Chapter 546: The Popular Pagoda Cannons (1)
Translator: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ
Ke Ning and his counterparts walked out from the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. There was an unconcealable look of joy on Ke Ning’s face, but he did not say anything. After they had walked far away from the Spear of Heavy Cloud’s camp, Ke Ning suddenly asked an unremarkable-looking man, "Uncle Li, what do you think of this pagoda cannon?"
The unremarkable-looking man was a famous weaponsmith, Li Houtang.
"Extraordinary!" Li Houtang’s voice was powerful and resonating.
"I’d like to hear the details," Ke Ning’s eyes lit up.
"I wonder who created this pagoda cannon. It is truly extraordinary. When I first heard that the Spear of Heavy Cloud won the previous battles because of these pagoda cannons, I still thought everyone was exaggerating. After witnessing it for myself today, I realize that I am the one who was ignorant. The emergence of pagoda cannons will pose a huge threat to Masters on the battlefield in the future." A look of admiration appeared on Li Houtang’s face.
"Can we imitate and make our own pagoda cannons?" Ke Ning quickly asked.
He was at an age where he was impatient for success. He wanted to achieve accomplishments in the current times of chaos.
Li Houtang and Ke Ning’s father had a deep relationship and he treated Ke Ning like his nephew. He praised Ke Ning, "Small Ning, excellent foresight! The pagoda cannons will definitely be popular in the future. It is a top-notch weapon in the battlefield."
Li Houtang remained silent for a moment and muttered, "I have carefully studied their pagoda cannons just now. It is not really difficult to forge a pagoda cannon. I more or less know how to do it. However, even if I know how to forge a pagoda cannon, there’s still the issue of the snow lava. Shi Xueman probably publicized the forging method for the pagoda cannon because she wants all of us to buy snow lava from her."
"I see!" Ke Ning came to a realization.
Li Houtang nodded his head and continued, "If the Central Pine Valley is willing to sell their snow lava, then we will not have any issue with obtaining it. However, from what I know, the snow lava is extremely expensive. Also, we might not even need snow lava for our pagoda cannons."
Upon hearing these words, Ke Ning looked slightly disappointed. He then asked, "How about we build one pagoda cannon and give it a try first?"
Li Houtang shook his head and replied, "From what I see, the more pagoda cannons there are, the more useful they will be. On the contrary, it we only have one or two pagoda cannons, they will not be of any use to us."
"However, other than the Spear of Heavy Cloud, who else can equip so many pagoda cannons with snow lava?" Ke Ning asked again.
Li Houtang thought for a while and replied, "Perhaps we can think of a solution with regard to the fire liquid. After thinking about it, as long as a fire liquid is used, the pagoda cannons will work. A pagoda cannon actually imitates the lava-spitting beast. A lava-spitting beast spits out lava. Snow lava is so powerful that it’s an A-grade fire liquid. We can mix a few B-grade fire liquids together and add in a small amount of snow lava. As long as we can get the proportion right, we can reduce our costs. Even though this mixture might not be as powerful as the snow lava, it is still powerful enough against ordinary soldiers."
Ke Ning’s eyes lit up once more as he said, "Uncle Li, you’re right! The Spear of Heavy Cloud’s pagoda cannons are indeed powerful and can kill Masters, but then again, how can there be so many Masters on the battlefield? There are more ordinary soldiers. Since the fire liquid we will be using is weaker, the quality of our pagoda cannons can be lowered as well. Therefore, can we use other materials to replace the snouts of lava-spitting beasts?"
Ke Ning thought of the rain of fire released from Fatty’s pagoda cannon. It covered an enormous range, making it impossible for anyone to dodge it!
Ke Ning’s eyes became increasingly bright.
If they could carry out a large-scale distribution of pagoda cannons for their soldiers, they could use the rain of fire to seal off the entire battlefield. This tactic might not be effective against Masters, but it would be an absolute nightmare for ordinary soldiers.
