"Well, the so-called steam engine is actually used to convert the large, violent energy contained within spirit stones into sustainable, gentle, and controllable energy. It can be used for..."
As he spoke, seeing Xu Shu's increasingly puzzled expression, Lin Yang couldn't continue. Perhaps it was a problem with his eloquence; in that case, let's get down to business!
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Chapter Fifteen: Obsessed with Cultivation, Growing Thinner, and a Mad Scientist
Soon, under Lin Yang's guidance, Xu Shu traveled to what was arguably the most secret place in the entire Wu Kingdom. Fortunately, Lin Yang had just signed a contract with him; otherwise, there would have been no way he would have allowed him to enter such a secret location so quickly.
After all, the steam engine, frankly speaking, doesn't hold any major secrets. With the computational abilities of a human immortal cultivator, all they need to do is look at the finished product, the underlying concept, and the appearance; it won't be long before they can replicate it.
The reason this thing hasn't been invented yet is simply because no one has done it before, not because it's very difficult.
Like hybrid rice in the 21st century, this crop has done immeasurable good, saving the lives of hundreds of millions of people and instantly increasing the yield per mu (a Chinese unit of area, approximately 0.165 acres) to 800 kilograms. (Of course, the doubling of the yield per mu was also due to the contribution of chemical fertilizers.)
However, the process of cultivating hybrid rice is not very complicated. It only requires patience and luck. Once you know the process, you just need to cast a wide net and you can cultivate it successfully.
The same principle applies to the steam engine at this time. The difficulty in itself isn't great; it's just that no one had thought of it before. Once the idea is grasped, it's easy to replicate.
(For advanced Qi cultivators, replicating a steam engine that has already appeared is far less difficult than cultivating a high-level spell!)
As he walked, Xu Shu's brows furrowed unconsciously, and he became extremely alert. The various spells and restrictions he had encountered along the way were far too powerful, many posing a serious threat to his life!
However, it is precisely because of this that we are even more curious and interested in what we will see and hear next.
"Alright, this is it." With that, Lin Yang pushed open the door. As soon as the door opened, a series of rumbling sounds came from it. Probably around 100 decibels.
Ordinary people would have been driven crazy by the noise long ago. Fortunately, even the researchers here, with the lowest cultivation level, have at least a first-tier cultivation. This little difficulty can be overcome.
This is a house, a very spacious house, about ten zhang long, five or six zhang wide, and three zhang high. Inside, there are many decorative patterns, some for soundproofing, some for earthquake resistance, and some to prevent explosions!
"It seems that conducting research here really is life-threatening," Xu Shu thought to himself.
However, the most eye-catching feature was a massive machine at the very center of the building. This object was ten feet tall, ten feet long, and ten feet wide, weighing tens of thousands of kilograms. It was entirely black, clearly composed of a mixture of many metals. All the noises came from inside this machine.
Lin Yang pointed to the steam engine and said, "This is the steam engine. On one hand, the raw materials mixed with spirit stone powder are poured into the central reactor. Through various formations in the reactor, they are completely converted into energy."
Before Lin Yang could finish speaking, Xu Shu continued, "On the other hand, once energy is generated, it enters another device and is converted. These surrounding ports correspond to basic heat, usable rarefied energy, water vapor, and..."
"Furthermore, the restrictions within the reactor are not complicated; they mainly protect the equipment itself from exploding. Hmm, they also intensify the reaction. As for the materials, they are not cheap. I estimate that they include refined iron, black iron, and even spirit stones, as well as..." As he spoke, Xu Shu tapped the steam engine, producing a crisp clanging sound.
At the same time, a pair of eyes emitted streaks of silvery-white light, meticulously inspecting every component of the steam engine. Every now and then, it would place its hands directly into the reactor; wasn't it afraid the high temperatures or immense energy would destroy its hands?
Oh, right, these Qi cultivators really aren't afraid. It seems that immortal cultivators in this world are truly well-suited for the role of a mad scientist.
Spending all day seeking immortality and striving for eternal life is such a waste of talent and resources. If everyone switched careers and became a mad scientist, the Han Dynasty would have taken flight long ago.
