Chapter 152: Two Types of Weapons

Within the secret weapon production base inside Black Mystic Iron Mountain, Du Long unexpectedly discovered that General Xu Yin, commander of the Valiant Cavalry Legion, was also present. Xu Yin had returned recently to urge the weapon factory to expedite the production of the final batch of arms and equipment.

Du Long promptly summoned him along with the master craftsman Ou Yezi to the conference hall. The two men were core leaders of several secret bases—one overseeing weapon production, the other managing affairs of the Valiant Cavalry Legion.

“What?! Establishing a legion of a hundred thousand troops within two years?!” General Xu Yin asked in astonishment. “Do we even have the financial resources to support that?”

“Money is not the issue,” Du Long replied with a shake of his head. “The bigger headache is the horses. I want to build an all-cavalry legion: thirty thousand beast cavalry, thirty thousand heavily armored cavalry, and forty thousand light cavalry. But warhorses are a regulated military resource. Procuring them in such vast numbers is extremely difficult, and I want to keep this under wraps.”

“Horses?!” Xu Yin blinked in surprise, then his eyes lit up eagerly. “Major General, horses won’t be the problem!”

“Oh? How so?” Du Long inquired, puzzled.

“In the past year, as part of our training, our beast cavalry has nearly swept the entire Mystic Beast Marsh clear. Predatory beasts harmful to the Ironclad Water Rhino young have been driven out almost entirely. During this effort, we discovered a large population of Water Patterned Horse Spirits living in the marsh. Most of these equine spirits are only at the first-tier strength, with the strongest Water Patterned Horse King at second-tier. They’re not powerful individually but exist in great numbers. Previously, their weakness made them prey for many carnivorous beasts in the marsh.

Since we cleared out many of those predators, these horse spirits have greatly benefited and are very grateful to our Ironclad Water Rhino legion. Wherever the Ironclad Water Rhinos reside, several herds of Water Patterned Horse Spirits follow. They seem to understand that the Ironclad Water Rhinos won’t harm them; rather, they keep their natural enemies at bay,” Xu Yin explained excitedly.

“That’s excellent! How many Water Patterned Horse Spirits are there? How many mature ones can we recruit?” Du Long pressed eagerly.

“I don’t have exact numbers, but there should be enough to assemble a cavalry legion nearing a hundred thousand,” Xu Yin pondered.

“Very well! General Xu Yin, I entrust you with the formation of the cavalry legion. You must recruit the Water Patterned Horse Spirits swiftly. We will provide them with territory, protection, and food. In return, they will provide us with excellent warhorses—a mutually beneficial arrangement,” Du Long commanded with enthusiasm.

“Your order is received! I will recruit the Water Patterned Horse Spirits without delay!” Xu Yin saluted respectfully.

“Good! After the meeting, please dispatch people at once to bring several mature Water Patterned Horse Spirits here. I want to personally tailor light and heavy equipment for them,” Du Long continued.

“Understood!” Xu Yin accepted the order once more, his expression brightening. This general, once unwillingly transferred to Fengli Commandery, was now thrilled by the prospect of leading a hundred thousand-strong beast cavalry.

“Sigh! I thought once this last batch of equipment was completed, I could finally have some rest. Looks like I’m going to be busy again!” Master Craftsman Ou Yezi sighed with a smile.

“Ha! In any case, Brother Ou Yezi, you’ll have to work hard,” Du Long said politely, then shifted to a serious tone. “By the way, it’s been over a year. Have those special weapons been completed?”

“Heh! I was just thinking that if you didn’t come soon, I might have to send a letter urging you!” Ou Yezi stroked his handlebar mustache with pride. “Two types have been completed. I’ve tested their power—it’s truly terrifying!”

“Ha! Since General Xu is here, shall we all go to the testing range and see the new weapons in action?” Du Long said eagerly.

“Very well! Let me show you all,” Ou Yezi laughed heartily and led Du Long and the others toward the weapons testing ground.

At the foot of Black Mystic Iron Mountain lay a flat expanse several hundred meters wide, temporarily designated as the new weapons testing ground.

Du Long and the others observed two strange objects before them. One resembled a rectangular box about two meters long and less than a meter wide, mounted on a horse-drawn cart.

The other was a cylindrical tube about two feet long, with a handle—light enough to be held with some effort.

