Chapter 361: Trial Firing

Qin Mu arrived at the blacksmith shop. Xu Shenghua wore an apron to protect his clothes from sparks; his once splendid attire now looked more like a cleaning rag.

He was crafting a hairpin, grinding dark gold hundreds of times until it was as thin as paper, then folding and forging it into shape. Hairpins made this way had the finest textures and were highly sought after by noblewomen.

In fact, over the past month, Xu Shenghua had made quite a name for himself among the capital's blacksmiths. Many powerful practitioners came to him to forge spirit weapons, and numerous aristocrats commissioned him to create unique items like hairpins and bracelets.

Powerful practitioners, whose divine treasures could birth spirit weapons, needed skilled blacksmiths to craft them. The master smith's ability was crucial. Xu Shenghua was exceptionally clever and excelled at forging various spirit weapons. His versatile techniques always allowed him to create spirit weapons that delighted practitioners of all levels.

"Emperor Qin, please take a seat in the inner room of the shop. I'll join you once I finish this hairpin."

Seeing him, Xu Shenghua called out to the shop, "Yan'er, the Emperor has arrived! Please entertain him for me."

Qin Mu walked into the inner room, chuckling, "Just call me Cult Master. Referring to me as 'Emperor' always reminds me that we are enemies."

Jing Yan emerged, dressed in simple village girl attire, a stark contrast to the elegant clothing she wore when she arrived from the High Heavens. She carried a pot of tea and motioned for Qin Mu to sit.

The tea was coarse. When Xu Shenghua and Qin Mu first met, Qin Mu had been served the finest tea from the High Heavens, called Qingming Tea, which was the best Qin Mu had ever tasted. Now, however, the tea brewed was just ordinary leaves.

"We don't have any good tea left, Cult Master Qin. Please excuse us."

Jing Yan poured him tea, blushing slightly, and whispered, "The Qingming Tea ran out last month."

Qin Mu took a small sip and said, "I'm used to coarse tea. How did you manage to take over this shop?"

"Young Master originally leased a house in the capital, but he sold it and bought this shop instead."

Jing Yan continued, "Sister Yu Liu couldn't endure the hardship and found an excuse to leave, returning to the High Heavens. Only I remained here to accompany Young Master."

Qin Mu invited her to sit as well, smiling, "You are a good girl."

Xu Shenghua pushed aside the curtain and entered, holding a towel. He had just washed his hands and hung the towel behind the curtain before coming to the table. He poured himself a cup of tea, gulped it down, and then poured another.

Jing Yan was about to stand up, but Xu Shenghua waved his hand. "No need for such formalities. You are the mistress of our blacksmith shop, so just sit."

Jing Yan could only sit back down.

Qin Mu's eyes sparkled as he chuckled, "Brother Xu, how have you been these past days?"

Xu Shenghua sighed, shaking his head. "Not great, but very fulfilling. I never knew before how hard it was to earn money. In the High Heavens, I never even thought about money. But now, I realize how valuable a single Grand Abundance coin is! Brother Qin, you paid one Grand Abundance coin for ten bowls of noodles; that was such a waste! It's more than enough to buy a hundred bowls!"

Qin Mu looked bewildered. "I'm not entirely sure about the exact value of a Grand Abundance coin. I rarely lack money, and when I eat out, I usually pay with a single Grand Abundance coin."

"You've never lived in poverty."

Xu Shenghua took a few more gulps of tea, then let out a deep breath. "The money I've saved isn't enough to repay you. Please give me a bit more time. About two years should be enough."

Qin Mu chuckled, "It's just a small amount; I'm not in a hurry. Ling'er remembers things clearer than I do anyway. I came today to invite you to the unveiling ceremony. The Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon is complete."

Xu Shenghua was momentarily stunned, then sighed. "You spent just over two months designing and forging a colossal divine cannon, while I'm stuck here in this small blacksmith shop refining spirit weapons for practitioners. Fifteen days ago, I sensed you fired up your furnace twice. That must have been for testing the cannon mount, right?"

"Precisely."

Qin Mu drained his cup and said, "I used the entire nation's resources to build the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon. I don't actually take money for it; I'm not short on funds. If I did charge, even the Emperor couldn't afford it. Let's go take a look."

Xu Shenghua also stood up, removed his apron, and told Jing Yan, "You should come with me too."

Jing Yan acknowledged, and the three of them left the blacksmith shop, heading out of the city.

Upon reaching the outskirts, they spotted a colossal spirit weapon in the distance, spanning a thousand *mu*. It was a massive cannon platform, with a refined eyeball floating at the center of its light-gathering forks. Hundreds of practitioners were busily testing various components on the platform.

As the three approached, Xu Shenghua and Jing Yan were even more astonished. Looking up at the behemoth, it was hard to believe Qin Mu had forged such a terrifying spirit weapon in just over two months!

Of course, this wasn't solely Qin Mu's accomplishment; it was the culmination of the collective wisdom of almost all of Eternal Peace's arithmetical masters and forging grandmasters. However, Qin Mu's contribution was undeniably the greatest.

Without Qin Mu's design and improvements to the forging process, Eternal Peace's forging capabilities would never have been able to create such a heaven-defying treasure!

Qin Mu had advanced Eternal Peace's forging technology by a century or more!