Unfortunately, before this, Qi cultivators were all high and mighty, indulging in cultivation all day long, unable to extricate themselves, and had never done anything like this!
A quarter of an hour later, Xu Shu, finally realizing what was happening, said in bewilderment, "The function of this thing seems quite simple; it merely releases the energy within the spirit stone slowly in the form of spirit stone powder. There's nothing novel about it, so why..."
It has to be said, this is a matter of mindset. Even though this item was defeated by Xu Shu, he didn't know how to use it. Why? Because in the past, he lived a life of cultivating immortality.
This item is not used in daily life. According to his value system, how does he measure the value of an object?
First, let's look at its attack power. This behemoth is clearly weak offensively!
Secondly, examine whether it's a magical artifact, how many layers of restrictions it has, or if it's made of precious materials. Unfortunately, from any perspective, it's just an ordinary item, without any restrictions whatsoever!
Finally, considering its practical value, this behemoth can't cultivate immortality, can't fight, can't achieve immortality, and can't defend itself; it's truly useless. What can the behemoth itself do? At least Xu Shu couldn't discover it.
Seeing this, Lin Yang was speechless. Perhaps this was a difference in values. In this world, the strong never considered the plight of the weak.
There will never be any immortals who will voluntarily go deep into the countryside to study whether they can invent something to make people's lives better.
Although, this is not difficult for these immortals! Is it difficult to invent the most labor-saving plow? Is it difficult to invent iron smelting and steelmaking technologies? Even, is it really difficult to conduct in-depth research on various seeds and invent high-yield seeds?
These are not difficult, but before this, no Qi cultivator had ever thought about them in this way! This is purely a matter of values and thought processes.
“Yes, Yuanzhi, come with me. You’ll understand once you see these models,” Lin Yang said.
To change Xu Shu's old mindset and make him truly value his work, we must offer some substantial results.
Soon, they arrived at another house nearby. In the very center of the house was an enormous sand table. This sand table was over twenty zhang long and over ten zhang wide. It depicted the terrain of the entire six counties of Jiangdong. There were high mountains and flowing water; it looked quite realistic.
However, this sand table contains many black lines. These black lines are all made of iron, and they are double tracks. Between the tracks are sleepers.
At the starting point of the track, there was a strange vehicle. Its body was very long and narrow, and its wheels were perfectly integrated with the double tracks.
"The bottom part is called the rails, and the top part is called the train. The locomotive has a small piece of spirit stone that serves as the power source, and it is engraved with an array. As for the railway, it is a place specifically for the train to run. Just like on the sand table, railways will be built all over Jiangdong."
With that, Lin Yang turned on the switch, and the miniature train began to move. With a hum, the train slowly started moving.
"Look, in the future, the locomotive will be equipped with the steam engine you just saw, and the carriages behind it will be loaded with countless goods, or of course, people, carrying both people and goods."
"You can roughly imagine what would happen to the entire Jiangdong region if thousands of people were traveling on a train at a speed of 60 or 70 kilometers per hour. What would happen if thousands or even tens of thousands of tons of goods were loaded onto the train and transported between the two places?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Shu immediately began calculating in his mind. After all, it was quantum computer-level computing power; collecting information, building models, performing mathematical calculations, and finally conducting three-dimensional simulations were all completed in just a breath or two.
Using spirit stones could indeed achieve the aforementioned results. Moreover, due to the nature of spirit stones, the speed could be even faster. However, once it becomes faster, it becomes somewhat counterproductive and would result in financial loss.
Once this is truly achieved, one could travel over a thousand kilometers in a single day and night. And how big is the entire Jiangdong region? At least, a round trip between Wu Commandery and Kuaiji Commandery in a single day would be achievable.
So what about the military? What would happen if the military also reached that speed? What would happen if information transmission also reached that speed? And what about the transportation of various supplies, and so on?
Although Xu Shu didn't know much about ordinary people, at this moment, countless amazing ideas came to mind.
It can be said that the mere appearance of a train was enough to bring about a qualitative change in the previously slow-paced lives of ordinary people. At that time, those who couldn't keep up with the pace would only be crushed by the rumbling steam engines.