Chapter 222: Ball Lightning

"Yes, what appears most frequently in the historical records is [earthquakes]."

"If we look at it from the perspective of [earthquakes], then we only need to find the corresponding seismic phenomena to determine the cause of the Tianqi Explosion."

At this point, he cast his eyes aside, recalling the major earthquakes that had occurred in recent years and the previous century.

"I won't dwell on the Haiyuan Earthquake; an expert from Kyoto University of Science has already provided the answer in the chat. First, I'd like to thank that female professor for explaining it for me."

"Now, let's talk about some famous ones from recent years: the Tangshan Earthquake and the Wenchuan Earthquake."

"On the night before the Tangshan Earthquake, a villager in the suburbs of Tangshan saw a large fireball emerge from the ground. It was bright red, blinding, and crackling with noise, only extinguishing once it flew into mid-air."

"Note: This point is identical to what occurred at the Fire God Temple before the Tianqi Explosion, where fireballs flew into the sky."

Soon, the chat was filled with a flurry of questions.

"What exactly is this fireball?"

"I'm also looking up information, and I see that this kind of fireball appears in many earthquakes."

"That's simple; it's an earthquake light phenomenon. Earthquake lights are glows emitted from the ground before an earthquake occurs. They come in various colors and shapes, including band-shaped, sheet-shaped, spherical, columnar, and even fire-like lights."

"Also, when underground rock strata are subjected to stress, they may release electric currents. These currents generate flashes when they come into contact with the air. Changes in groundwater flow and chemical composition before an earthquake can also lead to the appearance of earthquake lights."

"Damn, I really thought it was some kind of fireball. It turns out to be [earthquake light]. I feel as ignorant as the ancients."

"+1"

"..."

Hearing this, Jiang Zhe smiled slightly. "Thank you to the expert in the chat for clarifying this for the audience. Let's continue."

"Therefore, what appears on the eve of an earthquake is the [earthquake light phenomenon]."

"I previously read a report that contained a detailed interview. According to the recollection of Liu XX from the Tangshan Power Plant library—"

"[At 3:30 AM on July 28, I came out of the side room to the water vat in the main room to scoop some water to drink.]"

"[After drinking the water, I heard a rumbling sound coming from the north of the main room, growing increasingly intense, so I hurriedly opened the door.]"

"[I suddenly saw that the sky to the northwest was a deep crimson, a color slightly redder than a sunset glow.]"

"[Besides the rumbling, there was the sound of rushing wind, which sounded like over a dozen airplanes circling nearby; however, I couldn't see any signs of the wind blowing the tree branches.]"

"[I had lived for over thirty years and had never seen such a scene, nor had I ever heard such a sound.]"

"[While I was wondering about it, suddenly, a red light flashed on the north side of Fenghuang Mountain, and a large fireball rose up. It was as big as the sun. It shot up into the sky, then slowly descended. When it reached the height of the roof, it started rolling horizontally from west to south.]"

"[As it crossed the intersection, the large fireball hit a utility pole, emitting white and red flashes. After the flashes passed over the wires, it quickly returned to its original shape!]"

"[After that thing rolled forward for a distance, the fireball suddenly shot up, reaching dozens of meters above the ground. The sparks splattered beneath it gathered into small fireballs and continued to roll on the ground.]"

"[About a few dozen seconds later, the large fireball suddenly shot up into the air, dimmed for a moment, and then disappeared.]"

"[Afterward, the ground shook three times in a north-south direction, then began to shake vertically. I realized then that an earthquake was happening and immediately shouted to my mother, who was living in the main room: 'It's an earthquake! Quickly crawl under the table!']"

"[Before I could even stand up, the house collapsed.]"

"[Fortunately, the roof was thrown entirely outside. After things calmed down, my mother and I stood on the open-air ruins.]"

At this moment, Jiang Zhe's tone suddenly changed, as if he had transformed into a middle-aged man with a Tianjin accent.

This scene left the viewers from Tianjin stunned.

"Good heavens, that was so vivid; I thought I was watching Tianjin TV..."

"That was so authentic! It's a shame he didn't perform a bit of Tianjin clapper talk!"

"I finally get it! The ancients didn't know about the earthquake light phenomenon, so they called it fire. Emperor Tianqi thought it was his own sin, so he issued an edict of self-reproach, and under all sorts of chaotic influences, the Tianqi Explosion was created?"

