You, a tyrannical ruler, roam the heavens; you cannot understand my joy.

The setting sun, like a gaping maw, is about to be swallowed by the dark sea.

The afterglow of the setting sun cast a dark gold hull over the towering steel hull of the Zhenyuan, making it appear even more menacing.

Lu Zuo stood on the high bridge, holding a monocular telescope. The lens clearly reflected the figures of the Japanese people on the coast who were either fleeing like ants or standing still, as well as the outline of a simple wooden and stone city built against the mountain in the distance.

The faint echoes of the menacing howls of those ronin samurai seemed to linger in the wind.

"Target: the beachhead gathering point, the suspected military camp area, and the wooden watchtower behind it."

Lu Zuo lowered his binoculars, his voice calm and clear, carried by the sea breeze to the messenger beside him: "calibrate the data, one test shot."

"Yes, sir!" The messenger saluted solemnly, then turned and shouted into the megaphone, "Target bearing, 15 degrees to port, 5 li away! Main gun turrets number one, three, and five, one high-explosive shell, test fire!"

Driven by steam and gears, the massive turrets hummed and slowly rotated, their thick barrels raised, their dark muzzles locked onto the twilight coastline.

On the beach, the ronin and fishermen who had just been immersed in the dream of the westward expedition stared in disbelief at the several "floating cities" that were getting closer and closer on the sea, which they had never seen before and which were spewing black smoke. Their huge size and metal shells were beyond their comprehension.

The sound of the whistle made them instinctively uneasy, yet they didn't know where the danger came from.

"What...what kind of ship is that? Why is it so big? And it's smoking?"

"Is it a Tang Dynasty ship? It doesn't look like one..."

"Made of iron? How can a ship be made of iron?"

Doubt, speculation, and a vague sense of foreboding permeated the crowd.

Just then, they saw several intensely bright orange-red lights suddenly flash in several places on the side of the largest "iron ship"!

The light was so intense that it even briefly overshadowed the sunset on the horizon!

"What is that...?"

The question remains unanswered.

"Boom! Boom boom boom—!!!"

A deafening roar, like the collapse of the heavens and the splitting of the earth, suddenly exploded!

The sound was so loud that many Japanese people were instantly deafened, seeing only the mouths of those around them agape in terror, but hearing nothing at all.

Three blazing streams of fire, like javelins of death, trailed long plumes of smoke as they pierced the twilight and crashed against the shore at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow!

The first shell landed near the rocky beach where the ronin were gathered.

"BOOM!!!"

A dazzling flame shot into the sky, and the shockwave from the explosion swept out in a fan shape, carrying countless pieces of rock, shrapnel, and scorching metal!

The massive reef was instantly sheared off at one corner. The ronin who had been sitting on it, talking loudly, didn't even have time to scream before they were torn to pieces in the flames and shockwaves. Their severed limbs and broken pieces, mixed with sand and stones, were thrown into the air and fell like rain of blood.

Those who were a little further away were also violently thrown away by the shockwave, suffering broken bones and tendons.

The second and third shells landed precisely on an area behind the coast where simple wooden sheds were erected and several flags were displayed.

That was a seaside outpost of a nearby daimyo and the encampment of a small squad of foot soldiers. The violent explosion tore the wooden barracks and watchtowers to shreds and set them ablaze, and towering flames and thick smoke instantly engulfed everything.

The soldiers and laborers who were lucky enough not to die immediately emerged from the flames with flames still on their bodies, screaming as they ran around like headless flies.

Silence, a deathly silence, lasted only a moment. Then, an even greater panic erupted like a plague!

"Divine punishment! It's divine punishment!"

"Thor! The Thor of Tang Dynasty is enraged!"

"Run! Run!"

"Mother--!"

The fishermen on the beach, the fleeing foot soldiers, and the villagers who witnessed this horrific scene from afar were all terrified. They cried out for their parents, dropped everything, and fled desperately inland towards the castle called "Hizen".

