My mod ruined the otherworldly art style.

Chapter 137 The Steam Age is Just the Prelude

After seeing all the villagers off, Gugu couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief.

Although she was exhausted from making things all night, she was very excited.

This feeling of being able to invent freely and without hindrance made Gugu feel like she had completely let herself go.

She first checked the changes after she leveled up to level 5 and found that she could now create 10 clones instead of just one.

Every guguga can be transformed into a tool in one's mind.

However, due to their classification, the penguins can only be used as common modern tools at present.

Examples include forging tables, furnaces, lathes, grinding machines, drilling machines, and forging hammers.

The emergence of these new tools gave Gugu even bolder ideas.

Now she can not only produce batch modules, but also make simple mechanical devices based on these tools.

This included the production of steam boilers, piston cylinders, and other devices, which propelled the territory into the steam age and brought it fully into modern civilization.

The little girl's idea quickly gained the support of key figures such as Dorothy and Gandalf.

Everyone wants to step into modern life and experience the feeling of the Father God's homeland.

So, in order to realize their dreams sooner, everyone allocated a contribution point to GuGu, allowing her to freely exchange for various materials.

Meanwhile, the second-in-command decided to disguise himself as a merchant and take Hawkeye and Blind Man to Iron Rock City to buy various mineral materials.

This two-pronged approach will greatly reduce the expenditure on contribution points for the territory.

Otherwise, if we rely entirely on exchanging contribution points, we'll eventually run out of them.

Moreover, they received a windfall of 89 million gold coins.

Wouldn't it be a waste if we didn't spend all this money?

Gold coins only have real value when they circulate.

Just as the second-in-command was organizing the villagers to form a caravan, the expeditionary force that had gone out to attack Yantiecheng finally returned.

These ordinary soldiers, who had experienced life-or-death battles, were moved to tears when they saw their hometowns.

"Waaaaah, we're finally back!"

"I thought I would never see my loved ones again."

Many soldiers, moved by the sight, looked hopefully at the bodies of their fallen comrades.

Although Iron City suffered the fewest casualties in this battle, it still resulted in the deaths of many people.

The team of over 500 people has now dwindled to just over 400.

All the others died in the line of duty for various reasons.

When they thought of the tragic deaths of their companions, they would turn their attention to the dwarf prisoners in the wagon.

These damned guys are one of the reasons why they suffered so many casualties.

If it weren't for the death order, they would have loved to kill these dwarves to vent their anger.

Cyril sensed his subordinates' anger and understood that everyone needed an outlet.

So he did not stop the spread of this emotion, but instead used the slogan of victory to dilute the grief of his comrades' deaths: "Warriors of Ironclad Fortress! Do not let grief wear down our will."

"In this battle, we crushed the blasphemy of the dead with our steel bodies and burned away the dwarves' despicable plots with the fire of justice!"

'

"Today's victory belongs to every soul who fought for the living. The fallen heroes will enjoy eternal glory in the temple of the gods. We should be honored for them."

He raised his weapon and, as a knight, offered the highest honors.

The soldiers were equally excited by this, and they all drew their weapons to follow suit: "May the fallen heroes enjoy eternal glory in the temple of the gods, and we will surely inherit their will."

The unified oath recitation moved everyone near the city gate.

Suddenly, a crisp clapping sound rang out.

Administrator Geller led a group of officials out of the city gate, smiling as he looked at Cyril and Scarface.

He opened his arms wide as if he were seeing an old friend he hadn't seen in a long time: "Hey~, congratulations on your triumphant return!"

"I have already prepared a victory banquet in the city. Let's hurry over there to discuss and reward our contributions."

"Those who perform exceptionally well in this battle will receive generous rewards."

"Even those who die in battle will receive a pension of 20 gold coins and the title of town hero."

The administrator's generous policies made the already high-spirited soldiers even more energetic.

The pension alone is 20 gold coins, a treatment that no other territory offers.

