A sailor stooped down to pick up the stone at his feet and asked suspiciously, "What is this?" ”

Masae took the stone he handed over and looked at it carefully.

The stone is small in size and is equivalent to an adult's fist. The surface is dry, and it is easy to get a layer of yellow powder when you touch your fingers, and you can smell a faint smell of rotten eggs when you are close to your nostrils.

Zhengjiang's face changed suddenly, and ecstasy and excitement ran through his body like electricity: "I know this thing, I heard the city lord say that this is the treasure he is looking for." ”

The sailors came over curiously and asked, "Captain, what is this?" ”

"Don't ask so much, it's not for you to know...... Well, at least not yet. Saying that, Zhengjiang quickly gave an order: "Free up the backpacks of two people and load them all with this kind of stone." We're not going any further, we're going back now. ”

……

A few days later, Rock City.

Looking at the yellow stone on the desk, Tianhao exhaled softly, reached out and touched it, and there was a dry and greasy feeling from his fingertips.

When he first saw it, he knew it was the natural sulfur he had been looking for for a long time.

This thing is actually everywhere in nature. Generally speaking, wherever there is a volcano, there is sulfur, but I have not been able to find it before, so I can only say that I am unlucky. Broadly speaking, the northern barbarians were also unlucky. Asteroids hit the earth and caused the earth's crust to move on a large scale, and volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis were so frequent in the era of great destruction that there was not a single volcano in the vast area north of the continent, not even a crack in the ground where magma seeped out of the ground.

The air in the room was still a little cold, and the heat of early spring was not enough to take off one's coat. The smell of natural sulfur is very light, and as long as you don't get close, you can't smell the rotten eggs. Tianhao picked it up and looked at it for a long time with indescribable emotion, and countless familiar pictures immersed in the depths of the long river of time shook in front of him.

From the era of cold weapons to hot weapons, human beings are always changing and evolving.

I can create gunpowder and completely change the military and power balance of the northern continent. If you think about it carefully, in fact, Tianhao is an honest man in his bones, and he has never thought of controlling the highest power and becoming the king of the world. In the game, it can be like this, but not in reality, fate played a joke on him, pushing him to a special position where he had to run forward and couldn't stop.

There was a knock on the door outside, Tianhao was familiar with this cautious rhythm, he put away his thoughts, and let out a calm and calm voice: "Come in." ”

The door opened from the outside, and the huge Broken Tooth strode in like a moving mountain.

He bowed respectfully: "My lord, those crew members are asking, what is the yellow stone they brought back?" ”

Pigs will probably never be suitable for a profession like "acting star". Broken Tooth is an honest man, and the word "curiosity" is clearly marked on his face and eyes, just like the tag on the clothes in a clothing store in the era of civilization, and all the information is at a glance.

"I think you're going to know, right?" Tianhao smiled and thought carefully with broken teeth: "This is not a secret, it will be announced sooner or later." Until then, though, news must be strictly blocked. ”

Broken Tooth showed a solemn expression on his face, and the curiosity was even deeper than just now.

"It's sulfur, and with this thing you can make gunpowder." Tianhao is not going to be specific about the broken teeth, the barbarians...... Especially a pig man who had never seen a musket before, and his mind had a hard time understanding that the flames spewing out of the metal pipes were more lethal than tomahawks and long knives.

But it can give him a little bit of inspiration for the future: "It can change the way we currently fight and open up a whole new era." ”

With a light in his eyes, Broken Tooth looked at the stone reverently as if he were a god: "I don't care if you keep saying that this is a treasure given to us by God. ”

Tianhao did say that sulfur was a treasure, but never added the prefix "given by God". In fact, the statement of broken teeth cannot be said to be wrong, the northern barbarians have not found sulfur for a long time, which is indeed the limit of heaven.

"All sailors involved in this expedition are promoted to the next level." Tianhao laughed.

Broken Tooth didn't rush out to give orders, he thought for a moment: "My lord, I think it's better for you to tell them the news yourself." ”

"Why?" Tianhao asked subconsciously.

