Chapter 335: Chapter 335

Seeing this scene, Han Qiwu’s heart surged with joy.

Looking at Han Qiwu’s fiery gaze, Master Shuzi couldn’t help but caution him to calm down. He gently used a small hammer to pick out a piece of deep black metallic ore from within the crystal sphere.

Han Qiwu quickly reached out and caught it.

In his eyes, this was not just a piece of deep black metallic ore.

This was the embodiment of countless wood and mist fruits!

[Note: Once crafted, it will be your guiding beacon]

"What? It needs to be crafted?" Han Qiwu was a bit exasperated, no wonder Master Shuzi had said that earlier.

Turns out he could tell right from the start.

"Alright, hand it over. I haven’t crafted this type of natural magnetite many times; it’s quite troublesome. Mainly because its texture is somewhat fragile, I’ll need to use some of my precious forging liquid—you get the idea," Master Shuzi coughed lightly as he replied.

"How much, Master? Just tell me straight," Han Qiwu asked directly.

He still had over two thousand coins on him.

That should be enough.

"One thousand gold coins. That’s the friendship price." Master Shuzi thought for a moment and added, "You’ll also need to provide five ordinary crystal spheres."

"No problem! I’ll bring you ten! But, uh, the crystal spheres are still at home. Can I bring them next time?" Han Qiwu pondered for a moment and said.

Master Shuzi had helped him plenty, and ten ordinary crystal spheres were definitely affordable.

Giving gifts couldn’t hurt, right?

Thinking about gifting, Han Qiwu was reminded of something.

Right, wasn’t there a weird situation earlier when checking Mr. Tang’s goodwill level in the log?

It hadn’t changed at all.

Could it be that once the goodwill level is high enough, further interactions are required to see any changes?

After thinking it over briefly, Han Qiwu shook his head slightly.

Forget it, there’s no point in dwelling on it.

He’ll find out next time.

Upon hearing Han Qiwu’s agreement, Master Shuzi’s eyes clearly lit up, and he nodded with satisfaction.

There’s hope for this kid yet.

He took the natural magnetite and said, "No need to wait ’til next time, just go home and grab it now. It’ll only take me an hour to craft."

Didn’t you just say it’s troublesome?

Now you’re telling me it’ll be done in an hour?

Seeing Han Qiwu’s questioning look, Master Shuzi’s old face turned slightly red as he grabbed the magnetite and disappeared behind the curtain to begin crafting.

Han Qiwu chuckled helplessly, hopped on his bike, and rode straight home.

Once inside, he first packed ten crystal spheres into a storage compartment, and then stored the freshly collected ore and clay in his storage chest.

After finishing that, he scanned the room and took out the ancient glacier stone, carefully placing it by the side of his desk.

As soon as he set it down, wisps of white frost began to emanate from the ancient glacier stone.

The frost sank and crept along the desk legs, slowly spreading to the surroundings, quickly lowering the room’s temperature to around 25° Celsius.

"This feels amazing." Han Qiwu stomped his feet lightly, thoroughly enjoying the comfort.

The cool frost swirled around his body, dispersing the stifling heat.

After stepping out of the house and closing the door behind him, Han Qiwu leisurely hopped back on his bike and returned to the blacksmith’s shop. Seeing that Master Shuzi hadn’t come out yet, he decided to pull out "Clueless Piglet" and read.

The recent Chapters were quite entertaining—Piglet had fallen for the Fox’s trick and was now trying hard to find similarities between itself and the Elephant, aiming to prove the Elephant might be its mother.

To show it could also have a trunk, Piglet, encouraged by the Duckling, had two green onions stuffed up its nostrils.

After reading for over half an hour, Han Qiwu heard the smithing sounds inside come to a halt. He quickly put away the book and stood by the counter, waiting.

"With a natural magnetite this large, the compass it crafts should have excellent performance," he murmured.

"Maybe it could even have a special function, like detecting trees."

"If it can’t detect trees, detecting mist flowers would still be useful."

Han Qiwu indulged in these fantasies while waiting.

Master Shuzi pulled back the curtain with no sense of suspense, placing the crafted compass on the counter and casually collecting the ten crystal spheres. He said, "This magnetite is quite different from the ones I’ve worked with before. The forging liquid wasn’t entirely compatible, so the compass’s full potential hasn’t been realized. But no worries, consider it as having untapped potential for now. Use it first, and once you gather the right forging materials, I’ll help you upgrade."

"Compass? Isn’t this supposed to be a magnetic needle?" Han Qiwu blurted out instinctively.

"Magnetic needle? I don’t craft that kind of thing," Master Shuzi shot him a glance. "Show some respect for history, will you?"

Full of anticipation, he took the compass and examined it.

The compass was jet-black and about 20 centimeters long, compact and elegant. The magnetite’s southern pole had been shaped into a handle and placed on a bronze base that was smooth as a mirror. The base was engraved with numerous directional markers.

When the magnetic ladle stopped spinning on the base, the handle pointed south while the ladle’s bowl pointed north. "Si" means direction.

[Usage: Pointing directions]

[Special Effect - Faulty: The partially developed compass can only be used on the hour. Upon activation, it refreshes the regional map and displays the locations of three specific markers.]

[Special Effect - Marker: The compass can tag living beings and items within one meter. Current marker limit: 3]

[Note: Currently, it has only been developed to the second stage: Toss it on the ground]

Wait a minute, what does "only developed to the second stage" mean?

So this compass is layered like a mille-feuille pastry?

Truth be told, Han Qiwu was rather satisfied after seeing its attributes.

Although it could only be used once per hour, its abilities were far more valuable than just pointing north.

Based on its current functions, Han Qiwu felt it resembled a radar more than anything else.

In Mist Forest, that would suffice.

He decided he’d study what types of items he could mark during his next trip.

Han Qiwu glanced at the time: 11:58.

Holding the Faulty Compass, he tested the marking functionality on some nearby scattered iron ore.

[Iron Ore Tagged Successfully]

While waiting for the map to refresh, Han Qiwu turned to Master Shuzi for guidance. "Master, what materials are needed to craft the forging liquid for improving this compass?"

"You’ll have to ask the compass itself," Master Shuzi replied, without even glancing away from the crystal spheres he was examining.

Han Qiwu was baffled.

"Master, how am I supposed to ask?"

"When it encounters suitable materials, its bowl will automatically turn toward them. Then you just bring those materials to me," Master Shuzi added before quickly retreating behind the curtain, likely to focus on studying his beloved crystal spheres.

Clearly, he was eager to avoid being further delayed by Han Qiwu.

Even from several meters away, Han Qiwu could sense how much Master Shuzi disliked being interrupted.

This is just too difficult...