Chapter Seventy: The Final Frenzy

  Facing the approaching Wokou with their frenzied and bloodthirsty eyes, Pang Gang did not panic. He calmly raised his curved knife and shouted loudly:

  " Musketeers retreat, pikemen advance!"

  "Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

  The thirty long spear men who were originally standing behind immediately stepped forward quickly, replacing the position of the bird gunners, and the bird gunners retreated to the last place. They did not pay attention to the approaching Japanese pirates, but handed over their safety to their comrades.

  Thirty men in a line, holding long spears level with the tips of their eyebrows, the two-meter-long spears pointing straight ahead. As the spearman moved forward, the sword and shield soldiers who were originally behind them immediately stood behind the spearman, ready to fill any gaps at any time.

  Before he could finish speaking, in just an instant, the charging Wokou had already made contact with the long spear soldiers.

  Just then, Pang Gang shouted loudly: "Raise your guns!"

  "Kill!"

  Familiar passwords, familiar movements, thirty long spears stabbed forward at the same time, only to hear the sound of "puffing" in my ears, more than a dozen Japanese pirates who first came into contact with the long spear soldiers were immediately pierced by the sharp spearhead.

  As soon as the two sides came into contact, the sound of "bang bang" was endless. The Japanese pirates' martial arts were indeed extraordinary. Although they were short in stature, when they danced with their Japanese swords in hand, they were invincible. A Japanese sword danced with dense wind.

  Although the thirty musketeers in the front row fought hard to resist and killed more than a dozen Japanese pirates, due to the thinness of the battle array, they were still breached by several Japanese pirates. For a time, there was a danger that the long gun formation would be broken through. Fortunately, the knife shield soldiers standing in the back row successfully supplemented their positions in time. The thirty knife shield soldiers rushed up and chopped the few Japanese pirates who broke into the meat pulp.

  Just after wiping out the Wokou who had rushed forward, nearly a hundred more Wokou immediately surged up from behind. Seeing this, Pang realized that the thirty long spear soldiers in the front row would absolutely not be able to withstand the repeated attacks of so many Wokou. He took a heavy shield from the hands of his trusted follower Cheng Kai and shouted loudly: "All heavy infantry, follow me in the charge! Those who advance will be rewarded! Those who retreat will be beheaded!"

  Pang Gang raised his knife and let out a loud roar as he led the charge forward.

  "Kill!"

  In the era of cold weapons, the leading role of commanders in battle was extremely important. As long as the officers led by example and took the lead, the soldiers would be willing to risk their lives to follow them. On the other hand, if the officers fled without a fight, the consequences were predictable.

  It's strange to say, but since Pang Gang carried that deformed "Modern Firearms Encyclopedia" with him day and night, he not only felt his appetite increase greatly, but also his strength grew more and more. His physical quality was even more terrifying than when he was in the future. Originally, with his physical quality, he could only lift objects of over 100 catties (about 60 kg), which was just average among adults. But now, for some reason, he could easily lift things of three or four hundred catties without breaking a sweat. For this reason, Pang Gang, who cherished his life extremely, specially ordered the blacksmiths at Wang Hai Fortress to forge an iron shield weighing over 30 catties (about 18 kg), as big as a small door panel. Such a heavy shield could be used both for defense against enemy arrows and as a weapon to smash people during battle, making it a versatile tool for offense and defense. This was also one of the reasons he dared to lead the charge into the fray.

  Now Pang Gang holds a curved knife in his right hand and a large iron shield in his left, leading the charge against the Japanese pirates, with one hundred heavy infantrymen behind him.

  The combat method of the heavy infantry was different from that of the long spear soldiers. They, like the knife shield hands, were equipped with fine steel-made swallow flying knives. They wore relatively light scale armor and formed a six-person plum blossom formation, following behind Pang Gang to charge against the Japanese pirates.

  "Kill!"

  "Clang!" A loud crash, Pang Gang's iron shield blocked a Japanese sword that was chopped down on his head. Immediately afterwards, the curved knife in his hand chopped towards this Japanese pirate, and the sharp Damascus curved knife cut into the shoulder of this Japanese pirate under the action of great force, immediately cutting this Japanese pirate into two pieces.

