Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

The experiment was over. Most of the watching Sirens gradually dispersed, returning to their own tasks.

The results of this experiment were truly unbelievable.

No one had expected that the Mechanical Cathedral’s ritual would actually link with the Machine Soul, but at least they had gained something, the pollution could finally be burned.

Whether this method was good or bad remained uncertain.

The Sirens frantically discussed the matter through their Mind Link for a long time.

The speed of their messages was so overwhelming that Hughes could barely keep up.

He only knew that most of the Sirens supported his idea, while only a small number had more concerns.

After all, thanks to their Symbiotic Contract with him, the Sirens were completely immune to pollution.

Even if something really went wrong with the steam engine, it wouldn’t pose much of a threat to them.

The ones who didn’t support it were mainly concerned that the industrial products made by this "Heretical Steam Engine" might have issues, such as steel inherently carrying pollution.

Hughes didn’t have a good way to avoid this problem for now, so he could only try it out on a small scale first.

The Moths Chasing Fire, on the other hand, were unanimously in favor of it.

Although they feared pollution even more, their pursuit of knowledge made it impossible for them to reject something so peculiar.

They only had one suggestion, give the "Heretical Steam Engine" a new name.

The original name was indeed a bit silly. After a heated debate, the name 【Clamorer】—proposed by Gaia—won the majority’s support. It was an apt description.

While running, it continuously murmured something, blending with the sounds of the boiler and pistons, creating an eerie clamor.

Hughes specifically listened to it for a long time.

Although the murmuring didn’t cause pollution, listening to it for too long was still annoying.

He had no idea what it was saying, only that it was endlessly chattering.

Interestingly, when Hughes approached, the noise from Clamorer grew significantly louder, as if it wanted to say something to him.

Unfortunately, Hughes had no intention of getting any closer, if he linked with it, it would surely be purified again.

Several Sirens carried barrels of pollution and placed them near Clamorer.

As the pollution neared Clamorer, it gradually quieted down and became much more stable, seemingly turning into ordinary fuel.

It would only regain its living characteristics once it was taken away from there.

There was still a considerable stockpile of pollution left from the last Cognitive Interference Descent.

Pollution burned slowly, so it was estimated to last for quite some time.

At the very least, it was enough to deal with the current crisis.

Thinking of those strange sea urchins in the deep sea, Hughes’ eyes darkened.

Those creatures were powerful attackers and were aligned with the Murlocs. He wasn’t sure if Castel could withstand them.

Recently, the Sirens had been diving into the sea less frequently.

They had confirmed that the Polluted Serpent was gradually expanding northward and would inevitably reach Castel.

Meanwhile, the patrol range of the sea urchins was also increasing.

The tunnel leading to the seafloor had been temporarily halted.

Instead, the Sirens had begun digging tunnels beneath the island.

Hughes planned to create an entire underground network connecting Castel.

This would allow for the transportation of hazardous materials and serve as preparation for the battle against the sea urchins.

He intended to move the battlefield onto the island.

At sea, the only real fighting force was the Sirens, but on land, he could construct extensive reinforced concrete fortifications to keep the massive sea urchins confined to the shallows.

The underground tunnels would act as the veins connecting these fortifications, allowing him to deploy combat forces easily and transform Castel into a massive fortress.

Hughes called this plan the "Network Path Project."

After bidding farewell to the Sirens, Hughes rode back to the manor and asked Connor to summon Alexei.

Recently, he had delegated research tasks to the Moths Chasing Fire, while the steel mill and other new factories were temporarily managed by Chloe.

The production line for nitroglycerin was handled by Gaia and the advanced class students, while the school was entrusted to Zoe.

Yet, rather than having more free time, Alexei had only gotten busier.

The reason was simple, after enduring so many setbacks, he had finally taken on his original duty: training the army.

Castel had already begun full mobilization.

The recruitment plan had been on the agenda for a long time, and now it was simply accelerating.

It wasn’t just about recruiting soldiers. With each order Hughes signed, the massive and intricate machine that was Castel slowly began to turn.

The organizational system Hughes had painstakingly built was finally starting to show its effects.

Zoe wrote several articles, covering everything from the friendship between Sirens and humans to the strange sea urchin monsters lurking in the sea.

Under Hughes’ deliberate guidance and influence, Castel’s citizens gradually became united against a common enemy.

After all, they were defending their homeland.

To them, the sea urchins and the Polluted Serpent were invaders, so the propaganda and mobilization efforts encountered little resistance.

Hughes was waiting. Waiting for the atmosphere to heat up even more.

Soon, the Sirens would be able to walk under the sun and reveal their identities in Castel.

Aside from the Sirens’ identity issue, the factory upgrades were also nearing completion.

The production of nitroglycerin didn’t consume much glycerin, and the existing stockpile was sufficient.

Thus, Hughes temporarily shut down the soap factory, while the olive oil factory operated at half capacity.

The new steam engines had arrived and would soon be installed, after which all factories on the island would be powered by steam.

Steam engines required a sufficient number of workers to operate.

While most people proactively learned about steam engines, some workers refused to continue their studies.

Hughes didn’t force them. Not everyone had a talent for machinery, and Castel was in dire need of manpower in various areas.

Most of these people joined the construction teams.

Once the steel mill started running, the cement production line followed.

Though output was still low, production capacity was ramping up quickly.

The first batch of steel from the mill was entirely used for making rebar, its quality was still unstable, but it was more than adequate for construction.

Hughes designed a three-layer defensive system for Castel.

The first layer was the most crucial, centered around the Eastern Test Site, where most personnel would be stationed in the future.

The second layer encompassed various key factories.

As long as this defensive line held, war supplies could continue to be manufactured and transported.

The third layer covered the outskirts of Castel.

Hughes planned a dense network of fortresses and strongholds along all possible landing sites on the coast.

If they were all completed, Castel would become an impregnable steel fortress.

However, given the speed at which the Polluted Serpent was spreading, it was unrealistic to expect all fortifications to be finished in time.

The newly recruited engineering teams were working on constructing the second layer of defenses.

Civil engineering required a lot of practical experience, and combined with the still-limited cement production, they were primarily in a phase of adaptation and training.

The real construction force, however, was the Sirens.

Under Una’s leadership, they began building fortifications at the Eastern Test Site.

The Sirens used "Fossil to Mud" to liquefy stones in place of cement, reinforcing structures with rebar to construct a series of fortifications.

Hughes had personally tested this method.

The rock-and-rebar fortifications were exceptionally sturdy, stronger than concrete.

If the Sirens weren’t so few in number, he would have used this method instead of cement entirely.

After reviewing Castel’s war preparations, Hughes heard a knock at the door.

"Come in, Alexei. How is the recruitment plan going?"

"Uh… Your Alexei might take a while."

Chloe pushed open the door and sat in the armchair opposite Hughes with a sigh.

"I need to tell you something."

"What is it? Didn’t you just return?" Hughes looked at her in surprise. They had just parted ways at the test site, why was she back so soon?

"We’ve got trouble." Chloe sighed.

"I just tried using the Candlelight Church’s communication channel at the church. There was no response at all. We’ve completely lost contact with the outside world."