I, transformed into a vampire girl, sparked the Industrial Revolution.

Chapter 178 Towards Places Further Than the Universe

The sky is deep blue, and so is the ocean.

But unlike the land, the ocean is alive. Waves are broken apart by the steel bows of ships, only to come together again. No matter how many times travelers cross the ocean, it remains forever calm.

A red-painted ship sails alone on the ocean, cutting through the waves, its tricolor flag fluttering in the wind. It is a large steel ship equipped with the most advanced communication and detection equipment available today, carrying explorers and scientists in pursuit of the unknown, heading towards the southernmost point.

This is a place even farther than the universe. If you go all the way up from the Northern Space Centre, it might only take 100 kilometers to reach the universe, while going south from Port Hilla, the shortest distance is at least 12,000 kilometers.

That's why Alice called it "a place further than the universe," and Olina Kristoff of the National Exploration Society agreed to go, aboard the National Exploration Society's newest exploration ship, the "Knowledge Seeker," to that distant Antarctica.

In the past, no one had ever explored the existence of the North and South Poles, but with the introduction of modern science by Alice, the scientific community in America developed rapidly, the theory of a spherical Earth gained official support, and people began to wonder what exactly was at the point where the compass points north and south.

What constitutes the direction that people perceive?

Olina Christophe had learned from Alice that the earth beneath their feet revolved around the sun, which bestowed light and heat upon it, but not all places enjoyed this gift equally.

Heading south and north from the hottest equator, the sun's light and heat dissipate with distance and terrain. After passing the hottest equator, the exploration ship sails south and docks in Burnia for resupply.

"Demon guests, where are you going?"

The Burnians stared curiously at the giant red ship. Some considered its all-red color an omen of misfortune, others believed it spewed lava and blood, and still others thought it was a demon's sea fortress.

However, the Seeker was merely a ship designed for exploring the unknown, and the only weapons on board were some large-caliber rifles and pistols, used for defense against pirates and danger.

The Burnians knew full well that this ship was capable of destroying their fleet. However, since the demons were now allied with them, some people curiously asked Olina Christopher, the female explorer, who, dressed in a coat, simply replied:

"We headed south to explore places we had never been before."

The origin of the word "exploration" is no longer reliable, but its meaning has remained unchanged, both in the past and present—it is the pursuit of knowledge.

"Go south? There's nothing there but ice, cold, and sharks, just endless ocean waiting to swallow sailors whole..."

An old sailor waved a fishing net. The sailors on the exploration ship were all demons from a foreign land, but so what?

"Whatever it may be, we will know—after we see it with our own eyes."

The crew and sailors of the Seeker were all highly adventurous individuals, most of whom were either members of the Visionaries Alliance or came directly from the Amelanse National Exploration Society.

Within the association and alliance, science reigned supreme, and as the Age of Discovery arrived, people gradually realized that they were not the original inhabitants of this planet.

This planet is littered with ruins and the remains of pre-existing civilizations. The National Exploration Association's goal is not only to explore nature, but also to explore the ruins of pre-existing civilizations and search for memories of the past.

Only the people of America know all this. The difference in the level of scientific and technological development and the difference in thinking have led to the current situation. Scientific thinking has begun to take root in this generation. People have begun to consciously think about the origin of natural phenomena, rather than treating them as the result of some higher intervention.

Alice teaches the advanced minds the nature of science, and the advanced minds spread what they have learned, science expands its intellectual territory among the people, and the worship of nature gods and ghosts begins to decline and is replaced by science.

The Burnians watched the giant red ship sail away. Most of them could not understand the actions of these demons, but amidst their ignorance and folly, a flicker of light still lingered.

"Mr. Cook, what are you looking at?"

“I’m looking at those demons. My servant just told me that they are a group of brave explorers and scholars heading to the southernmost point.”

“Mr. Cook, I remember you also…”

“That’s right. I have just received the Queen’s permission to travel to the farthest East and West to help the Kingdom map and explore the world. If possible, I will try to prove the theory that the Earth is round and return to the Kingdom after circling the world.”

The man watched the red behemoth sail away. Of course, he didn't believe the nonsense that the behemoth was made of molten lava and blood. It was clearly a ship painted red!

However, the red paint is indeed very noticeable. After all, it's not wartime, but in the freezing cold, a conspicuous spot would certainly help with observation.

He nodded, watching the demon ships sail away, and wrote her name in his diary—"The Seeker of Knowledge".

On February 5, 657, the Seeker departed Burnia and headed south into the Arctic Circle.

The ship was equipped with gear to cope with the polar environment. Thick fur clothing was distributed to everyone, including thick gloves that made it difficult to hold a pencil once worn.

"Mr. Mercator."

“I’m here, damn it, these gloves are in the way.”

Mercator is a cartographer who dedicated the first half of his life to drawing maps of the demon kingdom. However, now that the Amelansi National Exploration Association, in conjunction with the Transportation Committee, has built thousands of surveying towers and established surveying teams across the country to complete the first map of the Amelansi national territory, he has joined the Map Surveying Section of the Foreign Exploration Department.

One advantage of working with the Foreign Exploration Department is that it allows him to conduct scientific research activities all over the world, and his job has thus changed to drawing world maps.

As the ship sailed south, ice made it nearly impossible to move on the deck. Had the Seeker not been designed with polar navigation in mind, many people might have slipped into the sea.

"It's getting colder and there are more and more ice floes around. Be careful, Captain."

"Of course, ma'am, turn five degrees to the left to avoid those ice floes."

"What's that on the horizon?"

On the sea surface, a tiny dot appears as an odd, uneven object on a line. People raise their binoculars and look into the distance.

"land!"

They saw a mountain peak, a white mountain peak, approaching them from the distance. The ship gradually slowed down, revealing the entire frozen continent. Black and white creatures lived in groups on the land. Everyone looked at this frozen land, with towering snow-capped mountains in the distance.

On March 4, 657, the people of this planet reached Antarctica for the first time.