge Yixiu’s poor craftsmanship with farm tools was largely because he could never master this stage—his efforts always resulted in shapeless oddities.
“This is the most crucial step, and now you must forge a weapon that combines eighteen types into one, capable of transformation. The degree of fusion and the timing are everything.”
This was the most Xiao Yan had spoken throughout the process.
Zhuge Yixiu was on the verge of collapse, his body unsteady, walking as though he might float away. But he clenched his teeth and pressed on...
Elder Huiqi, standing aside, finally began to take notice of Xiao Yan. Though he found Xiao Yan’s demeanor odd at this moment, he didn’t dwell on it—his attention was fixed on Zhuge Yixiu.
He could tell that the forging principles involved were extremely complex, clearly designed to merge eighteen weapons into one, with the ability to freely transform. But...
It couldn’t possibly be this simple. True fusion would depend on this very step...
Sweat began to bead on Xiao Yan’s bald head, his shining eyes recalling memories—Fahai had once reached this very stage, but failed at the moment of fusion!
He knew how hard it was. Combining eighteen weapons wasn’t just eighteen times as difficult as forging a single one...
To use an analogy, it was like throwing a needle from ten meters away and having it pass through a hole exactly the diameter of the needle itself...
And if things went wrong, there could be an explosion!
This was the ultimate test of willpower and talent...
Fahai hadn’t held out much hope—never mind the difficulty, in Zhuge Yixiu’s current state, completion was impossible.
He reckoned that if Zhuge Yixiu managed to finish the equipment within a year, it would be miraculous—allowing for countless failures along the way...
“Look! He’s really trying to fuse them! That... surely won’t work, will it?”
Many monks started to pay attention to Zhuge Yixiu’s actions.
“No!” Elder Huiqi shouted a warning. “That will explode! You’ll die!”