Chapter 1079

The other subordinates were equally astonished, but the question followed naturally—if a single soldier could so easily lower the throwing arm, did that mean its power was insufficient?

Lin Cheng could read their concern on their faces at a glance.

"Everyone, this modification will not affect the trebuchet's power. To be precise, I used a special method to lock the ring so it can only rotate in one direction and cannot reverse, thereby saving the reactive pulling force on the throwing arm."

"Everyone knows how a trebuchet launches, so the most troublesome part should be the reactive resistance before the throwing arm is set in position—requiring ten, dozens, or even over a hundred men working together… But that is the operating principle of a heavy trebuchet, and I feel it is far too inefficient in terms of manpower."

"The Xiangyang Cannon requires nothing of the sort. Simply turning the ring easily lowers the throwing arm. As for the power issue everyone is concerned about, I still think a live test is better. I only need five men to let them operate this trebuchet with ease!"

"Good! I'll give you five men. Let's see exactly how powerful this Model 703 trebuchet really is."

Lord Xuan Wuji greatly admired Lin Cheng's bold manner, and was even more eager to see the trebuchet's power. He also agreed that rather than explaining principles and power to them here, it was better to haul it straight to the drill ground outside the city for a live test.

In fact, that was exactly what he had in mind.

"I trust this trebuchet will not disappoint Lord Xuan," Lin Cheng said, the corner of his mouth lifting. He had that confidence.

The drill ground outside the city.

Lord Xuan Wuji personally led men to the drill ground. The official in charge came out at once to greet them. Upon learning Lord Xuan Wuji's purpose, he immediately cleared the ground and prepared for the new trebuchet's experiment. Soon, all unrelated personnel were cleared from the drill ground, and the official also brought in five experienced soldiers who had used trebuchets before.

He led them before Lin Cheng and the Xiangyang Cannon. The five men were broad-shouldered and burly; one glance told they were all soldiers of great strength.

"Now, I'll teach you how to operate this new-style trebuchet, the Xiangyang Cannon. The method may differ somewhat from what you know, but I trust you'll master it quickly…"

According to Lin Cheng's arrangement, the two strongest men were in charge of carrying the stone projectiles, one man was responsible for pulling the trigger to fire, one man was responsible for observation, reporting, and timely adjusting the trebuchet's target, and the last man was in charge of turning the ring.

The assigned tasks were all very simple; even five rough men quickly understood how to operate this Xiangyang Cannon trebuchet.

"Good… now let's test a maximum-range shot. Load a 140-kilogram stone projectile."

"Yes, sir!"

The five men immediately began operating the trebuchet. The soldier in charge of turning the ring lowered the throwing arm, while another soldier placed the giant stone beneath the counterweight arm.

And, per Lin Cheng's special request, a thickened heavy rope was set beneath the giant stone.

"Prepare to launch. Do a final check of every procedure to ensure personnel safety during firing."

"Check complete, everything is ready, ready to launch at any time," the soldier reported truthfully.

When Lin Cheng was building it, he had also wondered what the Xiangyang Cannon's firing range would be; now he could finally see for himself.

It shouldn't be less than a hundred meters, surely.

"Fire!"

The soldier in charge of pulling the trigger exerted force with both arms and pulled the firing lever down.

Thud!

A muffled sound of the lever striking the triangular fixed frame rang out.

The lever lock on the throwing arm was released, and in an instant it was violently driven back into place by the reactive force, colliding with the triangular fixed frame. At the same time, driven by the throwing arm, the counterweight arm carried the stone projectile and hurled it straight out.

A group of people stared fixedly at the stone projectile as it traced a perfect arc through the air. Even though night had fallen, the moonlight made it no harder for this group of martial artists to see. Only when the stone projectile smashed a great crater into the distant earth did the launch test declare its success.

Lord Xuan Wuji nodded in satisfaction. In terms of both power and range, the Xiangyang Cannon was indeed slightly inferior to the previous heavy trebuchet, but this new-style trebuchet won out in easy transport, and with only five soldiers it could be operated simply—surpassing the heavy trebuchet by no small margin.

"That distance must be over 200 meters, no?"

"Yes, I didn't expect the Xiangyang Cannon's power and range to be this decent—it can actually reach 200 meters."

"Right, right, this young craftsman really does have some skill."

No wonder the Corps Commander values him so highly—a blessing for the Empire.

Before long, the soldier tasked with reporting the distance hurried back to report the stone projectile's distance to the assembled lords.

"Reporting to all the lords, after measurement, the stone projectile's firing distance is 271 meters."

"Excellent!"

A smile appeared on Lord Xuan Wuji's face—farther than expected. In his heart, he was even more satisfied with the Xiangyang Cannon trebuchet's power and range. The Empire's heavy trebuchets had a maximum distance of only meters; this mere 50-meter gap was entirely negligible.