Forget the glory of warriors, forget the ambition to conquer Tang lands; in the face of this earth-shattering power, only the most primal instinct for survival remains.

"Extend firing to cover the escape route from the beachhead to the city walls."

"Firepower ready. After two salvos, the landing force shall prepare to seize the beach." Lu Zuo coldly issued the subsequent orders, as if the shelling that had just wiped out dozens or even hundreds of lives was merely brushing away a speck of dust from the deck.

"BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!"

"BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!"

The main guns of the Zhenyuan and its flanking ships, Dingyuan and Jingyuan, roared in unison, and more shells whistled as they crashed down on the shore and the fleeing crowd.

Each explosion left scorched craters on the ground, unleashing a bloodbath that tore the fleeing crowd apart and exacerbated the panic.

The entire coastline was engulfed in smoke and fire, and the cries and screams were deafening, like a scene from hell.

With artillery fire ready, the transport ship, under the cover of the destroyer, approached the less damaged beachhead.

As the gangway was lowered, squads of Song Dynasty marines, dressed in dark blue uniforms, wearing helmets, and carrying either "Shenji Sanshi" repeating rifles or lightweight "Xunlei" machine guns, waded through waist-deep water and swiftly and orderly rushed ashore to establish beachhead positions.

Their movements were calm and professional, a stark contrast to the hellish scene around them and the utterly defeated Japanese soldiers.

Surrounded by his personal guards, Lu Zuo also set foot on this land filled with the smoke of gunpowder and the stench of blood.

He glanced at the Hizen Castle, its silhouettes silhouetted against the twilight and firelight, and calmly ordered: "Target: the castle ahead. Advance. Issue my decree: this battle is to punish the disloyal and eliminate future threats. Surrender will not be accepted, nor will prisoners be taken. Those who resist will be killed without mercy."

"Long live!" the soldiers roared in response, their eyes gleaming with absolute obedience to orders and a cold anticipation of the impending battle.

They quickly regrouped and advanced steadily toward the city in a skirmish line combined with assault squads.

Highly recommend "Wandering Among the Heavens as a Tyrant, You Don't Understand My Joy"! Click to enter the story world.

They encountered sporadic, terrified Japanese soldiers or samurai attempting to resist along the way, but there was no need to stop. After a few crisp gunshots, they continued onward, leaving behind only a few quickly chilling corpses.

……

Hizen Castle was in complete chaos.

The violent explosions outside the city, the towering flames, and the surging tide of disoriented, defeated soldiers and refugees threw the once relatively peaceful city into chaos.

The commander guarding the castle, a mid-ranking samurai from the Hizen Domain named Shimazu Shigenobu, was drinking wine in the castle tower of the citadel.

The sudden loud noise and tremor startled him so much that he knocked over his wine cup. He rushed to the window and saw flames raging and black smoke billowing from the coast, with countless people crying and surging toward the city gate.

"Baka! What happened? Was it a volcanic eruption? Or a tsunami?"

Shimazu Shigenobu was both shocked and furious. He grabbed the foot soldier leader who was scrambling forward, shouting, "Speak!"

"My lord! No, no good! Huge iron ships are coming from the sea! They can breathe fire and thunder! The outposts and beaches are all destroyed! So many people have died! They've landed and are attacking the city!" The foot soldier leader was pale and incoherent.

"Iron ships? Fire-breathing and thunder-throwing? Landing?" Shimazu Shigenobu was completely bewildered, both surprised and suspicious. "Whose forces are they? Pirates? Or from Tsushima Island?"

"No, I don't know! The people who escaped said they've never seen him before!"

"Useless trash!" Shimazu Shigenobu kicked his leader to the ground, forcing himself to remain calm, and ordered, "Close the gates!"

"All foot soldiers, advance to the city walls to defend! Prepare bows, arrows, logs, and stones!"

"Send a few more men and find out who's causing trouble!"

The city gates creaked and groaned as they struggled to close, keeping most of the fleeing civilians outside and letting in only a few defeated soldiers.

