Chapter 746 (1/2)
Chapter 746: A Burning Night
Translator: Transn Editor: Meh
The light from the explosion flashed like a firefly in the night.
Van’er raised his telescope and looked toward the oasis.
The burning torches became the best way to find their targets. The torches became more intensive the closer they were to Iron Sand City. Thousands of flashing flames clearly illuminated the camp of Sand Nation, which was the main target of the artillery battalion.
After a while, the sound of a large explosion came from the depths of the oasis.
“The landing locations seem a bit unorganized,” muttered Cat’s Claw who was also observing.
“That’s the best we could do. You know, it’s difficult to set the cannon on the sand so we can only use the first shots as tests.” Jop replied while loading the shell into the barrel for the next firing.
“Anyway, try to shoot further. If the shell falls on the head of His Excellency Iron Axe, we’ll be done for.”
“Rest assured. The tavern is far from the camp. If we hit it by mistake, the shooting manuals written by the sages should be rewritten.” Rodney tightened the firing rope and shouted, “Ready!”
“Fire!” Van’er nodded.
The two Longsong Cannons fired again with deafening roars. Flames that escaped from the muzzle briefly lit up the ground in front of them and raised enough dust to hit them on their faces, causing the crowd to shut their eyes.
The small oasis was not really a town. It was merely a fortress formed by the clans outside Iron Sand City. None of the houses were made of brick and stone, and most of them were just tents of leather and cloth except some small buildings and watch towers.
Therefore, the damage from the Longsong Cannons was surprisingly good.
Van’er noticed that no matter where the shell landed, the area would be dark for a second but soon light up again. The explosion knocked over tents and torches, and then the oil of torches mixed with other flammable building material, forming more dazzling flames.
This was the first time the artillery battalion of First Army had to use the method of measuring distances and arranging artillery positions according to the firing table. The result could not be described as ideal, but fortunately, the vulnerable and flammable targets made up for this flaw. After several rounds of shooting, the camp of the Sand Nation had been lit into a large fire, while several bright flames were spreading with the help of the roaring evening wind. It was going to ignite the entire oasis. Though he was not experiencing the power of artillery first hand, Van’er could imagine exactly what sort of predicament the so-called watchdogs were now in.
Overwhelming and unavoidable, this was the Lord of War praised by His Majesty.
Praise the cannon!
Praise the large-caliber cannon!
He proudly glanced at the Gun Battalion, lying in ambush, and the machine gun squads on both sides and once again felt fortunate that he had made the right choice.
The future of warfare would be dominated by cannons. As for flintlocks… they would only be suitable for supporting the cannons or clearing the battlefield, but nothing more.
…
It was after quite a while before Thuram recovered from the earth-shattering explosions. Until now, his ears had been buzzing, as if he had been slapped in his face.
Was that the thunder that Iron Axe had mentioned?