Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

Chapter 224 Zhuge Chongguang Arrives

When Lu Chen arrived at the Hall of State Affairs, apart from the people in charge of patrols, almost all the important military figures were present.

Upon Lu Chen's arrival, everyone bowed in unison and said, "Greetings, Your Highness! Long live Your Highness!"

After performing the salute, Mu Jingwu immediately said, "Your Highness, the artillery battalion has completed its assembly."

Lu Chen nodded, his gaze falling on Mu Changtian. Mu Changtian said, "Your Highness, the thousand new recruits you requested are ready. They have all been trained exactly according to the training methods you provided."

Lu Chen said, "Now that everything is ready, let's set off."

Led by the Jinyiwei soldiers, the group then headed to a military stronghold near the military factory.

Mu Changtian and his group had never been to this place before. They only knew that it was a very mysterious place, guarded only by the Black Cavalry. Ordinary soldiers were not allowed to enter, not even Mu Changtian himself.

After the artillery battalion and the new army arrived at the designated location, Lu Chen spoke to Mu Changtian and the others, saying, "As you probably already know, the main reason I brought you here today is because the army is about to be equipped with new weapons."

"These new weapons are similar to howitzers. Although they are not as powerful as howitzers, they have more shells than howitzers, and the Northern Kingdom is already able to mass-produce these weapons."

Upon hearing this, Mu Changtian and the others were taken aback.

Is it capable of mass production?

Doesn't that mean that the military strength of the Northern Kingdom will soon surpass that of other dynasties?

The grenade launcher had already left a deep impression on everyone. At that time, they thought that if this kind of weapon could be mass-produced, it would be no problem for Lu Chen to ascend to the supreme position in the future.

However, at the time, people thought they were using immortal weapons, so there wouldn't be many of them, and once they were used up, they would be gone.

The soldiers in the artillery battalion hadn't touched a howitzer in a long time, and Mu Jingwu even suspected that the artillery battalion was going to be disbanded. He didn't expect that the Northern Kingdom would be able to manufacture similar weapons so quickly. In the future, the artillery battalion will play a vital role on the battlefield.

At this moment, Lu Chen said to Mo Xing, "Have the Embroidered Uniform Guard soldiers bring out their weapons."

"Yes, Your Highness."

With the help of the Black Cavalry, three hundred cannons and thousands of mortars were quickly delivered to the soldiers.

Seeing so many weapons, Mu Changtian and the others were stunned for a moment. At this time, Lu Chen said to Mu Jingwu, "Captain Mu, from today onwards, the artillery battalion will conduct live-fire training. I need you to become thoroughly familiar with these new cannons within two months."

Mu Jingwu immediately replied, "Yes, Your Highness!"

The soldiers in the artillery battalion had long wanted to get their hands on the real thing. Ever since the howitzer shells ran out, they had been mostly studying theoretical knowledge. No matter how thoroughly the theoretical knowledge was explained, it was not as fast as learning by doing.

Just then, Li Feng noticed the stick-like weapons placed on the wooden planks, and the scene of Lu Chen using a Barrett rifle to kill a high-level martial artist immediately flashed into his mind.

Li Feng couldn't help but wonder if these stick-like weapons were the same kind of deadly weapons that Lu Chen had used before.

Thinking of this, Li Feng immediately asked, "Your Highness, is this kind of stick-like weapon also considered a cannon?"

Before Lu Chen could answer, Mo Xing replied from the side, "General Li, this is not a cannon, it's a musket."

Lu Chen said, "From now on, the new army will gradually abandon bows and arrows and switch to using firearms. Mo Xing, why don't you demonstrate to them how to use firearms?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

As soon as he finished speaking, Mo Xing picked up a flintlock pistol and skillfully loaded it with a primer and a steel ball bullet.

Immediately afterwards, he picked up his musket, aimed at a tree in the distance, and pulled the trigger. With a gunshot, the steel ball inside the musket flew out and instantly embedded itself in the tree.

Upon seeing this, Li Feng and the others were taken aback. This weapon was indeed very similar to the mysterious black weapon that their prince had used before.

However, it seems that Lu Chen's mysterious weapon is powerful.

After demonstrating how to use the musket, Mo Xing said to everyone, "Musket bullets and primers are smaller, making them easier to carry than bows and arrows."

"If it were on the battlefield, a soldier could carry at least several hundred bullets."

"Of course, that's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that an ordinary person can also use this musket, and the bullets of the musket can easily penetrate armor."

