Chapter 1386

He has absolutely no connection to those two old fellows in the Imperial Capital.

"Your Highness said we must demonstrate the power of the magic crystal internal-combustion engine for Your Majesty, using the Imperial Capital as the initial test. If the results are good, we'll promote it across the entire Empire."

The person… should arrive tomorrow.

Lin Cheng seemed somewhat pensive.

"This is a good thing. With your skill, this matter is definitely in the bag. When the time comes, your reputation will surely spread across the entire Empire, and your title as an eighth-tier Forgemaster will be fully justified." Guild Leader Huoerde looked utterly thrilled, as if the magic crystal internal-combustion engine were his own invention.

In his excitement, he still did not forget to warn Lin Cheng.

"Although this is a good thing, you must not get too involved in the affairs between the various Imperial Princes, or it will be hard to wrap things up later."

"I know. Serving the sovereign is like keeping company with a tiger—otherwise I wouldn't have come all the way to this remote border."

Lin Cheng, however, took a very open-minded view of this. If things really go south, I'll freaking grab my family and run.

Guild Leader Huoerde was left speechless.

Lin Cheng was being a bit dramatic here.

There was no helping it—shared topics, yes, but the age gap was too large, a generational divide; their way of viewing things and their capacity for understanding were com-pletely different.

"Mm, who are you more optimistic about—?" Huoerde asked.

"Does it even need saying? Definitely Pero Qiqiya."

"Mm, I also feel that Zhai Yuanba, this child…" Halfway through speaking, Huoerde suddenly realized what he had said.

Not bad.

Mm!

Guild Leader Huoerde turned his head, frowning in confusion as he looked at Lin Cheng. Why doesn't this match what's written in the script?

He forcibly swallowed back the words "not bad."

"Why don't you play by the script?"

Uh!

Guild Leader Huoerde being so open-minded about it truly startled Lin Cheng.

He helplessly revealed the truth.

"I do want to be optimistic about Zhai Yuanba, but his abilities and knowledge are ultimately still too green… Pero Qiqiya has talent, decent ability, and a rich reserve of knowledge. More importantly, he created a product that transcends the era!"

Lin Cheng's reminder made Huoerde suddenly recall Pero Qiqiya's work, and he exclaimed in astonishment.

"That gunpowder gun?"

Lin Cheng quickly glanced left and right, confirmed no one was paying attention to them, then leaned in close and quietly told Guild Leader Huoerde.

"I've forged similar weapons, even stronger guns! But I also discovered a fact: a gun like this gunpowder gun is equivalent to giving an ordinary person with no cultivation whatsoever the ability to instantly kill martial artists of the third tier and below!"

"This kind of weapon will inevitably change the situation of the continent; the entire continent's powers will face a reshuffling."

"On the battlefield, troop types other than heavy-armored soldiers will completely lose their advantage. If the aim is precise enough, then the sacrifice of heavy-armored soldiers is only a matter of time."

"The object of competition between nations will no longer be individual combat power, but whose forging skill is stronger, who can forge more powerful guns!"

"Martial artists will gradually lose their meaning. If one can rely on guns to kill enemies, why bother cultivating hard oneself?"

"What about you… Guild Leader Huoerde? If you could spend ten years forging a gun capable of killing a seventh-tier powerhouse, would you still spend close to a hundred years cultivating?"

"Exactly." Guild Leader Huoerde had been thoroughly shocked by Lin Cheng's words and had to admit that he would definitely do exactly that.

And Lin Cheng's words were not wrong either.

Such a weapon was simply a blessing for ordinary people!

Ordinary people cannot afford the various resources martial artists use for cultivation, but if they only need to buy a metal firearm, then by saving up some money, they could easily gain the ability to kill third-tier martial artists.

· ·······Seeking flowers····· ·····

If a child began training their physique and cultivating the martial path from a young age, it would still take at least five years to reach the level of a third-tier martial artist; those with extraordinary talent might do it in just three.

Comparing the time cost, the gap was simply enormous!

And there was also the issue of resources!

The resources needed to train a martial artist become an astronomical figure the further one goes, while forging such a weapon requires only a few jin of refined iron. Which is light and which is heavy is obvious at a glance.

If martial artists are suppressed and killed by firearms, it will mislead ordinary people into thinking martial artists are no match for firearms. Over time, the entire Empire's environment will change, the nation will change, and finally the entire continent will change!

"So Lin Cheng, you destroyed that gunpowder gun?" Huoerde's voice carried both fear and anticipation.

"No, I gave it back to Pero Qiqiya—it's his work! How to handle it is his business. I was merely giving you, Guild Leader, an example to explain why I think Pero Qiqiya has more talent than Zhai Yuanba."

He nearly could not restrain the urge to beat Lin Cheng to death.

So you freaking scared me here, using the people, the nation, even the continent as examples just to explain why you chose Pero Qiqiya?

Huoerde suddenly felt he could no longer keep up with the young man's way of thinking.

Getting old, getting old.

Wait!

Huoerde suddenly seemed to realize something, as if a light had just switched on in his head.

Who is Lin Cheng? A newly-advanced eighth-tier Forgemaster, and very young—even under 20, younger than Pero Qiqiya by a bit! To be continued.