Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"I understand." Shang Luo nodded heavily. "If I can help everyone, I will definitely not be stingy. Teaching everyone to build a foundation will not hurt me in the slightest, because knowledge shared is still knowledge. If everyone can build a foundation, the entire cultivator world will have more wealth, companions, and land, and my own future will become much easier. If there are only four or five celestial beings in the foundation building stage, then our path will be truly bleak."

"Very good, very good. Your vision has broadened. I believe that Daozu will not let you down. It goes without saying that he will help you build your foundation. Even helping you form a pill or even reach the legendary Nascent Soul stage is not impossible. Daozu's strength is unfathomable, and he will definitely help you go further."

As we were talking, Wen Yuan, who had gone to get his food, returned. He was incredibly hungry, and he'd been making numerous trips to get his food. He'd already eaten four zongzi (rice dumplings), leaving the zongzi leaves covering the entire table next to him. This time, he returned with a can of grape soda and five packets of crab cakes.

"Why don't you sit there and eat before coming back?" Shangluo asked him.

"I'm in uniform. How can I sit there and eat and drink like that?"

"But aren't all the people here Jinyiwei?"

"A gentleman is cautious when he is alone. He should be the same whether someone is watching or not. Ahem, so I brought it back. Just eat a little at a time. If it's not enough, get more."

As he spoke, he opened the grape soda.

"呲-"

With a little force, he crushed the can, and the grape juice inside shot up into the air. He stepped aside with lightning speed, avoiding the grape juice before it hit the ground. The grape juice splashed onto the sofa.

Across from him, Lu Huaiyang peeked out from behind the newspaper, glanced at him, and then went back to reading. "Your memory hasn't recovered yet?" Lu Huaiyang muttered.

"Yes, a little. It seems that my soul has been damaged. My muscle memory is not working properly. This jar seems to be more fragile than I thought."

"Rest well when you get back. I'll prescribe a tranquilizing prescription. The chariot race is coming up soon, and it's the most important competition before you graduate. If Lu Liang sees you dazed, he'll probably kick you again."

"But can I be blamed for this? This is a work-related injury! That soul-sucking technique is causing the back of my head to hurt even now. If she kicks me again, won't it only make the pain worse?"

"I'll tell her to hold back. But if she gets angry at school, I can't stop her. I'm not always at your school. Anyway, you better recover quickly. If you can't, you'll be in big trouble."

"Is his injury serious?" Shangluo asked from the side.

"His injuries aren't serious. I've examined his dislocated shoulder, and it should heal in a dozen days. The problem is that his muscle memory has been disrupted, and that's the real issue. Our school practices the mental method 'Lei Lang Tian Jing' and the external martial arts 'Ben Lei Shi'. It emphasizes that the mind should precede the body, and the sword should be faster than the brain. Only by achieving a state of mindless freedom can one be as fast as thunder, and only by being unable to react can others be prevented from reacting even if you yourself are slow. Reaching the highest level of practice will lead to great freedom and the mastery of physical skills. If he forgets the 'mind,' most of the cultivation he's gained over the past ten years will be lost."

Chapter 50 Passenger Plane

After saying that, Lu Huaiyang put down the newspaper and said, "Don't worry about anything else. Mop the floor first! Don't cause trouble for the airport!"

[Ding Dong, please note, passengers bound for Kinai. Your Ninghe 2 flight is now boarding. Please bring your relevant documents to Gate 9.]

Apollonia imitated the airport announcement and told the time on time.

The airport announcement followed, and the content was exactly the same as that of the Apollonia newspaper.

"Hey, why are you stealing the airport announcement?"

[I reported this in advance, which is also a sign of 'being ahead of the curve'. It seems they have good taste, understanding that nothing is invincible except speed. Oh, by the way, your plane seems to be acting strangely. I sense a high-energy reaction ahead.]

"what?"

Shangluo was stunned for a moment. He remembered that General Bai Feng had mentioned this before, and he had thought the old man was just airsick. But his mentality didn't seem to have aged at all, and he always maintained this "natural state."

Shangluo was a little panicked. He didn't know what it would be like to make Tianren not want to take a plane a second time.

