Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1681 - 1199: Evil Demonic Techniques, the Renaissance Saltpeter Fields

"Respected Cipangu Bishop, the blacksmith's tools usually come in three sets... besides the iron smelting furnace, there's also an iron forging forge, and a horseshoe set for fixing horse and mule hooves... uh, yes, for fixing hooves! No, not human feet, the hooves of four-legged runners..."

"You see, the iron forging tools include the iron anvil for hammering the base, iron hammers of various sizes, iron tongs for grasping the iron materials, chisels for precision cutting, cutting tools for trimming edges, and most numerous of all, various forging molds for shaping the iron! …Ah, there are only a few weapon molds on the ship. A good blacksmith's shop should have hundreds of different kinds of molds!…"

"Ah! You're asking to forge iron now? This... I... uh?… Yes, yes!…"

The sun rose high, illuminating the still-smoking beehive furnace, the half-finished large forge, the small forge already built, various blacksmith tools, and the charcoal and iron materials piled in the corner. This spacious open-air courtyard already had the rough formation of a blacksmith's shop.

High Priest Tomate paced around the courtyard, carefully observing and constantly asking questions. Goldsmith Carlo, drenched in sweat, followed behind, trying his best to gesture and use various sound effects to communicate. The red-haired samurais guarded various spots in the courtyard, while the surrendered captive sailors looked respectfully on, with several kingdom blacksmiths coming over to watch.

After making a round of observation, Tomate put forward the request for iron forging. Carlo was momentarily stunned, but seeing the red-haired Chabo gripping the cane again, he quickly nodded repeatedly.

"Yes! Lord Bishop! I will... uh... forge a dagger for you!… However, it will take some time, so please wait a little…"

Soon, the sound of "ding ding dong dong" hammering echoed from the courtyard. Carlo used the small forge to heat a piece of iron, then clamped it with iron tongs onto a small iron anvil with a stone base and iron top, and began to "draw" with the cross hammer.

This hammering and pounding continued uninterrupted, the iron was hammered thinner and thinner, drawn longer and longer, and became tougher the more it was hammered, gradually taking the shape of a dagger. Tomate patiently watched for two quarters of an hour, but estimating it would still take some time, he then looked at the other captives standing respectfully.

"Witness of the Chief Divine! Chabo, are these the captives you selected? What skills do they have?…"

"Respected Tomato Shaman! Their appearances are scruffy with beards, making it difficult to distinguish… So I gave each of them a wooden tag representing their skills to wear on their chest…"

Red-haired Chabo grinned broadly, pulling over the yellow-skinned Boatswain Qia Chu, pointing to the knife and rope on the tag.

"This is Ah Gou! He's the best fighter among the captives, a skilled sailor, and very clever! I made him my deputy and translator, to keep an eye on these captives!…"

"Praise you! Bishop of Vizilopo!…"

Ah Gou Qia Chu knelt on the ground, his fierce face now full of smiles, even managing to utter a greeting in Mexica. Then, he kowtowed twice heavily, clutching a Hummingbird Sun amulet as he vowed.

"Noble Lord Bishop, I am your sword and the sword of the red-haired knights!…"

High Priest Tomate pondered for a moment, looking at "Ah Gou's" yellow skin, listening to the greeting in Mexica, and smiled, nodding.

"Not bad! Chabo, let him settle in Iron Bay Town, give him a separate thatched cottage courtyard, and find him a Taino woman, let him marry in the town."

"Yes!…"

Red-haired Chabo nodded, drawing two small figures and a thatched house on the dirt ground, then tugged at Ah Gou's ear, pointing at the simple drawing and sternly said.

"This one is you!… This one is the wife the Shaman rewards you!… This one is your home!… Understand? Go kowtow to the Shaman!…" 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"Ah? Uh… Me? Another person? Live?…"

Ah Gou Qia Chu was momentarily dazed, but as their literacy levels were quite similar, and their doodling skills were about the same, communication was seamless. Soon, Ah Gou understood. He showed a joyful expression and knelt down again, "bang bang" kowtowing twice loudly.

"Praise you! Lord High Priest! I am your most useful sword, let me kill whoever you want!…"

High Priest Tomate chuckled, but wasn't very concerned about Ah Gou's vow. He looked at the other captives, and Chabo, following his gaze, quickly introduced them one by one.

"Praise the Chief Divine! This is Carpenter Ah Mu, very handy, can repair ships!… This is Sailor Ah Ba, the second-best fighter among the captives, can operate sails, and knows how to use the thin tube of the thunderbolt!… This is Sailor Ah Gong, also knows how to operate sails and fire the thunderbolt… This is Chicken Keeper Ah Ji, can operate sails and raise four-legged bleating beasts, and also claims to know how to raise clucking two-legged chickens…"

"Ah! The last one is Sailor Ah La, the tag says 'Thunder Pipe and Dung'… Not only can he use the thin tube of the thunderbolt, he also knows remarkable spells to 'cultivate' thunderbolt powder from the excrement of humans and birds and beasts!…"

"Hm?! Cultivate thunderbolt powder? Saltpeter cultivation?…"

Upon hearing this, High Priest Tomate showed surprise. His sharp gaze moved from Carpenter Antonio, Sailor Chief Bartolome, Sailor Gonzalo, and Sailor Gil one by one, finally stopping on Guard Chief Alana's ingratiating smile.

"You are called Ah La? You actually know how to make urea nitrate?…"

"Ah? Honored Lord Bishop, I know how to pile saltpeter fields!… I've done the work of piling saltpeter in my own manor, and have worked with craftsmen to make gunpowder. Actually, this is my first time going to sea, before this, the firearms I practiced with all used homemade gunpowder. I'm also a knight's retainer, have noble blood… ahem! As long as you dig a cellar and pit, then pile excrement, urine, straw, leaves, rotten cloth… all into the pit, it can ferment into a saltpeter field… Of course, piling saltpeter sounds simple, but getting it right is no easy task! Lord Bishop, I am truly a capable hand, a true talent!…"