The lingering influence of the Great Han Maritime Law still reverberated across the seas. The 'void' fluctuations of the Mariana Trench were being forcibly suppressed by the gravity-regulating tower. Aboard the Xuan Di, Liu Xun stood before the star map, preparing to order the fleet westward to Persia, when the system alarm suddenly transformed into a high-frequency metallic clanging sound. This sound did not originate from the deep sea, but from the void at the southernmost tip of the Great Han territory.
'System, why skip Sindhu (India) and direct the command south?'
[System Command]: 'Global industrialisation progress bottleneck detected.'
'Current bottleneck: The reserves of high-grade iron ore, bauxite and open-pit coal in the Great Han territory are approaching the first-phase industrial threshold.'
'Target locked: Southern isolated continent (Australia; Great Han name: Southern Island).'
Resource assessment: This continent possesses the Hammersley Iron Mine and the Vipa Bauxite Mine, which are sufficient to sustain the Great Han's extravagant lifestyle for millennia.
Special warning: This continent is in a biological isolation zone and numerous unnaturally evolved giant organisms and prehistoric geological stabilisers have been detected.
Liu Xun traced the heart-pounding red area with his fingertips, his eyes gleaming with an almost greedy clarity. Gold could fill the national treasury, but only steel and aluminium could support the backbone of the Han Empire.
'Gongshu Qi, equip the "Emperor Xuan" with "hydrodynamic wave-breaking fins",' declared Liu Xun, initiating his 'Top Performance: Fearless Explorer' project. 'I'm going south to bring back a mountain of iron for the Han.'
The expeditionary force crossed the equator and faced the terrifying westerly winds and towering waves. But to the system-enhanced, all-alloy hull, these natural forces were mere whetstones.
Even the seasoned Gongshu Qi was stunned when the first crimson coastline appeared on the horizon—the land there had a sickly yet magnificent rust-red hue, as if the entire continent had been forged from metal. The Han army's first sampling team had barely set foot on this red earth when a sickening metallic scraping sound echoed from the depths of the jungle.
A group of three-metre-tall, pillar-thick hind kangaroos burst from the bushes. Instead of young, their pouches contained "high-frequency oscillating tentacles" shimmering with blue light.
'Have these beasts been mechanised?' Zhou Meng exclaimed in shock, immediately ordering his guards to open fire.
[System Notification]: 'Due to the continent's long-term exposure to a magnetic field caused by a high-concentration metallic ore vein, the local organisms have undergone "biological metallization mutation".'
Weakness: This species is vulnerable to ultra-low-temperature liquid nitrogen.
Liu Xun sneered and pulled the jet brake on the chariot himself. A white mist at -196 degrees Celsius instantly covered the red earth. The ferocious metallic monsters immediately transformed into crystalline ice sculptures that refracted an eerie metallic lustre in the sunlight. Liu Xun stood on high ground known as 'Iron Lion Head', beneath which lay a high-grade open-pit iron mine.
'No need to drill holes. Just use thermonuclear cutting drills to push straight in.' Several massive tunnel boring machines, powered by a combination of wind-up mechanisms and electricity, roared into action, shovelling top-grade ore directly into the blast furnace with each scoop.
The Great Han Open-Pit Mine No. 1 was established with an estimated annual iron ore production of tens of millions of tons. The [Railway Transport Line], utilising rudimentary magnetic levitation technology, transported the ore directly to giant cargo ships on the shore.
[Slave Exchange] The 'Sin Kings' that Liu Xun had brought from the South Seas and who were now clad in 'Genius Exoskeletons', toiled under the scorching sun and contributed to the rise of the Great Han.
Just as the ship's holds were filled with the first shipment of iron ore, the system's scanner swept across Ayers Rock (Uluru) in the centre of the continent.
[High-Risk Discovery] A 'Prehistoric Civilisation – Earth Core Pressure Converter' was detected inside a giant rock formation.
Function: Controls the speed at which the global tectonic plates drift by adjusting the mass distribution of this continent.
Truth: Host, what you have discovered is not a mine, but the planet's 'balance block'. If you dig too deep, this continent may lose its balance and sink into the mantle.
Liu Xun's note: I only want iron. As for the stability of the Earth's crust, that's God's problem.
Looking at the lonely red giant rock in the distance with a ruthless glint in his eyes, he turned to Gongshu Qi and said, "Bury the 'gravity anchoring device'. Even if this land is going to sink, we'll have to wait until I've transported all the iron back to Guanzhong!'
