Chapter 1011

Xiong Xiong Tingbi is about to set off for Edo because the area from Nagato Castle to Izumo Castle can no longer satisfy his plans.

Xiong Xiong Tingbi's plan is very simple: if Toyotomi Hideyoshi cannot achieve equal-field distribution throughout Japan, then he, a Great Ming man, will do it!

The Great Ming and Japan needed a result. It was unrealistic to kill all the Japanese, but it was possible to make Japan completely disappear in the long river of history.

Xiong Xiong Tingbi could see that people like Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu were all a bunch of trash who could never give Japan peace.

What the Great Ming wanted was calm seas, and what it wanted was a secure maritime border. If Japan was not peaceful, there would be no end to it.

From Chōfu Castle to Izumo Castle was a mountainous area. Although it was very suitable for defense, it was not suitable for offense, because the grain production here was seriously insufficient. Even maintaining the existing structure was already somewhat stretched, and it was fundamentally unable to support conquest.

Troops and horses move, but grain and fodder go first. This foundation could not support a conquest of sufficient scale, which became an obstacle to Xiong Xiong Tingbi's further progress. The Kanto Plain, where Edo is located, could satisfy all of Xiong Xiong Tingbi's needs for a foundation. The Kanto Plain is fertile, with many rivers, and is very suitable for farming.

Japan now had two main contradictions: the first was that because of the wars, there were many vagrants; the second contradiction was that vagrants abandoned the land, leading to land being left uncultivated.

These two main contradictions were mutually contradictory. Land was left uncultivated, so why couldn't the many vagrants go and farm it? This should be a dilemma solved by itself. But under Japan's existing system, this bunch of trash couldn't do it either—letting the vagrants stop and farm this abandoned land.

Without completely eliminating Japan's deeply rooted feudal system, Japan would forever be a cesspool.

Even the local Japanese cannot do it; can Xiong Xiong Tingbi, a Great Ming man, do it?

The answer was yes.

Because Xiong Xiong Tingbi has already found the methods and precedents to deal with these two fundamental contradictions from China's long history. History is long, which has this one advantage: when you encounter something and don't know what to do, just flip through history books, and you can find the answer.

During the Northern Wei, there was a heroic ruler, Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, Tuoba Hong.

When Tuoba Hong succeeded to the throne, the Northern Wei had been established for seventy years. These seventy years were seventy years of conquest and seventy years of chaos. At that time, the Northern Wei also faced similar contradictions: too many vagrants but land being left uncultivated.

Tuoba Hong's grandmother, Empress Dowager Wenming (Empress Dowager Feng), was a Han Chinese. When Tuoba Hong succeeded to the throne, he was only five years old. Empress Dowager Wenming presided over the government and began to implement the "Three-Chief System," the "Equal-Field System," the "Salary System," and promoted the Imperial Academy and established schools, starting a vigorous reform.

Empress Dowager Wenming presided over the government for eighteen years before passing away. Twenty-three-year-old Tuoba Hong officially took over the government. Almost all the Xianbei nobles were waiting for this Xianbei Son of Heaven to turn back to the shore, set things right, and abolish all the chaotic policies of Empress Dowager Wenming.

But this Xianbei Son of Heaven did not fulfill the nobles' wishes.

On the basis of his grandmother's reforms, Tuoba Hong went a step further. He used the pretext of going south to attack Southern Qi to deceive all the nobles into going south with the army. Upon reaching Luoyang, he told the nobles that he was going to move the capital to Luoyang.

He believed that "one side of water and soil raises one side of people." The old customs of the Xianbei were difficult to eliminate, and the old evils were difficult to change, all because the capital was in Pingcheng—that is, Datong, Shanxi. At that time, Datong, Shanxi, was all grassland, and the nomadic habits could not be changed, making it difficult to change the culture.

After successfully moving the capital, Tuoba Hong dismantled the ancestral temples of Pingcheng and moved them to Luoyang, and even forbade the nobles from being buried in their ancestral lands, only allowing them to be buried in Luoyang.

