You Really Are a Brilliant Mind

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A deafening explosion suddenly rang out, and even the floor beneath their feet shook from the violent blast.

"It should be about right now, Master Lou Gao. Please, come in!" With that, Dai Weisi opened the Forging Room's heavy iron doors and entered with Lou Gao.

When he saw the scene before him, even the well-traveled Lou Gao was startled.

The sturdy iron barrel had been completely shattered, blasted into countless iron fragments scattered across the ground. The iron plate covering its top had also been flung away by the fierce shockwave, its surface covered in dense cracks as though it were on the verge of breaking apart.

Lou Gao was not the only one shocked. Si Long, Si Yu, and Li Hu were equally dumbfounded by the sight.

"Th-this is..."

Li Hu picked up a fragment of the shattered barrel. Feeling the lingering warmth on it, his expression changed drastically as he said, "What terrifying power! It was only a little powder, yet after burning, it blew a sturdy iron barrel into pieces! At close range, even a Defense System Soul Emperor would be injured by the blast!"

As he spoke, Li Hu looked again at Dai Weisi's back. He realized that he was truly finding the First Prince more and more impossible to fathom.

Over these past days, Dai Weisi had given Li Hu far too many shocks. First, he had fought the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear and, with incredible luck, obtained an External Soul Bone.

Then there was the Ten Thousand Year Whale Rubber. Li Hu had thought Dai Weisi was like any other spoiled young noble, yet after consuming the whale rubber, he had broken through to Soul Ancestor in barely a week.

After that, he had absorbed the Ten-Thousand-Year Fourth Ring, and now he had developed a powder with such terrifying power.

Looking at Dai Weisi's back, Li Hu could not help but wonder: if he truly became the Star Luo Emperor one day, where would he lead the Star Luo Empire?

Lou Gao said in shock, "First Prince, wh-what exactly is this thing? How can it possess such tremendous power?"

Seeing Lou Gao's interested expression, Dai Weisi knew that he had taken the bait. Once someone became curious or interested, they were usually not far from falling in.

Dai Weisi smiled and explained, "Master Lou Gao, you should have seen this before. It is gunpowder!"

"Ah? Gunpowder?" Lou Gao froze. Of course he knew about gunpowder, but was it not used to make fireworks? Could it really have such power?

"First Prince, is this truly gunpowder? In this old man's memory, gunpowder does not seem to possess such power."

"Haha, ordinary gunpowder certainly does not have this kind of power. But after my improvements, this Black Powder is now capable of threatening high-level Soul Masters."

After a pause, seeing that Lou Gao had yet to recover from his shock, Dai Weisi continued to tempt him. "Master, you have seen it yourself. Such a tiny amount of Black Powder is enough to injure a Soul Emperor.

"If the amount of gunpowder is increased, even Soul Sages and Soul Douluos could be killed by the blast. It might even be able to injure a Titled Douluo!

"I came here this time specifically to ask Master Lou Gao to use Black Powder to forge a weapon capable of changing the balance of Douluo Continent! I wonder whether Master would be willing to lend me a hand!"

"A weapon that can injure Soul Sages and Soul Douluos... a weapon capable of changing the balance of the continent..."

Lou Gao was engrossed in the grand vision Dai Weisi had painted for him. But truthfully, after witnessing the power of Black Powder, he had indeed developed a strong interest in it.

As a Divine Blacksmith, Lou Gao naturally had his own pride. Yet blacksmiths now held such low status that they were only on par with ordinary commoners, unable even to compare with those arrogant wealthy merchants. How could the president of the Blacksmiths' Association possibly save face?

For many years, Lou Gao had wanted to forge a weapon powerful enough to threaten Soul Masters. Only then could the status of blacksmiths be improved, and the Blacksmiths' Association would no longer be in such an awkward position.

Now, after seeing Dai Weisi's improved Black Powder, Lou Gao had finally seen hope.

The power of this gunpowder was so great. If it could be made into a weapon, it would be enough to threaten the lives of Soul Masters!

And once such powerful weapons were forged, the status of blacksmiths would inevitably rise with the tide. Even the Blacksmiths' Association could transform into a powerful force no weaker than the Seven Great Sects.

With that thought, how could Lou Gao refuse? He immediately smiled faintly and said, "Hehe, how could this old man dare refuse the First Prince's request? I am willing to lend Your Highness a hand. However..."

His tone shifted. Lou Gao frowned slightly as he looked over the devastated Forging Room and sighed. "Black Powder is so powerful that, to be honest, this old man does not know what kind of weapon to make it into just yet.

"Blades, spears, swords, halberds, axes, hooks, forks, shields, and armor are certainly out of the question. Bows and arrows might be worth trying, but creating this weapon will likely take a great deal of time. It may even end in failure!"

He could not help thinking this way. The technology of Douluo Continent was still stuck in the age of cold weapons. The only ranged weapons were likely bows and crossbows.

"Hehe, Master need not worry. I came here precisely because I have a few ideas I would like to discuss with you. Perhaps we may be able to create a weapon of great power."

Dai Weisi smiled, then took out a blueprint he had prepared in advance from his Soul Guidance Ring. Drawn on it was a firearm from his previous life: a Hand Grenade!

He had originally wanted to draw cannons and firearms as well, but after thinking it over, he gave up on the idea. Though the principles behind guns and cannons were simple, producing them required extremely high forging skills.

Leaving aside everything else, just a tiny conical bullet was beyond Dai Weisi's expectations. He did not believe such a small bullet could be forged using this world's blacksmithing techniques.

Even if Lou Gao's forging skills allowed him to make bullets successfully, making only one would be meaningless.

Dai Weisi needed them in huge quantities—hundreds of thousands of bullets. Only then could they provide covering fire against enemies in war.

And Lou Gao was already advanced in years. He could not exactly be made to forge bullets every day, could he? After weighing the pros and cons, Dai Weisi ultimately chose Hand Grenades.

Hand Grenades were larger, and their principles were comparatively simple. With the forging skills of the Blacksmiths' Association, they should be able to replicate them.

Lou Gao accepted the grenade blueprint, and a flash of surprise instantly passed through his eyes. As a Divine Blacksmith who had forged countless weapons, Lou Gao immediately saw through the workings of the Hand Grenade.

"So that's how it is. Brilliant! Brilliant! It can actually be used this way! As long as a large amount of Black Powder is packed into the center and the outside is wrapped in sharp iron fragments.

"Then, add two flints to the bottom of the Hand Grenade, with a fuse wound around one of the flints...

"In that case, all one needs to do is pull the fuse quickly, making the two flints rub together and ignite the gunpowder, then throw it out!"

"The explosive force of the gunpowder will blast the surrounding iron fragments outward, killing the enemy! Brilliant! I never imagined there could be such a weapon in this world. First Prince, you really are a brilliant mind!"