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Chapter 54 We Still Need Materials

Important Announcement: Today, the author and editor Ms. Bacon discussed some policy-related reasons that necessitated a core setting revision. As a result, the "Field of View Expansion" setting in Chapter 50 has been changed from "number of believers" determining the radius to "Salvation Index" determining the radius.

Please go back and reread it, dear readers. Otherwise, such a significant change in settings might cause confusion in your subsequent reading. A few chapters after Chapter 50 also have minor adjustments. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

If you're reading Chapter 50 and already see the "Salvation Index" setting, then there's no need to reread.

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The next morning.

Li Daoxuan had just woken up when he saw San Shier standing at Gao Yiyi’s doorway, yelling.

"Li Da, Gao Yiyi, you two freeloaders, good for nothing but eating!"

San Shier stood with hands on his hips, pointing a finger at their noses and scolding. "The Heavenly Lord ordered you to forge armor, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a month has passed! A few days ago, when the bandits attacked, you only produced two pieces of Two-Plate Armor. What use is the Heavenly Lord's bounty if this is all you do? Don't you feel any shame eating the food the Heavenly Lord has blessed us with?"

San Shier’s tirade actually made the two blacksmiths blush. Behind them, several other blacksmiths who had come to the village from Wangjia Village, Zhengjia Village, and Zhongjia Village also flushed with embarrassment.

After a long moment, Gao Yiyi stepped forward, lowering his head. "This isn't Master Li's fault," he muttered. "The Heavenly Lord commanded him to forge strange, new firearms, and I was the one tasked with making armor. I... I didn't... expect the bandits to actually come, and so many of them at once. So... I only made two pieces of Two-Plate Armor. After that, I've been slowly learning the techniques for various types of armor... I've actually forged many plates, but I haven't had time to assemble them into full suits."

The group of newly arrived blacksmiths also chimed in, admitting their oversight. "We've also been learning to forge armor under Master Li, and we've made a pile of iron plates, but haven't assembled them."

San Shier scoffed. "Don't try to fool me. Many plates, you say? Show them to me."

Gao Yiyi went back inside. A moment later, he emerged carrying a large winnowing basket. It was indeed filled with numerous armor plates of various shapes. One could tell some were meant for shoulders, others for arms, and some for chests...

San Shier demanded, "If you have so many, why haven't you put them together?"

Gao Yiyi scratched his head, a sheepish smile on his face. He didn't know how to explain.

Li Da took over the explanation. "Master San, it is indeed our fault. Firstly, we truly didn't expect so many bandits to arrive so quickly. We thought Gao Family Village wouldn't need armor for some time, so we were careless. Secondly, we also lack the materials needed to assemble these iron plates."

The Village Chief ambled over from the side. "The Heavenly Lord has given you so much iron, and you still lack materials? Is there not enough iron?"

Li Da shook his head. "We have enough iron, but armor isn't made entirely of iron. Think about it, Master. If it were all iron, it would be too heavy! We wouldn't even need to go into battle; the armor itself would crush us to death on the ground."

The Village Chief couldn't help but ask, "Then what do you use?"

Li Da replied, "Cotton."

As he said this, Li Daoxuan, watching from outside the box, understood. "Cotton," or more accurately, "cotton fabric."

He vaguely recalled reading somewhere that none of the Ming Dynasty armor unearthed was made purely of iron. All of it, to varying degrees, used cotton fabric, with the iron plates connected by strips of cotton.

Some armor even used more cotton fabric than iron plates. This was why it was called Cotton Armor.

Cotton Armor offered many advantages compared to traditional iron armor.

First, it was light, preventing soldiers from being crushed before even entering battle. Second, it was inexpensive, easy to maintain, resistant to decay, and offered good warmth. This made it particularly suitable for the cold northern winters. Unlike traditional heavy armor, which required custom fitting, it also provided strong protection against early firearms.

These were advantages that traditional iron armor, such as lamellar, chainmail, or scale armor, lacked.

Hearing Li Da's explanation, San Shier's expression softened; he was no longer so angry. "If you were short on cotton fabric, why didn't you say so earlier? I would have sent someone with flour to the county town to trade for some."

Li Da and Gao Yiyi scratched their heads, looking a bit awkward. "We honestly didn't expect the bandits to come so quickly, and in such numbers, so we weren't in a hurry to mention it."

"Good heavens!" San Shier shook his head. "This is what I call... utterly foolish!"

Hearing their conversation, Li Daoxuan chuckled to himself. *I do have an old cotton-padded jacket that I was going to get rid of anyway. Should I pull out a wad of cotton from it for them?*

*But if the cotton fibers become 200 times thicker, could they still be woven into fabric?*

*On second thought, something felt off!*

Recalling the various items he had placed inside the diorama box, he vaguely sensed that the box's rules weren't so simple.

*It seemed that "microscopic" items, invisible to the naked eye, didn't enlarge when placed in the box.*

*For example, with the cabbage leaves he'd put in. If the fibers in the leaves had also become 200 times thicker, the little people wouldn't be able to eat them at all.*

*And things like "molecules" and "atoms" in eggs or white rice. If they also enlarged 200 times, chaos would have erupted long ago. And the bacteria in the water—if they also grew 200 times larger, would the pond water still be drinkable?*

*Thinking it through like that...*

He vaguely realized that microscopic things like bacteria, molecules, and fibers didn't enlarge 200 times when placed inside the box.

Given that the cotton fibers hadn't grown larger, yet the entire cotton clump was 200 times its original size... it meant the *number* of cotton fibers had increased 200-fold.

From this, it appeared that microscopic items placed in the box—such as molecules, atoms, fibers, and cells—didn't increase in volume, but rather multiplied in quantity proportionally, causing the item as a whole to enlarge.

With this realization, what had previously been unclear now became perfectly obvious.

San Shier, clutching a handful of long-staple cotton, exclaimed joyfully. "Village Chief, quickly gather all the women in the village! Anyone who knows how to weave will have work to do."

The Village Chief, seeing such a quantity of cotton, was already beside himself with joy. "It looks like everyone in the village will be getting new clothes!"

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