The Emperor, along with all his civil and military officials, noblemen, and common citizens from the capital, had gathered to witness the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon's ignition. Even the Village Chief, Qingyou Mountain Man, and others had rushed there to await the giant cannon's firing.

"Crucible check normal! No cracks detected!" an official from the Ministry of Works shouted.

"Array patterns normal! No breaks detected!"

"Runes check normal!"

"Cannon mount check normal!"

"Light-gathering forks check normal!"

"Divine eye check normal!"

One after another, voices confirmed the checks. Shan Youxin looked at Qin Mu, who nodded. Shan Youxin then loudly announced, "Crucible number one, ignite! Intensity test, full power!"

A moment later, a pharmacist by the crucible called out, "Crucible number one, full power, check normal!"

"Crucible number two, ignition test!"

"Crucible number two, full power, check normal!"

Xu Shenghua watched the testing procedures, utterly awestruck. He murmured, "Cult Master Qin, when will I reach your level in forging? My little blacksmith shop seems so pathetic in comparison..."

Qin Mu reassured him, "Don't worry, everyone starts somewhere and progresses step by step. I've had hard times too."

"Really?" Xu Shenghua asked skeptically.

Qin Mu thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, not really. Shortly after leaving the village, I was already renowned throughout the land."

Xu Shenghua fell silent, then after a moment, said, "Cult Master Qin, if you console people like that, you'll eventually get beaten to death."

"However, when I was in the village, I started hammering iron at five years old, and learned drawing from Grandpa Deaf."

Qin Mu's expression was calm. "You're only just picking up the hammer now, but you don't know how much sweat I've poured out over the past ten years."

Xu Shenghua nodded. "Even an Overlord Body doesn't achieve success without effort. I've learned something today."

Finally, all fifty-six crucibles were at full power. Instantly, all the runes on the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon's base lit up, and all the formations activated. The colossal cannon platform slowly rose into the air, radiating terrifying power that made space itself tremble.

Energy from the fifty-six crucibles surged wildly towards the light-gathering forks. Through two sets of forks, it transformed into four thick beams of light that drilled into the enormous divine eye at the center.

The sound of gears turning came from within the divine eye, the speed accelerating rapidly. Suddenly, the sound vanished, and the eighty-zhang divine eye seemed to become ethereal. All the array patterns within the divine eye activated, and the dark gold, dark iron, and divine materials forming the eye disappeared, replaced by a divine eye bathed in purifying divine light.

It was a closed eye.

A rumble.

The enormous eye rotated on the cannon platform, generating an intimidating rush of wind. The tremors emanating from the eye were even more terrifying, causing even the Cult Master-level powerhouses present to feel waves of trepidation.

"Cult Master Qin!"

Shan Youxin stood on the cannon platform, bowing to Qin Mu. "The Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon is ready!"

Qin Mu stood tall and said to Emperor Yanfeng, "Your Majesty, please!"

Emperor Yanfeng took a deep breath, then, leading his civil and military officials, ascended to the cannon platform. He spoke gravely, "Supervisor Qin, after over two months of hard work, you should be the one to fire this cannon!"

Qin Mu assented. Shan Youxin presented a jade disc. Qin Mu channeled his vital qi, and the disc immediately burst forth with dazzling light. The light projected a three-foot-square screen, displaying the surrounding area.

Qin Mu gently manipulated the image on the jade disc, and the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon's divine eye slowly rotated in response. Qin Mu adjusted the divine eye's orientation, pointing it towards the sky.

He tapped the jade disc. Suddenly, the divine eye snapped open, and a pillar of light tore through the sky. The sky shook violently, then ripped open, revealing a black trace that seemed to cut the heavens apart. The pillar of light had already vanished without a trace!

A moment later, a sudden roar echoed from beyond the sky, like ten thousand thunders shaking the earth, deafening and world-shattering!

A colossal fissure opened in the sky, revealing nothing within. After an unknown period, the fissure slowly began to heal.

Xu Shenghua's heart sank deeper and deeper. In the High Heavens, no one could withstand this cannon blast, not even his master, the Jade Monarch, nor any of the other three monarchs. They all would be unable to endure the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon's light.

This weapon was no longer an earthly one!

It was a weapon capable of slaying gods!

"My money was not spent in vain..."

Emperor Yanfeng gazed up at the slowly healing sky, murmuring, "National Master, it's a pity you're not here to witness this sight."

On the plains, the Eternal Peace National Master was leading his army back to Eternal Peace. He suddenly looked up and saw a fissure in the sky, his heart shaking violently. "Cult Master Qin, you have finally forged a weapon that slays gods..."

On the cannon platform, Qin Mu withdrew his vital qi. The light screen projected by the jade disc vanished, and the crucibles began to extinguish. The various formations slowly ceased operation, and the massive Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon began to descend slowly from the air.

Qin Mu looked up at the sky and mused aloud, "Since it's called the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannon, should I fire a shot at the sun?"

Everyone around him shivered. Emperor Yanfeng hurriedly snatched the jade disc from his hand and exclaimed, "Supervisor Qin, if you blast the sun out of existence, how will the common people survive? Your idea is too dangerous! I'll have your head!"

A righteous official among the civil and military officials quickly interjected, "Your Majesty, a monarch's words are not to be taken lightly!"

Emperor Yanfeng turned to him, waved his hand, and said, "I was merely joking. If you can't tell that, what good are you to me? Retire to your hometown. My dear Qin, how is this jade disc used?"