Chapter 1388

In other words, Lin Cheng wasn't worried at all about this gunpowder rifle spreading, because he had already studied it extensively—and even possessed far stronger firearms!

The gunpowder rifles of Peroziqia could at most kill third-rank martial artists and below, but Lin Cheng's were beyond what he could even imagine!

If the gunpowder rifle crafted by the prodigy Lin Cheng were to be made, how powerful would it be? Could it kill fifth- or sixth-rank experts?

Even seventh-rank experts!!!

Come to think of it, that's actually possible!

Even the most advanced flintlock rifles still fall within the bounds of physics.

But Lin Cheng's thinking had already advanced into the realm of kinetic weapons, centuries ahead of flintlocks—so long as he could compress the full magical power of a seventh-rank magic crystal and achieve sufficient velocity, even a seventh-rank expert's aura shield or magic barrier could be shattered in an instant, killing the target instantly. A single point piercing the whole surface!

That's roughly the principle.

Pure flintlock rifles, even if firing bullets made of anti-magic materials, cannot match the initial velocity of kinetic weapons.

Simply put, even if flintlock rifles fired anti-magic bullets, their speed is too slow—so even if they possessed the theoretical power to kill seventh-rank experts, to those experts the bullets were meaningless if they couldn't hit.

As for mushroom bombs, seventh-rank experts truly cannot resist them.

Never mind how long it would take to reach that stage—whether the Dao of this world would even permit such development is another question.

Lin Cheng believed the appearance of flintlock rifles should coincide with the emergence of dwarf firelocks and goblin fireguns.

To some extent, the Dao of this world permits the existence of flintlocks, because the three are fundamentally similar—not merely that flintlocks are more accurate and stable by comparison.

Calling them improved versions of dwarf firelocks and goblin fireguns is entirely accurate.

When Lin Cheng saw that steam engines were impossible to realize, he knew this world was destined never to develop a technological civilization—so everything he told the head of the Huoerde Society was pure bluff.

Even if Peroziqia's flintlock rifles spread, Lin Cheng could instantly counter with kinetic weapons—magical crystal-powered kinetic guns with faster velocity, longer range, and greater power.

So long as it doesn't stray beyond the concept of magic, the Dao of this world won't interfere with him at all! As a well-behaved youth from the modern world, Lin Cheng's mind was brimming with countless advanced ideas.

Go ahead and play with technology—if you can invent something entirely new, I'll admit defeat.

To modern people who've crossed over, what so-called "new ideas" the people of this world come up with are nothing but outdated concepts they've already exhausted.

"Lin Cheng, don't you have some way to counter them? You said you have stronger firearms, right? Let me study one." Now that he understood, Huoerde, with a sly grin, began to flatter Lin Cheng obsequiously.

Lin Cheng remained unmoved and spoke bluntly.

"Yes, a spirit-grade firearm—if you can earn its recognition, I have no objection."

"Uh… then forget it." Holder still had that much self-awareness.

Even if Lin Cheng lent it to him, he had no ability to study a spirit-grade weapon.

He wasn't a freak like Lin Cheng—just last month he was an eighth-rank forge master on equal footing, yet now he was already a higher-grade quasi-ninth-rank forge master.

The most painful part… he was only 85 years old!

After the contest ended, Lin Cheng left as usual with his family, but Peroziqia was different—he was surrounded by Huoerde and the elders, who questioned him. If his ability to forge a rifle in the preliminary round had been luck, now it proved beyond doubt that he truly possessed the skill to forge such weapons—this was a genuine war machine!

A terrifying weapon of a new age!

Nothing like those flashy trinkets of the past.

No, to safeguard the empire's safety, they must consult Peroziqia!

Otherwise, when such rifles spread, they'd be powerless to resist them.

After stating their purpose, Huoerde and the elders received a smile from Peroziqia in reply: the principle of the flintlock rifle wasn't complicated—the trouble lay in the bullets, which were small, required engraved runes, and needed black powder loading.

This was true fine craftsmanship! A single mistake would render all prior effort useless.

Peroziqia didn't seem worried about the rifles spreading—even if they did, the rifle bodies were easy to forge, but the bullets couldn't be easily made by ordinary forge masters. A few might be produced, but mass production was nearly impossible.

After learning this, the elders and Huoerde agreed.

Producing a few might be feasible, but to supply an entire army would require tens of thousands of mid- to high-rank forge masters working continuously for years.

Even then, the forging speed and consumption rate of bullets could never sustain an army!

Without specially made bullets, the rifle was no better than a burning stick.

When Huoerde reached this point, he suddenly realized.

Had Lin Cheng anticipated this step in advance? That's why he was so unconcerned!

Lin Cheng had modern assembly lines to support automated bullet forging—even if enemies developed similar assembly lines, he wouldn't fear them at all.