389: Chapter 389 Zhang Liang's Repeating Crossbow That Can Fire Ten Arrows in Succession

People naturally have a herd mentality; after seeing so many people join the Qihuo Army, those who originally didn't want to join changed their minds.

They were all people who had been abandoned by their tribes; if they didn't take a gamble, winter would be their end.

Since they were dead either way, they might as well take a chance—perhaps they would succeed!

"Fight for survival!"

Zhang Liang roared at the top of his lungs.

Under his lead, the Xiongnu elders, who were unwilling to accept their predetermined fates, all roared out one after another.

In this moment, they felt as if they had grown decades younger, returning to that passionate youth that made their blood boil!

"Leader, there is something I don't know if I should say..."

Gudu frowned, looking at Zhang Liang with some hesitation.

"Gudu, feel free to speak your mind."

Zhang Liang smiled calmly.

He had always been confident.

As long as it wasn't related to that freak Zhao Fusu, he always had a way.

To him, it was not difficult to establish a powerful force in Mobei.

Zhang Liang already had a guess as to what Gudu wanted to say.

Sure enough, he heard Gudu say, "Leader, in a fight, the old fear the young. No matter how we put it, we old men don't have an advantage compared to the youngsters."

"If we ever have a conflict with them, I'm afraid we won't be their match."

"Yes, that's right!"

Gudu's words immediately drew the agreement of the other Xiongnu elders.

Before, they had been made hot-headed by Zhang Liang's words.

Now that they had calmed down, the fact that the younger generation was stronger than them was a realistic problem.

It wasn't something they could change just by getting a few shots of adrenaline or listening to some motivational 'chicken soup for the soul'.

"What should we do then!"

"Exactly, exactly."

The Xiongnu elders all became dejected.

"We can't beat them, so how can we find a way to seize power from their hands!"

"Sigh!"

"Actually, I also want to continue holding great power, but those young wolf cubs are truly fierce. If I were twenty years younger, I could still contend with them, but..."

At this point, the Xiongnu elder's face was full of loneliness, giving off the feeling of a hero in his twilight years.

"Ah, thinking back to those years..."

He slightly raised his head, his gaze looking toward the vast, boundless grassland in the distance, his thoughts seemingly traveling through time and space back to those glorious days.

"Don't bother thinking about those years."

Another hunched Xiongnu elder interrupted him, raising his chin with a voice full of nostalgia as he spoke: "Who wasn't like that!"

"Ah, back in the day, I was also a famous figure on this grassland."

His voice was a bit hoarse, yet it carried a trace of pride that was hard to conceal.

At that time, he was in his prime, his posture as agile as an alpha wolf, holding great power in the tribe.

He commanded thousands of warriors; when he led them to gallop across the grassland, their shouts that shook the clouds seemed to still echo in his ears.

Whenever disputes occurred between tribes on the grassland, he was always at the front, holding that gleaming long blade and leading the charge into the enemy ranks.

His blade technique was sharp and swift, as difficult to withstand as a gale or a rainstorm.

Under his leadership, the tribe's warriors were as unstoppable as a tide, winning victories for the tribe time and again and expanding their territory.

His prestige spread across the grassland, striking fear into the hearts of his enemies.

In the tribe's major decisions, his words carried even more weight. Whenever important matters were discussed, everyone would sit around him, and his opinion often decided the tribe's direction.

At that time, standing on the high slopes of the grassland and overlooking the tribe, his heart was full of grand ambitions and the heroic feeling of holding everything in his palm.

However, time is heartless; as it passed, the younger generation gradually rose, and his physical strength and energy were no longer what they used to be.

His muscles were gradually becoming slack.

In contrast, the muscles of the younger generation were constantly growing stronger, as hard as stone; he was simply no match for them.

In the shifts of power, he gradually lost his former status, and his past glory also faded away like passing clouds.

Now, he could only search for those lost splendors in his memories, the loneliness in his heart like the night sky over the grassland—deep and heavy.

"Leader, did I say something wrong?"

Gudu rubbed the back of his head; he had known long ago that if he said these words, they would surely cause the morale that had been stirred up with great difficulty to drop to rock bottom.

