Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 112 - 107: Sir, The Times Have Changed

Chapter 112: Chapter 107: Sir, The Times Have Changed

The fog was thick in Zhao Haiping’s field of vision, and soon, a new scene appeared before him.

It really was as he had expected; this battle was just the appetizer of the entire instance.

To be strict, the current battle wasn’t very difficult.

For those players who relied on their own strength to clear the instances of soldiers, as long as they tried a few more times, they should be able to get through this stage.

This battle could be seen as a test of the player’s combat ability, or it could also be seen as an opportunity to showcase General Deng Yuanjing.

As the fog in the view dissipated, Li Hongyun found himself on another new battlefield.

Ahead was a strategically located fortress, nestled beside a mountain and river. Although the fort had no stone walls and was all made of wood, it still seemed easy to defend but hard to attack, with only one narrow pass in the middle that seemed clearly guarded by the bandits.

The only good news might be that the terrain of the fortress wasn’t very high and even the area behind the narrows near the water was a bit low-lying; otherwise, the difficulty of the attack would have likely increased further.

At this moment, Li Hongyun stood beside General Deng, observing the terrain within the fort together.

"Puning Port is the Eastern Barbarians’ largest stronghold, yet it has withstood our attacks for so long.

"Mr. Wang, do you have any good strategies?"

General Deng looked toward the civil-officer-looking person standing on his other side.

This Mr. Wang shook his head: "General Deng, I do not know military matters, so it would be inappropriate for me to speak rashly.

"But as you have said before, our army is lax in training and has poor equipment. Whether in recruiting or training troops, or in procuring supplies, we need a substantial amount of money.

"Right now, we have failed to take Puning Port after a prolonged siege, and I fear the problem lies not in military tactics, General Deng, but as the saying goes, ’A clever wife cannot cook without rice’."

He paused briefly, then asked, "How did the Lord Governor reply to the message?"

Deng Yuanjing slightly shook his head: "The Lord Governor only mentioned that the provincial treasury is empty, he has petitioned for military supplies, but there has been no response for a long time. He advised us to prepare for war diligently, as once Puning Port is conquered, the rewards will come, and the problem of military supplies will naturally be solved as easily as cutting through butter."

Mr. Wang couldn’t help but shake his head slightly.

Li Hongyun also couldn’t help but silently lament; wasn’t this a vicious cycle?

To attack Puning Port, the soldiers’ combat power was insufficient; money was needed to recruit and train troops, to replenish equipment. However, the authorities wouldn’t approve the funds, and only by taking down Puning Port and gaining merit would there be a chance to get military supplies.

Indeed, an unsolvable situation.

As for this Mr. Wang, being a history student, Li Hongyun had a vague guess.

At that time, there was a policymaker in General Deng’s army called Wang Zongchang, who also held the position of Lord Governor. However, the historical records about him seemed very scarce, and it seemed unlikely that he was any sort of remarkable hero.

For him not to hinder General Deng was already quite good; hoping that he would play a significant role was probably unrealistic.

General Deng gave a soft sigh: "Issue the orders, prepare to attack!"

"Boom!"

"Boom! Boom!"

The war drums sounded, and the soldiers of the Great Sheng Dynasty began their assault on Puning Port.

Li Hongyun was also arranged to be in the front ranks of the soldiers, and General Deng himself was at the forefront, leading by example.

Different from field battles, since this was a siege, no one rode horses, and all proceeded as infantry.

All the soldiers in the front ranks held up wooden shields, advancing steadily.

These wooden shields were half the height of a man, and the soldiers could crouch down to hide their entire bodies behind them, mostly to fend off arrows.

Meanwhile, on the elevated guard towers ahead, the Eastern Barbarian bandits were busily stringing their bows.

The Barbarians’ Bows were made of bamboo and wood and needed to be unstrung for maintenance and to prevent loss of tension when not in use. The fact that the bandits were stringing them now indicated that a great battle was about to erupt.

Seeing the bandits preparing their bows and arrows, General Deng signaled with his hand.

The soldiers immediately set up their shields on the ground to create a barrier.

The backs of these shields had folding supports that could be extended to keep them stable on the ground.

The bandits’ arrows came flying, most of them hitting the shields, while the soldiers of the Great Sheng Dynasty also started to nock and shoot their arrows in retaliation.

However, the bandits occupied the higher ground, and General Deng’s soldiers were firing upwards from below, naturally, their accuracy was incomparable.

The battle soon reached a stalemate.

