Magic Industrial Age.

Chapter 597-595: The Trap of Magic Energy Industry
The four-year-long war for supremacy swept through almost all the kingdoms of the entire Herka world.

A full-scale contest took place between the Empire and the Allied Forces.

From soldier to leader, from logistics to supplies, from productivity to industrial research and development, from foundation to decision-making...

There are too many aspects to compete on!

However, no one can deny that in the early stages of the war, the Empire, relying on the explosive productivity brought about by the magic energy industry, almost overwhelming the Allied forces and grinding them into the ground.

Over the past four years, the Allied Forces have gone from being hostile to accepting Magic Energy Machinery, to vigorously promoting it, and to continuously building factories.

The Bonaparte Empire, in particular, almost frantically promoted and developed magic energy industries after suffering defeats on the battlefield.

Problems encountered during the process should be resolved if possible, and those that cannot be resolved should be addressed as quickly as possible.

Four years is not a long time, but in this short period of time, the Bonaparte Empire managed to establish its own industrial system.

The Pitot Armory was located in the heart of the Bonaparte Empire, southeast of the city of Luttia.

This place bears the responsibility of manufacturing at least 30% of the magical weapons and field artillery during wartime, forming the highest form of protection with the help of the defenses of Luttia City.

Towards the end of the war, a new production line for magic tanks was even opened here, assembling the generation of tanks most needed by the Bonaparte Empire based on proximity.

Today, the so-called Pito Arsenal has developed into a massive industrial park covering over 300,000 acres.

Nearly 200,000 people work here every day; it's no exaggeration to say it's comparable to a small town.

Because this place is so important, and is most afraid of being targeted by the Bonaparte Empire, the Eiffel Tower, which is used to defend the palace, is suspended above the industrial park.

Meanwhile, there are nine Magic Eyes belonging to the Mage Tower, constantly scanning and monitoring all directions.

This monitoring team alone has twenty-seven monks who work in three shifts a day to watch over the situation, daring not to make the slightest mistake.

It's no wonder they're so cautious. This is a supernatural world, full of unpredictable and treacherous methods. No one knows what kind of sabotage the enemy might cause.

If one is careless and causes a disaster, it will be extremely difficult to remedy the situation later.

However, no matter how careful they were, they were helpless against two beings who surpassed demigods.

Led by Loy, with the Pope following, the two were always no more than two steps apart, but only they knew that although they seemed so close, they were actually separated by thousands of miles.

The wariness and estrangement between them have never been eliminated.

Kroy didn't care at all. He led the Pope to a chimney that was tens of meters in diameter.

He pointed and said, "This is a large-scale magic energy steelmaking furnace, which can refine the steel most needed by industry at the fastest and most stable speed."

The output of a single furnace is comparable to the tireless work of thousands of blacksmiths day and night, and it forms the foundation of the magic energy industry.

"This technology was introduced by the Bonaparte royal family from the Flower Territory, and they even built a larger one than the one in my Flower Territory."

However, Luo Yi raised her finger and pointed to the billowing black smoke, saying, "But while they learned steelmaking techniques, they are unwilling to expend even a little more effort to learn air purification."

As far as the eye can see, rows upon rows of the same chimneys stretch to the horizon.

Each one was billowing thick black smoke, rising into the sky and spreading like apocalyptic clouds.

"Since they were turned on, the sky over the entire Pito Arsenal has never been clear. The air is always filled with a stench, like a bottomless abyss."

Luo Yi started moving again, causing ripples to spread through the space, with the old man following closely behind.

They then entered the crushing workshop, where a perpetual fog filled the air and dust floated in the air. The staff had to wear thick masks, and if they were more than two meters apart, they would be completely invisible.

Luo Yi's voice came out slowly and deliberately: "They are unwilling to install a sprinkler system, so they let the dust float and the toxic substances spread, corroding the workers' bodies."

Workers who stay here long-term rarely live more than three years before dying of lung disease.

"Of course, it's not true that they don't learn from their mistakes."

After at least one open-flame explosion, they issued a notice that smoking was absolutely prohibited in the workshop.

As they spoke, ripples spread through the space once more, and Luo Yi led the Pope to another location.

This is a large, operating machine, with rapidly spinning gears making a rumbling sound, but a seven or eight-year-old child crawls out from a small passage.

The child, carrying a small shovel and covered in black ash, grinned at everyone as he came out, revealing a set of white teeth.

