Chapter 195: 195. Chapter 193: Lou Gao's Shock

195. Chapter 193: Lou Gao's Shock

Early the next morning, Li Xuan got up early.

Li Xuan thought that taking Lou Gao to Fentian Ge early would let Lou Gao adapt to the forging conditions there sooner, and also let him forge the Heaven-Shaking Cannon quickly, after all the Heaven-Shaking Cannon is the thing Li Xuan lives by.

But when Li Xuan stepped out of his house, he saw Lou Gao and two apprentices sitting around the open‑air camp outside, where blueprints covered everything; the three of them were drawing the blueprints while carving small wooden models, preparing to forge the Heaven-Shaking Cannon.

"Old Lou, Brother Sidi, Brother Si Yu, you three have been looking at the blueprints all night without sleeping!" Li Xuan said in amazement, looking at the three in front of him. He hadn't expected Lou Gao and the others to be so obsessed with making the Heaven-Shaking Cannon, studying the blueprints day and night after obtaining them.

Nevertheless, Li Xuan was very pleased; the harder Lou Gao and the others worked, the sooner he could obtain the Heaven-Shaking Cannon.

When they heard Li Xuan, the three turned their heads to look at him, each with deep dark circles under their eyes; it seemed they had truly toiled here all night yesterday.

"All three, take a rest. In a moment I'll arrange some food for you, then take you to Fentian Ge to see it; that's where the forging takes place," Li Xuan said, a bit helpless but earnestly nodding at the three.

"Alright, thanks for the effort, Xuan Ge'er!" Lou Gao said to Li Xuan without even raising his head.

Seeing the three obsessed with forging, Li Xuan shook his head helplessly, went to the temporary camp kitchen, took out some stored breakfast pastries, gave them a quick heat, and carried them out.

Sitting at the table, the three continued to contemplate what they had gleaned from the blueprints.

"Old Lou, is the blueprint difficult to make?" Li Xuan picked up a bun, handed it to Lou Gao, and asked puzzled.

Hearing Li Xuan, Lou Gao snapped back to attention, lifted his head and instinctively took the bun from Li Xuan's hand.

"The forging difficulty of this blueprint isn't high, but the principles and techniques involved are unusual; to master them we need a lot of time," Lou Gao explained to Li Xuan while eating the bun.

"Then to make one, how long would it take?" Li Xuan asked, frowning.

"Half a month is enough; a Hand Cannon needs a month, and a shell can be made in three days. As for materials, I have plenty here, more than enough. How many do you, Xuan Ge'er, want?" Lou Gao tilted his head slightly, began calculating the production speed, then lowered his head with a smile and asked Li Xuan.

"Of course I want one. A third‑tier Heaven-Shaking Hand Cannon can wound Soul Masters below level 60, and a fourth‑tier can even threaten beings of the Soul Saint Realm. With a Heaven-Shaking Cannon my safety would be greatly increased," Li Xuan said earnestly, looking at Lou Gao with longing.

"Alright, Sidi, Si Yu, set up the forging platform. We'll forge here while making a cannon for Xuan Ge'er!" Lou Gao shoved a few bites of bun into his mouth and said to Sidi and Si Yu.

"Got it, teacher!" Sidi and Si Yu replied in unison, then took items from their Soul Guide Devices and began preparing to build a furnace and forging platform.

"What are you doing? I've already arranged a forging site for you in Ladi Canyon, you don't need to build your own," Li Xuan hurriedly stopped Sidi and Si Yu.

"The forging room you built? Where is it?" Lou Gao asked, looking at Li Xuan with suspicion.

"It's inside Ladi Canyon. Come, I'll take you there now!" Li Xuan said, then led a carriage and pushed the three onto it.

After the three were seated securely, Li Xuan drove the carriage deeper into Ladi Canyon, heading straight for Fentian Ge.

The three in the carriage exchanged glances, their eyes full of distrust toward Li Xuan.

After all, they didn't think a kid like Li Xuan could have forging conditions better than those of the Blacksmith Guild.

So before coming here, they had even taken the forging equipment from the fifth floor of the Blacksmith Guild, intending to forge the Heaven-Shaking Cannon in Ladi Canyon.

