novelraw Chapter 188: Alchemical Industry
Chapter 188: Alchemical Industry
Convergence Lands, Sulfur Hills
High-temperature steam rolled through the hills and ravines, making this area unlike other cold-dominated regions of the Convergence Lands - it was even somewhat sweltering. At this moment, the red dragon Samantha's crimson scales were covered in black soot as she focused intently.
She used her foreclaws to grip a piece of red-hot refined steel ingot and shoved it into the alchemical furnace, then breathed a dragon's breath to ignite the furnace fire. When the ingot completely melted into flowing molten metal, she swung her tail, its tip precisely hooking a mold. Immediately after, the magma-like steel poured in, solidifying into a rough breastplate with scale-like patterns in the mold.
Samantha pressed the cooling breastplate with her foreclaws while her tail coiled around a diamond hammer to begin forging.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Each strike sent out sparks like shooting stars.
The red dragon's face showed pleasure as she vented her draconic power.
She initially hated forging, finding it troublesome and tedious, but as she gradually grew accustomed, she actually began finding enjoyment in it. Like the current forging - each recoil made her muscles tingle and her scales tremble, almost impossible to stop. The use of strength brought instinctive pleasure to the red dragon.
When the breastplate began showing curvature, Samantha sprayed a cone of dragon's breath. As the high temperature softened the steel edges, she seized the moment to pick up pre-made spike components with her tail tip, then fused them onto the shoulder armor like sewing, proceeding through welding, quenching, polishing and other processes one by one.
Under Garoth's guidance, Samantha had been exposed to alchemy very early. Now with ten years of alchemical experience, her armor forging process wasn't exactly elegant but could be considered proficient and efficient. For alchemists, personally crafting items was the best way to gain experience and level up quickly.Additionally, fire played an extremely important role in alchemy. A red dragon's breath was no ordinary flame, ranking among the top of alchemical exotic fires. Red dragons actually had very broad prospects as alchemists. Often, alchemists seeking to improve their creations' quality would find ways to make contracts with red dragons, paying certain prices to specially request their forging assistance.
When the final process arrived, the red dragon suddenly spread her wings, their membrane shadows enveloping the armor: "Watch, fools! The great Red Dragon Queen is about to complete another masterpiece!" The surrounding fire lizards, giant fire ants and other minions all prostrated reflexively.
Dragonfire ignited on the red dragon's claws, transforming into Flame Claws. Sizzle sizzle—the Flame Claws swept across the breastplate, leaving behind orderly yet intricate and complex runes, performing the most crucial alchemical enchantment and reinforcement.
After nearly half an hour, the scattered runes became an integrated network. "Finished!" The red dragon left a claw mark as her signature seal, then retracted her claws. Panting heavily, she collapsed by the magma pool, smoke rising from between her scales—this three-hour forging had consumed nearly half her dragon's breath, leaving her exhausted.
Just then, shadows suddenly covered the Sulfur Hills. The red iron dragon flapped his wings to disperse the steam, landing before Samantha. "When did you get here?" Samantha propped herself up, proudly lifting the rune armor with her tail: "Look! My latest creation—it's worth at least a thousand gold coins!"
"I watched the latter half of your forging." Garoth nodded slightly, giving it a cursory glance: "Good armor." But probably not worth a thousand gold... he mentally added without voicing it aloud.
The alchemical industries of various nations on planet Bernardo were highly developed, even somewhat excessive—even wilderness goblin tribes could obtain mining golems, albeit outdated models, but genuine alchemical golems nonetheless. In places with underdeveloped alchemy, a rune war armor could easily fetch thousands of gold. But here? Difficult. Moreover, Samantha's rune armor wasn't particularly advanced—just mass-produced goods made from blueprints. She hadn't reached the level of independently designing and creating high-level alchemical items.
"How many similar armors could you make in a day?" Garoth asked. He spent most time in Dragon Valley, rarely visiting Sulfur Hills. Today while practicing flight techniques, he suddenly decided to check the situation and ended up watching Samantha's forging process for a while.
"About three sets." The process required her full attention and personal involvement throughout—time-consuming and laborious. "What about other alchemists in training?" Garoth remembered many promising, intelligent followers within the Molten Iron Clan with alchemical potential had been sent to Sulfur Hills for concentrated alchemy study while assisting Samantha.
"Too low-level. None can produce complete armor from start to finish like me—at best some shoddy weapons." Samantha waved a claw dismissively. The Molten Iron Clan's plan to cultivate alchemists and develop alchemical industry had just begun—current alchemists besides Samantha were barely useful, only qualifying as alchemical apprentices.
But they shouldn't be completely useless. After some thought, Garoth said: "Sulfur Hills' alchemical apprentices and other followers could all participate in alchemical creation." The red dragon snorted out a few dying sparks. "With that trash? No way—they'd just waste materials." She said disdainfully. Materials weren't ready wealth, but through alchemy could transform into valuable creations—Samantha didn't want them wasted needlessly.
Seeing her reaction, Garoth pondered a few seconds before saying slowly: "Samantha, have you seen ants moving house?" Samantha nodded. As a juvenile she enjoyed playing with ants—of course she'd witnessed ant migrations. She liked giving ants oversized food they couldn't carry, then taking it away before the poor ants returned with reinforcements—repeating this to enjoy manipulating weaker creatures' fates.
"Each ant carries just a small piece." The red iron dragon continued unhurriedly: "Yet ultimately they empty entire food sources far exceeding their individual sizes." The red dragon scratched her head irritably, not getting it. Seeing this, Garoth realized the red dragon's intellect wasn't online currently—he needed to tell her directly rather than use metaphors.
"Gnolls operate bellows, ogres take turns hammering, kobolds assemble components, alchemical apprentices carve basic runes. In short—break the complete forging process into different steps, delegate simple steps to other followers, while you skip tedious parts to focus only on core crucial tasks." Garoth elaborated further.
Opposite him, red dragon Samantha showed thoughtful comprehension. Imagining it, this would indeed let her complete alchemical creations more efficiently—plus core steps provided more experience, aiding her alchemical level advancement. "Why didn't I think of that?" Samantha wagged her tail happily: "Garoth, as expected of my brother—coming up with such a brilliant idea."
Garoth nodded slightly without replying. Assembly line concepts were surely mature on Bernardo already—just that alchemy developed too rapidly, and red dragon heritage lacked specific descriptions, leaving them conceptually deficient. As the saying goes—one insight opens boundless horizons. Those once-perplexing problems often become simple upon inspiration—like complex locks needing only correctly-oriented keys.
With assembly line concepts, Sulfur Hills' output would undoubtedly improve. Strength was crucial—dragons needed resources for rapid growth. Various high-energy supplements, growth serums, vitality potions etc. also appeared on merchant lists at steep prices. For Dragon Valley's further development and resource acquisition, alchemical industry was essential.
The Molten Iron Clan lacked effective output—current external trade mainly involved selling various raw mining materials. Untapped wealth like gray magnetite and obsidian mines continuously flowed out via caravans, exchanged at heartbreakingly low prices for expensive medicines, spices, black oil and other goods.