The summer rain passed, leaving the air clear and crisp. Even so, the Train Chamber of Commerce remained a hive of activity, the sound of massive mechanical arms leveling ground in the distance echoing incessantly. After more than a month of preparation and planning, the prototype of a modern steel plant was beginning to take shape.
Once the steam era began to gain momentum, a deluge of problems followed. The most pressing was how to obtain a massive supply of cheap, practical steel. In this world, the Mohist School and the Gongshu family had developed highly advanced steel-forging techniques. Because of the Primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth, their alloying technology even surpassed the steam age of Zhou Tieyi's previous world, with some aspects rivaling the electrical age.
The only flaw was that these alloys were almost exclusively for the use of cultivators. For instance, the weapons produced within the Armory were primarily for soldiers who were at least Rank 9 Martial Artists. Further research focused on how to make these weapons withstand more Primordial Qi, or even condense a complete Dragon Emblem to nurture a spirit within them. The entire R&D process leaned toward high-end, precision engineering rather than mass production. While some technology had trickled down to the common people, it was sparse and largely ignored.
Chapter 278