The research on cement and explosives in Graythorn Territory has gradually been put on the right track, especially cement, which has directly accelerated the development of Graythorn Territory. Many originally set up tents have been dismantled, and people have started to build new houses.
Next, Lind plans to begin researching steel smelting.
This is a major task, but since the Graythorn Territory has not temporarily found iron ore, Lind has not prioritized this until now. However, he intends to see how steel is smelted in this world.
As long as the territory can produce iron and steel, combined with hydraulic hammers, future military needs will undoubtedly be met.
The craftsmen in the territory are still the original artisans who came to Graythorn Territory with Lena.
Among them, there are quite a few lower-level professionals.
The place for steel smelting is more of a blacksmith shop than an actual steel mill.
At first, there wasn’t even a blacksmith shop, and Lind arranged work for these craftsmen, although their tasks were limited to repairing tools for the subjects every day.
Today, the craftsmen heard the lord was coming for an inspection, so they were all ready to perform well, since this lord is known for being generous, even if it’s all money from the Lars Family.
However, after the craftsmen demonstrated their steel-smelting methods, they noticed that the lord seemed to be in a bad mood, and after a brief inspection, left the steel mill.
Originally, they thought the lord would, as he did before with other craftsmen, propose various fantastical machines and improvements for the old craftsmen to ponder over. Did they do something wrong and make the lord unhappy? It felt like the lord was treating them differently.
Back at the tent, Lind began walking in circles and constantly flipped through the rune magic circle manual in his hands, comparing it with his previous memories to learn.
It’s quite astonishing; although Lind had previously given this world a little shock from his past life, this time it was the distorted technological tree of this world that gave him a little magical shock.
Lind had anticipated several improvements to this world’s steel smelting techniques, such as using blast furnaces. Having read so many transmigration novels, he thought he could at least inspire these craftsmen, but he didn’t expect the world to apply such a brute force method.
Not enough temperature? Heating too slowly? Prone to impurities?
Just use a burning magic circle, and a few first and second-tier rune masters could easily raise its temperature, violently solving all problems.
However, it’s easier said than done; only those who have studied runes can control the rune magic circle. Rune masters are professionals, not just big shots, and the rune magic circle requires constant fine-tuning and maintenance, which is not inexpensive.
It can only be adapted for steel smelting, with no practical combat significance.
Yet this still gave Lind a small shock from another world.
For a moment, Lind even questioned whether everything he was doing was truly meaningful. Are there already other magical solutions in this world that perfectly replace his plans?
For example, has cement and explosives always had better alternatives?
Based on Lena’s reaction, it seems not, but after all, that is Lena. Not trusting his own judgment, Lind sought out Isha and asked her in detail before feeling a bit relieved.
Later, Lind took Lena into the Giant God Mountain Range.
Because today was the day to experiment with mining explosives.
Even though Lena had been hunting and playing in the mountains, she had still done some serious work, and the Giant God Mountain Range does have quite a few mineral deposits. Lind had come here because Lena had recently discovered a jadeite ore vein.
Although the scale wasn’t large, to be honest, Lind’s main goal in this mining expedition was merely to practice handling explosives.
The mineral deposits of the Giant God Mountain Range are numerous, but due to the remote location and high transportation costs, they have never been effectively developed.
Moreover, the Sur德 Region north of the Northern Border not only has higher quality ores but also more convenient transportation, with roads all connecting, so no one would want to come to the Giant God Mountain Range and pay higher costs to mine.
Especially since elves from the other side of the mountain occasionally jump out demanding a share.
Furthermore, as the Cape Kingdom has weakened overall, and the upper-class nobles have become increasingly decadent and extravagant in their lives, fewer and fewer professionals are willing to come to this remote corner to work hard to help nobles with their mining using their magic.
Lind instructed a craftsman to first chisel a large hole at a designated location, and then he ordered to place the explosives inside and withdrew to a command point dozens of meters away to ignite the fuse.
At first, no craftsman dared to take on this job, so Lena’s companion Susan impatiently walked over to the fuse.
Susan only understood the power of these explosives to the level of blowing a cast iron pot into the air, and felt there was nothing to be scared of. After snapping her fingers, she ignited the fuse, then struck a pose and waved her cloak as she walked toward the shelter Lena had created.
Boom!
A powerful shockwave surged through, like the roar of an angry dragon rushing past, shaking the mountain, causing debris to scatter everywhere, and deafening explosion sounds echoed through the mountains.
