Geothermal energy.
This is a clean, pollution-free energy source derived from the magma deep within the planet. Although Imu wasn't entirely clear on the specifics, he knew one thing: in his previous life, the country that had raised him had been the world leader in geothermal utilization, which was enough to prove its reliability!
The process of converting underground thermal energy into mechanical energy, and then mechanical energy into electrical energy—this was what was known as geothermal power generation!
The key was that as long as the rate of heat extraction didn't exceed the rate at which it was naturally replenished, this energy could essentially be considered renewable. Not to mention, the awakened ability of the Magma Fruit could create active volcanoes that, in theory, could erupt and exist permanently, providing an almost limitless supply of thermal energy.
"For a civilization, energy is the engine of its development!"
No matter how ignorant Imu might be, he couldn't possibly not know this. After all, he had received some education, and in this regard, he was far superior to his predecessor.
"Akainu's magma can produce eternal geothermal energy. Then, Kizaru's Glint must be eternal light energy, and Dragon's hurricanes—that's wind energy! These are all clean, pollution-free energy sources!"
He grew excited, standing up and pacing around the living room. He hadn't considered these possibilities before, but now that he realized their immense value…
"Enel's Rumble-Rumble Fruit!!"
Imu suddenly stopped in his tracks, raising his head sharply. His deep gaze seemed to pierce through the roof, as if he could see the sky island above the White Sea.
"The previous ideas were about converting energy into electricity, but the awakened Rumble-Rumble Fruit directly provides electrical energy. Wasn't the 'Dark King' powered by it back then?"
With this thought, his resolve to visit the sky island grew stronger. The importance of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was enough to warrant his personal intervention, and he could also take the opportunity to explore the unique scenery of the sky island.
After calming down, he sat back on the sofa, poured himself a glass of red wine, and continued writing down his ideas.
Yes, he was essentially going to spoil Vegapunk! He planned to share the theories about the principles of Devil Fruits from the marine scholars of his previous life, the general situation of the Pacifistas, and some of the advanced technologies from his past life with this so-called scientist who was said to surpass human intelligence by 500 years.
"I remember that the key to the Pacifistas also requires the heart provided by the Op-Op Fruit and shape-memory alloy materials. For the former, he'll have to figure it out himself—see if a regular heart can be used. As for the latter…"
Imu looked up at the wooden box on the shelf, which contained the Paramecia-type Munch-Munch Fruit.
He could give the Munch-Munch Fruit to Vegapunk and then reveal the process of how Wapol would create the shape-memory alloy in the future. Replicating it shouldn't be too difficult.
But the problem remained: Vegapunk's loyalty to the World Government was still questionable.
If he were to eat the Munch-Munch Fruit, he would no longer be an ordinary person but a Devil Fruit user with supernatural abilities, which would increase the level of unpredictability.
"Come to think of it, in my previous life, there were rumors that Vegapunk had ties to the Revolutionary Army. But now that I've cut off the Revolutionary Army at its source, if I do my best to help him restore warmth to the future kingdom, his loyalty shouldn't be an issue."
Imu swirled the glass of wine in his hand, watching the deep red liquid spin as he pondered. After a moment, he made a decision.
"The Munch-Munch Fruit doesn't need to be given to him just yet, but these spoilers can be shared immediately. We must enhance the technological capabilities of the World Government and improve the Navy's arsenal of firearms."
Previously, the Five Elders had considered the issue of suppressing the Navy and the cost involved. Even though the North Blue had already developed mature automatic rifles, submachine guns, and grenades, they had not yet equipped the Navy on a large scale.
Currently, the Navy was still using flintlock muskets with round bullets, albeit modified to be breech-loading and capable of rapid fire. However, their power hadn't significantly improved.
While such firearms were sufficient for dealing with local pirates and other forces—after all, tougher opponents could be handled by higher-ranking officers with greater combat strength—they would be inadequate if the World Government were to wage war against other civilizations.
In Imu's view, since better firearms were available, the military should be equipped with the best. As for the cost, winning the war would more than make up for it. Resources wouldn't be a concern. Losing, however, would be the real problem!
As for the issue of balancing the Navy's power, Imu already had some ideas. One thing was clear: the Navy could be restrained, but not overly suppressed. Otherwise, it would ultimately be the World Government that suffered.
Most importantly, Imu had a thorough understanding of the current generation of Navy leadership, so there was nothing to worry about. As for the next generation, by then, methods of balance would already be in place.
Currently, the development of firearms across the four seas was as follows: the East Blue was the most backward, with single-shot, muzzle-loading flintlock muskets being the mainstream. Most people there had never even seen a rapid-fire flintlock.
Two years ago, Usopp, who was still in the East Blue, couldn't recognize the six-shot revolver from the South Blue that Mr. 5 was holding. He even insisted it could only fire once, only to be proven wrong instantly.
From this, it was clear that the South Blue was slightly more advanced than the East Blue, at least in terms of rapid-fire flintlocks becoming mainstream.
Next was the West Blue, a sea dominated by mafia families, including the infamous 'Five Great Mafia Families' of the underworld.
Judging by the future performance of the Firetank Pirates, the level of firearms in the West Blue had already reached that of the First World War, with Mauser rifles and heavy machine guns in widespread use.
Finally, there was the North Blue, which was almost entirely equipped with modern breech-loading cartridges, equivalent to the level of the Second World War. Submachine guns, grenades, light machine guns—everything was available. They could even manufacture multi-barrel rotary Vulcan cannons, which Doflamingo was currently selling.
In this way, the usefulness of this "Flamingo" became evident!
"He needs to expand his weapons factories in the North Blue," Imu muttered to himself before downing the glass of wine in one gulp.
"Wait, why are we re-equipping the Navy?"
Placing the glass back on the table, he crossed his arms and began to ponder.
"After opening the Stargate, most of the other worlds probably won't be as dominated by oceans as this one. If wars break out in the future, they'll likely be fought primarily on land, so the Navy's role won't be as significant."
"The Army..."
Imu felt that he should start paying attention to this force. Among the so-called three armies of the World Government, there was no air force, but rather the navy, army, and the Holy Land Garrison.
Of course, an air force would definitely be needed in the future.
As previously mentioned, the army had been responsible for guarding the Red Line Continent and the Nation of Bridges for hundreds of years, so it was easy to imagine how much combat capability remained.
"Now is the time to start strengthening the training and equipment of the army, turning them into a force capable of fighting tough battles!"
But then the question arose: who would train them? "What about transferring Zed here?" Imu asked himself in his mind.
But in the end, he shook his head. Leaving aside whether Zed would be willing to transfer to the army, the navy was also crucial, as the foundation still needed the navy to maintain order.
As previously mentioned, the navy could only be balanced, not suppressed.
"So who else is skilled in army training and combat?"
The second person Imu thought of was Garp, but upon recalling his personality, he shook his head again. Just then, a flash of inspiration struck, and the image of a man in a black general's uniform appeared in his mind.
"Douglas Bullet, wasn't he raised in the midst of war and even became a general of the Land of Never-Ending War through his military achievements?"
"Moreover, the battles in the Land of Never-Ending War took place entirely within the island, purely land-based combat. The key is that this guy is quite strong, and he's currently imprisoned in Impel Down!"