Volume One, Chapter 41: The Frankish Cannon—Zhu Yuanzhang Names It the Thunderbolt Cannon

"Teacher, while cannons and muskets possess formidable power, the time required to reload is a grave issue. I have devised a method: prepare the gunpowder in advance and store it in bamboo tubes. By pouring it directly into the musket, we can save half the time," Zhu Xiongying explained.

As he noted, although the Divine Might cannons could fire up to five kilometers and the Hongwu muskets had a range of one hundred meters, their greatest drawback was the agonizingly slow reload speed, which took about a minute. In peaceful times, a minute is trivial, but on the ever-changing battlefield, it is a matter of life and death.

Suddenly, a withered, corpse-like creature with a hideous, terrifying face crawled out from the earth. Its eyes glowed with an eerie light, fixed intently on Zhang Li, who stood nearby.

His attention was entirely consumed by the atmosphere of Jinling City; how much of the subtext in Tao Shang’s words he truly grasped, no one could say. He was particularly unsettled by the words of Xue Rengui, the peril of which only he understood.

However, on the side of the Jinling army, the arrival of Huang Zhong at the front lines instantly stabilized the situation, shifting the tide from a Cao army advantage to a stalemate.

The mermaid warrior thought she had just escaped the jaws of a tiger only to fall into the mouth of a wolf. Yet, to her surprise, the Third Prince of the Dragon Palace seemed to have genuinely turned over a new leaf, just as the rumors suggested.

Li Daren, surprisingly, did not retreat under his piercing gaze, but instead retorted with composed, sharp wit.

Meanwhile, the "emerald" in the staff flickered slightly, emitting a familiar suction that began to draw his supernatural energy into the cane.

Tragically, the Qingfeng sword swung back in a flash of light. Cui Tie’s head soared into the sky, spun several times, and landed in the grass.

Upon reaching Chu Yuntian’s residence, Zhang Li discovered he was away. After inquiring with a few senior disciples, he learned that Chu Yuntian had left the mountain days ago to visit friends and would not return for over a month.

***

Lu Heng sneered with disdain, grabbed Wang Yizhi by the tie, and dragged him back toward the top of the skyscraper.

Hearing this, Li Xue’er smiled faintly, deliberately clinging to his side and linking her arm through his.

Listening to Shi Ying’s near-nonsensical words, Jiang Ming could not summon any anger; instead, he felt an irrepressible sorrow in his heart.

"Just bathed?" Yan Hui’s gaze swept over Rong Cheng’s slightly damp hair before meeting his eyes.

Seeing their expressions, filled with both an insatiable thirst for knowledge and intense curiosity, she had no choice but to invent a reasonable explanation they could understand.

When Yue Ying saw the wonder in Yan Hui’s eyes and her agape mouth, she knew exactly what she was thinking.

Truth be told, while it was dangerous, it served as a trial for Yu Lingwei and the others, allowing them to learn a great deal.

"Yes!" The servant bowed, showing deep respect to the luxuriously dressed man before slowly withdrawing. The middle-aged man cast a meaningful glance at the door and left the courtyard.

What was supposed to be a proper discussion about school ended with Lu Yanshuang ruining not only her own chances but Cui Yuelue’s as well.

This era was the golden age of lotteries; people had no resistance to the allure of such games of chance.

Suddenly, five streaks of golden-red light emerged like vines, sweeping out toward the five Demon Emperors.

Though Liang Dong did not appear old, who could say if he was an ancient monster of several centuries? After all, one could live for a thousand years in the Golden Core realm.

Tian Gu’s life had been spent entirely within the grip of desire; it was only in his final days that he quietly came to understand it all.

In such a vast mountain range, countless bizarre events had occurred throughout history. No one knew how many princes and generals had chosen to bury themselves here, making it a favorite haunt for grave robbers.

She sighed helplessly. In short, it was not that others were lacking, but that her son was "crooked." Lately, he hadn't learned a single good thing; while others discarded the dross and kept the essence, he had managed to do the exact opposite.

***

She lay down with her back to Li Haonan. He immediately pulled her into his embrace from behind. The warmth and familiar scent he radiated made Gu Xiaobei feel secure and cherished. His shoulders were so broad, capable of shielding her from any storm. Feeling at peace, she closed her eyes with a faint smile and drifted into a deep sleep.

"Cut it in two!" Akame commanded silently in her heart. The chains had already bound Murasame; as she swung them, they transformed into an extension of the blade, slicing through the missiles in mid-air.

Liang Dong understood. This place was truly formidable. Did that mean his strength was at the very bottom here, unless he relied on the unique properties of the Sun’s True Fire?

When Anya brought Gu Xiaobei inside, the activities had already begun. The room was filled with major celebrities, He Zijun among them. The camera flashes were incessant, and the exhibition hall was deafening with the screams of fans.

For the final grand display, Bradley had one thousand berserkers form two lines from the opponent’s doorstep all the way to Mars’ house, stretching as far as possible. With everything prepared, they set off.

In truth, Huo Ling had long realized the importance of physical stamina in combat and trained for it constantly. He had been quite confident, yet he failed in this harsh weather, proving that his stamina was still at a mediocre level.

What shocked Xiao Wei the most was that the leader was none other than his own elder brother, the First Prince of Bulong Buji.

Under the astonished gazes of the crowd, the soft steel stone returned to its original shape, as if that punch had been entirely ineffectual.

As the bottle spun again, we all held our breath. It was destined to point at Black, but as if by collective intuition, everyone reached out and nudged it, leaving the neck pointing directly at me.

Gong Ren was greatly alarmed. If Wei Jinshan’s words were true, the uprising in the three prefectures was no longer a secret, having long been detected by the Qing army, who had made tight preparations. It seemed a great battle was imminent, yet the Triad knew nothing, leaving his heart heavy.

"Indeed, we caught them," Chimera messaged after dodging the attack with a backflip.