Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

Keelung Harbor in the Penghu Islands is quite a distance from the Ryukyu Islands.

Even the fastest warship in Ximentang would take half a day to arrive.

With Chen Jie's order, the three squadrons of the Fourth Fleet of Ximentang set off separately.

Jack Bonaparte led his French mercenary army and arrived at the sea off the west coast of the Ryukyu Islands about five hours later.

Nishijima, also known as Iriomote Island.

It is the largest island in the Yaeyama Islands of the Ryukyu Islands in terms of geographical area, and the second largest island in the Ryukyu Islands. It is adjacent to Ishigaki Island.

Meanwhile, the second fleet led by Shen Zhenhe continued its advance towards Kagoshima in the East, heading east to attack Miyako Island.

After occupying Ishigaki Island, the Satsuma Domain fleet of the Eastern Ocean only left a few hundred men to garrison Miyako Island.

Under Shimazu Yasume's leadership, the Satsuma Domain's fleet was stationed on Ishigaki Island.

After two weeks of fierce fighting, the Satsuma Domain in the Toyo region suffered heavy losses, losing not only more than twenty ships but also several thousand elite soldiers.

at this time,

More than 80 ships and nearly 50,000 soldiers are stationed on Ishigaki Island.

Shimazu Yasume believed that it would be too difficult to retake the Penghu Islands.

He had not expected the French Allied Fleet to be so powerful, and its speed far exceeded that of the Satsuma Domain's ships.

Although the Satsuma Domain garrisoned Ishigaki Island, the situation remained dire in terms of defending against attacks from the French fleet.

Shimazu Yasume dispatched his elite troops to Kagoshima to request reinforcements.

He hoped that Shimazu Yasutaka could send another batch of warships to Okinawa to repel these damned French fleets.

at this time,

The Satsuma Domain's scout ships quickly spotted the vanguard ships of the Nishimondo on the high seas.

The battle report quickly reached Ishigaki Island.

"idiot--!"

Upon seeing the military report, Shimazu Yasuke couldn't help but burst into a tirade of curses.

He now realized that after half a month of rest, although he had been reinforcing troops in Ryukyu.

The French Allied Fleet was also busy, waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

And now,
The reinforcements from the French Allied Fleet have finally arrived!
"All troops, attack! Kill them all!"

Shimazu Yasume immediately ordered the Satsuma Domain army to engage in battle.

but,

When the Satsuma Domain's fleet was lined up in a row, ready to fire.

Shimazu, in his attempt to save his life, finally got a clear look at the First Squadron of the Nishimondo and was greatly surprised.

He never imagined that the Ximen Hall of the Great Qian Dynasty would possess such a massive warship.

In Shimazu Yosuke's mind, perhaps only the fleet of the British Empire in the West would have so many cruisers.

Four cruisers with a displacement of over 6,000 tons, eight gunboats, eight armored ships, six supply ships, and several troop transports and cargo ships.

More importantly, even a single squadron has twelve 'Storm' fast attack ships.

The first squadron, a complete formation, had a total of forty-two warships.

It was far larger than a complete fleet of the Western Allied Forces.

Seeing so many warships on the vast sea, it would be impossible for Shimazu not to be afraid to save his life.

More than ten days ago,
The Satsuma Domain fleet fought a battle at sea with the French fleet.

The French pirate fleet, with its four cruisers, already shocked Shimazu.

The Satsuma fleet was routed by the French fleet and suffered heavy losses.

The French fleet's naval guns were incredibly powerful, had a very long range, were highly maneuverable, and were fast.

but,

At this time, compared with the configuration of the First Squadron of the Fourth Fleet of Simon's Fourth Fleet, the size of the French Allied Fleet was only about half that of the First Squadron.

This shows that

The entire Fourth Fleet of Simondon was roughly four times the size of the French mercenary legion.

Not only were the 'Storm' fast attack ships commissioned, but the armored ships and gunboats also possessed extremely high maneuverability.

Most importantly, the Ximentang fleet's naval guns were equipped with armor-piercing shells and incendiary shells.

In terms of overall combat strength, the main force of the Simon's fleet far surpassed that of the French pirate fleet.

Compared to the massive fleet of Saimon-do, the warships of the Satsuma Domain were like wild dogs in front of a pride of lions.

"Hiss—Baka!"

Many of the Satsuma Domain soldiers on the warship turned pale with fright when they saw the Nishimondo fleet appear.

Because they were used to swaggering around in the Satsuma Domain.

Although they lost a major battle with the French fleet a few days ago, they have always had a sense of admiration for the European powers.

Even if they lost to the French fleet in Europe, they didn't think it was a big deal.

But now, seeing the scale of the Ximentang fleet of the Great Qian Dynasty, a sense of powerlessness suddenly welled up in my heart.

Anyone who sees the massive fleet and overwhelming firepower of the Ximentang would surely be terrified.