Upon hearing this, everyone present was stunned once again.

If bows and arrows are used, untrained soldiers may not even be able to draw the bow. Even if they can draw the bow, the arrows they shoot will not be very powerful, let alone penetrate the enemy's armor.

However, once they were equipped with firearms, it meant that any ordinary person could join the Northern Kingdom's army, as long as they learned how to use firearms.

An ordinary person who learns to use a musket possesses strength comparable to a second-rank martial artist.

Mu Changtian sighed inwardly.

As expected, the era of martial artists is coming to an end.

After Mo Xing finished speaking, Lu Chen reminded him, "This batch is training guns. The bullets and primers are separate, which is not convenient to carry. I have already asked the craftsmen to improve the muskets and produce bullets that combine the primer and bullet."

"That kind of musket would be much more powerful; even a ninth-rank martial artist wouldn't be able to withstand its bullets."

At this point, Lu Chen looked at Mu Changtian.

"The new army should learn how to use muskets as soon as possible."

Mu Changtian snapped out of his daze and replied, "Yes, Your Highness!"

Lu Chen continued, "Furthermore, I would like to add that after entering the age of firearms, some martial artists may think that they are no different from ordinary people. However, I must remind you that no matter how powerful firearms are, there are people that firearms cannot kill."

At this point, Lu Chen immediately picked up a Mo Xing firearm, loaded it with bullets, and aimed it at his head.

Seeing this, everyone was stunned, and their faces changed drastically in fright.

"Your Highness!!!"

"Your Highness, no!!!"

……

Before anyone could stop Lu Chen, he fired a shot at himself.

Just as the steel ball was about to make contact with Lu Chen's head, a powerful pressure was released from Lu Chen's body, and the next moment, the steel ball turned into powder.

This……

Everyone was stunned again.

The oppressive aura emanating from Lu Chen made everyone present breathless; even Grandmasters like Mu Changtian felt as if a mountain was pressing down on them.

Lu Chen had never told them that he was already a Grandmaster, but the pressure he was radiating was clearly the kind of aura that only a Grandmaster possessed.

The generals summoned by Lu Chen naturally knew that Lu Chen was a Grandmaster, but Mu Changtian and the others did not know, nor did the ordinary soldiers.

Lu Chenlu's move not only demonstrated the importance of martial arts, but also his strength as a Grandmaster.

The soldiers and others were somewhat incredulous.

Grandmaster?

Is their prince a grandmaster?

A seventeen-year-old grandmaster?

Indeed, their prince is a chosen one blessed by the immortals!

If their prince hadn't been blessed by the immortals, how could he have produced such a terrifying weapon, and how could he have broken through to the Grandmaster realm in such a short time!

Judging from their prince's growth rate, he will probably become a Celestial Realm expert before he turns thirty.

Rumor has it that experts at the Celestial Realm have power approaching that of immortals and can summon wind and rain!

The soldiers were thrilled at the thought.

At this moment, Lu Chen continued, "As you all have seen, as long as you have absolute strength, even firearms cannot harm your body. So don't be discouraged. Martial arts are still very important, and practicing martial arts can make people live longer. Don't give up on the path of martial arts just because firearms have been invented."

Lu Chen had long noticed that ever since the howitzer demonstrated its power on the battlefield, the martial artists in the army had become somewhat confused. Some soldiers even thought that martial arts were no longer useful, and even Mu Changtian had such thoughts.

The advent of firearms will indeed be a blow to martial artists. They will surely think, if an ordinary person can easily kill a ninth-rank martial artist, then what is the point of their hard work in training for decades?

Although Lu Chen knew that firearms were powerful, he would not say that martial arts were useless.

On the contrary, after the invention of firearms, martial arts are likely to become even more important than before.

Because only those who have reached the Grandmaster level can easily block bullets, people will desperately try to improve their level in order to avoid being shot by an ordinary person with a musket in order to avoid being threatened by firearms.

Lu Chen glanced at the soldiers and then said, "Alright, everyone take your soldiers and take these weapons away. Great Xia is about to fall into chaos, and we need to be prepared."

Upon hearing Lu Chen's words, Mu Changtian and the others felt a chill run down their spines.

Is the Great Xia Dynasty about to fall into chaos?

Why would the Northern King say that? Could it be...?

Is the Northern King planning to launch a direct attack?

……

While Mu Changtian and the others were lost in thought, Lu Chen had already gone to inspect the arsenal. Since he was there, he might as well take a look at the development progress of the new gun.

