Sword of Dawn

Page 234

"The emperor recently issued a new order to build more roads next year, mainly to connect the north and south of the empire, and at the same time ordered to widen the canal..."

As Gao Wen predicted, the development of technology will promote the birth of various new industries, and the new industries will be an excellent opportunity for Typhon’s little nobles to regain their wealth and political status—these little nobles are in the The group who lost the most in the process of imperial restructuring urgently needs new opportunities to return to the political situation of the empire, and becoming a "capitalist" is their best path.

On the other hand, the big nobles who still retain a lot of political resources and wealth, and have never left the center of imperial power, lack the "urgency" of the small nobles, so their response to these emerging industries will be much slower.

The two groups are bound to be divided.

And after emerging businessmen rely on capital to enter the market and merge with minor nobles to form a new group, this division will become even more chaotic.

As for Rosetta Augustus' support for various new technologies and new things, support for new factories, and promotion of road transportation...that is what he must and must do.

Not everyone at the scene could understand the meaning of what Daniel reported. For example, Rebecca and Jenny were staring at each other, while those who understood—such as Hetty and Gawain, all brought With a very serious look.

"You've done a good job," Gawain said after Daniel's report, "So, you've won over the initial investors in Typhon's noble council... Is your action compelling?"

"It will not attract extra attention. This is the operating rule of Typhon's upper class. I am doing what everyone will do," Daniel said. People, it's normal to restructure your contacts after returning to the imperial capital."

Gawain thought about it, and then asked: "As far as I know, Tifeng's main burning rock acid chemical plants are all in the north, right?"

Daniel didn't know why the wanderer outside the territory suddenly asked such a question, but he still answered seriously: "Yes, most of the burning rock acid chemical plants are located in the north. Although the southern region has also promoted it in recent years, the production of dust of abundance The conditions of transportation and transportation are very harsh, and most of the raw materials for burning rock come from the northeast coastline, so its promotion in the south is very slow.”

"Another thing you mentioned just now - Typhon's main cotton producing areas are all in the south?"

"Yes, nearly [-]% of Typhon's cotton is produced in southern plantations, but as long as the textile mills are in operation, the northern region will inevitably switch to cotton on a large scale-only relying on southern cotton is definitely not enough for the factories to consume .”

Gao Wen raised his eyelids and showed a slight smile: "But the southerners don't know this at present, do they?"

"……what do you mean……"

"Are you capable of spreading the news south of Typhon?"

"I don't know the noble councilors in the southern region," Daniel said, "but... I believe that many members of the Eternal Sleep Order must be from the southern part of Typhon, because the original origin of the Eternal Sleep Order is in the southern area of ​​​​Typhon .”

"The Order of Eternal Sleep?" Gawain was slightly taken aback, and suddenly realized that he had really overlooked this line of thinking—Daniel was his spy in both Typhon and the Order of Eternal Sleep, but many times he took Daniel's The two identities are considered separately, but in fact... these two identities may be able to function at the same time...

Cultists also need to live. Most middle- and lower-class believers are not [-]% devoted to religious activities. In the real world, they also have their own industries and jobs, such as businessmen, hunters, and... south of Typhon plantation owner.

The new idea quickly took shape, Gao Wen pondered for a while, and said: "Very well, then you can spread the news in the Eternal Sleeping Cult, and release the news in a more natural way - describe the textile factory and let people know, Tifeng North Lots of cotton will be needed soon."

Daniel quickly reacted: "Are you trying to... let the cotton plantations in the south expand blindly?"

"In the early days, they didn't blindly expand the scale, because even if the cotton in the north is planted now, it will take time to supply the consumption of the factory, so the cotton plantations in the south will definitely make a lot of money first, but when they put these After all the profits earned are used to expand the plantation...the cotton in the north of Typhon should be able to fill the gap." Gawain looked into Daniel's eyes, "As you said just now, the main burning stone The acid plants . . . are all up north."

Daniel met Gawain's gaze, and suddenly, he understood the intention of the wanderer outside the territory.

In a chill, he lowered his head: "Follow your will."

Chapter 0547 Earthquake?

Social changes are complicated, but on the other hand, their changes in a specific period of time and under specific conditions have rules to follow—just like Emperor Typhon’s changes are destined to touch the interests of the landed nobles, just as For example, the emergence of industry will inevitably give birth to a new class that uses machine factories instead of land as capital, just as the small aristocrats who devote themselves to capital will inevitably be separated from the big aristocrats, and the old raw material production areas will inevitably be exploited by industrial groups... All of these They are all a complete chain, even if no one pushes them, they will happen naturally.

Just find the key points of these chains, just give them a slight push... everything will suddenly accelerate.

What Daniel has to do is to push at these key nodes, or guide them a little, so as to achieve the greatest results with the least effort.

