Chapter 517: The King

Latest URL: "Boom, boom, boom..."

A Sailing Warship instantly struck an Atakebune opposite it with dozens of cannonballs.

Among these dozens of cannonballs were two rounds of grape shot, one chain shot, and three incendiary shells.

The incendiary shells pierced into the hull of the Atakebune.

It seemed one incendiary shell ignited the gunpowder on the Atakebune.

With a "bang," this Atakebune was blown directly into powder.

At the same time, other Atakebune struck by Sailing Warships were either ignited by incendiary shells, emitting thick smoke.

Or their hulls were shattered, and soldiers were killed or wounded in large numbers by grape shot.

There were also those hit by chain shot on their hard sails, causing the masts to snap instantly.

"Damn it!"

On the largest Atakebune, Lu Zheng's face was ashen.

After just one round of firing from the opponent, twelve of his warships had suffered heavy damage.

Looking at the Black Shark Sea Bandits warships sandwiching him from the east and west, he said, "All warships, charge toward the enemy ships in the east and surround them."

Now caught in the middle, many of their warships could not fight at all.

If this continued, his ships would be treated like targets and sunk one by one.

Therefore, he chose to abandon one side and concentrate all his strength to attack the other.

Upon receiving his order, Hua Chen signaled the soldiers to raise the flags again.

The warships in the west immediately left only a few to fend off the attack from the west.

Most of the warships surged toward the east, like a school of fish about to surround a small boat.

On the Sailing Warship flagship, Zhou Yi saw this scene and gave a cold smile, immediately ordering the warship to advance at full speed, jumping out of the pocket formed by the Five Peaks Island Pirates warships and arriving at their flank once again.

"Boom, boom, boom..." Once a suitable position was found, the Sailing Warships immediately attacked.

Yet the Five Peaks Island Pirates warships still would not give up.

They continuously attempted to surround the Sailing Warships.

After attempting three times in succession, failing each time, and losing another fifteen warships, the Five Peaks Island Pirates warships stopped trying.

"Island Master, their ships are too fast; our warships cannot keep up." There was no longer any of the confidence Hua Chen had at the beginning on his face.

What remained was only fear.

They had clashed with the Franks, and even their warships were not this fast or this agile.

Although, according to the Franks, the ones they had in Yizhou were old ships.

But this gap was simply too large, as if the warships operated by the Black Shark Sea Bandits were the latest model of sailing warships.

At this moment, if Zhao Xu knew what Hua Chen was thinking, he would certainly sneer.

The warships he gave to Chen Shou were naturally the final form of sailing warships before the appearance of steamships, avoiding the flaws encountered during the exploration of ship design.

"Retreat to Wufeng Island immediately." Lu Zheng's expression was quite unsightly, but he made the decision without hesitation.

In less than half an hour, the masts of six ships had snapped, making them unable to move.

Twelve warships were burning, and nine warships were sinking.

Other warships, while still able to fight, had soldiers on board who were heavily killed or wounded.

Meanwhile, the opponent's warships had basically only sustained light damage.

If they continued to fight, they would only have a dead end.

"I fear we cannot run even if we try," Hua Chen said, looking at the approaching Black Shark Sea Bandits warships.

The warship he and Lu Zheng were on was called a Great Atakebune.

With such an obvious target, how could the Black Shark Sea Bandits let it go?

Lu Zheng had clearly realized this problem long ago.

He said, "Have the other warships move closer to us."

Hua Chen suddenly realized something and immediately relayed the order to the other warships.

Before long, four or five warships approached the Great Atakebune.

The pirates on the ships immediately threw out grappling hooks to connect to the other warships.

Lu Zheng and Hua Chen each boarded an ordinary Atakebune.

Then, the Five Peaks Island Pirates warships suddenly scattered in all directions.

Zhou Yi immediately realized the unusual movement of the Five Peaks Island fleet.

"They want to escape," Zhou Yi said.

Glancing at Gong Ying, he said, "You were watching that large ship; what did you discover?"

Gong Ying smiled triumphantly and pointed to an Atakebune, "The one giving the orders is on that one."

Zhou Yi nodded with satisfaction.

The remaining thirty-plus warships headed in all directions, making them difficult to pursue.

He could only choose to surround the key warships.

He then issued an order for his own warships to pursue freely, while he commanded the flagship to pursue the warship Lu Zheng was on.

In the time of two quarter-hours, Zhou Yi's flagship was sailing alongside Lu Zheng's warship.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

Zhou Yi immediately ordered the use of chain shot, and the mast of the Atakebune was soon struck and snapped directly.

Although oars were extended from below in an attempt to continue moving.

But this slow speed was basically no different from staying in place.

"Boom, boom, boom..." The shelling continued, but this time it was solid shot.

The Atakebune seemed determined to fight them to the bitter end.

The four cannons on the side fired continuously.

After two rounds of exchange, the Atakebune had become a hornet's nest and began to sink.

At this moment, Zhou Yi ordered them to approach the Atakebune.

"Is Island Master Lu on board? Do you want to feed the fish here, or will you come with us to Yanzhou?" Zhou Yi leaned against the connecting rod, looking down from above at the slowly sinking Atakebune warship.

By now, quite a few sea bandits had fallen into the seawater and were struggling incessantly.

Some others had climbed to the very top.

One of them was surrounded by the other sea bandits.

It was precisely at him that Zhou Yi was shouting.

Upon hearing this, Lu Zheng felt anger surge, but he could only force himself to endure this humiliation.

Once upon a time, whenever their Wufeng Island stomped its foot, the merchant ships on the sea would tremble.

He never expected that in the end, he would be careless and lose at the hands of these Black Shark Sea Bandits.

He did not answer, only coldly staring at Zhou Yi.

The warship continued to sink, and before long, Lu Zheng and the sea bandits above also fell into the seawater, struggling continuously on the surface.

Zhou Yi did not care in the slightest; only when they were on the verge of death did he order his men to fish Lu Zheng out.

"Next, it should be the turn of Lai County Wharf, right?" Zhou Yi said, glancing at the unconscious Lu Zheng.

Regrouping the warships, Zhou Yi tallied the results of the battle.

Aside from eight Atakebune warships that had seized the opportunity to escape.

The remaining Wufeng Island warships were all left in this sea area forever.

"Now, it is time to teach the Han Family a lesson." Zhou Yi pointed toward the Southwest.

Their current position was in the middle of the Gaoli sea area.

On the way back, they would pass by Lai County.

Upon receiving his order, the twelve scarred, but not critically damaged, warships slowly departed.

At dawn the next day, they appeared in the waters off Lai County Wharf.

At this time, the Yuan Family soldiers had already been waiting at the pier for a long time; Wufeng Island's plan was to rendezvous with them to attack the Black Shark Sea Bandits together.

Seeing large warships appear on the sea, the Yuan Family soldiers thought the people from Wufeng Island had arrived and immediately began to shout.

But when the warships drew near, their expressions changed instantly.

They saw clearly the flag hanging from the warships, which was unmistakably a black shark.

While they were stunned, the massive warships erupted with fire, and the roaring sound followed immediately.

Half an hour later, the pier had turned into a sea of fire, and all the warships docked at the pier had been destroyed.

The Yuan Family soldiers immediately sent this news to Tian Cheng.

Meanwhile, Commander Zhou Yi leisurely returned to Leting County with his warships.