059 Surprise

Noticing Da Shi's astonishment, Black Earth continued, "Yellow Leaf is right. Sun City wouldn't be what it is today without Lin Yan's contributions. We used to live underground too, and life was very hard back then."

Da Shi looked at Lin Yan earnestly, momentarily at a loss for words.

Knowing that he found it hard to believe, Lin Yan pointed at Da Shi's right hand and said directly, "May I take a look at what you are holding?"

Uncomprehending, Da Shi raised his right hand, hesitated for a moment, and handed it over to Lin Yan.

Black Earth looked excited, watching Lin Yan's expression intently.

He noticed that although Lin Yan seemed calm, her small hands were actually trembling slightly as she laboriously took the weapon from Da Shi. Black Earth immediately reached out to help hold it, but Lin Yan refused.

Lin Yan was indeed far from calm. The heavy weight in her hand told her immediately that this was not ordinary stone; the reddish-brown rock certainly resembled an ore.

Wanting to be certain, she held it firmly in her palm and mentally instructed Pang Bao to scan it.

In less than ten seconds, Pang Bao reported, "This is a form of hematite with complete crystal structure and an purity level of eighty percent. It is an excellent material for smelting pig iron and can also be used as a pigment..."

At that moment, Lin Yan felt that her hardships had finally come to an end. Her iron wok and kitchen knife were finally within reach.

After waiting for nearly four years, she had finally laid eyes on hematite.

With this, nothing was beyond hope anymore.

She placed the object on the ground and stroked it gently with her small hands, as if caressing an invaluable treasure.

Black Earth was now certain that this item was indeed a precious treasure. He had always known Lin Yan to be cheerful and, apart from a few days of low spirits in the past, she rarely showed extreme emotional fluctuations. But right now, her small face was taut and her expression solemn—something was clearly unusual.

After a full few minutes, Lin Yan reluctantly handed the item back to Da Shi. "Where did you find this thing?"

Da Shi looked at the weapon in his hand, scratched his head in thought, and said, "In the cave where we used to live. There are many stones like this, but they are too hard to break off easily. I only took it for self-defense and to fight fierce beasts because of its hardness."

"Are there many stones like this in the cave?"

"Many, they are everywhere, mixed in with other rocks. Some are too small to be useful. The large ones are embedded in the stone walls and cannot be removed."

Suppressing the tremor in her heart, Lin Yan continued to ask, "Can you still find that cave?"

"I should think so." Da Shi was not entirely certain. Having fled in all directions along the way, the path back might be lost.

Lin Yan asked Da Shi to wait aside for a moment, as she had important matters to discuss with Yellow Leaf and the others.

Confused and uneasy, Da Shi asked, "Can we stay then?"

Lin Yan nodded. "You can stay, but we need to discuss some matters before making a final decision. I'll explain the details to you later."

He had brought a huge surprise; staying in Sun City was definitely not a problem.

Having received a definite answer, Da Shi happily returned to his group.

Lin Yan immediately said, "Call all fifteen team leaders here. I have something important to announce."

The discovery of hematite was of utmost importance and must take absolute priority.

Black Earth asked excitedly, "What on earth is it? It must be something good, right?"

Lin Yan nodded. "It's a treasure, and it's extremely important. Quick, fetch the others, and I'll explain it to everyone at once."

A dozen minutes later, the fifteen team leaders, the three arbiters, and the ten students from Lin Yan's class gathered in an empty classroom.

Seeing Waterborn and the others, A Lan asked, "They are still just children. Why are they all called here?"

In the past, meetings were strictly matters for the adults, and Lin Yan rarely participated. This time, having ten extra people—most of them young children—was highly unusual.

"They have learned a great deal from their lessons. They need to be involved in this matter." Lin Yan looked at Yellow Leaf, Black Earth, and the fifteen team leaders. "If you feel it's inappropriate, you can have them step outside first, and I will repeat it to them later."

Yellow Leaf spoke up first. "Let's tell them together. They are all very smart, and it won't hurt for them to listen."

The others raised no objections.

Black Earth could not help urging, "Lin Yan, tell us what it actually is first." He was burning with impatience and wanted to know immediately.

Lin Yan swept her gaze around the room and said solemnly, "That item is hematite, a very important metal that can be used to smelt the sharpest blades and make many other things."

"That's hematite?" Hua Min asked in disbelief. "Really?"

"It's true. I just examined it. It's hematite with an eighty percent concentration—high purity and versatile uses."

Those who had attended the classes knew the extensive applications of hematite, and their faces lit up with joy.

Shi Zhi urged eagerly, "Then we must hurry up and mine it to make iron. Once we have pig iron, we'll have everything."

"That's right, we must arrange for mining immediately. This is our top priority."

"Indeed, other matters can be put aside; we must focus on this first."

"I want to go mining myself."

Watching the children chatter eagerly with such anxious expressions, the other adults besides Black Earth were completely baffled, wondering what on earth was going on.

Leaf immediately turned to her son to find out what was happening.

Granny Water asked loudly, "Is this thing really that important?"

"Important," the eleven children answered in unison.

Lin Yan continued, "Hematite is of critical importance. With it, we will step into a new era and achieve a massive leap forward. Just think: with sharp blades, we can slay fierce beasts, fell trees, and clear land for farming—everything requires it. It is the material for forging formidable weapons. Once we have it, it will replace bulky stone tools, making work much easier and faster."

Seeing that they still did not quite understand after she finished speaking, Lin Yan signaled to Waterborn and the others, having them take turns describing the immense importance of ironware and the major revolution it would bring.

Half an hour later, everyone seemed to understand the profound significance of ironware and unanimously agreed to search for the iron ore immediately.

Da Shi and his group could stay in Sun City, but building houses was not a free gift; they needed to trade something of equal value in return.

If they could lead a team to mine the ore, Sun City would build houses for them for free.

Lin Yan did not participate in the negotiations with Da Shi's group, as she only wanted to go mining as quickly as possible.

That very evening, all arrangements were settled, and the expedition team was formed.

Returning home, Lin Yan saw Hua Hong spinning thread. Hesitating for a moment, she said, "Mother, I want to go on a trip."

"Where to?" Hua Hong asked busily without raising her head, focused on her work. Lin Yan was growing fast, and her clothes were always running short; she needed to spin more thread and weave cloth to make more clothes for her daughter.

She had no time during the day due to other chores, finding time for this only before bed at night.

Lin Yan fell silent for a moment. "A very far place. It should take about a month or so."

She had asked Da Shi; a significant amount of time had passed since they started fleeing and encountered Black Earth—at least a month or two.

"How long did you say?" Hua Hong snapped her head up, her voice rising sharply, suspecting she had misheard.

Knowing her concerns, Lin Yan immediately recounted the events of the day and concluded, "Mother, hematite is extremely important, and I must go there in person. Furthermore, the tribe will send a team to go together. With our numbers and caution, we will return safely."

Lin Yan was not unaware of the dangers outside, but the temptation of hematite was too great, and she had to find it as soon as possible.