A few hours later, the carriage finally stopped; before them stood the spectacular Fentian Twelve Pavilions and the Fentian Zhuge.

Feeling the carriage halt, Lou Gao pushed open its door, and as soon as it opened, he saw a scene one could never forget in a lifetime.

In front of him stood a majestic red pavilion soaring over a dozen meters high.

"Xuan Ge'er, where is this?" Lou Gao asked Li Xuan in disbelief.

"This is the forging site I arranged for you, called Fentian Ge, named after the earth‑fire that burns the heavens," Li Xuan jumped down from the carriage, smiling as he explained to Lou Gao.

"Is the entire building a forging room?" Si Yu stuck his head out, asking in shock.

"Not just this one; the twelve nearby auxiliary pavilions and the central main pavilion are also forging rooms," Li Xuan pointed to the other red pavilions in the distance, twelve of them surrounding the central Fentian Zhuge.

The Fentian Zhuge, compared to the regular Fentian Ge, is even more imposing and looks more majestic and domineering.

"Xuan Ge'er, I smell sulfur; is there vein fire here?" Lou Gao sniffed the air, his eyes suddenly brightening, then asked Li Xuan.

"Yes, each of these thirteen Fentian pavilions has its own vein eye, and the one in the main pavilion is the largest and most stable. It should be extremely beneficial for your forging, Old Lou," Li Xuan nodded with a smile, confirming the presence of vein fire.

"Great! I've been looking for a place with earth fire; those spots are all controlled by various factions. Now I've finally found earth fire, so many things can start being refined!" Lou Gao excitedly leapt from the carriage and walked toward Fentian Ge.

Vein fire is precious but not that hard to find; however, vein fire suitable for forging is scarce, and those used for forging are controlled by major powers. Though Lou Gao is the Blacksmith Guild's president, obtaining a vein fire eye is still not easy.

So after hearing Li Xuan, he was also extremely excited.

Li Xuan, seeing Lou Gao's demeanor, hurriedly chased after him.

Lou Gao arrived at the entrance of Fentian Ge, extended his hand and slowly pushed open its great doors.

As the doors opened, a familiar wave of heat surged forward.

"This is definitely vein fire! Its quality is superb, perfect for forging!" Lou Gao exclaimed, feeling the surrounding temperature, his smile growing broader.

Then Lou Gao stepped into the Fentian Zhuge, gazing at the massive loft, his eyes filled with yearning.

The Blacksmith Guild is already huge, but this place is even larger, as if it were custom‑built for blacksmiths—truly wonderful! "This furnace is made of fire‑spirit stone; the temperature of the vein fire must be extremely high, and many of my materials can now be processed," Lou Gao shouted, rushing out to get a close look at the fire‑spirit stone furnace.

Li Xuan hurried forward to block Lou Gao, fearing he might, in his excitement, sacrifice himself to the furnace.

"Haha, Xuan Ge'er, don't worry, I'm just feeling the furnace's temperature, I won't fall in," Lou Gao said with a laugh to Li Xuan.

"Below the furnace fire is the vein, filled with scalding magma; this isn't a joke," Li Xuan said irritably.

Lou Gao gave a forced laugh, saying nothing more.

"By the way, Old Lou, this is the pipe for Mysterious Pool heavy water; flip the switch to release it, though its output is low, so use it sparingly," Li Xuan said with a smile to Lou Gao.

"Mysterious Pool heavy water? That's a great thing!" Lou Gao was once again amazed by Li Xuan.

"Upstairs there are dedicated ore and metal storage rooms, a classic library, and a specialized laboratory, but I lack enough talent here and need your help, Old Lou, to recruit some," Li Xuan nodded at Lou Gao and said with a smile.

Nowadays Ladi Canyon is in ruins, its slaves only farm; the only respectable family is the Tao Family, which has become a common Soul Master Family.

Thus Li Xuan greatly lacks and craves talent.

"After I finish making the Heaven-Shaking Cannon, I'll recruit a batch of forging specialists for you. Right now it's impossible; the cannon's influence is too great to let any other faction know, otherwise it would be a disaster for you," Lou Gao nodded, then said solemnly to Li Xuan.

