Luo Xi: "???"
Mozi invented this too?
I don't understand it at all.
I must be uncultured. Ignorant. Illiterate in Mozi's ultimate mechanical arts.
Before he could sink any deeper into self-contempt, Li Daoxuan calmly grabbed his left arm with his right hand—
—and yanked.
Whoosh.
The "skin" of the entire arm peeled away like a sleeve.
Luo Xi: "AAAAHHH—!"
The shock nearly paralyzed him on the spot. His scalp tingled, his knees went weak, his soul very nearly left his body.
But then he looked again.
Beneath the torn outer layer, there was no flesh.
No bone.
What stared back at him was a dark, ominous iron cannon barrel.
Luo Xi: "…Huh?"
Li Daoxuan chuckled lightly, as if explaining something trivial.
"After my left arm fell off, I installed a cannon," he said. "Then I attached a hand to the front of it. Makes daily life easier."
Cold sweat instantly soaked Luo Xi's robes.
"But—even with Mozi's mechanical arts," he blurted out, "that hand shouldn't be able to move! The arm is hollow! There's no mechanism inside at all!"
Li Daoxuan lifted his chin.
"Cannonball, come."
At once, a soldier stepped forward, holding a small cannonball with both hands, as respectfully as if presenting an offering to the Dao Xuan Tianzun himself.
Li Daoxuan's arm-cannon wasn't as thick as a proper breech-loading cannon—only about the width of a forearm. To keep it from bursting, the barrel walls were exceptionally thick, leaving a narrow inner bore.
Naturally, it couldn't fire standard Red Barbarian cannonballs. These were custom-made, smaller rounds prepared specifically for this device.
He poured in the gunpowder, loaded the cannonball, and—still smiling—walked forward toward the city.
Luo Xi stood there, completely stupefied.
He wasn't the only one.
Inside the city, Yi Dou Gu and Wa Guanzi were equally dumbfounded.
They had already seen the government troops arrive and were discussing tactics. Since they held the defensive position, they hadn't rushed to send their main force out. Instead, they waited inside the city, curious to see what tricks the government army would attempt.
Then—
They saw Li Daoxuan, walking alone toward the front.
From afar, his left arm looked useless—just a dark, crude iron pipe where a hand should be.
They couldn't understand this strange, underworld-style design.
And then—
Li Daoxuan stopped several hundred paces from the city, raised his left arm, leveled it straight at the shattered wall.
With his right hand, he produced a fire starter.
Tsss.
Sparks flew. The fuse caught.
Yi Dou Gu: "What?!"
Wa Guanzi: "What in the hell is that?!"
BOOM!
A thunderous roar ripped across the battlefield.
A violent explosion.
Savage recoil.
Li Daoxuan himself was blasted backward, skidding across the ground.
At the same instant, a small, dark sphere screamed through the air toward the county town.
Thud.
It smashed into what used to be the city wall—now nothing more than broken rubble.
Inside the city, fifty thousand rebel soldiers were packed together shoulder to shoulder. Missing was impossible.
The cannonball struck one man square in the forehead.
Squelch.
His skull burst apart.
Red and white matter sprayed across the ground.
Yi Dou Gu: "Holy shit!"
Wa Guanzi: "Holy shit!"
The rebels: "HOLY SHIT!"
Luo Xi: "HOLY SHIT!"
After shouting, Luo Xi suddenly froze.
The Gao Family Village Militia…
Looked utterly calm.
Not a trace of surprise.
Cold sweat poured down his spine.
"Damn it," he cursed inwardly. "Why am I reacting the same way as the rebels? I'm clearly standing on the wrong side!"
He snapped back to his senses and shouted,
"Quick! Go check on Squire Li! He just blasted himself backward—he must be seriously injured!"
Before the sentence even finished—
Li Daoxuan stood up.
Alive.
Unhurt.
Only slightly… blackened.
Gunpowder smoke rolled around him. His clothes and face were smeared with soot.
Li Daoxuan spat to the side.
"Pah. Not fun at all."
Zheng Gouzi frowned deeply.
"Tianzun, there's clearly a flaw in this thing's design."
Flat Rabbit nodded with a serious expression.
"Indeed. We should have the Gao Family Village technicians improve it immediately."
Li Daoxuan sighed.
"It can't be improved. With current technology, there's no way to neutralize recoil like this."
He shook his head in disappointment.
"Ugh. Not fun. I don't want to play with it myself anymore."
He reached up, grabbed the cannon barrel attached to his left arm—
Clink.
Detached it cleanly.
Then tossed it onto the ground.
A squad of Gao Family Village militia immediately rushed forward, stacking stones to mount the barrel, cleaning the breech, and loading ammunition with smooth, practiced movements.
They'd clearly trained for this.
Zheng Gouzi blinked.
"Oh? We even have artillerymen?"
The group burst into laughter.
"Our artillery battalion was practically rusting away! When Tianzun told us to follow him this time, how could we not come?"
Everyone: "…"
Then Li Daoxuan casually extended his right arm.
"Here. Take this one too."
The artillerymen hurried forward, first bowing deeply and apologizing for the offense, then—without hesitation—detached Li Daoxuan's right arm and mounted it beside the first cannon.
Two small cannons now sat side by side.
Perfectly aligned.
Luo Xi: "AAAAHHH! So your right hand was fake too?! Then how were you making such nimble gestures earlier?!"
Li Daoxuan waved dismissively.
"That's not important. Don't worry about it."
But how could anyone not worry about something like that?
Luo Xi wasn't alone.
Inside the city, Yi Dou Gu and Wa Guanzi were practically losing their minds.
"Both arms are cannons?!"
"Is this man insane?!"
"How could something that heavy be attached to his body all this time?!"
Before they could finish venting—
BOOM!
BOOM!
Two more cannon shots thundered.
Two iron spheres flew over the battlefield.
Thud!
One rebel was struck squarely in the torso and collapsed instantly, dead before he hit the ground.
Another was "luckier," only hit in the calf.
Crack.
Bone shattered. The impact sent blood spraying from all seven orifices as he collapsed screaming.
The rebels howled in rage—but the enemy was far beyond bow range. Only cannons could reach that distance.
Yi Dou Gu slammed his fist.
"This is preposterous!"
Wa Guanzi spat.
"Why are we even defending this place? They only have two thousand men! This city doesn't even have proper walls anymore—defend it or not, what's the difference?! Charge!"
Yi Dou Gu gritted his teeth.
"…You're right. Charge!"
At their command, the Henan rebels surged out of the city, roaring like a tidal wave.
Li Daoxuan smiled faintly.
"These Henan rebels are still green," he said calmly.
"They've only just joined the uprising. Their combat strength is about the same as early Chongzhen-era troops."
He raised his hand.
"Disorganized rabble."
Then—
"Crush them."
The militia burst into laughter.
Swish, swish, swish.
Flintlock rifles rose in perfect unison.
"The fools are charging!"
"Prepare volley fire!"
"Then free fire!"
"Fire!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The battlefield exploded into rhythmic thunder.