Deep within Dragon's Breath Valley, the only sounds were those of the glowing blast furnaces, now accompanied by the acrid smell of coal smoke and the deafening clanging of metal. The first cohort of outstanding students from the Gewu Academy had gathered around a massive bronze-and-steel contraption. Gleaming with a dark lustre, this machine towered over two zhang (approximately 6.6 metres) and resembled a mythical creature with its countless intricate links and enormous flywheels intertwined.
'Your Majesty, can this "Water and Fire Interplay" technique truly make this massive iron lump move on its own?' Gongshu Qi wiped the coal dust from his face; his eyes were filled with both fanatical devotion and awe of the unknown. Liu Xun, wearing a specially made leather apron, stood on the command platform with a precision wrench — a system reward — in his hand. A dangerous red light flickered on the system interface in his mind:
[System Warning]:
Detected: the inner wall of the high-pressure boiler is coated with a highly explosive mixture of 'fierce fire oil'.
The pressure valve has been deliberately reinforced and the normal exhaust port is malfunctioning.
Thermodynamic simulation shows that, three-quarters of an hour after ignition, the pressure will exceed the limit and trigger a large-scale explosion.
Mole marker: Zhang Hu, a student in Class Two at the Gewu School (who has already been replaced by assassins from the Du family).
A barely perceptible, cold smile appeared on Liu Xun's lips. He activated his 'Top-Tier Performance: Unaware Madman", his performance conveying an air of smug triumph. He patted the scorching boiler shell. 'Not only can it move, but it can also pump water from a well over a hundred feet deep in an instant!' "Zhang Hu, come here." Liu Xun casually beckoned to the fake student, who was covered in cold sweat and trying to shrink back into the crowd. 'You're the best at arithmetic in the class. Today, you'll add the first shovelful of refined coke. I want you to see with your own eyes how steel devours thunder." Zhang Hu's body trembled violently, but with the Hidden Dragon Guards standing around him and Liu Xun looking at him eagerly, he could only grit his teeth and step forward. He threw in the first shovelful of refined coke shakily.
"Fire!" At Liu Xun's command, the flames in the furnace instantly turned from red to white. The huge boiler let out a teeth-grinding metallic screech as the confined space filled with boiling water, which turned into violent steam that surged through the pipes into the massive cylinder. Three quarters of an hour ticked by.
The aristocratic spies, who had been lurking in the shadows at the entrance to the valley, held their breath as they awaited the earth-shattering explosion. With Liu Xun dead, the so-called 'myth of investigating things' would be completely destroyed by this explosion. 'The pressure is too high! Your Majesty, step back! The piston is about to explode!' Gongshu Qi cried out in horror as he watched the makeshift pressure gauge (a device that Liu Xun had secretly built using system parts) swing wildly. An explosion was imminent. With only a minute left, Liu Xun suddenly moved. Instead of retreating, he stepped towards the pressure relief vent, which was spewing white smoke. Amidst gasps from the crowd, he grabbed a precision wrench and swiftly inserted it into the gears. Using 'precise prediction based on system mechanics', he forcefully pried open the valve reinforced by the assassins.
'Sizzle—!' A violent plume of white smoke shot into the sky like an arrow; the powerful blast blew away the nearby wooden frame. At the same time, Liu Xun moved with ghostly speed, grabbing 'Zhang Hu' by the neck as he tried to escape amid the chaos and slamming him heavily onto the machine base, which was still shaking violently. 'How much did the Du family pay you to test the power of this boiler?' Amidst the hissing steam, Liu Xun's voice remained icy cold. 'Let me tell you, this machine can tame the power of heaven itself, let alone you rats from the gutter.' Just then, a miracle occurred. As excess steam was expelled, a perfect pressure difference formed within the cylinder. Under everyone's watchful eyes, the massive bronze connecting rod emitted a heavy, rhythmic rumble. 'Clang!'
The enormous flywheel began to rotate slowly, its speed increasing rapidly, while the water pump connected to the bottom of the mine roared like a dragon's cry. The next moment, a jet of water as thick as a bowl gushed from the drainpipe, turning the parched valley into a vast expanse of water.
