Too many female prisoners, a special forces soldier transmigrates and marries wildly.

The No. 7 blast furnace, the largest smelting furnace in the Yanshan mine, was like a dormant, sick beast, emitting faint wisps of smoke in the cold wind.

Lin Feng, along with Xu Tiande and ten personal guards, approached the colossal structure. None of the artisans who should have been busy around the furnace were there; only a few guards, clutching their spears, huddled in sheltered spots as if they hadn't woken up yet.

"Who goes there?!" A man who looked like the head guard woke up with a start and hurriedly got up to shout, but his eyes darted around and he didn't dare to look directly at Lin Feng and the others.

"Commander Lin Feng, on imperial orders, investigate the case!" Xu Tiande's voice boomed. "Ordered to inspect the mine, immediately check Unit 7 of the C-type mine! Make way!"

The guard captain's expression changed. Instead of yielding, he led his men forward, his hand on his sword hilt, and said with a fierce but weak voice, "Sir! This...this No. 7 furnace had an accident a few days ago. The furnace temperature hasn't cooled down yet, it's extremely dangerous! The mine has orders that no one is allowed to approach! If we lose the refined iron, we can't bear the responsibility!"

"Anyone who blocks my way will be considered a traitor!" Lin Feng's voice was not loud, but it pierced the heart of the guard leader like an ice pick.

Without another word, he spurred his horse, and with a long neigh, the warhorse charged straight toward the furnace base!

"Stop him!" The guard leader was anxious, and several guards gritted their teeth and thrust their guns.

Xu Tiande roared in fury, "You're asking for death!" He spurred his horse forward, his towering body sending two guards flying, guns and all. His personal guards drew their swords and, in the blink of an eye, subdued the easily defeated guards and bound them tightly.

Lin Feng had arrived at the furnace. The huge furnace door was tightly closed, and an eerie dark red light shone through the cracks. Instead of the scorching heat of ordinary smelting, it exuded a chilling aura.

"Something's not right," Lin Feng said in a deep voice. "This furnace temperature isn't suitable for smelting iron."

Ordinary iron-smelting furnaces are scorching hot and should be avoided. This furnace, however, was only lukewarm, but the vibrations and dark red glow clearly indicated that the fire was not yet extinguished.

Moreover, there are subtle signs of alteration to the furnace structure—several key ventilation openings have been sealed off, while in some previously unseen areas, large, bellows-like connecting pipes have been installed, now deeply buried underground.

"Search!" Lin Feng shouted in a low voice, and found a side door first, slipping inside.

The scene inside the furnace made even Xu Tiande, who was used to seeing bloodshed, gasp in shock!

The inside of the furnace chamber was no longer what it used to be for smelting refined iron. The furnace chamber, which should have been used to hold iron ore, had been hollowed out and filled with countless pipes and metal components of varying sizes, haphazardly welded and installed, resembling the internal organs of a ferocious mechanical monster.

This is definitely not a furnace for smelting iron! This is... modifying the furnace itself!

"Damn it! What are they trying to refine with this awful furnace?" Xu Tiande was furious.

Just then, from deep within the furnace cavity, in an area separated by a temporary partition, came a piercing scream!

"There are still living people!" Lin Feng's eyes sharpened, and he rushed over.

Behind the partition, an old craftsman dressed in tattered work clothes, his face covered in cigarette ash, was tied to a chair, a dagger stuck in his chest, blood gushing out! Clearly, someone had already taken action to silence him and Xu Tiande before they entered!

The old craftsman, barely breathing, saw Lin Feng's official robes, and a final glimmer of light appeared in his cloudy eyes: "Sir...Sir...run..."

Lin Feng was shocked and leaned down to ask urgently, "Who gave you permission to modify the furnace?!"

The old craftsman's lips moved, and with his last strength, he uttered a few words: "Si...Sikong...family..."

Before he could finish speaking, his head lolled to the side, and he died.

"Watch out!" Xu Tiande suddenly tackled Lin Feng to the ground!

Almost simultaneously, with a "whoosh," a dark light grazed the back of Lin Feng's head and slammed into the furnace wall—it was a crossbow bolt with a whistling sound at the end!

"An assassin!" The guards drew their swords and protected Lin Feng.

Outside the furnace cavity, several black-clad assassins had infiltrated unnoticed! Their faces were covered with black veils. One of the assassins, who appeared to be their leader, had already rushed in.

Lin Feng drew his longsword and faced the black-clad assassin. The assassin was fearless, each move aimed to kill the other, forcing Lin Feng to remain unable to get close.

Lin Feng knew something was wrong; these people had come to silence him.

He no longer held back, his blade suddenly becoming incredibly ruthless, cleaving his opponent's weapon in two and then slitting his throat!

The black-clad assassin thrust his short blade straight at Lin Feng's face! This move was devoid of any fancy moves, but it was a desperate, life-or-death stance.

Lin Feng dodged to the side, the back of his blade slamming into the man's wrist joint, the sound of bones cracking ringing out. The man in black groaned, his short blade falling to the ground. Xu Tiande, at this moment, charged forward like a raging bull, his iron-like hand gripping the man in black's neck, pressing him firmly against the cold furnace wall.

"Speak! What are you practicing?!" Xu Tiande roared, his veins bulging.

Black blood spilled from the corner of the man's mouth; he had bitten open the poison sac in his mouth and died instantly.

"Damn it!" Xu Tiande cursed, letting go of the body and throwing it on the ground.

"Guards! Look here!" a guard pointed to the ground.

Lin Feng looked down and discovered that the heavy stone slab beneath his feet had been pried open, revealing a staircase leading underground.

"General Xu, you take your men and deal with these people, then guard the exit. The rest of you, come with me!"

The stairs were damp and dark, leading straight underground. The space below was larger than expected; it turned out to be an underground workshop built on the foundation of a furnace.

The workshop was in a mess, clearly indicating that someone had hastily evacuated. Numerous blueprints and tools were scattered on the ground. Lin Feng picked one up; it wasn't a smelting diagram, but rather a densely packed structural mechanics breakdown diagram.

"This isn't iron smelting..." Lin Feng understood perfectly. "This is about transforming this furnace into an unprecedented... machine!"

"Sir! There's someone here!" A guard kicked aside a pile of straw mats in the corner.

Lin Feng approached and found a dozen or so ragged people huddled under the straw mats. Their eyes were vacant, and their wrists and ankles bore bloody marks from the iron shackles, clearly indicating that they were craftsmen forced to work here. But among them, one person was particularly different.

He was a middle-aged man in his forties. Although he was also thin, his eyes revealed a scholar's clarity and despair. His fingers were long and slender, but the pads of his fingers were covered with thick calluses, marks left by years of drawing and handling precision instruments.

Lin Feng crouched down. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

The middle-aged man slowly raised his head, looked at Lin Feng's official robes, and gave a bitter smile: "My name is Mo Yan. I was... captured."

"Who captured you?"

"Si...kong..." Mo Yan had only uttered two words.