Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 340: Massive Battle in Manla, Red Potion Infected Bodies (4000)

The killing had clearly ended long ago; the smoke had long since dissipated, leaving only the bullet marks on the walls and the still-wet blood and tears of the dead.

The glaring black and red bloodstains stretched from "Jiannei," the settlement of merchants and expatriates of the Dazhao Kingdom, all the way to the valley outside the city. The corpses blocked the river, staining it red and emitting a strong, sticky stench of decay.

Wang Cheng had studied maps of Luzon Island and knew that the mountain outside Manila was called Mount Dalun.

At the time, those expatriates seemed to want to escape to the mountains for refuge, but they were chased and killed by the Franks, and were eventually trapped in the valley and all of them died.

Even days later, the traces of the massacre are still everywhere.

The dried, dark red blood and the uncollected remains of the corpse were exposed to the light of day.

The Franks had no sense of having committed any heinous crimes and didn't even bother to cover it up.

Fluttering.
Countless crows and other scavenging birds gathered from all directions, circled in the sky for a while, and then eagerly landed to enjoy this feast.

Wang Cheng also saw many flags bearing the emblem of St. Francis, one of the patron saints of the Papacy, planted on the ground.

His patron saint's domains are: animals, ecology, and businessmen; he once performed the miracle of preaching to birds.

The Francois erected the emblem of St. Francis here, clearly intending to summon all the carrion birds on the nearby islands to "sky bury" all the corpses left after the massacre.

Separate the souls and ghosts to prevent them from returning to seek revenge after death!

For the followers of the Three Officials, this was a tragic end no less than being reduced to ashes.

"Good, good, really good. Ah!"

Wang Cheng felt sorry for his kind and laughed in extreme anger.

Based on his extensive experience in major battles and dealing with corpses, he judged that the massacre must have occurred the day before the expeditionary force launched its attack on the Eastern Sea Kingdom.

By the time he learned the news from the expeditionary force, it was already too late.

The total number of Dazhao expatriates killed in Manila alone should be around 20,000. The vast majority of them were ordinary people, regardless of gender or age, and they were all killed.

At this moment, Wang Cheng's psychological defenses were shattered by the tragic scene before him, and he couldn't help but want to go back and immediately take up his three-foot sword to sweep away the South Seas.

In fact, he had already begun formulating a strategy for Southeast Asia long ago.

Imitating the East Bharata Company, which was established in many Western countries, they set up the "Four Seas Trading Company" and joined forces with Zheng Shiniang and Lin Daoqian to establish the "United Fruit Company".

Not only did he engage in the arms trade in Yingzhou, he also began to use his mentor Shen Yuting's connections to get involved in Southeast Asia.

They also pursued a policy of befriending distant states while attacking nearby ones, forming an alliance with Britannia and cooperating with their East Borneo Company, all in order to jointly defeat the maritime hegemon, Franz.

Of course, he cannot appear as the King of Jinghai of the East Sea Kingdom.

For both Da Zhao and Frankish, the titles of prince and duke were shackles. Rashly attacking cities and seizing territories could easily trigger a series of chain reactions, resulting in more harm than good.

Fortunately, although the Wang family had established a country, they had not forgotten their original profession.

The maritime merchants under Wang Cheng's leadership were essentially armed groups with men, guns, and cannons. All their military actions were spontaneous acts by civilians and had nothing to do with the state.

However, the straight-line distance from Yingzhou to the Strait of Malacca in the South Seas is tens of thousands of miles.

Putting aside the fact that they were too far away to help, simply setting off rashly in a fit of anger to embark on this unprepared expedition was irresponsible towards their own Wufeng Banner.

What's the difference between them and the Franco expeditionary force that traveled thousands of miles to their deaths?
Moreover, Wang Cheng never forgot one thing:

"The most powerful theological professional in the Western Continent is the Pope, and the most powerful organization is the Holy Cross Church."

From the very beginning of the West French colonists' advance into Southeast Asia forty years ago, they obtained the "right to protect the faith," which combined missionary work with colonial expansion!
The Pope granted the Eastern and Western Francois the privileges and obligations to protect and develop the Church of the Holy Cross in specific regions, and provided them with strong support.

The seat of the East Bharata diocese was located in Goa, in the fragmented country of Bharata on that subcontinent.

Their jurisdiction covered most of the Eastern world, from the Cape of Good Hope to Yingzhou, and was guarded by multiple high-ranking clergy.

The minimum rank of an archbishop is equivalent to that of a second-rank official.

They might be passive in helping Philip II the East become emperor and vie for power with the pope, but they would never stand idly by when it comes to matters of diocese upheaval.

