Now that he had a clear direction to solve the problem, Chuck felt a powerful surge of motivation.
The storage space was just large enough to hold the newly collected minerals. Before returning, Chuck detoured to the mahogany forest, used his newly crafted copper axe to fell a hardwood tree, and hauled it back to the stone platform.
Splitting wood, starting the fire.
The flames beneath the forge roared to life once again. The dense hardwood logs released every bit of energy stored within them. Chuck stood beside it, pumping the bellows with one foot while keeping his eyes glued to the temperature readings on the light screen.
The combination of the scorching sun and the forge's intense heat turned this small area into an open-air sauna. Every breath felt like inhaling a wave of liquid fire that coated his lungs. If Chuck hadn't possessed a physical constitution far beyond that of an ordinary man, he would have likely fainted from heatstroke within minutes.
Even so, his expression remained calm. Despite his clothes being completely drenched in sweat, he didn't lose focus for a second. His mind was occupied by only one thing: Bronze.
After a long period of preparation, he had finally reached the most critical step, and it had nearly ended in failure. Fortunately, through sheer perseverance, he had found a way through the darkness. Now, Chuck couldn't care less about the heat. He just wanted to get this done.
Suddenly, accompanied by a familiar, sweet fragrance, a dry piece of cloth gently wiped across his forehead. Chuck glanced sideways to see Elena, her cheeks flushed red from the heat, holding a towel made of fiber cloth. Her eyes were filled with heartache as she wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Hubby, isn't it too hot? Do you want me to take over for a bit?"
Seeing her so concerned for him warmed Chuck's heart, and a tender smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He shook his head decisively, reached out to pull the mature woman's plump, soft body against him, and kissed her hot cheek. He gave her soft, fleshy ass a firm, possessive squeeze.
"Stop worrying. Get back inside, or I'll have to spank that pretty ass of yours."
"..."
The beautiful woman's face turned scarlet. Part of her wanted to stay and receive that "punishment," but she didn't want to disturb his work. She nodded shyly and walked back to the wooden house on her shapely, thick legs.
The temperature inside the furnace soon reached 1200
∘
Chuck didn't hesitate; he seized the moment to put in everything he had prepared: brass ore, tin ore, the various tool molds, and the seawater for cooling.
As expected, the synthesize button lit up, and a series of synthesis queues appeared within the light screen.
[Crude Bronze Pickaxe Head: Requires Brass Ore (10kg), Tin Ore (2kg). Crafting time: 2 hours] [Crude Bronze Axe Head...]
Chuck's eyes lit up. He had thought that small piece of tin ore wouldn't be enough for multiple tools and had planned to only make the pickaxe first. He hadn't expected the ratio for the bronze alloy to require so little tin. Six kilograms of tin ore were exactly enough to produce the three basic bronze tools: the pickaxe, axe, and shovel!
Although the smelting time was twice as long as that of copper, it was no problem for Chuck. The massive hardwood log he had hauled back was specifically meant for this. He pressed the button without hesitation and waited by the forge in a state of excited agony.
It wasn't until the sun had passed its zenith and the lunch hour had long gone that even a man as strong as Chuck felt he was reaching his limit. Finally, the three light spheres inside the forge ended their two-hour countdown and flew back to the Workshop.
Chuck immediately detached the hardwood handles from the copper tools he had made that morning and ran them through a quick synthesis cycle. Three freshly forged, gleaming bronze tools were finally complete!
Chuck slowly picked up the bronze pickaxe, which was noticeably heavier. Its color was deeper and more restrained than the copper tools—no longer a simple reddish-orange, but glowing with a subtle, pale gold luster. The edges of the pickaxe were sharper and the tips harder, feeling entirely different in his hand: heavy, solid, and powerful.
Looking at the tool, Chuck felt a sense of awe. Using the same furnace, the same brass ore, and only adding less than a fifth of tin ore, the texture and luster of the metal had completely transformed.
He didn't even bother looking at the other two tools. Licking his lips, he walked quickly to the basketball-sized indentations he had spent thirty minutes hacking out with the copper pickaxe earlier. He raised the bronze pickaxe high and slammed it down!
CRACK!!
A sharp, explosive sound rang out. It was noticeably crisper and had much more piercing power than the dull thud of the copper tool.
