Chapter 84: The Energy Side and the Technology Side

Chapter 84: The Energy Side and the Technology Side

With the three shaman-engineers freed from their tedious and repetitive labor, their most remarkable achievement was the invention of the electric motor.

Now backed by the Fellowship of Elites, Li Hongshen received annual trade caravans from within the organization. After selling various goods, he managed to acquire many rare items in return—such as magnets and copper ore. Using these resources, the shaman-engineers succeeded in creating an electric motor.

With the advent of the motor, Li Hongshen established a conveyor rail throughout his territory, connecting the mines to the smelting workshop. The rail was topped with a conveyor belt, and by linking several motors in series, the freshly mined iron ore could be swiftly transported to the smeltery.

Additionally, he installed single-rail tracks in several workshops. Each rail featured a line of slots, upon which sat small cargo boxes. Beneath each box was a diminutive motor that, connected to gears, allowed the box to glide along the track.

These single-rails threaded through the entirety of each workshop’s assembly line. In the textile workshop, for instance, the process was divided into several departments: rope twisting, weaving, dyeing, cutting, and sewing.

With the single-rail system, workers could now focus on their immediate tasks without wasting time or energy on moving materials. This increased the value the tribe could produce.

Nevertheless, the technological development of Li Hongshen’s domain was already approaching its upper limit. In the Endless Wilds, the highest level attainable was the construction of a steam engine.

And even with a steam engine, its sole use was as a power source—generators or anything more advanced were simply out of the question. The use of electricity, in fact, had been intentionally restricted by the powers that be.

As for how Li Hongshen was able to use electricity, it was because his was a pseudo-technological approach—essentially, he was employing techniques from the energy side. He merely grafted advanced technological applications onto shamanic script techniques, drawing power from blood crystals.

Strictly speaking, this was not true technology, but rather a clever workaround.

Back in the main world, Li Hongshen had once asked his teacher about the differences between the technological side and the energy side.

His teacher had answered as follows:

“There is actually no real difference between the technological side and the energy side. Both are paths a lord may choose to walk, tools for accomplishing tasks. A lord can alternate between the two, or even wield both at once.

Anything achievable by the energy side can also be realized by the technological side, and vice versa.

Neither path is superior or inferior, especially as they advance; in the end, their results are much the same.

Take individual flight, for example. At high levels, the energy side allows one to soar through the sky by manipulating personal energy, and even to employ techniques for greater agility in flight.

The technological side, however, offers more options, and with greater simplicity: exoskeletons, mechanical augments, biochemical modifications—all can enable an ordinary person to fly.

Or consider virtual reality technology on the technological side: a simple illusion array on the energy side can achieve the same effect, often with greater realism and immersion, without the need for thousands of lines of code.

In the face of the technological side’s mass production and precision weaponry, the energy side can respond with potent elixirs, producing high-level warriors in bulk, or crafting unique weapons through energy techniques to achieve decisive results—often with greater environmental friendliness.

For instance, the energy side’s spatial techniques—using teleportation arrays for rapid troop deployment—find their parallel in the technological side’s ability to locate spatial nodes via algorithms, open portals, or construct jump bridges, matching the teleportation arrays in speed.

At the time, Li Hongshen thought he understood, but then his teacher added a twist:

“But there are also vast differences between the technological side and the energy side—in usage, circumstances, and choices.

The greatest distinction lies in the fact that the energy side requires the presence of energy laws. Without these laws, it’s as if a tree has no roots—everything is insubstantial; even with high-level warriors, you could not command them to act.

All development on the energy side hinges upon energy. The thicker and stronger the energy laws within a territory, the more abundant the energy, the clearer the subjects’ attunement to it, and the smoother the lord’s path along this road.

The technological side, by contrast, does not require such laws. While some rules can aid its advancement, producing relatively advanced artifacts, the lack of auxiliary rules is inconsequential because technology operates within the foundation of natural laws.

However, technological development demands a vast environment. All high technology arises from the most basic, simplest techniques. You need a robust education system and a tiered community of scientists.

Material demands are also much higher for technology than for the energy side, since you require devices to generate power for your technological creations.

Their development models differ greatly: the energy side values individual strength—high-level warriors are the lord’s true foundation, walking ultimate weapons.

Technology, conversely, is concerned with the collective. So long as the technology exists and there are sufficient resources, weapons can be mass-produced, resulting in overwhelming firepower.

Here, the technological side means following the common laws, without adding strange, unpredictable rules—such as chaotic algorithms or hero-birth mechanics.

Such rules inject uncertainty, making outcomes rare exceptions that cannot be replicated, thus negating the advantage of mass production.”

In sum, though there are some distinctions, the two sides are ultimately alike: both can be artificially locked down, restricted by human intervention, and sealed off at particular stages of development.

…”

After hearing his teacher’s words, Li Hongshen had felt dizzy, his mind spinning with the notions of similarity and difference, until he finally claimed his own territory in the Endless Wilds.

Here, he put his textbook learning to the test, turning theory into practice and successfully emerging from the fog of abstraction.

Now, Li Hongshen had put his knowledge to work, combining it with the shamanic script technology of the Endless Wilds, using blood crystals as a power source to produce several batches of electrical equipment.

He even partnered with the Fellowship of Elites, selling them the blueprints and related technology for a handsome profit. He also signed a distribution agreement: he would manufacture the shamanic script electrical equipment, which the Fellowship’s caravans would then distribute and sell.

As for pricing, Li Hongshen did not meddle. His factory price was one blood crystal for a light, two for an electric motor—not expensive.

After all, these shamanic script electrical devices were hardly high technology and lacked any anti-counterfeiting measures; anyone who dismantled one would instantly understand its workings.

Moreover, not every lord was so extravagant as to have surplus blood crystals to light their homes. Most bought just one or two, for use in the lord’s study.

…

Just as Li Hongshen was amassing enough population—barely surpassing ten thousand and preparing for a move to the middle ring—he received his first assignment from the Fellowship of Elites.

Today, there will only be one update. I had classes during the day and was working on a PHP project until my head was spinning, only managing to squeeze out this chapter tonight.

Honestly, I feel this chapter contains a bit of a spoiler, but so be it—I wanted to give everyone something to anticipate, and give myself something to look forward to as well. I hope I can write all the way to the late stages.

(End of Chapter)