As he spoke, Gui Xuanqing’s tone was filled with pride.
"At that time, we were all worried about the insufficient precision in arrow processing. I thought for a long time and realized that relying on manpower and simple machinery alone could never produce qualified arrows. To succeed, we needed to create a suitable machine."
"But I was at a loss on how to start until I met him."
Gui Xuanqing raised his hand and pointed to Jin Fu in the distance, his face full of admiration.
"He happened to be passing by the archery range and saw us huddled together pondering. He came over, and after hearing our ideas, he actually provided some insightful opinions."
"I was immediately enlightened, so I joined hands with him to tackle the challenge. Unexpectedly, we actually succeeded."
"Senior Brother, this Jin Fu is truly a rare talent, especially with exceptional hands-on skills. He is the most proficient at handling the machine, and the arrows he produces are the most standard, far surpassing even me."
After listening to Gui Xuanqing, Zhao Ya once again deeply realized the importance of talent.
What was initially an inadvertent action had unexpectedly solved such a big problem for Azure Dragon Temple.
Of course, a significant part of this achievement is also due to Gui Xuanqing’s contribution.
Although his martial talent is average, in the manipulation of such complex machinery like the Mechanical Crossbow, he has shown great aptitude.
"Well done," Zhao Ya sincerely praised.
At this time, Jin Fu was also about to finish his work.
He used both hands to turn a disk-like object, which in turn moved a grinding stone to finish polishing the surface of the arrowhead.
Soon, the triangular arrowhead shone brightly.
After completing the final process, Jin Fu took the arrow off the workbench and gave a shy smile to Zhao Ya beside him.
"Senior Brother."
He had long noticed Zhao Ya’s arrival, but as he was at a critical moment in arrow processing, he couldn’t spare any attention, so he didn’t greet him.
"Well done," Zhao Ya complimented with a smile on his face.
"Want to try it?" Jin Fu asked.
"Sure."
Saying that, Zhao Ya took the freshly processed arrow, took a Mechanical Crossbow from someone nearby, fitted the arrow, aimed slightly at the target a hundred steps away, and then pulled the trigger.
With the vibration of the bowstring, the crossbow arrow instantly crossed the hundred-step distance and directly hit the bullseye.
The entire process was swift and decisive, drawing rounds of cheers from the crowd.
Zhao Ya was very satisfied.
Because in his view, the fired crossbow arrow almost traveled in a straight line, proving the processing error was minimal.
Although it hasn’t yet reached the level of original crossbow arrows, it’s very close.
Jin Fu’s face was also full of pride.
Zhao Ya set down the Mechanical Crossbow and then circled around the machine several times, feeling more and more emotional as he looked.
Although many parts are made very simply, as long as they are improved over time, they will eventually evolve into the likeness of future machine tools.
With high-precision machine tools, many things become possible.
Complementing each other, there may well be a technological explosion in this world where Martial Dao is revered.
Of course, it’s still too early to consider such things now.
However, Zhao Ya still saw a glimmer of hope in this.
Having witnessed the power of technology himself, he naturally looks forward to that day.
He suddenly stopped walking and looked at the crowd.
"All of you did well this time, especially Gui Xuanqing and Jin Fu, who contributed greatly by solving a major problem for Azure Dragon Temple. Your achievements will not go unnoticed. I will discuss with the elders when I return and then reward you based on your contributions."
Hearing Zhao Ya say this, these people were naturally overjoyed.
Gui Xuanqing was especially elated, more so than when he shot and killed a Meridian Opening Realm expert on the battlefield.
After a round of commotion, Zhao Ya pulled Gui Xuanqing and Jin Fu to the side and asked quietly.
"Now that the problem with the crossbow arrows is solved, have you figured out the principle and structure of the Mechanical Crossbow? Can you disassemble and repair it?"
Although the Mechanical Sect’s methods are superb and the Mechanical Crossbows they produce are extremely exquisite and complex, this also results in a rather high failure rate.