"They're all waiting outside." A wry smile appeared on Broken Tooth's face: "They want to meet you." ”

……

A few minutes later, Zhengjiang walked into the city lord's office with all the sailors, and the spacious room suddenly became crowded and crowded, but the order was not chaotic, and there was no chaotic noise.

Tianhao smiled and shook hands with each of them, and the simple conversation quickly made the atmosphere harmonious, less serious, and the faces of the sailors with tense faces showed smiles, and they whispered to each other, exchanging their opinions on the young city lord.

There are too many people in Rock City, and Tianhao can't memorize everyone by heart like before, he can call out his name, and he has dealt with them all. Especially later, most of the sailors who joined the sailing team were pigs, and I felt that they all looked similar, just like the Chinese people looked at foreign devils in the civilized era, and there seemed to be no difference.

"You're doing a great job, and I'm proud of you." Tianhao is very good at adjusting the atmosphere with encouraging words at such times: "Everyone can get promoted, this is the reward you deserve." ”

Happy, excited, and happy...... I don't know who shouted "Long live the city lord" first, and the room suddenly resounded with deafening cheers.

Tianhao walked in front of everyone, and finally returned to Zhengjiang, and said with a smile: "You must have been scolded by your boss because of this incident?" ”

Zhengjiang rubbed his hands and smiled shyly, which was fundamentally different from his usual resolute and decisive appearance on the boat: "...... Sort of...... According to the regulations, I was supposed to be locked up in confinement, but he also said that the discovery of that island was considered a credit and demerit. ”

"Everybody has to follow the rules. If it were to be me, I would whip you and give you a few barrels of wine, so that all the people on board could have a good drink. ”

Tianhao never oversteps his bounds, and the reason why Rock City maintains a strong normal operation is inseparable from the strict management system.

"Without violating the rules, I can use the City Lord privileges to give you a little extra reward." Tianhao looked at Zhengjiang meaningfully: "Say, what do you want?" ”

The young captain immediately put his feet together and held his chest high, his face full of excitement, his chest rising and falling violently. He and the sailors beside him had anticipation in their eyes, releasing an eager light.

"If I could, I would like that new ship, to be its real captain." Masae then added, "It's up to me to decide what to call it." ”

Tianhao's eyes were full of smiles: "It seems that you have already thought about it?" ”

"The Great Viper, this is the name of the ship that we all discussed." Zhengjiang looked at the sailors gathered around, his eyes turned back to Tianhao, he clenched his right fist, slammed his left chest, and made a solemn oath: "My lord, we will not let this name be disgraced." ”

Tianhao looked at him seriously, for a long time, and nodded slowly: "Just do as you say, it's yours." ”

……

The dockyard is starting to get busy.

The success of the "Great Viper" gave hope to all. From the technician to the craftsman, everyone seems to have been given a booster, the whole dock is full of praise for Zhengjiang and the sailors on board, and Tianhao's rewards for craftsmen and technicians are also issued at the same time, no matter where you go, you can hear people talking about the sea and navigation, and various technical points are replaced by gags, becoming the only thing to talk about during the break.

Tianhao promulgated the latest award standards, and Yuan Kai also promised to build ten ocean-going ships of the same class as the "Great Viper" in the shortest possible time.

The emergence and application of new technologies is such a key entry point. Of course, the success of the "Great Viper" is not accidental, if it were not for Tianhao's long-term large-scale training of craftsmen in the form of fishing boats, it would be difficult to get the real thing even if there were no drawings. Another important factor is the sailor, with a little training, the average fisherman can quickly cross the technical threshold of controlling a boat and become a qualified ocean-going sailor.

On Tianhao's orders, a new exploration corps is being formed. It is planned to have a capacity of 5,000 people, based on the original Rock City War Regiment, to form a powerful combat search force. In this era, there is no concept of the Marine Corps, and it is better to prepare early than to be caught off guard. Tianhao had a feeling that ———— new species on the large island discovered by Zhengjiang must be more than sulfur, and there should be more legacies of the civilization era.

The research and development of gunpowder was carried out at the same time.