But he had to say them, for these were real, concrete problems.

These weren't things that would cease to exist just because you avoided them.

Gudu truly hoped that Zhang Liang could lead them to rise.

People are selfish; if they could hold onto power forever, how many would be willing to give it up?

Just like when Emperor Xian of Han abdicated the throne to Cao Pi; if it weren't for Cao Pi constantly pressuring him, how could he have abdicated his throne?

Gudu looked at Zhang Liang with complicated eyes; if Zhang Liang hadn't said he could speak, he really wouldn't have wanted to say these things.

Looking at the current atmosphere, bitterness was written on everyone's faces.

Relying on these people to start an uprising, Gudu saw no hope whatsoever.

He looked toward Zhang Liang with an apologetic gaze.

There was also expectation in his eyes.

Gudu said those things partly to test Zhang Liang.

He wanted to see if Zhang Liang truly had the ability to lead this group of old men to success.

If Zhang Liang didn't have that ability and was just all talk, then he would only do the bare minimum.

In fact, it wasn't just Gudu who thought this; the other Xiongnu elders were thinking the same.

Zhang Liang's face still bore a calm smile; everything was within his grasp.

Again, as long as he didn't run into Zhao Fusu, he was still the world's number one Sage of Strategy.

"Clap, clap, clap!"

Zhang Liang clapped his hands, and immediately Mohist Disciples came forward carrying a tray covered with a red cloth.

This scene instantly attracted the gazes of all the Xiongnu elders, who looked at the object with curiosity.

Under the curious gazes of all the Xiongnu elders, Zhang Liang lifted the red cloth, revealing the object hidden beneath: a Repeating Crossbow.

The Repeating Crossbow was exquisite and unique in design, its main body forged from bronze and shimmering with a cold metallic luster. The crossbow body was covered in fine patterns.

The crossbow arm was long, and at the front was a small and delicate arrow magazine, in which ten arrows were neatly arranged; under the sunlight, the arrowheads glinted with a chilling light.

Zhang Liang operated it skillfully to cock the Repeating Crossbow.

He was seen gently pulling a specially made mechanism; accompanied by a series of crisp clicking sounds from the internal machinery, the crossbow string was slowly pulled tight.

Once cocked, the Repeating Crossbow exuded an aura of deterrent force, ready to be unleashed.

"Set up the targets!"

Zhang Liang had targets set up a hundred paces away, then raised the Repeating Crossbow, aligned the sights with the target, and pulled the trigger.

In an instant, with a 'whoosh', the first arrow shot out like lightning, hitting the target instantly with the tail of the arrow still vibrating slightly.

Immediately following were the second, the third...

As Zhang Liang's finger continuously pulled the trigger, the Repeating Crossbow fired arrows in rapid succession.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh..."

The sound of breaking air was incessant; in the blink of an eye, ten arrows shot toward the target like raindrops.

The entire process was smooth and seamless, and the speed was so fast it was staggering.

Zhang Liang only stopped the demonstration once he had fired all the arrows in the Repeating Crossbow.

Seeing the firearms that Zhao Fusu had tinkered with, which could fire continuously, Zhang Liang and the Six-Fingered Black Knight really wanted to create them as well.

But no matter how they tried, they could not produce the firearms that Zhao Fusu had made capable of continuous fire.

However, during their tinkering, they focused their thoughts on modifying the crossbow, and they managed to create this Repeating Crossbow that could fire ten arrows in succession.

Although the Repeating Crossbow could not compare to Zhao Fusu's firearm, in the eyes of these Xiongnu elders, it was already a rare divine weapon!

The surrounding Xiongnu elders, including Gudu, were all dumbfounded by this miraculous scene.

Gudu's eyes widened and his mouth hung slightly open, as if an egg could be stuffed inside.

He simply could not believe his eyes; in his understanding, archery had always been something that required a great deal of physical strength and skill.

Even if your strength was enough to pull the bowstring, could you still shoot accurately?

And how could you guarantee that while aiming, you wouldn't run out of strength before you could even take the shot because you had to use so much force to maintain the bow?