The Arab three-masted warship not only did not flee, but instead charged forward courageously. Its tonnage was not much smaller than the Great Emperor, and at the very center of the deck, two enormous trebuchets were installed, also using fierce fire oil as projectiles. They began firing from a distance, the missiles landing on the sea surface in front of the Great Emperor’s course, igniting roaring flames.
The purpose of delaying time was obvious—their goal was to destroy the Great Emperor’s auxiliary vessels. Gao Shanyangzi’s damage to the Lingnan Fleet had not yet fully recovered.
“Sail through! Prepare fire prevention measures!”
The Great Emperor sailed through the flames, the leaping fire scorching Liu Renwill’s hair tips until they curled. The mud coating on the sails dried in a very short time under the roasting flames, and several places had already begun to catch fire.
The naval soldiers responsible for the masts shouted desperately while cranking the water pumps, continuously spraying water columns at the burning areas to extinguish the fires. The Great Emperor passed through the flames, the fire oil that had stuck to the hull still burning. The sailors opened the deck’s water gates, and the muddy water slid down along the sides of the ship, extinguishing the great fire.
The enormous eight-ox crossbow mechanisms at the bow twanged wildly, and the giant barbed arrows pierced through the flimsy hull of the three-masted warship, firmly connecting the two vessels together.
Liu Renwill saw a group of warriors dressed in red robes—it was these fellows who had slaughtered his one thousand two hundred subordinates. These men were warriors carefully selected by the Arabs. Just watching them leap and bound across the large ship like flying showed they would be very difficult to deal with. Several of the stronger ones even stepped onto the ropes, preparing to leap onto the Great Emperor to begin hand-to-hand combat.
There were also some using their knives to cut the ropes, completely uncaring about the life or death of their comrades walking on the ropes.
No matter how powerful a warrior might be, they are vulnerable when facing dense crossbow fire. When the Great Emperor’s ram drilled into the hull of the three-masted warship, the marines on the Great Emperor began boarding operations.
The battle was brief but brutal. The red-robed men, their bodies riddled with crossbow bolts, seemed to feel no pain and still wielded their curved sabers to charge at the marines. Though they were at the end of their strength, this recklessly fearless approach still made people’s blood run cold.
“Commander, the auxiliary vessels behind cannot pass through the sea of fire and can only fight on their own—it’s extremely dangerous now!” The vice-general still firmly carried out his duties.
Liu Renwill said with a gloomy face and bitter resentment: “Something’s wrong. What are the Arabs attacking so recklessly and fearlessly for? Ever since the strait fell three months ago and Arab warships appeared in our inland sea, they seem to have no intention of leaving, as if they’re just waiting for us to arrive. Only by capturing the enemy’s leaders can we understand their unreasonable actions. Otherwise, we’ll be exhausted running around.”
The Great Emperor’s grappling hooks continuously entangled the three-masted warship, and the crossbow arrows had already destroyed the small boats on the three-masted warship in the first moment. The number of marines who had boarded the enemy ship already exceeded five hundred.
The red-robed men’s curved sabers were no match for the crossbow arrows. Many times their sabers could not cut through the Tang people’s armor. Despite possessing excellent martial skills, they could only fall to the ground filled with regret, dying with eyes wide open.
The cheers of the marines rang out, and Liu Renwill’s expression finally improved somewhat. Watching the marines retreating like the tide, he ordered his subordinates to cut the grappling hooks in preparation to completely destroy the three-masted warship.
When the last wounded marine was carried back to the Great Emperor by his comrades, more than ten smoking crossbow arrows drilled into the belly of the three-masted warship. Accompanied by a series of thunderous sounds, a huge fireball rose from the three-masted warship—this was the ship’s fire oil being ignited. The entire three-masted warship shot up from the sea surface and in an instant became a pile of wooden fragments flying in all directions.
The Arabs finally retreated. Of Liu Renwill’s six auxiliary vessels, only two remained, and they were in a half-sunken state. The cost of this battle was severe. The flames on the sea had not yet died down. The fire flickered with the surging waves and finally slowly disappeared.
The sides of the Great Emperor were hung with Arabs. More than ten Arabs dressed in magnificent attire were firmly bound to the masts. They showed no fear and seemed to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to their companions being torn apart by sharks leaping high from the water.
“Tell me your purpose for waging this war!”
Liu Renwill removed his helmet and interrogated an elder covered in scars, who must be the leader of this fleet.
“My Lord once said that all unjust demons need to be scorched by fierce fire. Young man, are you prepared to accept the scorching?”
After hearing the interpreter’s explanation, Liu Renwill nodded and ordered soldiers to set up a furnace on the deck of the Great Emperor. They pulled up a wounded red-robed man, bound him to an iron pole, and began roasting him.
That Arab still showed no concern and said with a laugh: “The souls of the red-robed warriors have all been dedicated to the Lord. The pain of the flesh cannot make him submit, and the scorching you will face in the future will be ten times harsher than what you are doing.”
“Remove his clothes, brush on oil—I want to invite the most honored guest to dinner!”
