After handling all these matters, I quickly went to guide Elder Jian and the others in building the steelmaking furnace. Every day, my non-stop tasks were exercising my body and constructing the steelmaking furnace.
Following half a month of effort, the steelmaking furnace was finally completed. On the very day it was finished, I immediately ordered people to smelt glass. Early the next morning, when I took out the glass melted yesterday and tested it, it could indeed withstand a force of 4,000 catties. This gave me a solid sense of security. If I made the glass pieces smaller, say 60 centimeters square, a strength of over ten thousand catties should be no problem at all.
This glass reminded me that since glass was now successfully produced, making a magnifying glass should be a piece of cake. I then explained the principles and blueprints to Elder Jian, having him develop it personally. True to form, the old man did not disappoint me, producing a microscope in just three days. I showered him with praise, making Elder Jian quite embarrassed. I made it sound as if his creation was peerless in heaven and earth—though my compliments were actually spot on, as Elder Jian's artifact-refinement talent claimed to be second under heaven, and no one dared to claim the top spot.
Chapter 73