'It moved! It really moved!'
'No horses or oxen were needed; it moved on its own!' The students of the Gewu Academy surged forward, kneeling beside the water jet and feeling the superhuman power within them. Liu Xun stood amidst the billowing steam, letting the water droplets soak his face. Casually tossing the limp assassin to the Hidden Dragon Guards, his eyes gleamed with the ambition of a plunderer.
[System notification] The first reciprocating steam pump of the Great Han dynasty has successfully commenced operation, marking a leap forward in industrial civilisation and the beginning of the steam age.
Unlock subsequent rewards: High-precision boring machine design blueprints and a complete map of mineral resource distribution (Asian version).
'This is just the beginning,' said Liu Xun, stroking the vibrating flywheel and addressing the artisans and students of the entire valley. 'From this day forward, the Great Han Empire will no longer rely on oxen, horses, or sweat. We will rely on iron, fire and this ceaseless roar!'
The aristocratic spies in the distance collapsed to the ground. Looking at the water column and the giant wheel, they finally realised that they were no longer fighting an emperor, but a new era that they could neither comprehend nor stop.
Liu Xun officially issued an edict announcing that the first cohort of students from the 'Academy of Natural Sciences' had graduated. He would personally visit the Imperial Academy to determine the assignments of the first batch of administrative and engineering officials for the Han Dynasty, disregarding family background and social status, through a face-to-face meeting. This group would bypass the "recommendation system" and obtain the status of "disciples of the Son of Heaven" directly from the emperor. The atmosphere in the side hall of the Imperial Academy in Chang'an was extremely solemn. According to old Han Dynasty customs, to become an official, one had to be recommended by the governors of prefectures and kingdoms. This meant that, unless you were surnamed Du, Wang or Huo, no matter how talented you were, you could only spend your life as a retainer under powerful families. However, today, Liu Xun's desk was not covered in recommendation letters from various families, but in the academic evaluation files of the Academy of Natural Sciences.
'Your Majesty, the eldest son of the Li family of Longxi is waiting outside the hall for your decree.' He is proficient in the Shangshu (Book of Documents) and was recommended by a joint letter from renowned Guanzhong scholars," an old rites official bowed and reminded him.
'Send him back.' Liu Xun flipped through a page of the file without looking up, adopting the persona of a 'ruthless innovator'. 'I said I'd only consider talented people for the investigation today. Go and bring in the 'mud-legged' man who spent three months in the mines and improved the steam piston.' The first person to enter the hall was Gongshu Qi, the young man who had performed exceptionally well in Dragon's Breath Valley. He was still wearing the same faded hemp robe. Despite his best efforts to wash it, coal dust remained stuck between his fingers. 'Gongshu Qi,' said Liu Xun, putting down his pen and fixing Gongshu Qi with a sharp look. 'If I were to give you 100 million coins and ask you to lay a "railway" from Chang'an to the East Sea within a year, what would be the first thing you would do?' Gongshu Qi hesitated for a moment. Unlike a Confucian scholar, he did not launch into a tirade about 'benevolence and righteousness', but instead knelt and replied, 'Your Majesty, my first task would not be to buy iron, but to repair the "coke oven". Without enough coke, ore is just waste rock, and without standardised measuring tools, the rails cannot be connected. I will first establish the 'rules', then discuss the 'progress'." A satisfied smile curved Liu Xun's lips. This was precisely the systematic thinking he needed, not a bookworm who could only recite Confucian classics.
The interviews lasted all day. Liu Xun activated his 'Ultimate Performance: Eye of Insight' system, which allowed him to select candidates based on their loyalty and resilience rather than words alone.
When he interviewed a poor scholar, he asked, 'If a wealthy family offered you a lot of money for your design blueprints, what would you choose?' When he faced a poor farmer's son, he asked, 'If the local gentry seized your improved farmland, would you dare to stand up to them?'
System Command: Lock Core List
1. Gongshu Qi: Mechanical Engineering Expert, Loyalty: 98%
2. Mo Fei: Ballistics and Gunpowder Genius, Loyalty: 95%
3. Sang Lin: Prototype of Modern Accounting Logic
Loyalty: 92%.
