Chapter 125: Super-Powered Armament

"Watch closely! Beyond its rapid-fire capability, this crossbow has another advantage!" Ou Yezi said with a smile once the crossbow barrel stopped spitting out black light.

He easily detached the entire bolt magazine, picked up another from the stone table, and instantly snapped it onto the crossbow body. As the lever was pulled repeatedly, streaks of black light continued to shoot forth from the weapon!

Staring in stunned silence at this terrifying piece of weaponry, Du Long could hardly believe his eyes. By his calculations, each magazine could hold thirty black basalt iron bolts; it was essentially an invincible crossbow.

"My goodness! Brother Ou Yezi, what is the effective killing range of this thing?!" Du Long asked immediately after Ou Yezi set the crossbow down.

"The killing range reaches two to three hundred meters, while the total range is a terrifying five hundred meters or more. Of course, the closer the target, the greater the lethality!" Ou Yezi replied.

"Du Long!" The voice of the beautiful Spirit of the Ring echoed in his mind at the perfect moment. "This is what I prepared to equip the Flame Tiger Legion with. Imagine it! Thousands of Flame Tigers with astonishing speed, constantly firing at the enemy while in full gallop—how terrifying would that effect be?"

"It is indeed a weapon that will give enemies a headache," Du Long sighed with genuine admiration. "I am already looking forward to the day these weapons are deployed on the battlefield!"

"Brother Ou Yezi! Now that I am back, I need your help to begin full-scale production of various weapons. It is time for me to share all my plans with you," Du Long said, uncharacteristically serious.

"Oh!" Ou Yezi nodded immediately. "Very well, let us have a proper talk! There are certain areas where I happen to need your help as well."

Du Long then laid out everything regarding the establishment of the Armored Water Rhino Legion and the Flame Tiger Legion, explaining his intention to fully arm both beast legions.

Ou Yezi was naturally shocked upon hearing this, but after learning that a batch of Armored Water Rhinos and Flame Tigers would arrive in a few days, he could not help but believe Du Long.

Subsequently, Du Long retrieved several new equipment construction diagrams from the Serpent Ring’s space and handed them to Ou Yezi. These had been drafted by the Spirit of the Ring on short notice; they were incredibly detailed, complete with precise measurements for every component.

According to the Spirit of the Ring, drawing these diagrams was effortless for her. She had already scanned and recorded the dimensions of thousands of Flame Tigers and Armored Water Rhinos. Truth be told, if she wanted to, she could design custom-fit gear for every single beast without issue.

Though Du Long did not know how the Spirit of the Ring achieved this, he had long since grown accustomed to her abilities and saw no need to dig deeper.

Ou Yezi looked at the intricate component diagrams in astonishment. He could not understand where Du Long had obtained such professional designs, unaware of the Spirit of the Ring’s existence or that she had specifically referenced local blueprints to make these designs understandable for him.

"Du Long! This is the most brilliant design. If this gear truly arms the Armored Water Rhino and Flame Tiger legions as you say, they will likely be invincible!" Ou Yezi exclaimed once he grasped the designs and the plan for the two legions.

"Brother Ou Yezi! Among these, the crossbow you showed me is devastatingly powerful, but production is slow. I suggest we prioritize the easier items first so I can arm the legions quickly; otherwise, their training cannot proceed properly!" Du Long laughed.

"No problem! I will be responsible for creating the molds for all the equipment, then pass the forging work to my apprentices and the regular blacksmiths. The efficiency should be quite high!" Ou Yezi promised, patting his chest.

"Then I leave it to you, Brother Ou Yezi!" Du Long said excitedly. "Let’s get the emergency supplies manufactured first, and when there is time, we can focus on the more intricate and time-consuming weapons."

With Du Long’s blueprints, Ou Yezi immediately began making molds according to the specified proportions. Once finished, regular blacksmiths could simply pour molten black basalt iron into the molds, cool them, and perform basic forging to achieve rapid mass production.

While Ou Yezi was busy with the molds, Du Long began handling administrative matters at the camp, coordinating supplies and issuing new directives to Fengli County, such as having Uncle Fu purchase the specific metals Ou Yezi requested.

After all, while basic equipment could be made entirely of black basalt iron, complex items like the crossbows required various special alloys to ensure they were resilient rather than overly brittle.

