Post-Apocalyptic Survival Modpack

Chapter 13 13: New Elements
hula-

As the last layer of stone was knocked away, a wave of intense heat washed over us.

However, this did not affect Wang Ji.

Sudden changes in temperature can disrupt the body's temperature regulation, causing discomfort and even illness.

But for Wang Ji, as long as the environment isn't so hot that it catches fire or so cold that it causes frostbite and blood loss, it doesn't affect him much.

Not losing health is equivalent to a comfortable environment.

Regarding the features...

clang!
The sound of metal clashing against metal could be heard continuously.

Wang Ji peeked out cautiously, his pupils gradually dilating.

Boom!
Huge forging hammers pounded the red-hot metal, sending sparks flying. Mine carts and cable cars slid along the tracks, transporting batches of goods with the help of elevators. Rows of large metal furnaces emitted waves of heat, distorting the air.

This was an exceptionally spacious forging workshop, and Wang Ji had never heard of many of the things there.

Especially those enormous furnaces, with their black exteriors and unknown materials.

But these are not the main points.

Wang Ji stared wide-eyed at a furnace in the corner.

From the pipes of the furnace, bright red magma slowly flowed out.

Beside the furnace, an old man dressed differently from the others was holding a mirror, seemingly trying to see something in the lava.

"What can you possibly figure out by just staring at it like that?"

This action left Wang Ji somewhat confused.

However, this did not stop him from eyeing the huge furnace.

This thing reminded Wang Ji of Tinkers' Soul, but Tinkers' Soul's furnace can't produce magma; instead, it needs magma as fuel.

If we could get our hands on this stove…

They did it without hesitation.

Taking advantage of the fact that there were few guards nearby, Wang Jijing quietly appeared near the furnace he had been watching.

It wasn't that he wanted to bother the old man; it was just that the other furnaces were bustling with people operating them, making this place the quietest.

And it's the only one that's free, so there's a chance you might get what you want.

"Hello."

The old man was startled by the voice behind him, turned around, and immediately frowned.

"Where did this kid come from? Go play somewhere else and don't disturb my research."

Having grown accustomed to being treated this way, Wang Ji didn't mind and simply continued, "I didn't mean to disturb you; I'm just very interested in what you're doing."

The old man suddenly froze, turned around, and looked at the little brat with a strange expression.

Wang Ji's serious attitude and impeccable manners made the old man feel somewhat unusual.

This doesn't seem to be the kind of mischievous kid whose mind is full of naughty antics.

Could it be that…

"Are you really interested?"

Seeing that Wang Ji's attitude seemed genuine, the old man also became somewhat interested.

Seeing the old man's attitude, Wang Ji secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It's good that we can keep communicating.

His experiences and observations over the past few months have made him realize that some self-proclaimed noble people in the empire look down on commoners from the bottom of their hearts, and feel that even a single word spoken to them is a desecration.

Fortunately, this old man was not; he was more like a scholar who didn't care about status or position but was more devoted to his research.

Of course, this may also be due to Wang Ji's young age, which naturally makes it easier for people to lower their guard.

Sometimes being a child isn't all bad.

Wang Ji replied, "Yes, I'm curious, what can you see in the lava with that magnifying glass?"

"Oh no, no, child, this is not an ordinary magnifying glass. It is a special mirror with the power of insight, which can help me analyze the elements contained in all things in the world."

"Can you understand?"

After speaking, the old man seemed to realize that the words he used were too difficult for a seven-year-old child to understand, so he kindly asked a question.

It was clear that he was happy to talk to this curious child as much as possible.

But... why does this thing sound so familiar?

Listening to the old man's story, Wang Ji recalled something familiar—an element mirror originating from the Mysterious Era module, which could analyze the elemental composition of anything simply by staring at it.

With something similar as a comparison, the old man's words were not hard to understand. Wang Ji nodded and said, "I have encountered something similar before, so I can understand what you are saying. So what did you see?"

The old man became even more interested.

Without hesitation, he handed the mirror to Wang Ji and said with great interest, "Why not try it yourself?"

Wang Ji stared at the mirror for a second, then decisively took it.

[Mysterious element input, progress: 1%]

Glancing at the notification in the lower left corner, Wang Ji raised the mirror and looked through it at the lava that was still flowing out.

An incomprehensible message attempted to enter Wang Ji's brain, but having never studied any related theories, this information felt like a foreign language, leaving him somewhat—

[Dizziness: 3 seconds]

Wang Ji moved the mirror away, and his vision blurred for a moment.

This made the old man laugh.

He clearly anticipated this performance.

"Now tell me, child, what did you see?"

I saw stars.

