Above the mage

Chapter 615 Let's Go to the North

"Imagine," Eli patted the still-trembling cast-iron furnace, "if the gas furnace could be improved and mass-produced..."

Rural mills, small mines, riverside blacksmith shops, and breweries that work day and night—all needing a large workforce—will certainly be very interested in it.

He strode over to the stone block that was being driven by the linkage and was being pounded into the ground, kicked the sturdy wooden frame, and said with certainty, "Look at this force. It may not be top-notch, but it's good at sustaining it."

"Cattle and horses need to eat grass and get medical treatment. They also need to fatten up in winter. If they die, they have nothing left."

"As for this breathing furnace, the fuel is the waste residue dumped by the alchemy workshop, which is worthless. At most, it will take some effort to retrieve it. The ignition source is the leftover fragments from the magic crystal lamp. It would be a waste to throw it away. Just embed it and it will start."

"Not to mention compared to laborers, how many of these first-edition furnaces could you buy with the wages of ten strong laborers in a year?"

It doesn't need to eat, doesn't need to rest, doesn't complain, and certainly won't cause trouble!

"This thing is sure to be a huge hit!" Eli excitedly explained his improvement ideas and business blueprint.

His judgment is actually quite good.

Eli himself was not an alchemist and knew nothing about alchemy.

But with his keen intuition and unique vision, he saw a bright future in what others saw as a pile of scrap metal in a furnace.

But that's about it.

Eli initially viewed the gas stove merely as a practical tool that could save manpower and animal power, a project that could potentially get him out of his predicament and earn him respect and wealth.

His vision was always limited to the practical aspects of replacing labor and reducing costs; he saw real profits and the hope of reviving his family business.

However, standing before that rough furnace that roared and gasped, converting waste phlogiston into continuous mechanical power, Gao De felt a soul-stirring shock.

The reciprocating motion of the piston structure, driven by magic, is actually outputting a stable mechanical force.

In Gaode's eyes, it has already transformed into a rotating wheel, a sea of ​​gears, and a rushing production line.

That crude alchemical reaction array, that seemingly clumsy yet core that achieved continuous energy conversion and output, was no longer a defect that needed improvement, but a landmark of an epoch-making prototype.

What Eli saw was a powerful, easy-to-use, and labor-saving tool.

What Gaode saw was the original heart of the industrial age, the source of the first roar from this dusty old hall.

To him, those heavy, labored breathing sounds like the roar of the times.

Seeing that Gao De remained silent for a long time, Eli gradually became a little guilty, suspecting that Gao De had seen through his thoughts.

He rubbed his hands together, then said dejectedly, "Yes, sir, this thing is crude and vulgar. There are no elegant runes flowing; all it produces is loud banging noise and vibration."

"Its efficiency cannot be directly applied to enhancing spells, enchanting, or any elegant activities; it can only perform rough work, such as driving a millstone, which replaces livestock and farmers."

"It's at most a crude tool used in rural workshops, not suitable for high-end use, but..."

Eli tried to salvage the situation, "It does have a bit of cleverness in it, doesn't it?"

"Look at the layout of this reaction array. It doesn't use any high-grade materials, yet it can make the reaction stable and continuous. And this joystick, once it reaches the critical pressure, it can automatically lock, so you don't have to keep watching it. These are all Jabir's ideas."

"It doesn't matter if you don't like it. As long as we have enough funds, Jaber and I will definitely develop an even more practical alchemy machine."

Jabir, that guy, although he's unknown now, he's really talented, he just lacks someone to appreciate him.

"Yes, if he built this gas furnace, he is indeed a very talented person," God suddenly interjected, affirming Eli's incessant chatter.

This affirmation surprised Eli again.

Because, in the end, even he himself felt that no one would value Jabir, who had no background or mentor, and no one would respect this rusty "junk".

As a result, Gaode once again surprised him.

"This is an amazing alchemy machine," Gao De said slowly, his tone filled with admiration.

He walked around the stove, his gaze fixed on it as if he were admiring a rare work of art, completely oblivious to the sweltering heat and noise.

Through the machine's rough exterior, he saw not a simple furnace, but a revolutionary prototype of a magical internal combustion engine.

Its greatness lies not in its exquisiteness and magnificence, but in its design concept that transcends the inherent logic of the extraordinary world:

To achieve the greatest physical change with the least amount of magic, rather than directly replacing physical processes with magic.

It achieves a separation between energy density and sustainability.

The energy inherent in the disposable and inexpensive alchemical fuel is continuously released through a stable reaction array.

The crude reaction array on the gas furnace is actually an extremely powerful energy converter.

It skips directly controlling the uncontrollable magic itself, instead utilizing the alchemical reactions triggered by magic to generate heat and power, a more fundamental and universal form of energy.

Gaode is well aware of the importance of industry to a country.

The knowledge from his past life also made Gaode understand the importance of the internal combustion engine.

But this thing can't be made just by thinking about it.

Because this is an extraordinary world.

The core of the magic internal combustion engine is not mechanical design, nor the piston principle.

Rather, it was the discovery of this seemingly crude but historically significant alchemical reaction array and phlogiston as fuel.

This should actually be considered a black box formula that was accidentally discovered in the field of alchemy; it was a stroke of genius that came about by accident.

Lacking a foundation in alchemy, Gao De naturally couldn't achieve a breakthrough out of thin air.

Traditional alchemists disdained studying such crude machinery, which allowed Jabir, an unorthodox individual, to open a completely new door.

But now, this "prototype magic internal combustion engine" has suddenly appeared right in front of him.

It will bring about an explosive increase in productivity, signifying the liberation of human labor, and even a great leap from agricultural civilization to industrial civilization.

However, Gaode was not overjoyed all at once.

History has shown him that the existence of gas furnaces could also lead to the disintegration of social structures.

"This is a good thing," God turned around and looked at Eli, his eyes filled with regret, his tone serious to the point of cruelty, "but it is not suitable for the land of the Plantagenet Dynasty, and may even bring you and Jabir to your deaths."

Eli was startled by this, and his face was full of confusion: "Why? Master, it's just a furnace."

"Because it has taken away too many people's share of the pie," Gao De said softly.

The prosperity of the Plantagenet dynasty was built on a strict class system.

Nobles and mages occupy the top positions, controlling land, magic, and knowledge.

The middle class consisted of merchants and artisans who depended on the upper class for survival.

At the bottom were countless farmers and laborers, who were the cornerstone of the dynasty and the source of labor for manors and workshops.

The mass adoption of gas furnaces primarily impacted low-income laborers and farmers.

When a furnace can replace ten strong laborers, when landowners no longer need to employ a large number of farmers, and when workshop owners no longer need to support a large number of craftsmen, what will happen to those people at the bottom who lose their livelihoods?

They will be displaced, they will suffer from hunger, and they will eventually become the spark of turmoil.

This impact will be top-down, permeating all social classes.

What the Plantagenet dynasty needed was stability, an unchanging class order, not an industrial revolution that could overturn everything.

They would rather maintain the existing prosperity than allow such a Pandora's box-like machine to take root and sprout on this land.

(End of this chapter)