Furthermore, the crossbow strings could not be made of black basalt iron; they required the tendons of special spirit beasts. Ou Yezi could use the stock from his own storage ring for the prototypes, but he could not be expected to provide all the materials for mass production.

Du Long had many tasks to manage, and after two days of non-stop work, he realized he had made a significant error: he needed to appoint a management team for this secret arsenal. Otherwise, he would never have time for anything else.

In the end, he had Uncle Fu recommend several administrators. Once they arrived, Du Long was finally freed from the mountain of trivial tasks.

That day, General Xu Yin finally returned to the Black Basalt Iron Mountain base with several Flame Tigers and Armored Water Rhinos. Du Long immediately had Ou Yezi take the beasts; with these models, they could test the equipment samples and make immediate adjustments if necessary.

When Xu Yin saw the fully armored beasts, his eyes lit up. As a general who had led troops for years, he understood exactly what kind of combat power the entire Cavalry Legion would possess if equipped with such gear.

He finally understood why the Young General had established a secret factory and why Du Long had never commented on his training of the two beast legions.

It now seemed ridiculous that he had once thought having soldiers ride beasts and charge with standard-issue weapons was sufficient!

First, look at the latest equipment for the Armored Water Rhinos: reins controlled by the rider and a black basalt iron visor. The visor could be opened and closed; when open, the rhino could see clearly, and when closed, it protected the beast from fine projectiles and prevented enemies from using toxic sand, water, or fire to harm the rhino’s eyes.

As Armored Water Rhinos, they were already covered in thick plating; their only vulnerabilities were their eyes, ears, nose, and hindquarters. Protective guards were designed for all these areas!

With this, the Armored Water Rhinos had virtually no weaknesses. Unless struck by a master of the Spirit Realm, they were like tortoises, leaving the enemy with nowhere to attack.

In addition, the rhinos were fitted with leather saddle pads, making it easier for riders to mount and dismount while ensuring they remained stable. Most impressively, the seat had a safety belt, so the rider would not be thrown off during the violent shaking of battle!

Finally, the riders themselves: a full set of black basalt iron armor, a single-handed saber at the waist, and a black basalt iron lance in hand! Furthermore, each rhino carried five black basalt iron javelins on each side for long-range attacks.

After reviewing the equipment for the rhino cavalry, they looked at the gear for the Flame Tigers.

To prioritize mobility and long-range suppression, the Flame Tigers wore only a layer of lightweight leather armor. The rider’s gear consisted of standard leather armor, a single-handed saber, a hexagonal shield, and the newly designed repeating crossbow. The sides of the Flame Tiger’s saddle were fitted with hooks for six extra magazines.

In other words, while the Flame Tiger riders’ defense was modest, their long-range firepower was terrifying: seven magazines in total (six on the saddle, one on the crossbow) meant two hundred and ten bolts ready to fire!

With six or seven thousand Flame Tiger riders carrying over a million bolts, they were essentially a high-speed, mobile missile platform!

In short, although Xu Yin initially felt the Flame Tigers’ armor was too thin, he kept his mouth shut the moment he saw the power of the repeating crossbow. He immediately realized that even if the Flame Tiger Legion encountered a regular army of hundreds of thousands, they would have nothing to fear.

Du Long began teaching Xu Yin how to train the two beast legions according to the Spirit of the Ring’s instructions. As these large-scale beast legions were unprecedented, Xu Yin—who had only ever commanded human cavalry—lacked knowledge of the beasts’ true potential. He had to be guided on the proper training direction.

Otherwise, these two invincible legions might be reduced to nothing more than conservative, ordinary cavalry units!

As Du Long relayed one bizarre training method after another from the Spirit of the Ring to Xu Yin, the general began to look at the former "waste" of the Du family with newfound respect, never daring to underestimate him again.

He had learned from Ou Yezi that the equipment for both beasts had come from the young grandson of the Du family himself!

The blueprints were clearly custom-made for the rhinos and tigers, and Ou Yezi knew they were newly designed. Since the drawings came from Du Long, it was highly likely he had designed them personally!

Being able to subdue two such massive beast tribes, design such practical gear for them, and point out such a bright future for these legions—Xu Yin’s feelings for Du Long had surpassed simple admiration and had risen to the level of worship!