Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"That's right. In principle, it's similar to the torch fuel developed by Beizhili. We added spiritual power during the smelting process, and the final smelted 'cinnabar steel' is the cornerstone of the entire project."

“Is it strong?”

"It has achieved a perfect balance between strength and toughness, reaching the theoretical limit of the metal 'steel'. According to Shangluo's statement, which is easier for you to understand, it can be understood as a kind of 'nanomaterial'. When the microstructure undergoes extremely subtle changes, its macroscopic properties can also reach another level."

"Why is the shape so strange?"

"Because cinnabar steel needs to be 'unfolded' into a specific shape to show its marvelous properties. So the peony branches or the marvelous shapes like red lotus you see are not just for beauty, but the result of the natural unfurling of cinnabar steel. To some extent, after we complete the entire structure, it may be able to unfold into a Taiyi Golden Flower. However, we have only uncovered a corner of the Taiyi Golden Flower and temporarily set up a cannon. A truly magnificent structure can only be unfolded in space."

"In other words." Zheng Shijie thought for a while, "Our entire process is to copy a part of Taiyi Jinhua. These cinnabar steels are the cinnabar pigments we use to copy the avenue. This cannon is a pleasant surprise, because we found that this indestructible structure is enough to support a cannon that reaches the sky. It is an honor for this land to be able to carry a corner of the avenue."

"Is this a secret?" Shangluo asked.

"Yes, it's top secret, and it's about the same level of confidentiality as your senior brother's retreat. If people knew about it, someone might be guarding here every day, waiting to be the first to comprehend the patterns of Taiyi Jinhua."

"Wait! I didn't know his retreat location was a secret!"

"Well, just pretend I didn't say anything. Just pretend I didn't say anything."

Chapter 1071 Taiyi Jinhua Atlas

"So, this is the principle." Zheng Shijie explained, "After these metals are smelted into spiritual objects, their forms will naturally show a corner of the Great Dao. But I can't say how much proportion this 'corner' accounts for in the complete Taiyi Jinhua. I even think that there may be more than one Taiyi Jinhua. Shangluo, you saw it last time, right? You are the only one who witnessed it directly."

Shangluo nodded: "The level of the explosion is high enough. It seems that as long as it is related to spiritual objects, even an explosion will produce Taiyi Jinhua."

"Then look carefully at the cannon. Is there any pattern on it that you have seen before?"

"." Shangluo looked carefully but remained silent.

"Why? Is it troublesome?"

Shangluo nodded: "The trouble is, I don't even know if I have seen it. The pattern of Taiyi Jinhua is indeed engraved in my mind, but it is difficult for me to describe what it looks like."

[Beyond words, knowledge, temporary, passive - in short, what the Tao is cannot be expressed in words. In fact, even I have not been able to have the same experience as Shangluo.]

Zheng Shijie shook his head in disappointment - he was indeed a little disappointed. He had originally wanted Shangluo to tell him about the progress of the project after seeing the cannon. Because even with such a huge structure, he still could not get any valuable "Tao" from it.

Perhaps other talented people could comprehend something from it, but Zheng Shijie himself never could comprehend anything.

"Then how big should we make this giant structure so that we can get a glimpse of the avenue?"

Shangluo thought for a moment and said, "In theory, information, energy, and matter are one. Taiyi Jinhua is a cosmic-level information, and it may require an equally large physical scale to contain it. Celestial-level power requires a celestial-level megastructure to display it, but that's not certain."

"Then I can't make a ball to wrap up the sun!"

"That's not impossible, right?"

"Ah," Zheng Shijie pressed his forehead, "Why do I feel like I'm on the wrong path? I'm afraid this is a bottomless pit."

"I think at least we can try to build the Great Wall of the Zodiac. Perhaps a wonder on a planetary scale can reveal some valuable information. This is a miracle, and it is a miracle only if it can be achieved after going through untold hardships."

"That's what I thought, too." Zheng Shijie said helplessly, "Anyway, let's build a big one first. Even if the Great Wall of the Zodiac cannot display a truly useful Taiyi Jinhua Atlas, its practical value is worth building."

"By the way, is this place big enough? After all, it's a planetary-scale megastructure. I'm afraid a factory like this alone won't be enough, right?"

Although chimneys could be considered overwhelming as far as the eye could see, the Lan Fang Company's Space Development Department, currently constrained by development restrictions in "served" areas, had not allocated much land, focusing primarily on both sides of the road from the port to the mountaintop. At the farthest point, it didn't even reach the horizon.

