176: Chapter 176 Smelting Materials

"Make... make flooring?"

Zhao Wujing ignored his aching back and pointed at that piece of battleship armor, his voice trembling. "You're using an S-class Titanium battleship hull as flooring? This is too extravagant! Even if it's scrapped, it's still Titanium!"

The other second-generation heirs also had "you're crazy" written all over their faces.

Paving the floor with battleship armor?

This was ten thousand times more insane than those nouveau riche who paved their floors with gold! Gold was soft, but this stuff couldn't even be pierced by armor-piercing rounds!

"Extravagant?"

Lin Fan shrugged, looking indifferent. "I think it's quite modest. Besides, that's the Strategic Department. If the floor isn't hard enough, what if I'm practicing my arts one day and stomp right through it?"

"..."

Everyone was speechless.

Modest, my foot!

Lin Fan completely ignored their shock and, like a wholesaler stocking up, began a frantic sweeping mode.

His fingers tapped repeatedly, accurately picking out top-tier items from the ruins.

The second-generation heirs were already numb from being ordered around.

A broken Grandmaster Level battle saber? Move it, stick it on the wall as an anti-theft fence!

A scrapped hover engine casing? Move it, flip it over to use as a flower pot!

Tattered heavy shields? Move them, lay them in the courtyard as a pebble path!

The one-eyed veteran stood to the side, the muscles at the corner of his eyes twitching frantically, nearly snapping the electronic pen in his hand.

He had guarded this warehouse for over a decade and seen countless officers coming to scavenge—some looking for parts to repair mechs, others looking for materials to practice with.

But he had never seen anyone like Lin Fan... who came to stock up!

Was this kid here to scavenge? This was clearly a home invasion!

And his eye for quality was too sharp!

Without exception, everything he picked was top-tier S-class scrap! He didn't even glance at the truly useless junk!

In just two short hours...

The fifty-ton heavy-duty truck was already packed to the brim.

"Alright, that's enough for this trip. Once we unload this and make a few more trips, we'll have enough renovation materials."

Lin Fan looked at the mountain of spoils on the truck and clapped his hands, still wanting more.

If the truck hadn't run out of space, he would have even considered dismantling that scrapped space fortress core to use as a chandelier.

He walked over to the dazed veteran, picked up the pen, and signed his name with a flourish on the dispatch form.

"Thanks, Old Squad Leader."

Lin Fan handed the form back with a smile. "The initial renovation materials should last a while. I'll be back for more when I run low."

The veteran looked at the long list of S-class materials on the form, his mouth twitching. Finally, he couldn't help but ask, "Consultant Lin, are you sure... these things can be used for renovation?"

"Of course."

Lin Fan turned around, looking at the fully loaded truck and the second-generation heirs slumped on the ground like exhausted dogs.

His gaze passed through the warehouse gates, seemingly looking toward a distant part of Kyoto—the location of the Tang Family and the Qin Family.

"Didn't the Tang Family want to block my construction materials? Didn't they tell all of Kyoto not to sell me a single brick?"

"Then I won't use bricks!"

Lin Fan slapped a thick piece of alloy armor on the truck bed, producing a dull, heavy thud.

"I'll use military-grade scrap, S-class alloy! Its hardness is ten thousand times stronger than your civilian bricks!"

"Want to see me fail?"

"Then let's see whose head is harder!"

"So... so tired..."

"My arms are broken, they're really broken..."

That group of usually pampered heirs of wealthy families was now slumped on the concrete floor outside the warehouse, completely disregarding their image.

Their high-end designer clothes were no longer recognizable, covered in rust and oil stains, and their faces looked like they had just crawled out of a coal mine.

Zhao Wujing leaned against a pillar, gasping for air, feeling like his lungs were about to burst.

A full fifty tons of scrap metal, and they had to do it several more times.

Although the heavy truck's self-unloading function helped with over half of it, the remaining hauling and sorting work still nearly took the lives of these young masters and ladies.

"Alright, stop whining."

Lin Fan stood at the warehouse entrance, still holding his thermos, looking energetic. He scanned the group of 'free labor' and nodded with satisfaction.

"Today's labor reform... oh, I mean, infrastructure task is temporarily over. You can scram... go back and rest."

Hearing this, the heirs felt as if they had been granted a divine pardon. They scrambled to their feet, supporting each other as they prepared to run. They didn't want to stay in this place for another second; it was hell!

"Wait."

Lin Fan suddenly spoke.

Everyone's body stiffened instantly. Zhao Wujing even shuddered in fear, turning back tremulously and asking with a sob, "Chief... Chief, any other instructions?"

"Tomorrow morning at eight, start work on time."

Lin Fan pointed at the mountain of scrap metal behind him, his lips curling into a meaningful smile. "Tomorrow is precision work. If anyone is late, you know the consequences."

Without waiting for their reaction, he turned and walked directly into the warehouse.

*Bang!*

The two heavy iron doors slammed shut in front of them.

Immediately after, Lin Fan's voice, carrying a hint of warning and amplified by Grandmaster Level blood qi, pierced clearly into everyone's ears:

"Tonight, I will be performing a special raw material processing technique inside. This is a top-level military secret. Everyone leave immediately. Within a five-hundred-meter radius, if anyone dares to take a peek, they will be prosecuted for stealing state secrets!"