As the 'Emperor Xuan's' wave-piercing fins cut through the last remnants of the fiery red and withered yellow South Pacific, a landmass stretched across the Han army's field of vision, resembling a slumbering prehistoric beast. The air was thick with a dry, metallic odour and the sunlight was intensely fierce. Liu Xun stood in the control room, his mind's eye now fully illuminated by the system map.
He commanded, 'System, analyse the geological composition of this landmass. Why is the magnetic field so drastically off?'
The system responded, 'Detected a massive open-pit mineral vein.'
Resource distribution: Hammersley Iron Ore Zone, Kalgoorlie Ultra-Deep Gold Mine Belt, Vipa Bauxite Plateau.
Strategic assessment: This is not land, but a 'metal warehouse' exposed above the sea.
'Based on the host's preference, officially incorporate it into the Han Dynasty's map and name it "Southern Gold Mine Island".' Liu Xun looked at the densely packed red dots marked 'extremely high value' on the display screen and breathed a sigh of relief. The Han Dynasty's industrialisation was at a critical juncture, transitioning from the 'Wood and Stone Age' to the 'Steel Age', and this wasteland was the perfect fuel.
'Gongshu Qi, activate the "Heavy Tracked Transfer Platform".' As the hatch slammed into the hard red earth, the first batch of 'Black Tortoise All-Terrain Mining Vehicles' roared out. Unlike the jungles of the Americas, the ground here was as hard as iron and sparked as the vehicles rolled over it.
Liu Xun initiated 'Top-Tier Performance: The Creator's Inspection." Stepping down the gangway, he grabbed a handful of red soil. Under the system's microscopic scan, the iron content was a staggering 60%.
'In the Han Dynasty, soil could only grow crops,' said Liu Xun, tossing the soil into the wind. 'But on the southern gold-mining islands, soil is a ready-made ring-and-pommel sword!' Due to the continent's long-term exposure to the intense magnetic field of mineral veins, its creatures had undergone bizarre mutations.
A group of mountain-sized 'mechanised red kangaroos' sensed the intruders. Their fur was covered in fine metallic scales and they could generate weak electromagnetic pulses with a flick of their tails, which interfered with the Han army's radio communications.
'Your Majesty, these beasts are impervious to arrows and can even withstand muskets!' Zhou Meng stood in front of Liu Xun, sword in hand. 'System, load the "High-Frequency Oscillation Module".' Liu Xun snorted coldly and pressed the booster switch at his waist. 'Gongshu Qi, activate the "Magnetic Field Interference Tower" and show them who controls this planet's magnetic field!' As the current at the top of the giant tower surged, the previously ferocious beasts instantly lost their sense of direction, collapsing onto the red earth with mournful cries.
In just seven days, Liu Xun used the 'Modular Base Technology' in the system to establish a new steel city on the west coast of the continent — 'Golden Mountain Town'.
[Stone Crushing Factory]: Giant crushers grind gold-bearing quartz ore into powder day and night.
[Cyanide Refining Method (System Modified Version)] Using harmless agents synthesised in the Gewu Laboratory, large quantities of pure gold are extracted.
[Slave Labour Station]: Prisoners of war, escorted from Southeast Asian countries, are wearing 'force feedback exoskeletons' and digging frantically in the mine.[System notification]: The first batch of gold from "Southern Gold Mine Island" has been stored, totalling 3,200 jin. Control of the world's largest precious metal reserves has caused the "National Fortune Value" to surge by 800,000 points.
Just as the Han army was preparing to advance deeper into the continent, the system issued an unprecedented purple alert.
[High-Risk Monitoring]: An abnormal heat source has been detected in the centre of the continent, towards Ayers Rock. The truth has been revealed: this continent was not formed naturally, but was instead a 'ballast stone' created by a prehistoric civilisation to balance global tectonic plate pressure.
Warning: Host, every piece of gold you dig up is 'removing make-up' from this planet. Be careful, or she might turn against you. Liu Xun's note: if the extraction volume exceeds the critical threshold, the entire Australian continent will experience a 'geological rebound', triggering a global super-tsunami.
Gripping the electromagnetic longsword at his waist, Liu Xun gazed at the massive rock glowing red in the setting sun. His eyes gleamed with indomitable arrogance: 'Remove her makeup? I'll not only remove her makeup, I'll dismantle her bones too! Send the 'gravity-anchored satellite' up there! This land wants to float? Then I'll nail it firmly to the mantle!"
