The New People's Militia instantly fell into chaos, putting on a flawless demonstration of what raw recruits looked like when they tasted real battle for the first time.
Jiang Cheng, commander of the militia, felt sweat bead along his temples. He roared at the top of his lungs,
"What are you panicking for? Pull yourselves together! You're defending your own homes! If even you collapse like this, once the marauders enter Henan, every one of your elders and kin will be slaughtered!"
Unfortunately, his words had the exact opposite effect.
The new recruits only grew more frantic, their formation loosening further, shouts overlapping into pure noise.
Jiang Cheng fell silent.
"…."
Even Gao Yiye could not help but feel uneasy.
"Oh no. Can they really hold the brigands back?"
Up ahead, on the riverbank, the enemy had already begun landing.
Countless small skiffs surged toward the shore. The Xiaolangdi water bandits, acting as collaborators, were the first to jump off. Behind them came the vanguard forces of both the South Camp Eight Great Kings and the West Camp Eight Great Kings, flooding onto land in a rush.
The small boats rammed together as their occupants leapt ashore, cheering wildly. Their feet touched solid ground, and they whooped and hollered like men who believed victory was already in their hands.
Ahead of them stood rows of sandbags, with figures crouched behind them. But the marauders did not take these so-called militia seriously at all.
Xu Chenglong, charging at the front, raised his blade and roared,
"Break through! Take Xiaolangdi back and reclaim our stronghold!"
"Ooo-ah!" the water bandits shouted in response.
That roar alone was enough to send another wave of panic rippling through the militia ranks.
At that very moment, one hundred of Gao Yiye's personal guards suddenly stepped forward as one. In a single smooth motion, they raised their Chassepot rifles and aimed at the freshly landed bandits.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A hundred rifle shots erupted in near unison.
As the saying went, the bird that sticks its head out first gets shot.
And so it was.
Xu Chenglong's… bird… vanished on the spot.
He stared down at his lower abdomen in disbelief, his face draining of color, before letting out a shrill scream that tore through the air. Before the sound had even faded, two more bullets slammed into his chest.
The wretched collaborator collapsed onto the riverbank with a dull thud.
The Xiaolangdi water bandits around him dropped as well, casualties piling up in an instant.
"They have firearms!"
"What's there to fear about firearms?" one of the South Camp Eight Great Kings' subordinates bellowed. "After one volley they take forever to reload! Don't be scared, charge!"
The bandits who had already landed roared and surged forward, charging straight at the militia positions.
But after witnessing the decisive strike by Gao Yiye's guards, the militia's morale finally stabilized. With veterans leading the way, the recruits no longer felt completely helpless.
They steadied their breathing, reloaded their weapons, raised their guns again, and took aim.
They had trained for several months. As long as they did not panic, they were perfectly capable of using firearms.
Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The New People's Militia finally returned fire.
Bandits who had been screaming moments ago fell in droves, bodies dropping across the riverbank.
Still, the brigands were simply too numerous.
More boats docked behind them. More figures scrambled ashore, laughing and shouting as if they were attending a festival rather than a battlefield.
The militia kept firing, cutting down yet another wave of newly landed enemies.
Li Daoxuan watched the scene unfold, eyes lighting up.
"Huh? Beach Landing Battle 1632. Damn it, now I really want to play."
Gao Yiye turned his head slowly.
"???"
Li Daoxuan waved to a nearby recruit.
"Lend me your firearm."
The young soldier dared not refuse and quickly handed it over.
Li Daoxuan took the gun and struck what he clearly believed was an impressively cool shooting pose.
"Hmph. Back when I played Beach Landing Battle, I was a top-tier marksman. Hitting misses was my specialty. Today, I'll show you what true skill looks like."
He aimed at the bandit charging at the very front and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bandit remained completely unharmed and kept running.
Li Daoxuan froze.
"…."
"Must be that I'm not used to this mouse and keyboard yet. One more time."
He aimed again.
Bang!
The bandit still did not fall.
Without another word, Li Daoxuan handed the firearm back, saying casually,
"Weapons of the mortal realm really are troublesome. They're nothing compared to magical artifacts."
The recruit nodded respectfully.
"Of course. Someone accustomed to celestial artifacts would naturally find mortal weapons beneath your notice."
After flattering him, the recruit swiftly reloaded, raised his rifle, aimed at the same bandit Li Daoxuan had failed to hit, and fired.
Bang!
The bandit dropped instantly.
The corner of Li Daoxuan's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Damn it.
At that moment, the tide of battle shifted once again.
Gao Family Village's fleet had arrived.
Ten flat-bottomed cargo ships advanced side by side, slicing across the river and charging directly into the marauders' river force from the flank.
Some of the brigands at the front had already landed and were busy playing Beach Landing Battle 1632 with Li Daoxuan. Those behind them were still paddling across the river, their small boats stretched out in a long, disordered line.
Bai Yuan's eyes lit up.
This was the perfect chance for a true strike mid-crossing.
The electric motors roared at full power. The ten massive flat-bottomed ships surged forward like monstrous fish, parting the muddy river as they charged.
Zijing Liang stared in shock.
"Huh? What are those strange ships?"
Chuǎng Wang, Gao Yingxiang, standing beside him, narrowed his eyes.
"They're moving fast. No sails. No oars."
"They don't look like official government vessels," someone muttered. "More like private merchant ships."
"And they're heading straight at us!"
Both men shouted at once,
"Send men to intercept them!"
But the moment the orders left their mouths, they realized something was terribly wrong.
Their commands were not being transmitted at all.
Orderlies could only move within their own boats. They could not reach others, nor did they understand the naval flag signals used by proper fleets.
Once on the water, the brigands' command structure had completely collapsed.
Zijing Liang cursed under his breath.
"Damn it."
With no unified command, each boat could only act on its own judgment.
The brigands were used to fighting independently anyway. Coordination had never been their strong point.
One group continued charging toward the opposite bank, while another turned to face Gao Family Village's incoming ships.
The South Camp Eight Great Kings laughed loudly as he moved to intercept.
"Let's seize those ten strange boats! They look like they can carry a lot!"
Beside him, the West Camp Eight Great Kings, Zhang Xianzhong, hesitated.
He glanced toward the far bank, listening to the dense crackle of gunfire and the occasional explosion of a hand grenade. A memory stirred.
Long ago, he had once attacked the Longmen Yellow River Bridge. At the bridgehead, he had seen the same sandbags, the same rows of riflemen firing from behind cover, forcing him to flee in complete disarray.
That experience had left a circular shadow five centimeters in diameter etched deep into his young mind.
Please calculate the area of this psychological trauma.
Now, hearing those familiar gunshots again, it all felt terrifyingly familiar.
The South Camp Eight Great Kings chuckled.
"Old Xi, want to grab a few of those flat-bottomed ships with me?"
Zhang Xianzhong forced a laugh.
"I'll leave them to you. If I took some myself, you'd probably be unhappy."