Yamafu Military Affairs

Chapter 213 Undercurrent
Chang'an, Qinrenfang, Prince Dongping's Palace.

Auspicious snow indicates a good harvest. Snowflakes dance and fall in the night, reaching the homes of ordinary people.

The lights in the mansion of the wealthy family were bright, making the fish in the pond appear vivid, but they also seemed to wipe out the snow in the sky.

In a secluded courtyard in the southeast corner, the leaves rustled, accompanied by the sound of sparks popping.

By the pond, the sacrificial official Zoroastrianism, who was dressed in plain clothes and had his hair cut short, was leading many members of the An clan to worship the sacred fire and pray devoutly.

"Gochisil landed on the earth and ignited a fire. All metals melted into slurry, forming a rolling hot torrent. All people, living and dead, had to go through the torrent. The good ones were like bathing in warm milk, and after being tested and purified, they entered heaven."

The leader, Sa Bao, did not speak the official language of the Tang Dynasty, but Sogdian.

"Those who do good will be rewarded with good, and those who do evil will be punished with evil"

Following the salute were brave soldiers covered in heavy armor with bright light, their faces covered with animal-shaped iron masks, their hands clasped together, their waists slightly bent, and they also spoke in Sogdian.

After a short prayer, the soldiers each set up fires and continued their night patrols day after day.

Although An Lushan's mansion was large, it was heavily guarded. Not only were there countless family sons guarding it, but even the secret canals leading to the city's water veins were blocked by layers of iron gates, so the defenses against assassins and thieves were extremely strict.

But right under the noses of these elite night patrols, a wisp of invisible black smoke hid in the shadows and quickly swept towards the depths of the mansion.

The flying snowflakes fell on the roof of the wing room, but before they could accumulate, they were evaporated into water stains by the heat coming out of the tiles.

The end of the year is approaching and the nights are cold, but this house is as warm as spring. Brass pipes filled with boiling steam are winding through the house, and the floor heating and copper pipes under the wooden floor all emit heat, working together to maintain the indoor temperature.

In the room, there was a giant Hu man with curly hair and beard crouching like a tiger. He was holding a sheepskin letter in his hand and his eyes were slightly closed.

The robe on his shoulders was half-undone, revealing his hairy chest and a body full of fat. It was thick and accumulated, but not cumbersome. With a slight change in his posture, the outline of his muscles like a rock emerged.

Black smoke drifted in from the half-open glazed window. A short and fat figure half-knelt on the ground, making a slight muffled sound.

"Aye, Hassan is back."

The short and fat chef Hu, carrying a package wrapped in black cloth, showed up and knelt down respectfully to his adoptive father whom he had not seen for a long time.

In this house personally bestowed by Emperor Xuanzong, the only person who could be called Aye by the mysterious Hassan was, of course, that person.

An Lushan, the governor of Pinglu and Fanyang towns, concurrently the envoy of Hebei, the imperial censor, the general of the Left Yulin Army, and the Prince of Dongping.

"Oh? My son is back, but do you miss Yeye?"

An Lushan opened his brown eyes slightly, put down the parchment scroll containing complicated rituals, and his golden pupils flashed across Hassan.

"I am far away in Qiuci, and I miss you so much that I wish I could show my filial piety to you. But in order to accomplish your great plan, you need to forgive me for being unfilial."

After the short and fat chef Hu handed An Lushan the things that the shadow guard had collected during his years of lurking in Anxi, he walked skillfully and naturally to the giant man and pinched his fat and loose shoulders and neck.

"Achievements come first, filial piety comes second. It's hard to have both. Don't blame my son."

An Lushan stroked the secret letter sent back by the Northwest Spy Network, but was not in a hurry to read it.

"I used a lot of tricks to hide in the black-clad Khorasan caravan, hoping to explore the stars and the moon and retrieve the jade for Aye. Unfortunately, man proposes, God disposes. When the Khorasan scouts arrived at the Qingchi in Suiye, they accidentally ran into the Shenwu Tianqi, caught them and killed them all. Aye, the leader of the Tianqi was very powerful. He defeated several strange people alone. If it weren't for Ahura's protection, I'm afraid I would have met with an accident by now, and I'm separated from you by life and death. It's hard for me to fulfill my filial piety."

"The leader of the Heavenly Riders? The little kid from the Qin family?"

After listening to Hassan's story, An Lushan also understood why his adopted son suddenly returned to Chang'an.

"Shenwu has been deploying troops in the Western Regions recently. I have encountered many troops escorting the spoils of the Western Barbarians along the way. The Anxi Army has achieved great results this time. I am afraid that it will be of some benefit to Aye."

