Roland took his guests to a covered pier. There, everyone saw a surprisingly ugly flat-bottomed boat.
"Although we have just met, Griffith has already become our valued customer in Qiming Town." Roland poked Griffith's sore spot, "Should you still have 3 or 4 Su Lai left in your pocket?" Up?"
"Three sous and two centimes," Griffith answered angrily.
Everyone looked over with surprised eyes. Galadia began to move her wrist, preparing to speak for him according to the situation.
"This fully demonstrates the appeal of our Qiming Town products!" Roland hurriedly pointed to the flat-bottomed boat before being beaten, "Dear ladies, here are epoch-making products that you cannot miss no matter what."
As the focus of the conversation, the flat-bottomed boat parked on the shore was similar to the ones running on the river. The gray hull was probably made of cement, dull and flat. Griffith looked at it and suddenly discovered a problem.
This ship is the same as the previous one, with no sails, no oars, let alone an expensive dust crystal drive device. It might get by just fine going down the river, but how does it work upstream?
There is also a large waterwheel-like wheel on both sides of the stern, but it is not clear how it works.
Roland led everyone to the stern of the ship and invited everyone to look at a huge metal device in the cabin. The object was extremely ugly, with no traces of magic or psychic ripples, and was trembling and humming. The metal moves up and down in the heavy barrel, the snake-like pipes take on a twisted shape, and the criss-crossing cranks and flywheels are connected. There are obvious burn marks between the pipes and the metal cylinder of the device, where the metal was melted into a ball and then glued together.
Some sailors were already preparing in the cabin. They kept filling a furnace with coal.
"This?" Sonia looked at this thing curiously, and even took a closer look at the structure without being too dirty. "Is your device intended to generate steam by boiling water?"
"It must be so. There is a gas nozzle in the sealed structure, and the entire device is rotated through the jet?" Galadia's eyes quickly swept over the complex structure, "But the steam jet requires very high pressure, and there is no magic. To what extent can it be achieved with the help of special materials?”
Roland sighed with admiration: "You are really amazing. Beyeland's higher education cannot be underestimated. However, this is not steam injection, which is too advanced for me. The gas generated by boiling water enters the cylinder from the pipe, Pushing the piston inside to move up and down can provide stable output."
Galadia looked at the humming machine and noticed the difficulty: "Then these structures must be very smooth, and the cost of processing is high, right?"
Griffith touched his breastplate and understood the difficulty of processing it. The plate armor pressed by the hydraulic forging machine needs to be heated, then hammered and shaped, and then bolts are used to connect the components such as the shoulders. The seams need to be polished. Defective workmanship and structure will affect the movement and even cause damage to the body. Armored men pose a danger.
Everyone present can understand that boiling steam can generate thrust, but the difficulty is to combine the metal components so that the piston and cylinder can operate smoothly and the pipes will not leak.
The difficulty is not the principle, but the sufficient processing technology. Roland not only made it, but also equipped a large number of cement ships with this thing, which is very impressive.
Sonia felt that she understood something, and then asked: "Your ship does not have sails and magic drives. Do you use these devices to drive the wheels on both sides of the cargo ship? The reciprocating motion of the piston has no displacement, how to make the ship move? stand up?"
"It's easy to talk to smart people," Roland said, pointing to the crankshaft of the device. "This is the uniqueness of our Qiming Town. The crank drive converts the linear motion of the piston into rotational motion, which allows the steam to boil water Turn the wheel and push the sailless ship forward.”
At this time, the sailors shouted: "Get ready, Comrade Chairman of the People's Commissar!"
Roland regained his energy. He jumped on the bow of the ship and waved, "Enterprise, advance four!"
Although I don't know what his forward four means, the cement ship under my feet suddenly moved. It does not use sails, but uses steam to turn paddle wheels on both sides of the ship.
"Oh——!" Griffith exclaimed together with everyone. A new door has opened. Both Homonworth's Flying Leaf and the yacht they were traveling on could rely on dust crystals for auxiliary drive, but they could not completely leave the sails, let alone use cheap fuel like coal to move the ship.
"It's amazing!" Sonia exclaimed, "This is really an invention that can change the world!"
