Outside the city, the Qin army camp.
Wang Li stood on high ground, gazing at the city of Handan, a confident smile on his face: "It seems these Zhao people are terrified. Tomorrow morning, we'll show them what we're made of!"
They didn't rush to attack the city upon arriving here. As the saying goes, attacking the city is inferior, while attacking the mind is superior. They just left the city here to scare people, which would surely cause riots in Handan. That way, they could save themselves some effort.
The next day, early morning.
"General Wang, the gunpowder is ready!" the lieutenant reported excitedly. "Shall we begin the attack now?"
"What's the rush?" Wang Li was leisurely enjoying tea with his father, Wang Ben, and Meng Tian. "Let these Zhao people taste some bitterness first. Otherwise, they won't know how powerful we are."
"Pass down the order," he stood up, a hint of mockery in his eyes, "Every hour, throw one piece of gunpowder outside the city. Just detonate it, no need to aim. Let them experience what fear truly means."
Soon, a loud "boom" was heard outside the city wall.
A new type of gunpowder exploded a hundred paces away, its crimson flames staining half the sky red. The flames were also mixed with blinding blue light—the 'fire mother' added by the sorcerers was burning.
"Ouch!" The Zhao soldiers on the city wall trembled in fear. "That power is too great!"
An hour later, there was another loud "boom".
The gunpowder landed on the west side of the city wall, and the shockwave from the explosion shook the city gate, nearly causing the defenders on the city wall to lose their footing.
"It's over, it's over..." The defenders were ashen-faced. "If that bomb hit the city wall, wouldn't it flatten the city gate?"
An hour later, a third explosion came from the east.
This gunpowder seemed different; not only was it more powerful, but it also produced a large number of scattered sparks. These sparks carried an eerie flame, and once they touched something, even water couldn't extinguish them.
"What tricks are these Qin people playing?" The Zhao general in the city was extremely anxious.
"What other trick could it be?" Han Ming sneered. "They're just trying to scare us. Didn't you see? They never aim; they just want us to see how powerful this gunpowder is."
Sure enough, the Qin army put on a "fireworks show" across the city wall all day long.
Although not a single gunpowder hit the city wall, the massive explosion and eerie flames terrified the soldiers and civilians in the city.
At night, countless torches suddenly lit up the Qin army camp, followed by several loud booms and flames shooting into the sky.
"What tricks are they playing this time?" King Yan of Zhao was so frightened in the palace that he could hardly sit still.
Han Ming's face turned ashen: "These Qin bastards are putting on a show for us! Look at that firelight, it's like daytime. They want us to see everything clearly."
It's not just acting.
Several junior officers of the Qin army led dozens of soldiers to the foot of the city wall and began shouting at the top of their lungs.
"Listen up, Zhao! This is Qin's latest improved gunpowder! It's three times more powerful than the one used in Gaoyang!"
"Don't believe me? Come on, let's show you another one!"
"boom!"
Another loud bang.
This time, there was not only firelight, but also countless tiny fireballs shooting out in all directions. Each fireball would create a ball of flame after landing, making the snow hiss as it burned.
"See? This is just a piece of cake! There's something even more amazing coming tomorrow!" Junior Colonel Qin's voice was full of smugness.
That night, almost no one in Handan slept; the soldiers and civilians were terrified by the continuous explosions and eerie flames.
The next morning, before dawn, the Qin army camp was bustling with activity.
"Brothers!" Wang Li shouted from his horse, "Today we'll show the Zhao people our true skills! Let them witness our new gunpowder!"
The soldiers cheered with joy. They had played with "fireworks" all day yesterday, and today it was finally time to get serious.
"The Grand Commandant wants us to try this," Meng Tian said with a smile, pulling out a specially made iron ball. "It's filled with carefully selected 'fire mothers.' The sorcerers said its power is several times greater than the previous gunpowder!"
"Good heavens!" Wang Li took the iron ball and examined it closely. "If such a huge thing were thrown into the city, wouldn't it scare the Zhao people to death?"
Soon, a group of Qin soldiers pushed several specially made catapults to the outside of the city. These catapults were also new, specially improved by Mohist craftsmen, and their range was more than twice that of ordinary ones.
"Brothers of Zhao!" Meng Tian shouted at the top of his lungs, "Did you enjoy yesterday's performance? Today, let's try something new!"
"put!"
A gleaming iron ball shot into the air.
Before the Zhao army on the city wall could react, they heard a loud "boom"! This time the power was much greater than yesterday's, and the shockwave from the explosion knocked down everyone nearby.
Even more terrifying was that the explosion of the iron ball produced countless tiny fragments, which, along with flames, shot out in all directions. These fragments were incredibly powerful, riddling the wooden shield walls on the city wall with holes, and several unfortunate defenders were instantly riddled with bullets.
"My God! What the hell is that?!" Zhao's soldier trembled with fear. "This is terrifying!"
"Look, look!" the Qin army junior officer shouted smugly, "This is just the appetizer! We have something even more amazing to come!"
As they spoke, they brought out another strangely shaped machine. It looked like a combination of a catapult and a repeating crossbow, and it could actually fire several gunpowder charges at once.
"Boom boom boom!" Amidst the continuous explosions, the city walls were in complete chaos.
Those new gunpowders were not only incredibly powerful, but they also produced strange flames that burned wherever they touched, even heating the stones on the city walls until they were glowing red-hot.
"What kind of defense is this?!" A Zhao soldier threw down his weapon and ran. "This isn't fighting, it's suicide!"
Seeing the panic on the city walls, Wang Li smirked.
He knew that Zhao Jun's courage had been broken. Now it was time to put on one last act...
"Bring that here!" he beckoned to his personal guard.
The guards quickly carried up a huge iron can.
This was the Qin army's trump card, a top-grade gunpowder meticulously formulated by the sorcerer who focused on large quantities to ensure ample supply. Not to mention its power, just looking at its volume tells you how substantial it was.
"My brothers from Zhao!" Wang Li shouted at the top of his lungs, "See this huge thing? Tell me, what kind of scene would it be if we threw it into the city?"
A commotion broke out on the city wall as the soldiers fled in panic.
If a small amount of gunpowder had such terrifying power, imagine how powerful this large one is... wouldn't it just blow up the city wall?
Staying on the city wall... wouldn't that be suicide?
In the blink of an eye, the city wall was deserted. Zhao's army had all run down the wall and into the houses on both sides of the street to take refuge.
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