Chapter 422: The Great Sea Battle Begins, Zheng's Army's Powerful Trump Card
"Whoosh!"
A third-level spirit pigeon dropped from the sky and landed in the front yard of the City Lord's Mansion of the Xiahezhai Fortress. Then its figure continued to flash and shot into the meeting hall in front with the door open.
"Humph, I've finally been waiting for this!"
A moment later, Wu Yu, the commander of the Second Fleet of the Navy, reviewed the urgent intelligence sent by the Intelligence Department in a timely manner, sneered, and said to the deputy commander Liao Yunhui beside him, "Our Second Fleet has been preparing for war in Xiahe Village for more than a month, and finally we have received this good news!"
"This time, since the Zheng family's fleet has arrived, don't even think about returning safely!"
"Commander Liao, send a message to the Grand Commander and Commander Wan'er immediately, and have the soldiers prepare to reunite with the First Fleet!"
"After our navy was reorganized and now has undergone a major refit, our combat effectiveness has more than doubled. It would be best to use this Zheng family fleet as a target!"
"I want to see how capable the famous Zheng family army is and whether they can withstand the joint attack of our two fleets!"
No wonder Wu Yu is so confident now.
Over the past two months, the commander-in-chief has ordered the reorganization of the Fuxing Navy into two large fleets, each equipped with 300 large treasure ships.
These treasure ships were first gathered at Lingshan Island for modification and then divided equally into two fleets.
Today, the two major fleets of the Fuxing Navy each have ten top-grade treasure ships, thirty high-grade treasure ships, and two hundred and sixty mid-grade treasure ships.
After conquering most of the Qi and Lu lands, 90% of all the treasure ships captured by the Restoration Army were deployed to the two fleets.
In the past two or three months, Li Dingguo has mass-produced enough psychic cannons and crossbow carts to equip all the treasure ships seized in the past two years.
After destroying so many aristocratic families and wealthy merchants, the Renaissance Army seized a large number of top-level spiritual materials, magic cores, soul beads and other spiritual crystals. In addition, after the five seals of the Human Emperor Cauldron were lifted, the efficiency of refining medicine and weapons increased dramatically, allowing Li Dingguo to successfully complete the comprehensive strengthening of the navy as scheduled.
Although the Zheng family army is powerful, the current Fuxing Army is undoubtedly stronger, both in terms of the army and navy.
After more than three years of great development, the revived army on the southeast coast has more than one million regular soldiers, and the number of warrior recruits who have completed their training is even greater.
Most of these new recruits were responsible for taking over the towns captured by the main army. While they were responsible for stabilizing the local order, they also helped local government officials to carry out large-scale construction and renovation of the towns.
If necessary, Li Dingguo can recruit another million troops at any time to expand the main corps.
According to the intelligence department, the Zheng family army, the powerful enemy they are facing this time, has dispatched million soldiers and 800 large treasure ships of various levels to form a super-large fleet heading north.
Judging from the number of soldiers and treasure ships alone, this fleet of Zheng's army was on par with the Fuxing Navy and did not have any advantage.
As for armament and combat effectiveness, the Restoration Army has a greater advantage.
Especially the comparison of the top combat power of both sides, such as the sixth-level strongman and the sixth-level spirit bird.
According to the latest intelligence, the Zheng family army only has Zheng Zhilong, a level six warrior, and two level five peak sea eagles.
The Fuxing Army has two mid-level sixth-level warriors, Li Dingguo and Wan'er, and four level six spirit birds. They are more than one level stronger than the other side in terms of top-level combat power.
This is also the reason why Wu Yu was full of confidence after receiving the latest urgent intelligence.
Although Zheng's army is coming with great force, the Fuxing Army is well-rested and ready to take advantage. A battle like thunder and lightning is expected to unfold near the coast of Xiahezhai.
The enemy will reach the designated sea area in one day. Following an order from Wu Yu, the commander of the Second Fleet, the soldiers began intensive preparations.
……
On the sea three thousand miles away from Xiahe Village, a huge fleet that seemed to cover the sky and the sun was sailing rapidly against the wind and waves, and its speed was faster than an arrow shot from a bow!
This is the most powerful means of transportation in this big world, the treasure ship. It looks like it is running at full speed. It is even faster than the passenger plane that Li Dingguo flew in his previous life.
You know, this is sailing in sea water.
In this world dominated by practitioners, the power of the magical formations is demonstrated to the fullest.
"Brother, three thousand miles ahead we will reach Lingshan Island, the home base of the Renaissance Navy."