In the end, our retaliatory actions could very well trigger a major battle between the top three ranks and high-ranking officials, potentially turning the entire South Pacific into the front line of East-West confrontation and chaotic warfare.

We must first unite our own people.

Wang Cheng was no longer a reckless youth who charged headlong into danger. As the King of the East Sea, who was in charge of suppressing the East Sea, he had to take a holistic view and plan before acting.

As his thoughts raced, his gaze continued southward, following the trail of the Trinidad.

To the south of Luzon lies Borneo, the largest island in Southeast Asia.

During the Yunmeng period, Brunei was used to distinguish between the East and West Oceans. Lin Daoqian of [Blood and Oil Shipbuilding] was also vying to become the princess's consort in Brunei. It should be settled soon (Chapter 175).

The headquarters of the Mountain and Sea Society is also in Borneo. I glanced at the port from afar and saw that there were far fewer people than I had imagined. There were also not many warships on the dock, as if they had been urgently transferred to other places.

His gaze continued south, and he soon got the answer.

Ahead lay the narrow Malacca Strait, guarded by the Malacca and Sumatra official factories on either side.

Rumble.
Looking into the distance, the sea was filled with smoke, and the booming of cannons illuminated hundreds of Eastern and Western warships shrouded in smoke.

Several factions clashed here, resulting in a bloodbath.

Someone shouted in Francophone:
"Soldiers of the Empire, Lambs of the Father, we Francois possess the right of patronage granted by His Holiness the Pope, and can dispose of the lives and property of all heretics at will."

"The conquest of the Malacca Strait, the entire Spice Islands, and the whole of Southeast Asia—all of this is God's reward to us!"

The Dazhao people and the local Malacca and Austronesian people also roared in anger:

"Kill! Southeast Asia belongs to us Easterners. Let's drive out these Western murderous devils!"

"An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth! Kill them all!"

Wang Cheng could tell at a glance that in this battle, which had been going on for an unknown period of time, one side was the combined forces of the Eastern and Western Franco forces, and the other side was the Shan Hai Society and the local Malacca Kingdom.

Sun Tianba, the "Needle and Pen Craftsman" who had joined his ranks, had already explained to him in detail the origins and composition of the Mountain and Sea Society:
"Emperor Zheng He left behind many sailors, outposts, official factories, and pacification commissions along his seven voyages to the Western Ocean."

The Malacca and Sumatra ports were both important ports controlling the Malacca Strait, one controlling the north and the other the south.

The Francois said the Strait of Malacca was the throat of Venice, and the Austronesian aborigines said the Strait of Malacca was the throat of the Spice Islands. This strait has been the lifeline of trade routes between East and West since ancient times. This is also what makes Zheng He (the eunuch) so powerful.

Back then, he made full use of his personal connections to help the prince in Sumatra drive out Iskandar, who had usurped the throne, and restore the prince to the throne.

In Malacca, he assisted the founding monarch, Parameswara, in developing Malacca from a small fishing village into a center of East-West trade.

Subsequently, the armed aggression and threats against Malacca by the Majapahit and Siam were eliminated.

"Naturally, friendly and cooperative relations were established with these two countries, which enabled the establishment of the two government factories."

Back then, the period when Wang Bangyan, the fifth-generation ancestor of the Wang family, accompanied the eunuch Zheng He on seven voyages to the Western Ocean coincided with the golden age of the Malacca Kingdom.

Located at the center of navigation and trade, and with excellent deep-water ports, it connects to the resource-rich ancient civilizations of the East to the east, and to the world of Bharata, the Star and Crescent Church, and the Western countries of the Western Continent to the west.

It naturally became a world-renowned port and trade center of that era.

One hundred and fifty years have passed since then, and it has continued to exist as a vassal state of the Great Zhao Dynasty.

Although its status declined due to the implementation of the maritime ban by the Great Zhao, they also converted to the Star and Crescent Church for protection.

It remains a once-thriving commercial center and a place where diverse cultures from the East and West interact most frequently.

From afar, you can see neighborhoods inhabited by Austronesian, Jokhang, Frankish, and Semu people, as well as churches, domed temples, and Jokhang-style temples, making it seem like a museum of faith.

Clearly, the Francois knew that occupying this place was tantamount to occupying one of the most important ports for trade between East and West.

Wang Cheng gazed into the distance and saw that in addition to the battle on the sea, there was an even more intense battle between ghosts and gods in the sky.

There appeared to be two figures hanging from the clouds to the southeast, seemingly engaged in a contest. Or perhaps they were actually hanging themselves?