For a moment, Chuck could feel the vibration travel through the handle into his arm, but unlike the copper pickaxe's sluggish recoil, most of the force was absorbed and redirected by the sharp, heavy blade as it bit into the rock. It was clean and decisive.
Where the copper pickaxe required dozens of strikes to chip away a tiny piece of the inner rock, the bronze pickaxe shattered a palm-sized chunk of stone in a single blow!
Chuck's gaze narrowed. He could see clearly that after that strike, the edge of the bronze pickaxe hadn't deformed at all. Even the signs of wear were negligible; there was only a bit of fine stone dust clinging to the tip, glowing with a dull red light.
His heart surged with excitement. He raised the pickaxe and struck again.
CRACK!!
This strike went deeper. A fist-sized crack snaked through the rock wall, and stones tumbled down. Chuck's breathing grew ragged. This bronze pickaxe wasn't just harder; it was heavier, and the impact was more concentrated!
This is a real tool!
He grew more excited by the second. Not only did he have a bronze pickaxe, but he also had a bronze axe and shovel. Felling trees, digging, planting... eventually, he could even try to forge a bronze machete or bronze armor for himself!
Without a doubt, this was the most significant qualitative leap Chuck had made since arriving on the island. If yesterday he was still in the Stone Age, today he had officially stepped into the Bronze Age!
In terms of island survival, nothing was more joyous than this. Chuck couldn't stop the triumphant grin spreading across his face.
Just as he was about to continue, his eyes caught the light reflecting off a piece of rock that had just splintered off and landed on the stone platform floor. It was the hard inner rock of the cliff—the culprit that had been causing him so much trouble.
Chuck raised an eyebrow, walked over, and bent down to pick it up. A slight chill seeped into his palm. Unlike the weathered outer shell that crumbled at a touch, this stone had a faint luster. Its edges were sharp and solid, and the cross-section revealed a fine granular structure that shimmered like crushed glass.
This doesn't look like an ordinary rock...
The more he looked at it, the more suspicious he became. He placed it onto the Workshop to let the synthesis prompt identify it. The screen that popped up left him stunned.
[Quartz Sandstone: A sedimentary rock composed of quartz grains cemented with small amounts of feldspar and mica. It is hard, wear-resistant, and has high compressive strength. Can be used as a premium building material.]
It was Quartz Sandstone!
Chuck slapped his forehead. Wasn't this exactly the material he needed for his blueprints? The fireplace expansion for the wooden house and the upgrade for the advanced forge both required quartz sandstone! He had been wondering where to find this stuff... and it turned out to be right in front of him!
Talk about a lucky break.
Although things were finally progressing smoothly, after toiling from dawn until noon and steaming in an open-air sauna for hours, even a man as powerful as Chuck reached his limit.
He returned to the wooden house. On the table, the mutton soup and pancakes the women had prepared were still steaming. They had clearly kept it over the fire so he could have a hot meal whenever he returned.
Surrounded by his women, Chuck relaxed and enjoyed his lunch. Under the influence of the heavy carbohydrates and the exhaustion, sleepiness washed over him. He took the opportunity to sprawl out with a woman on each arm and took a comfortable afternoon nap.
He didn't wake up until four or five in the afternoon. Even though evening was approaching, Chuck planned to get some work done while the sweltering heat had partially dissipated. Excavating a cave was a massive project that would take a long time. With the temperature rising every day, he had to make every second count.
However, before starting work, he called Kanae over and whispered a few instructions into her ear. She had clearly been waiting for some time and rushed over at his voice, listening with a serious expression. Once Chuck finished his detailed instructions, she nodded solemnly.
"I understand, Mr. Chuck. I will do it well."
"Don't feel pressured," Chuck said. He raised his hand and, amidst the volleyball girl's blushing expression, smiled and ruffled her hair. "Even if things don't go as planned, if only to keep you from being sad, I won't let her die."
At those words, Kanae's eyes instantly welled with tears. She was now one of the members of Chuck's harem, having completely surrendered her body and soul to him. She lived a life of plenty, no longer worrying about her future. Her only lingering concern was the safety of Haruno Kaoru, even after how Haruno had treated her the day before.
With Chuck's guarantee, no matter what happened to Haruno in the future, at least her life was safe. For Kanae, that was the best news she could hear.
"Mr. Chuck..."
Kanae looked at him through teary eyes, her gaze filled with an indescribable mix of gratitude, adoration, and love. Simultaneously, the familiar light screen appeared before Chuck.
