Conferred Gods: Master Tongtian is my master

In the deep courtyard of the Grand Tutor's Mansion, Luo Shu was strolling alone. His steps seemed casual, but with every step he took, he seemed to be thinking about deep problems.

His eyes sometimes gazed into the distance, and sometimes lowered their heads in deep thought, as if in this quiet courtyard, he was having a silent conversation with the world and history.

The corners of Luo Shu's mouth twitched slightly, and his mumbling voice echoed in the empty courtyard:

"Today, two of the four great inventions of ancient times have appeared in the Shang Dynasty, which is still a little short of the system's task."

"Should we also make gunpowder? As for the compass, let's not consider it for now!"

He took a deep breath and continued to think:

"If gunpowder is invented, the military strength of the Shang Dynasty will be greatly enhanced. As long as the gunpowder is firmly in the hands of the Shang Dynasty, rebellion by other princes will not be a problem."

"If there are rebels in the surrounding areas, they can be easily controlled using firearms made of gunpowder!"

After all, the Shang Dynasty was still in the Bronze Age at that time, and its weapons and equipment were mainly imitations of gold and bronze weapons.

Luo Shu nodded, his eyes filled with firmness and determination.

"Ok, deal!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Luo Shu was confused. At this moment, he had ideas and determination, but he was not very clear about the production process of gunpowder.

"What are the raw materials of gunpowder? I remember I learned about it before, but why can't I remember it now?"

Luo Shu paced back and forth in the yard, muttering to himself as he recalled his previous impression of gunpowder.

"Black powder, what's the formula? One saltpeter... two... two what? Two sulfur... three... charcoal... Yes, one saltpeter, two sulfur, three charcoal!"

Remembering the three ingredients of black gunpowder, Luo Shu clapped his hands and smiled.

He stopped, took a deep breath, and began to think carefully about the meaning of this mantra.

"Niter" should refer to saltpeter, whose chemical composition is potassium nitrate, which is one of the important components of gunpowder.

Secretary Luo learned that saltpeter was a white mineral that acted as an oxidizing agent in gunpowder.

"Erhuang" should be sulfur. Sulfur is a yellow mineral that can increase the power of explosion in gunpowder.

"Three charcoals", charcoal is the reducing agent in gunpowder. Its function is to enable saltpeter and sulfur to react fully during the explosion.

Luo Shu's mind gradually became clear, and he realized that he had found the key to making gunpowder.

"The specific ratio seems to be one pound of saltpeter, two ounces of sulfur, and three ounces of charcoal. It is a mass ratio, not a molecular coefficient ratio."

"Forget it, let's collect these three ingredients first, and then we'll know if it's the right one after a test!"

Then, Luo Shu waved his sleeves and shot a spell in the direction of Xiaobai, calling Xiaobai over.

As soon as Xiaobai arrived, he excitedly asked Luoshu for instructions. There was an anticipation in his eyes, and he was obviously ready to accept the task.

"Master, what do you need me to do?"

Luo Shu looked at Xiao Bai with a smile and said softly:

"Xiao Bai, go to the corners or under the roof and collect something called saltpeter, which is a colorless, transparent, square or white powder. The more the better. Then, I will show you how to make something fun!"

Xiao Bai was overjoyed when he heard this. He patted his chest and said:

"Master, rest assured. I will go right away and will definitely collect as much as I can!"

Xiaobai's figure flashed and turned into a white light, quickly flying towards the corner of the wall and under the roof of the Grand Tutor's Mansion.

He carefully observed the surrounding environment, looking for traces of saltpeter.

In the corner of the wall, some white crystals were flickering faintly in the sunlight. This was exactly the saltpeter that Luo Shu had mentioned.

Xiaobai used his keen perception to collect the saltpeter one by one and carefully put them into the container he carried with him.

Then, Xiaobai came to the base of the roof. The environment here was relatively humid, but the saltpeter still grew tenaciously.

Xiaobai searched every corner carefully, not missing any piece of saltpeter.

His movements were light and quick, like a skilled miner searching for precious minerals.

Then, it flew towards the corner of the wall and the bottom of the roof of the next place.

Luo Shu looked at Xiao Bai's quick movements, a smile appeared on his lips, and he thought:

"Xiaobai usually looks lazy and gluttonous, but when it comes to work, he is really good at it!"

Luo Shu also walked outside the mansion to collect sulfur and charcoal.

The use of sulfur during the Shang Dynasty may have been mainly limited to medicine, religious ceremonies or certain specific craft fields.

Sulfur mining and processing technology is relatively primitive, and both output and utilization rate may be low.

Since the Shang Dynasty already had fairly developed agriculture and handicrafts, people often used fire in their daily lives for activities such as cooking, heating, and smelting.

In the process, they may use the embers left after the wood is burned to make charcoal.

Therefore, sulfur and charcoal are still easy for Luoshu to collect.

......

After some effort, Xiaobai finally collected enough saltpeter. He returned to Luoshu with a full harvest.

Luo Shu looked at the saltpeter that Xiaobai brought back and nodded with satisfaction. He knew that this saltpeter would become an important raw material for making gunpowder.

"Xiaobai, you did a great job." Luo Shu praised with a smile.

"Master, you don't know how difficult it is to collect this white powder! I have run to every corner of Chaoge City, even the city wall of Chaoge City has been visited by me!"

Luo Shu laughed loudly upon hearing this, and looking at Xiao Bai's bitter expression, he said with a smile:

"Don't feel wronged. I'll show you how to make something fun. Come with me!"

When Xiaobai heard that Luo Shu was going to take him to make something fun, a gleam of anticipation immediately appeared in his eyes.

He shook his head, as if trying to shake off the fatigue of collecting saltpeter, and then followed closely behind Luo Shu, asking curiously:

"Master, what are we going to make?"

Luo Shu looked back at Xiao Bai, his eyes full of smiles, and said mysteriously:

"What we want to make is something that makes a loud noise. Moreover, something that makes a deafening noise is extremely lethal to mortals. I call it - gunpowder!"

Upon hearing this, Xiaobai jumped up with excitement.

He has always been full of curiosity and yearning for the various things made by Luo Shu. Now that he heard that the gunpowder he was going to make would have such an effect, he felt extremely happy.

"Gunpowder? Wow, that sounds awesome!" Xiaobai exclaimed excitedly.

Luo Shu smiled and nodded, then brought Xiaobai to an open space outside Chaoge City.

Luo Shu waved his hand, took out the tools and raw materials needed to make gunpowder, and placed them together.