Chapter 889: Chapter 864:
Five massive cannons, although their power has not yet been fully assessed, from their colossal size, it is evident that these five cannons are absolutely not a simple matter. Yao Yue exclaimed, "Quick, prepare for defense, have nearby troops rush over to support immediately!"
"Yes!" The Women’s Army commander Ah Ping immediately dashed down and rushed into Luoyang Prefecture. Soon, a few signal flares were fired, and the two stationed troops outside saw the signal. They could set out and arrive on the scene in just half an hour.
"They’ve fired signal flares! Hurry and storm the city, we must break through the city before their reinforcements arrive, or the consequences will be severe!" the Second Leader shouted.
"Yes!" The soldiers started to move, adjusting the position of the cannons, then loading one huge projectile after another into the barrels. With the release of the signal, the enormous shells were fired out, with deafening explosions shaking the entire Luoyang Prefecture. Chunks of dirt on the city walls were stripped off, with massive stones tumbling down. Bricks were also shaken off, and the soldiers above ducked down, not daring to move; some soldiers were blasted away, disappearing without a trace.
The scene plunged into the most intense state of battle, with a large number of soldiers on the city walls blasted away without a trace. Layers and layers of dirt were stripped off the walls, with heavy stones being blasted down like this. The Second Leader excitedly said, "Fire, keep firing, damn it! I refuse to believe that such a powerful cannon won’t be able to penetrate your lousy city walls!"
"Leader, just ten more cannonballs should do it!" The soldiers exclaimed excitedly.
"Very well, fire all five cannons at one spot, this way the wall will soon crumble!" The Second Leader laughed heartily.
"Of course, the Second Leader is smart as always!" The soldiers praised enthusiastically.
The combined firepower of the five cannons was immense, with all shells relentlessly attacking one spot, creating a gruesome scene. Not only was the wall being stripped away, but even the soldiers guarding the wall were blasted off. The soldiers on the walls, upon seeing the enemy concentrate their shells on a particular spot, scattered and began shooting back from other positions. Over ten mortars were carried up the walls, hastily firing back.
Although the power of the mortars was not as strong as the cannons, it posed a significant threat to the enemy soldiers. Ten mortar shells landed, killing fifty to sixty enemy soldiers. The enemy soldiers were bunched up, so one mortar shell would take many lives.
"Damn it, scatter, scatter quickly!" The Second Leader fumed, roaring in rage as he watched his soldiers die like this. His heart bled. The Wa State Tribe originally had only over a thousand people, and in no time, fifty to sixty had died. He fumed, shouting, "Keep firing, kill them!"
Boom... boom...
The loading speed of the cannons was relatively slow, whereas the speed of the mortars was noticeably faster and almost startling in its swiftness. Over ten mortars never stopped firing as Yao Yue crouched low, climbed up the wall, and observed the enemy situation through the observation slit. She immediately said, "Aim at the opponent’s cannons. Destroy their ammunition!"
"Yes!" The soldiers immediately nodded, but mortars needed manual aiming, lacking the precision of cannons.
Boom...
Under the concentrated bombardment, an enemy cannon that had just been reloaded exploded, not only destroying a great cannon but also killing over ten enemy soldiers. The Wa State Tribe’s Second Leader was even more infuriated, gritting his teeth, "Retreat, retreat out of their firing range!"
The Second Leader had not lost his head in anger but was calmly dealing with the immediate trouble, indicating he was indeed a competent commander. Soon, the remaining four cannons slowly retreated; however, unfortunately, two cannons were taken out during the retreat.
The battle had just begun, and over a hundred of the Wa State Tribe’s people had already been killed or injured, while the casualties of Luoyang Prefecture were only a few dozen. Were it not for the Wa State Tribe’s surprise attack, Luoyang Prefecture likely wouldn’t have suffered such losses. Excitedly observing the scene, Yao Yue thought to herself, "We must keep these bastards here today!"
The Second Leader of the Wa State Tribe gritted his teeth. Although he had anticipated the enemy would bring mortars onto the city wall, he was helpless at how quickly the opponent reacted, and their swift closure of the city gates as well. At the onset of the battle, he had already devised two plans: the first was to rush in before the opponent closed the city gates, making the rest much simpler, as he could then easily occupy Luoyang Prefecture with his superior firepower. The second plan was a backup to the first.
That is, if the gates couldn’t be broken through, then the cannons would demolish the wall in half an hour, allowing them to swarm in before enemy reinforcements arrived, thus avoiding fighting on both fronts or even multiple fronts. Afterward, relying on their superior firepower, they could completely suppress the opponent.
