Volume 12 Chapter 59: Slacking On the Job
Under the ice-cold metallic flickering, Lin Xi's brows furrowed deeply, a true expression of shock flashing within his eyes.
Gao Yanan's long eyelashes also began to tremble in a graceful and pretty manner.
Bian Linghan's expression also suddenly became serious, her fair face flickering with a type of jade-like luster.
Li Wu couldn't see with his eyes, but his perception instead allowed him to sense the rough shape of this military equipment. As such, some expressions of shock also appeared on his face.
Military equipment that could even make a Green Luan Academy black robed lecturer feel a bit of shock was naturally not ordinary.
Lin Xi picked up the heavy bow that was closest to him.
This heavy bow looked like an incomplete half finished product, but in Lin Xi's eyes, it was already something that possessed great power.
Next to this heavy bow were two types of disks.
One type was a flat iron disk with grooves for fastening short metal crossbow arrows. The other disk was clearly a type of capstan with elastic steel wires.
This type of capstan was something Lin Xi had seen before in South Tomb Province's battlefield in some damaged crossbow carriages. It worked just like a coil spring, when some soldiers tightly wrapped this capstan, the instant the fastener was released, this type of metal capstan would loosen. Then, through the crossbow cart's mechanisms, it will instantly become converted into a powerful force.
After a round of fire, the soldiers would prepare the capstan again, and then fire again.
Right now, Gao Yanan, Bian Linghan and the others still couldn't make out the connection between the seemingly incomplete heavy bow in Lin Xi's hands and these two disks. However, for Lin Xi who came from another world, it was instead already extremely clear... Both the metal arrow loading disk and this type of capstan were supposed to be equipped with this type of heavy bow!
When this type of thing was installed, this heavy bow in his hands would turn into a continuous fire crossbow with shocking speed!
The metal capstan would quickly loosen, its power continuously activating the heavy crossbow mechanism, pulling the iron belt, moreover striking the crossbow arrows in the iron disk's grooves. Once one tightened capstan was loosened, they could immediately switch to another capstan that had already been prepared... It was to the extent where even without the help of the other soldiers, some heavy cavalry or ordinary soldiers, in a battle from a fortified position, one would basically have a continuous fire machine gun, able to release a terrifying stream of iron!
Of course, all soldiers in this world wore armor into battle, so the power of this type of small scale metal capstan would only have power similar to an ordinary strong bow's power, to the extent where it wasn't even enough to penetrate metal armor. It wasn't like the Wooden Divine Flying Crane, having true epoch marking effects. However, in a battle between ordinary soldiers, it could indeed display several times the destructive force.
Moreover, right now, this type of extremely creative non-standard military equipment wasn't just limited to this type alone.
...
"This type of blade cart's flying blade can shatter." Gao Yanan's eyes landed on a blade cart.
There were four sets of blade carriages on that heavily loaded carriage pulled by eight horses she was looking at. On another carriage to the side were some blades and sets of heavy armor.
There were many veined patterns on those half table sized blade sheets. They weren't runes, but rather specially grinded faint cracks. It wasn't hard to deduce that once this type of flying blade was released, once it encountered the slightest resistance, this massive half table sized blade would immediately explode into over a hundred pieces and fly in all directions.
This way, if a cultivator wanted to step forward and directly intercept this type of blade, they would still be powerless, they couldn't prevent this type of blade from exploding.
"This type of blade cart is also a multiple blade firing cart, able to release more than a single giant blade in one release." Lin Xi looked at the blade cart Gao Yanan was looking at. He took a deep breath, and then turned around to look at Gao Yanan, saying this.
Gao Yanan's hands immediately trembled. Only now did she see that in front of those four blade carts, there were four long and narrow blade insertion points.
The mechanism inside had sufficient strength to release the four blades with tremendous power, making them spin outwards, at the same time able to ensure that to a certain degree, it wouldn't be just any type of collision or impact with the blade cart that would make the blade explode ahead of time. This wasn't just adding a bit of ideas or technique, instead representing that this standard of manufacturing already exceeded that of all of Yunqin's workshops that produced standard blade carts.
"This seems like a net casting machine, but it isn't a net casting machine, instead, it is a metal chain firing machine." Lin Xi shook his head. He calmly produced a long chain. The edges of this chain were extremely sharp, as if it was made from speartips, there were even some sharp grooves on the chains. "When this type of long chain is flung out, even though the amount of area it covers isn't as great as a metal net, this long chain is extremely hard to cut through. When many are flung out at the same time, it will pose an even greater threat for cultivators and heavy armors. When it tangles around one's body, even cultivators and heavy armors might not be able to instantly struggle free." Lin Xi forcefully tugged at it. The chains released zheng zheng noises, but just didn't snap.
"It seems like this great craftsman who works under Wenren Cangyue really loves elastic steel." Bian Linghan frowned. She gave some military equipment and the large amounts of heavy armor a look, saying with a heavy voice, "Moreover, the quality of the elastic steel this person cast is far higher than that of ordinary workshops."