"Hey, we're all about expanding territory, and my men who dragged down the river are no less capable than anyone else."

An Lushan stroked a few pieces of metal fragments and suddenly asked, "Can the Heavenly Cavalry capture some Western Yi craftsmen?"

"There should be quite a few prisoners, what do you think, Aye?"

"Talisman armor is a rare and good thing, but the production process is hidden too strictly by Tianruisi. If you want to accomplish something big, the dozen or so armors of Yulin Guards alone are far from enough."

An Lushan patted the tall black armor on the armor stand beside him, making a leisurely sound.

"I will ask the Dali Temple and the Ministry of War for some craftsmen. As for my son, you should return to the Western Regions."

"Here"

When Hassan heard the order, he immediately saluted with his hands crossed and wanted to leave.

"Bring more shadow guards with you this time, keep a close eye on the Tianqi, and don't let Qin Huai escape from your sight."

The black smoke dissipated, and An Lushan's tall and fat body was revealed, sitting against his armor. His shadow was deformed and distorted in the flickering light, like an evil dragon devouring the world.
-
Balochistan, the ancient city of Parthia, was once one of the largest cities in the Parthian Empire.

This big city is located on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, built against the mountain. It is said to have some unclear relationship with the Hun Empire that disappeared three hundred years ago.

Behind the city of Bailaomen, there are mountains running in all directions. In addition to the Rasht Mountains, which are known as the Dyke of Roshan, there is also Damavand, the highest peak of Khorasan. About a few thousand years ago, the Rasht Mountains were a place where volcanic activity was very frequent. Even now, Damavand, which is formed by lava flows and lava ash accumulation, is still a mildly active volcano with the risk of eruption. In some local ancient legends, Damavand Mountain was mentioned, saying that it was the landing place of Noah's Ark.

In the Rasht Mountains, the fine steel drill bit rotates at high speed, the boiler burning with blazing flames makes a deafening roar, and the drill rod is constantly advancing towards the bottom.

Vera sat in the tent, looking out at the steam-filled construction site. The fluttering snowflakes hit the canvas awning, causing the tent to dent a little. As an outstanding student at the top department of the highest institution in Europe, the Turin Sacred Academy, Vera had worked at the Minerva Agency for six years and had a deep understanding of alchemy and mechanics. After weighing the pros and cons of the Cardinals, it was finally decided that she would be responsible for the technical support of this secret operation.

The soldiers wearing the black six-winged silver angel emblem have occupied the ancient city of Bailaomen. The Inquisition has its eyes and ears all over the Rasht Mountains. The Minerva Agency has dug a large number of holes around Mount Damavand, and long probes are inserted directly into the bottom of the holes to detect the conditions of the strata. Once they find traces of red mercury or shadow metal, they will immediately send mobile armor and heavy chariots to carry out excavation operations. The location they are currently exploring is not far from Damavand. According to local documents and explorations in recent days, the Minerva Agency has confirmed that there are at least two small glaciers under the steep volcanic cone, as well as underground rivers and hot springs. The situation is extremely complicated.

In the tent, besides Verola and the table in front of her with several topographic maps scattered around, there was also a young, handsome soldier in black with a light beard sitting there.

Inquisition, [Faceless Man], Belon.

Peron was the intelligence officer sent by the Inquisition this time. It was thanks to his intelligence that Messiah was able to capture the last descendants of the Parthian Empire who knew the location of the red mercury mine.

"Are you sure the red mercury mine that the Parthians told us about is here?"

Wei Ruolan smoothed her messy white hair, crossed her chocolate-brown legs, lit a cigarette, and spoke with some doubt.

"I interrogated them separately and compared their testimonies. I used every possible means I could. The location they finally confessed to was, without exception, this place."

Veron shrugged and also took out a cigarette and lit it.

Looking at the heavy-duty drilling rig in the distance, whose drill bit was mixed with mithril and refined gold and was being maintained and preheated, Verola felt vaguely uneasy. The two [Hurricane] drilling rigs had been working for dozens of hours in a row and might stop at any time due to emergencies. The field was different from the headquarters, and once it broke down, it would be difficult for mechanics to repair it effectively.

"Reduce the horsepower, add condensate, and bring in the well-maintained one above."

In the underground mine, at the location closest to the [Hurricane] drilling rig, a mechanic wrapped in a black vinyl mask and a jumpsuit exhaled a phantom blue mist, and used the tools in his hands to accurately adjust the parameters of the drilling rig.

The pull rod drove the gear, and the crawler drill slowly fell out, leaving the hot and humid underground. The preheated drill just now took over and rushed into the mine that stretched dozens of meters downward.