General Deng didn’t dare to let his soldiers be rash because although this was the most accessible approach to Puning Port, if they failed to neutralize the archers on the ramparts before attacking, they might bunch up at the gate and suffer heavy losses.

Feeling the arrows whizzing overhead, Li Hongyun actually grew excited.

Isn’t it my time to shine now?

He had noticed from the beginning of this stage, after the last battle, his status had significantly risen.

Before, he was just an ordinary soldier, but now he was able to stand directly by General Deng’s side, enjoying the treatment of a personal guard.

Moreover, even his weapons had been changed.

Previously, he was equipped with a standard-issue spear, but now, not only were his armor and saber upgraded, he also carried a bundle of special, easy-to-throw short spears on his back.

This meant that his spectacular performance in throwing spears during the previous stage had caught General Deng’s attention, which led to the creation of these special weapons tailored to his style of combat.

"This game is really smart, it looks like the equipment updates for the second stage are determined by your combat performance in the first stage.

"In that case, for players like Fan Cun and Zhao Haiping, they should also have updated weapons that better fit them in the second stage.

"Anyway, I can’t waste these weapons; I must find a way to conquer this place!"

Now Li Hongyun, still possessing a talent for throwing, no longer hesitated. As soon as the enemy’s volley of arrows ended and the other Great Sheng Dynasty soldiers began shooting back with their bows, he stood up and furiously hurled a short spear from his hand!

Compared to the previous stage, Li Hongyun could obviously feel that his physical condition had improved; he had grown even stronger.

This might have been due to the plot development; having followed General Deng Yuanjing through many battles, he was well-fed and in good spirits, which would have enhanced his physical fitness and combat skills.

An enemy was drawing his bow to full, preparing to shoot downwards, with no intention of dodging.

Because these enemies were positioned high above, the Great Sheng Dynasty soldiers had to shoot upwards, which naturally lacked precision. The enemies seemed to believe it was better to shoot as many arrows as possible rather than take time to dodge.

However, as one of them was ready to fire an arrow at a soldier emerging from behind his shield, he suddenly had an ominous premonition of extreme danger!

Before he could react to what was happening, he felt something heavier and more forceful than an arrow strike him instantaneously, sending him flying backward and even pinning him to the wooden wall of the fort!

With a dazed expression, the enemy struggled to move but found himself immobile.

In disbelief, he looked down and discovered a specially-made short spear firmly pinning him in place!

The other enemies were equally shocked, but before they could react, more short spears came hurling over the walls in quick succession!

"Whoosh!"

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Behind the cover of his shield bearers, Li Hongyun was like a human artillery piece, continuously launching the short spears in his hands.

Although the enemies could also hide behind the fort’s barriers, this greatly reduced the suppressive power of their archers, allowing the Great Sheng Dynasty soldiers to advance.

"Advance!"

At General Deng’s command, the shield bearers pushed forward with their long shields, steadily closing in on the gateway.

Li Hongyun felt a small surge of pride.

What does it mean to turn the tide?

He hadn’t expected the second stage of this instance to be a siege. In such a scenario, his skill at throwing was proving to be incredibly effective.

Of course, other players could also lead the assault by engaging in hand-to-hand combat or shooting arrows, but none could do it as effortlessly as him.

"What’s this official trial instance, the difficulty is nothing much at all.

"Have I become so strong that I can dominate in these official instances?"

Li Hongyun felt a bit smug, thinking of himself as a genius.

However, he soon realized he had celebrated too early.

He thought these bandits had hidden behind the fort’s barriers out of fear of his masterful spear-throwing, unwilling to show their heads.

But hardly had the shield bearers made any progress when the bandits stuck their heads out again from above the fort.

Li Hongyun was just about to throw another spear when he realized that instead of facing Barbarians’ Bows, it was the dark muzzles of guns.

The bandits had muskets!

With a loud "bang," a bullet struck right in the middle of Li Hongyun’s chest!

Soon after, a volley of gunshots rang out from the fort, bullets piercing the shields and hitting the bodies of the Sheng Army soldiers, causing a chorus of agonizing screams.

Although the cotton and cloth armors worn by these soldiers provided some resistance to muskets, they were far from bulletproof. Quickly, the wooden shields were splintered, and the soldiers suffered heavy casualties.

Li Hongyun watched as the bloodstain on his chest spread, then collapsed to the ground in despair.

The last thing he saw before his vision faded was General Deng ordering a retreat.

"You motherfuckers... can’t handle the heat, huh..."

The meme "Sir, the times have changed" flashed across Li Hongyun’s mind.

Regrettably, this time, he was the one at the wrong end of the musket.