One of them was an old man in his seventies or eighties, with a golden rope around his neck, hanging steadily in mid-air. Even when the wind blew, he did not move or sway, clearly a very experienced veteran.

The other was a Western priest in a white robe, whose neck appeared to be empty, yet it seemed as if he were tightly bound by an invisible rope.

Even a high-level magical technique couldn't help him resist or break free.

In a short while, his face turned blue and purple, his hands scratched his neck until they bled, he struggled violently with his legs, and his body swayed back and forth, far from the former who was so calm and composed.

Wang Cheng narrowed his eyes, and using the principle of "rare commodity for speculation," he saw the secret of the rope:

[Rare Goods: The End with a Rope (A National Treasure)]
Ability: It symbolizes the end of a dynasty and can designate a target to hang themselves.

Ninety-nine percent of the targets will be hanged on the spot. Even if they don't die immediately, the owner of the rope can defeat them with his rich experience in hanging.

Side effect: The owner may hang himself at any time, and even reincarnations and spirits cannot resist it.

Furthermore, the closer one gets to the predetermined end of their life, the higher the frequency of random hangings will be, until the very last moment, when they finally succumb to the rope.

In the sky battlefield, another white-robed clergyman, wielding an iris battle banner, shot down a high-ranking clergyman from the Star-Crescent Church—one who was wielding a scimitar and engulfed in flames—who was clearly from the Star-Crescent Church.

He spewed out a mouthful of blood mist in mid-air, clearly indicating that he was no longer able to fight.

After realizing he couldn't intervene in the hanging contest, the victor roared in fury:

"Release Bishop Thomas right now!"
If he is not released, the Malacca government offices and the Malacca Sultanate will be buried with him.

Then the priest raised his battle flag high and unleashed his full power as a heroic spirit.

The phantom image of Saint Paul, one of the patron saints of the Papal States, appeared behind him.

His patrons include missionaries and theologians.

This clergyman rose through the ranks to become a “war bishop” thanks to the miracle created by St. Paul.

Like the Onmyoji Amakusa Shiro of the past, he had a large number of war minions under his control.

Wow.
A huge roar of waves erupted, and the sea was suddenly dyed crimson, as if a surging red tide was rushing toward the port on the shore.

The battle had been going on for several days, and both sides had almost exhausted their manpower. The fact that they were only using it now clearly meant that it was their most trump card.

"What is this?"

"Oh no, it's the man-eating queen leech of Southeast Asia! But this one is way too big, what on earth did they eat?"

Countless bright red leeches, each as large as an adult, emerged from the sea, some with black markings on their heads resembling human faces.

The fleets engaged in the naval battle were the first to suffer. Someone had barely cried out in panic when a crimson leech leaped out of the water and instantly sucked him dry.

"what--!"

The Queen Leech, also known as the Mother Leech or Man-eating Leech, is a parasite that lives inside decaying corpses and dead fish. It will attack humans and livestock upon seeing their reflections, and is extremely bloodthirsty and ferocious.

At this time, they mutated for some unknown reason and became even more terrifying than their mortal counterparts.

When they encounter powerful Shinto officials, several of them can merge into one, multiplying their combat power.

However, the Franco soldiers, who wore blessed amulets, were spared from the leeches' attacks.

Wang Cheng felt a chill run down his spine as he looked at them, and another monster automatically popped into his mind.

"This thing looks familiar."

These queen leeches gave him the same feeling as the basket snake tail from back then!
The information I saw at the time was:

After accidentally ingesting a rare medicinal herb from a hole in the South Seas and the remains of a fallen immortal, his body underwent a mutation, his intelligence regressed, but his physical strength increased, granting him immense physical power commensurate with his size.

This time, the information provided by the "rare commodity" goes even further:
The alchemical creation, nurtured based on the Queen Leech, underwent a physical mutation and gained the supernatural power of flesh and blood that could freely combine and split.
[Inferior Red Medicine Liquid Infected byproducts of Changsheng Pharmaceutical]

Wang Cheng immediately realized that the Francois and the Holy Cross Church seemed to have mastered some means of mass-producing such war machines.

Moreover, the source of power lies precisely outside the perilous walls!

Although the old man hanging in the sky couldn't see these things, he knew that if he couldn't stop these things that looked like celestial debris, the defense line that he had held out for three days might be breached on the spot.

Just as he was about to let Thomas go and turn his attention to another war bishop,

A fleet of ships was approaching from the direction of the Old Port Pacification Office, and a clear voice echoed throughout the battlefield:
"May we, as kindred spirits, follow the noble path and aspire to great achievements. Small streams converge into the vast ocean, and a single basket of earth forms a mountain. Gather together!"

(End of this chapter)