"Old Lou makes sense; we must be cautious in future developments," Li Xuan agreed, nodding. Lou Gao was right—the Heaven-Shaking Cannon's value is enormous; Li Xuan will never allow its forging method to be known, or the continent will suffer.

"Alright, Xuan Ge'er, you can go back now. I have plenty of materials, and with the vein fire I can forge you a fourth‑tier Heaven-Shaking Hand Cannon, which will make you safer," Lou Gao patted Li Xuan's shoulder and then began to see him off.

Li Xuan looked at Lou Gao's request and helplessly shook his head.

Now Lou Gao is like a child who just got a new toy, excited to play with this big toy immediately.

Li Xuan said nothing more, nodded, and turned to leave.

But at that moment, Li Xuan suddenly remembered something and hurriedly turned back to Lou Gao's side.

"By the way, Old Lou, I obtained a batch of ore in a special place. Do you think any of it is useful?" Li Xuan opened the space of the Palm Sky Bottle and tossed a dozen or so boxes filled with special ore onto the ground.

Lou Gao stared at the pile of large boxes before him, was momentarily stunned, but he didn't think Li Xuan could have obtained ore of very high quality.

After all, in Lou Gao's eyes, Li Xuan was just a child and a layman in forging, so even if he came across good ore, he wouldn't recognize it.

Although Lou Gao didn't have much hope, he still stepped forward and opened a box.

"Blood‑Mong Crystal Stone! Refined Blood Steel! Sharp Silver!"

Lou Gao hadn't known until he opened the box, and when he did, he was startled; the ore inside were treasures on the Douluo Continent that appear only once in a hundred years, and Lou Gao, shocked, called out the names of these ores.

Then Lou Gao opened the other boxes, each time startled, muttering all the names of the precious ores.

After all the boxes were opened, Lou Gao trembled with excitement, grabbed a piece of ore and kissed it, then clutched another piece of ore.

He looked somewhat abnormal.

"Old Lou, what's this…?" Li Xuan whispered to Si Yu.

After waiting a while, Si Yu still didn't answer Li Xuan. Li Xuan looked up and saw that Si Yu and Sidi were both staring at the ores with blood‑red eyes. He guessed Lou Gao must still be there; otherwise, they would probably end up like him.

"Are all forgers this crazy?" Li Xuan muttered, puzzled.

"Xuan Ge'er, do you know how valuable the ores you brought are? Many of these ores haven't appeared on the continent for tens of thousands of years!" Lou Gao, excited, came to Li Xuan's workshop, grabbed his hand, and said excitedly.

"Feel free to use these ores as you wish; no need to be polite, I don't need them anyway," Li Xuan shrugged and said with a smile to Lou Gao.

"Great! With these materials, I can forge my second life‑changing artifact!" Lou Gao said excitedly.

Li Xuan didn't disturb Lou Gao, and quietly sat down on the side.

After a while, Lou Gao calmed down and, with an embarrassed expression, came to Li Xuan's side.

"Xuan Ge'er, sorry about that. I lost my composure earlier," Lou Gao said with a smile to Li Xuan.

"It's fine, Old Lou. How long will it take to forge that Heaven‑Shaking Cannon I need?" Li Xuan thought for a moment and asked Lou Gao.

"With the aid of Earth Vein Fire, in about a month I can produce a fourth‑tier Heaven‑Shaking Hand Cannon. The ammunition will be made by those two, and their craftsmanship is sufficient," Lou Gao nodded.

"That's wonderful! Old Lou, I shall take my leave now; I wish you quick mastery of the Heaven‑Shaking Cannon," Li Xuan bowed respectfully to Lou Gao, then stepped out of Fentian Ge. Lou Gao didn't mind whether Li Xuan stayed or left, turned around, took the Blueprint, and continued researching with Sidi and Si Yu.

After leaving Fentian Ge, Li Xuan gave Lou Gao a carriage drawn by two century‑old soul‑beast horses, took another carriage himself, and rode straight to the temporary camp outside Ladi Canyon.

Having been wandering outside for several days, Li Xuan was very exhausted; now that everything was arranged, he could finally rest.

(End of Chapter)