Tightly sealed mineral lamps are hung on metal brackets, emitting even and stable light.

Dust billowed, steam filled the air, and the Hurricane drill was bathed in pink steam, slowly but firmly advancing deeper. The black-clad sergeants wearing mining exoskeletons shoveled the flaked and crushed rocks onto the steam carts, while using hand drills to drill holes and screw in, and installing metal brackets. With the help of the machines made of shadow metal and red mercury, the black-clad sergeants made much faster progress than the skilled miners.

Just when everything was going smoothly, the drill that had just taken over the baton suddenly stopped. After waiting for a while, they didn't hear the roar of the drill continuing to work. Wei Ruolan and Bailong in the tent realized something was wrong and immediately ran to the mine to check the situation.

"What went wrong?"

Wei Ruolan looked at the drill bit which was fine and turned her head to ask the mechanic in black.

The mechanic pointed to the soil and rocks in front of the drill head and said in a hoarse voice: "It's no longer a rock layer below, but a large wall of cast bronze plates."

The black rubber gloves wiped away the muddy soil and rocks on the surface, revealing the bronze with shallow dents. Wei Ruolan looked at the bronze wall with intricate patterns and ancient style in front of her, and she began to murmur in her heart.

The current drilling depth is only tens of meters, so it should be mainly soft porous volcanic rock, but what is this sudden large piece of bronze? Could it be that there are relics from the old era underground?

Vera's teacher is the head of the Minerva Agency, Cardinal Franco, so she knows many secrets unknown to others. But even Franco, the brilliant mechanical master, never thought that the Messiah could really find some relics of the old era in the East.

"Set up a warning area, change your gear, I want you to widen this area, watch out for landslides, and also watch out for the red mercury that could seep out at any time."

Wei Ruolan thought about it and quickly made arrangements based on the structure of the mountain.

Both boiling water and red mercury have very high temperatures, and the temperature will only be higher under high pressure, so Veron specifically reminded her before leaving.

"Don't worry, we have prepared protective clothing."

Veron waved his hand, and a team of soldiers in black vinyl jumpsuits entered the mine to continue their work.

The protective suit weighs more than ten kilograms. Its main materials are asbestos, flame-retardant rubber and metal mesh. It not only insulates but also has a certain protective effect, so you can be safe even in a sea of ​​fire.

The black-clad soldiers picked up hoes and shovels, and with the help of small drills, they gradually expanded the space in front of the bronze wall.

Wei Ruolan walked back to the tent and analyzed and compared the soil samples brought back by the drill rod.

There are three [Hurricane] drilling rigs. In addition to the two drilling rigs digging the mine tunnel, the third drilling rig has been taking samples around Damavand using a drill rod that is hundreds of meters long. There are sampling holes every few meters on the drill rod, and soil is squeezed into the sampling holes. By analyzing the soil samples, information about the strata at different depths can be obtained. Verolan's topographic maps are drawn based on this information.

After Verola finished comparing the surrounding terrain, she called back the third drilling rig and drew several locations on the ground for the driver, indicating that he should try drilling.

Seeing that nothing was found after digging several holes, Wei Ruolan was not discouraged, but just reminded the soldiers around her to be more careful.

As the drill rod was pulled out from the last position, bright red liquid emerged from the drill hole, then quickly expanded, and large streams of dazzling red fluid gushed out, forming a blood-red fountain more than ten meters high.

The red rain sprinkled around the mine, mixed with snowflakes, and fell on the protective clothing, creating dents that flowed down stickily, and the accumulated fluid quickly gathered into a pool of blood.

Seeing that the red mercury as hot as magma was about to melt the tracks, the driver hurriedly drove out the drilling rig.

"The information is correct. There really is a red mercury deposit here."

Veron exhaled softly and waved to Belon, who rushed out of the mine after hearing the noise.

The two returned to the tent, and Wei Ruolan stretched, revealing her proud curves.

"When will Little Caesar come? Since it is confirmed that there is red mercury here, the relics from the old era are probably real too."

Perón deftly switched off the power, opened the heavy Morse code box, and shook his head.

"I'm not sure. I only know that Red Dragon was seriously injured on the front line. If we take into account the time for recovery and travel, he should be able to arrive within a week."

Tick~tick~tick~
As he spoke, Perón had already transmitted the latest news via Morse code to the Turan Lowlands, and then sent the news back to Florence via the miraculous 10,000-mile railway.

At the same time, to the north of the Black Sea, the [World Python] train was carrying a towering black giant and rushing towards Bailaomen.

I'm really bad at naming things.
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(End of this chapter)