Not only did these three pass Liu Xun's rigorous technical tests, they were also deeply captivated by his imperial charisma and his vision of "breaking with the old and establishing the new".
As the sun set, Liu Xun walked to the square outside the side hall.
Thirty-six talented scholars from humble backgrounds stood in line, their faces solemn. Liu Xun ordered the Hidden Dragon Guards to produce thirty-six short swords made of steel from the Dragon Breath Valley. These short swords were engraved with a uniform number and three characters: 'Emperor's Subject.' 'Remember this: you are not the lackeys of the aristocratic families, nor are you appendages of the Confucian scholars.' Liu Xun walked up to Gongshu Qi and personally hung a short sword at his waist. His voice echoed like thunder across the Imperial Academy. 'You are my eyes and my hands; you are every steel spike on the backbone of the Han dynasty's industry. From this day forward, anyone who dares to touch you is as good as touching my throne! Your only goal is to ensure that the Han Dynasty's chimneys are erected on every inch of land within sight!' 'We are willing to die for Your Majesty, to usher in an era of peace for the Han Dynasty!' the thirty-six talented men roared in unison. Centuries of suppressed anger and gratitude for a new lease of life erupted completely at that moment.
The heads of the aristocratic families waiting outside the Imperial Academy for news turned pale upon hearing this earth-shattering roar. They knew that Liu Xun's 'disciples of the emperor' had cut off the last way in which the powerful families could blackmail the emperor by monopolising talent.
[System Notification]:
[Imperial Disciple]: The rudimentary bureaucratic system has been established.
[Clan Influence]: Decreased by 20%.
Industrial Bureaucratic Efficiency: Increased by 300%.
Unlock the next stage: 'The Great Han Shipyard and Steam Ironclad Warship Project.'
Looking at these young faces, Liu Xun saw the future of the Great Han. "Gongshu Qi, build me some ships," he said. Patting the young man on the shoulder, he continued, his eyes deep: "I will etch the majesty of the Great Han onto the waves."
Despite the storm brewing in the southeastern seas, Liu Xun had already positioned his most important piece at the heart of Chang'an's power centre. As the Academy of Natural Sciences and the Agricultural Reclamation Corps grew stronger, he discovered a fatal flaw in the Han Dynasty's system of weights and measures: it was utterly chaotic. One shi (a unit of dry measurement) of grain in Guanzhong might equate to one shi and two dou (another unit of dry measurement) in Shu, while measurements in Longxi would shrink by several fen (another unit of dry measurement) in Jiangdong. This chaos naturally enabled powerful clans to enrich themselves and hinder the exchange of industrial parts. 'Without rules, how can there be order? Without precision, how can there be industry?' In the dead of night in Weiyang Palace, Liu Xun closed his eyes and his consciousness sank into that vast golden ocean.
[System Global Announcement] Given that the host has successfully established the 'Disciple of the Emperor' system and ushered in the Steam Age, the hidden achievement has been unlocked: [Father of the Cornerstone of Industry], the reward being [Standardised Weights and Measures – Absolute Template].
In an instant, Liu Xun felt a heavy weight in his hands. He held a set of alloy objects radiating a cold, eerie blue light that had materialised directly from the system space. These included a standard ruler with micrometre-level precision, a perfectly balanced standard weight and a standard quantity with a constant volume.
This set was made of an aerospace-grade alloy that is unaffected by temperature changes or wear and tear over time. 'Ding—!' 'Precision Assimilation' function activated: All measuring instruments produced by the Institute of Geography will receive slight system corrections, ensuring an error of less than one ten-thousandth nationwide.'
