The Empress's No.1 Lackey-Chapter 279 - 244, A Divine Weapon Across Ages_2

It’s worth mentioning that although Prince Jing Mansion’s secret deployment of spies was no longer a secret to many high-ranking officers,

At least on the surface, without solid evidence, they were not willing to openly confront the issue.

So, the last time the Divine Mechanism Camp’s firearms case came up, that shit bucket eventually got dumped on the Kuangfu Society.

Whether it was Xue Shence or Zhao Douan, they both publicly referred to the "traitor within Prince Jing Mansion" as rebels...

Everyone speculated that Zhao Douan had been rapidly appointed specifically to target the mole within Prince Jing Mansion.

It was just that previously, there was an unspoken agreement not to mention it.

At this moment, however, Xue Shence plainly pierced that veil of secrecy.

"Could the master have misunderstood?"

Zhao Douan appeared shocked as he said,

"What case to investigate? Although I also concurrently serve as the Imperial Decree Department, my visit to the Divine Mechanism Camp is solely to fulfill my duties as a fourth-rank Commander for the Capital Camp, to do practical things for our officers and soldiers, that’s all.

Whether rebels exist or not, what does it have to do with me?"

Under the cooling hut, everyone was momentarily speechless.

Seeing his sincere manner, they didn’t know whether to believe him or to praise his acting skills.

Doing practical things for soldiers... Lavish feasting, playing ball games, which of these has anything to do with "practical things"?

...Xue Shence’s mouth twitched slightly, gaining a new appreciation for this man’s ability to feign ignorance.

Taking a deep breath, he said,

"Nowadays, in times of peace, nothing in the camp requires Master Zhao’s attention. It’s the matter of the rebels that is truly pressing.

Previously, the theft of firearms blueprints from the Divine Mechanism Camp and the disappearance of craftsmen alarmed His Majesty.

Firearms are a critical weapon of our military; if obtained by rebels, it would be a great menace. It would be better for Master Zhao to focus on this rather than on activities that could damage your reputation."

It seemed like advice but was mainly a warning.

However, Zhao Douan’s next words stunned everyone.

"The stolen firearms? They are no longer important," Zhao Douan said nonchalantly,

"Besides, how can Mr. Xue be so sure that I haven’t filled that gap?"

"What do you mean?" Xue Shence felt a jolt in his heart, vaguely sensing that something unexpected was about to occur.

"Bring it here!" Zhao Douan suddenly called out in a clear voice.

From the side, a soldier hastened over from a distance, carrying a long, narrow, brown wooden box that was half a person’s height. He arrived before Zhao Douan, knelt on one knee, and held it aloft with both hands.

At this moment, it seemed as though the wind also sensed an ominous atmosphere, blowing more furiously, causing everyone’s official robes to flutter like waves.

Zhao Douan lifted the lid of the wooden box with one hand and then picked up a long "stick" with a brown wooden buttstock, a pitch-black barrel, and a sophisticated structure, cold and silent.

Under the puzzled and curious gazes of the officers, he held it in an odd position and chuckled,

"Do any of you recognize this object?"

The Minister of War shook his head,

"It resembles a spear but lacks a spearhead; I have never seen such a thing."

Wang, a thin commander from the Privy Council, also furrowed his brows,

"A tubular object that seems to smell of gunpowder, could it be another type of firearm? Yet so compact... unheard of."

Xue Shence said nothing, his eyes equally filled with confusion.

And at that moment, a line of soldiers, each holding a similar strange weapon, stepped onto the training field.

"Mr. Wang is correct; this object is the new-style firearm of the Divine Mechanism Camp, and today’s drill is also for this purpose."

Zhao Douan announced loudly, then suddenly turned his head to look at Tang Ping, dressed in a white robe, his mouth lifting into a smile as he called out loudly,

"Young Master, you are known as the best archer in the military. Tell me, with the wind like this today, would arrows still be sharp on the battlefield?"

Tang Ping, caught off-guard by the mention, first paused.

Then, looking at the violently shaking cooling hut and the flags nearly fully unfurled in the cutting autumn breeze, he heard the sound of the canopy flapping.

Though displeased, he still firmly said,

"With the wind, shooting an arrow is twice as effective, but if not, it’s indeed disadvantageous!"

"Good!"

Zhao Douan faced the wind, his hair also blowing into disarray.

He raised the firearm with one hand, the barrel pointing slightly upward, took out a windproof tinderbox with his left hand, shook it, and sparks flared, which he then lightly swept across the fuse.

With a laugh, he proclaimed,

"You wanted to see me practice archery that day. Well today, keep your eyes open and watch."

Hiss... the fuse ignited, and the gunpowder in the barrel was ready to explode.