"That's right!" The legendary warrior turned around, stared at the steam engine with eyes full of admiration and passion, and then looked at his guests, "Dear ladies, please allow me to introduce to you, after years of research and development and improvement, Later, the epoch-making product finally appeared in the world - the 'Roland' steam engine.
"In order to express my eternal respect and friendship for Canaan, Larmore House and Chalon House, I decided to present one to each of you..."
…
That night, Roland invited everyone to have dinner together. He served the famous mutton hot pot to entertain everyone. Sonia was particularly fascinated by the steam engines she saw during the day, and even hoped to install one on the scientific expedition team's boat so that she could study it carefully.
Seeing that his product was so popular, Roland happily took out a particularly unpleasant potato brandy for everyone to taste.
"Then let's tell an adventure story about the brave Roland!" The host of the banquet became a little drunk after drinking a few more drinks. "Let's say that my battle with the Dark Lord has reached the most critical moment..."
"I've heard it, I've heard it," Fiona began to protest, "Swordsman Zeppelin threw his holy sword to you and shouted, 'Take it, Roland, this is my last psychic ripple!'"
"Hahaha, have you heard of it? Then," a smile flashed across Roland's face, "Today I will tell you a fairy tale that you don't know."
Everyone present sat upright, waiting to hear interesting adventure stories.
Roland began to tell his fairy tale, and the story was completely unexpected.
Riddle Kingdom
A long time ago, there was a kingdom of riddles. People living there never talk well when they meet, and everyone uses strange metaphors to communicate.
If you want to talk about why, it is that in the past that was longer than a long, long time, a demon king came there. It controls terrifying behemoths, uses human beings as sacrifices, and especially likes beautiful girls as food. Some brave souls tried to resist it, without success. Even so, the rebels also grasped some of the Demon King's weaknesses.
The rebels told their descendants about these weaknesses and asked them to prepare secretly and wait for the day when the time came.
The devil was aware of everyone's intentions, and knowing that this would only bring about his own destruction, he made evil laws that forbade everyone from revealing information that aroused his suspicion during the conversation. If someone spoke these words, all the listener would hear were jumbled and unintelligible syllables; if someone wrote taboo words, his handwriting would be unreadable.
Generations of warriors have stood up to challenge the tyrannical devil. Some have come back, some have not, but the devil and his laws are still there. Some rebels returned to their ordinary lives and left behind descendants, while others fell into a sleep that could not be awakened.
Many, many years later, the kingdom has become a kingdom where everyone does not speak politely when they meet. Even the descendants of the rebels began to gradually forget the true meaning of the riddle. They continued to talk in riddles, sometimes just for fun, or in other words, they had an indescribable preference for riddles deep in their hearts.
One day, the devil chose another girl and wanted to eat her. The brave man who admired the girl stood up and decided to challenge the Demon King like his ancestors did. Before setting off, he specially found an elder and asked him for prophecy and help.
The elder said: "Although the devil is not invincible, he cannot be destroyed."
"Please elaborate."
The elder then gave the warrior some life lessons, of course, telling him in ambiguous riddles.
The devil's power comes from a giant beast called "Leviathan". This giant beast has a thousand mouths, a thousand throats, a thousand pairs of eyes, and a thousand tentacles. Its roar echoes in the mind, and just seeing a part of its huge body can make people tremble in fear.
It's everywhere, all the time. If you look at a grass or a flower, the body of Leviathan may be hidden in the stamens and core of the grass. Leviathan is also watching you, which is why everyone in the Riddle Kingdom doesn't talk nicely.
"It's so scary, how can I deal with it?" the warrior asked.
The elder said: "Let the tentacles capture you and lead them to run among a thousand tentacles, and then the tentacles will become entangled and hinder each other. The thousand mouths will bite you and let them bite each other. As long as you do this, you can stab it or let it bite itself to death."
"That's it?"
"That's it. The premise is that you are not eaten before they entangle or bite themselves. You must have a wide vision, move quickly, and pay attention to the movement of the tentacles. In addition, you have to pay attention. There are many tentacles, even if they are entangled with each other, they will not be eaten. It's still possible to get you involved and killed. You can't get too close to Leviathan."