On the flagship of the Zheng family fleet, Zheng Zhibao pointed forward and said to Zheng Zhilong, "However, according to our spies, the information from here to the Jiaozhou Bay has been blocked by the Fuxing Army."
"They not only have two level 6 golden eagles, but also two suspected level 6 goshawks. It is quite normal for them to be able to do this."
"And all our spiritual birds, including the spiritual pigeons, will never return once they enter, and we will not be able to contact the spies scattered around Lingshan Island at all."
Because he was bold and careful, he was in charge of the intelligence department of the Zheng family army. Now he was quite helpless about this. He continued, "Our most advanced spiritual birds are only two level 5 peak and four level 5 early bald eagles. We dare not let them go deep into the sea area where the Renaissance Army is located to conduct high-altitude reconnaissance."
These six bald eagles form a family and are one of the trump cards that enabled Zheng’s army to rise quickly.
They were obtained by the three brothers of the Zheng family in the secret place of Sun Moon Lake on Dongfan Island, which was also the place where they had an amazing encounter.
It was because they had obtained the secret realm of Sun Moon Lake that they were able to support so many warriors.
"Well, not being able to learn about the movements of the Restoration Army in advance is not a big deal."
Zheng Zhilong said calmly, "I have recently successfully broken through to the initial stage of level six. With the innate divine weapons of the three of us brothers, we don't have to be afraid of the level six spirit birds of the Restoration Army."
"As long as they have the guts to attack us, we can make sure they never leave!"
After saying this, he looked at the sea area in front of him where Lingshan Island was located with a cold gaze, and separated a trace of his divine consciousness and sank into the divine sea.
At this moment, in the middle of his sea of consciousness, a set of twelve azure blue gems were shining brightly.
Not only did he possess a set of twelve innate divine artifacts, the Dinghai Shenzhenzhu, but his two younger brothers, Zheng Zhihu and Zheng Zhibao, also had six each.
The three brothers had a deep friendship and loyalty, so after they obtained this set of innate magical artifacts together, they naturally wanted to share and refine them together.
In any case, practitioners at the Qi Refining Realm cannot unleash even one billionth of the power of their own divine weapon. The power unleashed after activating a few more or a few less Dinghai Divine Pearls will not differ much, and there is no need to concentrate them all on one person to refine them.
Even though the two younger brothers have only reached the peak level of level five, with the help of their own set of natal divine artifact beads, they are enough to compete with those level six spirit birds and do not need to worry about their own safety.
The innate divine weapon automatically protects its master, and it is not something that any level 6 cultivator can break in a short period of time, especially this kind of set divine weapon. "Brother, there is a high probability that the Renaissance Army will be waiting in the front, forming a large fleet to fight us head-on!"
Zheng Zhihu sneered with a murderous look in his eyes, "Our fleet is so large that any sneak attack tactics they have are of no use at all."
"If you want to defeat our Zheng family army, the most direct tactic is to start a head-on naval battle."
"If we allow our army to land on the land of Qi and Lu, and then advance by land and sea, it will be very detrimental to the ambitious Renaissance Army's efforts to stabilize local order."
"A situation where people are in a state of panic is totally not in the other party's interest."
"How many naval battles have our Zheng family army experienced in the past ten years? Hundreds and thousands of naval battles have trained our elite navy."
He said with disdain, "Just talking about naval warfare, how can the Fuxing Navy, which has only been established for three or four years, compare with us?"
"Whether it's war experience or combat level, there is a huge difference between naval warfare and land warfare. It's not possible to become an elite navy in a short period of time."
He is not bragging, he is telling the truth.
A century-old navy is not just talk, but a fact recognized by all countries in the world.
Especially their Zheng family army, which stood out from the brutal battles with countless pirate groups and experienced countless naval battles of all sizes. Every soldier can be described as an elite who has killed countless people!
The naval officers and soldiers of the coastal garrisons of the Ming Dynasty cannot be compared with them at all.
Even those white Hu fleets that roamed the world had to retreat and dared not provoke Zheng's fleet easily when they encountered it on the southeast coast of the Ming Dynasty.
"A head-on battle?"
"Ha ha……"
Zheng Zhibao on the side curled his lips and said, "This is exactly what we have been looking for!"
"Once we defeat the main fleet of the Restoration Army at sea, the vast coastal area of Shandong will become our sphere of influence. Then, we can use the flexibility of the naval fleet to land and fight anywhere, which will inevitably make the Restoration Army exhausted and even give up and retreat to the inland areas."
"By then, our Zheng family army will be able to easily gain a foothold, and then launch a comprehensive attack on the Fuxing Army, and gradually take over the entire Qilu land."
If the Zheng family army were to engage in a land battle with the world-famous Fuxing Army, they would not have much chance of winning.
