Chapter 636
Chapter 636
“This man's heart is unfathomably insidious!”
Ning Yuanxian flew into a rage after receiving a secret report from the Blackwater Terrace.
‘This scoundrel, Zhang Zizhu. I am desperately trying to preserve my friendship with the Queen of Jiang, yet you are desperately trying to drive a wedge between us? You've taken advantage of her straightforward nature to bully her quite well.’
After his outburst, Ning Yuanxian quickly calmed down. What could he do now? Issue an imperial edict to dismantle the defensive line Zhang Zizhu built on the border? Or dismiss Zhang Zizhu from his post immediately? Both were impossible. The position of Central Military Governor of Tianxi Province could only be entrusted to a member of the Crown Prince's faction. It would be the same even if someone else took the position. The Queen of Jiang was Shen Lang's staunchest ally, which inevitably made her an enemy of the Crown Prince's faction.
Besides, Zhang Zizhu had walked a fine line, never once overstepping Queen Aru'na'na's limits or truly pushing her into becoming an enemy. For instance, when the Jiang cavalry recently crossed the border, he ordered his troops to only defend and not engage, avoiding further armed conflict and even adopting the posture of enduring humiliation for a greater cause. He was too cleverly bullying an honest person.
‘But to do such a thing with a war against a great enemy looming... Zhang Zizhu, you scoundrel, aren't you afraid of getting burned while playing with fire?’
In his mind, Ning Yuanxian drew a large cross over Zhang Zizhu's name. Even when he was implicated in the military rations embezzlement case last time, Ning Yuanxian had still considered him worthy of appointment. But Zhang Zizhu's actions this time had greatly disappointed him. Ning Yuanxian let out a sigh. If they won this war, which would determine the fate of the nation, the Crown Prince's position would be as stable as a mountain, and he would have no need to employ Zhang Zizhu. Conversely, if the Crown Prince lost the war, Zhang Zizhu, as his direct subordinate, would see his future ruined anyway, so it didn't matter whether Ning Yuanxian crossed him off or not. The royal court was filled with clever people; the problem was that they were too clever.
“Issue an imperial edict to reprimand Zhang Zizhu. Do not mention any specific crimes, just a reprimand! And confiscate the plaque bestowed upon the Zhang family by the late king.”
***
Queen Aru'na'na of Jiang gazed at the Saman warriors before her. Her heart ached as if pierced. Two thousand warriors were kneeling before her.
“Your Majesty, you are like the moon in the sky. It has been the honor of our lives to serve you. But we of the Saman have our own sun. Our sun, Lord Gong, needs us. Please forgive us. We can no longer pledge our loyalty to you.”
These mercenaries who had pledged their loyalty to Aru'na'na were all warriors of the Saman Clan. After she ascended the throne, eight thousand mercenaries had sworn fealty to her, the majority of whom were Saman warriors.
“If you are angered, please order us to be killed or to take our own lives. If you give the command, we will not dare to cling shamefully to life!”
One of the Saman warriors placed his scimitar against his own neck, ready to cut his throat without hesitation should Aru'na'na give the word. Aru'na'na let out a long sigh and said,
“Go...”
“Thank you, Your Majesty!”
The two thousand Saman warriors rose as one, removed all their armor, scimitars, and bows, and left with nothing. They took nothing, intending to return to the Saman Clan bare-handed and pledge their loyalty to Lord Gong. They were truly abandoning everything, going to serve Lord Gong even if it meant gaining nothing. This alone showed the status Lord Gong held in the hearts of the Saman warriors.
“My Queen, I apologize. I could not stop them, nor did I have the right to.”
At General Ying Yang's words, the queen shook her head and said,
“No. Some things are simply destined to happen!”
***
Nirvana Island.
Shen Lang looked at the three thousand eight hundred soldiers of the Nirvana Army before him, his heart swelling with emotion. In the Battle of Agincourt, five thousand English longbowmen defeated a French army of thirty thousand, killing over ten thousand enemy soldiers while suffering fewer than two hundred casualties themselves. Yet even those English longbowmen paled in comparison to the Nirvana Army before him. Whether in willpower, combat prowess, or equipment like bows and arrows, they were far inferior to the Nirvana Army. What a magnificent scene it would be when this Nirvana Army took to the battlefield. Shen Lang could hardly imagine it. Nevertheless, in his eyes, the equipment of the Second Nirvana Army was still lacking. First and foremost, their defensive gear was too poor.
“Change your armor!”
As soon as Shen Lang's command was given, a line of carts arrived, loaded with new equipment. Opening the carts revealed new sets of armor inside. Unlike the equipment of the First Nirvana Army, this armor weighed only about forty catties (20kg), but it was forged from the finest steel. It was light and thin, yet its durability far surpassed that of ordinary iron armor. While it would be difficult to block enemy sabers and spears with this armor, it would be capable of stopping arrows.
The manufacturing technique for this armor was extremely difficult. The Second Nirvana Army was suited for combat in mountainous terrain, meaning they had to scale cliffs, climb high mountains, and navigate through dense jungles. Therefore, they needed armor that allowed for agile and light movement. This required designing armor that was ergonomically sound. To achieve this, large amounts of chain mail and leather armor were used throughout the suit, and since the weather in the Southern Domain was hot, the helmets needed plenty of ventilation holes.