As for the enemy Masters, he could just leave them to his Masters!
The more Ke Ning thought about it, the more he felt this plan would work.
Li Houtang cast a satisfied look at Ke Ning. It wasn’t easy for someone of his age to not be deceived by the might of pagoda cannons and pursue more formidable forms of power.
He nodded his head and said, "We will think carefully about it when we get back to our camp. We need to seize the moment now. The pagoda cannons have just come into vogue, but the future battlefield will definitely be dominated by them."
Ke Ning and the rest nodded their heads.
…..
Nowadays, Thunder City had become extremely prosperous.
Being the place where the first Lightning Master, Ai Hui, had had his breakthrough, many people visited it and went to Thunder Mountain to get a feel for the concentrated lightning aura. Up until now, other than Ai Hui, no one was able to comprehend the power of lightning. Many people also understood that what Ai Hui had experienced was an extremely rare event.
For instance, there were also several master swordsmen, but none of them could be compared to Karakorum Polaris.
Thunder City’s prosperity was directly linked to Ai Hui. Other than the travellers who were here to admire Thunder City, there were also many businessmen that came here for one thing—the snow lava.
Everyone knew there were only two places in this world where snow lava was sold. The first place was the Central Pine Valley, the second was Thunder City.
Ai Hui had a very close relationship with the mayor of Thunder City, Qiao Meiqi. Qiao Meiqi was the biggest retailer for snow lava. More than 90 percent of snow lava on the market was from Qiao Meiqi.
The Central Pine Valley was mysterious and dangerous. The bloody words at Lemon Camping Ground had yet to dry. That was the burial place for many Masters.
Nowadays, the Central Pine Valley’s reputation had spread far and wide. Some people did not believe the rumors they heard and tried to approach the Central Pine Valley. In the end, these people disappeared forever without a trace.
No scouts dared to get too close to the Central Pine Valley. They could only observe the Central Pine Valley from more than 50 kilometers away.
Qiao Meiqi was like the spokesman for the Central Pine Valley. He was the only one who could obtain snow lava from them. Furthermore, all of the Central Pine Valley’s purchases of resources depended on Qiao Meiqi.
Ever since snow lava developed the potential as a weapon, its sale had increased sharply. Qiao Meiqi had made an immense amount of money. Furthermore, the Central Pine Valley was like a monster that devoured money. The colossal amount of money they earned from the sale of the snow lava was then converted into a colossal amount of resources.
Qiao Meiqi could earn money from both sides. It was impossible for him not to get rich.
However, as a visionary businessman, he clearly understood that the Central Pine Valley was the main reason why he could earn so much money. Nowadays, many people felt that he was just a puppet of the Central Pine Valley.
Qiao Meiqi did not deny such rumors. He knew that no one harbored any ill intentions against him because everyone was afraid of the Central Pine Valley. The bloody wooden sign at Lemon Camping Ground frightened away many covetous and evil individuals.
Right now, after the Spear of Heavy Cloud achieved a huge victory, Shi Xueman’s prestige skyrocketed.
Qiao Meiqi led a luxurious life as he was able to earn top dollar safely. One could tell how happy he was by looking at the everlasting smile on his face when he checked his account book.
The supply of snow lava was almost empty.
"Given the current speed, we have to go to the Lemon Camping Ground a few days earlier." Qiao Meiqi could not restrain the happiness in his voice.
At this moment, he suddenly heard someone yelling from outside, "Is there snow lava for sale?"
The manager outside replied politely, "Yes, there is. Sir, how much do you need?"
"I want all of it!"
Qiao Meiqi could sense the wealth of the customer from inside his room. As such, he decided to go out and take a look. Judging from the person’s generosity with money, he must be a very rich customer!
Qiao Meiqi walked out of his room and took a close look at the appearance of the customer. It was a man who was around 30 years old.