The vigorous "Taihe Reform," even more extreme than Empress Dowager Wenming's, arrived.

Tuoba Hong issued an edict forbidding braiding hair; one could only grow hair. One could not have left-lapel clothing, only right-lapel. One could not wear Hu-style clothing, only Han-style clothing. He himself changed from Hu-style clothing to the Son of Heaven's clothing of the Central Plains.

"One must not use the language of the North in the imperial court; those who violate this will be dismissed from their official positions"—that is, one could not speak Hu language, only Han language, otherwise they would be dismissed.

He also established the National School, the Imperial Academy, and the Four-Gate Primary Schools to promote culture and education.

In the sixth year of Tuoba Hong's personal rule, the 20th year of Taihe, Tuoba Hong issued another edict: Xianbei compound surnames were abolished, and all were to be changed to Han surnames. He himself changed his Tuoba surname to Yuan. The Buliugu clan became the Lu clan, the Helai clan became the He clan, the Dugu clan became the Liu clan, and so on.

His Taihe Reform was called the "Xiaowen Emperor's Restoration" by history.

In the 23rd year of Taihe, Tuoba Hong personally led an army south, fell ill from overwork in the army, and passed away in the army. His posthumous title was Emperor Xiaowen, and his temple name was Emperor Gao Zu.

Yuan Hong left behind a set of methods—methods for how two cultures that are completely different can integrate—which is total Sinicization, rather than the method of dying within the outdated rules of "the son is noble, the mother must die."

Before Yuan Hong, when the Crown Prince was established, his mother would be executed to prevent the mother's relatives from causing chaos. This was "the son is noble, the mother must die." Similar outdated rules were everywhere before complete Sinicization.

In Xiong Xiong Tingbi's view, there is no such thing as "civilizing influence," only Sinicization. If they refuse to be Sinicized, they refuse to be civilized.

He was preparing to go to Edo. The Kanto Plain would realize all his ambitions and plans.

On the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the twentieth year of Emperor Wanli, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Great Ming fleet arrived at the Whaling Port outside Nagato Castle. Xiong Xiong Tingbi met the newly appointed Acting Commissioner of the Iwami Bai Yin Mine in Nagato Castle and handed over all official business of the management office.

Three days later, the fleet set sail again for Edo Castle.

The day the fleet arrived in Edo was the fourth day of the ninth month. Xiong Xiong Tingbi stood on the deck of the *Youlong*, looking at Mount Fuji, which had begun to fall silent, through his telescope.

Mount Fuji erupted nearly once every two hundred years. Each eruption brought a large amount of volcanic ash to the Kanto Plain, making the land more fertile. In the 20th year of Emperor Wanli, there was already some snow on the top of Mount Fuji, representing that this volcano had returned to peace, and also representing that the Kanto Plain would welcome a new life.

The *Youlong*, a flagship that carried almost no combat missions, was the Great Ming's first fast sailing ship. This flagship was a Great Ming tribute ship, a ritual vessel representing the Emperor, proving that Xiong Xiong Tingbi represented the Great Ming and His Majesty in arriving in Edo.

The fleet did not go directly to Edo Castle in Edo Bay, but to the residence of the Hōjō clan, Odawara Castle.

This castle was located in the southwest corner of the Kanto Plain and was the fortress for entering and exiting the entire Kanto Plain. Its status was roughly equivalent to the Great Ming's Jia Shanhai Pass. As long as this Odawara Castle was in the hands of the Great Ming, even if Toyotomi Hideyoshi or Tokugawa Ieyasu had an army of 500,000, it would be difficult to conquer the Kanto Plain.

In the 40th year of Emperor Jiajing, Uesugi Kenshin, known as the "God of War" and the "Dragon of Echigo," led an army of 100,000 to attack Odawara Castle, but failed to take it after a long siege and had to retreat helplessly.

In the 2nd year of Emperor Longqing, Takeda Shingen, known as the "Tiger of Kai," again led an army of 100,000 to attack Odawara Castle, but still failed to take it.