Clad in their new armor, the Second Nirvana Army's appearance changed drastically, making them look even more robust and valiant.
“Change your bows and arrows!”
The Second Nirvana Army had sufficient strength and endurance, but a standard two-seok heavy bow was too difficult to use. Even for the Second Nirvana Army, they could only fire about fifty arrows in rapid succession. Using a two-seok heavy bow, let alone aiming with it, consumed a tremendous amount of stamina.
Following Shen Lang's command, the Second Nirvana Army switched to new composite bows. These were composite bows made with modern technology. It was a revolution in archery; all Olympic archery competitions now use composite bows.
Everyone was slightly surprised upon seeing the composite bows. The bows looked extremely complex and intricate, but not particularly powerful. Indeed, in their minds, a recurved bow was what looked truly imposing. However, as the soldiers of the Second Nirvana Army drew the bowstrings, they immediately sensed that these bows were anything but ordinary.
‘It takes so little effort?’
Especially after drawing the bow to its fullest extent, the force required to hold it was minimal. This was advantageous for aiming and allowed them to hold the bow steady.
“Fire!”
The Second Nirvana Army began to shoot.
‘Excellent, truly excellent!’
The new bows were outstanding. Their power was not diminished; in fact, it was even greater than before. Because they saved energy, their firing speed increased, and their accuracy improved. With these new bows, they could surely kill until the enemy wailed in misery on the battlefield. Grandmaster Nanduo gave the command.
“Long-range volley!”
The three thousand eight hundred soldiers of the Second Nirvana Army drew their bows, aimed them toward the sky, and targeted a thicket two hundred and fifty meters away.
“Loose.”
At the command, a rain of arrows poured down, a storm that blackened the sky. The frenzied storm of arrows continued for a full three minutes, with over a hundred thousand arrows being loosed. In an instant, the small thicket over two hundred meters away was ravaged by the arrow storm, as if trampled by a monstrous beast. Shen Lang, Mulan, and Grandmaster Nanduo entered the thicket to inspect it themselves and confirmed the bow's formidable power. To unleash such destructive force at such a great distance. Arrows were densely embedded in the branches and the ground, and the thinner branches had all been snapped.
However, firing from such a long distance meant that hitting a target was entirely up to fate. It could only unleash the lethality of a covering arrow volley; precisely aiming to kill an enemy would be impossible. But even this greatly increased the possibility of overwhelming the enemy. No archer unit in the world had an effective lethal range of over a hundred paces. For that reason, shooting from a distance greater than a hundred paces was considered a waste. However, Shen Lang's Second Nirvana Army could kill enemies from at least two hundred meters away. This was a truly significant advantage.
“Retrieve the arrows!”
At Grandmaster Nanduo's command, the three thousand eight hundred soldiers of the Nirvana Army entered the thicket to retrieve the arrows. The arrowheads were forged from the finest steel. Of course, it would take far too long for blacksmiths to forge and polish them entirely by hand. Currently, the smelting workshop on Gold Mountain Island was using a relatively rudimentary assembly line method. For example, to make arrowheads, molten steel was first poured into arrowhead molds and then cooled before the molds were removed. These crude arrowheads were then sent back to the workshop to be ground and polished. This process, too, was not done by manual labor but by a waterwheel that turned gears to move the grinding stones. If the arrowheads were still not uniform, they were further sharpened on grinding wheels turned by foot pedals.
Having started making arrows more than half a year ago, an astronomical number had already been forged. Because these arrowheads used the finest steel, their strength, durability, and sharpness far surpassed those of ordinary arrows, making them more than capable of piercing armor. But after retrieving the arrows, the Nirvana Army inspected each one carefully. If there was a problem with the fletching, it had to be trimmed or replaced. If there was an issue with the arrowhead, they had to sharpen it themselves on a whetstone to restore it to its sharpest state.
“Grandmaster, who do you think is most suitable to be the leader of the Second Nirvana Army?”
When Shen Lang asked, Grandmaster Nanduo pointed to Mulan.
“Originally, I thought no one was fit to lead this Nirvana Army. Not even Gao Duhuan. He is a great commander, but not a master archer. But after seeing Mulan, I felt as if this army was tailor-made for her.”
Shen Lang was taken aback by his words.
‘But Mulan isn't a master archer either, is she?’
Of course, Mulan's archery was quite skilled, but her true expertise lay in mounted combat.
“Bring the strongest bow!”
A moment later, someone brought an incredibly powerful longbow. It was a composite bow made of iron, one hundred and sixty centimeters long. Furthermore, the bow itself was extremely thick, and the bowstring was of an unprecedented thickness.
“This bow has a draw weight of over three seok, so the arrows had to be specially made as well!”
Someone placed a full quiver of arrows on the ground. These arrows were also extraordinary. They were over one hundred and twenty centimeters long and appeared to be twice as heavy as ordinary arrows.
Suddenly, the wind picked up, and Mulan took the ultimate longbow.
In that instant, Shen Lang's desire ignited, and he became hard.
‘That pose is so beautiful! So sensual! It surpasses every game poster I've ever seen.’