For the northern barbarians, the gunpowder formula is not a secret. The long war with the whites of the South had long made the barbarians aware of the power of gunpowder. The barbarians were not conservative, and many tribal leaders even had a lot of vision, they had long seen the decisive significance of gunpowder in future wars, but because there was no natural sulfur north of Suolong Pass, and the whites were strictly guarding the sulfur producing areas in the south of the continent, out of helplessness, they could only use backward swords and arrows to fight the muskets.

Tianhao has passed the initial stage of gunpowder research and development and directly entered the state of granular black gunpowder manufacturing. This is the top secret of Rock City, and all the work is in the hands of the curved teeth. He will follow Masae on a recent voyage to set up a gunpowder factory on the newly discovered island, and at the same time make a series of arrangements for the development and manufacture of muskets.

Rock City is full of people, and a small explosion test can leak the news. The vast expanse of the sea separates the mainland and the islands, and it is impossible to reach them unless there are large sea vessels. It will become Tianhao's largest secret base, and it will also be a new gun arsenal in the future.

Everything in this world has a name. Even if it's a dead thing, a piece of land is no exception. Out of the bad taste of the civilized era, Cheonho named this newly discovered place "Jeju Island".

It is certainly not the real Jeju Island in the history of civilization. Judging by the descriptions of Masae and the sailors, the new island is larger, the terrain is more complex, the products are more, and the latitude is lower. Anyway, there has to be a name, and it should be named according to the old habit.

It takes time for a new ship to be launched, but the exploration of a new island cannot be delayed. The Viper has been turned into a transport ship that will travel back and forth between the new island and Rock City, transporting people and equipment and establishing a base.

Two days later, Masae and Quya led the first group of armed explorers aboard the ship and set sail.

Hope always comes with bad news.

The King of the Bulls is here.

……

It was nearly noon, and the sentry standing at the top of the tower was waving red flags. This was a familiar signal to the Rock City army, and dozens of towers at different distances, large and small, immediately entered a state of alert, and several teams of rangers on standby around the clock rushed out of the city gate and ran towards the distance where a large cloud of smoke and dust was raised.

News soon came from the direction of surveillance: it was a man from the Fierce Bull Department, led by Niu Lingxiao, the king of the Fierce Bull.

As long as it is a king, no matter how big or small, it is a big man with a noble status. What's more, the team of the King of the Fierce Ox pays attention to pomp, in addition to the common ox carts, there are as many as two hundred cavalry alone. They were well-dressed in armor, and their appearance was polished and smooth, shining in the sun, like metal dolls that were incomparably bright.

Tianhao, who had received the news early, stood at the top of the tower with a group of cronies, watching the approaching team from afar.

"These guys are well-dressed and look like rich guys." Tian frantically spat a mouthful of thick phlegm and muttered stupidly, with a little envy in his tone, and more disdain.

Yonggang smiled gently, and nodded slightly in understanding and approval: "Speaking of which, we are also the elite of the Thunder Cattle Department, but we have never had such treatment. ”

He was referring to armor and horses. Everyone wants good things, and under normal circumstances, only the personal guards around Niu Weibang are qualified to equip them.

It's just innocuous whining, that's all.

Tianhao snapped his fingers: "Let's go, it's time for us to go down to meet this noble man." ”

Although everyone is not a clan, Niu Lingxiao is a king after all. In this era of hierarchical status, saluting someone is often not something you really want, and it's more of a framework and compulsion.

The King of the Bulls is much stronger than the average clansman. Wealth and power meant more food, adequate nutrition, and the vast majority of nobles born with a golden key were guaranteed to develop their later years, except for premature births or deformities that were born with defects, and it is not difficult to understand why most of the heroes who have been praised in poetry throughout history have been nobles and few commoners. They rely on their strong physical strength to rush and kill on the battlefield, and the big guys already have an advantage.

Niu Lingxiao belongs to the self-cooked temperament. He jumped off his horse, shook Tianhao's hand hard, and let out a hearty laugh.

"Hahahaha, it is said that the Rock City Lord is very young, I have always felt that people who say this kind of thing are lying, and their tongues should be cut out. Now it seems that they are honest guys. ”

Tian Hao performed a common etiquette among nobles, and asked with a smile: "Listen to the king, there is an extra group of dumb people around you?" ”