A few minutes later, the group followed Stark and came to a stop in front of an inconspicuous brass door.
The weathered door panels were covered in scratches and dents, with several dwarven runes crookedly carved into them that Starlight couldn't understand.
“We're here.” Stark pulled a key from his tunic and scratched his head sheepishly. “It might be a bit messy... please bear with me~”
With the metallic click of turning gears, the door slowly opened. A unique scent—a mix of metal, engine oil, and alcohol—immediately wafted out.
Starlight ducked his head slightly and followed Stark inside.
The interior of the workshop was much more spacious than it appeared from the outside, but it was exactly as Stark had described—the only word for it was chaotic.
Oddly shaped mechanical parts were scattered all over the floor, and the workbench in the center of the room was piled high with blueprints.
Several half-finished probes lay in the corner, and numerous mysterious devices made of steam pipes hung from the ceiling. Most striking of all, however, was a bubbling copper brewing barrel near the door, with several overturned cups scattered beside it.
“Sit anywhere...” Stark kicked a gear out of his path. “Uh... anything on the floor can be used as a stool.”
Po Kong didn't stand on ceremony. He grabbed what looked like a probe shell from the side and sat down heavily on it.
The metal casing creaked under his robust frame, but it managed to hold his weight.
Moen and Xia Duo stood at the door, their brows furrowing slightly at the cluttered scene before them.
The mountains of parts, the oil-stained workbench, and the suspicious pile of metal scrap in the corner made the cleanliness-loving pair hesitate to take a step forward.
“Excuse us, Mr. Stark, but we brought our own chairs.”
After scanning the room and finding nothing that resembled a traditional chair, Moen took three seeds from her storage space and dropped them at her feet.
As soon as the seeds hit the ground, they sprouted and intertwined. In just a few seconds, they had transformed into three exquisite wooden stools.
Starlight, however, was in no hurry to sit. He was fascinated by the mechanical devices he had never seen before.
“Come, come! You've been traveling for so long, have something to drink!”
Stark fished several cups out of a cabinet, walked over to the beer barrel—which was significantly taller than he was—and skillfully turned the tap.
An amber liquid poured out with a fine foam, releasing an enticing aroma of malt into the tin cups.
“Give it a try! This is beer brewed from lava-roasted barley. You definitely won't find this where you're from!”
Po Kong eagerly took a cup, tilted his head back, and downed a large gulp, smacking his lips in satisfaction.
“Not bad at all, but it's missing a little something~ Little Star, how about giving us some ice?”
Starlight raised an eyebrow and casually snapped his fingers. The moisture in the air instantly condensed into dozens of crystalline droplets, suspended in front of everyone.
With another slight twist of his fingers, the droplets crystallized rapidly into sharp-edged ice crystals, refracting a rainbow-like glow in the firelight.
“Help yourselves.” Starlight smiled slightly, and the ice crystals in the air fell precisely into everyone's cups.
Seeing this, Stark suddenly stopped what he was doing and looked at Starlight thoughtfully. “Wait... Mr. Starlight, I just remembered something. Exactly how many elemental affinities do you have? It feels like you can cast magic of any attribute.”
Starlight gave a light chuckle. “That? My constitution is a bit special, so I know a little bit of most magic~”
“Oh~ I see. That’s a very convenient constitution. Unlike us dwarves—even our mages, if they have elemental affinity, it's mostly fire and earth.” Stark nodded thoughtfully. After taking a sip of his drink, he returned to his workbench.
Stark expertly pried open the probe's casing and peered inside.
“Strange... logically, the detection module shouldn't break this easily.” He carefully inspected every circuit with his thick fingers, muttering to himself, “The wiring is intact, no signs of a short circuit... maybe if I adjust it like this?”
After a bit of tinkering, Stark wiped the sweat from his forehead and pressed the start button with high expectations.
However, as soon as the probe started running, its legs began to wobble from side to side as if it were drunk. The situation hadn't improved at all. Seeing this, he could only sigh in disappointment and slump back into his chair.
Stark watched the probe's staggering movements and rubbed his temples. “Looks like I’ll have to dismantle Xiao Qi and rebuild him from scratch again. Otherwise, I’ll never find the problem.”
At that moment, Moen, who was sitting nearby, gently swirled the iced malt beer in her hand and asked with interest, “Stark, I’ve noticed you’re quite different from traditional dwarves. Just how many... um... inventions like this have you tinkered with?”
Upon hearing this, Stark’s discouraged expression immediately vanished. “Ha! You’re asking about that? There are tons! For example, the beer you’re drinking was made with my custom brewing machine. The ventilation and cooling equipment in this room is also my own original design...”
Listening to Stark’s enthusiastic introduction, Xia Duo raised an eyebrow. “Based on your description, they seem quite good. Why not market them?”
“I’d love to market them, but no one wants to use them!” Stark gave a bitter smile and said helplessly, “I told you before, most dwarves are stubborn old fogies, solid as rocks. Getting them to accept new things isn't easy. Besides, marketing costs money, and since I don’t have any talent for traditional forging... well, my funds are limited~”
“By the way, do you have any plans to export these gadgets to the humans? I think some of these things are actually quite practical. I just don't know if the failure rate is high, since hardly anyone but you can repair them.” Seeing Xia Duo speak up, Po Kong chimed in as well.
He truly believed some of Stark's inventions could be applied to the War God Legion’s field operations. If there were no major issues, he could take the lead in helping purchase some.
Besides, the Iron-Heart family already had ties to his House of Mars. He was sure Sui Yun and the family elders wouldn't object.
“Really?” Stark’s eyes lit up, and he quickly pulled out a pen and paper. “Then tell me, Po Kong, what are the requirements? What needs improvement? I can start working on it right away.”
“Well... there's no rush for that. I’ll think about it over the next few days.” Po Kong stroked his chin, then suddenly seemed to remember something and asked, “By the way, do you have any inventions that allow for long-distance communication?”
“Long-distance communication? How far?” Stark was startled, his eyebrows knitting together.
Starlight immediately understood Po Kong's meaning and added, “The further the better, of course. Ideally, something that can cover the entire continent.”
Throughout their journey, they had deeply realized the importance of intelligence. Even the elven Divine Concealment Squad could only guarantee a response within a day or two; for others, it would be even slower.
Timely and accurate intelligence could undoubtedly determine the outcome of a battle. If such an invention truly existed, it would be a formidable tool anywhere.
However, both of them understood that something capable of changing the world's landscape wasn't something that could be made on a whim. Looking at the silent, head-bowed Stark, Starlight could only sigh inwardly.
But before he could offer a word of comfort, he saw Stark look up.
“Something for real-time communication... I might actually have something here that fits your requirements.” As Stark spoke, he suddenly hopped off his chair. “Wait here, I’ll go look in the back.”
“You actually have one?” Xia Duo opened her mouth in surprise.
The four of them watched Stark walk into the storage room at the back of the workshop, exchanging shocked glances.
The sound of rummaging and clattering came from the storage room, accompanied by Stark’s muttering.
“Hmm? Where did I put that thing... not this... not that either... Ah! Found it!”
Rate on N.U.