Intense mining operations at the 'Southern Gold Mine Island' have come to a temporary halt. With the first batch of pure gold ingots neatly stacked in the "Emperor Xuan" vault, the Han soldiers, who had been on edge for days, finally enjoyed their first day of rest since setting foot on this red soil.
Liu Xun took off his heavy nano-armour, changed into light silk hunting attire and, accompanied by Gongshu Qi and several bodyguards, strolled into a valley filled with oddly shaped bushes.
'Your Majesty, look! What are those monsters?' Zhou Meng exclaimed, pointing to a puddle ahead, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.
Several enormous creatures with donkey heads, rabbit ears and rat tails were hopping and leaping through the forest, standing upright like humans.
[System Science Popularisation] Red Kangaroo (native to Australia).
Combat Strength: Five Stars
Main attack methods: back kick, chokehold, combination punches
Personality: Due to their long-term exposure to the magnetic field core, they are extremely warlike and curious.
[Host Prompt] These idiots are staring at your bodyguards; they perceive the red helmets as a provocation.
Liu Xun restrained Zhou Meng, who was about to draw his sword, and grinned mischievously. 'Don't fight. Gongshu Qi, send over one of our spare inflatable training dummies. I want to see just how tough this South Sea hoppy rabbit really is.'
Gongshu Qi chuckled and pulled a red inflatable dummy from his backpack. After inflating it, the dummy stood wobbly on the open ground.
A male giant kangaroo, easily two metres tall, stopped. It suspiciously examined the 'red-skinned monster' before puffing out its chest, crossing its front paws in front of its chest and assuming a standard boxing stance.
Bang!
Without warning, the kangaroo launched its attack, unleashing a series of impressive punches with its short but powerful forepaws. Then, leaning back and using its tail for balance, it kicked the inflatable dummy more than ten metres away with a powerful leap.
"Good! That skill is enough to make you a vanguard in our Imperial Guard!" The Han soldiers watching burst into laughter — they had never seen such an unpredictable animal before. Just as everyone was laughing, a smaller female kangaroo hopped in front of Liu Xun.
The guards were about to step forward and protect him when he waved them away and looked at the female kangaroo's belly. There, a large pouch had split open and a small head was peeking out. 'Gongshu Qi, look! This is a true "miracle"! Liu Xun activated 'Top Performance: Animal Friend', conjuring a carrot (a stash he had brought back from the Americas) from his system space and offering it to the little kangaroo.
'These things come with their own packs. If we could train a 'kangaroo cavalry' to march and fight, wouldn't we have a place to store our provisions?" Liu Xun said half-jokingly.
Gongshu Qi took this to heart. The naturalist genius had a sudden inspiration and tried to use a 'force feedback device' to tame a large kangaroo to ride. He carefully climbed onto the back of a docile kangaroo, but before he could settle in, it seemed to be pricked by the tool on its backside and suddenly jumped up.
With a cry of pain, 'Ouch!', the kangaroo performed a high-difficulty manoeuvre — a 'vertical jump' — slinging Gongshu Qi directly onto a three-metre-high eucalyptus tree branch. The soldiers below burst into laughter, and even the usually serious Liu Xun couldn't help but laugh out loud while leaning against the tree trunk.
As the sun set, the evening glow bathed the red land in a dreamy purple light. The Han soldiers gathered around the bonfire, roasting wild boar meat that had been brought back from Spice Island. They had actually reached a kind of 'peaceful coexistence' agreement with a few daring kangaroos.
[System Status]
[Army Stress Value]: Reduced by 40%.
[Morale Boost]: Gained 'Wilderness Friendship' buff (increased stamina recovery speed).
Hidden reward: The "Ecological Park Construction Map" has been unlocked since the host did not activate killing mode.
Liu Xun sat on a red rock and watched these ancient creatures. He felt a rare sense of peace on this wild continent.
'Your Majesty, are we really going to mine here for the rest of our lives?' Zhou Meng asked, his mouth full of roasted meat.
'No.' Liu Xun looked at the southern horizon, his eyes gradually darkening. 'This is just the beginning. When we return to Chang'an, I will build a 'Ten Thousand Demon Garden' in front of the Daming Palace so that all the world's rare and exotic beasts can witness the Han Dynasty's majesty.'