"Don't worry. Once the plan officially begins, I will elevate Lan Fang's space development arm, Lan Fang Aerospace, to a quasi-sovereign corporation, giving it absolute jurisdiction over all of Borneo. By then, all of Borneo will be transformed into a massive spaceport, with supporting industrial facilities deployed as widely as possible. Besides this sacred mountain, Borneo's center is dotted with mountains of various shapes. Preliminary surveys indicate 692 locations with the potential to be developed into various levels of 'mass projectors.'"

“Does it have such great potential?”

"After all, this is the equator." Zheng Shijie replied, "Because it is the equator, there are many options here. Projecting mass into the universe from here is the most profitable in the world. It is difficult to find such a densely covered island with mountains in other places on the equator. Both the mountains and islands are important here - the mountains can be used as the base of the mass transmitter. The islands are convenient for shipping materials by sea. Both are indispensable."

[Rather than saying there are very few, it is better to say there are none. Judging from the terrain at the equator, there are great plains in Africa and the Amazon rainforest in the New World. There is no island with a large enough area except Borneo. And I think the reason for choosing Borneo is not just because it is convenient for sea transportation, right? In fact, there are also considerations for public security? 】

Shangluo conveyed her question.

"Yes, that's right." Zheng Shijie nodded, "That's why I said that the whole of Borneo should be designated as the quasi-sovereign territory of Lan Fang Aerospace. At that time, the whole of Borneo will be closed and managed as a military stronghold. I will apply for at least one garrison division of the Royal Division to come here. I can pay for the military expenses, but I need more people. Nanyang does not have enough manpower to fully control such a large area."

"Eh? Will Borneo be closed down by then?"

"Of course." Zheng Shijie nodded. "You may not know this, but many of our cities are now under closed management. For example, Kunshan, Digang, Xiaguan and other industrial cities directly under the Ministry of Industry in Nanzhili.

"In order to prevent someone from spying on the lifeblood of the imperial court, only local residents can enter and exit those places at will. Outsiders are not allowed to stay or stay there without special reasons. This is mainly for the safety and efficiency of industrial production. After all, those places are full of research institutes, arsenals, military bases, or the production bases of some important resources."

"Then will one division be enough for you?"

"That's why we chose an island. It's much easier to manage an island. Then we can transfer a few Lan Fang Marine Corps here, and we can control every inch of Borneo. Actually, I don't want this to happen. Pontianak is my second home outside of Quanzhou. The scenery and cultural landscape here are great.

"I have to pay a large amount of resettlement fees to relocate all the locals. But this is a good place for aerospace development. If I don't vacate this place, someone else will ask me to do so. Instead of waiting for the imperial court to issue an order, I might as well prepare the land myself first."

Zheng Shijie did a simple calculation and figured out the matter. If the imperial court intervened in such matters, nothing good would happen. It would be better for him to handle the matter according to Lan Fang's rules first, and then hand over the pillow when the imperial court fell asleep, and the matter would be settled naturally.

"And take on some commercial launch missions, right?"

"Yes, indeed. I am still waiting to receive some errand fees from the court."

Chapter 1072 Cannon

"I'm telling the truth." Zheng Shijie said:

"The Lan Fang Company is very efficient. If we launch payloads in large quantities, our efficiency will not be lower than that of the military aerospace in the region. Considering the advantages of shipping and scale, we may be able to lower the price. Besides, land acquisition anywhere else will not be as cheap as here. If the region wants to achieve a similar effect, I'm afraid the only options are Qiongzhou Island or Dayuan Island. The population there is several million, and they are all Chinese citizens in the region. By then, the resettlement fee alone will be an astronomical figure, and we won't be able to afford it even if we sell Lan Fang."

"You are very thoughtful."

"Otherwise, why would I be the governor-general of Nanyang? There are many princes in the court, either governors-general or noble relatives. For example, there are governors-general in Beiting, Xiyu and the New World, and there are fiefs of noble relatives outside the southwest. But I am the only one in my family who is the governor-general of a large region as a noble relative. I have to do things properly and not cause trouble for the court, otherwise I will be the first one to be reduced when the feudal lords are reduced."

