Deep Space Wandering Fleet
Chapter 447 - 445 Searching for the New Continent

Chapter 447: Chapter 445 Searching for the New Continent

The third stop was "Grenley," a remote small city that produced a kind of "Snake Woman," or female slave. Due to its isolated geographic location, the human population there did not thrive, and if there were too many people, there was the possibility of famine. Therefore, locals preferred to sell their daughters and sons. Although such practices were inhumane, they had specific reasons.

This stop was very popular with sailors. Long voyages would drive these males to the brink of desperation, and they could hardly wait to vent their desires, spending their wages until they were broke. Only a few worldly and educated ones chose to save their money.

Zhang Yuan could only sigh softly, knowing that there was little one person could do.

Life was always filled with helplessness. Knowing about such matters was completely different from witnessing them firsthand.

Working in the field of technology and advancing science indeed had the potential to propel the world forward.

But for him, it still wasn’t enough.

From the first industrial revolution to the second, which mainly involved the use of electricity and internal combustion engines. Zhang Yuan could produce electricity, but to apply it on a massive scale was very difficult and required a vast amount of time.

Take a simple example: the widespread application of electricity required a proper power grid. How massive was the project of a national power grid? How many qualified electrical engineers were needed, how much metal had to be smelted? It was impossible for one person to accomplish alone.

Even with electricity, various electrical appliances needed to be invented. For many of these appliances, he knew only the principles, and numerous details remained unknown, necessitating on-the-spot calculations. The workload for this part was too much for one person to handle...

...

The fourth stop of the entire voyage was "Albabili," a place that had been impoverished but where gems were discovered, leading to a city formed by a multitude of gold-seekers.

The fifth stop was near the western Twilight Zone. Rays of sunlight peeked through the sky, and the air grew increasingly hot...

All crew members cheered loudly for the sunlight, humans being creatures who inherently crave light.

But it was too hot here.

Zhang Yuan wiped the sweat off his body, squinting at the sun on the horizon. Everyone’s clothes were as if they had been pulled out of water.

The only benefit of this place was the ability to eat the freshest vegetables, including some fruits that did not preserve well.

The sixth stop...

Such a round trip would take about half a year...

...

In the blink of an eye, five years had passed.

Zhang Yuan, through the accumulation of wealth, had his own fleet. He had inspected the customs and conditions of 206 human settlements and conducted even more profound investigations.

The conditions of this world were too harsh. Places with sunlight were too hot and had exceptionally frequent rainfall, making it difficult for people to adapt to the humid and hot environment.

In remote areas without sunlight, it was too cold, and food was scarce.

As a result, the areas where humans could live comfortably were very small.

Giant Stone City could be considered one of the most superior places to live, with convenient transportation and a multitude of fish brought by the ocean currents. But the more remote the area, the scarcer the natural resources, making it weaker and poorer.

The vast majority of the world were oceans, lacking large expanses of land. Many small islands only became barely habitable after entering the industrial revolution.

However, that was just it; there was no further progress possible.

"Once coal is exhausted, the humans of this world will inevitably decline. Even if humanity does not die out completely, it will only be able to linger in a few habitable spots, with no chance of turning the situation around."

Now, the reserves of coal were still considerable, enough to last more than four hundred years. Compared to this society, where the average life expectancy was less than 35 years, few people worried about this.

The university professors were still optimistic, as technology was advancing and theories were developing. They believed that many problems could be solved in the next four hundred years.

However, Zhang Yuan, who had traveled from another world, was acutely aware of this world’s shortcomings.

After consulting references and through hands-on practice, Zhang Yuan had not found any trace of oil, or rather, oil might be hidden deep beneath the sea, beyond reach with the current level of technology.

"Without oil, it will be very difficult to birth a true second industrial revolution! Electricity alone is far from sufficient."

"The four-hundred-year countdown to death has already started, and no one but me knows the ultimate outcome."

Even for Zhang Yuan, it was very difficult to drive the whole world with his individual efforts.

Industry requires all-round progress, and one person can do too little. The industrial revolution needs a multitude of supporting facilities. Zhang Yuan might be able to forcibly create a generator and a telegram, but it was nearly a pipe dream for him alone to come up with rockets, satellites, or Controlled Nuclear Fusion Technology.

Moreover, there were far too few high-quality individuals here.

A population of 100 million scattered across more than a thousand islands, most were illiterate, devoid of the talent pool needed for the second industrial revolution.

Even with a population of a million in Giant Stone City, the power was too weak. This world was not Sakura World, possessing mighty productivity, where he could provide blueprints and robots would produce parts. Many things, even with blueprints, were just not feasible.

So, what to do?

Zhang Yuan could only venture in another direction, an unknown path. He sighed deeply, unsure whether his choices were right or wrong, or merely a waste of his time.

"Knock, knock, knock," someone was at the door.

"Come in!"

A group of professors walked in, their faces flushed with feverish excitement.

Leading the group, one with a slightly trembling voice said, "Count, we’ve just received a wireless telegram sent from Marfa City, bearing news from the locale!"

"Wireless telegraph... successful!"

"The wireless telegraph is successful!" Cheers and exuberant noise filled the room.

Everyone understood what this meant. The successful development of wireless telegraphy meant that information transfer no longer needed to rely on primitive means like carrier pigeons. Communication between cities would become as fast as light, the connections even tighter!

Ocean-going vessels equipped with wireless telegraph machines could maintain communication with land even on the sea and send out distress signals when needed.

Every person with a brain saw the tremendous business opportunities.

From now on, every cargo ship would be equipped with a telegraph machine, and communication between different cities would also be achieved by sending telegrams. These were real business opportunities!

This matter had already stirred a large number of nobles in Giant Stone City. The inventor of the wireless telegraph, Zhang Yuan... oh, that’s right, in this world, he is known as Count Steve Hoffman, and he undoubtedly became a shining star within the city.

Zhang Yuan snapped out of his thoughts, smiling and saying, "Thank you, thank you all for your hard work. I’m sure there will be a good plan for the cooperation and profit distribution! I hope everyone can attend the evening banquet!"

"Of course, how could we not attend Count’s invitation?"

Everyone left with faces aflame with zeal. When it came to money, each person became extremely proactive. The young Count had always been known for his generosity and had even sponsored many research projects at the university, cultivating numerous Navigators.

Although this big project would be shared by various nobles, even just a sip of the soup was enough for them to live in wealth and honor for a lifetime!

Zhang Yuan sighed softly. He really wasn’t too interested in making money, leaving most of the affairs to his sister. However, to accomplish great things, it was impossible without money, especially for... the next plan.

"Brother..." A head peeked out from behind the door, it was his sister, Anna.

She spoke with a hint of unease, "Do you really want to... search for the New Continent?"