"Indeed." Lin Xi retracted his gaze from the ice-cold military equipment, turning around to look at Bian Linghan and Gao Yanan, quietly saying, "Even now, I am wondering if Wenren Cangyue left behind this batch of equipment that could arm over ten thousand soldiers here on purpose... if this military equipment was something prepared by him for the future. It is just too easy for this batch of military equipment to draw the ambitions of some people, to incite chaos."
"Apart from him, no one else will know if he truly had these types of thoughts." The name Wenren Cangyue would always make Bian Linghan's heart instantly become cold and hard, her expression instantly becoming a bit colder. She said with an ice-cold voice, "However, the final result is that the subordinate he brought out of Jadefall City, Xu Qiubai, still died under your hands, this batch of military goods still landed in your hands."
Lin Xi understood Bian Linghan's mood. He laughed in a gentle manner and said, "There is no way a workshop led by a single great craftsman could have the resources to make so many different types of military equipment designs and test out the improvements, so he definitely has quite a few great craftsmen and masters under him... I wonder where these craftsmen have gone now."
...
There were too many battles involving Lin Xi. Even without the 'Divine General', this type of shocking title, just the status of Green Luan Academy's heaven's choice and Windstalker was already enough to raise Lin Xi to the level of a faction's master from before Yunqin was established, make him continuously face challenges and battles one after another. That was why what Lin Xi needed to consider the most was only what was right before his eyes and his current traces. That was why even though he was incredibly intelligent, having the knowledge and sight most people in this world didn't have, there was still no way he could tend to everything. There also wasn't a single person in this world who could deal with every single little matter.
Zhantai Qiantang was someone Zhantai Mang wanted to entrust Great Mang to, someone who he didn't hesitate to go to war with Purgatory Mountain over, which was why Zhantai Qiantang was naturally extremely intelligent.
As for Nangong Weiyang, despite many times making others doubt her age and intelligence, she was obviously someone who was intelligent to the very extreme, or else there was no way she could escape from under Wenren Cangyue's domain, furthermore even allow Nanshan Mu and his troop to survive.
Lin Xi had never come into contact with Nanshan Mu, so he didn't know that Nangong Weiyang actually had some power in Jadefall City he didn't know about.
RIght now, he only wanted to obtain the craftsmen under Wenren Cangyue because he thought about the bandit army in Turtle Edge Mountain. If he managed to do so, then Turtle Edge Mountain might very well be able to quickly establish a powerful workshop, exhaust some supplies that couldn't immediately circulate through Yunqin Empire and create some huge expenditure, similarly going into huge powered things.
For an empire, one needed to consider the greater situation, one couldn't wantonly spend silver, couldn't arm an army to the teeth, instead, one also needed to fill the bellies of even more troops. When various sectors wanted to spend money, they had to carefully plan and budget, constantly worrying if the public purse will be emptied. However, he didn't have to feel such misgivings about Turtle Edge Mountain at all, only fearing that he won't be able to use up the ores and silvers they stored, that their storage will instead be packed to the brim.
That was why Lin Xi didn't expect that Zhantai Qiantang and Nangong Weiyang already spent their brain power on this matter way ahead of him, moving much faster than him.
When the straight and upright subject Liu Xueqing suffered an assassination on a Yunqin street not far after he left his home, some Central Continent Guards and some inner court guards were rushing towards the Ghost Prison located in the corner of this Imperial City with extremely ugly expressions.
While the Emperor continuously released several decrees, even the Central Continent Army's outer city guards received secret decrees to rush to Central Continent City and deal with Zhong Family. There were already several instances of assassinations directed at the Emperor and some high ranking officers in the Imperial Palace.
What made these Central Continent Army soldiers and inner court bodyguards feel even more so that Zhong Family was just as unrestrained as Jiang Family, that they were too disgraceful and unfilial towards his majesty, was that a moment ago, even that Ghost Prison in Imperial City that locked up serious convicts was broken into by someone, all of the criminals inside released. They understood extremely clearly that at least half of these criminals were cultivators, many among them should still have some strength left. When these people rushed into the Imperial Palace, they wouldn't feel any misgivings, unknown just what kind of disaster they would bring about.
Only, what these ugly expressioned Central Continent Army soldiers and inner court bodyguards didn't expect was that the one who released many people from the Ghost Prison, letting out so many people, actually wasn't anyone from Zhong Family.
...
Several carriages sped crazily along the Ghost Prison side of Central Continent City.
Many of the cultivators who were chasing after this carriage were lying on the street not far behind this carriage. Even more cultivators and soldiers already knew clearly the whereabouts of these carriages, splitting up into several directions to intercept these carriages.
However, what no one expected was that when these carriages rushed past a certain street, the wooden board underneath opened, and then many people fell through the bottom, descending into a water well whose cover had already been removed. The last one to fall was someone who had chains wrapped around his arms, gripping a sword in his hands. The instant he landed in this hidden well, he silently replaced the stone slab over this well.
That day, the people who were trying to take advantage of Central Continent City's crisis weren't limited to just Di Choufei alone.