Blast Furnace

Jiang Chuan was flustered by Annie. He never expected Annie to be the catalyst for his arrival in this world.

Jiang Chuan calmed himself and said, "Annie, do you remember how you went to Earth?"

Annie hugged Tibbers tightly and said, "I was playing in the forest, and a purple hole suddenly appeared. I went in, and then I was on Earth. How do you know about Earth?"

Jiang Chuan decided to check out the purple hole Annie mentioned.

Jiang Chuan sat cross-legged on the ground and smiled as he spoke to Annie, "Because I'm from Earth. I was the one who took you to the police station that night."

Annie's mouth widened in surprise. "You're that big brother? Didn't you die? Grandma and Grandpa thought you were dead. They were so sad."

Jiang Chuan lowered his head helplessly and said faintly, "You've been on Earth for a while, so you should know the word 'transmigration.' I used to think I had simply arrived in a game world, but now I'm afraid things aren't as simple as I thought. After arriving in this world, everything was largely consistent with what I knew, but sometimes I feel like things aren't as they appear on the surface."

Annie looked at Jiang Chuan and asked, "Then where are we now?"

Jiang Chuan stood up and said to Annie, "Bilgewater, a city far from Noxus."

Annie lowered her head and hugged Tibbers. "Brother, I want to go home. I don't like it here."

Jiang Chuan asked doubtfully, "You want to go back to Noxus?"

Annie shook her head. "I want to go back to Grandma and Grandpa's place. I don't have any friends to play with in this world. On Earth, there were many children who played with me."

Jiang Chuan frowned. "Wouldn't they fight you for Tibbers?"

Annie shook her head. "No, they said Tibbers was too ugly. My magic seemed to be ineffective on Earth; I couldn't use it."

Jiang Chuan crouched down and looked at Annie. "After you returned to Earth, you learned how to use a computer. I'll summon you often, and you can help me solve many problems. Now, I'll send you back. We can't let Grandma and Grandpa worry."

Annie waved her little hand at Jiang Chuan and returned to Earth in a beam of light.

After sending Annie back to Earth, Jiang Chuan stared at the sky, unable to calm down for a long time. According to Annie, she went to Earth after entering a purple hole in the forest. That hole was likely a passage to the Void. Annie's safe exit from that passage and arrival on Earth was already a stroke of immense luck! If it were Jiang Chuan, he would probably have died encountering some unknown Void creature halfway.

"The Void? The Void must be related to the method of returning home, but the Void is vast and boundless, with countless dangers. And that passage might not even be the Void. It seems I need to speed up my plans!"

Jiang Chuan found Laurie and said, "Starting tomorrow, you'll manage the island and the casino. I want to see city walls and a castle within two months. Increase the manpower at the construction site. If it's not enough, recruit from outside. Also, offer a large sum to recruit blacksmiths from Bilgewater; I have important uses for them. I'll leave all this to you. Additionally, select a hundred loyal people from the eight hundred. Give me a list once it's done. You've worked hard these past few days. Your monthly salary will be increased to two Gold Coins from now on."

Laurie pondered for a moment and said, "Guild Master, manpower isn't a problem, but blacksmiths are a bit tricky. In Bilgewater, blacksmiths are a rare profession. This place is full of thugs and criminals. It's easier to find a lunatic than a blacksmith."

Jiang Chuan thought for a moment and said, "I just need them to be able to swing a hammer and complete my tasks."

Laurie smiled. "That makes things much easier. I guarantee the task will be completed, Guild Master!"

Jiang Chuan patted Laurie on the shoulder and walked to Master Nuo's blacksmith shop. Jiang Chuan said to Master Nuo, "There's been a slight issue with the mages. The plan for large-scale steel refining will have to be put on hold for now."

Master Nuo shook his head and smiled. "Actually, it's not impossible to achieve such high temperatures without mages."

Jiang Chuan asked doubtfully, "What method?"

Nova said, "I once knew an alchemist who claimed he could make ore burn, with a temperature hot enough to destroy anything. I don't remember the specifics, but I can take you to him."

Jiang Chuan lowered his head in thought and muttered, "Ore burning, ore?"

A word flashed in Jiang Chuan's mind: "Sulfur!"

Minerals like sulfur and phosphorus undergo chemical reactions when oxidized, generating high temperatures sufficient to refine pig iron and ore into molten steel.

Jiang Chuan slapped his own head. "My teacher was right, master math and science and you'll fear nothing anywhere."

Having found a solution, Jiang Chuan went to the blast furnace. Following the method from memory, he gathered materials and placed them into the furnace. After the chemical reaction began, Jiang Chuan could clearly feel the temperature inside the furnace rising. Soon, the scrap iron and ore turned into molten steel. Jiang Chuan operated the machine to pour the molten steel into another furnace for further refining to remove impurities, before pouring the molten steel into molds for casting.

Looking at the towering blast furnace and feeling the scorching heat, Nova finally believed Jiang Chuan's words. The steel produced by this blast furnace at one time was enough for them to forge for several months!

Jiang Chuan cooled the molds and took out the steel ingots. The steel gleamed with a dark luster, showcasing the beauty of industrial art. Nova took the steel ingot and examined it carefully.

"Not bad, this steel has reached the level of our hand-forged steel. The daily output of this blast furnace is astonishingly high!"

Jiang Chuan smiled, "With this, we can build very fast ships and more precise machines!"

Nova asked, "When will we start building the kind of ships you mentioned?"

Jiang Chuan said calmly, "Building a ship is not easy. What we need now is to build steam engines in a factory, not build ships. Only when our technology for manufacturing steam engines matures can we use steam engines on ships. Moreover, we still have many steam engine orders in Demacia."

Nova frowned, "Aren't you afraid they'll learn your technology and you'll lose business?"

Jiang Chuan laughed, "It's just a small steam engine. If they want to learn it, let them. To me, these are just things that will soon be obsolete."

Nova frowned, "Obsolete? We just started making them not long ago."

Jiang Chuan said lightly, "I'm not saying obsolete now, but obsolete in the future. This machine would be considered a child's toy by the scientists in Piltover. What we need is not the steam engine itself, but the money earned from the steam engine."

Jiang Chuan's only goal was to go home; he didn't place too much importance on these things.

Jiang Chuan patted Nova's shoulder and smiled, "Don't worry. You'll work for me from now on, earning two gold coins a month, just like Laurie. The machine is also completed, and you need to rest well."

After sending Nova to rest, Jiang Chuan began to consider his future plans. Currently, Bilgewater is rife with gangs, the largest being led by Gangplank. Jiang Chuan needs to deal with him before Miss Fortune does. He plans to establish an elite squad with those hundred people, equipped not with current gear, but with modern weapons!

After explaining the operation method of the blast furnace to Edmund, Jiang Chuan returned to his office. He still had to teach Kelly and the others in the evening!