The development of the new gun is progressing smoothly. The bullet and primer have been combined, and it is no longer a steel ball bullet. The front of the bullet has also become a pointed cone.

The main reason Mo Xing and his team were able to get the bullets so quickly was that Lu Chen gave them some reference material for the Desert Eagle and Barrett ammunition.

However, their bullets had a major problem: in an era with a very weak industrial base, the bullets they manufactured were too crude and were prone to exploding.

To prevent barrel explosions from causing trouble for the user, Moxing thickened the gun barrel so that even if a bullet explodes, it will not destroy the gun or endanger the user.

However, this presents a significant problem: thickening the gun body increases its weight.

An ordinary rifle, yet its weight is comparable to Lu Chen's Barrett.

However, while this gun is indeed quite heavy for ordinary people, its weight is not a problem for martial artists in this world.

Lu Chen realized that what he had said earlier was absolutely true; martial artists were indeed still very important in the Northern Kingdom.

For example, the new firearms they produce require at least a martial artist of the third rank to use easily. In the future, these new firearms can be made available to martial artists of the third rank and above ahead of time.

Of course, this is all temporary. The current industrial base is poor and the materials are not good, so they can only adopt this method of thickening the gun body. When the North has a certain industrial base in the future, the guns they manufacture will not be so easy to explode. At that time, even ordinary people will be able to easily use the new firearms.

After inspecting the arsenal for about half an hour, Lu Chen returned to the Prince's Mansion.

As soon as he arrived at the Prince's residence, a commander of the Imperial Guard rushed to Lu Chen, shouting, "Your Highness, something terrible has happened!"

Seeing the flustered appearance of the Imperial Guard commander, Lu Chen immediately asked, "What happened?"

The commander of the Imperial Guard replied, "A grandmaster has arrived at the south gate of Yancheng. Merchant caravans coming and going in Yancheng are all gathered outside to watch. It is said that the grandmaster is the Sage of Literature of the Great Qian Dynasty."

Hearing this, Lu Chen was stunned for a moment.

"They've arrived in Yancheng so quickly? He thought Zhuge Chongguang would stay in the Dayue Dynasty for a while before secretly coming to Yancheng to avoid being discovered."

The commander of the Imperial Guard continued, "As soon as that Grandmaster arrived at the gate of Yancheng, he was recognized by the people. Now the south gate of Yancheng is completely blocked, and everyone wants to see that Grandmaster."

Hearing this, Lu Chen frowned.

Isn't Zhuge Chongguang making a bit too much of a fuss?

But thinking about it, it makes sense. Zhuge Chongguang is known as the Sage of Literature, and he is the person most likely to break through to the Celestial Realm in recent decades, so it's normal for him to be so popular.

Lu Chen said, "Take me to see."

Lu Chen then rode his horse directly to the South City.

Zhuge Chongguang was a literary sage and a grandmaster. Even the emperors of various dynasties had to give him some face. There was nothing wrong with me, a prince, personally going to greet him.

Before long, Lu Chen arrived at the south gate.

At this time, the city gates were crowded with people, all wanting to see the legendary Sage of Literature.

At this moment, the guards of the Prince's mansion shouted loudly, "The Prince has arrived!!!"

Upon hearing this, the frenzied crowd reluctantly parted to make way for them.

Seeing that the Northern King had come in person, the people became much more obedient.

A short while later, Lu Chen rode his horse to a carriage drawn by four horses.

The next moment, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, an elderly man with white hair slowly stepped down from the carriage.

Today, Yancheng is a commercial center where caravans from various dynasties come to purchase goods, especially those from the Northern King's Mansion, which are their most important trading commodities.

These merchants were quite knowledgeable, and many of them had met Zhuge Chongguang, especially those from the Daqian Dynasty.

"Look! He's truly a literary genius!"

"How could the Sage of Literature appear in the Northern Kingdom?"

"What's he doing in Yancheng? Didn't he go to the Dayue Dynasty to move the Huanyu Academy there?"

"Is there something about the northern lands that attracts him?"

"Da Yue and Bei Guo are right next to each other, so maybe he just happened to be visiting Bei Guo."

……

Just as people were discussing this, Zhuge Chongguang walked towards Lu Chen.

Lu Chen dismounted at this moment.

At this moment, Zhuge Chongguang bowed and said, "Zhuge Chongguang, Dean of Huanyu Academy, pays respects to Your Highness!"

I have a cold and a headache, so this is only one update today.

(End of this chapter)