Hearing the words 'military secret,' Zhao Wujing, who had originally wanted to peek through the door crack, pulled his neck back in fright and hurriedly ushered everyone to retreat.

"Move, move! Who knows what kind of biochemical weapon this madman is going to cook up!"

As the sound of car engines faded into the distance, a deathly silence finally returned to the warehouse surroundings.

Lin Fan stood in the center of the vast warehouse, looking at the mountain of junk composed of scrapped mechs and broken battleship hulls. The smile in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a touch of fervor.

"Special raw material processing technique? Heh..."

Lin Fan casually set his thermos aside, his thoughts shifting slightly.

"System, get to work!"

*Vroom!*

A pale blue light screen that only he could see instantly unfolded on his retina.

As his strength grew and his business empire expanded, the system's functions were no longer limited to the initial blind box packaging.

In the bottom right corner of the light screen, an icon shimmering with a dark golden luster floated quietly: [Furnace of All Things (Initial Stage)].

This was a new function unlocked after he broke through to the Grandmaster Realm.

Although its current level wasn't enough to smelt the corpses of powerhouses from the Ten Thousand Races or divine artifacts, using it to process these inanimate scraps was like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

"Let's see what kind of surprises this so-called S-class scrap can give me."

Lin Fan took a deep breath and walked to the largest piece of battleship hull.

This metal plate, as tall as a three-story building, once belonged to a capital ship of the Human Race, forged entirely from S-class Titanium.

However, on the Ten Thousand Races Battlefield, it had been torn apart by some terrifying abyss creature, its surface covered in shocking cracks, with dark red abyss rust seeping into the crevices.

To the outside world, this thing was already ruined.

The abyssal aura had corroded the metal structure, causing it to become brittle and have radiation levels far exceeding standards, making it impossible to remelt and reuse.

But in Lin Fan's eyes, this was a dusty piece of peerless unpolished jade.

He slowly extended his right hand and pressed it against the cold, rough metal surface.

Within his palm, a mysterious ripple suddenly erupted.

"Smelt! Remold!"

*Boom!*

In an instant, the warehouse was filled with brilliant light.

It wasn't the red glow of fire, but a deep blue radiance filled with a sense of technology and the power of laws.

This radiance, like flowing water, spread rapidly from Lin Fan's palm, instantly enveloping the entire massive battleship hull.

A magical scene occurred.

Under the system's power of laws, that incredibly hard S-class Titanium unexpectedly softened and liquefied as quickly as ice cream.

*Sizzle, sizzle...*

Amidst a series of ear-piercing sounds, black smoke rose from the liquefied metal.

That was the abyss rust, residual radiation, and impurities within the metal. Under the system's purifying light, they were ruthlessly stripped away, eliminated, and finally vanished into nothingness.

The volume of the originally massive and mottled scrap iron was shrinking rapidly.

One-third... one-half...

Until finally, only one-third of the original volume remained.

"Condense!"

Lin Fan shouted softly.

The deep blue light suddenly contracted, and the liquefied metal solidified instantly.

*Ding!*

A crisp system notification sounded in his mind.

"[Furnace of All Things] extraction successful!"

"Congratulations to the host for obtaining [S-class Star Alloy Plate (Perfect Quality)] x1!"

The light dissipated.

Lin Fan looked closely and couldn't help but let out a whistle.

The originally tattered, rust-covered scrap iron had disappeared. In its place was a standard plate about three meters long and two meters wide.

It lay quietly on the ground, its entire body a deep starry blue, its surface as smooth as a mirror, even clearly reflecting Lin Fan's face. Inside the plate, it seemed as if countless tiny bits of starlight were slowly flowing, emitting an intoxicatingly expensive aura.

Lin Fan crouched down and flicked the plate with his finger.

*Hum~*

A long, pleasant vibration echoed through the warehouse, lingering for a long time.

"This is S-class star alloy?"

A flash of amazement crossed Lin Fan's eyes.

This material was an advanced version of Titanium, with three times the hardness of ordinary S-class alloys and excellent energy conductivity. In the market, materials of this level were typically military-grade!

Lin Fan touched the cold alloy surface, a typical Shrewd Merchant's obsessed smile appearing on his face. "What turning waste into treasure? This is simply turning stone into gold!"

Having tasted the sweetness, how could Lin Fan stop now?

He turned around and looked at the mountain of treasure behind him. "Come, come, don't just stand there, line up for the furnace!"

Lin Fan transformed into a heartless smelting machine, using both hands simultaneously.

The broken Grandmaster Level battle sabers, the blasted particle cannon barrels, and the twisted mech limbs were all tossed into the system's smelting light circle by him.

"Smelt!"

"Remold!"

The system's notifications sounded one after another like a pleasant musical movement.

"Ding! Smelting successful! Obtained [S-class memory metal]."

"Ding! Smelting successful! Obtained [A+ class High-Energy Crystal Glass]."

...

As time passed, the mountain of scrap in the warehouse decreased at a rate visible to the naked eye, replaced by neatly stacked piles of top-tier materials emitting a pearlescent glow.