Chapter 479 There's a doctor named Gatlin
"Squad leader, my rifle is so hot, I can barely pull back the bolt!"
"I'll have the two fire brothers in the back replace you right away. Hold on, don't let these barbarians charge up. They're less than a hundred paces away! They'll be able to fire their arrows soon!"
Under the frenzied attack of the Hu cavalry, the riflemen of the Da Yuan army achieved a record-breaking rate of fire. They mechanically fired rapidly at the enemy less than a hundred paces away, repeatedly pulling the bolt, firing, pulling the bolt, reloading, and continuing to fire.
On the short stretch of the defensive line under the most pressure, some infantrymen had already fired hundreds of rounds in a row, and the barrels and bolts of their rifles had begun to overheat. They had to have the riflemen cool them down with wet cloths and take turns firing.
“Uncle Wu, I suddenly feel sorry for these Hu people. They were driven here to their deaths by the Russians. When the Great Xia people came, they submitted to the Great Xia. When the Russians came, they submitted to the Russians. They are opportunists, which may be able to please both sides, but no one will treat them as one of their own. Haven’t they ever thought about slowly assimilating into the Great Xia and becoming true Great Xia people?”
"Your Highness, the Great Xia court does not have your magnanimous heart. Whether it is a Korean or a Japanese, as long as they are loyal to you, you will treat them as your own people. Besides, these barbarians may not really be willing to serve others as their rulers. They are only superficially submissive."
"They've already lost tens of thousands of men, why aren't they retreating? Do they really think they can overwhelm us with the lives of these barbarians in the end?"
"Your Highness, if we are determined to die, tens of thousands of cavalry can overwhelm a group of cultivators at the Human Realm and Yellow Realm. Even cultivators at the Profound Realm can only avoid a large number of cavalry. But for them to overwhelm our army... I'm afraid it won't be so easy, hehehe!"
Wu Shengze was referring to his past experience. It was easy for a few hundred cavalrymen to surround and kill a Human Realm cultivator, but if a few hundred cavalrymen wanted to kill a Yellow Realm cultivator, in addition to working together and being willing to die, the Yellow Realm cultivator also had to be stupid enough to fight back.
But now that the Da Yuan army has entered the era of firearms, this method of exchanging lives for lives simply does not work on the Da Yuan army.
General Somov finally realized that something was wrong. The Hu cavalry were stuck about a hundred paces from the Da Yuan army camp and could not advance any further, just like a surging wave being stubbornly blocked by a reef.
"General... something seems wrong... the cavalry in front are falling one after another, but they can't advance an inch. Are the crossbow bolts of the Great Xia people really that powerful?"
"...You go and stop the attack again. I'll go find Morakoff. Hopefully, they can finish the battle quickly this time and not too many people will go berserk."
Somov sighed, deciding to use the Legion of the Dead after all. So many Hu people had died; he had to subdue this Great Xia army to quell the anger of the people. He could imagine the ensuing disputes over the spoils. The dead needed compensation, but who would willingly give their wealth to a tribe that had lost so many warriors? They'd be lucky not to take the opportunity to annex you.
"Morakov, our attack is not going well and we need your help. However, we have already exhausted a lot of the enemy's strength. I think you only need to send a few dozen undead knights to break through the enemy's camp."
The tall, armored knight stared at Somov with his chilling eyes for a long time before speaking in a hoarse voice: "We knights of the dead have no family, no life, only these former comrades. No matter what we do, we've always been together. I know what you're worried about. I'll retreat immediately after tearing open the enemy camp. If we're lucky, not many people will go crazy."
Somov paused for a moment, then placed his right hand on his chest in a nobleman's salute and said sincerely, "Viscount Morakov, we will all remember your sacrifices for this country!"
Somov was genuinely moved. Despite their ghostly appearance, these knights of the dead were once excellent soldiers, and their nature was not so cruel and bloodthirsty.
"General Somov, something's not right... I managed to get the men out, but... I have some bad news."
"What news? How many casualties?" It must be said that Somov reacted quickly, immediately thinking about the casualties.
"...The Xia people completely abandoned crossbows and even swords and spears, and put on a new weapon. Although our Hu brothers were very brave, they suffered heavy casualties, and during the retreat they were subjected to accurate shooting..."
"How many people?" Somov asked, emphasizing his question.
"...more than 20,000 people..."
"...In just a few quarters of an hour...20,000 men lost? Yakup...you actually believe such a thing?"
"...Perhaps not entirely accurate, maybe... there are 30,000 people."
Somov pushed Yakup aside and walked towards his command post. He needed to ascertain the truth. If what Yakup said was true, then the Great Xia army was not bait at all, but a wolf in sheep's clothing.
After confirming it repeatedly, Somov finally accepted the fact that he deeply regretted.
He regretted not having committed the Legion of the Dead from the beginning. If they had just stormed into the Great Xia camp, wouldn't these Great Xia people, most of whom were ranged units, have been nothing more than lambs waiting to be slaughtered?
"General Somov, our cavalry... are not meant for brute force!"
"But we have heavy cavalry! Yakup, we must set an example for them!"
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