That's enough for an average family to live comfortably for about 10 years, far exceeding the three months' worth of military pay that Geller had previously guaranteed.

The soldiers' excited reaction was observed by the four-eyed administrator.

He chose to be so generous only because his own situation was becoming increasingly dangerous.

These soldiers, whose ranks have been generally raised, will be his weapon against the new viscount.

As long as we can firmly control the forces of Ironclad City, then no matter how the other side wants to deal with us, they will have to think twice.

Otherwise, the unrest of the public cannot be suppressed by force.

With his own plans in mind, Geller led all his soldiers down the main road, where ordinary people cheered from both sides of the road.

Seeing their children so successful, the townspeople couldn't help but weep with joy, feeling a sense of pride for their hometown.

From now on, no matter what I do, I can hold my head high and have something to brag about to my neighbors.

In this harmonious atmosphere, the entire Iron City was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations as if it were a festival.

Of course, this is just a superficial phenomenon.

As the saying goes, where there is light, there is darkness, and here is the black market street, which has been simply rebuilt.

Si Ming, the gang leader, is hiding in the shadows with his underlings.

They witnessed the triumphant return of the troops.

"Boss, that blond guy seems to have changed, and even his men are the same."

"What on earth happened to these guys?"

When questioned by his underlings, he narrowed his eyes tightly, relying on his ability to recognize faces.

I saw many things that others couldn't see.

Cold sweat dripped down his forehead.

The soldiers' energetic and spirited demeanor indicates that their strength has been greatly enhanced.

The lowest level among them is probably similar to my level 6.

Such a force can definitely be considered the strongest power in the entire border region.

With such power, does Iron City even need a gang like mine?

Things might get even harder from now on.

Unwilling to answer his subordinates' questions, he continued reading. When he discovered that there were many dwarf prisoners in the caravan, his expression turned to shock once again.

This was a client with whom I had been secretly cooperating, and yet the city guard commander and his men had arrested him?

Oh no, the dwarf operation was initiated by our own side.

If the dwarves reveal this information, I'm definitely doomed.

Administrators will not tolerate those who betray their cause continuing to live freely.

What to do now? Should I abandon this black market that I've painstakingly built up over a decade and flee, or should I retreat behind the scenes and hide, secretly controlling the operation of the black market?

The dilemma made him desperately cling to his balding hair.

After a fierce internal struggle, he made a less-than-perfect decision that satisfied both sides.

That meant using informants in the prison to keep an eye on the dwarf prisoners and see if they were likely to confess.

Then he would go into hiding behind the scenes, letting the officials control the operation of the black market.

We need to remain completely hidden and only liaise with one specific cadre.

Only by making such arrangements can we respond to any change with constancy.

Having devised a plan, he desperately led his bewildered subordinates away from the streets where the celebrations were taking place.

The celebratory noise here drowned out his own ambition and unwillingness to give up.

As everything gradually returned to calm, the entire Iron City seemed to return to normal under the administration of Administrator Geller.

For several days in a row, nothing happened.

It was as if the riots caused by the undead and dwarves had never happened.

In these seemingly peaceful days, the second-in-command, disguised as a merchant, quietly traveled between the two places with a wagon loaded with materials such as rubber, copper ingots, quartz sand, and coal.

They brought various much-needed materials to the territory.

This has given this camp, which was originally built entirely of wood, a completely different look.

"Uncle, that's not how you use an air hammer. You need to press here and then step on there."

Inside a bungalow, Little Gugu is teaching a blacksmith how to use the air hammer he made, the kind of equipment commonly used for blacksmithing today.

As long as you use it according to the operating procedure, you can save yourself from the complicated and repetitive forging work.

This completely frees up the blacksmith's hands, greatly improving his work efficiency.

This device, which can operate on its own simply by burning coal, immediately captivated the blacksmith's attention upon its debut.

Following Gugu's instructions, he quickly mastered the relevant procedures for using an air hammer.

It can automatically craft various iron products needed within its territory.