Boil Some Gel First

After lunch, the rain lessened slightly, and Frederick rode in a carriage to the blacksmith shop.

The carriage, which had just had bearings installed this morning, sped along and was soon outside the city.

When Frederick was three years old, he fell "splat" into a puddle on the road. His father immediately ordered that all the city's sewers be regularly cleaned and cleared. Now, there wasn't much standing water on the roads, so there was no fear of splashing pedestrians.

The blacksmith shop was bustling as usual; the "clang, clang, clang" of hammering iron could be heard from afar.

The regular blacksmiths would forge the heated wrought iron bars and then use a mold to shape them into cylinders. These were then cut into sections. Next, Bryant and several skilled blacksmiths would hammer the wrought iron bars into discs in a mold. Finally, a special tool was used in another mold to perform the ring-punching process. This completed the rough inner or outer ring blank for a bearing, which would then be taken to the Hydraulic Lathe to have the groove machined.

On the other side, thin wrought iron bars were also forged and cut into sections. While hot, they were placed between two molds and hammered into beads. At this point, the beads had an edge, and some weren't perfectly round. They would be taken later to the grinding wheel powered by a waterwheel to be rolled and ground into shape.

Frederick watched for a while before Aumert, having received the notification, hurried over.

After asking about the current bearing production situation, the lord inquired, "Yesterday, you mentioned that the Golem Puppet could be covered with a layer of skin like a human's? Can you tell me how it's done?"

Last night, Psyche had said that Aumert had mentioned something that interested her. Frederick had thought for a long time, and the only thing he could think of was the simulated skin for artificial puppets.

He had a feeling this material was what he needed.

"That's simple," Aumert said easily. "You just chop up Crystal Slime, remove the insides, put the 'meat' in a pot, add some water to cover it, put on the lid, seal it with some wet mud, and let it simmer for a while until the steam pushes the lid open. You'll get a batter-like paste in the pot."

"Scoop out this paste, then cook it in the pot again until the water dries up. When it becomes sticky like snot, it's done. Let it cool, and it'll be a soft gel like skin."

"To make skin for a Golem Puppet, you just need to heat it in a pot to melt it, add some dye, pour it into a mold, and let it cool."

"This gel isn't afraid of water. Look, I even applied a layer to my boots, so I'm not afraid of getting my feet wet walking in the rain. A layer on a cloak also makes it waterproof."

Saying this, he bent his foot and pointed to his shoes.

Frederick's mouth fell open in surprise. Could this stuff replace rubber or plastic?!

"Where is this gel now?" he asked urgently. "Quick, let me see it!"

Seeing his excitement, Aumert's heart stirred. He bent down and asked in a low voice, "Headmaster, is this very profitable?"

Now, the scholars at Weissenburg University had all caught the "money-oriented" bug, and he was naturally no exception.

Frederick nodded slightly.

"Let's go!" Aumert instantly became excited when he heard it could make money. "Basf is boiling the gel over there."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a loud "bang" came from the other side of the blacksmith shop.

Basf was Aumert's student, in his early twenties. Years ago, he had been walking at night, stepped on a Slime, slipped, and fallen into the river, becoming the school's laughingstock. Since then, his hobby had been creatively experimenting with Slimes.

Frederick came to the other side of the blacksmith shop. Along the wall, there was a long row of sheds with tables, chairs, and stoves. This was where things were cooked and eaten, and it was currently being used to boil Slimes.

Basf was boiling the chopped-up transparent Slimes in a cloth bag. When the lid of the homemade Pressure Cooker flew off, a lot of water splashed out. The Slime meat residue and paste remained in the bag, and the Slime paste could be squeezed out directly.

Frederick's eyes narrowed slightly, thinking that many people had boiled or burned Slimes, but none had encountered this situation. He guessed that some component had reacted with water when the temperature exceeded the boiling point of water and the pressure increased.

Basf greeted the Headmaster and then continued with his work.

The remaining water in the pot was poured into the grass outside the shed. The Slime paste was squeezed into the pot, and the meat residue was thrown into the grass. The paste quickly boiled dry in the pot and gradually turned into Slime Gel.

Several cloaks hung on the wall; Frederick didn't know whose they were. Basf used a brush to apply the hot Slime Gel from the pot onto the cloaks. After cooling, it formed a waterproof film.

Frederick thought for a moment, found a piece of iron plate, and had Basf brush a layer of Slime Gel onto it. After it cooled, he peeled it off.

This piece of Slime Gel was about 1 millimeter thick, transparent and colorless. He squeezed and pulled it; the strength was good, but there wasn't much elasticity.

"The elasticity isn't quite right?" Frederick asked. "It's a bit hard to use as skin, isn't it?"

Aumert immediately replied, "When making skin, you need to add some pigment, and there will be some changes during the process."

Basf also said, "Adding different pigments or materials will make these gels softer, harder, or more elastic."

Frederick said "Oh" and continued to pull at the Slime Gel in his hand. It took some effort to break it.

"Is it poisonous?" he asked the question he was most concerned about.

"It's not poisonous," Basf replied with a smile. "Before, I peeled off a small piece from a cooled pot and threw it on the ground. A dog ate it, and it came out the same way it went in."

"Can it burn?" Frederick asked again.

At this, he paused, laughed awkwardly, and threw a small piece of Slime Gel into the fire of the stove.

The Slime Gel melted immediately upon falling onto the firewood, and then a large number of bubbles appeared; it seemed to be boiling, but no flames appeared.

Frederick heated the tongs used for picking up firewood over the fire, then folded the remaining piece of Slime Gel in his hand and clamped it with the heated tongs.

The high temperature of the tongs melted the Slime Gel, which solidified after cooling. The upper and lower pieces clamped by the tongs melted together.

He pulled hard; it was quite firm.

Frederick nodded, sat down on a chair where the blacksmiths ate, and began to think about how to use this material.

If the Slime Gel could meet the requirements, rain gear, waterproof shoes, tents, plastic bags, and soft packaging for canned goods could all be made. Even the parenting essential – coat hangers – would not be a problem.

If a craftsman wants to do his work well, he must first sharpen his tools.

Leaving aside other things, at least this homemade Pressure Cooker had to be replaced.

Producing proper Pressure Cookers wasn't a big issue; the prerequisite skill for their appearance was the relationship between air pressure and boiling point.

The seal between the lid and the pot was originally a problem, but now it seemed that Slime Gel could be used as a seal ring, so this problem was no longer significant.

When Frederick came back to his senses, he found that Aumert and Basf had already placed Parchment, Quill Pens, Ink Bottles, and drawing tools on the table, just waiting for him to once again create the miracle of "golden houses in Parchment."

"Basf."

"Here!"

As soon as Frederick called his name, Basf stood ramrod straight and answered like a soldier.

"Make me one of each type of Slime Gel," Frederick instructed him. "As fast as possible."

Basf immediately replied, "Yes, sir!"

Aumert, standing nearby, said to Frederick with a smile, "He was planning to get married, but now he's worried about money. Naturally, he won't miss an opportunity to earn some."

Frederick also laughed and said, "Knowledge is gold coins."

Then he started drawing on the Parchment.

The body and lid of the Pressure Cooker weren't difficult; they could be cast and then forged a bit to make them usable.

There were two ear buckles on the pot body that would latch onto the crossbeam on the lid during operation. Rotating the screw rod in the middle of the crossbeam would press the lid down. A Slime Gel sealing ring was between the lid and the pot body, and the exhaust valve, weight, and safety valve on the lid weren't much of a problem either.

Then Frederick once again focused on machining the threads of the screw rod.