Chapter 178: Witchcraft
The earth is shaking.
Amidst the loud noise that was about to tear the heaven and the earth apart, a dazzling red light that seemed to come from hell suddenly bloomed. Black smoke rose into the sky, flames rose in the thick smoke, tongues of fire were spitting and licking, gravel flew quickly, followed by a powerful shock wave, passing like a hurricane, everything within a few dozen feet was involved, The human body flew in the air like a piece of paper, and then fell down hard, falling into the huge clouds of smoke and dust that rolled and swept against the ground. The air was filled with the pungent smell of sulfur.
Ji Shu climbed up, his ears buzzing. People around him also got up one after another, looking around in fear. Someone looked towards the west in the direction of the thief, then opened his eyes wide and pointed, shouting "ah, ah".
The smoke gradually dispersed, revealing the mess on the ground. The human body lay lying in various directions. For a long time, some people struggled to get up one after another, spinning around in confusion, trying desperately to remember what had just happened. It was not until they looked up and saw the majestic Kaifeng City Wall that they woke up from a dream and cried. Then he staggered away towards the west. Most of these lucky people were in the second row. The two large shields blocked the gravel and shock waves for them. Many people were only overturned or suffered some minor injuries. The guys in the first row were not so lucky. Most of them died on the spot, and the scene was horrific. Many solid shields have turned into life-threatening wooden sticks and wooden blocks stuck in the owner's body. Many broken bodies were beaten into pieces by the flying gravel. Most of the corpses that were still intact were naked: in As they rolled through the air, the shock wave easily tore off their clothes, and their bodies and limbs were burned black and red by the hot fire.
Zhang Hu, Niu Youtian and dozens of horse guards stood behind the soldiers who were ready to charge. Even though the city wall was more than a hundred feet away, the shock wave generated by the explosion still pushed the soldiers in front of them staggering back several steps, and the array was completely messed up. The horses were also frightened. After a long neigh, people stood up one after another. Several people were thrown off their horses and fell heavily to the ground. Zhang Hu and others were born in the cavalry army, and they have already formed muscle memory. Their riding skills are far from ordinary people. Before their brains could react, they were already drinking "Xu, Xu" in their mouths. They tightened the reins with their arms and used all their strength to rein in. He stopped his mount and looked towards Kaifeng City to the east in horror.
The city wall still stood tall amidst the smoke and dust, without any signs of damage!
What the fuck is going on? !
How could such a huge explosion not destroy a broken wall with so many holes?
Zhang Hu clamped his legs between the horse's belly and galloped towards the city wall, facing the defeated soldiers who were running back crying. We must see what happens. It’s so evil that I don’t believe it! "Commander, be careful!" Niu Youtian and several guards quickly followed him, whipping their whips.
Guo Yinqiao's gun crew was also overturned to the ground. The tiger crouching cannon was crooked a few steps away, and the rifleman was screaming heartbreakingly. Lao Guo went over and took a look: it was nothing, just that his left forearm was smashed and fractured. After squeezing it with his hands, the guy screamed even more harshly. Fortunately, it seems to have only been broken into two pieces, and the broken bones did not pierce the skin. I will ask the doctor to tie it up with a splint. As long as it does not burn up in two days, nothing will happen to me. Maybe this arm will be fine too. Keep it. What happened to the thief? Lao Guo supported the gun cleaner and several brothers who had climbed up to look outside the wall, and happened to meet the gaze of Zhang Hu who was standing on the edge of the trench and looking toward the city.
Zhang Huchi went to the outer trench and looked at the city wall. The several holes in front of him were blackened by gunpowder. They must be much larger than the original ones. The entrances of the holes were covered with blackened masonry and were gnawed outwards by wolf-toothed dogs. Looking at it, at first glance, it looked like a monster's open mouth and teeth. After staring for a while, I couldn't figure out why. Instead, I felt that the black holes in front of me seemed to be getting deeper and deeper. The bottomless blackness seemed to be like a giant. Captivating to the soul. Zhang Hu shook his head and looked up the city, just in time to see the several bald heads of Guo Yinqiao's gun crew looking down!
