Chapter 62: Creating a Subsystem

Liu Heming had somewhat underestimated John’s love for the blacksmithing craft. Before he even finished breakfast the next morning, John had already driven over.

“John, you came at the perfect time. Join me for some food,” Liu Heming said warmly after inviting John inside.

“Thank you, Dexter. I already had breakfast at home. I wanted to take your current knives. Melting them down might improve the quality of the iron a little, since I only have ordinary iron here,” George said, waving his hand.

“Alright, wait for me to finish this porridge, and I’ll go with you,” Liu Heming nodded, quickly finishing the porridge in his bowl.

The Bear Kids were very curious about John’s early visit, circling around his feet nonstop. Liu Heming actually knew what was going on—they were begging John for treats. But John had little contact with them and didn’t know about their little habit.

He didn’t point it out, as it would embarrass John. It seemed he needed to discipline the Bear Kids more, so they wouldn’t randomly beg for food from people.

They also encountered some minor issues while removing the knives. The seeder was very old and hadn’t been maintained, so the screws were rusted together. It took a lot of effort for the two of them to loosen them.

When they arrived at John’s repair shop, they carried the knives to the back. John’s place was quite spacious. After passing through a courtyard, a blacksmith workshop, like the ones seen in movies, appeared before Liu Heming’s eyes.

“The flues here have been carefully treated and won’t pollute the town’s air. You can rest over there for a while; I need to grind off the remaining rust on these knives,” John said with a smile.

Liu Heming nodded and carefully examined the blacksmith workshop. It was somewhat different from what he had seen in movies—for one, there was no bellows, but a blower instead. What puzzled him was that there were two sets of equipment: one traditional, using coke, and the other a modern small melting furnace.

What particularly caught his interest was a row of hammers of various sizes placed to the side. It seemed these were John’s main tools for blacksmithing.

Liu Heming casually picked up the largest hammer. It had some weight to it, and he felt that with his current strength, he wouldn’t be able to swing it freely.

He glanced over at John, who had already taken off his outerwear, revealing a lean and strong upper body. John didn’t look particularly muscular, but his muscles were well-defined and knotty. His abdominal muscles weren’t like Liu Heming’s single block either.

Liu Heming smacked his lips, wondering what rating the System would give John’s physical condition. He felt sure it was much higher than his own.

John didn’t notice Liu Heming’s sneaky look. After using the grinder to remove the rust from the knives, he tossed the polished knives directly into the melting furnace’s crucible and started the gas to begin melting.

Liu Heming found it somewhat amusing. John must have been thinking about helping him forge these knives for a while. He had even prepared the molds but probably felt too shy to come and ask directly.

“John, why are there two sets of equipment?” Liu Heming asked, approaching John while waiting for the knives to melt.

“This one is for melting, and that one is for adjustments after shaping. You could use other tools for local heating, but I prefer this traditional way—it feels right,” John said with a smile.

“It’ll take about half an hour for the knives to melt. After we remove all the impurities and cast them into shape, we can do the final processing.”

“But it might take a while. I haven’t done such delicate work in a long time, so mistakes might happen. Don’t rush.”

“I won’t rush. The planting season is still far off, so take your time. Oh my, you little rascals, you can’t mess around here!” he exclaimed, seeing the two Bear Kids trying to get near the furnace. It made him break out in a cold sweat.

This was a small side effect of adopting the two Bear Kids. Most animals were afraid of fire, but these two had grown up near the fireplace at home and weren’t as fearful of flames.

“John, did you make this?” Liu Heming asked, holding the Bear Kids and pointing to a horseshoe near the other furnace.

“Yeah, it’s a rough piece I worked on last night to get back into the feel. If you’re interested, you can try hammering it a few times. It’s actually quite fun,” John said with a grin.

Truth be told, after John’s suggestion, Liu Heming became genuinely interested. John was a good guy—he knew Liu Heming liked to have fun.

The other furnace was lit, and George placed the horseshoe on the coke. Ignoring the heat, Liu Heming went over to the furnace.

The horseshoe didn’t need to be melted, just heated until red. He wasn’t sure how hot it was, but in about ten minutes, the horseshoe turned bright red.

John brought two sets of protective gear, and they each put one on. Then, using tongs, he placed the horseshoe on the anvil and motioned for Liu Heming to give it a try.

Liu Heming was bold. He walked over, picked up a small hammer that felt right, and struck the horseshoe with it. He used a bit too much force and almost had the hammer bounce back out of his hands. He stood there, stunned.

“Subsystem triggered—Manufacturing. Reward: One Lucky Grand Draw.”

“Quest Name: My Own Horseshoe.”

“Quest Time Limit: Fifteen days.”

“Quest Objective: Manufacture your first horseshoe.”

“Quest Reward: Randomly increase one attribute—Strength, Spirit, Agility, or Stamina—by 5 points.”

“Quest Failure Penalty: Lucky Grand Draw reward will be revoked.”

“Dexter, don’t use all your strength when hammering,” John advised, noticing Liu Heming’s dazed expression.

“Oh, right, John. I think I’m also interested in this craft. Could you teach me how to make a horseshoe myself?” Liu Heming quickly asked after snapping out of it.

Time was tight—only fifteen days, and he still had to practice pot skills during that time. He had already tasted the benefits of the Lucky Grand Draw, so he could only rely on John, hoping to actually make a horseshoe under his guidance.

John smiled and nodded. “OK, I’ll take care of that. Once we shape these knives, I’ll teach you how to do it.”

John was happy, feeling like he had found a like-minded friend.