Chapter 4, Atlas of Weapons

"Are there only a few types of weapons?" After Zhao Kuo received a definite answer from Guo Er, he said, "I might as well think about it myself!" In his mind, he recalled quite a few types of cold weapons, but he couldn't immediately think of any that would be particularly suitable.

Zhao Kuo inadvertently saved Li Mu, but he could not explain why he knew of Li Mu's existence. He could only vaguely brush it off by saying he had heard it from someone, though he could not recall exactly who that person was.

Zhao Kuo depicted a combination of a spear and a gun according to Xu Tiejian's idea, believing that Xu Tiejian's suggestion was better than his own concept of a dual-gun combination. He nodded and said: "Xu Tiejian is right; let us create it according to your idea! Remember, the spearhead need not be too large to avoid inconvenience in carrying"

Guo Er had once met Zhao Kuo and knew that Zhao Kuo was a noble of the Zhao state. Such a person must not be offended at all. If the master were to find out that he had been neglectful towards Zhao Kuo, he would not have a good outcome

Young master, please take your time as you leave

Xu Tiejian, seeing Zhao Kuo accept his suggestion, happily said: "Young Master, rest assured, this spear and halberd combination will undoubtedly be the best weapon I have ever forged in my life, and I will not let you down."

"Young Master, do not say such things. Li Mu is a wanderer, accustomed to hardship. Having a place to rest is already quite good; how could he dare to be picky..." As Li Mu was speaking, a faint sound suddenly reached his ears. Having been on the run for a long time, he immediately recognized it as the sound of a bowstring. He hurriedly called out to Zhao Kuo in front of him: "Young Master, be careful..."

Zhao Kuo believed that crafting a long spear was more appropriate, as long as he could produce a spearhead. However, he thought about the inconvenience of having to carry the long spear around in the future. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he immediately summoned the blacksmith Xu. He took out the military knife from his boot and began to carve on the wooden table, saying: "Xu the blacksmith..." He noticed that Xu and others, including Guo Er, were staring blankly at their military knives, but he paid them no mind and continued to carve.

Zhao Kuo looked at the forest they had come through and said: "Once we pass the Wild Boar Forest, we will not be far from Handan City. You must be mentally prepared; my family is quite poor, so please do not be picky about the simple meals we have!"

Li Mu noticed that Zhao Kuo did not show any signs of displeasure, and mustering his courage, he said: "I would like to use it to forge arrowheads; the arrowheads crafted will surely be indestructible."

Do you have anything to say? Zhao Kuo noticed that Li Mu seemed hesitant to speak and asked

Zhao Kuo sighed and said, "What do you need the scraps for? The remaining scraps are not even enough to forge a short dagger."

Zhao Kuo exclaimed, "At such a young age, why are you always daydreaming? Stay alert and I hope we can enter the city before the gates close."

The planned long spear was divided into two by Zhao Kuo, transforming it into two short spears. However, modifications were made to the stock, resulting in one solid and one hollow. The solid end was crafted with a threaded pattern, allowing the two short spears to be screwed together when needed to form a long weapon. Zhao Kuo was quite pleased with his idea.

Young Master, the iron smelting workshop of the Guo family has arrived

Zhao Kuo rode the saddle-less mount brought by Guo Er, feeling as if he were sitting on a bed of needles. After a while, his backside began to ache; if he were to jolt back to Handan City like this, he wouldn't need to get up early the next day. He turned his head to look at Li Mu and noticed that Li Mu seemed somewhat distracted, so he asked, "Li Mu, what are you thinking about?"

The words from wwwhetushucomcom interrupted Zhao Kuo's thoughts. He glanced at Li Mu beside him and suppressed his chaotic thoughts deep within. Whether he aspired to be a debauched young master or wished to achieve greatness like Li Mu, leaving a mark in history, were not matters he should consider at this moment. As the saying goes, plans cannot keep up with changes. Even if he wanted to be someone like Li Mu, he faced psychological barriers. He questioned whether he possessed the talents of Li Mu from history. If he were to make a mistake similar to the defeat at Changping, it would be better for him to continue being a young master. The thought of having the lives of hundreds of thousands resting on his shoulders brought an immense pressure that was far from ordinary.

Zhao Kuo handed the titanium alloy beam to Xu the blacksmith. Seeing him take it carefully, he suddenly remembered something and said to Zhang Dao: "Yu Zhang, you stay here and watch closely. Don't throw away any of the leftover scraps from forging the weapons; I still have use for them!" Just now, the looks exchanged between Guo Er and Xu the blacksmith reminded Zhao Kuo that weapons are meant for preserving life, and he did not want his weapons to be made with inferior materials.

Zhao Kuo thought to himself that he had come here to forge weapons, and whether he met Guo Zong was secondary. "Since that is the case, let the overseer take us to meet the blacksmiths in the workshop! My weapons must be crafted by a skilled blacksmith"

Guo Er led Zhao Kuo to the armory. After surveying the surroundings, Zhao Kuo found no satisfactory weapons. The large weapons were limited to axes and halberds, while the selection of short weapons was even more meager, predominantly consisting of swords that appeared quite shabby. He looked down upon them entirely

The appearance of Li Mu made Zhao Kuo's mood resemble a turbulent sea, unable to calm down for even a moment. His understanding of the history of the Warring States was limited, but he was aware of some famous figures, such as the Four Young Masters of the Warring States, Lian Po, and Lin Xiangru, among others. Moreover, Li Mu was a renowned undefeated war god recorded in history. The thought that the undefeated war god from history was right beside him made his throat dry and filled him with excitement.

