Chapter 294 - 292: Sangtian and Forging

Chapter 294: Chapter 292: Sangtian and Forging

The next morning, Duane received a reply from the Count.

In the letter, Count Kais didn’t criticize him for being too rash. Instead, he highly praised Duane’s actions in defending his authority.

The Count also reassured Duane that he was already contacting numerous members of the Nobility to file a joint complaint, confident the King would not punish Black Forest Island over the incident.

The other half of the letter was an invitation for Duane to attend George and Fiona’s engagement ceremony at Sea Cliff Castle on the twenty-eighth of this month.

Count Kais also asked for Duane’s opinion on whether to use the ceremony to publicly announce his relationship with Natalia.

Duane, of course, had no objection. Being bound to the Kennedy Clan would increase his standing within the Kingdom.

As for the matter with the Holy Radiance Church Court, all Duane could do now was wait for news from the Silent Shore.

This also gave him the perfect opportunity to focus on rapidly improving his various skills.

His main focus this time was [Basic Forging].

The Black Iron Ore shipment from Marquis Sean would be arriving soon.

Although Yanger was skilled, he was just an ordinary person and lacked the stamina to continuously forge Black Iron.

And Ryo was still too young and lacked the technique.

All things considered, the only solution was for Duane to level up his own Forging Ability using his attribute panel and craft the weapons and equipment himself.

Speaking of which, his [Basic Forging] Skill Level had already reached Skilled (208/300). He was only a few weapons away from reaching Master Level.

Once he reached the Master Level, Duane’s smithing skills would likely surpass Yanger’s.

Of course, Duane had other matters to attend to in the meantime.

For example, he needed to continue making Level 1 Spell Scrolls and Magic Potions, as well as work on planting the Starlight Mulberry Trees.

The farmer, Barry, pointed to a one-mu field ahead and said, "My Lord, this is the Sang Field the Agricultural Officer and I selected. It has been tilled and sun-dried, just as you ordered."

Duane nodded.

Haien had sprained his ankle after being pushed by men from the Holy Radiance Church Court, so Duane had to come inspect the field alone today.

He walked into the field and picked up a handful of soil, crumbling it in his hand.

Although the sun-drying had been effective, he still shook his head, dissatisfied with how deeply the ground had been tilled.

"I told you to till it deep. This isn’t deep enough."

The current depth was only about thirty centimeters.

This would have been sufficient for ordinary mulberry trees, but this plot was for cultivating Starlight Mulberry Trees. It was Black Forest Island’s first experimental field, so he naturally had to eliminate any factors that might affect the final result.

Duane wasn’t intentionally reprimanding him; he was simply stating a fact.

But this plain statement made Barry drop to his knees in fear.

"My Lord, I was wrong, My Lord! Please give me another chance!"

The few farmers behind him also knelt down one after another.

The great battle outside the Medical Sanctuary a few days ago had already become common knowledge on Black Forest Island. The criminals at Judgment Crossroad and the people driven to the Southen Plain to cultivate the land had become topics of conversation among the populace after their meals.

In their eyes, although their Lord loved his people, his authority was inviolable.

Simply put, if the Lord forbade something, you absolutely could not do it.

Defying the Lord’s will meant either death or exile to the wastelands.

Now, hearing Duane’s words of criticism, Barry felt as if his world was collapsing and could only kneel and beg for forgiveness.

This scene, however, left Duane feeling bewildered. ’When did I become so terrifying?’

"I’m just discussing the condition of the Sang Field with you. There’s no need to be so nervous. Get up and speak!"

Barry and the others meekly stood up. "My Lord, we will do our best to re-till this field properly today or tomorrow!"

Duane nodded. "It would be best to till it twice as deep as it is now. That will make it easier to apply fertilizer."

Next, he walked a circle around the one-mu Sang Field.

He had to admit, Haien had a good eye.

The area wasn’t shaded by mountains and received ample sunlight.

A stream also flowed past the edge of the Sang Field, so irrigation during dry seasons wouldn’t be an issue.

"After you’ve re-tilled the field, go to Ralph and collect 40 jin of Fertile Soil. Mix it with fertilizer, apply it to the Sang Field, then build up the ridges in preparation for planting the mulberry saplings."

Black Forest Island was rainy, especially during the wet season, when it could rain for a month straight.

Without ridges, water could easily accumulate and cause the mulberry trees’ roots to rot.

The island’s residents had experience with this and understood with a brief explanation.

"Mulberry trees for raising silkworms must be planted systematically, not messily like the ones in your family’s Sang Field, Barry."

Duane continued, "The rows of mulberry trees must be two meters apart, and within each row, the trees should be spaced one meter apart."

"Also, every winter, you must prune the mulberry trees, leaving only about half a meter of the main trunk."

He couldn’t help but smile, thinking of the mulberry trees at Barry’s home, which were several meters tall with an abundance of branches.

