I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

As Shikisaki Kiyoshi spoke, he turned to the side so that the master and apprentice could see the things in front of them clearly.

"This is the pride of our Shikizaki family—the 'Zhurong Furnace'!"

In an instant... the moment they witnessed the scene before them, both Qing Deng and Kiryu's boss showed expressions of astonishment.

Before their eyes was an enormous furnace!

Its foundation is a compacted mound of dry earth, on which sits a rectangular bellows furnace made of clay, approximately 5 meters long, 4 meters wide, and 3 meters high.

Next to the base bed is the bellows furnace.

The bellows furnace has foot-operated bellows on both sides. Simply stepping on the thick pedal will send air into the furnace, causing the fire to blaze.

Before this, the largest furnace Qingdeng had ever seen was about the size of a refrigerator.

He had never seen such a giant furnace, measured in meters and covering an area of ​​20 square meters.

Just as the master and apprentice were carefully examining the "Zhurong Furnace," Shikizaki Kiyoshi, standing to the side, said quietly:

“Such a furnace would require about 1000 strings of coal to start a fire.”

[Note: 1 kan = 3.73 kg, 1000 kan ≈ 3.75 tons]

"We will use this furnace to welcome the God of Fire and forge unparalleled swords!"

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Chapter 889 The Young Widow's Peculiar Delusions [4500]

"Shikisaki! It's been a long time!"

Suddenly, Qingdeng heard a loud shout from behind him.

Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw six burly, strong young men walking straight toward them.

In those feudal times when productivity was low, it was not easy for farmers to develop such a physique.

It is evident that the standard of living in "Blacksmith Village" is extremely high, far surpassing that of ordinary rural areas.

Upon seeing the group of burly men who had suddenly appeared, Shikisaki Kiyoshi immediately put on a warm smile.

"Eitaro! It's been such a long time since we last met. You seem to have gained some weight."

The burly man called "Eitaro"—the one who just shouted "Long time no see"—chuckled.

"Well, what can I do? I married a woman who's a great cook. Shikisaki, are these two our employers?"

As he spoke, Keitaro turned to look at the master and apprentice.

Shikisaki Kiyomi nodded slightly:

“That’s right. Mr. Tachibana, Mr. Kiryu, this is Keitaro, one of the top blacksmiths in ‘Blacksmith Village’, especially skilled in forging swords.”

When Qing Deng set off today, he specifically instructed Shikisaki Kiyoshi not to reveal his true identity.

To avoid unnecessary trouble, Qingdeng wanted to conceal his whereabouts as much as possible.

Therefore, just before he was about to speak, Shikisaki Kiyoshi quickly changed his form of address, replacing "General Tachibana" with "Mr. Tachibana".

As soon as Shikisaki Kiyoshi finished speaking, Keitaro looked at the master and disciple with a respectful expression and bowed solemnly:

"Mr. Tachibana, Mr. Kiryu, it's a pleasure to meet you! I am Keitaro, and I look forward to meeting you today. Please take good care of me!"

Qingdeng nodded slightly and responded in a calm tone.

After both sides gave brief self-introductions, Keitaro looked at Shikisaki Kiyoshi again.

"Shikisaki, let's get down to business. What are you forging this time? You've even brought out this long-forgotten 'Zhurong Furnace'."

As he spoke, he turned his head to look at the enormous furnace, a hint of excitement flashing in his eyes.

Shikisaki Kiyoshi chuckled a few times, half smug and half excited, and said:

"Eitaro, our job this time is extraordinary—we're going to reforge the blade of a precious sword using 'Ten Thousand Refined Steel'!"

Upon hearing this, Keitaro and his other companions all looked surprised.

"'Ten-Thousand-Refined Steel'?!"

Keitaro exclaimed in surprise, then eagerly pressed for an answer:

"Is this the 'Ten Thousand Refined Steel' I know?"

Shikisaki nods vigorously:

"That's right! It's the legendary 'Ten Thousand Refined Steel'! And it's a top-grade product of extremely high quality!"

After saying that, he turned to look at Qingdeng.

