Chapter 72 of 100

Chapter 72

14 min read3,500 words

**Bang! Bang! Bang!** After advancing to a distance of 150 meters, both sides almost simultaneously opened fire, and the battlefield was instantly shrouded in smoke. Nearly 80% of the 48 muskets in the front row of Liao Meng's detachment fired, but unfortunately, the accuracy of the flintlock muskets at this distance was not very good, and only a few Spanish infantrymen fell in the opposing formation. The Spanish marksmanship was equally poor; they failed to bring down even a single person on this side.

The sharp sound of a brass whistle rang out again. The first row of soldiers, having finished firing, stopped to reload, while the second row crossed over the first and, under the command of their officers, fired another volley, causing several more Spanish soldiers to fall.

The Spanish flintlock musketeers who had finished firing were still reloading, but their matchlock musketeers had not yet entered their maximum range. Therefore, these musketeers, carrying their muskets, silently crossed over the flintlock musketeers who were reloading and continued to advance in large strides.

"Third row, march! One-two-one... one-two-one..." The Spanish temporarily ceased firing, but the穿越众 (穿越者) didn't care. The third row of soldiers immediately moved up.

"Stand still! Raise your muskets!" With a rustling sound, 48 muskets were almost simultaneously raised.

"Aim!" The musketeers roughly aligned their barrels with the Spanish infantry formation.

"Ready... Fire!" The musketeers closed their eyes and pulled the triggers. Their shoulders almost simultaneously jolted as 18mm lead balls flew toward the Spanish at an unstoppable speed through the choking smoke. This time, the distance was closer, and about ten Spanish musketeers and pikemen fell.

"Reload! Fourth row, march... one-two-one... left-right-left... stand still!" The battle continued, and the Spanish infantry's pace quickened. They had to close the distance as quickly as possible. Once they entered the range of their matchlock muskets, they could retaliate. However, the several dozen meters of distance caused by the weapon disparity was enough for the穿越众 to fire several volleys. As the distance between the two sides continuously decreased, the damage caused by the flintlock volleys increased at an alarming rate. This short distance of several dozen meters was destined to be filled with blood and flesh.

The Spanish artillery fired again, and two iron balls landed among the men. One of them carved a bloody path through the crowd, killing at least six pikemen. The other bounced on the ground and knocked down two or three musketeers. The thick armor of the musketeers greatly reduced the kinetic energy of the iron balls, making the damage far less severe than expected.

The artillerymen wouldn't let the Spanish have all the glory. The 12 cannons roared, sending deadly projectiles toward the Spanish infantry formation, causing significant damage. One of the ricocheting shells even knocked down a warhorse, trapping a Spanish officer under it.

After five rows of soldiers had fired, the first row was back at the front. The distance between the two sides was now less than 80 meters. The Spanish matchlock musketeers stopped and began loading their muskets while blowing on the matches to ensure they didn't go out.

**Bang! Bang! Bang!** The first row quickly fired another volley, and the Spanish musketeers suffered significant losses. However, the men behind them quickly moved up under the orders of their officers to maintain the first row's firepower.

Lan Guo nervously watched the Spanish movements, his helmet filled with rapid breathing. Feeling suffocated, he flipped up his face mask, which made him feel slightly better. "Second row, raise your muskets... aim... ready, fire!" Leaning forward, Lan Guo blew the brass whistle and swung his 1922-pattern command saber with his right hand.

Both sides fired almost simultaneously. As Lan Guo swung his saber, he suddenly felt a high-speed object hit the curved steel plate on his chest. The immense kinetic energy knocked him backward, almost causing him to fall.

It was a 19mm lead ball. The lead ball, fired from the right front, deformed the steel plate almost completely before bouncing to the ground. Still in shock, Lan Guo realized he had been hit. Fortunately, the lead ball at 80 meters did not penetrate his bulletproof plate armor. At that moment, Lan Guo was genuinely grateful to the armor factory, as the 1922-pattern full-body armor had proven its quality in combat.

Both sides suffered heavy casualties in the exchange. Nearly twenty of the穿越众 fell, while the poorly armored Spanish lost over thirty. Even with the Spanish having almost twice the firepower per row, the actual exchange ratio was even more lopsided.