“Huh! These two things look so odd, I can't even connect them to weapons,” Du Long said, puzzled. Princess Huofeng and the others also wore confused expressions.

“Men! Show the Major General their power!” Ou Yezi said without explanation, wanting Du Long to see for himself.

Two strong Valiant Cavalry soldiers approached the large iron box and opened the outward-facing lid. Inside, rows of jet-black iron tubes appeared—six tubes per row, six rows total, thirty-six barrels in all.

The two soldiers operated the cart’s turntable; one adjusted the elevation of the tube ends, the other rotated the iron box horizontally. After setting the angle, a soldier holding a torch climbed up and placed the flame at the bottom of the box.

*Fshhh... Whoosh!*

A thin wisp of smoke rose as a flash of fire shot from the iron tubes. Du Long and the others saw a black cylinder fired at high speed, streaking toward the solid stone wall of Black Mystic Iron Mountain and striking it with a fierce impact.

*Boom!*

Before the echo faded, the iron box unleashed one fiery blast after another, thirty-six in total, each cylinder hurtling toward the mountain wall hundreds of meters away. The tremendous shockwaves rocked Du Long and the others, standing hundreds of meters back, making them stagger in the wind.

After the thirty-six deafening blasts ceased, the mountain was covered in dust and smoke. When it cleared, Du Long and the others were stunned to see a thick layer of the hard mountain stone had been blasted away—at least twenty to thirty meters deep!

“My goodness! This... with such weapons, no city wall could possibly withstand them!” Princess Huofeng exclaimed, lowering her hands from her ears in awe.

“If these weapons are mass-produced, who could possibly rival our Valiant Cavalry Legion?” Xu Yin, the commanding general, could not suppress his swelling confidence after witnessing the devastating display.

“That’s incorrect! No matter how powerful a weapon is, once the enemy understands its capabilities, they will devise countermeasures,” Du Long shook his head, disagreeing with Xu Yin.

“Major General, if we can equip our forces with these weapons en masse, I’m confident we can defeat any opponent!” Xu Yin clearly rejected Du Long’s caution.

“General Xu, you’ve hit the nail on the head! These weapons cannot be mass-produced, which is one reason. Another fatal weakness is their lack of mobility. If we’re pursued by a large enemy force, these weapons will inevitably be seized, handing over a devastating arsenal to our foes!” Du Long explained, following the advice of the Spirit Guardian.

“Ha!” Master Craftsman Ou Yezi chuckled. “I’m not much versed in military matters, but what Du Long just said makes perfect sense. First, this weapon weighs several thousand catties; reloading after a shot is cumbersome. Second, due to certain factors, we cannot mass-produce them. With our current materials, producing a hundred sets would be an extraordinary achievement!”

“Ah, I see now. I was indeed presumptuous,” Xu Yin admitted, his mind clear.

“Heh! General Xu, you flatter me,” Du Long smiled and waved a hand. “I emphasize secrecy because the battlefield is ever-changing. To know the enemy and know ourselves is to win every battle. We must ensure our military secrets remain beyond the enemy’s grasp, allowing our covert methods to achieve the greatest possible effect.”

“I am humbled by your teaching!” Xu Yin looked at Du Long with sincere admiration.

“General Xu, the point of this is to urge you not to use these powerful weapons lightly. When you do, strike unexpectedly and aim for maximum battlefield impact!” Du Long’s gaze was sharp and unwavering.

“You have my word. I will make the best use of all advantages you provide,” Xu Yin said with wholehearted conviction.

“Ha! Enough talk! Let’s see what makes the other weapon so exceptional!” Du Long waved his hand and looked eagerly toward Master Craftsman Ou Yezi.

Ou Yezi nodded knowingly and picked up the cylindrical tube, aiming it at a row of iron plates standing at the far end of the testing ground. Each plate was two meters high and about an inch thick.

“Watch closely!” Ou Yezi said excitedly.

At his command, he pulled the trigger on the cylinder. A buzzing sound erupted as countless tiny black shadows shot out, racing toward the iron plates dozens of meters away.

A chorus of sharp metallic clangs followed. The iron plates were riddled with numerous small holes; some plates behind also bore tiny punctures.

Du Long’s keen eyes discerned that these tiny black projectiles could penetrate three to five layers of the iron plates at their strongest, and at least two layers at minimum.

“This... this is terrifying! How many projectiles does it fire at once?!” Du Long whispered incredulously, eyes wide.

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