Luo Yi added, "This is a large casting workshop where the main guns of tanks are produced. However, due to design flaws, there are places here that are prone to blockages."

So you see, they use children to clear the blockage, and it has to be seven or eight-year-olds. If they're a little older, their bodies develop faster, and they can't squeeze through.

However, they don't actually live long enough for their bodies to fully develop; they generally don't live past ten years old.

Loy moved, leading the Pope to a certain spot in the factory, where massive machinery stood blocking their path.

He raised his hand and waved it, causing the machine to move and reveal a marble-paved floor.

He took out a shovel from his dimensional pouch, his fighting spirit spreading out, and with a gentle tap, smashed it into the ground.

After the marble was lifted, a deep blue floor was revealed, emitting a pungent odor.

"This is an electroplating machine that coats the surface of the gun barrel with a rust-proof metal layer. However, if the seal is not good, what you see will happen."

Heavy metals leaked, polluting the land. Even if the situation doesn't worsen, nothing will grow here for hundreds of years.

Of course, compared to what we're about to see, this is actually not worth mentioning.

Loy then led the Pope out of the Pito Armory, where they stopped by a river.

The pitch-black river water surged, mixed with countless substances, thick like magma, and emitted an astonishing stench.

"All the wastewater from the Pito Arsenal was discharged into this river. Over time, there was no aquatic life left here, not even algae or green plants could survive."

Wherever this river flows, vegetation withers, crops fail, and villagers and farmers struggle even to find drinking water.

Pitot Arsenal was the first stop, and Roy also took His Holiness the Pope to Lyon-Saint-Étienne.

Located in the southeast of the Bonaparte Empire, this area boasts the largest textile industry, as well as a rubber tire production base, and newly built automobile manufacturing and precision instrument manufacturing plants.

There's also the Rhône Valley, where large shipyards were built along the river to construct ironclad warships and, most importantly, to serve as a research and development base for naval equipment.

With Saint-Nazaire and Nantes, this area was already the largest aircraft factory and base in the Old World.

With the Ruhr Industrial District of the Habsburg Empire occupied, this area produced the most magical flying machines.

It should be said that the situation is getting worse and worse, with no bottom in sight!
The Pope's expression was quite unpleasant, but he didn't say a word and just followed silently.

Until the final stop, where the river flows into the sea, the pitch-black sewage surges into the endless ocean.

The ocean is vast enough to hold more filth; after being diluted and mixed, the dark river water becomes turbid and eventually dissipates.

Standing at the mouth of the river, the old man finally spoke: "Is this what you wanted me to see, the environmental damage caused by the development of the magic energy industry?"

Luo Yi nodded and said, "That's right, this is what I wanted you to see."

The old man was silent for a moment before saying, "I admit that the pollution caused by this is very serious, but for Netheril to think that he can use this to overthrow my lord is just wishful thinking, isn't it?"

Luo Yi waved her hand: "No, no, no, you're just too naive and don't realize the immense danger involved."

Look at the Habs Empire. Since the advent of the magic energy industry, it has never considered monopolizing the market. That person even spared no effort in promoting the Flower Territory and the Glorious Empire, claiming it was exchanging technology for market share, but in reality, the effort and the reward were disproportionate.

"That's because what they want is to spread magical machinery throughout the entire world of Herka, and to make the environment of the plane extremely harsh."

Therefore, the outcome of the war is unimportant, and the survival of the Habsburg Empire is irrelevant; as long as the goal is achieved, all these can be sacrificed.

"From this perspective, your past policies were correct."

"We shouldn't have allowed the magic energy industry to spread; we shouldn't have given the Netheril civilization even the slightest opportunity."

The old man frowned more and more as he listened. He interrupted Luo Yi and said, "I remember you said that machinery is machinery and faith is faith, and the two should not be confused."

Luo Yi made no attempt to hide it: "That's what I said, I admit it, I was wrong."

"But I still can't understand how the environmental pollution caused by the magical machinery could be part of Netheril's conspiracy?"

"We should look deeper!"

Luo Yi waved her hand, and a ripple spread outwards, as if brushing away the mist on the sea surface, revealing the corpses of countless fish.

“The planes actually have the ability to purify themselves. However, when the pollutants generated by industrial development become too much for the planes to digest, they will cause irreversible damage to the planes.”

The resulting deaths will be countless.