The rows of cannons on the main warships, even without firing, exude immense power and intimidation.

After seeing the Nishimondo fleet through his monocular telescope, Shimazu Yasuke began to mutter to himself.

"Damn it! How could the Great Qian Dynasty suddenly have such a huge fleet?"

"Isn't it said that the Great Qian Dynasty has already fallen apart? The Japanese Kwantung Army and the Northern Russian Allied Army are about to begin attacking the capital of the Great Qian Dynasty."

How did they manage to build such a powerful fleet?

"Even Li Gang, the King of Min during the Great Qian Dynasty, probably didn't have such a large fleet, did he?"

Fortunately, he was unaware that this was merely a detachment of the Fourth Fleet of the Simond.

Otherwise, he would probably have to surrender directly.

Just as his mind was in a state of confusion, the two warships had already taken up positions and begun exchanging fire.

this moment,
The Satsuma Domain fleet wanted to retreat, but it was too late.

Moreover, given Shimazu's 'Bushido' spirit, how could he possibly retreat so easily in order to save his life?

Next, Shimazu, in a show of self-preservation, ordered the fleet to charge forward and open fire on the enemy ships.

The spirit of Bushido in Japan has permeated all levels of the Japanese military, imbuing them with a fearless fighting spirit.

Although Ximentang's warships were enormous and seemed invincible.

but,

As Shimazu Yasuo gave the order to attack, all the soldiers of the Satsuma Domain became excited and charged forward with great shouts.

The entire Satsuma Domain fleet was arrayed in the shape of a sharp knife, with armored ships charging at the forefront in the middle, gunboats on both sides for the main attack, and cruisers in the very center for coordination.

This is the most typical 'samurai sword' battle formation of the Eastern Fleet.

A few months ago, when Chen Jie led the Ximentang Second Fleet to pursue the three major fleets of the East, he was no stranger to the East's "samurai sword" battle formation.

at the same time,

Shimazu Yasuo and his several commanders divided the cruisers into three lines of attack, charging at the forefront of the 'samurai sword' battle formation, leading from the front and fighting fearlessly.

have to say,

Having the commander-in-chief charge at the forefront certainly boosts morale.

Seeing their commanders charging to the front, all the Japanese soldiers shouted for their ships to speed up, hoping to overwhelm the Ximentang fleet in one fell swoop. This happened on the decks of the Ximentang fleet's cruisers.

Jack Bonaparte stood beside Chen Jie, watching the Japanese fleet's 'samurai sword' formation charge, and shook his head and laughed.

What's the deal with these Japanese people?

How could there be such a big difference in tactics and methods between them and the fleet of the Japanese Kwantung Army?

This 'samurai sword' battle formation still employs naval tactics from the 'age of sail' hundreds of years ago.

They actually dared to charge against the Ximentang fleet?
Is this guy just here to die?

No wonder everyone in the Ximentang fleet looked down on the fighting power of the Eastern Fleet.

but,

Jack Bonaparte was also a little puzzled as to why Chen Jie was so keen on fighting the Japanese.
Almost every time they fought against the Japanese, Chen Jie would take the lead and personally command the troops.

Although Chen Jie also looked down on the tactics of the Satsuma Domain fleet in Japan, he did not let his guard down in the slightest.

He ordered all ships in the squadron to form two forward lines, with four cruisers at the core, to flank and encircle the enemy from the left and right wings.

The main cruisers and armored ships continued to draw enemy fire, while the main attack was carried out by the 'Storm' fast attack ships.

The 'Storm' attack ship has been improved, not only with its powerful cannons, but also with its numbers increased by one-third.

Each 'Storm' fast attack ship is equipped with thirty-six shipborne guns, giving it a combat capability far exceeding that of gunboats.

Its maneuverability is so great, with speeds exceeding forty knots, that it poses a much greater threat than a cruiser.

The reason is simple: there are too many of them.

The twelve 'Storm' fast attack ships are practically equivalent to a swarm tactic.

A fully equipped Simon's fleet consists of twenty-four 'Storm' fast attack ships, and almost no large warships can withstand their combined attack.

After receiving Chen Jie's order.

Deng Yonghe's first squadron quickly formed a column and headed toward the Satsuma Domain fleet in a bracket shape.

It was like the gaping maw of a giant whale, about to swallow the entire Satsuma Domain fleet of the East.

Chen Jie stood on the deck; with his current eyesight, he didn't even need to use binoculars.

He was wearing a very ordinary golden brocade robe, leather boots, and a long sword hanging at his waist.

The sea breeze blows, and it looks incredibly domineering!
"Bombardment begins, first wave of torpedoes!"

Boom! Boom! Boom!
With Chen Jie's command.

The leading gunboat of the Ximentang fleet was the first to fire its torpedoes.