Understood!
There are experts in this city!
Zhang Hu took a breath: These bald guys are obviously monks supported by Prince Zhou's palace! No wonder……
Guo Yinqiao and others were not only bald, but also had swollen faces. Lao Guo was whipped by Zhang Guoqi, and the others were whipped by Lao Guo. At this distance, which can be said to be far or near, Zhang Guo was whipped by Zhang Guo. Of course, Tiger could only see a rough outline, and because he was still in shock, he mistook these humanoid, pig-headed, bald-headed monsters for sorcery monsters. It was not surprising.
Seeing the clearly armored enemy general so close to him, Guo Yinqiao was also startled. He couldn't help but shrink back, and the severed arm of the gunman leaning against him felt a sharp pain again, and he screamed again. But in Zhang Hu's eyes, a group of living ghost-like guys were crowded together, two of them had their heads together. When he looked at him, suddenly one of the guys with no eyes suddenly shook his body, and the other one grinned. Letting out a horrifying scream... This damn man is trying to cast a spell on me!
Without any further hesitation, Zhang Hu turned his horse and ran away, shouting: "Run, run, there are evil ways!" He led Niu Youtian and others back to the camp in a hurry.
The officers and soldiers on the wall were also overturned by the huge earthquake caused by the explosion. When they got up, no one could believe their eyes: There were thousands of thieves lying on the ground outside the city, but we were unscathed... But what caused all this? It's the thieves who want to blow up the city!
Compared with the layer of rammed earth that is several feet thick and is as solid as masonry and connected as one, what are those straw bags that cover the entrance of the hole? During the explosion, this layer of cover was lifted in milliseconds, and huge energy spurted out from the gap - the principle is actually the same as the Tiger Crouching Cannon, but it is amplified several times. However, at that time, no one understood the principle of explosion. Song Yingxing, one of the most knowledgeable people in the empire, explained it this way in his famous "Tiangong Kaiwu": "In all gunpowder, sulfur is pure yang, and nitrate is pure yang." It is pure yin, and the two essences are pressed together to form sounds and changes. This universe is an illusion of divine objects!" Well, no wonder, to this day there are still people who firmly believe that yin and yang and the five elements are the truth of the universe that can explain all mysteries, not to mention the Ming Dynasty? Since we don’t know that huge energy will erupt from the weakest point during the explosion, it must be certain and certain. It can only be the blessing of gods and Buddhas!
Everyone on the wall knelt down, including those civil servants who said last time that "the son is silent, strange, powerful and chaotic" - the living "miracles" were shown in front of them again and again, and they still didn't thank God. Favor, are you looking for thunder to strike?
Zhang Hu and others who were escaping looked back hurriedly and saw all the officers and soldiers on the top of the city kneeling and praying to the sky, which strengthened their judgment: If the master hadn't invited the gods to do it, what would they be praying for?
The evidence is solid!
Because he was afraid of being slapped by Zhang Dechang again, Guo Yinqiao directed the artillery crew to reset the artillery, but did not notice the thin crack in the belly of the gun body. But Lao Guo was overly worried. At this time, General Zhang was lying on the wall, kowtowing, and kept saying thank you to Yue Wumu for his blessing. Yes, General Zhang worships King Yue.
After returning to the camp and sighing until the afternoon, Zhang Jiuzheng returned with six cannons. According to him, the water has receded a lot, but the mud is still knee-high in many places, and large troops will never be able to pass through. Of course, there will not be any large troops in Luofu. After a cursory look, Zhang Jiuzheng It is estimated that the number of officers and soldiers who were drowned was not ten thousand but seven or eight thousand. The actual number must be much higher than this. At least there is no need to worry about that direction.