Zhao Douan lifted the gun to the sky,

"Let’s see if this ’arrow’ of mine is sharp or not!"

The next moment, he pulled the trigger, and from the dark barrel blazed a dazzling light, and a searing orb like a tiny sun, carried by a deafening roar and a piercing bang, shot towards the clouds.

"Bang!"

As if it were a signal.

On the drill field, the sound of drums rose, and a great many soldiers lifted their guns as gunfire boomed like thunder.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang..."

The dense gunfire, like an abrupt downpour, came pouring down without warning.

The neatly arranged, pitch-black muzzles simultaneously spewed fierce, bright flames, raising a mass of blue smoke thick with the pungent smell of sulfur.

The strong recoil force sent countless lead bullets raining down like a torrent, shooting towards the human-shaped targets that had already been arranged in a military formation in the distance.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang...!"

As soon as the front row of soldiers fired, they quickly retreated to the sides, and the second row took their place; reloading swiftly at the rear, Gongshu Tianyuan’s modifications were showing their tremendous effectiveness.

The entire square formation was like a machine full of power, raging like a bull, leaning forward in an orderly operation, directing its furious fire against the imaginary enemy.

The intense and dense sound of gunfire rhythmically surged wave after wave, completely suppressing the voices of everyone under the canopy.

Outside the drill field, even the warhorses accustomed to the sound of firearms could not help but stomp their hooves uneasily.

The soldiers were even more astounded, turning their heads to look into the distance, wondering if perhaps the gunpowder warehouse had exploded?

And what followed was as if the "gunpowder warehouse" indeed exploded.

On one side of the drill field, the doors of the barrier gate were pushed open.

Chen Gui, dressed in his official robe, personally held a torch and walked out.

Beside him, a giant cannon was pushed out by strongmen.

Patterns were etched on the thick cannon barrel, and the short half a month was not enough to complete the manufacture of the cannon.

Hence, this red cannon, named "Divine General," was forcefully catalyzed by Gongshu Tianyuan with the help of magicians.

But it was sufficient for the demonstration.

Chen Huoshen’s priest robe fluttered in the wind, his hair flying back, and he firmly lit the fuse with his right hand.

For a short moment.

The fierce and potent energy was brewing within the ferocious black muzzle. The designs on the barrel lit up in sequence, as if to charge up the cannon, pushing out the cannonball.

"BOOM!!!!"

A flash of exceptionally brilliant firelight blinked.

Under the gaze of all, at the end of the drill field, the "military formation" that had already been riddled by the gunfire was torn apart.

The thick wall collapsed, leaving a massive breach, and dust flew everywhere!

The ground was blown into a deep pit, and the fragmented shrapnel of the cannonball pockmarked the surrounding land with holes as thick as fingers!

At that moment, under the canopy, every military officer was deeply moved.

Even "Military God" Xue Shence’s eyes twitched violently.

He quickly judged that even he, if caught off guard, would be injured by a direct hit from that "cannon."

And in all the world, how many martial artists were as strong as he?

"Halt!"

Zhao Douan lowered the firearm he held high.

The sound of gunfire and cannons on the field also stopped abruptly, as if under the control of a conductor’s baton.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

On the drill field, the Firearms Soldiers standing in square formations stood tall and proud.

Under the canopy, officials from the Privy Council, Ministry of War, and Capital Camp all had nearly identical expressions.

Bewilderment, emotion, astonishment, disbelief.

The exceptionally burly Shi Meng blinked hard, his features somewhat contorted.

Unclear when such a troop appeared within the Divine Mechanism Camp, right under his own eyes.

The Commanders of the Five Army Camp and Three Thousand Camp were also in a daze, almost instinctively calculating:

If their own soldiers faced this scene, what would be the outcome?

All they could think of were the seemingly elegant but actually brutal four characters: "fallen flowers and flowing water."

Mr. Wang’s face twitched as he stared blankly at the field, as if he still hadn’t snapped out of it.

Suddenly he remembered the news that Zhao Douan was close with the Firearms Bureau...

Everyone thought it was an investigation, but unexpectedly... it turned out to be such a big "surprise."

He muttered softly:

"What is this... new firearm?"

The Minister of War stood stunned for a long time, his hand stroking his beard. In his emotion, he accidentally plucked out a few beard hairs, but did not care.

Only his eyes shone: "Divine weapon... Divine weapon..."

Xue Shence silently watched the whole drill and slowly turned his head back.

For the first time, he looked seriously and fixedly at Zhao Douan, then at the firearm in his hands, and with a slightly hoarse voice, he asked:

"What is... this?"

Zhao Douan smiled and said, "This is what I’ve been working on."