Liu Renwill expressionlessly continued to order: “I’ve heard that the most pure believers have strict requirements for their food. I wonder if your menu includes such a dish as your own kind?”
“It doesn’t matter, young man. If you want me to eat, I will eat. Those who are driven by hunger, without intending to sin, may eat forbidden things without any guilt, for the Lord is most forgiving and most merciful.”
“I am breaking the prohibition under your coercion, and the Lord will forgive all my sins. We came to this world to atone for our sins. Only by believing in the Lord can we be saved.”
Liu Renwill waved his hand, and the red-robed man who had been roasted until oil dripped from him was thrown into the sea by the soldiers. The Arab’s face finally showed a trace of sadness as he prayed in a low voice for his deceased companion.
“You knew I wanted to capture you, so why didn’t you commit suicide in that situation? Did you think I would be merciful?” Liu Renwill asked with an amused look at these Arabs.
“Whoever throws himself from a mountain to seek death will fall endlessly in the fires of hell; whoever takes poison and commits suicide will hold poison in hell forever and drink it; whoever uses a sharp metal instrument to commit suicide will forever hold a sharp metal instrument in hell and stab himself. Young man, how can temporary pain compare with eternal pain?”
“Young general, as the defeated, we are already prepared. I will tell you what you want to know. I only hope you can send our bodies back to Arabia. I guarantee that those who send back the bodies will receive the gratitude of the Abdul family for generations.”
“Impossible. Your bodies can only appear on Crab Island. Our Lingnan Navy swore long ago that any foreign invaders who dare to enter our inland sea without our permission, their only destination is Crab Island, where they will receive heavenly punishment!”
Liu Renwill rejected the Arab’s request without a second thought. The Lingnan Navy had never had the custom of returning enemy corpses—never. Whether they were wealthy or poor, in their eyes they were all invaders with no distinction.
“Are all Tang people so unreasonable? Haven’t you discovered that your unreasonableness and brutality have already aroused everyone’s anger? At this very moment, the Turks, the Xueyantuo people, the Tuyuhun people, as well as the Tuhuoluo people and the Tubo people have already launched powerful offensives against your country from the west. The Shiwei people and the Mohe people are attacking from the north, while the Silla people and the Baekje people are also attacking you from the east. And in the south, that is us, we are also attacking you, and I am merely a prelude to the attack.”
“Young general, even at this point do you still not awaken? The whole world dislikes the Tang state. A brutal country’s final outcome is destruction. Rome was like this, Persia was like this—how can the Tang state be an exception?”
“Ha ha ha ha!” Liu Renwill burst into laughter, his eyes revealing a blazing light. Not only did he appear very excited, even his vice-general and other officers beside him were the same. This lifetime would finally not be lived in vain—to encounter such a great war was a cherished dream!
“The Great Tang has never existed to be liked—the Great Tang exists to be feared. Do you know how much we yearn for war to come? The warriors of the Great Tang have never been as hungry for honor and military merit as they are now.”
“Those without military merit shall not receive titles—this is a new regulation. Arabs, thank you for bringing us war. Since you want to impose war upon us, in the future don’t complain when we return war to you. You are honored guests and will be sent to Chang’an. Of course, your final execution ground can only be Crab Island!”
After Liu Renwill finished speaking these words, he ordered men to lock these Arabs in the prison. Turning back to look at his subordinates, he said loudly: “Brothers, our opportunity to establish merit and build careers has come. Do you feel excited about killing all the invading enemies with your own hands?”
“Yes! Kill all the enemies!”
“Yes! Kill all the enemies!”
“Ha ha, you’re all excellent! Hard to port! We’re going home. Once we’ve gathered the fleet, we’ll return and kill all the enemies!”
The Great Emperor, towing two battle-scarred warships, made a large arc on the sea and headed straight for Guangzhou. When it appeared in these waters again, it would certainly be even more magnificent.
The wolf smoke began to ignite from the beacon tower at Yumen Pass. Black-yellow smoke columns shot straight up into the sky. In the next moment, the beacon tower at Shazhou also sent up black smoke. Such smoke columns continuously appeared, entering Hexi from Longyou, then entering Guannai Circuit. When the enormous beacon on Longshou Ridge was lit, the horn sounds of Chang’an City never stopped.
“Where is the wolf smoke coming from?” Fang Xuanling stood in front of the gates of the Central Secretariat. In this instant, the old fellow’s gaze was sharp as lightning—where was there even half a trace of old age?
“Yumen Pass!” After carefully examining the color of the smoke column, the Ministry of War official added another sentence: “Loulan!”
“From this day forward, officials will cancel all rest periods. From this day forward, the garrison troops shall begin preparations. From this day forward, close Yumen Pass!” Fang Xuanling issued these government orders without thinking in the first moment. This was the authority of his position as prime minister.
Wei Zheng stood in front of Changle Gate and saw that smoke column. The pear in his hand fell to the ground as he muttered to himself: “There absolutely won’t be only one wolf smoke signal.”