Seeking Truth with a Sword

Chapter 420 - 371: The Carriage

The idea of extending a Spiritual Energy network throughout the Yu Country still faced many unresolved issues. For instance, the production cost of talisman boards, security vulnerabilities, the transmission efficiency of Spiritual Energy cables, and so on.

Li Ang and He Fanshuang were discussing talismanic studies when the train slowly began to move. The noisy commotion of the station platform faded behind them, and the sky outside the window gradually darkened with the fall of night.

Unlike Chang’an, which was lit by countless lamps in every home, almost no light could be seen in the suburban night, save for occasional torches flickering in the wilderness—lights set up for the constables patrolling the railway.

CLANG, CLANG.

The sound of the train wheels rolling over the rail joints was loud and regular. With more than an hour of travel remaining before reaching Chang’an, He Fanshuang took out paper and pen to draw talisman patterns.

A somewhat drowsy Li Ang stood up, took his teacup, and left the compartment.

Per his suggestion, the train cars were comprehensively designed with various functions. The carriages were connected by automatic couplings, the windows were fully sealed and could not be opened, and there were water heaters at both ends of the cars, utilizing steam from the train’s boiler for heating. Additionally, there were separate men’s and women’s restrooms equipped with flushing toilets.

Li Ang’s carriage was situated at the end of the train. Because there were too many dignitaries traveling between Chang’an and Luoyang, an extra carriage was often added during night journeys. Compared to those at the front, this rearmost car was quieter and had additional space for setting up two-person or four-person private compartments.

The aisle of the carriage was empty, and oil lamps for illumination were placed on the doorframes of the compartments on either side.

Holding his teacup, Li Ang walked to the end of the carriage, drew some hot water from the faucet, and then stood behind the carriage door, gazing out the window at the pitch-black wilderness.

He had changed Yu Country so much. Malaria prevention, sick houses, medicinal herbs, airplane models, and now the railway.

The imperial court had already designated railway construction as a century-long national strategy. Along these railways, countless new workshops were being vigorously constructed, with everyone eagerly anticipating the introduction of Su Feng’s Spiritual Energy Machines.

In fifty, or even twenty years, the entire Yu Country was bound to undergo a sweeping transformation...

RUSTLE, RUSTLE—

Just as he was gazing at his reflection in the window, the Mo Si within his body emitted an extremely faint rustle as it stretched along the periosteum, burrowing towards the skin’s surface.

Li Ang kept a straight face, clenched his fists tightly, relying on willpower to forcibly suppress the Mo Si once more.

Here it came again... Ever since the Qixi Incident, the Mo Si’s agitation had come in successive waves, likely related to his advancement to the High Order of the Rain Listening Realm.

With the Mountain Master perennially absent and the plan to trace Mo Si’s origin through the Forbidden Books stalling, Li Ang could only strive to maintain his body’s internal balance.

"Hey, did you read today’s Luoyang tabloid?"

"I haven’t. What’s up?"

From the direction of the restroom came the cheerful voices of two young men, seemingly relatives of Luoyang nobility.

"It reprinted an article from a Zhou Kingdom newspaper commenting on our railway. Heh, the imperial court built six hundred *li* of railway in less than three months, transporting hundreds of thousands of *jin* of goods daily. The people of Zhou are scared to death. On one hand, they’re denouncing the Yu Country’s railway as false propaganda in their newspapers; on the other, they’re eagerly preparing to build their own."

"Can they build it?"

"A simple railway is probably feasible; it’s just sleepers and iron rails. They also have Cultivators, so there’s no real barrier to entry. As for Spiritual Energy Locomotives... a few days ago, I secretly overheard Father and my uncles chatting. They all seemed quite worried about the Academic Palace, especially since there are many Doctors from the Zhou Kingdom there."

"You mean information is leaking from the Academic Palace?"

"It’s hard to say, but I heard them discussing Spiritual Energy Machines, something about Divine Evil Cloud Talismans. That seems to be a very ancient form of talismanic study. If the Zhou Kingdom learns the principles, they might be able to replicate it within a few years."

"So the imperial court..."

"We can only play it by ear; it’s always been this way. Whenever we develop something good, the Zhou Kingdom and Jing Kingdom follow suit and imitate us. Anyway, that’s not the main point. The point is this railway beneath our feet—people have died on it, you know."

"Uh? You mean..."

"Not the laborers who built the railway. For major projects this time, like quarrying mountains and bridging rivers, Cultivators mostly lent their aid. There were no casualties among the laborers from the various State Mansions, and His Majesty generously praised them for this. I’m talking about the large number of mountain bandits and road tyrants who died."

"Bandits?"

"Hmph, don’t be fooled by the wide imperial roads between Chang’an and Luoyang. In the vast mountains and forests between the two cities, there’s no shortage of bandits. These people are very cautious, only preying on passing merchants and travelers who lack powerful backing. After a successful robbery, they retreat deep into their mountain strongholds to evade capture.

"In the past, the State Mansions and these bandits had a tacit understanding—like well water not disturbing river water. They didn’t dare to go too far or commit truly atrocious crimes.

"But this time was different. The rails are made of top-grade, expensive steel. If even a single section were missing, the locomotive could derail. Therefore, the imperial court dispatched the garrison to sweep through the six hundred *li* of mountain forests while the railway was being constructed."

"Sweep through?"

"They cleared out all the bandit lairs. The women and children fared better; some were sent back to their hometowns. But those who had committed crimes, regardless of age, were summarily executed after their identities were confirmed. They weren’t even given the chance of exile to Qiong Province.

"Their corpses were then hung on the torch racks along the railway, as a warning to all thieves not to even think about tampering with the train tracks.

"Heh, when it comes to ruthlessness, the Chang’an people are truly ruthless.

"Over six hundred *li*, during the first few days of the train’s trial runs, for every *li* traveled, you could see corpses on the racks being pecked at by carrion birds. Later, because the sight was too much of an eyesore, they were all burned to ashes.

"I heard that recently, some passengers on the train, while sleeping, felt the vengeful spirits of the dead bandits caressing their faces and wailing mournfully in their ears.

"Like this: OOOOOHHH WAHHH WAHHHH WAHHHHH AHHH!!"

The youth suddenly raised his voice a notch, startling his companion.

Laughing and roughhousing, the two arrived at the washbasin. Only then did they notice Li Ang standing silently behind the carriage door.

Both were sons of Luoyang nobility, adept at reading people and situations. Seeing the adornments on Li Ang, they vaguely guessed he might be an Academic Palace Disciple. They immediately fell silent, nodded respectfully, and composed themselves before walking away. They still aspired to enter the Academic Palace one day and didn’t want to make a bad impression on a potential future senior.

Li Ang watched the backs of the two youths, who were the same age as he was when he entered the Academic Palace. He couldn’t help but smile faintly and sipped his warm tea. He then turned and walked back to his compartment.

He Fanshuang was still sketching talisman board patterns, yawning as she drew.

Li Ang asked, "Why don’t you take a nap? I’ll wake you when we get to Chang’an."

He Fanshuang shook her head and said faintly, "It’s rare to feel inspired like this. I’ll draw a bit longer... Hmm?"

She frowned slightly, gazing out the pitch-black window.

Li Ang also sensed something, and the hand about to set down his teacup froze momentarily.

KLANG, KLANG.

The interval between the sounds of the wheels rolling over the rail joints gradually lengthened.

The train car was gradually decelerating.

Yet, the view outside remained ink-black, without a single light to indicate a station platform.