"There was also war, the struggle for supremacy in the Old World, which caused the deaths of at least 20 million people and countless other lives lost."

These may seem like mere human behavior, but what if we look at them from a higher perspective?

"For example, how do we view these things from the perspective of dimensional consciousness?"

Luo Yi raised his hand and a clump of soil flew into his hand, turning into a ball of soil that slowly rotated at a constant speed.

Countless green dots appear on it, as if representing life.

"Every prime material plane possesses a general consciousness, which is a combination of the subconscious of life."

He does not act according to individual will.

His existence is for the protection and continuation of the entire material plane.

Luo Yi suddenly turned her head, looked at the old man, and asked, "What if environmental pollution seriously affects Herca's ecosystem, to the point that countless lives are lost as a result?"

At this moment, with the war so brutal that countless humans have perished, what will the outcome be?

Luo Yi stretched the ball of dirt forward, and right in front of the old man, spots of black appeared on the spinning sphere.

It then spread rapidly, increasing in number, until it contaminated the entire soil ball.

Luo Yi's voice rang out softly, not loud, yet chilling to the bone.

"The multidimensional consciousness will become angry and agitated as a result, and may even initiate a self-rescue program, impose punishments, and trigger a great catastrophe."

What if, at this point, the Netheril civilization gave them a final push?

"They possess a forbidden magic, the conditions for casting which are extremely demanding, and it can only take effect when the pan-consciousness of the plane stirs up waves."

Koweil's performance is quite amazing!
It can exacerbate, amplify, or even trigger a cataclysmic event, leading to utter devastation and upheaval!

"At that time, humanity will no longer be the protagonist of this plane, and may even be rejected by the will of the transdimensional world."

The Nesseril civilization could then usurp this opportunity, creating a new race favored by the plane and allowing it to grow and prosper.

"Yes, what they are after is not resources, not people, not faith, and not victory in war."

What they want is the entire Herka Prime Material Plane, to become their private property.

As she spoke, the ball of earth in Luo Yi's hand transformed; the darkness vanished, and green fields emerged once more.

However, the people living there were no longer native humans, but half-elves.

They are half-human and half-elf, with excellent magical affinity. Their appearance is either beautiful or handsome. Their ears are not as sharp as those of elves, but they are still slightly larger than those of mortals.

These are the Nesserians, a hybrid of humans and elves.

Loy's voice continued: "Your Holiness, the one behind you is very powerful. In countless years, no god of such power has appeared in the Herka plane."

But when humanity is wiped out and faith is gone, how long can He sustain Him?

Or, how long can the indigenous gods of Herka hold out?

Although it was just words and speculation, Lori's description still sent chills down the old man's spine.

He even instinctively voiced his opposition: "You're exaggerating, you're exaggerating. It's impossible for it to develop to that point."

Luo Yi then asked, "Why do you think Netheril is able to grasp things so precisely and with such certainty?"

That's because this is a wrong path their civilization has already taken!

"Nesseril is a highly advanced magical civilization. Its archmages are so powerful that they can even use gods as research subjects."

But before that, they had already experienced a catastrophic era of rampant industrialization and environmental degradation.

The old man was speechless.

Loy added, "I don't want it to be like this either, but upon closer reflection, isn't everything unfolding according to Netheril's script?"

"Then tell me, what should we do?"

The old man countered, "At this time, should the development of the magic energy industry be completely banned?"

"That's impossible now. The explosive growth in productivity and the abundance of material goods are a historical inevitability that can crush anyone who tries to stop it."

But the current situation is not yet at its worst.

Therefore, my idea is that achieving a balance between industrial development and environmental protection is the top priority at this stage!

The reason I'm so eager to see you is that only the Church of the Sun God can curb the vicious competition between nations and make environmental protection a consensus among all countries.

The old man stared at Luo Yi, speechless for a long time before finally saying, "So what we're discussing now is actually an environmental protection issue?"

Loy nodded: "Your Holiness, this concerns the continuation and inheritance of Herka, so please take it seriously."

"understood."

His Holiness the Pope nodded slowly before asking, "Is there anything else?"

"Yes, I've gleaned a lot of information about the Silver Top Astral City from that person's memories. I'll organize it and give it to Saint Yorn so he can give it to you."

These should be very useful to you.

"It is very useful."

"That's settled then. I hope to hear good news in Flower Territory."

"The great sun god never disappoints his followers."

(End of this chapter)