After saying that, he looked at the cannon in the distance and said, "I think I should have been given more territory at that time. The resources I can mobilize in the area under my control are only enough to build this cannon with great fanfare. If I could have been given more authority earlier and the protection level of Borneo could have been removed, I would have been able to carry out large-scale development a long time ago."

"By the way, has it been approved now?"

"Not yet. In fact, I have been saying this, but your senior brother, my 'Brother Huohua' is busy with his own affairs now, and I can't find anyone to apply. Perhaps, I have to make great efforts in this expedition against Xu Fu in order to make the court relent."

After saying that, he looked at Shangluo and said, "Don't worry, I won't make things difficult for you. I know that this matter is not your responsibility in principle. You may sign it if I ask you to, and the court will certainly recognize it, but it will cause trouble, right? So I won't bother you."

[Wow, no wonder the emperor likes to be friends with him. He is really righteous sometimes. I have never seen him ask for anything by using his friend status. He always sends something first, and if you like it, you can make an offer. If you don’t like it, he will just pretend nothing happened.]

"Maybe, this is his 'cultivation'. He doesn't seem to care much about enjoying things - there is nothing in this world that he can't enjoy. Although he doesn't seem to get along well with his father, judging from the public opinion, they both have one thing in common: we both want to leave something on the earth and spare no effort in investing in wonders. Well, this is not a bad thing. It's good to be willing to spend money, which is better than burying money in the ground."

So, you plan to help them?

"I also want to see what Taiyi Jinhua would look like if it were really drawn."

The car spiraled up the mountain road and stopped at the entrance of the "Fenfengpo Research Institute". This is the side of the sacred mountain facing the Fenfeng, and it is also where the cannon barrel is located.

"We're here, right here." Zheng Shijie got out of the car first and stood beside it with his hands on his hips. "If you think about it, I'm pretty impressive to be able to build such a big thing."

Shangluo also got off the car. As expected, as soon as he got off the car, the huge structure occupied the entire field of vision. The gun body started from the foot of the mountain, passed the middle of the mountain, crossed the top of the mountain, and extended to the sky. Just like what he saw at the foot of the mountain, the mysterious patterns covered the entire gun body. The brackets used to support the gun body were also so exquisite that they did not match its huge size.

This does not look like something artificially made, it can only be the result of natural growth. If these structures were built bit by bit by hand, they would not hire a construction team, but a watchmaker. After all, building a temple in a snail shell is the skill of a watchmaker.

"The research institute we are in is where the propulsion phase ends." He pointed downwards, "This gun uses liquid, not solid propellant. The torch is injected five times and detonated five times in succession. Each time, the specific properties of the torch are used to make it reach the performance limit of the 'explosion' reaction itself. The fifth explosion will be led by the research institute in front of you. When the payload arrives here, the institute will inject the last torch into the barrel and then ignite it. After that--"

He looked up at the sky. "After this, it's up to gravity."

"So, what was your problem before?"

"The problem lies in the laws of physics. Explosions are driven by gas expansion. In the environment of Earth, the explosion reaction itself has a speed limit. Although this limit exceeds the second cosmic speed and can be launched to the moon, the energy given to the shell by the explosion will inevitably be consumed by friction during the distance from the shell leaving the barrel to the influence of the atmosphere."

"So the best place to use your cannons is the moon?"

"The moon? My goodness, the moon doesn't need cannons at all." Zheng Shijie replied, "The mass launcher we will prepare for the lunar colonization in the future will not need such a cannon. We can just make a big swing and throw things into orbit - but it can't be done on Earth. Even if we can break through the gravity limit of the earth in the barrel, the dense atmosphere will slow down the speed of the cannonball."

"Can't Ju Su do it?"

Zheng Shijie shook his head and said, "The Torch Element is indeed a spiritual energy fuel, but it can only reach the theoretical limit of its performance and cannot exceed this limit. The reaction process of 'explosion' can only go so far, and it cannot go faster."

"Then the problem you want me to solve is not small! Do you want me to break through the limits of physics?"

"You are the Heavenly Sovereign." Zheng Shijie spread his hands and said, "There is nothing you can't do."

"I want to ask, didn't you do any calculations before building this cannon?"

"Of course it has. But we've been improving the gun. Now it can actually get its payload into space, but we can't get it into orbit once it's in space. Just a little bit, just a little bit."

"Then, have you ever considered launching a fuel rocket to accelerate again at high altitude?"

"No fuel can withstand the overloads of launch without exploding."

