Zhang Chen smiled lightly and said, “You see.”
Brother Qu took the Yuan Crossbow, examined it closely, and weighed it in his hands a couple of times, finding it to be even lighter than a regular crossbow.
Brother Qu said with some doubt, “Lord, can this crossbow… truly fire ten arrows consecutively?”
“Someone, set up the straw figures!” Zhang Chen commanded, then took the Yuan Crossbow from Brother Qu's hand, took out ten arrows, and loaded them one by one.
Brother Qu's expression couldn't help but change drastically.
This crossbow could actually load ten arrows!
Just as Brother Qu was filled with astonishment, the Soldiers had also set up the straw figures one by one.
Zhang Chen raised the Yuan Crossbow, aimed at a straw figure, and forcefully pulled up the trigger mechanism.
With a 'call out' sound, an arrow flew through the air, and in the blink of an eye, the straw figure fell to the ground.
“Good!” Seeing this, the Soldiers cheered one after another.
Zhang Chen forcefully pressed down the trigger mechanism, pulled the bowstring taut, another arrow was placed on the string, and with another raise, another straw figure fell in response.
This time, the expressions of Brother Qu and the Soldiers changed.
They clearly saw that Zhang Chen hadn't loaded an arrow, but had directly shot the second one!
This crossbow could actually fire consecutively!
Brother Qu's eyes were incredibly fervent; no one knew better than him what this meant.
Zhang Chen didn't stop. With a press and raise of the trigger mechanism, several 'whoosh whoosh whoosh' sounds were heard as seven or eight arrows flew out consecutively. In a moment, the straw figures in front lay scattered on the ground.
At this point, everyone widened their eyes, looking at everything before them in disbelief.
Zhang Chen's lips curved slightly upward. He turned back to look at Brother Qu and said, “Brother Qu, how is it?”
“This… this…” Brother Qu's voice trembled, “A divine artifact, this is a divine artifact! Lord, if all the Soldiers in our army are equipped with this crossbow, one can stand against a hundred! Lord, where did you obtain such a divine weapon?”
Zhang Chen smiled and said, “This crossbow is called the 'Yuan Crossbow', and it comes from the hands of Xu Yuan, the supervisor of the Luban Hall in the Heavenly Crafting Hall. I have ordered the Heavenly Crafting Hall to expedite production. In half a month, the brothers of the First to Ascend Camp and the Crossbow Soldier Camp can all be equipped with this crossbow!”
“Zhang He pays respects to the Lord!” After saying this, Brother Qu knelt on one knee, and then all the Generals and Soldiers also bowed.
“We pay our respects to the Lord.”
“Everyone, please rise,” Zhang Chen said. “Everyone here is a brave warrior of Ji Province. You joined the military to ensure the peace of Ji Province and protect the borders and the people. What this official can do for everyone is to maximize your combat power through these military equipment and gear. But on the battlefield, relying solely on these is not enough! What truly allows you to stand firm and establish yourselves is the effectiveness of your daily training. This requires everyone's diligent effort; it cannot be achieved by external forces.”
“Lord, rest assured,” Brother Qu said. “Brothers, the Lord has equipped us with such a divine weapon. Can we fail to live up to the Lord's high expectations?”
“No!”
“No!”
“No!”
“Good, from now on, intensify training. In half a month, I hope to see a truly elite force!”
“We will not fail the General! We will not fail the Lord!”
For a time, the training ground echoed with thunderous shouts.
Seeing the Soldiers' morale greatly boosted, Zhang Chen was very pleased. He immediately inquired about the progress of the recruitment matters.
Brother Qu said that apart from the Crossbow Soldier Camp and the Trapped Camp, Generals Qian Zhao and Zhao Yun are currently in charge of this matter. Since the recruitment order was issued, in the past half month, many have come to enlist out of admiration. Even before a month has passed, the number of newly recruited Soldiers has exceeded the thirty thousand requested by Zhang Chen.