As the campfire died down, the laughter of the kangaroos faded, replaced by the sharp roar of heavy machinery cutting through rock. Standing on the cliffs of the western coast of 'Southern Gold Mine Island', with the roaring southern Indian Ocean below and the grandest infrastructure project of the Han Empire behind him, Liu Xun reflected. 'This shouldn't just be a temporary mine. This will be the first nail in the Southern Hemisphere's coffin, securing it for the Han.'
'System, activate the "Level 2 Industrial Base – Steel City" template, consuming 800,000 "National Fortune Points".'
[System Command] Terrain mapping complete. Location selected: Pilbara coast (formerly northwestern Australia).
Core components: Deep-water automated wharf, blast furnace ironmaking cluster, seawater desalination plant.
Defence level: Resistant to prehistoric magnitude 8 earthquakes and supercyclones.
Under the watchful eyes of tens of thousands of Han soldiers and labourers from Southeast Asia, the lower deck of the Xuandi ship opened. Hundreds of massive alloy modules were precisely placed on the levelled rock foundation by hydraulic cranes and automatically locked together using nano-welding technology the moment they made contact. Countless streaks of pale blue light danced across the building's surface, seemingly breathing life into the cold metal.
In just half a month, a city constructed entirely of silver-grey special steel rose from the ground. Liu Xun personally named this city "Jinshanwei".
Energy Hub: A massive energy-gathering tower stands at the city centre, absorbing Australia's intense sunlight and tidal energy to provide a continuous power source for the entire island.
[Industrial Lungs] Dozens of chimneys, each hundreds of metres high and equipped with electrostatic precipitators, began to emit wisps of white smoke. Molten iron flows directly from the blast furnaces to the casting lines, where it is formed into rails and armoured steel plates.
Freshwater Miracle
Faced with Australia's drought, the "graphene reverse osmosis membrane", rewarded by the system, instantly transformed the brackish seawater into sweet dew, nourishing the surrounding city's greenhouse farms.
Standing atop the tallest watchtower in Jinshanwei, Liu Xun initiated "Top Performance: Eternal Lord'. His voice was broadcast throughout the city, reaching every corner.
'The territory of the Great Han is not defined by the thickness of its soil, but by the reach of its railway network!' he declared, pointing to the boundless wilderness ahead. 'This place was once a silent wasteland, but from this day forward it will be the steel heart of the Great Han! I will transform the ore here into war chariots to sweep across the world and the gold into an unyielding foundation for the Great Han!"
Even the most unrestrained soldier, gazing upon this steel city shimmering with a futuristic glow in the setting sun, felt a surge of pride at that moment, as if he were in a 'divine kingdom'.
Gongshu Qi led a team of geomancers who were piloting an automated rail-laying machine. They set off from Jinshanwei, heading towards the gold-bearing belt deep within the continent. Shaped like a giant steel centipede, this rail-laying machine devoured rails and sleepers, leaving two straight, parallel silver lines in the red earth.
'Your Majesty, with this road, the lifeline of the "Southern Gold Mine Island" is now open!' Gongshu Qi wiped his sweat, his eyes gleaming with excitement. 'Before, transporting a cartload of gold took half a month; now it only takes a few hours!' Just as the No. 1 blast furnace at Jinshanwei was officially ignited, sensors throughout the entire city simultaneously issued red alerts:
[High-Risk Monitoring]: Due to immense pressure from a large quantity of metal and geothermal absorption, the 'prehistoric sensing grid' beneath this landmass has been activated.
[Depth feedback] — A massive "mechanical cavity" is opening 3,000 metres underground at Jinshanwei.
[High-Risk Monitoring]: The immense pressure caused by a large quantity of metal and geothermal absorption has triggered the 'prehistoric sensing grid' beneath this landmass.
[Depth feedback] — 3,000 metres underground at Jinshanwei, a massive 'mechanical cavity' is opening.
'Truth Warning: Host, you have built your city on the lid of an 'ancient interstellar fuel depot'. The blast furnace ignition has accidentally activated the depot's 'preheating programme' due to electrostatic resonance.' Liu Xun pressed his hand to the electromagnetic sword at his waist and felt the rhythmic vibrations beneath his feet. These vibrations were not like an earthquake; they were more akin to the slow breathing of a slumbering giant.