The foot soldiers guarding the city frantically climbed the city walls, drawing their bows and arrows, or carrying defensive equipment, their faces filled with bewilderment and fear.

Below the city walls, more and more refugees, locked outside, cried out in despair and pounded on the city gates; further away, in the twilight, the deep blue waves rose silently and became clearer.

Shimazu Shigenobu also climbed the city wall, gripped the crenellations, and strained to look into the distance.

As darkness fell, he could barely make out the approaching column of soldiers in the firelight.

The number of people didn't seem to be very large, but their formation was terrifyingly orderly. They moved silently, with only heavy footsteps and the slight clanging of metal.

Their clothes were strange, all the same color, and they wore shiny helmets, carrying...

It doesn't seem to be a spear or a sword, but rather a short iron rod?

"What...what kind of army is this? Their uniforms are so strange!"

Shimazu Shigeyuki's doubts grew stronger, but the speed at which the other party approached and the chilling aura surrounding them made him dare not be careless.

He gestured to a loud-voiced warrior beside him and shouted down towards the city walls, "Who goes there? Why are you invading my borders? State your names! Otherwise, we'll have arrows ready!"

The Song army troops below the city halted, seemingly having heard the shouts. Shimazu Shigeyuki's heart tightened, and he gripped the hilt of his sword more firmly.

However, the other side did not reply. Instead, some people in the group squatted down, raised their "short iron bars," and pointed them at the city wall.

"What are they going to do? Shoot arrows? From this far away..." Shimazu Shigenori thought, his head still hanging in the air.

"Bang bang bang bang bang-!!!"

"Da da da da da—!!!"

Slightly weaker than the cannon fire outside the city, but a more intense and sharper explosion suddenly rang out!

That wasn't the sound of an arrow leaving the bowstring; it was the roar of countless pieces of dead metal!

On the city wall, the foot soldiers and samurai who had just poked their heads out to rebuke or fire arrows fell down in swathes like straw cut by a sickle!

The wooden parapet and arrow emplacements were smashed, sending wood chips flying everywhere, and sparks flew from the stones.

The lead bullets easily pierced through the bamboo and leather torso, penetrating the flesh and blood, and bringing out puffs of blood mist.

"what!"

"My eyes!"

"Amaterasu Omikami!"

Screams and cries of alarm instantly echoed throughout the city walls!

Some of those shot died on the spot, some screamed and rolled down the city wall, and some clutched their wounds and collapsed in pools of blood, convulsing.

The defending troops, who had never experienced such a blow, collapsed instantly!

This is not a battle, it is a one-sided massacre!

They couldn't even see the arrows flying towards them; they only heard the explosions, and the people around them would inexplicably fall down and die!

"Sorcery! It's sorcery!"

"Heavenly soldiers from Tang China! They're using sorcery!"

"We can't hold them off! Run!"

The surviving defenders were terrified. They forgot all about Bushido and their duty to defend the city. They dropped their weapons, cried out, and fled the city walls, desperately trying to escape back into the city.

No matter how Shimazu Shigenobu roared and slashed at the deserters, he could not stop the avalanche-like rout.

He himself was grazed by several stray bullets, and his arms and cheeks burned with pain and bled profusely.

He hid behind a crenellation, his face ashen, his body trembling. Looking at the hellish scene before him, listening to the incessant gunfire like a death curse, a chilling thought rose uncontrollably within him:

This……

Could these really be heavenly soldiers from the Central Plains?

But when did the armies of the Central Plains become so... so terrifying?

What exactly are those fire-breathing iron bars?

However, he didn't have time to think.

The gunfire below the city intensified, and it seemed that more "iron rods" had joined the chorus.

At the same time, he saw in horror that several Song soldiers carrying thicker "iron bars" with supports had set up the thing behind a mound of earth, and the dark opening was directly facing the city gate tower...

"No—!" Shimazu Shigenobu roared in despair.

We wholeheartedly recommend this book to you: "The Tyrant Ruler of the Heavens, You Don't Understand My Joy," available here.