Just as I was about to push Bingbing forward, an underworld soldier descended from upstairs. He cupped his hands and said, "Lord Wu! The enemy is pressing forward!"
I quickly adjusted my uniform and put on my hat. Bingbing and I returned to the sixth floor.
The enemy indeed had siege ladders again. However, this time they were clever. They used something resembling umbrellas to shield the ladders, preventing our artillery fire. The accompanying infantry was not numerous. All the soldiers advancing were pushing the ladders forward. From the yellow mist behind them, a large group of cavalry emerged and formed ranks behind the ladders.
There were a total of ten siege ladders. I understood their strategy: first, escort the ladders to the city walls, then the cavalry would charge forward, quickly reach the battlefield, and begin the assault. This would avoid heavy casualties during the infantry's advance.
But they still seemed not to grasp the power of aerial cannons, believing a wooden umbrella could withstand cannonballs?
Or perhaps they thought the aerial cannon shells would explode upon impact with the wooden umbrella, using the umbrella to absorb the attack's force and protect the ladders behind it?
I shook my head and told the veteran to aim at the middle ladder and fire directly at the umbrella in front.
*Boom!*
With one shot, I expected the wooden umbrella to be pierced, ultimately damaging the ladder behind it. But I had misjudged the principle of aerial cannons. These were not armor-piercing rounds but proximity fused explosive shells. The moment the shell hit the umbrella in front, it detonated. Although the umbrella and the soldier holding it were blown to smithereens, the ladder behind was unaffected.
Immediately after, soldiers behind promptly raised another umbrella to shield the ladder!
After all, the explosion didn't happen above my head. It seemed the enemy understood the aerial cannon shells better than I did.
But this was still useless. To conserve ammunition, I had the veteran employ single-shot firing. Each shot was carefully aimed before firing.
"Old Wang, after aiming, fire three consecutive shots," I ordered. Consecutive shots meant holding down the trigger without releasing it, entering rapid-fire mode. The rate of fire was comparable to that of a rifle.
"Yes, Lord." The veteran still aimed at the same ladder. *Tatatat!*
Three consecutive shots. The first hit the protective umbrella. The second followed, but it seemed the interval was too short, and it was intercepted by the wooden debris in the air, causing an explosion. However, the third shot successfully hit the ladder behind, blowing it into two pieces.
"Adjust the settings. Single shots again, but with a pause of one, two, three seconds. You'll fire on my command," I said again.
"Yes, Lord." The veteran adjusted the cannon's aim at another ladder.
*Pew,* one shot fired, knocking away the protective umbrella.
"One, two, three," I said, watching the debris in the air fall to the ground. "Fire!"
*Pew,* the second shot hit, with excellent effect!
The enemy reacted quickly. Seeing that this tactic was failing, they immediately retreated.
To extinguish their desire to assault the city, I instructed the veteran to fire continuously, using the "rocket" method. Before the ladder formations retreated into the mist, six more ladders were destroyed. Only two escaped.
"How are you feeling?" Bingbing asked me with concern.
After the previous internal energy regulation, I only felt slightly dizzy, no discomfort. I would likely recover after a while.
The enemy cavalry force behind had not retreated, still standing in formation at the front lines. Truly fearless of death!
"Bombard them!" I ordered.
"Where should we aim?" the veteran asked.
"Into the cavalry formation, sweep from east to west!"
*Tatatatatatat.*
About ten cannonballs were fired into the cavalry ranks, causing chaos and a complete rout. Roughly estimated, the casualties exceeded a hundred. Seeing the heavy losses, the enemy was forced to retreat. Soon, the cavalry also withdrew into the mist.
I switched to my spiritual sense technique and observed for the time it took to smoke a cigarette. I noticed they were beginning to withdraw. I specifically marked the original cavalry's spiritual aura. The enemy, likely worried about infantry being trampled by cavalry during their retreat, had the infantry clear a path. After the cavalry passed, the infantry withdrew.
This was an opportunity!