Chương 64: The Smoothbore Matchlock

Regarding how to deliver the demolition tubes, Li Qinwu first thought of the ballista. But it lacked the power—a 13-kg iron tube was simply too heavy to launch effectively. Advanced catapults? They had the power, but were too bulky and slow; against the high-mobility Hero Party, the projectiles would be easily dodged. Having Ogres throw them? The strength was there, but accuracy and timing were critical flaws.

Ogres had fingers too thick to light fuses easily, and if a Goblin lit it before handing it over, a long fuse let the Hero escape, while a short one risked the tube exploding in the Ogre's clumsy hand. Landmines? Feasible, but unpredictable; no one knew which path the Hero would take through the vast forest. Stymied, Li Qinwu decided to pivot to another application of black powder: the firearm! The smoothbore matchlock had a low technical threshold.

As long as the production was standardized and materials were solid, its lethality was formidable. Li Qinwu, a hardcore military enthusiast, practically knew the blueprints from the "Transmigrator's Encyclopedia" by heart. The thought of commanding a line of musketeers crushing local forces with unmatched firepower made him drool with anticipation. He rushed to the steelworks to find Iron-Orc. They spent three days sketching blueprints and refining tools.

Manufacturing a smoothbore was easy; the challenge was quality control. To prevent mismatched calibers where bullets either jammed or leaked gas, Li Qinwu implemented modern management: he pre-cut equal portions of steel for each barrel and created a standardized cylindrical iron rod. By wrapping red-hot steel around this rod during forging, every barrel maintained a consistent caliber. He also introduced assembly-line production, where each worker mastered a single component to improve yield.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. He set the caliber at 20mm—since black powder lacked high explosive velocity, he needed a large bore to ensure lethality. The barrel was 1100mm long, and with the stock, the total length reached 1300mm. With a 30cm bayonet attached, the thing doubled as a pike. With Ogres serving as "power hammers," the shaping process was incredibly fast.

In less than half a day, a crude but sturdily-built smoothbore matchlock was born. At the testing range, Li Qinwu loaded the powder, rammed it down, inserted the ball, and lit the match-cord. He secured the gun to a wooden rack and aimed at a tree 50 meters away. From a safe distance, he pulled the trigger-string. BANG! A thunderous roar erupted, followed by a cloud of thick white smoke. A clean hole appeared in the distant tree.

"It worked!!" Iron-Orc shouted, rushing to inspect the weapon.

"It didn't burst! There's actually a 'spell' for launching iron spheres!" As Iron-Orc obsessed over the hexagonal barrel, he didn't notice Li Qinwu behind him, watching with eyes full of murderous intent. Li Qinwu had his dagger half-drawn. He thought of the escaped Butler Monde and suspected he was the cause of the Hero crisis. If Iron-Orc, who knew the entire manufacturing process, also defected to the human world, the consequences would be dire.

Li Qinwu looked like a viper coiled to strike, his pupils narrowed to slits. But then, Iron-Orc spoke without looking back: "Don't worry, My Lord. With the Ogres and 150 workers, we can churn out fifty or sixty of these a day!" Li Qinwu's hand froze. He took a deep breath, suppressing his paranoia. How could he build an all-encompassing empire without a heart for talent? If he killed Iron-Orc today, would he kill Hana or Dog-Witch tomorrow? The key was management and providing what talent desired.

He sheathed the blade and stepped forward with a smile, patting Iron-Orc on the shoulder.

"Iron-Orc, I'm leaving the mass production to you. Remember, quality control is the lifeline. Work hard, and life will get sweeter and sweeter!"

"Yes, My Lord! Absolutely, My Lord!" Li Qinwu left to attend to other matters, though he quietly assigned a squad of Goblins to "watch" Iron-Orc. Once Li Qinwu was out of sight, Iron-Orc collapsed to the ground, drenched in sweat. He had felt that killing intent like a physical needle against his neck.

"I must... make myself more valuable!" Iron-Orc whispered, scrambling up and running back to the forge to work like a madman.