But even so, it is still very difficult to rely on the old mage alone to influence the development of the entire Typhon. Gawain needs to confirm whether Daniel can successfully complete these bold plans.

Faced with the questioning of "outsiders", Daniel did not conceal his contacts and influence in Typhon: "Although I have been away from Typhon for many years, I still have a lot of contacts in the Royal Wizards Association... some of the imperial capitals The nobles and I have old friendships... Many nobles with lower titles are keen to get closer to the non-factional mages of the Royal Mages Association, and I have established contact with many of them after returning to the imperial capital..."

"You did a good job," Gawain nodded slightly. "As I warned you, you have to manage your own power. What I want you to do cannot be accomplished by one person alone."

"I have always followed your will," Daniel immediately lowered his head, then he hesitated a little, and tentatively said, "My lord, I have something to report to you regarding the increase in manpower."

Gawain nodded: "Speak."

"My apprentice Mary, I think she has passed the test," Daniel said cautiously, "She is very talented in the field of mathematics and science. She has mastered most of the knowledge you bestowed on her, and her loyalty can also be guaranteed. I think she is qualified. your requirements."

Gao Wen pondered for a while: "Mary...you did mention her."

He knew several of Daniel's apprentices, and he was especially impressed with the apprentice named "Mary". Very early on, he said that he wanted the old mage to select talents from among the apprentices and impart mathematical knowledge in order to increase the number of available manpower. The female mage named Mary seemed to be the one Daniel was most satisfied with.

"In that case, let's bring her to see me next time we meet," Gao Wen made a decision, "It's also just right, we have now mastered the non-implantable nerve cord technology, which can make people feel the same without nerve surgery. The transformation does not use the eternal sleep secret to connect to the network."

While talking, he waved his hand lightly, and a holographic projection of the immersive neural cockpit immediately appeared above the round table, and the accompanying blueprint and detailed technical information also appeared around the projection.

Rebecca said quite proudly: "We used this connection to get in."

"This is..." Daniel stared fixedly at the holographic image floating in mid-air. At this moment, many complicated emotions suddenly rushed into his heart.

This is the non-implantable connection technology, which allows people who do not have the talent of the eternal sleeper to enter the spiritual network.

He thought of his body in the real world, the implanted nerve cords that made him look like a monster, the aftereffects that almost drove him crazy, those hallucinations, those stinging pains, those maddening the noise...

The nerve cords were rooted in the spinal cord and connected to the brain, and he probably would never be able to leave those nerve cords in his life.

But his "non-implantable nerve cord" was finally successful.

His train of thought, his theory, and his research direction are correct.

At least Mary didn't have to make as many holes between her spine and brainstem as she did.

"All the information is here, and I will also store them in this safe space, so that you can call them at any time," Gawain's voice woke Daniel up from his thoughts, "Some of the parts on this are using Cecil's machine Manufactured, you don’t have the corresponding processing equipment, but I marked the detailed processing conditions, I believe that you, as a high-level mage, have the ability to manufacture them.”

This is the benefit of the extraordinary field - although there are many advantages of machines, as long as the extraordinary are willing to devote time and energy, they can often make products that meet the requirements of the industry by hand. At least in the early stage of industrial development, the extraordinary It is possible to rub a few gear levers by hand, or even rub a few engines by hand, or a magical car by hand.

Daniel bowed his head respectfully: "I will never disappoint you."

……

In the spacious and bright laboratory, Amber sat boredly on the chair next to Gao Wen. While fiddling with the small dagger in his hand, he observed the immersion chambers that were being closed. Gao Wen couldn't help muttering in the end: "I'm afraid these people are going to sleep to death..."

A voice with a slight metallic trill came from not far away: "This is impossible. The life detection rune shows that everyone's vital signs here are normal."

Amber raised her eyelids and saw a silver-white funny egg with a diameter of more than one meter floating between several immersion chambers to check the equipment. Runes are dark."

Nicholas turned around and glanced at the ancient magister who was quietly floating next to the immersion cabin and was connected to the immersion cabin with more than a dozen arcane currents, and made a buzzing voice: "But Kamel himself is bright. "

"Your ball is really serious where it shouldn't be serious, and your smiling face is in vain." Amber couldn't help but roll her eyes, and then looked at the iron ball star in front of her with a little curiosity, "but then again... you Don't you feel sorry?"

Nicholas egg is unknown so: "What's the pity?"

"Many parts of these devices are made by you yourself, but you can't use them yourself," said Amber, "Even Kamel can directly connect to the network by sensing magic power, but you can't... Isn't that a pity?"

Nicholas was silent for a moment, shaking his body from side to side: "It can't be helped—my life form is too special. I don't have a so-called 'nervous system' at all, and I can't sense any magic fluctuations. Pittman tried it on me back then, and I didn't have any reaction to that stuff. But then again... I don't have any regrets."