"I understand, elder. Are what you just said not prohibited by law?"
"I said it in a riddle, it doesn't matter."
"Then please continue."
The elder thought for a while and then said: "Leviathan's lair is very hidden and cannot be found by mortals. You need a princess."
"What do I want the princess to do?"
"Leviathan likes beautiful and intelligent girls. Devouring her will not only relieve hunger, but also satisfy its thousand hearts. You challenge the devil to protect your girl, so you can only sacrifice the princess. Isn’t it? Then Leviathan will show its true form.”
"This is not the behavior of a brave man!"
"Yes," the elder nodded, "then dress yourself up as a princess. As long as you dress up beautifully enough, Leviathan will appear and try to devour you."
"This is a good idea! I understand, elder. Are what you just said not prohibited by the law?"
"I said it in a riddle, it doesn't matter."
The brave man nodded. He understood some things, but there were still some things he didn't quite understand. He asked the elder: "Why can the devil be defeated but not destroyed?"
"This is the key to the riddle I am going to tell you," the elder said. "During the short period of time when Leviathan is defeated, the devil will be very weak. You can kill him, imprison him, and let him wear women's clothes. No matter what."
"Anything is okay?"
"No matter what. He will even beg to give you the throne, but you must not agree."
"That's natural."
The elder's eyes looked into the distance, as if looking into the distant past and the untouchable future: "The time when the devil dies will give our kingdom a short period of peace, and you can also protect your girl.
"However, even if Leviathan is killed, it will begin to regenerate soon and appear in the world in a new form. From a mortal perspective, it is immortal.
"Shortly after your victory, Leviathan will resurrect. As long as it exists, the devil will be resurrected or break free. You can try to kill Leviathan again.
"When you get tired of it, come back here. Tell your riddle to those who come after you?"
This answer did not satisfy the brave man. He asked sadly: "Then things will never end? Elder, I think the key is to stop Leviathan and prevent it from resurrecting. Is there any way?"
"Yes, and no."
"How to say?"
"You need a thousand people to cut off its tentacles, a thousand people to blind its eyes, and a thousand people to block its mouth to stop the whispers that lead to depravity."
"This is really a huge battle!" the brave man exclaimed, "Where can I find these three thousand warriors?"
"I haven't finished speaking yet, idiot, listen to me," the elder scolded, "You need another three thousand people to supervise the three thousand people who did it, and then you need three thousand people to supervise those supervisors, you can't Let them mess around or ally with Leviathan."
"This..." The brave man was stunned for a moment, "How can this be done?"
The elder sneered at his doubts: "Why this can't be done is just a matter of whether you are willing to do it or not."
"I understand, elder. Are what you just said not prohibited by law?"
"I said it in a riddle, it doesn't matter."
The brave man did as the elder said, defeated the devil, and let his people continue to kill Leviathan. As a result, the Demon King and Leviathan are in an unprecedented crisis and are really about to be destroyed.
The desperate Demon King said to the hero:
"Don't be complacent, this is my end and a new beginning,
"When you and your friends grow old, my disciples and disciples will sneak into your temple, put on your armor, and destroy your creed. They will misinterpret your code and destroy your inheritance, and my Leviathan will Will be resurrected! What I cannot achieve now will eventually be achieved."
The brave man asked "Is this your prophecy, Demon King?"
The Demon King said: "No, it's not a prophecy, it's not something so ambiguous."
…
Roland finished telling his fairy tale and looked at everyone smiling.
Griffith looked seriously and found that the originally casual expressions of everyone present turned serious. Everyone felt that Roland was using fairy tales as a metaphor for his experiences.
"That's what the bad guys in the story say," Fiona muttered, "It's really annoying to be endless? Is that why, knight, you don't want to be a hero anymore?"
"hey-hey."
Sonia thought for a while: "There will be new brave men who will stand up, Mr. Roland, and there will be countless descendants who will inherit your will."
No, no, that's not what Roland meant. Griffith sensed some unspoken meaning. He raised his head and met Roland's gaze.
"The answer to this question is left for you to think about," Roland said with a smile. "When everyone returns from the ruins, we will continue this story."
