Let's Do It!

Seeing that Senior Liao wasn't falling for the trap, Lin Xiao secretly clicked his tongue in approval.

He thought for a moment, and since this approach wouldn't work, he decided to try a different one. "Senior, do you know the old saying, 'To get rich, build roads first'? Transportation is a crucial link in social development. Since we're developing the Mortal Realm, shouldn't we also develop ordinary people? Think about it, what kind of lives do ordinary people in the Immortal Cultivation Realm lead? If ordinary people in our Mortal Realm lived convenient and prosperous lives, wouldn't that completely surpass the Immortal Cultivation Realm?"

"Hmm... that's not bad." Liao Pantu was somewhat tempted by Lin Xiao's suggestion.

"Right! And don't underestimate this train just because it's for ordinary people. It's technically quite challenging. Such a large and long train must consume a lot of energy to move. Since it's for ordinary people, the cost can't be too high, so Spirit Stone can't be the main energy source. We need to research what kind of affordable and convenient energy sources are available for ordinary people. We also need to aim for speed; we can't build one that's about as fast as a horse-drawn carriage. It must demonstrate its distinct advantages, don't you think?" Lin Xiao continued.

Having known each other for so long, Liao Pantu was no longer surprised by the unusual words Lin Xiao used; he could figure out their meanings with a little thought.

He picked up a stack of drawings from the table and went through them again.

Lin Xiao continued, "Anyway, we're pretty free these days, why not do some small research for fun?"

"Okay, let's do it!" Liao Pantu wasn't one to overthink things. Seeing how much Lin Xiao wanted to do it and that he himself was somewhat interested, he figured he might as well go for it. After all, something of this magnitude shouldn't take him much time.

With Lin Xiao's help, the two remaining idle members of the Lingxian Sect finally reached an agreement and began their research on the train.

Because all the production departments within the sect were extremely busy, the Artifact Refining Hall didn't have any extra rooms for the two of them. Even Liao Pantu's small world of medicinal gardens was bustling with people every day, busy with the planting, maintenance, harvesting, sorting, and packaging of various medicinal fields. The two of them could only retreat to Lin Xiao's small bamboo house on Spirit-Rich Mountain of Yaoguang Floating Island to concentrate on their research.

Building a train was not a difficult task for these two men.

Liao Pantu possessed refined weapon-forging skills, while Lin Xiao had a rudimentary understanding of theoretical knowledge. Through his general description, Liao Pantu could grasp a general direction. Given that Lin Xiao knew this direction would inevitably succeed, the two made astonishing progress in their research.

In just a few days, the two not only built a steam train, but also developed a generator to further optimize the train's power source and speed.

Liao Pantu also used the concept of array engraving to create something similar to a motor drive chip, based on Lin Xiao's vague description.

The two then began to consider wind power generation.

Since natural winds are uncontrollable, the two thought of creating a stable wind-generating formation. This formation would only have one function: to continuously generate wind, thus consuming little Spirit Stone.

Once they had resolved these key issues, they began to hand-build the locomotive.

It took three whole days to finish.

When the first electric locomotive was completed, Liao Pantu, satisfied, admired his achievement with Lin Xiao and asked, "How many of these locomotives do we need to make?"

Lin Xiao paused, blinked for a moment, and then said, "I haven't discussed it with people from different countries yet."

"?" Liao Pantu dumbfounded.

So all that hard work he'd put in, all that technical stuff, he hasn't even talked to anyone yet?

Lin Xiao knew he was in the wrong, so he quickly reassured them, "Don't worry, I'll talk to them right away and we'll definitely get this done as soon as possible. After that, we won't need to worry about the car and the track anymore; let them build them themselves. We'll just focus on making the chips and the stabilizing array."

Liao Pantu was speechless, thinking to himself that young people are indeed unreliable when it comes to doing things.

But the sect leader couldn't just beat a little kid like that, so he could only shake his head and comfort himself, deciding not to bother with a twenty-year-old brat.

Several years have passed, and Lin Xiao's height and appearance have fully matured. His handsome face has shed the childishness of his teenage years and now fully reveals distinct features.

Liao Pantu sighed inwardly. This guy's appearance was quite deceptive when he didn't speak or when he was with outsiders. Most people from other sects and royal families didn't believe that he was really a young man. They thought that his past as a farm boy was just a cover for his identity and that this sect leader must have cultivated for many years.

Only a very few people know or believe his true nature.

With the two of them achieving results, Lin Xiao quickly began negotiating cooperation with various countries.

It sounds like there's a lot to do, but in reality, Lin Xiao just told Lin Yun and Li Zhouxuan about the matter, and then Li Zhouxuan was asked to represent Xiushui City to communicate with the royal family of the Pusi Kingdom. After that, the royal family of the Pusi Kingdom would negotiate cooperation with other countries.

Most countries were happy to see this happen, but Xiushui City required them to recruit workers to build trains and railways, and also imposed certain requirements on the workers' treatment. The wages paid could not be less than a certain amount, and at least two meals a day had to be provided, with at least one meat dish and one vegetable dish, with no limit on the amount of food available to the workers, etc.

This is a very large expense.

Fortunately, they didn't need to prepare the materials for producing the trains. Xiushui City promised to provide pre-processed materials and simplify the production and manufacturing process to a level that ordinary people could easily handle.

However, processing it into the final material requires a lot of metal and ore raw materials, which need to be supplied by various countries.

So, in the end, the final agreement was to set up a main manufacturing plant in Xiushui City, where all production and manufacturing would be carried out in a unified manner, and various countries would be responsible for transporting raw materials, workers, ingredients, and other human and material resources.

The construction of the railway was also arranged and coordinated by Xiushui City. Various countries would send imperial envoys to discuss with Xiushui City in detail where stations needed to be set up, the appropriate length of each section of the railway, and the most convenient route.

To avoid various problems during the railway construction process due to unfamiliarity with the terrain, Xiushui City specifically required that the construction workers for each section of the railway be recruited as many locals as possible who were familiar with the area.

However, the Mortal Realm is vast, and there are always some remote and uninhabited places between different regions. These places are often plagued by miasma, wild beasts, or blocked by Jianghe. It is basically impossible for mortals to build railways in such places with their current strength.