However, after saving Li Mu today, certain thoughts were ignited in Zhao Kuo. By a twist of fate, he arrived in the late Warring States period. Is it possible that he would spend his entire life as a young master? ... Although he possesses great potential to be a dandy young master, he has also taken concrete action once ...

Li Mu was momentarily stunned by Zhao Kuo's words, murmuring to himself: "A precious sword is given to a hero... Am I a hero?"

Xu Tiejian took the titanium alloy beam, examining it from left to right. Finally, he furrowed his brow and said, "This object appears neither metal nor iron, and it feels incredibly light in hand, yet it gives an impression of being extremely hard. It is indeed a treasure! May I ask what kind of weapon the young master intends to forge?"

Since realizing that his body, acquired through usurpation, was akin to the paper negotiations of Zhao Kuo, he has never worried about his future. As a young master from a noble family, he is undoubtedly very affluent in material life. When the time comes, he can use the excuse of not taking over from Lian Po to assume the position of commander at Changping, which would alter the outcome of the bloody battle at Changping and consequently change the entire history of the Warring States. Thus, Zhao Kuo can continue to live a carefree and joyful life

Zhao Kuo said: "I am friends with Guo Zong and wish to forge a weapon here. Unfortunately, it is a pity that your master is not present, which has caused me to make a wasted trip."

When Zhao Kuo took out the nearly two-meter-long titanium alloy beam, everyone's eyes, except for Yu Zhang's, widened in astonishment. Guo Er and the blacksmith Xu had spent half their lives in the iron smelting workshop and were very familiar with metal objects, yet they had never seen titanium alloy before. Li Mu was captivated by the metallic luster of the titanium alloy, his eyes not blinking at all

Upon hearing that it was such a trivial matter, Guo Er hurriedly said: "Young Master, feel free to mention any weapon you wish to forge. Our Guo's Ironworks specializes in weapon crafting. Currently, the weapons of the city guard are all made by our Guo's workshop, so you have come to the right place."

Zhao Kuo and the three others entered the iron smelting workshop. Yu Zhang stepped forward to inquire whether Guo Zong was present, only to be informed that Guo Zong had gone out and would not return to Handan for another three to five days, which inevitably led to disappointment.

Li Mu said, "Young Master, may I have the remaining scraps?" After speaking, he felt that he had been too abrupt, as he could tell that Zhao Kuo cared deeply for that metal rod

When Zhao Kuo heard Li Mu's shout, the piercing arrow also arrived with the sound, flying straight towards his throat

Li Mu responded with a sound, tightening his legs around the horse's belly to catch up with Zhao Kuo ahead. Since his escape, he had grown distrustful of people, but Zhao Kuo gave him a sense of openness and honesty. If he could not trust someone like this, he did not know whom he could still believe in

"Xu Tiejian, the remaining scraps will be fashioned into arrowheads... and attached to the feathered arrows!" After giving his instructions, Zhao Kuo said to Li Mu, "Those feathered arrows will be given to you. Once the arrowheads are made, I look forward to witnessing your archery skills. Don't let me down!"

Guo Er smiled and said, "Rest assured, young master! The blacksmiths in our workshop are the best in all of Zhao. Even the King of Zhao has praised Xu the blacksmith's skills..."

Zhao Kuo found himself in a dilemma after hearing the words of Xu the blacksmith. Although he had quite a few weapon designs in mind, the scarcity of titanium alloy and insufficient raw materials rendered his ideas futile. He inquired, "Do you have any ready-made weapons for me to examine"

"The blush is a gift for the beauty, the sword is a gift for the hero; if I don't give it to you, am I supposed to keep it for myself? I am not skilled in archery. wwwhetushucom.com" Zhao Kuo laughed and said, "Once your hand is healed, I must witness your archery skills and see if the legend of hitting the target from a hundred paces truly exists in this world"

Today, Xu the Blacksmith was truly taken aback. First, it was the titanium alloy beam, then the oddly shaped dagger, and finally, the weapon diagram engraved by Zhao Kuo. Although it did not reach the level of "one conversation with you is worth ten years of study," it nonetheless opened Xu's mind significantly, prompting him to interject: "Young Master, this method of combination is quite novel, and there is not much difficulty in forging it. However, the combined power of the two short guns may not be substantial. I believe it would be better to have one as a spear and the other as a halberd, which could greatly enhance the power of the long weapon."

As Zhao Kuo and the two others were about to return to the city, a person rushed out from the workshop and stopped Zhao Kuo, saying: "Young Master, is there something you need? If there is anything, feel free to tell me. I am Guo Er, the manager of Guo's workshop, and I can handle most matters."

Li Muqi, sitting on his horse, looked ahead at Zhao Kuo with great confusion. He could tell that Zhao Kuo cared deeply about those scraps; otherwise, he would not have left Yu Zhang here to keep watch. It was only because he himself liked them so much that he had asked for them. To his surprise, Zhao Kuo did not hesitate for a moment before giving them to him. Could this be what is referred to as an instant rapport?

Li Mu noticed that Zhao Kuo looked at him with a profound expression. He recalled that the other party could call out his ancestral home and alias, wondering if he had revealed some flaw. This made him feel anxious and uneasy, and he couldn't help but regret using Zhao Kuo's reputation to protect himself, fearing that he might have jumped from the wolf's den into the tiger's lair. However, it was too late to say anything now; he could only focus on healing his injuries first.

Li Mu let out a sound of surprise and said, "I didn't think of anything. I never expected that the young master would give me such a valuable item. I still can't believe it now!"