Susan, caught off guard by the force of the explosion, was thrown forward, and the defensive runes on her armor immediately activated, fully operational due to the attack alert.
“Protect the young lady!”
The knights beside Lena instantly raised their shields and formed a line; this explosion had exceeded their understanding. They initially thought it was an enemy attack on the Lars Family.
As the smoke and flickering firelight extinguished, a chaotic scene unfolded before them: rocks blasted into pieces, and huge boulders collapsed like ramparts.
Lind looked with satisfaction at the stunned Susan and the vigilant knights. It seemed his previous worries were unnecessary; although this world had many things beyond his understanding, explosives still far surpassed inventions of this world.
“Record the amount used in this explosion and the effectiveness of the mining.”
After reminding the stunned craftsman behind him, Lind began to observe the explosion site.
“Collect those fragments too; they can be used as building materials mixed with cement. But make sure to remind those craftsmen to screen them first.”
Observing the knights still on high alert, Lind merely smiled slightly, and after glancing at each other, they awkwardly lowered their shields.
But just when those knights should be asking Lind how he managed to do it, Lena, protected by the knights, began to stroke her chin, deep in thought.
“Brother.”
Lena excitedly approached Lind, but did not display the astonished expression he expected; her mind began to whirl again.
“Do you think this so-called explosive can be launched with magic?”
“For example, using the second-tier Wind Spell to send these explosives to ignite at the enemy, wouldn’t that be equivalent to using a second-tier spell to create fourth-tier or even stronger magical power?”
Lind blinked, first confirming that he wasn’t mistaken, that the person in front of him was indeed Lena.
How did this kid become so smart today? She was already considering merging explosives with magic to create a magical version of cannons.
Before Lind could respond, Lena continued, “Using the Wind Spell is insufficient; we should find a more powerful, precise delivery magic.”
Has she even thought of a missile prototype?
“No, no, this method is fundamentally impractical. If you use high-level magic to deliver over long distances, why not just strike with high-level magic directly?”
Lena once again denied her own plan, then turned her gaze to the craftsmen beside Lind.
“Is there a possibility of reducing the amount of the explosives you created, brother, packing them into stones so that when thrown, these stones explode like magic, and their fragments can injure enemies as well?”
Lind stared at Lena in surprise, realizing she had quickly thought of a fragmentation grenade concept? Furthermore, this time Lena didn’t obsess over using magic in conjunction.
At this moment, the disheveled Susan, getting up from the ground, said, “But young lady, if the amount is reduced, it won’t cause effective damage to high-level professionals.”
“How many high-level professionals does a noble have?”
Lena looked at her knights, most of whom were third-tier professionals, slightly weaker than Lind, but among their peers, they were considered genius-level. With their gear, they could become terrifying killing machines in chaotic battles.
“Susan, earlier’s explosion reduced to one-fifth of what a governor could withstand; do you think you could manage to withstand it directly?”
Faced with Lena’s question, Susan confidently tapped her wrist shield and said, “If it’s direct, I’m sure I could block five or six times without injury.”
Then Lena turned her gaze to Lind.
“So, brother, how much explosive can the territory produce in a day? If all the alchemical equipment and craftsmen in the territory are used to produce explosives, wouldn’t that supply the ordinary soldiers continuously?”
After finishing, Lena elaborated on the remaining alchemical materials and the explosive production situation in the territory.
Susan beside her fell silent; she had just mentioned withstanding the front, and when considering that this weapon could be used by ordinary people, possibly even in multiple units, cold sweat began to pour down her back.
Indeed, high-level professionals are not just a piece of cake; the young lady being a sixth-level professional is already a once-in-a-century genius.
Lind did not respond; instead, he circled around Lena, seemingly trying to see if she was possessed by something.
“What’s wrong, brother? Is there something I said that was wrong?”
Lena anxiously traced circles on the ground with her foot.
“No, completely correct.”
Lind encouraged, “To be honest, many of the ideas you mentioned I haven’t even thought of; you did very well. I will certainly consider these proposals.”
It’s completely accurate; to be honest, it’s somewhat exaggerated. The explosives in the previous world also went through a long period of research and practice before truly dominating the battlefield. But Lena just saw an explosive mining process once and predicted the future of explosives. Lind even felt that Lena seemed more like a transmigrator than himself.
After all, in this world where magic truly exists, Lind couldn’t guarantee whether explosives could still hold their place as they did on battlefields in the past life. However, Lena’s vision was not only unhindered by magic, but she even began researching the uses of explosives based on magic.
Lena is not just a rational genius; perhaps she’s a born commander.