"Oh?"

"I know what kind of world is in that spiritual network," Nicholas Dan slightly lowered his height, "That is the world in human dreams...but it is human dreams, not mine. My world is not there Here, it is not in any of your dreams."

This world has the Shadow Realm, the Shadow Realm, the Elemental World and many fragmented outer spaces. For those who have access to this knowledge, "foreign visitors" is not an unimaginable concept, but even so , a life form like Nicholas egg that is completely beyond common sense is still inconceivable. When the territory was just established, in order to prevent too much attention from the outside world, Gawain assigned the identity of an "ancient magister" to this iron ball star, but this was only for the public. It's just a public statement. For Cecil's top management and the core personnel who have already gained Gawain's trust, they more or less know the origin of Nicholas eggs.

A wonderful foreign visitor.

Amber looked at this foreign visitor, and suddenly couldn't help asking: "By the way, do you want to find a companion?"

"……what?"

"Aren't you lonely?" Amber's thoughts had already diverged, "How about I tell Lao Zongzi to find you a companion..."

Nicholas was a little shocked all over the ball: "Where are you going to find me a companion!?"

Amber opened her mouth and said, "Use a lathe to turn one..."

Nicholas egg: "...wait a minute, I think you made a mistake..."

However, it was not so easy for Amber to stop; "By the way, are you a male or female ball?"

"No, I think it's pretty good now, and my days at the Machinery Manufacturing Institute are quite fulfilling..."

At this time, Amber was already excited on her own, and this half-elf who was prone to intermittent hyperactivity suddenly became very interested in Nicholas Dan's personal problems: "Speaking of which, I always thought you were a male ball, but think about it carefully, you Men and women..."

At this moment, a slight shaking came suddenly, which finally interrupted the continuous bibi of the goose.

And accompanied by this slight shaking, there was a faint roar coming from an unknown distance.

Amber was the first to react. As a stalker, she was extremely sensitive to any slight shaking, and the sound that followed made her ears stand up. Nicholas's reaction was a bit slower. : He was floating in mid-air, and he couldn't sense the vibrations on the ground very well, so he asked curiously until the sound came: "There seems to be some movement?"

"Is there an earthquake..." Amber had already stood up, her ears were shaking sensitively in the air, and she was constantly turning to various directions where the faint voices were coming from. wake.

But the vibration only lasted for a short while, and the deep and distant sound soon stopped.

"It seems to be coming from far away, and it has stopped," Amber glanced at Nicholas Egg, "You stay here and watch, I will contact the outpost."

The elf's keen hearing allowed her to judge that the last movement had come from the south, which caused her great uneasiness.

Nicholas egg no nonsense: "Okay."

Amber's figure quickly disappeared into the air, but she didn't leave too far - there was a magic net terminal for communication in the magic technology research institute, she came to the nearest terminal room, and then directly called the A watch station in the mountains.

The scene of the monitoring station appeared above the terminal, and a tall and thin soldier appeared on the holographic projection: "This is the No. [-] outpost in the Dark Mountains. Salute to you, Chief Amber."

"Outpost, is there anything wrong with you?" Amber asked immediately, "I felt a shock here just now."

"Yes, we are just about to report—at the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range, there was a change in the border of the Black Forest just now. It may be an earthquake or a landslide."

"It's just over there in the Black Forest? The magnificent wall hasn't moved?"

"Everything is normal on the grand wall, everything is normal on the sun wheel observation, and everything is normal on the magic environment."

Amber breathed a sigh of relief, but still felt a little strange: "An earthquake or a landslide? But why do I feel like I heard something like an explosion..."

"I heard it here too, but I couldn't see the source of the explosion. It may be blocked by the mountain. In addition, a sentry saw an unknown flash in the southwest direction, but it could not be confirmed."

"...I understand," Amber breathed out, "It doesn't matter if it's an earthquake or a landslide, in short, be vigilant and keep an eye on the magnificent wall. I will report the situation to the lord."

Chapter 0548 Witnessing Again

After breaking out of the psychic network, Gao Wen immediately received Amber's report.

"...Basically, that's the situation," said the half-elf lady at the end of the report. "The current situation of the Great Wall is normal, and there are no signs of aberrations approaching. It seems that it only happened at the junction of the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range and the Black Forest. collapsed—due to the influence of the mountain, the outpost could not see the specific situation.”

"...I understand," Gao Wen pondered for a while, nodded and said, "Pay close attention to the situation of the magnificent wall, and arrange for the security team in the disobedient fortress to patrol the southern part of the fortress. If the mountain collapses, the southern corridor of the disobedient fortress may be affected. .”

After making these arrangements, Gao Wen didn't stop at the Institute of Magic Technology, but returned directly to the Lord's Mansion on the grounds that he needed to rest.