  "Ptoo! The devil's blood is both bitter and stinky."

  Pang Gang furrowed his brow and muttered to himself, but before he could even react, three more Japanese pirates charged towards him. Three gleaming Japanese swords immediately came slashing down at Pang Gang, who barely had time to duck behind his shield and hold up the heavy shield in front of his chest with his left hand.

  He only felt a shock in his left hand, followed by a series of clangs, as the three Japanese swords struck his large shield on his left arm.

  "Bastard!"

  Pang Gang's furious roar, his body hidden behind the large shield, charged at a Japanese pirate with both man and shield. The unprepared pirate was hit by the over 30 kg heavy shield plus Pang Gang's over 150 kg body weight, causing him to spit out blood and fly to one side, falling to the ground unable to get up for a while.

  After knocking down the Japanese pirate, Pang Gang used his old trick again and rushed towards another Japanese pirate beside him. However, this time the Japanese pirate was more cautious and jumped to one side, ready to counterattack with his knife. Unexpectedly, the cunning Pang Gang had already swung his sword downwards, catching the pirate off guard. The sharp curved blade sliced across his shoulder, causing the pirate's right arm to fall to the ground instantly.

  Because Pang Gang's curved knife was too sharp, he didn't even realize his arm had fallen off at first. When he saw his opponent swing the knife and then ignore him to charge towards his own companion, he felt a surge of joy in his heart. His left hand was about to join with his right hand to chop at the opponent when he suddenly discovered that his right arm, along with the curved knife, had fallen to the ground without him even realizing it. It wasn't until then that he felt a sharp pain coming from his right shoulder, and this poor pirate let out a miserable cry before fainting to the ground.

  The Japanese pirate fell to the ground, and Pang Gang's original situation of being surrounded by three Japanese pirates was lifted. It was much easier for Pang Gang to deal with the last remaining Japanese pirate, relying on his large iron shield in hand, he quickly knocked the last Japanese pirate to the ground.

  Pang Gang's bravery quickly caught the attention of the Japanese pirates, and the leader of the Japanese pirates, ōno no Tofu, who was originally at the forefront, charged towards Pang Gang with a fierce battle cry.

  After resolving the three Japanese pirates, Pang Gang was about to continue charging forward when he suddenly felt a flash before his eyes. A man much taller and larger than ordinary Japanese pirates appeared in front of him. He took a closer look and found that it was a ferocious-looking pirate grasping a long Japanese sword with both hands, rushing towards him.

  Pang Gang was overjoyed and won the upper hand, soon both sides' weapons clashed "ding ding dang" seven or eight times.

  Pang Gang took a few steps back, looked at the Damascus curved knife in his hand and found that this curved knife, which he had exchanged for a "high price", was still intact. He let out a slight sigh of relief. On the other hand, when he glanced at his opponent, ōno Takeshi, he discovered that his treasured Japanese sword already had several small notches on it, which left him utterly astonished.

  All along, the reason why the Japanese pirates could roam freely in the southeastern coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty was not only because of their unpredictable movements and the low combat effectiveness of the Ming army, but also because the Japanese swords used by the Japanese pirates were carefully crafted by Japanese blacksmiths. In battles with the Ming army, the weapons of the Ming army would often be cut off by the Japanese swords after colliding with them, which was also one of the reasons why the Japanese pirates could dominate the coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty.

  Now, ōno no Tofu saw that his Japanese sword was damaged in the collision with his opponent. He felt as if a knife had been twisted into his heart and, filled with grief and anger, he raised his sword again and charged at Pang Gang.

  Pang Gang sneered and raised his shield again, only to hear the continuous "dang dang dang" sound as Pang Gang's shield and curved knife desperately greeted Ono Toshi. Ono Toshi's Japanese sword finally broke under the pressure, and Pang Gang took advantage of the opportunity to swing his knife before charging forward without hesitation.

  Only Taiyō no ōji remained standing, his neck suddenly spouting a fountain of blood that shot up into the air, and he fell backwards with a straight posture.