The next morning at court, Liu Xun ordered the set of weights and measures that radiated 'divine light' to be placed in the centre of the Xuan Shi Hall. He then changed into his long-unworn, heavy, ceremonial robes. His expression was solemn and his demeanour transformed into that of 'the divine son of destiny'. Addressing his esteemed ministers, he said, "Last night, I dreamt of Emperor Gaozu. He said that the reason the Han dynasty was plagued by poverty and corruption among merchants was due to inconsistent weights and measures. In its mercy for the revival of the Han Dynasty, Heaven bestowed upon us this divine instrument to 'stabilise the world'." Suddenly, Liu Xun pulled out the alloy standard ruler and pointed to its markings. In a thunderous voice, he declared, 'From this day forward, this shall be the standard! Within the Han dynasty, every foot shall have a fixed length and every jin (a unit of weight) a fixed weight. Anyone who privately manufactures or alters weights and measures, or deceives the people — whether they are a member of the imperial family or a local tycoon — shall be punished for 'deceiving Heaven', and their entire family shall be executed!" With the widespread promotion of standardised weights and measures in the Great Han Daily, and the agricultural reclamation corps transporting them to various counties, a major economic upheaval erupted. Previously, when merchants from different regions did business together, converting weights and calibrating scales could take several days. They also had to guard against tampering with the scales, and this enormous 'trust cost' confined the scope of trade in the Han dynasty to a small circle for a long time. Now, however, Gongshu Qi has established 'official calibration offices' at the city gates.
'You are a cloth merchant from Guanzhong and he is a grain merchant from Jiangdong. You both serve the same ruler and use the same scale.' Sitting in a restaurant, Liu Xun watched the merchants below, who had previously argued endlessly, sign contracts in a matter of moments in the presence of standardised measuring tools.
[System Real-Time Monitoring] The national material turnover rate has increased by 150%, while trade friction costs have decreased by 80%.
[Industrialised parts interchangeability rate]: Soared from 0% to 100% (theoretical value), meaning that a steam valve manufactured in Dragon's Breath Valley can be directly installed on a boiler in a shipyard in the southeast without any polishing.
Standardisation is not only a technological issue, but also a political one. Liu Xun established the 'Quality and Technical Supervision Guards' in each prefecture, which are managed directly by his protégés.
'Prefect Wang, how come the tax grain you collected is ten percent more than the official standard?' A young scholar wearing a short sword bearing the inscription 'Emperor's Subject', and holding a spare standard weight from the system, stared coldly at the sweating prefect. 'Is your scale broken, or is your heart corrupt? Come with me to Weiyang Palace to explain.' This 'precision strike' paralysed the old bureaucratic system, which had amassed wealth through flaws in the weight and measure system. With just a ruler and a weight, Liu Xun had elevated the administrative efficiency of the entire Han dynasty to a new level.
[System Prompt]:
[National Rule Power]: Increased to 95.
[Speed of Primitive Capital Accumulation]: Greatly enhanced.
Unlocked subsequent rewards: Complete Explanation of Double-Entry Bookkeeping, Basic Joint-Stock Bank Model.
Standing on the terrace of Weiyang Palace, Liu Xun looked down at the bustling yet orderly city of Chang'an. He knew the rules had been set; now it was time to let the "Han" chariot accelerate along the smooth Qin Straight Road.
'Gongshu Qi, is the ship ready?'
'Your Majesty, thanks to the standardisation of weights and measures, the assembly of parts is extremely fast. The 'Great Han' ironclad warship will soon be launched!"
At the estuary where the sky meets the sea.
Liu Bi, a descendant of the King of Wu, colluded with pirates from the East China Sea and amassed hundreds of massive warships. These towering wooden vessels, once symbols of the Han dynasty's maritime power, were as tall as buildings and blocked out the sun. The pirates were brazenly blockading the salt transport route at this time, attempting to force Liu Xun to hand over the technology of the Gewu Academy by cutting off salt supplies. However, when a figure appeared on the horizon, all the commotion ceased abruptly.
Rather than huge white sails, it had two jet-black funnels spewing thick smoke into the sky. There were no graceful curves; instead, it was clad in gleaming steel armour. Its massive hull resembled a steel island moving through the sunlight. White jets of steam occasionally gushed from the steam vents below the waterline. This was the 'Great Han', a steam-powered ironclad warship secretly built under the supervision of Liu Xun and personally assembled by Gongshu Qi.
[System Command]: Activate 'Naval Combat Experiment Module – Steel Against Sails'.
