Missions and an Unexpected Incident
Looking around, this hollowed-out semi-underground factory area looks exactly like a huge factory. Under the towering arched rock ceiling, there are crisscrossing thick Copper Pipe. In the very center of the empty factory building, there are four or five giant steam engines, each as tall as a two-story building, running with a deafening roar.
White, scalding steam hissed and gushed from the pressure relief valve, causing a multi-ton steel steam forging hammer to rise and fall, heavily forging the giant ironware and armor components that were glowing red-hot on the forging platform below.
Around the few roaring steam engines in the very center, the spacious factory floor was divided into dozens of independent workstations by simple sheet metal partitions and canvas. A large number of the Academy staff members dressed in work clothes or casual clothes were walking briskly back and forth between the various passages. Everyone stayed in their own workstation area and busied themselves with their own tasks in an orderly manner.
Standing beside the metal staircase at the top, Lu Yuan glanced at the layout of the entire factory area and instantly understood the advance team's intention in setting up their headquarters here.
The small blacksmith shop facing the street was, at best, just Hidden Sentry outpost used to mislead outsiders and serve as a place for a few individuals to make contact and enter.
The several long corridors at the back of the small warehouse, leading in different directions, were obviously connected to different disguised exits on several nearby streets. Normally, with so many people coming and going from the stronghold, they would all disperse through different secret passages and would never crowd together through the blacksmith shop in front, so naturally, they would not arouse the suspicion of anyone outside.
As for feeding and watering so many people and allocating large quantities of supplies, it was only natural to place them in this heavy steam forging workshop.
After all, such a large steam forging plant handles tons of coal, pig Ore, and scrap iron slag every day, and the freight gate on the back street allows heavy coal wagons to enter and exit legitimately every day.
The sealed dry rations and a large number of experimental instruments transported by the Academy were all hidden under coal and pig iron boxes. Even if someone was watching the freight route from the shadows, they wouldn't be able to spot any flaws.
Moreover, looking towards the northeast corner of the factory, Lu Yuan could see that the catering station there was drawing pure hot water that had been repeatedly boiled and distilled directly from the auxiliary boiler of the central high-temperature steam engine, and a layer of Wailing Crystal powder used for testing for poison was hanging below the water outlet.
All the personnel remaining on duty ate sealed military rations and drank purified water that had undergone high-temperature distillation and crystal testing. They did not have to touch a single drop of raw water that might be Contamination from outside.
Just as Lu Yuan walked down the metal steps to the main passage of the factory and officially entered this busy camp, his gaze swept across the crowd of people coming and going, and he was surprised to see a sturdy and robust Dwarf standing under the crane rail not far away.
The Dwarf, who was only up to the chest of an average person, had a thick, braided brown beard on his chin and wore a thick leather apron stained with oil. He was standing with his hands on his hips on one side of the passage, directing five or six Academy members in a loud voice to carefully move a long, heavy, sealed iron box using thick iron chains and logs.
Lu Yuan had barely glanced at the Dwarf a couple more times when a lean, wiry man in his thirties with rolled-up shirt sleeves strode out from behind a workstation with blueprints hanging nearby and greeted Lu Yuan with a smile.
"This must be the brother who just came from the compound. I'm Lin En, the one in charge of overall coordination at this workshop outpost. The scouts have already informed me."
The man who called himself Lin En greeted him politely. Lu Yuan didn't delay and took out the heavy, dark gold token of the Rock Grand Knight Commander and the Parchment Scroll from his pocket, handing them to Lin En.
Lin En looked down and saw the dark gold pattern on the token that symbolized the Rock Grand Knight Commander, then glanced at the name and recommendation mark on the scroll. His face immediately lit up with undisguised joy, and his gaze toward Lu Yuan became several times more fervent.
"So you're Lu Yuan, the consultant who developed the Wailing Crystal Detection Method. Lantern Knight specifically mentioned your name when he sent the crystal formula a few days ago. I never expected that Rock Grand Knight Commander would personally send such an expert as you to support us!"
As Lin En spoke happily, he returned the token and scroll to Lu Yuan with both hands, then turned and led Lu Yuan towards a large, independent workstation on the west side of the factory. At the same time, he quickly explained to Lu Yuan the specific areas he would be responsible for:
"Advisor Lu Yuan, the workstations around our workshop are mainly divided into three parts: field investigation, Pipe Network survey, and pharmaceutical technology. Since you are the technical advisor appointed by the Rock Grand Knight Commander, then this entire area of pharmaceutical analysis workstations on the west side will be your main responsibility from now on."
"To be honest, our advance team has been struggling in Watch City for so long, and right now we're stuck on two things, which are also the two tasks that we most need your help to overcome."
"The first task is to find out exactly what the core ingredient of that strange potion circulating in the city is—an ingredient none of us have ever seen before. Then, based on the properties of the ingredient, we need to find out where those Heretic are getting so many of these ingredients from."
"As you can see, the entire Watch City is now sealed off at all four gates. The city, the surrounding area, and the surrounding areas are all under strict surveillance by the Church, the Night Watcher, and the Imperial forces. Yet, to this day, no one has discovered the channels through which the medicinal herbs are entering the city. These guys seem to have appeared out of thin air, continuously shoving medicinal herbs out of the city. Unless we dig out the source, the situation in the city will forever remain a bottomless pit."
"As for the second task, it's even more bizarre. A few days ago, we followed the clues underground in the Outer City and finally found a place that seemed to be related to the source of the medicinal herbs. But no matter who we sent there, as soon as they stepped into the area of that place, their brains would inexplicably trigger amnesia, and after they came out, they would forget everything that happened inside."
"Therefore, we still need your help to find a way to counteract this abnormal mechanism that triggers amnesia."
As Lu Yuan listened to Lin En's detailed explanation, he nodded slightly, already having figured out the priorities of the two tasks.
Just as Lin En led Lu Yuan to the partition entrance of the western pharmacy station, before he could even take him inside to get to know the accompanying pharmacists and experimental equipment, a piercing metallic cracking sound and panicked shouts suddenly erupted from the passageway where the Dwarf was directing everyone to move the lead-sealed iron boxes!
"Oh no! The Inscription inside the box has been broken by the high temperature of the steam! Back up!"