'A fuel depot?' A sinister smile crept across Liu Xun's lips. 'Gongshu Qi, forget about those rails. Bring over the heavy-duty deep drilling rig. I want not only the gold on the surface, but also to see what kind of divine powder keg is buried beneath the earth!'
The industrial furnaces of the Great Han's Golden Mountain Guard spewed out crimson smoke. In the command hall of the Emperor Xuan, a ceremony that was set to change the course of human civilisation was underway. Liu Xun stood before a colossal holographic star map on which the azure planets, once fragmented, were now seamlessly connected by shimmering golden flight paths.
From Chang'an in Guanzhong to the American Gold Mountain, and from the South Sea fortresses to the Australian iron ore mines, the Great Han's wings had already covered half the globe. As the blue light from the tip of the final signal tower at Jinshanwei pierced the sky, a notification as resounding as a great bell echoed in Liu Xun's mind: 'Global System Report: Global route loop completed! Current progress: Global map exploration reached 70%. Achievement unlocked: Conqueror of the Known World. System rewards: 12 Global Quantum Communication Base Stations, Basic Weather Control Device Activation Permission and 2,000,000 National Fortune Points. Core patch: 'One World Under Heaven' buff activated. The wear rate of all physics-driven machinery within the Han Dynasty is permanently reduced by 20%.
Achievement achieved: [Conqueror of the Known World]
System rewards: [Global Quantum Communication Base Station] x12; [Basic Weather Controller] permission activated; [National Fortune Value] 2,000,000 points.
Core patch: [One World, One Family] buff activated. Permanently reduces wear rate of all implements driven by the Gewu system within the Han Dynasty by 20%.
"Seventy percent..." Liu Xun looked at the lit-up sections, with a hint of arrogant dominance in his eyes. "The remaining thirty percent is nothing but unconquered wasteland and withered bones."
He activated 'Top Performance: Universal Ruler', drawing a massive circle spanning three oceans on the large screen with his baton in front of all the generals.
'Gentlemen, look! At this moment, the sun of the Han Dynasty will never set!"[Eastern Granary] — Xinfeng Province in the Americas is harvesting potatoes and corn to supply the empire with food.
[Southern Lungs] — The rubber forests and spice islands of the South Pacific sustain the empire's machinery and luxury.
[Southern Skeleton]: Jinshanwei Steel City provides the Han Dynasty's warships with the strongest armour day and night.
[Western Throat]: Malacca Customs House controls the lifeline of global trade.
Following the distribution of rewards, Gongshu Qi installed the first quantum communication repeater in the core tower of Jinshanwei Steel City.
'Your Majesty, this is a miracle! A true miracle!' Gongshu Qi pointed tremblingly at the display screen. 'General Zhao Chongguo's reply from Chang'an arrived in an instant! This is practically a divine whisper!'
'Decrees that once took months, or even half a year, to convey can now be delivered with a flick of a finger.' This means that the vast empire no longer has to worry about being 'beyond reach'. Liu Xun's will will be transmitted instantly to every part of the Han Dynasty, like a nerve impulse.
However, as soon as the exploration progress surpassed 70%, the system's colour suddenly shifted to a chilling deep purple and a warning appeared: 'Civilisation activity is too high, triggering the Gaia Monitoring Network's level two threshold. Three prehistoric civilisation nodes have been forcibly awakened: one deep within the Sahara in North Africa, one at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea in Europe, and one at the core of the Antarctic ice sheet.'
[Truth Warning]: 'Host, you've made Earth too bright. The 'landlords' hiding in the shadows can't sit still anymore. Their 'automatic clean-up programme' is logically consistent, with the goal of eliminating overloaded civilisations.'Liu Xun's note: 'I was afraid they wouldn't come out. The ground has already been thoroughly trodden on. The next 30% of the exploration will have to be carried out on top of the corpses of these 'landlords'!" Gripping the electromagnetic sword at his waist, he shifted his gaze from the holographic map to the city outside the window, which was covered in steel.
'Gongshu Qi, forget about those mining trucks.' His tone was icy, radiating an undeniable air of dominance. 'Order the entire army to activate the Xuandi Ship's nuclear fusion engine. Target: the waters off the western Qin (Roman) coast.'
'I'll use the sunset of the Qin Dynasty as the final embellishment for the remaining 30% of the map!'
[System notification] New main quest: The Fallen Western Empire – The Mystery of the Ending Temple
Unlocked building: Deep-Sea Submarine Carrier – Giant Spirit