Visiting the Artisan

Linsey recounted everything that had happened at the mine.

After listening to the story, Anrui got a general understanding of the situation and prepared to go to the mine to check it out.

Just as Anrui was about to leave, before he departed, Linsey asked, "Uncle Anrui, may I go with you?"

Anrui shook his head and replied confidently, "You've been busy enough lately, go back and get some rest."

"I can handle this kind of small thing."

The words had barely left his lips.

The Fifth Stage awakened warrior walked into the forest, and his figure quickly disappeared without a trace under the cover of the forest.

Since the other party has already made a decision, Linsey can't interfere.

He chatted briefly with Anna, assuring her that there was no need to worry about the mine, as he had already driven away the Devil Beast.

After bidding farewell and leaving the Lord's Manor, Linsey headed into town.

Our first stop in the afternoon was naturally the Artisan's Cottage.

Linsey still has Steel Ingot ingots to give to Qiao Er, and the sooner the better.

A few minutes later, Linsey arrived at the Artisan's Cottage.

It was afternoon, and Qiao Er was grinding some thin metal sheets in his studio. After Linsey entered the room, he practically ran back to continue his work.

Linsey waited for about fifteen minutes.

Seeing that Qiao Er had finished his work, he took out the Steel Ingot he had prepared. "Qiao Er, I brought some things over today, see if you can use them."

"What is this..." Qiao Er wiped his hands and walked closer. When he saw the materials Linsey had taken out, especially the Steel Ingot, the question he was about to ask got stuck in his throat. "Where did you get these Steel Ingot ingots?"

Qiao Er couldn't contain himself and snatched the Steel Ingot from Linsey's hand.

With his skills as an Awakened craftsman, Qiao Er could clearly discern the quality of these Steel Ingot. Their hardness and density were significantly superior to ordinary cast iron, and the proportions were almost perfect! But what was even more astonishing was...

These Steel Ingot are uniform in shape, and there are no traces of forging or casting visible on their surface.

Even with the most perfect tools.

It's impossible to make Steel Ingot that are so perfectly uniform and identical in shape, isn't it? This defies common sense! "It's unreasonable, impossible, how could such a thing exist?"

Qiao Er was baffled and could only look to Linsey, who had brought the Steel Ingot, for help. "Linsey, tell me quickly, what is this thing?"

Linsey explained with a smile, "It's a product of my skill."

Qiao Er's expression immediately relaxed:

"All right."

"Of course I can use these things. They can be used together with the materials you gave me last time to make... Wait, so those perfect Devil Beast materials you had last time, did you get them from this source?"

Linsey shrugged, acknowledging the fact.

Qiao Er looked at his friend in front of him, his eyes revealing a sense of helplessness, and he was even speechless.

In the end, all he could do was complain, "Once you leave this Hidden Borderlands, you'll eventually be taken in and kept by the master craftsman."

Linsey chuckled, recalling her previous commission.

The situation was different now than before, so he quickly explained to Qiao Er:

"By the way, Qiao Er, I've also upgraded my equipment. Take a look and adjust the production plan accordingly."

As she spoke, Linsey placed the equipment she had crafted on the table in the workshop.

Qiao Er picked them up one by one, examining them closely, and quickly recognized his own handiwork on these weapons. After all, he was the one who forged the foundation of these enhanced weapons.

Then, Qiao Er's gaze toward Linsey became even stranger.

This guy clearly has the ability to make such excellent equipment himself, yet he still insists on coming to me. Isn't he just joking with me?! Linsey also saw the meaning in Qiao Er's eyes.

Before the other person could speak, he preemptively explained:

"Qiao Er, don't misunderstand!"

"I only recently acquired this ability; I had absolutely no skill in crafting equipment before. And unlike you artisans, my ability only allows me to create simple things within the rules; I can't unleash the wondrous creativity of a true artisan!"

"..."

"It's as if I can do whatever I want."

Qiao Er muttered something under his breath, but he was still quite pleased with Linsey's praise and quickly accepted the explanation.

"Okay, okay."

Qiao Er accepted the Steel Ingot ingot and fiddled with the thin metal sheet on the table.

"In that case, we really should change the manufacturing plan. You definitely can't use ordinary weapons here."

Upon hearing the word "weapon," Linsey remembered one of the reasons she had come to the Artisan's Cottage, and casually said to Qiao Er, "Qiao Er, I would like to commission you to make something special."

Qiao Er immediately became interested.

He placed his hands on the table, a smile playing on his lips as he looked at Linsey.

"Something special? Tell me about it!"

Linsey then began to explain, using a combination of words and gestures:

"It is a Flintlock Device, mainly used to ignite a small amount of gunpowder by triggering a flint..."

As a craftsman, Qiao Er was happy to take on the challenge of making items.

After listening to Linsey's story, he stood there thinking for a while, then scribbled on the workboard before finally nodding and agreeing to the job, "It sounds a bit difficult, but I think I can do it."

"Linsey, how big do you want to make this?"

Linsey didn't intend to build a cannon, only a musket, so he gestured to indicate the size of his palm:

"About five or six centimeters, just leave enough space for the gun barrel and the wooden mop."

Qiao Er replied confidently, "Leave it to me. I can get you the finished product in about a week!"

Linsey smiled back, "Thank you for your help again this time."

The two chatted for a few more minutes, and Linsey even gave Qiao Er some of her own magnets.

He then bid farewell to the young craftsman and prepared to leave the hut.

But just as Linsey reached the front room and was about to open the door, she was stopped by someone.

The other party is Qiao Er's teacher, Iruier.

The robust old man blocked Linsey's way and pulled him into the living room, where the two sat down at the table.

After pouring Linsey a glass of hot water from the kettle, Iruier said, "Linsey, I know you and Qiao Er are close."

"Did you come to see him today just to ask him to make the item you just requested?"

Linsey nodded naturally:

"That's right, I just got some materials from the mine, so I came to ask Qiao Er for help."

"Young people should spend more time together and communicate more." Iruier first acknowledged the relationship between Linsey and Qiao Er, then changed her tone, "But Linsey, the town has changed a bit lately, you should know that, right?"

"..."

Okay, here it comes.

Upon hearing this opening line, Linsey knew that this was something she couldn't escape.

The Awakened Ones in the town, who were vaguely divided into two factions, began to persuade Qiao Er, led by his teacher Iruier.

The other party is, after all, an elder, and today we came to the Artisan's Cottage to ask for a favor from their student.

Linsey nodded frankly in response:

"That's right, I know all of that."

Seeing Linsey's frankness, Iruier stopped being subtle and went straight to the point:

"In that case, you should also have your own ideas."

"Which option do you think is better: finding a way to break through the Black Mountain or holding out in the town?"