161 I Want to Build a Railway (1/2)

Leon simply couldn't believe what he was seeing. It was as if he did not leave for a week, but several weeks. There were some high rising buildings, although it was just the building frames, it provided a glimpse into the building's general look.

The entire Capital was bustling with activities, with little idlers left in the Commoner's Camp. Men did heavy labor, while woman and children tended new crops in the farmland.

What surprised Leon was four out of every five person he saw had successfully achieved the 1st layer of Body Tempering Realm. He had estimated that the average person could achieve this level within a week under the scarceness of spirit energy in the heaven and earth, but that was under the assumption that they were also hardworking and there was also the difference between the talented and untalented in cultivation.

Seeing so many people successfully becoming cultivators, it really showed their determination to become strong.

Looking at the sky, three airships could be seen hovering just above the Capital, one of which looked familiar and the other was brand new. Leon highly doubted that one week was enough time to repair one airship and produce two new ones from scratch.

”The parts must have been prepared in advance and only the core component of the airship, the levitation stones had been missing. Once the missing component was found, they only need to piece the parts together. It seems more levitation stones have been found from the Ancient Ruins.” Leon concluded from his simple observation and inference.

Speaking of levitation stones, he had only seen them in books and not in reality. However, according to his knowledge, every levitation stone mounted on an airship were the size of boulders, made of special alloys and filled with incomprehensible engravings, which he later confirmed to be runic inscriptions after awakening his past life memories.

Levitation stone was such a primitive name. It didn't do the sophisticated high-tech antigravity artifact from the ancient civilization any justice. But then again, the name came into being hundreds of years ago when the human civilization wasn't as developed.

”It would be great if the kingdom could find a few more levitation stones, or it would be even better if we can replicate the technology. The cities and towns are too disjointed due to distance. Its difficult to keep a hold of the situation on the entirety of the kingdom. If airships were widespread, it would make these cities and towns feel much closer.”

Of course, the problem could also be solved with the widespread of steampowered vehicles, but there was a large disparity in capacity and versatility. Steampowered vehicles could only travel on fixed roads, while airships could fly across all terrains within the Human Domain.

”Your Highness.”

”En.” Leon acknowledged their greeting. He thought it was a bit strange for palace guards to guard the mine entrance since it was a task that could be left for the city guards, but he did not pay it too much attention.

While crossing the bridge, he curiously peered down at the underground mines. The numerous clinks and clanks of mining could be heard reverberation out to his location.

He watched the miners collect the ores and dump them in the mine carts and sent them away after they are filled. Watching the loaded mine carts rolling along the fixed tracks, Leon was suddenly enlightened.

”What if we build a large railway that span through across the entire kingdom and mount a long steampowered vehicle that could travel on it, transporting both goods and people?”

Airships was obviously still the better choice, but this idea of his didn't seem half bad as a substitute for it. Who knew how long it would take for people to comprehend the secrets of the levitation stone and reproduce it, let alone produce more airships? As long as they couldn't get more levitation stones, it was impossible to think about spreading airships across the kingdom.

However, his idea was still within the realm of possibility. As long as the requirements were met, he could be carried out immediately. Leon began to ponder on the feasibility of his idea.

”It will cost an astronomical amount of money and resources; mainly metal. If it was before, it would have been impossible, unless I plan to scrap the palace and Great Wall for metal. Fortunately, these issues are no longer a problem at present. The kingdom had just gained access to a treasure mountain of immeasurable minerals. Also, I have the means to make a lot of money to carry out the task in a short time.”

When he said this, Leon couldn't help but grin when he thought back to the over 2000 bottles of longevity blood in his Worldspace. Once his idea is realized, it would also trigger an industrial revolution, leading to the rapid development of the kingdom. This was something that should have happened long ago with the first introduction of steam powered technology, but it was suppressed by a series of restrictions and limitations.

Suddenly, Leon creased his brows as he watches all the palace guards walking about in the underground mine below. Do these palace guards have nothing better to do than to idle away like this?