In less than half a minute, towering columns of water rose around the Satsuma Domain ships, which were several hundred meters away.

Torpedo explodes!

At least ten ships were hit by torpedoes in this attack.

For a while,
The surrounding area was churning with waves from the explosions, and smaller ships were rocking violently.

The Satsuma Domain soldiers on the hit ships let out pitiful howls.

When Japanese warships were manufactured or modified, they never considered the possibility of defending against torpedo attacks.

therefore,

When a torpedo strikes a warship at its waterline, which is its weakest point and most vulnerable to attack, the torpedo will skim right at the surface of the water.

The ship that was hit had huge holes in its hull, and the entire hull was riddled with holes by the torpedo.

Seawater rushed into the cabin, and the ship sank rapidly.

This was just the beginning; neither side had launched an artillery attack yet. The first wave of torpedo attacks alone had already sunk more than ten Japanese ships.

"Fujiwara-kun—!"

Shimazu, standing on the deck of the armored cruiser, had a very clear view.

One of the cruisers was sunk by a torpedo, and it happened to be the warship of his commander, Fujiwara Yasutada.

At this moment, Shimazu Yasuke was completely enraged.

Although he still had a clear understanding of the overall combat capabilities of both sides' warships.

but,

Hoping to get away with something is a natural trait of the Japanese.

He would never accept defeat without giving it his all.

The Japanese "Bushido spirit" has a very obvious characteristic: the desire to defeat the opponent by relying on tenacious fighting spirit.

From a very young age, he was influenced by the Japanese "Bushido spirit," which taught him that as long as he gave it his all and fought desperately, he would surely be able to defeat his opponent.

This is the spirit of Japanese martial arts, an indomitable fighting spirit in battle.

At this point, Shimazu Yasuke placed his hopes of defeating his opponent on his indomitable fighting spirit, hoping that he could create a miracle.

It's a real shame that in a martial arts duel, where the two sides are evenly matched, a tenacious fight might have been enough to turn the tide.

However, in large-scale naval battles like those at sea, relying solely on fighting spirit to turn the tide will only hasten your demise.

The Ximentang warship has ushered in a new era of naval warfare, with four layers of firepower.

Torpedoes, naval guns, armor-piercing shells, incendiary shells!
How could the naval power of the Satsuma Domain in the East possibly create a miracle?
Shimazu Yasuke drew his command sword from his waist, pointed it at Ximen Tang's warship, and shouted:

"Fire! Sink the enemy's main warships! Avenge Lord Fujiwara!"

but,

At this moment, Ximentang's warships began their second round of firepower.

The fast attack ship 'Storm', along with cruisers and gunboats, opened fire.

Tsushima's desperate roar to save his life was completely drowned out by the sound of artillery fire; outsiders couldn't hear it at all.

Boom! Boom! Boom!
On the sea, cannons roared continuously, waves rolled, shockwaves spread outwards, and smoke filled the air.

The water column from the explosion shot straight into the sky.

The Ximentang fleet swiftly flanked the Satsuma fleet from both flanks, encircling it from behind.

The fast attack ship 'Storm' began to concentrate its fire, leaving the Satsuma fleet helpless and utterly vulnerable.

This is a powerful and overwhelming display of naval firepower.

For a while,
The sea was littered with the corpses of soldiers from the Satsuma Domain and the wreckage of ships.

Despite the fact that the Eastern Fleet was no match for the Saimon-do Fleet, the Satsuma Domain Fleet still fearlessly approached Saimon-do's main cruisers and launched a ramming attack.

Firstly, they were supported by the spirit of Bushido, which made them forget all their fears.

Another tactic employed by the Satsuma Domain in the Toyo region was to approach enemy ships at close range and then ram them together, resulting in mutual destruction.

Even when the two ships approached each other, the Japanese soldiers would jump onto the other ship and engage in hand-to-hand combat.

Using these tactics, the Satsuma Domain fleet in the East Asia defeated many ships on the high seas, including the Dutch fleet.

However, this time, the opponent they encountered was several times stronger than their previous opponents, whether in terms of firepower, ship tonnage, or maneuverability.

The ships of the Ximentang are all equipped with 'Vulcan cannons'!
The closer the distance, the more powerful and accurate the 'Vulcan Cannon' becomes.

In order to board enemy warships and engage in hand-to-hand combat, almost all the soldiers of the Satsuma Domain in the East stood on the deck.

As a result,
As the two sides closed in, the power of the Vulcan cannon was unleashed to its fullest extent.

This thing is far more powerful than a heavy machine gun; it can directly blow up and sink a ship.

Any body of flesh and blood that is hit by the 'Vulcan Cannon' will explode instantly, leaving no trace of its remains.

The Japanese soldiers were all standing on the deck, making them easy targets.

As the Vulcan cannons fired, Japanese soldiers fell in droves! (End of Chapter)