Especially after undergoing several battles, many Mechanical Crossbows have more or less developed some issues.
There are very few Mechanical Crossbows without hidden issues.
This is also a major problem that urgently needs solving.
Upon hearing Zhao Ya’s inquiry, Gui Xuanqing and Jin Fu exchanged a glance, and then Gui Xuanqing spoke first.
"Jin Fu and I have been researching this for the past two days and have already disassembled several Mechanical Crossbows with serious issues, but to be honest, it is extremely challenging."
"That’s right, the Mechanical Crossbow has many parts, and the processing dimensions vary greatly; the difficulty of arrow processing is nothing compared to it," Jin Fu added.
Zhao Ya had actually anticipated this.
After all, the Mechanical Crossbow is visibly complex, and replicating it exactly is nearly impossible.
"I didn’t say you had to replicate it. As long as you can understand the principles and structure, you can disassemble severely damaged Mechanical Crossbows for parts and then repair those with hidden issues," Zhao Ya explained.
"If that’s the case, then it’s not too difficult. It’s worth trying," Jin Fu immediately agreed.
"Yes, it can be tried."
"You don’t need to worry about anything else; just focus on your research. If you have any problems, you can always come to me," Zhao Ya instructed before leaving.
As soon as he stepped away, these people gathered together and started chatting loudly.
"Senior Brother Zhao actually came in person; we’ve really shown our faces this time."
"That’s right, who would have thought Senior Brother Zhao would come personally."
Nowadays, Zhao Ya is like a legendary figure among the young disciples of Azure Dragon Temple.
Especially after the last time Zhao Ya turned the tide, drew the Azure Dragon into his body, and killed Jingping Saint, the story of his deeds has continuously circulated among the young disciples like a legend.
So, the excitement among these people at seeing Zhao Ya come in person was understandable.
Jin Fu was also very excited.
For Zhao Ya, who recruited him into Azure Dragon Temple and provided training and support in various aspects, Jin Fu is full of gratitude.
Therefore, when he heard Gui Xuanqing say that Zhao Ya was also troubled by arrow processing, he immediately decided to help.
Even if it meant racking his brains, he had to help alleviate Zhao Ya’s worry.
With strong hands-on ability from a young age and Gui Xuanqing’s ingenious ideas, this seemingly impossible task was actually accomplished by the two of them.
Soon, the rewards came out.
Among them, the rewards that Gui Xuanqing and Jin Fu received were so generous that everyone was astounded.
Jin Fu also felt a sense of anxiety, thinking that he had only done something insignificant, so why such a big deal?
Later, it was Zhao Ya who personally reassured him and explained the importance of his work, dispelling his doubts.
Although the problem with the Mechanical Crossbow is not yet resolved, with a sufficient supply of crossbow arrows, Azure Dragon Temple’s defense capability has risen another level.
In every corner, Zhao Ya had points set up, with team members carrying crossbow arrows on watch.
These points crossed each other, covering almost all dead corners of Azure Dragon Temple.
In this way, a 360-degree, three-dimensional defense system began to take shape.
It wasn’t that Zhao Ya was overly cautious; after sealing the mountain, it was inevitable that ill-intentioned people might come to probe.
Therefore, defenses had to be heavily fortified.
Meanwhile, in Ink Sea City, Gui Heshu was staring blankly at a letter.
After a long time, a look of excitement and joy appeared on his face.
"It’s the lord; the lord has finally replied."
It’s no wonder he was so excited.
Over the past few years, Gui Heshu had expended countless efforts trying to contact this elusive lord, but to no avail.
And because of the lord’s disappearance, Gui Heshu lacked confidence, causing already low-profile Ink Sea City to become even less conspicuous.
After all, Gui Heshu understood the principle that a man without a weapon is a man with treasure—Ink Sea City is like a piece of delicious meat, attracting countless covetous gazes.