The firefight continued. The high rate of fire of the flintlock muskets was evident, with Liao Meng's detachment firing two to three rounds per minute, far outpacing the Spanish one to two rounds. As a result, the 450 Spanish musketeers fired only a few dozen more rounds per minute than the 240穿越众 flintlock musketeers. This gap rapidly decreased as the Spanish musketeers suffered more casualties, eventually reversing.

While the musketeers engaged in long-range fire, the pikemen in the center were now in close combat. The 3-meter-long Spanish pikes should have given them a significant advantage, but the穿越众 pikemen, clad in highly protective full-body armor, were far superior to the Spanish, who only wore breastplates. They fearlessly met the sharp Spanish pike tips and thrust their own pikes into the enemy.

The sounds of pikes piercing flesh, shouts, curses, cries, and screams filled the air. The pikemen on both sides used their sharp cold weapons to repeatedly stab at the enemy, and the battle quickly became intense.

Liao Meng, mounted on a mixed-breed horse, observed the battle. Overall, his side had the advantage, and this advantage was growing as time passed. On the flanks, the Spanish musketeers were being pushed back with heavy casualties. In the center, the 400 pikemen on both sides were engaged in a fierce melee. After the initial resistance, the Spanish began to slowly but irreversibly retreat, indicating an inevitable rout.

The only annoyance was the four small Spanish cannons. The shells they fired continuously caused casualties among his troops, which was very frustrating.

"Captain Xu, take your unit and destroy the Spanish artillery position. Be cautious of the Spanish cavalry; they might intercept you," Liao Meng ordered Xu Yu.

Xu Yu's cavalry regiment had been urgently reinforced with over thirty Ukrainian Cossacks who had immigrated a few months ago, bringing the total to nearly 90 riders. Upon receiving the order, he immediately gave a loud command, adjusted the formation, and led his unit toward the Spanish artillery position at the rear of the battlefield.

Seeing this, the nearly 100 Spanish cavalry who had crossed the river began to intercept them. Led by their officers, they charged directly at Xu Yu's cavalry, mostly gauchos. Their formation was loose, seemingly wary of the pistols of the穿越众 cavalry.

The distance between the two sides quickly closed. The cavalry regiment's soldiers fired their pistols, and about twenty Spanish cavalrymen fell. The loose formation of the Spanish cavalry could not withstand the concentrated attack of the cavalry regiment, and the 90 riders easily broke through their interception. They then raised their sabers, circled around, and charged at the panicked Spanish artillery, hacking them down. The Spanish cavalry never effectively interfered. These gauchos seemed to have lost their nerve in the previous battles and performed worse than women.

Xu Yu sneered, circled back to the rear, counted the casualties, reloaded his pistol, and charged forward again, this time targeting the enemy musketeers.

"Raise your muskets... aim... ready, fire!" Lan Guo continued to blow the brass whistle, his saber now back in its sheath, and he held a pistol. The sound of gunfire continued to ring out. The musketeers no longer needed officers to command them; they had found their rhythm and skillfully and rapidly poured fire into the increasingly disordered enemy formation, causing heavy casualties. The enemy's counterattacks were sporadic and rapidly weakening.

The artillery continued to bombard, and the 12 cannons began to focus on the Spanish musketeers, with iron balls whistling and landing among them. The heavily damaged Spanish were struggling to hold on. Some continued to bravely fire, while others tried to turn and flee, causing the formation to become chaotic.

The fatal blow was delivered by Xu Yu's cavalry regiment. They charged from the flank into the Spanish musketeer formation, which lacked the protection of pikemen, and swung their sabers, cutting down the fleeing musketeers. After breaking through the right formation, they circled around to the left, charging from the rear and further disrupting the enemy's formation.

The Spanish cavalry, now reduced to fewer than thirty riders, charged at Xu Yu's cavalry. After a brief exchange of pistol fire and saber combat, they were completely eliminated. The remaining forty to fifty gaucho cavalry watched from a distance, and upon seeing the cavalry regiment charging into the Spanish infantry formation and cutting them down, they fled directly toward the bridge, retreating!

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