Those were suitable for producing fruit, but not so much for raising silkworms.

Barry was practically straining his ears to listen. They had to remember this crucial information, or it would be troublesome to correct their mistakes later.

After his inspection, they all stood at the edge of the Sang Field as Duane gave his final instructions.

"This one-mu Sang Field is a special project for Black Forest Island. I will be using Fertile Soil and a Magic Liquid mixed with Basic Water Energy Essence for fertilization."

The men looked puzzled. They had never heard of such fertilizer ingredients, and from the names alone, they knew they must be expensive.

Barry asked hesitantly, "My Lord, will a Mage be responsible for applying these special fertilizers?"

Duane shook his head. "What Mage would do this kind of work? Applying fertilizer is naturally a job for you."

Hearing this, Barry and the others grew heavy-hearted, their faces showing their distress.

If they wasted such precious materials and the Lord became displeased, being exiled to cultivate the Southen Plain would be a light punishment.

Duane saw their concerns and smiled. "I will be here to personally guide you when you plant the mulberry saplings and apply the fertilizer. You don’t have to worry about messing it up."

Barry was incredulous. "You’re going to work in the fields?"

He quickly said, "That’s out of the question! Your willingness to guide us is already a tremendous gift. How could we dare let you do such a thing!"

In their minds, the Nobility were born to enjoy life’s pleasures. If they worked, it was on great matters, not toiling in the fields.

Duane didn’t bother explaining.

He no longer had to hide it when he did things unbefitting of a noble, nor did he care if others said he didn’t act like one.

His strength spoke for itself.

He suspected that if people found out he was working in the fields, they wouldn’t gossip but would instead praise him for sharing in the joys and sorrows of his people.

Duane encouraged them, "Once the Starlight Mulberry Trees are successfully cultivated, you will be the heroes of Black Forest Island. I guarantee your names will be among the wealthy on this island in the future!"

This wasn’t just him making empty promises.

With the Time Closet, Duane wouldn’t have to worry about finding buyers for the Magic Silk produced by the Nebula Silkworms.

This industry was bound to expand and become a defining feature of Black Forest Island.

As the first cultivators of the Starlight Mulberry Trees and raisers of the Nebula Silkworms, these people would have opportunities and experience that others lacked. As long as they worked hard and with care, their future rewards were assured.

After hearing this, Barry and the others repeatedly promised to do their utmost to manage the Sang Field well.

They hadn’t yet grasped the future benefits; they only sought to complete the task perfectly and avoid punishment.

After inspecting the Sang Field, Duane had someone notify Ralph to gather all the Basic Water Soul Ore.

When it was time to plant the mulberry saplings, he would need to perform Extraction on these ores beforehand to obtain Basic Water Energy Essence, which he would then mix into a Magic Liquid for fertilization and irrigation.

This was the complete process for cultivating Starlight Mulberry Trees.

’I wonder how many rounds of fertilization, irrigation, and pruning it will take to produce mulberry leaves with trace amounts of Magic Power?’

Fortunately, Duane hadn’t yet obtained the blueprints and method for building a "Magic Flow Magic Array," so there was no rush to cultivate the Starlight Mulberry Trees.

After arranging these matters, Duane summoned his warhorse and headed straight for the Blacksmith Shop at the quarry.

The iron ore was now prioritized for the residents’ consumption and was not sold externally. The stockpiled ore had piled up like a small mountain, and the current workforce was not enough to process it all.

However, unlike food, it didn’t spoil easily, so long-term stockpiling wouldn’t affect the smelting results.

Duane’s arrival was like having a manager personally oversee the work; the number of farm tools produced by the Blacksmith Shop increased significantly.

He wasn’t focused on that, however.

Duane threw himself wholeheartedly into smithing. Crafting three to five simple farm tools in a day or a Big Ring Saber in two days was no problem at all.

During this time, Yanger inspected the items Duane forged on more than one occasion.

And more than once, he marveled at his Lord’s ability to learn.

Such exquisite craftsmanship had already completely surpassed his own level!

Duane’s outstanding performance also motivated the young Blacksmith, Ryo.

The boy had come to see the Lord as his idol. When the Lord woke up, he woke up. When the Lord went to sleep, he went to sleep.

Duane was happy to see this, as smithing required a high degree of physical coordination and strength training.

With Ryo’s talent and such diligent effort, his future achievements were bound to be extraordinary.

The high-intensity smithing caused his [Basic Forging] Skill Level to rise quickly.

By the third day, this skill’s Skill Level had reached Master Level.

On the twelfth day, after Duane finished quenching a "Tang Blade" he had forged...

[Congratulations, your Basic Forging Skill Level has reached Perfection. Attribute Points +0.5]

[Your Perfection Level Basic Forging has granted you an Enlightenment. You have obtained: Blazing Fire Forging Skill, Blood-Forged Contract, and Resonating Vein Forging. Attribute Points +3]