A few people were talking when the camp guards came to report that Fang Ge was back and the forward battalion had moved five miles away. Hearing this, both Zhang and Niu breathed a sigh of relief: they had suffered too much in the past few days and their morale was very low. It was just the right time for this new force to come back. Not long after, Fang Ge entered the handsome tent. According to him, this raid was very fruitful. Although the dog officers from several counties had fled, all the property in Dingkou of Chenliu, Tongxu, and Qixian counties had been robbed. After listening to Zhang Hu and Niu Youtian talking about Kaifeng City actually inviting gods to help in the battle, Fang Ge felt moved and opened his mouth, but swallowed back the words.
Because artillery is expensive, gunners are of course a scarce talent. None of Zhang Hu's group had ever fired a cannon. Fang Ge originally had two small cannons, but they had been lost long ago after being exiled for thousands of miles. The gunners were also dead. It took him a long time to find out the two small cannons. A guy who worked as a handyman in the Lizhou Guard Artillery Corps. However, this was not a problem for Zhang Hu. This group of guys was already lawless. As the saying goes, the ignorant are fearless, and they were daring and careless about human life. Deputy Commander Niu raised his fingers a few times, and each of the six guns had its own "gun crew". That night everyone washed away the mud in the barrels of the cannons, and the auxiliary soldiers picked up dozens of cannonballs that had been fired into the fields from the top of Kaifeng City, and swarmed towards the Western Wall of Kaifeng again the next day.
After so many lives were wasted in the past few days, Zhang Hu decided to change his tactics today: use artillery bombardment instead to see if he could knock down the city wall. I was worried that the "Fan monks" I had seen yesterday did not dare to get too close, so I just asked the cannon to be pushed forward, and a few people still hid behind the formation and observed from a distance.
Knowing that there were "gods and Buddhas assisting in the battle", the defenders' confidence greatly increased. When they saw the thieves pushing several cannons over, they were not afraid, nor were they in a hurry to shoot. Instead, they all stretched out their heads and looked around, waiting to see the gods today. How will we deal with these thieves who don't know how to die?
Six cannons were lined up in a row, and the "gunners" began to load gunpowder. Marshal Zhang sent an order to fire a cannon first, and a strange "bang" sound announced the start of today's siege. A burst of fire burst out from the gap in the muzzle, and the shell came out of the barrel leisurely. It only flew five or six feet before falling to the ground with a snap, making the defenders on the wall who stretched their necks to watch the fun burst into laughter. Only then did a "high-tech talent" who had "rich experience" in the Lizhou artillery group remember: After loading the gunpowder, stuff some mud into the barrel to seal it, and then use a wooden horse to tamp it down. Then you can reload!
In order to save face, the two "talents" muttered a few words and began to reload the medicine. Guo Yinqiao's artillery crew on the wall looked on dumbfounded. Lao Guo touched his bald head and murmured: "What are you trying to do? Pretend to use too much medicine and blow up you idiot!" The other crew members also asked. Pointing here.
Zhang Hu saw a few monks gesticulating towards the cannon from a distance, and secretly said, "No!" Just as he was about to issue a warning, the torch was pressed towards the fire door...
"boom!"
There was a loud noise, and the cannon that the monks pointed to as "cursed" exploded as Lao Guo expected. The barrel of the cannon burst apart, and the entire gun crew was blown up into the air.
"Pah, pah", several muffled sounds of corpses hitting the ground announced the end of today's offensive.
"Well, be a good boy!"
Zhang Hu and the two deputy commanders looked at each other with fear in their eyes.
"How about...retreating?" Niu Youtian asked tentatively.
"There is no other way. It seems we have to retreat." Zhang Hu replied.
"Don't worry yet. I heard a method in Sichuan that you can try." Fang Ge stared at the monks on the wall who had just "performed the method" with laughter, and a ferocious look flashed in his eyes. Fierce light.
A terrible tragedy is about to take place.