"Hey, let's go." Lu Huaiyang patted his shoulder. The other Jinyiwei around him had all stood up. There were 36 of them in total. Each of them was carrying a small suitcase, all issued by the Jinyiwei. Only Shangluo boarded the plane empty-handed.

The airport staff was called to mop the floor. Lu Huaiyang apologized to them and 36 people began to board the plane.

The plane did not stop directly at the boarding gate. After leaving the gate, they had to take a shuttle bus to the tarmac.

Shangluo sat near the window, looking out. It was 19 p.m., and the runway lights were already on. The moist sea breeze had fogged the window, making it difficult to see clearly.

When they arrived at the destination, the shuttle bus stopped steadily in the marked area, and Shangluo realized that there were other passengers there.

The Yangzhou camp was being assembled, with equipment and personnel from the Kinei region being deployed to Yangzhou. The faint roar of propellers from the airfield never ceased. Not far away, three fighter jets, newly landed, taxied down the landing strip. Each fighter jet had pylons for auxiliary fuel tanks installed under its wings; they had flown to San Francisco after a layover in Honolulu.

A large six-engine transport aircraft, the "Peng" type, was also parked nearby. This aircraft didn't even have conventional landing gear, but rather two rows of wheels like a small cart.

Shangluo had seen an introduction to this type of equipment in the newspaper. Actually, this type of aircraft was too large to take off on its own, even with six propellers. Therefore, during takeoff, it needed another powerful four-engine bomber towed it in front, with the propellers on board only used to maintain altitude.

The nose of the transport plane was raised, and soldiers were walking out of it in formation.

Shangluo hadn't noticed that side at first. But Lu Huaiyang stopped and saluted. The entire opposing phalanx also stopped and saluted in return, their iron fists striking armor so hard that sparks flew. Only then did Shangluo realize that the plane was carrying only heavy infantry. Their footsteps were as heavy as rhinoceroses, even making the cargo area creak.

Their armor looked very similar to the ones in San Francisco, except that it was almost twice as thick all over, and the neck was surrounded by a basin collar, so that only half of the helmet could be seen outside.

"Why are they all wearing heavy armor? Are they all Jinyiwei?" He asked Lu Huaiyang after the two sides finished saluting.

"The Jinyiwei don't have that many people. These are the imperial guards, the imperial guards of Danyang Zuowei."

"Their Armor"

"Did you discover? Yes, their armor is the same as the Jinyiwei armor you saw before. The armor and the people weigh several hundred pounds, so they need large transport planes to transport them."

“So they’re all???”

Shangluo felt like he had discovered something he had never known before.

"Yes, they all have reached the Qi Refining stage. The eight Imperial Guards, including the Danyang Left Guard, total 8 men. The Imperial Guard is composed of Qi Refining warriors; it's the court's trump card. However, they are not cultivators; only those who have embarked on the path of immortal cultivation are considered cultivators. Anyone who has consumed immortal roots has the opportunity to enter the Qi Refining stage, but only a few have the natural talent for cultivation. We will recruit Qi Refining warriors to join the Imperial Guard, and select those with true spiritual roots from among them to join the Jinyiwei and become true cultivators."

"Don't others know?"

"Well, you have to understand, one must be at least at the Foundation Establishment stage to display the ability to release true qi. Even cultivators like us aren't capable of taking on an army of thousands. So, although they've reached the threshold of the Qi Condensation stage, they only appear to be stronger and more physically fit. To some extent, they are indeed 'superhuman,' but not that 'super'. The Wei Wuzu of the Warring States period also wore three layers of armor, fired 12 stone crossbows, and could travel a hundred miles a day. Everyone thinks we're just modern-day Wei Wuzu. The imperial court used the Imperial Guards as a deadly weapon to intimidate the barbarians. In many operations, they have achieved zero casualties while completely annihilating enemies several times their size. They are truly heavenly soldiers and generals."

"I wonder what I did wrong to provoke them."

"We don't usually send out full-scale imperial guards. After all, a single guard can wipe out a medium-sized country. I remember the last time we deployed them was five years ago when prisoners rebelled in Xinjinshan, Haozhou. But times are changing, and we need some new tricks to better deter the barbarians. Oh, here we go, let's look back."