In the 18th year of Emperor Wanli, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was dissatisfied with the Hōjō clan, calling them "rebellious subjects," and launched an army of 170,000 to punish the Hōjō clan. This time, the city was under siege, and the people inside were panicked, suspicious, brothers were suspicious of each other, and father and son were at odds.

This Odawara Castle was known as the "Number One Strong Castle under Heaven." Whether it was Uesugi Kenshin or Takeda Shingen, they all bumped their heads into a bag here.

The Japanese, lacking sufficient siege means, could only adopt siege tactics. But a strong castle with water wells and five years of grain was definitely difficult to take by siege.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi had been besieging this strong castle since the 18th year of Emperor Wanli. His main strategy was also to use the Hōjō clan's internal strife and the discord between father and son.

Father Ujimasa refused to relinquish power, and son Ujinao was dissatisfied that his father didn't give him power. As long as he could persuade Ujinao to open the city and surrender, this "Number One Strong Castle under Heaven" would fall without being attacked.

In fact, Toyotomi Hideyoshi's strategy was executed very successfully. He incited Ujinao's cousin, Ujimori, to lobby Ujinao.

No one knows a son better than his father. Ujimasa was very aware of his son's soft ears. After Ujimori gained his trust, whatever he said, Ujinao believed.

Before Ujinao made up his mind to open the city and surrender, he suddenly received an arrow letter. The content of this arrow letter made Ujinao give up the idea of opening the city and surrendering, and instead went to his father to plead guilty.

The content of the letter was very simple: after Toyotomi Hideyoshi captured Odawara Castle, his way of dealing with the Hōjō clan was that Ujimasa must commit seppuku, Ujinao would be exiled to Mount Kōya, and the position of family head would be taken over by Hōjō Ujimori, who was the one stirring up trouble, spreading rumors everywhere, and inciting the father-son relationship.

Ujinao had no idea where this arrow letter came from, but he quickly believed it was true, because he could no longer command his samurai to open the city gate.

Obviously, his father already knew that he was going to open the city and surrender, welcoming Tokugawa Ieyasu into the city.

Ujinao had no idea about the source of this arrow-letter, but he soon believed that this arrow-letter was real because he could no longer command his own samurai to open the city gates.

"Paying respects to the Angel, wishing the Son of Heaven of the Upper Dynasty ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand years, eternal peace for a thousand autumns, and long life without boundaries." Ujimasa and Ujinao, father and son, boarded the ship and knelt on the deck.

Ujinao saw his father and asked for forgiveness. Ujimasa scolded him severely but did not scold him too much; instead, he ordered him to lead the samurai to kill Hojo Ujimori.

"Long live His Majesty, long live, long live!" Ujimasa and Ujinao looked at each other and hurriedly said. Indeed, having already defected to the Great Ming, the title "Son of Heaven of the Upper Dynasty" was indeed inappropriate.

"We pay respects to the Angel, and wish the Son of Heaven of the Upper Dynasty ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand years, eternal peace for a thousand autumns, and boundless longevity." Ujimasa and Ujinao boarded the ship and knelt on the deck.

The Great Ming was an imperial system, different from Japan's feudal system. Japan was a bit like the West: "My vassal's vassal is not my vassal." The Great Ming imperial system had only one monarch, and that was His Majesty. All subjects were His Majesty's subjects.

"Long live His Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand years!" Ujimasa and Ujinao looked at each other and said hurriedly. Indeed, having already defected to the Great Ming, the title "Son of Heaven of the Upper Dynasty" was no longer appropriate.

"Rise." Only then did Xiong Xiong Tingbi allow the two to rise.

Rules, no matter when or where, could not be messed up.

According to Gao Zhu Qiyu's new ritual laws, since Hojo Ujimasa and his son had defected to the Great Ming, they were both Great Ming subjects and did not need to kneel and kowtow to Xiong Xiong Tingbi.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng wanted to borrow Li Li Yougong, but the Emperor refused, because if he were borrowed, there would be no Inner Official to use for the Capital Battalion.