After returning to the study room with a relatively stable environment, he immediately called the satellite channel in his mind.

The special space bird's-eye view came to mind, and the images from the orbiting monitoring satellite appeared in front of Gawain's eyes. He carefully controlled this ancient system, and focused the monitoring on the border between the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range and the Black Forest. Location.

He was looking for traces left by landslides or earthquakes. The overly old satellite system was struggling to operate, and the image of a piece of rotting wasteland slowly moved on the unclear screen. After several minutes of scanning and difficult comparison After that, his gaze suddenly stopped.

There is something there, on the extension line of Cecil City pointing to the south, within the scope of the Black Forest, there is something, but it is not a remnant left by a landslide, rock collapse or earthquake, but a piece of land that looks like a certain place. traces of impact craters.

After the camera zoomed in, the picture was not clear enough, and the background color of the rotten and deep waste soil made it extremely difficult to distinguish the details of the picture, but Gawain could still see the radial folds around the circular area and the outward lodging around the impact crater The Giant Log——the giant log tens of meters high can be destroyed neatly, which shows that the impact is extremely strong, and judging from the smoke and dust that has not yet dissipated in midair, the impact crater just appeared not long ago.

What it is?Could it be that something fell from the sky?

Gawain looked at the huge impact crater in astonishment. Although he didn't know what exactly happened, he was almost sure that the impact crater of that shape was not caused by the magic tide.

At this moment, he hoped that he could go to the scene immediately to investigate what it was, but the location of the impact crater was at the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range—to climb over this magnificent mountain range and reach the forefront of the tide of corruption, that The location is too dangerous.

Although the development of the territory is on the right track and the power in his hands is gradually increasing, Gawain is already considering taking more active actions against the wasteland of Gondor, and has also formulated some plans to establish observation stations or advance bases at the southern foot of the Dark Mountains. , but obviously, these plans are just plans—for now, the Principality of Cecil is not yet ready to cross the Dark Mountains.

Soldiers carry equipment and walk from the southern foot of the steep and steep mountains. They have to pass through a large area of ​​corrupted mountain roads with fragile structures and poisonous demonized vegetation coverage. It is extremely difficult to go down the mountain. In a crisis, it is almost impossible to survive...

However, it is also possible to send a few top elites to go there without sending out soldiers, or to go there by yourself - legendary powerhouses can still move at the southern foot of the Dark Mountain Range, but... is the impact crater worth the risk?

Gao Wensi paid attention to the impact crater that suddenly appeared, but at this moment, another thing suddenly broke into his monitoring vision.

……

Thin clouds passed by quickly, and the cold air was cut by the huge wings, whistling and blowing past the huge scale-covered body, and the adult dragon with blue scales was hovering high in the sky. , The devastated land below is reflected in the jewel-like eyes.

Corrupted mountain rocks are layered on top of each other, and various twisted and mutated enchanted plants grow wantonly between the rock layers. The soil presents an ominous purple-black color, and a thin layer of mist floats on top of it. The region of corruption stretches from the Dark Mountains all the way south - the Dark Forest, the Belted Plains, the Great Wall, and finally the Wastes of Gondor - all the way to that terrible dark blue magic storm, which even the dragons fear. The place.

The giant dragon flapped its wings and adjusted an angle in the air. Her sight swept across the border of the Black Forest, and a huge impact crater that was still emitting smoke and dust appeared in her vision.

She hovered in the sky and began to call out the obscure and ancient dragon language magic. With the surge of magic power, a light golden screen of runes appeared in the air. conversation environment.

A female voice came from the mouth of the dragon: "We have arrived at the coordinates, in the southern part of the Dark Mountains, and we have witnessed a crash crater, which is very large."

Complex symbols and lines danced on the surface of the pale golden rune light screen, and a slightly distorted voice came from the light screen: "...received... please come closer and observe. Pay attention to safety, it is very close to the magic energy pollution area, don't fell in."

"I know, I will be careful," Blue Dragon said with a little carelessness, "Actually, this place is quite far from the real polluted area, I think flying to the south should be..."

Before the blue dragon finished speaking, a serious voice came from the light screen: "Don't do unnecessary things - have you forgotten the lesson from last time?"

"It wasn't my fault last time, and I just made an emergency landing and didn't aim..."

"The jury was very impressed with your crash landing, but we don't plan to watch it again in the short term—please focus on the immediate task."

The blue dragon shook her head left and right, as if she was quite impatient, then she cut off the communication, flapped her wings suddenly, and began to lower the altitude rapidly.

On the edge of the black forest, smoke and dust were still billowing in a huge impact crater. The powerful impact force that erupted earlier lifted a large piece of vegetation around the huge crater, and left a large number of radial cracks on the edge of the crater. In the center of the pit, in the deepest part of the smog, a twisted mass of metal remains still hot.