Lu Huaiyang smiled kindly, and the plane arrived.

buzz buzz buzz

A strange, resonant sound echoed from behind him. It sounded like a motorcycle, but far louder and more mellow. It was like countless explosions strung together, forming a continuous line, shaking Shangluo's internal organs to the point of resonance.

The plane slowly approached them. Its long, tapered nose stretched out like an arrowhead, its wings swept back in a triangular pattern. A pair of dark holes opened at the wing roots, but within them were no propellers, no fans, not even any rotating mechanical structures. The structures themselves were so simple that one could even see the glow of the engine nozzles on the other side.

In addition to the two holes, two huge cylinders were hung at the end of the delta wing, each as big as an Impalado stretch limousine.

"Welcome, officers, colleagues, and brave soldiers of the Empire, aboard the Lan Fang Airlines Ninghe supersonic rocket airliner. I am the captain of this flight, and my last name is Lin."

Captain Lin, in uniform, stood at the front of the cabin with a smile on his face.

"Some of you have flown on our Lan Fang Airlines rocket plane, and some haven't. So before takeoff, let me explain a few things to everyone. The Ninghe is propelled by four pulse detonation rocket engines. We will sprint through the Pacific Ocean at twice the speed of sound, sprinting like angels. From San Francisco to Songjiang, it will only take a short five and a half hours. However, pulse rocket engines only work properly at high speeds. So please look to both sides."

He pointed out the windows to the left and right: "During takeoff, we will use two disposable solid rockets to assist in the propulsion, so as to help the aircraft reach the altitude and speed required by the pulse engine. Therefore, during takeoff, the aircraft may have some 'small' bumps, and the climb will be 'relatively' steep. During level flight, the pulse engine will also have some 'small' pulse oscillations. Of course, this is not a problem for the Qi training cultivators here. There are not some people who haven't reached the Qi training stage yet, right? Hahaha~"

He smiled jokingly, because everyone present was a Jinyiwei, and everyone must be in the Qi training stage. But when he saw a hand raised at the back of the cabin, his smile froze.

"What if...what should we do if we are not in the Qi training stage? Is there a seat for children?" Shangluo raised his hand and asked.

Chapter 51 Cockpit

"Actually, there is a children's seat." Captain Lin opened the door of the cockpit and motioned Shangluo to go in first.

Shangluo stood at the doorway, not daring to move. Everywhere he looked, he saw a dense mass of watches, even busier than his own watch shop. And not just round ones, but also long, square, fan-shaped, and oval ones. There were over a dozen that looked like clocks, and his eyes went dark.

"Hey, how did you get in? What's wrong?"

The captain, who was sitting in the right co-pilot seat, turned around.

Captain Lin pushed him in first, then squeezed in through the narrow cabin door himself:

"Old Chen, there's no mechanic on this team, right? There's a kid here who hasn't reached the Qi training stage yet, so he can't sit in the passenger cabin."

"Oh, that's rare. I've never seen him before. Give him his suitcase. It's in the cabinet on your left."

As Captain Lin was getting his gear, co-pilot Lao Chen pointed to the small seat next to the door:

"You'll be sitting there in a minute. You'll have your outfit, don't worry. But you must, must, must—I say this three times, it's important, you must not touch any buttons near you. That's the aircraft engineer's seat. If you press any button, we'll go 'boom!'"

He spread his arms. "I'm not kidding. This thing has to reach the stratosphere to shed its booster rockets. Before that, it's going to explode. You're not supposed to be in the cockpit, but there's only one seat for civilians. You're going to have to sit here."

This made Shangluo dare not sit down:

"Are there any seats here for flight attendants? I think that would be fine."

"No. This Ninghe has never been certified by the Ministry of Industry and Civil Aviation, and tickets are not sold to the public, so there are no flight attendants. It is now open to the public for free test rides. Lu Qianhu, who brought you here, is very considerate of our business. He takes our flights every time he goes back and forth. He is really dedicated to saving time. I am very grateful to him, because there are only four airports in the world that can accommodate the Ninghe. If it weren't for his constant business trips, our test flights would not have been possible..."

"Ahem!" Captain Lin coughed and stood up. He raised his hand and put a fishbowl-like helmet on Shangluo's head.

"How is it? Does your neck feel constricted?"

"no problem."

"That's it. Stand up. Yes, stand there and don't move." Captain Lin opened a yellow suitcase and unfolded a set of bulky clothing that looked like a diving suit.