This was also why the Emperor would regret talented officials like Liu Liu Hanru, Fan Fan Yingqi, and Wang Zuo Zhuan. Liu Liu Hanru's management of the private market in Santou'ao was even better than the official market; Fan Fan Yingqi was also a talented official but became addicted to opium; Wang Zuo Zhuan had talent but was dismissed and stripped of his rank due to corruption.

Only after several screenings could one become a talented official; each one was very precious.

Only after becoming Emperor did one realize that "thirsting for talent" was true, and having no one to use was truly very embarrassing.

Before the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao's strategist Xu You defected in the middle of the night. Cao Cao was disheveled and didn't even care to put on his shoes, welcoming him barefoot. Previously, Zhu Zhu Yijun thought this was a dramatization, but after being Emperor for twenty years, Zhu Zhu Yijun believed it was true.

Finding a few people who were capable, trustworthy, and usable was truly too difficult, too difficult.

Only after becoming Emperor did he realize that "thirsting for talent" is real; having no one to use is truly very embarrassing.

Before the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao's advisor Xu You defected to Cao Cao in the middle of the night. Cao Cao was disheveled and didn't even bother to put on his shoes, welcoming him barefoot. Zhu Zhu Yijun previously thought this was a fabrication of the *Romance*, but after being Emperor for twenty years, Zhu Zhu Yijun believes it is true.

That arrow letter was shot into Ujinao and Ujimasa's home by the Great Ming's "Duntai Jin Lian Yuanhou" (Beacon Tower Marquis). The Beacon Tower Marquis tried his best to collect information, but without clear evidence, it would instead aggravate the rift between father and son. It wasn't until Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu determined they wanted to destroy the Hōjō clan rather than force them to surrender that the Beacon Tower Marquis chose to take action.

If Ujimasa and Ujinao refused to believe it, that would be "seeking one's own destruction."

Ujimasa learned that his rebellious son was actually going to open the city gate and surrender, and immediately stopped Ujinao's command of the troops. Odawara Castle did not fall.

Ujimasa thought for a moment and replied, "Reporting to the Provincial Governor, although my father and son have rifts and discord, it has not reached the point of life and death. Even a tiger does not eat its cubs. He is willing to correct his past mistakes, so I forgave him."

If Ujimasa and Ujinao refused to believe it, then it would be their own undoing.

When grave robbing, the father always climbs out of the grave tunnel first and then reaches out to pull the son out of the grave tunnel. The reason it is not the son who goes out first is that he is afraid the son will swallow the property alone and kick the father down into the grave tunnel.

Ujimasa's decision seemed benevolent, but in fact, under the invasion of a large army, punishing only the traitor Hōjō Ujimori was the best choice for a ruler.

Inside Odawara Castle, it was necessary to stabilize people's hearts. Dealing with his own son would mean involving many people, making people's hearts even more panicked and unable to defend the city.

Ujinao, this son, was muddled, but Ujimasa, this father, was not muddled.

Ujimasa's decision seems soft and benevolent, but in fact, under the threat of a large army, punishing only Hojo Ujimori, a traitor, was the best choice for a ruler.

Ujimasa hurriedly bowed and said, "General, please listen. Although we killed Hōjō Ujimori, the 17-strong army outside the city was still there. In order to stabilize the morale of the defenders in the city and force Tokugawa Ieyasu to retreat, we had to raise the King's flag, saying that we had secretly defected to the Great Ming and the Great Ming had promised to send envoys to ask. Only then were we able to win over the hearts of the defenders in the city."

"General, your subordinate has read the *Three Kingdoms*, and there is a term 'quenching thirst by looking at plums'."

The meaning of Ujimasa's words was very clear. At the very beginning, it was just a lie—quenching thirst by looking at plums, satisfying hunger by drawing cakes. At the moment of life and death, he couldn't care about anything else. First raise the King's flag to make the defenders in the city not panic and make the enemies outside the city wary.

But he didn't expect the effect to be extremely good. Tokugawa Ieyasu was truly scared away by the King's flag, needing to wait for the Great Ming's reaction.

