Windmills are indeed an appealing option. Because of Mexico's flat terrain, there is ample wind energy, and windmills are a very common and practical building in the West.
However, building a windmill is no small project, much more difficult than building a small house. Its complex gear structure requires a lot of time to study.
However, everyone ultimately voted unanimously to approve the windmill suggestion and planned to transform it into a mill that combined water and wind power. The thought of having a windmill in the micro-world that looked like something out of an oil painting was incredibly appealing to everyone.
Therefore, site selection is the most crucial factor; they need to find a place with abundant wind power and hydropower.
The Western Boundary River seemed like a good option, with no shortage of wind and hydropower. However, building a mill right next to the river was too risky; who knew if the Western Boundary River would flood? Even their camp on the Western Boundary River was kept a certain distance from the water.
Moreover, the soil on the riverbank was too loose and unsuitable for building houses. Therefore, the western border river would soon be ruled out by them.
The task of site selection was handed over to Ding Qihan, who was able to roughly judge whether a certain location would have sufficient wind energy.
The design work was naturally handed over to Yun, with Lini as her assistant. This was mainly because Lini had many European friends when she was studying for her bachelor's degree, and she could ask her friends abroad to help find information and videos about various mills, and even engineering drawings.
Wang Bing's bricks are perfect for building a mill, so he's constantly firing bricks every day. People also help him make bricks when they have time. Just transporting the soil every day takes a lot of time.
They found suitable soil by the lake and now transport it daily using wooden carts.
Yun had always been familiar with mortise and tenon structures, but the gear structure of the windmill immediately put him in a difficult situation. Moreover, this mill also needed to have the function of utilizing water energy, which was no easy task.
Hou Yu, a game designer, had some insights into this area, so he also joined the design work of the Windmill Mill.
Chen Yang took advantage of this time to go to the island and continue blacksmithing with Hong Gui.
They killed two deer that were kept in captivity on the island because they hadn't been hunting for long enough recently, and fresh meat was becoming scarce. Having gotten used to fresh meat, they found it difficult to adjust to smoked meat, and eating too much smoked meat was also harmful to their health.
Animals kept in captivity are used in situations like this, so it's not a big deal, and it's also a good opportunity to use deer antler to nourish everyone's bodies. Linni used deer antler as the main ingredient, along with various other medicinal herbs, to brew a pot of tonic. Although it was very bitter, everyone still drank it.
Besides forging iron, Chen Yang spent the rest of his time on the island practicing boxing and throwing knives. Only one's own skills are truly valuable. He had neglected his skills somewhat during his time on the Loess Plateau. When it comes to boxing, diligence is the most important thing.
Grandpa Yun rarely guides Chen Yang anymore. Chen Yang hasn't encountered any bottlenecks yet. He can feel himself making progress slowly, but the pace of progress is very slow.
After Dong Yujue entered the Micro Realm, Chen Yang often fought against her. Although he was still defeated by Dong Yujue, it was no longer a one-sided battle, and he could at least fight a few more rounds.
When he fought against Dong Yujue, his Eagle Eyes were greatly limited. It was precisely because he could see so clearly that he hesitated.
When fighting ordinary people, Chen Yang's Eagle Eye is a powerful weapon, as it has a locking function. However, when fighting against a master like Dong Yujue, Eagle Eye actually hinders him, and his wolf-like fighting instincts play a greater role.
Chen Yang needed time to adapt to the Eagle Eye and make its powerful functions an instinct, so he came to the island to cultivate in seclusion.
There are also many animals and various birds on the island, which is a good place for him to practice. Forging iron every day can also help him learn to control his strength.
However, when it comes to blacksmithing, Hong Gui is much better than Chen Yang. He even built his own bellows and improved the iron smelting furnace, all of which he learned from visiting old blacksmiths in real life.
Chen Yang greatly admired Hong Gui's perseverance. He spent most of his time forging iron, hammering away countless times each day. Guo Zifeng, for example, was initially interested in blacksmithing, but later handed it all over to Hong Gui.
Now, Hou Yu's father is Hong Gui's helper, and Hou Yu shuttles between the island and the Xindu camp, occasionally coming over to help. The iron ore they discovered, which had abundant reserves, is noticeably less now.
After searching on horseback for several days, Ding Qihan finally found a suitable place.
This is the stream that Chen Yang first discovered in the bamboo forest by the lake. Upstream of the stream is a meadow with a very steep slope. This meadow is exposed on three sides, so the wind is strong, and the slope also gives the water a strong enough impact to drive a waterwheel.
Although the site has been chosen, the design of the windmill is progressing slowly, and the bricks have not been fully fired yet, so we still have to wait and construction cannot begin.
While waiting, they started researching new things.
The girls plan to use the leaves from the black glutinous rice dish they brought back last time—the leaves of the Southern Candle—to make a cake. Although the cake hasn't been made yet, they've already decided on a name for it: "Night Crystal."
The girls used the stone mill they had previously used to grind camellia seeds to grind corn into powder, but the effect was not very good. First, the corn was not dried, and second, the stone mill did not grind it finely enough.
They had to find another way, grinding the corn kernels by hand with a stone scoop. They ground the corn kernels into powder, mixed it with plant seeds, then added eggs and sugar, whipped it up, added a little honey and lemonade made from the leftover dried lemon slices, and goat milk.
Finally, the dark juice squeezed from the crushed galangal leaves is mixed in, and the cake is baked in the oven. The result is a glossy black cake that looks quite good. Adding jam and fresh fruit elevates its appearance even further.
Everyone got a small piece, even the people on the island. As for the people in Tianyin Mountain Range and the Loess Plateau, they were too far away, so they could only eat it next time it was made.
The cake wasn't very delicate, but being able to eat cake in the Micro Realm was a happy thing in itself. This cake was much better than the one Wang Bing made when Wang Qin entered the Micro Realm, because the ingredients were more abundant.
If making a cake takes this much effort, then grinding so much corn into flour would require even more effort. And in the fall, even more corn will ripen.
That's why they wanted a mill.
The mill's role won't be so obvious this year, but it will become crucial next spring and autumn when large quantities of corn ripen. Moreover, they might discover other cash crops in addition to corn.
While the design of the windmill was still underway, Yunhu came to the inn and brought news that everyone was very interested in.
"Survival competition?"
Chen Yang looked at the flyer that Yun Hu brought with great surprise.
This is an extra chapter from afar.
(End of this chapter)
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