"That's highly likely. The logic is clear now; it's highly probable that it was an earthquake. By deriving further from the earthquake, we can get to the truth!"

"..."

At this moment, Jiang Zhe suddenly asked a rhetorical question:

"I won't even mention the subsequent Wenchuan Earthquake; half an hour before the major earthquake began, the sky suddenly emitted a red glow, just like a sunset, and there were many witnesses."

As he finished speaking, the survivors from Wenchuan in the audience nodded quickly and spoke excitedly.

"Yes, yes, yes! I personally experienced this kind of sunset-like earthquake light, but it's such a pity; many people died in that disaster."

"Also, shortly before the earthquake, a flock of hundreds of eagles suddenly appeared in the sky above a certain village of ours, circling overhead and making strange cries. The villagers were just looking up, watching the spectacle, when the earthquake happened."

"These phenomena are all precursors to an earthquake."

"..."

More and more witnesses came forward to share their experiences, making more of the audience convinced that the flashes before the Tianqi Explosion and the subsequent gunpowder explosion originated from [earthquake light] or [Ball Lightning].

At this point, Jiang Zhe continued to explain:

"And what I just described—isn't it far more familiar than the archaic language of the Tianqi Explosion?"

"If you don't believe the ancients, then you should at least believe the witnesses who experienced the modern Tangshan Earthquake and Wenchuan Earthquake, right?"

As he finished, the audience nodded quickly.

"We believe it! We definitely believe it!"

"Ancient texts can be exaggerated or fabricated, but modern witnesses wouldn't fake it."

"I believe the people who experienced it firsthand; I don't really trust ancient documents. Most people in ancient times, apart from their culture, didn't know as much as people who have gone through nine-year compulsory education."

"..."

Jiang Zhe nodded with satisfaction.

"Hmm, let's skip this and continue."

"So, did you all notice?"

"The Tianqi Explosion, the Haiyuan Earthquake, and the Tangshan Earthquake all had the exact same precursor: crackling red spherical lightning rising into the air."

"And what you all now understand as [earthquake light] is also known in physics as [plasma]."

"Once this phenomenon appears, it means that an [earthquake] or [volcanic eruption] might be coming."

Just then, on the whiteboard behind Jiang Zhe, Producer Xiao Qian tacitly displayed an image on the board behind him.

"Everyone, please look at this picture."

Jiang Zhe turned around. On the whiteboard was an image captured before the Sakurajima volcano eruption in Japan, showing a plasma explosion phenomenon beneath the volcano.

"The upper half of the picture showed massive clouds, and beneath the clouds at the foot of the volcano, a super-vast white flash was glowing."

"The flash appeared to occupy half the width of the volcano and looked truly shocking; it was as dazzling as a supernova explosion."

Soon, Producer Xiao Qian switched to the next picture.

"After the flash, the volcano erupted successfully. The sky was filled with billowing black smoke and dust, covering everything. Soon, the area around the volcano was covered with fire-red lava, which, under the influence of the temperature, quickly turned into black, hard rock."

Watching this scene, many viewers began to ponder.

Some volcanic eruptions have no warning signs before they happen, while others do indeed, as shown in the picture, trigger earthquake lights.

All of this, under Jiang Zhe's explanation, seemed to find a perfect answer.

Perhaps...

The Tianqi Explosion was not special, and the truth was about to surface.

Facing the camera, Jiang Zhe began to explain:

"As you all can see, this picture is that white glowing substance from the Sakurajima volcano eruption."

"This is [earthquake light], or [plasma], or perhaps [Ball Lightning]."

"It is important to note that this Ball Lightning is not produced by the lava of the volcanic eruption, but is a white flash generated by the explosion of plasma-charged particle streams originating from underground."

"And [Ball Lightning] mainly has two sources—"

"1. High-energy plasma charged particle streams produced by bursting comets."

"2. High-energy plasma charged particle streams produced by underground earthquakes and volcanic activity."

"Ball Lightning generated underground is a precursor to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions; it heralds the occurrence of strong earthquakes and major earthquakes."

"Therefore, with the logic and empirical evidence appearing, the cause of the Tianqi Explosion was triggered by the [Ball Lightning] that appeared underground."

At this point, Jiang Zhe's expression was extremely serious. He raised an index finger. "Please note, what I am talking about here is only the cause of the Tianqi Explosion, not that the entire explosion was solely the fault of the Ball Lightning."