"This is a specially prepared anti-G suit for this flight. Just put it on. When encountering high loads, this suit can pump blood back to your brain to prevent you from fainting in the cabin. As for the rest, don't worry. Your seat is the farthest from the rocket and the pulse bomb engine. The seat is also a floating seat that isolates vibrations. And just to be on the safe side, this is the oxygen mask. Put it on first."

He raised his hand to remove the mask on Shangluo's head and put the mask on his face:

"Try exhaling and see if there's any mist coming out. It might smell a bit like rubber, since no one's used it before. But don't worry, this is all high-quality rubber from Nanyang. Think of it as breathing in the wealth of the Lord. Come, step inside, and I'll help you put on your anti-gravity suit. Old Chen, come and give me a hand."

The three of them worked hard in the cabin for a while and stuffed Shangluo into the bulky anti-gravity suit.

"Alright." Captain Lin raised his hand and covered his helmet's sun visor. "Use it when the sun's glaring. It seems to be working well. I'll write a report back later."

Sure enough, this plane is still on test flight!

Shangluo knew that things had come to a point where there was no going back and it was useless to say anything.

He could probably guess why Lu Huaiyang always took this flight, because it was free, so he didn't need to use up the Jinyiwei's limited funds. He even recommended General Bai Feng to take it. Shang Luo felt that not only should he not have to pay for this plane, but he should even have to ask for an allowance.

He knocked on his helmet, his entire face covered in the confined space. Although the anti-gravity suit itself was very safe, the aircraft made him dare not even breathe.

“How come this looks like a space suit?”

"Um???"

"Um???"

The cabin fell into an eerie silence, and both Captains Lin and Chen were stunned for a moment.

"Well, Lao Chen, we should do the takeoff checks. You do yours first, and I'll fasten this young man's seat belt."

They were changing the subject. They were reacting to the word spacesuit.

Apollonia reminded:

[I'm trying to get some information from them. It seems the Lan Fang Company is up to something, and they're going to do something big. No wonder Phaethon went crazy when he saw them.]

"Let's talk later. I don't dare to speak now. I'm afraid they will pull out my tubes."

Captain Lin used professional skills to secure Shangluo to the chair.

"When we take off, put your hands on the armrests and don't move. Because there may be some problems with the take-off angle." He drew an arrow straight up.

"Is this plane going straight up??? Are you really not flying a rocket???" Shangluo's heartbeat quickened again.

"It's not completely vertical, but the feel is pretty much the same as a vertical climb. It's a little thrilling the first time, but you get used to it after a few rides. There's really no other way. We need to reach the desired altitude before the rocket burns out, so we can only soar up like a sky rocket. Sit tight and adjust your posture, but don't adjust the tension."

After saying that, he sat back in the captain's seat and picked up the intercom:

"My dear ministers and friends, this flight is about to take off. Please check that your seatbelts are fastened. Captain Lu, please help check. When you are ready, come to the cabin and call me."

After saying that, he lowered the engine and began to check the flight manual with the co-pilot.

Their speech suddenly accelerated, practically speaking at high speed. The qualities of a Qi Condensation Stage expert were on full display, their four hands darting up and down, flicking various switches faster than the self-test ticker on the onboard panel.

"Okay, done." The two of them closed the flight manual together. At the same time, Lu Huaiyang also opened the cockpit door.

"Everything is normal now. You can fly now. Give me 30 seconds to prepare."

"Then let's start taxiing. The airport is very busy today. We need to take off at the scheduled time, and the runway will only be clear for a short while. Also, after we take off, the turbulence is too severe, and the airport will be unable to take off and land normally for a while."

As he spoke, he released the brakes, and the plane began to taxi under the thrust of the low-power pulse detonation. All takeoff and landing operations on the runway had long been stopped, and everyone was waiting for the sky-high monkey to take off first before they could take off.

Before leaving, Lu Huaiyang knocked on Shangluo's helmet.

"Are you okay?"

Shangluo gave him a thumbs up with difficulty.

"Very good. See you in Kinai. It's 7pm San Francisco time now. Let's have afternoon tea when we get off the plane. It's my treat."

PS: The second update will be around 6 or 7 o'clock

Chapter 52 Climb