Qing Deng immediately understood what he meant, took out the tightly wrapped "Ten Thousand Refined Steel" from his bosom, and unwrapped the bundle—its sharp yet soft black luster illuminated the faces of Ying Taro and the others.

In an instant, as if sucked into a black hole, Eitaro and the others stared intently at the black steel in Aoto's hand, their eyes wide open, their bodies leaning forward, not daring to blink even once, their faces dominated by intense shock.

They were all skilled blacksmiths.

Therefore, they can tell the quality of steel at a glance.

"Good steel... really good steel!"

Keitaro murmured, a look of utter infatuation appearing deep in his eyes.

"I never imagined that I, a country bumpkin, would have the honor of witnessing such fine steel!"

"To forge a knife with 'ten-thousand-times-refined steel'... that would indeed require the use of the 'Zhurong Furnace'..."

As he spoke, Keitaro looked up at the enormous furnace before him, his eyes filled with mixed emotions.

"Shikizaki, after learning that you had given up being a swordsmith, I once thought that this furnace would never be restarted."

Shikisaki shrugged:

"To be honest, I have indeed made up my mind to retire and let my name as a swordsmith become a thing of the past along with this furnace."

"But... well, our employers are paying way too much."

After saying this in a half-joking tone, Shikisaki Kiyori switched to a serious and earnest tone:

"Alright, let's leave the small talk and greetings here for now."

"Now, the important matter comes first!"

"Gentlemen, I am unworthy of your help, and I will have to trouble you again!"

Keitaro grinned and smiled nonchalantly:

"No problem, as long as you pay us well, we'll work hard without complaint!"

Shikisaki shrugged:

"When have I ever mistreated you?"

He and Keitaro exchanged a smile.

"Eitaro, pour the coal!"

At Shikisaki Kiyoshi's command, Keitaro shouted with great momentum:

"Brothers, let's go!"

"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh!"

At that moment, the atmosphere at the scene changed.

The scene, which had been somewhat desolate due to the cold wind just moments before, was now filled with a warm atmosphere, as if the temperature had risen several degrees.

Led by Eitaro himself, they jogged towards the nearby cellar, pushed open the cellar door, and pulled out sacks one by one.

They took a burlap sack in each hand, turned around and ran towards the "Zhurong Furnace," then untied the sacks and poured the contents into the furnace.

Upon closer inspection, the contents of the bag were black lumps—coal.

After emptying their coal, Eitaro and the others would turn around and go back to the cellar to take out new coal—and so on, over and over again.

Bag after bag of coal was poured into the furnace with a "whoosh," and gray coal dust floated everywhere.

According to what Shikisaki Kiyoshi just said, each time the "Zhurong Furnace" is lit, it requires at least 1000 kan of coal (3.75 tons).

Nearly 4 tons of coal... Both the cost and the physical exertion required to move this enormous amount of coal are staggering.

Fortunately, Eitaro and the others were all strong and healthy men with plenty of energy.

They handled large sacks, half a meter long and wide, with the ease of holding a lamp wick.

Without pausing or resting, they methodically poured coal into the furnace.

About half an hour later, Shikisaki glanced at the pile of coal in the furnace, then loudly issued a new instruction:

"ignition!"

In the blink of an eye, Keitaro picked up a burning torch and placed it into the stove—

call!

A raging fire suddenly broke out.

Thick, black, choking smoke billowed outwards, shooting straight into the sky.

The moment the flames ignited, Shikisaki Kiyoshi's third command arrived:

"The wind is rising!"

Eitaro and the others responded in unison, and took off their clothes until they were only wearing loincloths, revealing their muscular bodies. Then they stood on the footboards on both sides of the bellows.

There is a thick rope hanging down above the pedal.

Keitaro and the others raised their hands and gripped the thick rope tightly, using it for leverage as they stepped onto the pedals.

Step on one side, and the other side bounces up; step on the other side, and the other side bounces up... and so on, like playing on a seesaw, repeatedly pressing and stepping on the pedals.

With the bellows blowing repeatedly, wisps of fresh air were poured into the furnace, fueling the fire.