After all, the Renaissance Army has never been defeated so far, and its reputation has spread throughout the Eastern world. It is not a false reputation.
But when it comes to naval battles, the Zheng family army has never been afraid of anyone.
"Brother, we have brought all the black slave death squads carefully built with the Taoist methods we obtained. Even if we have a boarding battle with the Renaissance Army, we don't have to worry about them!"
Zheng Zhibao took a look at the dark-clad, armed-to-the-teeth Taoist Soldiers on the flagship Dabao Ship, and said confidently, "This group of 90,000 black slave Five Elements Taoist Soldiers puppets was trained with tens of millions of kilograms of Five Elements Essence that we have accumulated over the years. It is no exaggeration to say that they can defeat ten enemies with one."
On this flagship treasure ship, the special Taoist army team that is on high alert is the real trump card of the Zheng family army.
Over the years, they spent a lot of money and materials, and traded more than five million black slaves with the white barbarians. Through the method of refining Taoist soldier puppets obtained by chance, after several years, they finally obtained 90,000 black slave Taoist soldier puppets.
As for the millions of black slaves, they were all devoured by these outstanding puppet Taoist soldiers.
The inheritance that the brothers obtained came from the ancient mythological period, and it was not that simple.
To refine these Taoist soldiers, not only do they need to devour each other to strengthen their physique, they also need to be fed with a huge amount of five elements essence, and a large amount of monster blood is needed to create a blood pool for soaking. This is much more complicated than refining top-grade spiritual weapons.
As for how many black slaves died during the refining process, it was not within the consideration of the three brothers of the Zheng family.
Anyway, those lazy black slaves were simple-minded, not even civilized, and could not be called human beings. It didn't matter how many of them died.
The reason why they chose to buy a large number of black slaves from the white barbarians to refine Taoist soldiers was that through their research and comparison of various creatures including various human ethnic groups, they found that these black slaves who looked like charcoal were the most suitable materials.
The 90,000 black slave Taoist soldiers that have been refined now not only have a defense comparable to that of top-grade spiritual soldiers, but are also tall and strong. They are no worse than the Solon dead soldiers of the Later Jin Tartars in charging into battle.
Over the past few years, thanks to the strength of these 90,000 black slave soldiers, the Zheng family army's offensive combat capability has surpassed all forces on the southeast coast.
The mass charge launched by the 90,000 black slave soldiers who could not be killed by ordinary means could not be stopped by any hostile force in the vast southeastern coastal area.
This is also one of the main reasons why various pirate forces were successively wiped out or incorporated by Zheng’s army.
The three brothers then discussed it and reached a consensus. After formulating the next battle plan, they immediately ordered their fleet to deploy into battle formation and maintain sailing speed as they headed rapidly towards Lingshan Island.
In view of the importance of this battle, all the treasure ships of the Zheng family army had already activated the protective magic circle on board, so there was no need to worry about encountering enemy raids.
The Zheng family army is wealthy and powerful. Through trade and plunder, they have accumulated at least hundreds of millions of magic cores of various levels over the years. The number of reserves is an astronomical figure and cannot be used up at all.
……
On the sea about 2,000 miles away from the Zheng family fleet, two large fleets of the Restoration Army were heading towards them at high speed.
The four level six spirit birds responsible for detecting and locking onto the enemy in the sky take turns to move forward, not missing any trace of the enemy's movements.
"Brother, according to the secret investigation of the Military Intelligence Department, there are many signs that the Zheng family army is not so easy to deal with."
Wan'er stood on the deck of the flagship treasure ship, her face unusually solemn, and said to Li Dingguo, "Not only do they have a large number of treasure ships, but the spiritual energy cannons and spiritual crossbow carts on board are also the strongest force we have encountered so far."
"And according to rumors, they have a team of black warriors that they won't send out easily. Not only are they fearless and brave, but they are also said to be invulnerable to swords and guns. Each of them is as strong as a third or fourth level evil spirit."
To be honest, Wan'er was also shocked when she learned this information not long ago.
Since the establishment of the Renaissance Army, the strongest team ever seen is the Sauron dead soldiers in Huang Taiji's army.
Although that group of dead soldiers was wiped out by Hong Chengchou and Lu Xiangsheng, it did not mean that their fighting power was weak, but that they were tricked by Hong Chengchou.
The fact that tens of thousands of Sauron dead soldiers had several encounters with the Renaissance Army but were able to escape unscathed illustrates this problem.
Now, when people heard that a team as powerful as the Sauron dead soldiers appeared in the Zheng family army, they could not help but be shocked.
(End of this chapter)