The Great Ming's rigidity was fully displayed. Just for this matter, the Nagasaki Provincial Governor's Office confirming it was true, sending envoys back and forth, took a full six months, and then the Nagasaki Provincial Governor's Office memorialized to the imperial court. After the court discussed it, they decided to send troops, which took a full year.

The meaning of Ujimasa's words is very clear: at the beginning, it was just a lie—quenching thirst by looking at plums, satisfying hunger by drawing cakes. At the moment of life and death, he completely disregarded everything, first raising the Royal Flag to keep the defenders in the city from panicking and to make the enemies outside the city wary.

But he didn't expect the effect to be excellent. Tokugawa Ieyasu was indeed scared off from attacking again, needing to wait for the Great Ming's reaction.

Fighting, especially siege warfare, talks about "one drum, then fatigue, then exhaustion." Ujimasa and his son were the defenders, and Tokugawa Ieyasu was the attacker who came from afar. He was already exhausted from the long journey. Ujimasa raised the King's flag, and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the Regional Commander, hesitated, so it was truly difficult to take.

Tokugawa Ieyasu had to hesitate. Not to mention anything else, the Nagasaki Provincial Governor's Office was angry at Tokugawa Ieyasu's behavior and stopped the "Emperor Hongwu Baochao" (Great Ming paper currency) of their family. Their family would immediately become a stray dog that everyone shouted to beat from being the head of the Five Elders. Tokugawa Ieyasu could not accept this either.

War is an extension of political struggle and the final means after contradictions intensify.

If Tokugawa Ieyasu took Odawara Castle and advanced into the Kanto Plain under the Great Ming's unclear attitude, inviting the Great Ming's fury and giving the Great Ming an excuse for a full-scale invasion of Japan, then wouldn't he, Tokugawa Ieyasu, become a sinner of Japan?

Tokugawa Ieyasu was cautious by nature, but he was scared by a King's flag, entirely because the Great Ming Emperor was truly too warlike.

Since the Capital Battalion was reorganized, the Battle of Gulezhai, the Battle of Luzon, the Battle of Daning Prefecture, the Battle of Punishing Altan Khan, the Battle of Toungoo, the Battle of Malacca—every time, they sent tens of thousands of troops, and the strikes were extremely ruthless.

Altan Khan was old and already very obedient, but he was still punished by the Emperor. If there was a reason, he would fight; if there was no reason, he would create a reason to fight. He had the style of Emperor Emperor Chengzu wanting to avenge the Siege of Baideng for Emperor Emperor Gao Zu of Han.

This was not that Tokugawa Ieyasu was timid, but that the Emperor was truly too fierce.

Tokugawa Ieyasu hesitated, and this strong castle, Odawara Castle, was a duck that flew away.

If Tokugawa Ieyasu took Odawara Castle and marched into the Kanto Plain while the Great Ming's attitude was unclear, inviting the Great Ming's fury and giving the Great Ming a pretext for a full-scale invasion of Japan, wouldn't he, Tokugawa Ieyasu, become a sinner of Japan?

Tokugawa Ieyasu is naturally cautious, yet he was scared by a single Royal Flag, entirely because the Great Ming Emperor is truly too fond of war.

The Japanese lacked siege capabilities, but the Great Ming did not. Thirty-six-jin cannons—one shot was a gap. Once the cannons were set up, no matter how strong the strong castle was, it was just meat on the chopping block. No matter how strong the mountain city was, the elite soldiers in heavy armor could pry it open.

Altan Khan was old and already very obedient, but he was still attacked by the Emperor. If there was a reason, he would fight; if there was no reason, he would manufacture one to fight. He had the posture of Emperor Emperor Chengzu wanting to avenge the Siege of Baideng for Emperor Emperor Gao Zu of Han.

Therefore, he asked about the war last.

