Ove’s personal dimension.
Inside the thatched hut on the mountain top, a group of maids bustled in and out, accompanied by a frustrated voice.
"Andrew’s Leg! That’s sulfur! Be careful! There’s just one ore, and it’s not enough for my experiments, don’t spill it! That little bit of dust is worth at least one-tenth of a copper coin!"
"Oh~ Young Master Lin Ke above! Who allowed you to touch the glass?! This is a creation of Master Ove!"
"Faster, faster! Move faster!"
"Slower, slower, put it down gently!"
Granny Hisai, old yet vigorous, stood with hands on her hips, her back hunching, shouting at the maids who were moving things, her voice loud and clear.
Most of what these maids were carrying were refined sulfur ore and saltpeter, along with some charcoal that had been burned.
These maids were doing such tasks for the first time and were not very skilled, which made Granny Hisai quite anxious.
Lin Ke hurriedly stepped forward to help direct them, and after about half an hour of organizing, order was finally restored.
"Hey, as expected of Young Master Lin Ke." Granny Hisai wiped the non-existent sweat from her forehead and complimented Lin Ke, then continued, "Young Master Lin Ke, are you preparing for war?"
Lin Ke nodded, his brows furrowed: "Yes! A war to protect our land and our people."
Granny Hisai looked half understanding, standing still for a moment.
Then she suddenly pulled out a paper package from her bosom and handed it to Lin Ke: "Oh right Young Master Lin Ke, isn’t today your birthday? I have a birthday gift for you."
"Oh? What is it?" Lin Ke showed slight interest.
Giving gifts on birthdays is also customary in Naseng, for example, today he has received many birthday gifts, and in the evening, he will receive gifts from his elders, like those from Fulon.
However, at this moment, he was not in the mood at all.
And at this time, Granny Hisai pulled out a crumpled little packet from her bosom, inside which some powder could be vaguely seen.
Lin Ke raised an eyebrow: "What’s this?"
Granny Hisai, with a reluctant expression, said bashfully: "This is my new little treasure, following the best formula of black powder you mentioned, I discovered this formula... you have to be careful, Young Master Lin Ke, this is the last packet I made, the saltpeter is almost out."
Black powder is one of the four great inventions, yet because it was not valued at the time, it became fireworks.
The initial production of black powder also included many impurities.
Lin Ke remembered the best ratio for gunpowder was one sulfur, two saltpeter, and three charcoal. He also knew the optimal composition ratio was 10% sulfur, 15% charcoal, and 75% saltpeter.
But he hadn’t told Granny Hisai the exact percentages, letting her explore it on her own.
Unexpectedly, in just a few days, she discovered it.
Unfortunately, now was not the time to teach, guide, and instruct Granny Hisai; otherwise, Lin Ke would surely have given more lectures.
For example, the connection between atoms and chemical equations.
Now, all Lin Ke could do was to praise her a bit and instruct Granny Hisai to focus fully on producing the explosives: "You’ve done well..."
Granny Hisai, full of hope, immediately spoke: "Is Young Master Lin Ke going to give me a raise? I remember this is called a salary, right? The capital of workers, capital means money."
This money-grubber, only knows about money.
The words of praise were stuck in Lin Ke’s throat, unable to say, so he could only say: "... Keep up the good work! If you perform well, I’ll consider giving you a raise after the war!"
Better promise grandly first.
Granny Hisai cheered and then ran to command the maids like a little girl over a hundred years old.
Lin Ke smiled and shook his head, then walked towards Ove’s thatched hut.
When Lin Ke was making arrangements, Ove said he would return to create some magic items after making the glass.
Now it seemed the glass was all made, so Lin Ke went to check it out.
Entering the hut, it was clean and tidy, with some commonly used tools by Ove and some lightning preserved by magic items.
For instance, on a table, there were two large leaves bobbing up and down in mid-air, with a thin streak of lightning in the center of the leaves.
Elsewhere in the room were some items with magical fluctuations, seemingly all part of Ove’s collection.
Ove had already sensed Lin Ke’s arrival, standing by the table, holding a light blue pen.
"Little Lin Ke, this is your birthday gift." Ove lifted his hand with a bit of nervousness.
Lin Ke, aware of his teacher’s oddities, didn’t say anything, but looked at the pen with a joyful tone: "Teacher, what kind of pen is this?"
The pen was entirely light blue, the tip appeared to be made of a strange blue metal, the pen body seemed as if veins were flowing through it, and there was a fine down surrounding it, with a tuft of furry beast hair at the tip.
Sensing Lin Ke’s delight, Ove secretly let out a sigh of relief and introduced: "Previously, that youngster from the Deep Blue Clan compensated us, along with some miscellaneous items... Oh right, and the tail of the Deep Blue Giant Tiger, which was made into this pen."
When talking about magic items, Ove relaxed slightly, continuing: "This pen counts as a level five magic item, possessing traits like ’hardness,’ ’awakening,’ and ’freshness,’ considered as a gift for you."
Saying this, Ove handed the pen over to Lin Ke.
"Thank you, teacher!" Lin Ke expressed his gratitude and eagerly examined the pen.
Or rather... an item for practitioners!
Ordinary items, like the cup and plate the Marquis of Ice gave him, were of little use and had no special traits or features.
They were just the kind of things a blacksmith or a smith might casually create using ordinary materials, even if they were of a certain grade, they were not valuable, unless they had some rare or powerful traits.
And Ove’s creation of this pen, although not high-level, was specially crafted for someone who used a pen.
When Lin Ke held it, a cool sensation rushed to his brain, making his mind much clearer, and his previous drowsiness vanished.
Traits—awakening! Freshness!
Rubbing the pen body, it felt very comfortable, the fluff felt soft, and Lin Ke seemed to be able to use the fluffy tail of the pen to erase notes with a thought, similar to a rubber eraser.
"This pen body contains a trace of deep blue bloodline, extracted from the tail of the Deep Blue Giant Tiger, which originally couldn’t be extracted...
"But in the compensation from that youngster from the Deep Blue Clan, that piece of Wood of the Sleepers just so happened to have such an effect..."
Ove began explaining the wonders of the pen enthusiastically, quite proud of himself.
As someone who didn’t specialize in magic items, being able to create such a thing was quite remarkable.
"I see." Lin Ke listened to Ove’s explanation while trying to nurture the pen with his professional power.
Simply put, the materials for this pen were originally part of the compensation given by that butler from the Deep Blue Clan, because of that Young Master Delin’s loss due to a sneaky attack on his part.
It included the tail feather of an eighth-level magical beast, the Blue Smoke Owl, and the Wood of the Sleepers.
Plus, when Lin Ke met Knicks, one of the tails of the Deep Blue Giant Tiger was cut off and preserved.
Ultimately forming this pen.
However, that the Deep Blue Giant Tiger, a failed creation of the Deep Blue Clan, actually contained their bloodline? That was quite strange.
"...Keep nurturing it, as it has potential for improvement in the future." Ove instructed, unable to resist patting Lin Ke’s head, then pinching his baby fat.
"Sure, teacher." Lin Ke was very pleased, this birthday gift was truly wonderful! So, he didn’t mind the face pinching.
As for nurturing magic items...
When a firewood ax is nurtured by a legend for a long time, it becomes more powerful than a legendary weapon in the hands of a non-legend.
The saying goes, even a woodcutter’s ax of the main god becomes a divine artifact.
At least that’s what novels say.