[Kanae's trust in you has increased by 10 points! Current Trust: 80 (Obsessed)]
Ever since taking Kanae's virginity, and through their repeated passionate encounters, the volleyball girl's trust had skyrocketed. She had long since unlocked the extra work queue, and now she had officially broken the 80-point threshold. It wouldn't be long before she hit the maximum.
Does that mean the next Other Shore Trial isn't far off? Chuck wondered. He instinctively looked down between his legs and shook his head with a smirk. If things kept going like this, was his cock going to turn into a literal machine gun?
Near dusk, the Southwest Cove.
Haruno Kaoru sat alone outside the cave. Her once-neat blonde curls were now a tangled mess, and her exquisite face was haggard. Her eyes were vacant, her lips cracked and dry. She had stayed in this cave from dawn to dusk, barely eating anything, just staring blankly at the distant jungle.
Since her argument with Kanae yesterday, she had been in this state. The reason was simple: reality had made her feel hopeless, and she could only choose to escape into a daze.
Finally, her eyes grew dry, and Kaoru snapped back to reality. She looked up at the sun as it began to sink, realizing another day was ending.
I said such horrible things to Kanae yesterday. She probably won't come back again.
The thought made Kaoru's eyes water. She couldn't control herself; she buried her face between her knees and began to sob, her shoulders shaking. Intense regret and guilt flooded her frail body like a tsunami.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps interrupted her crying. Kaoru looked up in panic, her eyes blurred with tears. The figure appearing in her sight was completely unexpected.
It was Kanae... she was still willing to see her?
Guilt surged through Kaoru, almost becoming physical. She stood up, face covered in tears, ready to rush toward her best friend. But when she saw the expression on Kanae's face through her tear-filled eyes, her feet stopped dead in their tracks.
The expression on Kanae's face was utterly alien to her.
"Did you think I was here to bring you food?"
Standing a short distance outside the cave, dressed exactly as she had been yesterday—perhaps even a bit more provocatively—Kanae stood with her arms crossed. Her spectacular, sun-kissed tits were pushed up by her tight arms into a breathtaking, heart-stopping curve.
Kanae's expression was cold, her eyes even carrying a hint of mockery as she looked at Kaoru. She spoke again in a freezing tone.
"Stop dreaming. You and I are completely finished. I'm only here today because Mr. Chuck told me to tell you one last thing."
"From now on, no one will come to disturb you. But if Mr. Chuck finds you in any area east of the mahogany forest, he will not hesitate to... kill you."
"Good luck, Kaoru."
With that, a cold smirk curled the corner of Kanae's mouth. She turned without hesitation and walked back the way she came.
However, the moment she turned her back, the coldness and mockery vanished instantly. They were replaced by anxiety and a silent plea.
Hurry up and break...
At the end of the day, Kanae had always known that her childhood friend, Haruno Kaoru, was a "Green Tea" gold-digger. But she also knew that Kaoru wasn't actually a bad person.
Kaoru loved shopping, makeup, and taking photos. She loved the cute things most young girls liked. She would feel heartache for abandoned animals on the street and would always give a little something to a poor old man begging on the sidewalk, even if she knew he might be a fraud.
She would "raise fish" (keep admirers on the hook), enjoying their pursuit and flattery, and then ruthlessly discard them after draining their value. She felt a sense of pleasure in that process, but only because she believed deep down that an excellent girl like her deserved to have others spend money on her. She just had too much pride and was too self-centered.
Her sudden emotional breakdown yesterday, lashing out at Kanae for no reason, was probably because of this. She saw that Kanae had easily obtained from Mr. Chuck the very things she wanted but couldn't get.
Last night, after arguing with Kaoru and running back to the stone platform in tears, Chuck had held her in his arms. After she cried and told him everything... Chuck had given Kanae a "solution."
"We'll put on a play," he said. "Make her break down completely. Make her feel like she has nowhere to turn so she has to come to me for help. Then, we'll take it step by step and completely shatter that pride of hers, turning her into an honest, obedient, and well-behaved girl."
"Once that's done, I'll allow her to live under my protection. That way, the two of you can continue being friends."
This was the only way to satisfy both sides. Kanae had agreed without a second thought. After all, compared to Kaoru's life and their decade-long friendship... what did Kaoru's troublesome pride matter?