"Tokugawa Ieyasu said that this Odawara Castle was already a chicken rib—tasteless to eat but a pity to discard. On the third day of the ninth month of the 18th year of Emperor Wanli, he withdrew his main army, leaving only 30,000 men to besiege. These 30,000 men attacking the city were also quite perfunctory. Your subordinate did not want to continue to provoke Toyotomi Hideyoshi, so I cooperated with the 30,000 men to attack the city," Ujimasa said somewhat sighingly.

Ujimasa never expected that this Great Ming King's flag was so useful! One King's flag retreated an army of 100,000!

Tokugawa Ieyasu had to be wary of the Great Ming's attitude and also wary of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's suspicion. In the end, leaving 30,000 men to act was enough to give an account to the Great Ming and an account to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and it was also justifiable internally.

It wasn't that he didn't want to fight, but that he couldn't take it. Didn't Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen, who were so powerful, also fail to take it?

Tokugawa Ieyasu was an old fox, an old oil stick, slippery and hard to grasp. This kind of old fox hated gambling the most, and even more hated putting all his eggs in one basket.

Therefore, he finally asked how the war was going.

The war started again. The Great Ming navy swept the formation, and the three thousand elite soldiers of the Great Ming Capital Battalion were quickly deployed at Odawara Castle.

Ujimasa never expected that this Great Ming Royal Flag would be so useful! One Royal Flag repelled an army of one hundred thousand!

The Great Ming soldiers filed out, and soon 1,800 men completed the formation—a three-row line formation with 600 men in each row, completed in just a short quarter of an hour.

The drums shook the sky, the sound of horns swept across the entire battlefield, and countless birds on the seaside flapped their wings and flew toward the edge of the sky.

Tokugawa Ieyasu is an old fox, an old slicker, slippery and hard to grasp. This kind of old fox likes gambling the least, and likes going all-in even less.

The first to resound across the entire battlefield were the nine-jin cannons. A total of 47 nine-jin cannons began to roar. The explosive shells were pushed out of the barrels by the combustion of gunpowder, drawing beautiful arcs in the air, and exploded with a bang above the Japanese samurai.

The iron caltrops in the explosive shells were scattered toward the charging Japanese under the thrust of the gunpowder, blooming into enchanting flowers of blood.

Flowers of blood bloomed on the battlefield and then disappeared in the charging torrent. After several rounds of bombardment, the roar of the cannons stopped. Only the sky-shaking roars continued on the battlefield, and the shouts of killing filled everyone's ears.

Under Odawara Castle, one after another, crossbow carts were pushed out. The crossbow strings were gradually tightened under the rotation of the mechanism, and a total of 120 crossbow carts were ready to go. One after another, "Divine Fire Flying Crows" were placed in the position of the crossbow strings.

For Great Ming people, it is truly difficult to understand this system of being hollowed out layer by layer.

One Japan, three decision-makers.

The tooth flag kept turning, the sound of war drums became urgent again, and several messengers stood by the war drums, waving the colored flags in their hands, and orders were transmitted to the battle formation.

The leveled crossbow formation aimed at the charging Japanese. The triggers were pulled, and the flint on the Divine Fire Flying Crows rubbed fiercely against the fire steel on the crossbow carts, igniting the fuse. The fuse burned into the gun chamber, igniting the propellant, and the lead bullets were shot out under the thrust of the gunpowder.

The Academy of Natural Sciences had a failed exploration. Zhu Zhu Zaiyu once tried to put iron horses on a glider to provide power, and specifically asked the Emperor for one million taels of silver to build a special wind tunnel to improve the glider.

This project failed because Zhu Zhu Zaiyu had already determined that the calorific value of coal and the thermal efficiency of iron horses could not meet the conditions for flight.

But this project did not completely fail. At least the Great Ming gained a lot of empirical formulas, improved the appearance of the Divine Fire Flying Crow, made it fly farther, and made it more stable.

The arm-long Divine Fire Flying Crow became rounder and longer. Two slanted wings provided balance while also providing a certain amount of lift, and the triangular tail rudder prevented the Divine Fire Flying Crow from being affected by the wind.