Zhang Chen was quite satisfied, but he was also secretly calculating, because with more Soldiers, it meant that military equipment and provisions must be supplied in time, which was another large expense.
Fortunately, they had recently eliminated a group of corrupt officials, and the confiscated property had significantly replenished the treasury.
“Order Zijing and Zilong to properly settle the new army and intensify training matters. Within a month, they must at least achieve strict obedience and proficiency in battle formations.”
“Understood.”
After giving his instructions, Zhang Chen left the Military Camp and returned directly to his mansion.
Currently, the Soldiers were ready, and the matter of military equipment and provisions must also keep up.
Zhang Chen immediately ordered someone to summon Li Ye and his son Li Ju.
Before long, the two arrived. After exchanging greetings, Li Ye asked, “May I know why Lord urgently summoned my son and me?”
Zhang Chen had just finished sketching a draft on paper. Seeing the two arrive, he put down his brush and said, “Gentlemen, please look at this first.”
With that, Zhang Chen gave the drawing he had just finished to the two to look at.
The drawing clearly showed the design of a suit of armor and a long saber.
“Lord, this is…” Li Ju looked at it and asked in confusion, “Does Lord intend to forge this kind of armor and this kind of long saber?”
“Precisely,” Zhang Chen said. “This saber is called the 'Mo Dao'. I improved it based on the 'Horse Cutting Sword'. This saber is about one Zhang long, weighs twenty jin, has a three-chi blade, and is double-edged. When facing the enemy, it can cut off heads from above and chop horse legs from below. With one swing, both man and horse are shattered!”
Upon hearing Zhang Chen, Li Ye and his son couldn't help but gasp.
The Prefect looks so young, how does he know so many things? The crossbow he ordered Xu Yuan to forge the other day, they had also seen it with their own eyes. Could this saber also be as powerful as the Lord said?
“How about it, can it be made?”
Zhang Chen couldn't help but ask, seeing the somewhat dazed looks in their eyes.
Li Ye pondered for a moment and said, “This old man will do his best to try, but I don't know which General will use this saber?”
Zhang Chen smiled and said, “It is not for Generals to use, but for Soldiers to forge. If it can be made, it will be mass-produced like the Yuan Crossbow.”
“What! Sol… Soldiers?” Li Ye was shocked upon hearing this.
If every Soldier were equipped with such a weapon, wouldn't they be invincible?
However, this saber weighs twenty jin. Ordinary Soldiers probably wouldn't be able to wield it, right?
Li Ye looked puzzled but still replied, “Lord, rest assured. With the design here, this old man will surely be able to forge it.”
Li Ju, who was beside him, picked up the other drawing of the armor and said, “Lord, this suit of armor also looks much heavier than ordinary armor, and the shape of the armor plates is also different from ordinary armor. I wonder…”
Zhang Chen said, “This armor is called 'Infantry Armor', also known as 'Willow Leaf Armor', named for its armor plates resembling willow leaves. A suit of this armor requires a thousand armor plates, forged from hundred-refined steel, then woven with oxhide, overlapping and interlocking with no gaps. Whether it's a saber slash, an axe chop, a spear thrust, or an arrow shot, it cannot harm it in the slightest!”
Upon hearing Zhang Chen, both father and son were shocked.
Li Ju said, “Ordinary armor uses a whole piece of oxhide as the base, with metal plates and other materials attached to it for protection. But this method of Lord's is something I have never heard of.”
Li Ye looked at the drawing, pondered for a long while, stroked his beard, and said, “Although it is unprecedented, Lord's method sounds feasible. However, the armor plates made from hundred-refined steel, even if they are the size of willow leaves, a thousand pieces would weigh at least thirty to forty jin. If worn on the body, wouldn't it even be difficult to walk?”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen couldn't help but chuckle lightly, “Ordinary Soldiers naturally cannot wear it, but this official's 'Trapped Camp' are not ordinary armored warriors!”