Li Daoxuan was delighted; this was just a plasma lighter, not a real cannon.
"Yiye, tell everyone not to stand within ten meters of the cannon's muzzle and not to place any flammable materials there."
Gao Yiye quickly relayed the command. The cannon's muzzle was pointed directly at a passageway—the very one Bai Yuan had declared "unmanned." The little people standing in the passageway quickly moved away.
The walls on both sides of the passageway were made of composite pressed panels, so there were no other flammable materials nearby.
Seeing that they were prepared, Li Daoxuan instructed, "Yiye, have Li Da and Gao Yiyi each pick up a large iron hammer and simultaneously strike the mechanism behind the cannon."
Li Da and Gao Yiyi received the order and immediately retrieved their large blacksmith's hammers.
In the previous battle, Li Da and Gao Yiyi were ordered to strike the mechanism on the trebuchet, earning great merit and gaining experience in hitting the mechanism.
Receiving the same command this time, the two were quite familiar with the process. They counted to three, then both swung their large hammers and struck the mechanism hard.
"Clang!"
A loud metallic collision rang out. A purple-blue flame erupted from the muzzle of the giant cannon with a "boom," the fire spitting out over three meters.
The visible open flame was three meters long, but there was actually a section of invisible high-temperature zone in front of the flame, nearly a meter long.
The fire that shot out made everyone flinch in terror.
Even the most knowledgeable man, Bai Yuan, stumbled back several steps.
After a good while, Bai Yuan finally reacted and burst into joy. "An Immortal Artifact is truly unparalleled!"
Shansier exclaimed, "Good heavens! If I were placed in there and burned, I would instantly be reduced to 'dust and ashes'."
Bai Yuan was ecstatic. "It seems this path only requires the two blacksmiths to guard it! Even if a massive army came, they could be burned clean."
Gao Chuwu and Zheng Daniu shouted in unison, "Wow, we want to play with such an awesome Immortal Artifact too! Let us guard this spot!"
Bai Yuan gave them a sidelong glance. "You two are fools. I'm afraid you're so clumsy you might miss the mechanism altogether. Gao Chuwu might hit Zheng Daniu's foot with his hammer, and Zheng Daniu might hit Gao Chuwu's hand, and then this path would be breached by the bandits."
Both men immediately broke into a sweat. That was a real possibility.
In truth, even non-clumsy ordinary people have a high chance of swinging crookedly when lifting a large hammer over their heads and smashing it down. Even if they don't miss, they might not generate enough force or might throw out their backs.
Only people who swing a large iron hammer every day and have trained for it can strike accurately and powerfully every single time. This task certainly belonged to the two blacksmiths.
Bai Yuan: "I need to reassign people to fill their positions and guard the other two passageways. Heh heh heh, with Dao Xuan Tianzun's blessing, I feel like we can't lose, no matter how we fight. However, winning beautifully is the only way to live up to the Tianzun's expectations."
Everyone shouted in unison, "Dao Xuan Tianzun's blessing!"
Bai Yuan waved his hand. "Everyone begin drills! Memorize your routes for attack, defense, advance, and retreat. When fighting at night, in the dark, don't get lost in your own fortress, or people will laugh their heads off."
Everyone: "Dao Xuan Tianzun's blessing!"
And so, Gao Family Village began drilling with renewed vigor. Those who were originally nervous, after seeing the "Immortal Grand Cannon" granted by Dao Xuan Tianzun, realized their backing was still very strong. As long as they tightly clung to the Tianzun's great thigh, they had nothing to worry about.
They were instantly energized. Their backs didn't ache, their legs didn't hurt, and they were no longer afraid...
...
Night fell. Shuangqing City was still noisy; the nightlife was just beginning.
Li Daoxuan sat in front of his computer, editing videos.
The eighth installment of "Daily Life in the Little People's Kingdom": Inside a small thatched cottage, Gao San Niang is sitting at her loom, *squeak, squeak, squeak,* the little woman weaving before her window...
Just then, his cell phone suddenly let out a "ding-ding-ding, ding-ding-ding" alarm.
It was the "Nighttime Motion Monitoring" alarm from the camera app!
He stopped his work and sat down next to the container. He had already adjusted the view of the container slightly, not centering it on the village but moving it a few hundred meters north, allowing him to see a small part of the village and a small part of the mountain slope north of the city.
The camera that triggered the alarm was the one monitoring this particular mountain slope.
So, Li Daoxuan's eyes naturally focused on the slope.
There were trees on the slope, looking weak and half-dead. Many trees lacked bark, which had obviously been stripped and eaten by the villagers.
These trees obscured part of Li Daoxuan's view, but he could still see a group of people moving stealthily in the woods...
*Heh, Zheng Yanfu and Zhong Guangdao have arrived.*
...
A full moon hung high in the sky. It had only been a few days since the Mid-Autumn Festival, so the moon was still very round. Furthermore, with years of no rain, the sky was cloudless, and the moonlight was quite bright.
Zheng Yanfu and Zhong Guangdao, leading over two hundred subordinates, were lurking on the mountain slope north of Gao Family Village. Using the cover of the woods, they didn't have to worry about the Gao Family Village sentries spotting them.
Ancient people were somewhat night-blind, and the night was generally not conducive to their movement. However, the full moon provided convenience, making a night raid on Gao Family Village possible.
Zheng Yanfu looked at the tall fortress ahead and spat. "How did this wretched place change shape again?"
Zhong Guangdao: "It seems this village is filthy rich. There must be a very wealthy master hiding inside. He must have spent a huge sum of silver to build Gao Family Village like this."
Zheng Yanfu chuckled darkly. "Isn't that great? The richer the master, the more satisfying it is for us to rob him."
Zhong Guangdao also snickered. "Wang Er was bought off by the rich dogs in this village. A little bit of flour turned Wang Er into a rich dog's lackey."
Zheng Yanfu nodded. "I wanted to chop up Wang Er, but you insisted on stopping me and locking him and the Wang Family Village men up. Now we have to waste fifty men guarding them. That's too much wasted effort."
Zhong Guangdao: "Wang Er's reputation still stands. If we kill him now, we won't be able to hold our ground in the bandit world. The other righteous armies will look down on us. We can only lock him up. Once we breach Gao Family Village, kill the rich dogs inside, and bring the money and grain out to share with the brothers, proving our capability, we'll then announce that Wang Er was bought off by the rich dogs and, like Song Jiang, was going to sell us out. Then, killing Wang Er in front of all the heroes in the world will ensure no one can fault us."
Zheng Yanfu thought carefully; the reasoning was sound. To thrive in the bandit world, one couldn't just be ruthless; one also had to observe certain rules of the trade. Killing one's own Big Brother without a valid reason would make them pariahs.
"Good. Let's break into Gao Family Village as soon as possible."
The eyes of the two men were fixed on Gao Family Village ahead.