[Core Configuration]: Three sets of high-pressure linked steam engines; underwater propellers; and a high-strength steel ram at the bow.
[Defence level]: Three layers of rolled high-strength steel armour (immune to all existing ballistae and oil-based weapons).
System bonuses: Overall Ship Balance Correction, Sonar Obstacle Avoidance Simulation.
'What... what is that? Is it the Xuanwu Divine Beast of the Sea?' On the pirate flagship, the leader dropped his defective binoculars, smuggled out of the Imperial Academy of Natural History, in horror. 'His Majesty has decreed: "If the traitors do not surrender, you will be sent back to the ruins."'
Gongshu Qi stood in the fully enclosed command tower of the 'Great Han', gripping the scaled speedometer and activating the 'calm command logic' taught to him by Liu Xun. His eyes were calm.
'Full speed ahead!' Target: Enemy warship formation. No firing allowed. Use the ram.'
'Boom!' The steam engine roared like never before. The 10,000-tonne steel behemoth, driven by its propellers, instantly reached speeds several times faster than a sailing ship. It charged straight at the densely packed pirate formation like a hot knife through butter.
"Arrows! Oil! Stones!' The pirates retaliated frantically. A hail of rockets struck the ironclad ship with only a soft 'clang'; massive stones slammed into its sides, leaving only a few sparks.
'Crack!' That was the sound of wood snapping. The Great Han's massive steel ram broke the pirates' prized giant warship in two with a single charge, rendering it as fragile as paper. Thousands of pirates screamed in despair in the shadow of the steel.
Meanwhile, in the square of the Imperial Academy in Chang'an, Liu Xun activated 'Real-time System Projection', despite not being physically present. A massive, semi-transparent screen appeared in the sky, broadcasting the battle in the East China Sea, a thousand miles away, live to the people and envoys of Chang'an. With his hands behind his back, Liu Xun adopted his 'strategic creator god' persona. Pointing at the rampaging steel behemoth on the screen, he whispered to the trembling envoy from the Western Regions beside him, 'You see, this is the "reason" I was talking about. Before such an iron will, all storms and conspiracies are mere embellishments.' On the screen, the 'Great Han' began to rotate. It could not only ram, but its wings also slowly opened to reveal dark, tubular structures. Although they were not cannons, they were 'high-pressure water jets' driven by Liu Xun using high-pressure steam.
Scorching steam mixed with boiling water swept across the pirates' decks like the breath of a dragon — a miraculous sight for the people of Chang'an. The battle ended in less than an hour. The pirate formation collapsed completely, and the remaining wooden boats fled desperately, only to find that they could not outrun the 'ghost ship' that needed no wind. The remnants of the once-arrogant group of maritime tyrants, Liu Bi, now knelt on the deck, frantically kowtowing and begging for surrender before the black smokestack.
[System notification] The 'Great Han' has achieved a resounding victory in its first battle, increasing its maritime control to 100%.
National fortune has surpassed the critical point, unlocking rewards: Preliminary Theory of Internal Combustion Engines and Oil Exploration Guide (Guanzhong/Extended Version). 'Gongshu Qi, raise that flag,' commanded Liu Xun through the system space. On the mainmast of the 'Great Han', a deep red flag embroidered with a golden dragon and intertwined gears fluttered in the black smoke. The order of the world's oceans was rewritten on this day. The age of sail ended prematurely with the ramming horn of the Great Han. Liu Xun's gaze had already crossed the nearby seas and looked towards the far west. 'My territory extends wherever the sea reaches — it is Han land.'
When news of the victory in the East China Sea reached Chang'an, court officials were still reeling from the shock of the 'ironclad warships' when Liu Xun and the most elite team from the Academy of Natural Sciences disappeared into the endless yellow sands of Guanzhong. Although the roar of the steam engines was impressive, Liu Xun knew that if the Han Dynasty relied solely on coal and wood, its power development would soon reach a bottleneck. He needed a more concentrated, powerful and modern energy source: oil.
In Yanchang, in the north of Shaanxi province, there had long been rumours of "stone lacquer" emerging. People used it to coat axles or light lamps, but no one realised that this viscous black liquid held the key to the future of the empire.
