Chapter 173: The Limits of Production
The capital of the Grand Concord Dynasty stood in the wealthiest central region of the realm.
The land was fertile, resources were abundant, commerce flourished, and the population was dense.
It was the most prosperous place beneath heaven.
The Grand Concord Capital was called Shengjing, meaning shared prosperity.
The city covered eighty square kilometers, nearly seven times the size of Valdren. That alone showed the immense strength of the Grand Concord Dynasty.
Looking down from the city walls, rows of houses and residences stretched out in orderly patterns.
Merchants were everywhere, and the markets bustled without end.
"Fresh cakes straight from the oven!"
"The price of rice went up today. Eleven Coppers per dou!"
"..."
Prosperity filled every street.
The sudden pounding of hooves shattered the scene.
A courier galloped through the city until he reached the imperial palace. He presented the urgent report he carried and shouted, "Urgent dispatch!"
The official who received it dared not delay.
The message was sent straight into the palace until it finally reached the Emperor of the Grand Concord Dynasty.
He opened the report.
The first lines announced unrest on the frontier.
Valdren had changed hands.
At the sight of those words, the emperor’s expression darkened slightly.
"Summon every civil and military official at once. I have an important matter to discuss."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Once the officials arrived for the imperial audience, the emperor showed them the urgent report.
"There has been a change on the frontier. Valdren has fallen."
"What?"
The ministers reacted with alarm and hurriedly read the report in detail.
Cries of disbelief rose one after another.
"Several hundred men captured Valdren? How could that be possible?"
"The city lord is dead, and not one of Valdren’s ministers survived..."
"Who is this man? Where did those eight hundred soldiers come from?"
The officials discussed the matter for a while before the emperor finally spoke again.
"My ministers, Valdren is a place of immense strategic importance. It is central to the balance between the Grand Concord Dynasty and Thalric. If that balance is broken, war will become unavoidable."
"Your Majesty, what do you intend?"
"Your Majesty, if war must come, the soldiers of Grand Concord will not fear it!"
The emperor remained silent for a moment.
When the hall finally quieted, he said, "The Grand Concord Dynasty fought Thalric twenty years ago, and even now we have not fully recovered. I know well that our soldiers are brave. But if war begins again, everything we have rebuilt over the past two decades may be destroyed."
"..."
Every official understood what the emperor meant.
More than twenty years ago, they had failed to break into Thalric.
If war erupted again today, there was no guarantee they would achieve anything more.
The result would likely be mutual ruin.
"Your Majesty, the Thalric people have always coveted the fertile lands of the central plains. Their desire to destroy the Grand Concord Dynasty has never faded. If this matter was planned by them..."
"A sound point."
The emperor immediately looked toward the man who had spoken.
"Lucan, among all my ministers, only you see the situation so clearly. It seems no one but you is suited to serve as envoy to Valdren."
Valdren had changed rulers.
The Grand Concord Dynasty needed to determine the attitude of the city’s new lord.
Yet this new ruler was remarkably secretive. Their agents had failed to learn either his appearance or identity.
Lucan cursed his luck in silence, but he had no choice except to accept.
"This minister obeys."
The other officials secretly laughed to themselves.
Fortunately, they had kept quiet.
The emperor had clearly been waiting to send whoever spoke first.
The emperor issued another command.
"Order every military town along the frontier to heighten its vigilance. Until Valdren’s position is clear, they are to remain prepared to deploy troops at any moment."
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Thalric reacted in much the same way.
Fearing a sudden shift in the balance, they appointed an envoy the moment they learned what had happened.
The delegation set out for Valdren with lavish gifts, hoping to test the attitude of its new ruler.
As news of Valdren’s fall spread, the people of the frontier were naturally the first to hear it.
Everyone marveled at the new lord of the city.
He had led only eight hundred men in a direct assault on Valdren.
In less than an hour, they had completely broken through the city’s defenses and crushed several thousand soldiers without giving them any chance to fight back.
Such a feat seemed possible only for someone sent down by heaven.
Inside a tavern, one man spoke with absolute certainty.
"You did not see what happened that day. I witnessed it with my own eyes. The strength of those eight hundred men was beyond anything you can imagine. They could command thunder and flame!"
"It looked like true magic. No ordinary person could possibly stand against it. Valdren’s defeat was no accident. If you do not believe me, go look outside Valdren yourself. No, outside Newhaven."
"Those two arrow towers were blasted full of holes by thunder and fire."
Someone asked curiously, "If those eight hundred men were already so powerful, then the lord of Newhaven must be even more extraordinary. Did you see what he looked like?"
"Of course. He stood eight feet tall, with arms reaching down to his knees. His face was black as coal, and he carried a great halberd. When he opened his mouth, he could breathe thunder and flame..."
For a period after Newhaven resumed normal operations, few merchant caravans dared approach.
As time passed, however, prosperity gradually returned.
Men died for wealth, just as birds died for food.
Once merchants saw that the city remained peaceful and stable, they quickly came back to trade.
After arranging Newhaven’s affairs, Caelum ordered someone to bring him yellow earth and clay.
The city had access to nearly every kind of material.
It was the perfect opportunity to continue unlocking the technology tree.
[Construction and Brick Firing Accelerated Production]
An invisible force surged forth.
The yellow earth and clay were shaped into rectangular blocks, then rapidly heated and fired until they hardened completely.
Clang!
The bricks dropped to the floor, still radiating heat.
[Construction and Brick Firing Complete]
[Construction and Cement Unlocked]
Cement was the most important binding material in modern construction.
Without it, towering buildings could never rise across the land.
Its durability and usefulness were unmatched, while its production cost was extremely low.
Only a few basic ingredients were needed.
Limestone, clay, and iron ore powder.
The materials were mixed in the proper proportions, ground into powder, and then fired at high temperature.
That was enough to produce cement.
Before long, the necessary raw materials were placed in front of Caelum.
[Construction and Cement Accelerated Production]
[Construction and Cement Complete]
A pile of warm gray powder soon appeared before him.
The cement was finished, and the next technology unlocked.
[Construction and Glass Unlocked]
The raw material for glass was equally common.
Sand.
[Construction and Glass Accelerated Production]
[Construction and Glass Complete]
After a sheet of glass was produced, the technology tree stopped unlocking further branches.
The next stage would mark a complete transition into the industrial age.
To unlock it, Caelum first had to provide basic education to the people throughout his territory.
When he had introduced literacy education in Newhaven, the next branches had included basic mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology.
Each one was critically important.
To enter the industrial age, Caelum had to raise the general level of knowledge among the civilians in his territory.
Otherwise, he alone could never support the production demands of industrial development.
Firing bricks.
Producing cement.
Making glass.
Growing food.
Refining white sugar.
Manufacturing gunpowder.
Producing muskets and cannons.
The further development progressed, the greater the production demands became.
If Caelum did not establish factories and introduce assembly line production, allowing him to step away from these tasks, he would eventually work himself to death.
Even if he activated the technology tree without rest every single day, his output would still reach a limit.
The growth of his entire territory would then be trapped by the limits of his own production capacity.