The previous Divine Fire Flying Crows had no way to maintain flight stability. After being released, they were more driven by the wind and moved with the wind, making them more suitable for setting fires, such as burning Kyoto, but their instability made them unsuitable as battlefield weapons. Now, this shortcoming had been made up for by the doctoral students of the Academy of Natural Sciences.

Trading range for stability and more gunpowder, increasing lethality.

One hundred and twenty Divine Fire Flying Crows soared into the sky with sharp whistling sounds. The whistling sounds were sometimes high and sometimes low. Two minutes later, the second wave of 120 flying crows soared into the sky. The whistling sounds echoed continuously in the air. The third wave, the fourth wave... one wave after another of flying crows were released.

The first batch of released Divine Fire Flying Crows finally flew over the charging Japanese. The Japanese looked up in horror. The whistling sound attracted everyone's attention. The fuse of the flying crows had burned out, and the flame had burned into the abdominal cavity. Explosions followed one after another, and fire oil and white phosphorus, carrying divine fire, were sprinkled toward the Japanese charging formation like splashing ink.

Fire oil and white phosphorus fell on the Japanese and would ignite violently, completely disrupting the Japanese's charging pace. Screams followed one after another. The Japanese rolled on the ground, but it was to no avail. The reason the Divine Fire Flying Crows were called "Divine Fire" was because this kind of fire was difficult to extinguish once it stuck to you.

A nauseating smell of roasted meat came from the battlefield. The ignited Japanese rushed toward the seaside, but fell to the ground on the way, making no more sound. The flames still burned quietly.

This was not the end, but the beginning. The second wave, the third wave, countless waves of flying crows followed one after another.

The Japanese braved the flames and continued to charge toward the Great Ming battle formation. Finally, they reached a distance of 150 steps and entered the range of the Tiger-Crouching Cannons. When the Tiger-Crouching Cannons began to roar, the Great Ming soldiers began to load ammunition, preparing to meet the Japanese's progressive charge.

One hundred and twenty steps, the "Pingyi" (Pacifying Barbarian) muskets began to ring frequently.

Eighty steps, the first row of musketeers pulled the triggers. The hammers with flint struck the fire door, rubbed against the fire steel, ignited the priming powder in the fire door, and the priming powder burned into the gun chamber, igniting the propellant. The lead bullets were shot out under the thrust of the gunpowder.

When the third row of musketeers pulled the triggers, the first row of musketeers had already completed loading. Gunsmoke kept permeating the battlefield. Every round of gunfire caused nearly a hundred Japanese pirates to fall in response. Flowers of blood kept blooming on foreheads, shoulders, chests, abdomens, and limbs.

Every sharp whistle of the lead bullets breaking through the air ruthlessly harvested the lives of the Japanese pirates.

The Japanese pirates fell wave after wave like wheat stubble on the road of charging.

The Japanese pirates finally failed to break through the Great Ming army's musket formation. At a distance of nearly sixty steps, they could no longer move forward, and the Japanese pirates finally stopped charging and began to scatter.

Japanese slaves were not captured by Great Ming merchants themselves, but by the *daimyo*.

The three-row line formation began to quickly change into a marching column, and in the gaps of the column, one cavalryman after another appeared. A total of 800 cavalrymen reined in their horses, and the murderous atmosphere on the battlefield did not cause the warhorses to be uneasy, but instead made the warhorses quite excited.

The drums became dense again, and the cavalry began to walk, trot, and then began to charge. The sound of horse hooves was arrayed.

"Kill!" Countless shouts of killing shook the sky, piercing through the clouds and spreading to a very distant place.

The cavalrymen knew that their duty was to drive and harass, and the real killing had to be handed over to the infantry in the column. The cavalrymen were like driving a flock of sheep, constantly driving the Japanese pirates into the line of fire of the column.

Life on the battlefield was just this cheap.

Three thousand against thirty thousand enemy troops, the Great Ming Capital Battalion elite soldiers not only suppressed the enemy's charge but even began to chase and kill the enemy troops.

The war had entered its final stage, and the outcome had been decided.