The Cornflower Witch

Building roads was the first step toward development. At present, roughly half of the nations within the Hidden Grove Alliance were situated in mountainous regions, jungles, and swamps with terrible road conditions, while the other half had waterways and relatively viable paths, but those routes could only accommodate small boats and simple carriages.

Given that the problem couldn't be solved all at once, the priority was to complete the main trunk lines first. After surveys and negotiations, the five major alliances tentatively approved the plan to build level main roads, and the first step of this plan was to construct one vertical and two horizontal trunk roads within the Hidden Grove Alliance's sphere of influence, connecting the core major nations within the alliance.

"The starting point of the main road is at the border of the Mage Alliance in the north, namely the Switch City 'Kikas'. From there, it follows the western wilderness of Meteorite Lake, heading south all the way, passing through the Black Sanctum Duchy, the Morris Merchant League, the Inner Lake Kingdom, and the Snowdra Mountain State, before reaching the central Aierzhen Empire."

Sylutia, wearing a scholar's robe of black fabric adorned with white floral patterns, drew a long line on the map, then marked a small circle.

"As the most prosperous nation in the central region, the Aierzhen Empire's territory is mostly plains, making it suitable as a transportation hub connecting north and south. It is also the core region through which the first east-west main road passes."

"After that, the main road continues southward. Upon reaching the Ludel Mountain State, the road shifts slightly eastward, angling toward the southeast, then passes through the Dandelion Hills before arriving at Eucalyptus United, which is where we are now."

"From there, the road continues further south, passing through the Xuelansha Kingdom, the Merchant Capital Alliance, the Eagle-Scorpion Khanate, the Reygas Duchy, the Hot Rain Swamps, the Mountain Vulture City, the Green Venom Forest, the Golden Wave Ancient Kingdom, and finally arriving at the Stone Road Ruins at the southern end."

This vertical line roughly divided the Hidden Grove Alliance in half, positioned in the middle of the southern part of the Fourth Continent.

"After the vertical main road, we have the two horizontal main roads." Sylutia continued her presentation.

"The first one starts from the White Beak Cliffs in the west, heading east through the Giant Otter Plateau, the Gravel Mountain State, and the Flying Falls Passage, then descends into the Herlin Kingdom, the Duoling Duchy, the Sibir Character City, the Branka Merchant League, the Aierzhen Empire, the Trenchlands, the Xi'anda Duchy, the Purple Dusk Plains, the Seven Leaf Hills, and the Suilin Mountains."

"The second one starts from the Fissure Canyon, heading east through the Geli Forest, the Sepus Kingdom, the Su'anli Empire, the Lame Crow Plains, Eucalyptus United, the Hulier Duchy, the Xuebi Grasslands, the Black Marsh, and the Sealed Gate."

Sylutia completed drawing all three main routes. These three trunk roads were like the skeletal spine of a human body, strung together most of the nations within the Hidden Grove Alliance. Even if some countries weren't directly on the routes, they would only need to cross one to three nations to reach a main road.

Among them, the most economically valuable was naturally the north-south main road, because the nations with the largest populations and the most wealth within the Hidden Grove Alliance were all clustered near this route. The remaining two horizontal main roads were not nearly as prosperous, as many of the places they passed through were wilderness, and the nearby nations had relatively sparse populations.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"Is the project really this massive?" An elder at the Sixth Tier frowned as he assessed the three main lines.

"If these three main roads are to be completed, it will likely cost an unimaginable amount of resources and manpower."

"Indeed, if construction begins, who foots the bill in the end? Will we levy taxes on all nations in the Hidden Grove Alliance? That's hardly a wise decision."

"Each nation has different levels of wealth, and some are quite far from the main roads. If we tax everyone at the same standard, it will provoke widespread dissatisfaction and conflict."

Although the roads would bring numerous benefits once completed, faced with such a staggering scale of work and cost, many representatives began to waver, and some wanted to back out entirely.

Money was important, after all. Sylutia observed the situation in the room and knew that if this problem couldn't be properly resolved, the road construction would inevitably be delayed indefinitely.