"Sir, nice to meet you. I am Qiao Meiqi, may I know your name?" Qiao Meiqi greeted the customer politely. Following which, he instructed the manager, "Give this customer a 10 percent discount on the price of snow lava."
Apparently, that man knew who Qiao Meiqi was. When he heard there was a discount, a look of joy flashed across his face. Cupping his hands, he replied, "So it’s Mayor Qiao. Thank you very much, Mayor. I am the division leader of the Silversword Division, Liang Zidao."
Qiao Meiqi was a businessman and was very good with his words. Upon hearing Liang Zidao’s name, he became even more friendly. He replied, "So it’s Division Leader Liang, I have long heard of your renowned name!"
Nowadays, there were many combat divisions. Qiao Meiqi did not even know half of these combat divisions. Clearly, he had not heard of the Silversword Division. However, Qiao Meiqi was still beaming with smiles, looking extremely friendly.
After a while, the snow lava was brought out.
After taking a look, Liang Zidao furrowed his eyebrows and said, "You have so little snow lava?"
Knowing that he had encountered a legitimately rich man, Qiao Meiqi’s eyes lit up, and he asked, "Is this amount not enough for you?"
Liang Zidao shook his head repeatedly and replied, "Not enough, not enough. How can this little amount of snow lava be enough?"
"Brother Liang, how much snow lava do you need?"
"I need at least three more vats!" Liang Zidao signaled with his fingers.
Deep down, Qiao Meiqi was overjoyed. However, he replied with an apologetic look on his face, "Brother Liang, I am really sorry! These are all I have right now. Brother Liang, don’t worry, I will procure more as soon as possible!"
Upon hearing these words, Liang Zidao’s facial expression loosened up. He asked, "How long will that take?"
Qiao Meiqi clenched his teeth and replied, "Three days!"
"All right, I will wait here for three days then," Liang Zidao replied.
Suddenly, someone barged in and asked, "Is there snow lava for sale?"
…..
Huo Da was a Master that Qiao Meiqi had just hired.
After Qiao Meiqi became immensely wealthy, the thing he worried the most about was his safety. In times of chaos, one could live without money, but not without strength. When it came to hiring experts, Qiao Meiqi was willing to pay any price.
Currently, Thunder City had three Masters.
The money and benefits Qiao Meiqi offered were much more generous than that of other mayors. With three Masters overseeing Thunder City, the city had extremely good public security. No one dared to create trouble.
Huo Da led a carefree life. If there was no war, everything would be perfect. However, if it weren’t for the war, Masters wouldn’t be so valuable. He could not have lived such a life in the past.
The mayor had just summoned him. After packing his things, he flew straight to the mayor residence.
Qiao Meiqi was extremely polite to him. As such, he had never put on airs in front of the mayor. Usually, other than inviting the Masters to dinners, the mayor seldom summoned them. After arriving at Thunder City for so long, Huo Da had yet to receive any missions. Therefore, when Qiao Meiqi summoned him this time around, he was very excited and was prepared to put up a good performance.
When he landed at the mayor’s residence, he shocked to see a massive crowd beneath him.
Was it a rebellion?
Those people glanced at Huo Da and turned back to continue arguing. No one cared about him.
"Do you understand what a ‘first come, first served basis’ is?! I came here earlier than you, so I will buy them before you!"
"How much I want to buy is my business, what can you do about it?"
"Stop bullshitting me. If you’re a man, let’s have a fight at the arena now."
"Do you think I am scared of you?"
...
When Huo Da saw these people arguing furiously, he felt puzzled. However, at the same time, he felt relieved that these people were not after the mayor.
When he entered the mayor’s residence, he was shocked by the mayor’s haggard face. He asked, "Mayor, what happened to you?"
Qiao Meiqi waved his hand and replied with a solemn look on his face, "Master Huo,
. I have an extremely urgent mission for you!"
A cold shiver went down Huo Da’s spine as he replied, "Mayor, feel free to tell me about it!"