However, both plans failed. The enemy not only forced them back over two hundred meters from the gates, but at such a distance, the power of the cannons was significantly reduced. The Second Leader was extremely unwilling, gritting his teeth, "Concentrate fire, attack!"
"Yes!" The artillerymen nodded immediately.
Next, the five cannons launched another attack. Despite the long distance, the power was still immense. Compared to the earlier firepower, it was much less. Yao Yue immediately descended from the city wall and quickly summoned the guard team in the city along with her Women’s Army.
A five-hundred-man team gathered within Luoyang Prefecture, everyone was furious, feeling deeply ashamed of the Wa State Tribe’s surprise attack. In the Golden Triangle, here, if you want to fight, then fight openly; any surprise attack would result in disdain from others.
"Soldiers of Luoyang Prefecture, today is the day of life and death for us. Let us defend our territory with our blood!" Yao Yue roared.
"To die heroically, to shed hot blood!" Everyone was invigorated.
"Open the city gates!" Yao Yue shouted.
Quickly, the city gates slowly opened. Instead of opening all the way, a gap wide enough for three people to walk shoulder to shoulder emerged. Yao Yue had a rifle slung over her shoulder and had two Desert Eagle pistols holstered at her waist, with countless bullets. She waved her arm and charged out with over five hundred men.
"Charge!" The team of over five hundred men rushed outward, three abreast.
"Protect the leader!" Ah Ping shouted immediately. The guard team made up of more than twenty women of the Women’s Army tightly protected Yao Yue, while at this moment, the Wa State Tribe not far away noticed this situation, and the soldiers exclaimed, "Second Leader, the enemy has opened the gate and rushed out!"
"Damn it, how did I forget to watch the gate!" The Second Leader was suddenly anxious. If the enemy gets close, it would be troublesome for him. Thinking of this, the Second Leader immediately ordered: "Let the left flank come closer and gather three hundred men at the front to form a defensive line, quick!"
"Yes!" The soldiers nodded immediately.
A team of three hundred men hurriedly assembled. Everyone was panicked; the enemy was already right in front, merely two hundred meters away. Under artillery bombardment, only a few minutes were needed to reach. The team of three hundred men formed a blockade line fifty meters away.
"Fire at them!" Yao Yue gritted her teeth and immediately lunged to the ground, fiercely engaging both sides in combat.
"Leader, let me lead the attack from the right side!" Ah Ping proposed immediately.
"Alright!" Yao Yue nodded right away. Subsequently, Ah Ping took over a hundred men to bypass the main battlefield and dashed towards the right flank for an attack. The right flank was an open field; once they passed through a grove, they could reach the enemy’s rear encampment. If they could avoid enemy sight and successfully cross over, it would force the enemy to fight on two fronts, dispersing their forces. The longer they could drag out the battle, the better it would be for Luoyang Prefecture.
Ah Ping quickly led her people into the grove. The enemy, focused on battle, completely missed Ah Ping’s unusual movements.
"Launch a charge!" The Second Leader sneered, "Also, split the right flank into two, with a feigned attack at the front and a real attack from the side!"
"Yes!" The Orderly quickly conveyed the orders.
Then, the enemy swiftly launched a formal attack. Yao Yue focused on fending off the enemy’s frontal assault while completely ignoring defense from the side. At this moment, the Women’s Army immediately suffered from the enemy’s fierce artillery fire, and Yao Yue cried out in alarm, "Not good, the enemy is playing dirty."
"Leader, let me go!" A guard at Yao Yue’s side remarked.
"Alright, go block the side attack. Ignore the rest; have my guard team go aside and bring everyone over!" Yao Yue coldly commanded.
"No way, how can we dissolve your guard team? They must always protect your safety!" The guard immediately shook her head and turned away. Seeing this, Yao Yue could only bite her lip in anger and furiously declared, "Guard Captain, listen up, lead your team to the frontline immediately and don’t worry about me!"
Under Yao Yue’s stringent orders, the Guard Captain obeyed and swiftly led over twenty women of the Women’s Army to charge onto the frontline, firing rifles at the enemy. In the dark of the night, a fierce gunfight erupted in Luoyang City, the likes of which had never been seen there before. Nonetheless, the residents of Luoyang City treated it just as common warfare; they clung nervously behind their doorsteps, closed their lights, and curled up at the foot of their beds, ears anxiously attentive to the situation outside.