She had several solutions in mind, but all of them required coordination and cooperation from various factions. Unfortunately, given her current status and standing, she didn't yet have that kind of prestige.

A genius with great expectations placed upon them was, after all, only judged by future achievements. Those could still be converted into actual power and authority down the line.

With Sylutia's current position, she would be welcomed in any nation within the Hidden Grove, but mobilizing the manpower and resources of various countries was not something that could be accomplished with just a few words.

After several days of negotiations, the leadership of the Hidden Grove Alliance ultimately only agreed to build the north-south main road as a pilot project. The construction costs would be shared equally among the nations along the route, while nations not directly on the path could choose to contribute money or participate. Of course, the trade-off was that when those countries wanted to use the main road for commerce in the future, they would need to pay a corresponding "toll fee" to compensate the nations that sponsored the construction.

Though the plan had been gradually scaled back step by step, at least something had been accomplished. Sylutia couldn't ask for more at this point.

With the preliminary consensus secured, the next step was preparing the construction funds and manpower.

The funding still needed to be calculated and allocated by each nation along the route, but the manpower portion was relatively straightforward, it would be directly led by Sylutia's mage team. They had numerous large machinery at their disposal, as well as many newly recruited apprentices and junior scholars who could participate in the construction work.

On one hand, this reduced additional personnel expenses, and on the other hand, this large-scale project provided them with practical experience and training.

According to calculations by the senior mages accompanying the team, once the north-south main road was completed, it should be able to train nearly two thousand official mages at the Third Tier on the 'Gold Steam' Path.

The construction of the main road wasn't just about extensive surveying, foundation excavation and filling, rail laying, and railway station construction, it also involved building locomotive factories, establishing fuel supply depots along the route, and much more.

Once these projects were completed, the trains running on the route could rapidly transport supplies and goods along the line between north and south, greatly boosting the economic vitality of the nations along the way. It would also reduce the losses from grain transportation by half, generating even greater profits.

The entire project was expected to take five years to complete. The first year would be the pilot phase, accumulating experience and training suitable apprentices. Starting from the second year, the team would be divided into five groups, working simultaneously at five key nodes, until the entire north-south main road was finally connected and opened through.

Five years, Sylutia compared this to the industrial era efficiency of Earth in her previous life, and she had to admit that the transcendent world did have certain advantages. Mages could use the power of their spells to bore through soil layers, build foundations, and compact the ground, making everything much more convenient and swift. All that was left afterward was using machinery to lay the tracks and having workers install and secure them.

As for materials, there was no need to worry. They could simply be shipped directly from the Mage Alliance, exchanged for grain. The price was far cheaper than if the Hidden Grove Alliance manufactured them itself.

Overall, this project was a win-win situation. The Hidden Grove Alliance obtained a mature railway line at a relatively small cost, while the Mage Alliance gained a trade railway through which they could continuously transport industrial goods and commodities to the Hidden Grove for sale, earning grain and profits in return.

These industrial products and commodities would gradually improve the production efficiency of local nations and stimulate more consumption. Over time, a siphon effect would form, meaning cities closer to the railway would become more developed and prosperous, and regions closer to the main roads would benefit more easily. In the long run, populations would gradually gather toward these nations and regions. With abundant populations, factories would have enough workers, and once people congregated, it would also facilitate the spread of education.

In the past, only wealthy families could afford tuition. But with the implementation of large-class collective education, the cost could drop to a level that ordinary families could also support. These educated students would give the Hidden Grove a larger pool of talent to select from. Even if their aptitude wasn't sufficient to enter the various major factions and organizations within the Hidden Grove, they could still become qualified workers or technically knowledgeable personnel, contributing to more efficient production.

The times were advancing. Even if some people worried and hesitated about such changes, the broader trend was difficult to stop. Sylutia was simply curious about what form this era's combination of industry and transcendent power would ultimately take.

Even though the early stages bore some resemblance to her previous life, the subsequent development would certainly be different.

A future where magic and technology coexisted, truly hard to imagine.