"Don't we have absolutely stable torch fuel? As long as it doesn't explode in theory, it definitely won't explode."

"Yes, we do. But Shangluo, you may have forgotten one thing - the Torch Fuel can only be used by Qigong practitioners. So the only way to use this thing at present is to stuff a Qigong practitioner into the shell and launch it at the second cosmic speed. He has to control the Torch Fuel during the overload so that it does not explode, and then manually start the engine in the upper atmosphere, and then manually control the orbit entry. Why is it manual and not automatic? Because there is nothing other than the steel cable that can withstand such an impact. So."

He looked at Shangluo and said, "Please, Lord Shang Tian. Go up and try it. We are waiting for you to debug it."

Chapter 1073 Invitation

"By the way, the performance of this thing is really amazing."

Standing in front of this cannon, the sheer scale of this thing is truly revealed.

Although it is a "cannon", its caliber is not much smaller than that of a real launch vehicle.

Although a giant rocket like the Suzuki cannot be stuffed in, its "upper stage" is a full 2800 mm high, which is enough to fit an elephant.

"So you can reach the second cosmic speed in this thing? That is 30 times the speed of sound?" Shang Luo still couldn't believe it.

He knew that the aerodynamic laboratory in Shuntian also had a spectacular wind tunnel that could produce 30 times the speed of sound. But that wind tunnel could only produce 50 times the speed of sound for a scaled-down model at a 30mm outlet.

That wind tunnel and the magnificent structure in front of it are completely products of two different eras.

"So, it really is 30 times the speed of sound?" Shangluo confirmed again and again.

"Theoretically it's possible."

"What do you mean by theoretically? You mean, this is the theoretical limit? In reality, it's hard for you to reach that speed?"

"That's not the case. With the help of Torch Fuel, we can reach our limit."

"I guess you're going to say but?"

"Yes, but from a business perspective, we generally don't go near that limit."

"why?"

"Here's the thing - you know there's an aerodynamics laboratory in Shuntian, right? The 30 times the speed of sound there can be achieved because the facility itself has enough potential. With the support of perfect equipment, it's not difficult to reach 30 times the speed of sound in a small-scale experimental scenario. But here, because the scale is so large, the closer we get to the extreme working conditions, the more torch energy we consume will soar exponentially. So extreme working conditions are not economical for us."

“So it’s an economic account?”

"Because the essence of Lanfang Aerospace is commercial aerospace. If the economic accounts are not balanced, then these facilities will be meaningless."

"That's right. Commercial spaceflight is indeed like this. How fast can you launch with enough funding?"

"The speed is variable, depending on the mana of the operator."

"So you don't know anything, right?"

"It's just a magic weapon." Zheng Shijie said helplessly, "That's what a magic weapon is like. How much power a magic weapon can exert depends entirely on the magic power of the user. The function of a magic weapon is to strengthen a person, and it cannot exist independently of a person."

"How strong a Qigong practitioner would be needed to be able to reach the theoretical limit?"

"In theory, the Jindan stage should be enough."

"Golden elixir stage???"

"Ah, what I mean is that the last part of the exponential surge limit requires the Jindan stage to reduce it to a reasonable range for 'commercial spaceflight'. In fact, there is no need to challenge the limit of 30 times the speed of sound, the foundation building stage can be used normally. It's just that my third uncle was unwilling to sit in the warhead - ah, I mean, he didn't want to sit in the cockpit."

【He just mentioned the warhead.】

"Well, can you let me try it first?" Shangluo asked, "Is there a mode that doesn't require me to drive?"

"Of course, because not every spaceflight is manned, cargo needs to be transported as well. So even if I don't go in, it's still possible to input spiritual energy from outside. Do you want to try? Then I'll have someone inject fuel."

"Isn't this a bit expensive?"

"It's okay. The power is adjustable. Just adjust it to the point where you can just hear a clatter." He checked the clock. "Let's practice with it first. Come to our institute's cafeteria for lunch later. I'll give them a call and start it right now."

"Is this convenient? No need to prepare in advance?"

"If you want to fire at full power, it will take a long time to debug. I'll let you fire it once for fun, just to warm up the barrel. Is there anyone else who wants to play? I'll pay for the firecrackers today." He looked at the other people who came with Shangluo.

"Me! I want to play too!" Wen Yuan raised her hand.

"You are... What are you practicing? What level?"

"I am a Lei Xiu who has reached the perfection of the middle stage of Qi Refining."