11 Chapter 11

In not but minutes, Ningguang had inspected the platform, the machine guns, and of course the box built around the machines to cut down on the noise it was making. "Keqing, you said this was all put together in naught but the last few hours?" She asked frankly.

Keqing nodded and said honestly. "Lady Ningguang, you know all to well how this area was not even a day ago. Jake's machines are putting out and refining more metal than dozens of workers and hundreds of guards could work to acquire back when the Chasm was open for mining." 

Crimson eyes landed on my form with Ningguang visibly chewing on her thoughts before she spoke. "Jake Barris, I am curious... Why did you not share this technology with your homeland of Mondstadt? Why flee here to Liyue?" Ningguang asked and there was a weight of suspicion in her eyes as she gazed at me.

I paused and for a brief moment, I considered lying and saying that I was an orphan or something. Or that I was being bullied and harassed in Mondstadt. But in the end, I mentally threw away those thoughts as I knew Ningguang could probably read me like a book if I so blatantly lied.

So I answered honestly. "I was teleported by... Something. And after that event I ended up close to Liyue, and as for why I didn't share my technology with Mondstadt?" I shrugged and said evenly. "I was working at my own pace and doing research for this technology to begin with."

The silver-haired beauty chuckled and wore a small smile as she popped out a long elegant pipe that she began to smoke and send little puffs of golden and creme-colored smoke into the air as she continued eye contact with me. "Very well Jake Bariss, What do you need to extend this machinery line?" She asked while spinning her pipe across her finger tip.

I looked at my single machine line of a Miner, Smelter, and Constructor and after doing some mental math I spoke aloud. "In order to max out on efficiency I need to either make a pipe line to pump water from the ocean into my machines to use a coal power plant. Then with multiple levels to this facility, I can run five more mining lines like this but far more effective and a higher production rate." I explained briefly and as Ningguang waved her hand to clearly go on I said plainly.

"I need strong hands in order to move the machines around and get the walls in place so I can weld a large solid dome over the facility to keep monsters from here. And of course guards to keep the facility safe while everything is running." I finished what I truly needed.

With just a single machine line, with the machines able to put out the necessary iron and copper, I could put together all the early Satisfactory machines and likewise I could start prepping to make the Deep Rock Galactic weaponry.

My single demand made Ningguang raise an eyebrow and she said with some humor. "Just workers to do what I wish for you to do in expanding your operations? Of course, you will be diverting these mined resources to Liyue, but no Jake... What do you want for helping the city of Liyue, what do you desire and dream of?" She asked with no little bit of temptation in her voice as she attempted to find out what I desired with my supposed genius.

 I had to take a second to answer as I was all to aware that I was going to be sending Liyue resources for the right to be mining her to begin with. To say nothing of how I needed supernatural martial support to survive outside of the city anyway. But as for what I had wanted from all this? "Honestly... I guess to learn some martial arts? To learn some cultivation, to get married and have kids I don't know Haha." I said easily as I felt a weight leave me as I came to a realization of what I wanted.

I wanted to build a new life in this world.

Keqing hearing my words snorted while Ningguang herself chuckled loudly with her covering her mouth elegantly to hide her expression of utter amusement. Finally after getting her laughs she nodded and said frankly. "Very well Jake, you wish to acquire power? Thats fine, Keqing can teach you some martial arts to refine your body, but. Keqing has already told me that your spiritual veins are..." She lead off and I smiled as I walked over to the Miner and after going to the secondary output coming out of the splitter I put in front of the miner leading to the smelter and so on. I went to the storage container and a dull thinking noise rang out as an ever so slightly glowing smooth river stone landed in my hands.

"Regardless of my talent, I can always go the prodigal path... As my miners can also pull up spirit stones from the ground." I said with a wide smile as with a cracking noise Ningguang's pipe fell to the ground and shattered as I pulled a lever and the storage container started outputting the couple hundred spirit stones I had pulled up as a byproduct of my mining of the last couple hours.

Keqing quickly walked over and held one of the spirit stones to inspect it and her lips twitched as she dryly said. "They are all basically uniform. And close to a middle-tier spirit stone in terms of spiritual density." As both ladies looked at me in utter confusion I shrugged and vaguely explained how my machines were just treating the spirit stones as a byproduct due to the native ground being filled with trace spiritual elements, that it was registering as radioactive materials that needed to be quarantined and disposed of.

"Jake... How many spirit stones can your finished factory output?" Ningguang asked blankly and I had to exhale as that was some mental gymnastics I had to juggle.

"Well seeing as its just a byproduct of my mineral mining I cannot purposefully mine for it for now. But with a full setup, and the machines running around the clock... A good ohhh about fifteen thousand of those spirit stones in size and quality, but with better machines I could condense the spirit stones better and make bigger and more energy-dense stones." I answered happily and a clank rang out as Keqing blankly dropped the spirit stone that was so similar to the one she gave me when I first reached Liyue.

I was... Well aware of the value of these spirit stones and Ningguang herself had seemingly blue-screened as her own mental math of knowing I was only mining a couple hours to get two hundred middle-grade spirit stones would even out with several more machine lines. 

"You... Are perfect for an auxiliary cultivation art I know." She said with a wry smile and then she continued as I raised an eyebrow. "Its called, The Golden Path, and for people with poor talents but great business senses, it allows you to cultivate the Dao of Gold... Either accumulating or spending great amounts of money will acquire karmic energy that allows even people with the worst talents to match a genius though its not known for its attacking methods. It does have powerful defensive spells." She explained and then with a flick of her hands a golden tablet appeared in her palms.

"Here, call this an early investment. You can repay the cultivation technique with five thousand spirit stones and as for the labourers... I want iron and copper ingots to be sent to Liyue." Ningguang said laying out the cards on the table.

And honestly... I was fine with that. I could repay the spirit stones in a couple of days of mining as a by-product even now. To say nothing of when I got a dozen such mining lines. 

And that money cultivation method was perfect for me. As I knew for a damned fact that I was going to accumulate ridiculous amounts of mineral wealth.

"You got a deal." I said happily with Ningguang smiling in turn and she turned on her heel and strutted back towards her carriage and only when she reached the carriage did she look back and spoke to Keqing.

"Keep him alive Yuheng, he is an asset of Liyue now." I could feel Keqing's eye roll as she snorted and didn't reply to Ningguang's remark and that was the last of Ningguang as she got back into the carriage to obviously head back to Liyue in order to probably send more workers and guards here.