Liu Xun stood on a dried-up riverbank, the system's scan layer extending downwards like a spider's web.
[System Command] Activate 'Energy Detection – Yanchang Shallow Oil Field'.
[Detection result] A high-pressure oil and gas layer exists 150 metres underground.
Mining plan: Simplified Percussion Drilling Method (improved by the Gewu Academy).
Warning: Due to technological limitations, the blowout preventer is rudimentary and poses a risk of blowout and fire.
"Drill!" Upon Liu Xun's command, the massive steam-powered rotary table began to spin wildly. The precision-assembled steel drill bit smoothly cut into the rock strata using standardised measuring instruments.
As the drilling rig roared into action, several pairs of crimson eyes fixed themselves intently on the scene from the shadows of the nearby wasteland. These were the last remaining loyalists of the Du and Wang families who had lost their land, their official positions and, now, their monopoly on knowledge. To them, Liu Xun was not digging for 'stone lacquer', but for the very lifeblood of the Han Dynasty.
'Since you want this black, demonic water so badly, we'll make the Emperor of the Han Dynasty perish in flames alongside it!' The leader of the assassins pulled a basic gunpowder bomb from the Gewu Academy; his eyes were wild. They wanted not only to kill, but also to prove through a cataclysmic explosion that Liu Xun's 'Gewu' was an evil art that would incur divine punishment.
'Boom!' It wasn't gunpowder that exploded, but the raging fire that had accumulated underground for millennia. As the drill pierced the final thin layer of rock, a jet of black, muddy liquid shot into the sky like a giant dragon, instantly overturning the drilling rig, which was several metres high. 'A blowout!' Gongshu Qi cried out in alarm. He had never experienced such terrifying pressure before and his mind went completely blank.
'Don't panic! Everyone, retreat to the upwind side!' Liu Xun launched his 'top-tier performance: the composure of a commander in the face of danger'. He wiped the black crude oil splattered across his face. To him, this pungent liquid was not filth, but flowing RMB and an advancing armoured formation.
However, just as he was preparing to activate the emergency sealing plan, several arrows streaked across the sky and struck the splattering crude oil with precision.
'Protect His Majesty!'
'Boom!' Flames shot into the sky as the crude oil instantly ignited, transforming the entire well site into a giant crimson fireball. The shockwave from the explosion blew away the surrounding tents.
Liu Xun rolled in the flames, his eyes chillingly cold.
'Gongshu Qi! Push that specially made 'iron can' over here!' Amidst the sea of fire, Liu Xun roared, utilising the 'modern fire-fighting principles' rewarded by the system to direct the agricultural reclamation corps to isolate oxygen with moist loess and a massive iron shield.
He charged to the front, adopting the persona of an 'unyielding sower of civilisation'. Despite the terrifying heat, which caused his hair and beard to curl, he steadily operated the manual pump, forcing large amounts of sand into the wellhead. Half an hour later, the raging fire was finally extinguished thanks to Liu Xun's almost suicidal efforts. As soon as the last flame died down, Liu Xun rose from the ruins, his body charred black, carrying a bucket of crude oil salvaged from the embers. 'Did you see that?' He surveyed the still-shaken officials, soldiers and captured aristocratic assassins around him. 'They thought fire could burn away the future, but this fire has taught me one thing: how to control energy.' He casually poured the crude oil into a simple distillation flask and used the remaining flames to perform a distillation. Moments later, a clear, flammable liquid that produced little smoke began to drip.
[System notification] The first drop of crude naphtha (a mixture of gasoline and kerosene) has been successfully extracted from the Han Dynasty.
[Chemical Technology Tree] Activated; [Internal Combustion Engine Prerequisite Quest] Initiated; the will to resist of the powerful aristocratic families has been completely extinguished.
Looking at the transparent liquid, Liu Xun seemed to see the ghosts of the Han Dynasty's armoured chariots sweeping across Eurasia. 'Send a letter to the Gewu Academy,' he said. 'Tell Gongshu Qi to stop messing around with steam. I'm going to lead you into the era of internal combustion.'