Wang Ji, feeling dizzy and lightheaded, thought this, but recalling the elements contained in the lava during the mysterious era, he casually remarked:

“I saw flames flowing through the earth.”

The old man paused. "You really saw it?"

Wang Ji nodded.

"Interesting, you're very talented."

The old man commented as he put the mirror away.

"Perhaps you can become a master of magic in the future."

Wang Ji casually replied, "Maybe one day."

Perhaps sensing Wang Ji's indifference, the old man smiled and gave only a brief response:

"Ha, arrogance."

Just as the old man was about to say something more, Wang Ji suddenly spoke first.

"Sir, is there a lot of magma in this furnace?"

Although he was a little unhappy about being interrupted, the old man was obviously quite magnanimous. He said, "Of course, it's full of lava, a whole furnace, lots of it."

"It wasn't burned by the lava."

"Of course not, kid. Although this forge is from a previous era, and there are many newer things around it, its performance is still quite good. Oh, why am I telling you all this..."

[New structure added: Imperial Forge]

[New element entry, progress: 3%]

Ok? !

Wang Ji glanced at the notification in the lower left corner. In addition to the new structure, there was also an extra progress bar—an extra one, not just an addition to the previous mysterious progress bar.

He now has two progress bars.

The faint commotion and the familiar, subtle scraping of armor that drifted from afar caught Wang Ji's attention, but he didn't have time to analyze them closely. He snapped out of his reverie and said:
"I can rest assured that."

As he spoke, he took out an iron bucket and placed it under the pipe where lava was still flowing.

"What are you doing?! Is that an iron bucket? How can an iron bucket hold..."

The old man's words came to an abrupt end.

Based on his experience and knowledge, iron buckets should not be used to hold lava; doing so would be suicidal and extremely dangerous.

But what he saw before him completely overturned his understanding.

"What? Why is everything alright?"

"Isn't this iron?"

"No, no, this is clearly... wait, where did you get this bucket?"

The old man asked a series of questions.

"That's how it was taken out."

While he was asking questions, Wang Ji had already taken out another bucket and poured it onto the wall next to him.

A water block appeared out of thin air on the wall and began to spread downwards. Strangely, the water flowed very slowly and seemed endless. Despite the large amount of water flowing down, the volume of water at the source did not decrease at all.

"Are you a master of magic?"

“You can consider me to be one.”

Wang Ji replied while he was busy.

"Truly amazing. I've never seen such a young sorcerer. Oh, but perhaps you've heard that our Archmage Osvid displayed remarkable talent even as a child; he was a true 'gifted one.' Could it be that you are also...?"

The old man murmured, his eyes growing brighter, just like Ian's back then.

We've found a treasure!

"How can this water flow endlessly? What kind of magic did you use?"

He showed no intention of stopping Wang Ji. Instead, his eyes shone with anticipation as he looked at Wang Ji, as if he were observing a novel experimental subject.

Steaming hot

“This is an ability I was born with, sir. My uncle said it’s some kind of creation magic, but I don’t really understand it, since I never went to school.”

As Wang Ji answered, his hands never stopped moving, filling a bucket with lava and immediately pouring it into the water.

With a hissing sound, the bucket of lava transformed into a large, square block of obsidian.

Yes, he's building the gates of hell.

This sudden change without any prelude surprised the old man.

"This doesn't make sense!"

"However, if it really is a creation spell, then it's not surprising. The obvious characteristic of this kind of spell is that it can distort some of the rules of reality to a certain extent within a certain range, or even create a unique set of rules. How could someone be able to awaken such a talent directly?"

"Incredible, truly incredible! No wonder the iron bucket can store magma, no wonder the water can float and never run out, no wonder the lava cools and forms obsidian in an instant..."

"What are you doing right now? Why are you making so much obsidian?"

Seeing Wang Ji's continuous movements, the old man asked a question.

Wang Ji said in a serious tone, "A sudden inspiration struck me, which drove me to do this."

"Could it be that he has discovered a new way to use his talent?"

The old man opened his eyes wide.

"This is a rare sight. 'Talented people' are already few and far between, so to witness a talented person unleash their talent is a lucky thing."

"And you look like you're building something, do you even have a talent for it? I need to observe you closely; maybe I can use this as the basis for a new article..."

As they spoke, Wang Ji also clearly observed how the giant smelting furnace was operated. He turned the valve to the right, and the flow of scalding magma began to increase.

The lava was collected bucket by bucket, and as soon as it was full, it was poured into the water.

Before long, half of the Gates of Hell were built.

At this moment, the footsteps behind them began to increase.

"Hello, sir, I'm sorry to bother you, but we are here on orders to conduct a search."

The guards finally arrived here.

(End of this chapter)