The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 79 Yin Yang Fish

Chen Jiao relayed the order as instructed.

The Santa Ana turned, skimming the edge of the coral atoll.

At this moment, Li Kuiqi had already darted within fifty paces of the St. Anna.

Lin Qian could see with her naked eye that Li Kuiqi was standing at the bow of the ship, holding a large ghost-headed sword in one hand, pointing it at her, like a vengeful ghost, his aura terrifying.

Lin Qian calmly ordered, "Approach the enemy on port, steer slightly to port, and maintain the firing range of the artillery."

In Li Kuiqi's eyes, he was no more than twenty steps away from Lin Qian, and he could even see the cold expression on Lin Qian's face as she stood on the stern tower.

Unfortunately, Lin Qian slipped away quickly, and he missed the Saint Anna.

Li Kuiqi immediately ordered the fleet to turn around and give chase.

He knew in his heart that these barbarian sailboats were troublesome to change sails, required frequent turning, and had limited speed, which was the best opportunity for him to catch up and board them.

The Santa Ana and its fleet sailed counterclockwise on the sea, constantly vying for the wind, and became entangled in a battle of yin and yang.

Generally speaking, the yin-yang symbol of two ships locked in combat signifies that they are evenly matched and evenly matched.

But that's assuming both ships have cannons.

Now, Li Kuiqi's fleet can only endure round after round of cannon fire, like an old donkey pulling a millstone, going around in circles, its eyes filled with carrots that it can never reach.

Li Kuiqi's fiery passion gradually cooled and extinguished with each turn of the millstone and each round of artillery fire, becoming colder than the rain hitting his body.

He stood at the bow of the ship, turning back with difficulty to look behind him... only half of the fleet remained.

If this fight continues, they'll eventually be blasted into mincemeat by artillery fire.

He knew he couldn't win this battle.

He said with difficulty, "Send the order: each ship disperses and finds its own route to board the enemy ships!"

Subordinates, listen to the order and relay it to the rear ship.

Before long, the fleet, which had been gathered together, gradually dispersed, spreading out like a large net towards the Santa Ana.

Seeing this, Lin Qian put down her binoculars and ordered, "Head northeast and break through the fleet!"

Chen Jiao loudly relayed the order.

The helmsman then steered the ship back to center, and the Santa Ana headed straight for the large net.

Without Li Kuiqi's command ship, the fleet was in chaos. Facing the oncoming St. Anna, they all tried to avoid it, and the St. Anna drove straight into them.

On the gun deck, Lei Sanxiang shouted hoarsely, "Attack the enemy on both sides! Don't listen to commands anymore! Fire the guns as fast as you can!"

The St. Anna was flanked by enemy ships. With almost no need for aiming, the gunners mechanically loaded and fired, loaded and fired...

The entire hull of the St. Anna was shrouded in thick smoke from the black powder explosion.

Those who managed to get close to the pirate ship, St. Anne, threw out grappling hooks. They gripped the ropes tightly with both hands, braced their feet against the slippery gunwale, and climbed toward the deck.

Most people were cut off by ropes or stabbed by spears and fell into the sea before they could even climb to the bow of the boat.

In the end, only five or six pirates managed to board the ship. As soon as they got on board, before they could even see the deck structure, they were riddled with holes by a dense forest of spears and rapiers.

After the fleet and the St. Anna passed each other once, neither of them had the courage to approach and board the ship.

Li Kuiqi's ship also disappeared.

At this moment, Li Kuiqi was ordering his men to head towards the northwest waterway of the lagoon.

He knew that once the fleet was broken up, it would be impossible to successfully board the ship. He gave this order only to exchange his brothers' lives for his own.

While his brothers were engaged in a fight with Lin Qian, he was able to escape through the lagoon waterway.

His ship also contained 30,000 taels of silver that he had stolen from Lin Qian, more than ten muskets, and more than twenty men.

As long as he escapes, he can use these resources to make a comeback!

As long as Li Kuiqi is spared, he will surely avenge this in the future!

At this time, the wind and rain at sea intensified, and the wind direction suddenly changed from northwest to southeast.

The headwind turned into a tailwind, and the boat's speed increased suddenly.

Li Kuiqi looked up at the sky, letting the raindrops drip into his eyes and mingle with his tears as they streamed down his face. He thought to himself, "Damn you, God, you've finally been kind to me!"

"Brother..." the pirate's voice trembled, "that gunboat is catching up..."

"What?" Li Kuiqi turned around abruptly and saw the St. Anna's bow cutting through the waves, heading straight for him.

Li Kuiqi felt a blur before his eyes and couldn't believe what he was seeing was real.

Lin Qian wasn't held back at all; she practically pierced through the netting and sailed straight toward him.

The Santa Ana was already fast, and it was also sailing with the wind, which was most suitable for soft sails.

It was only a matter of time before they caught up with Li Kuiqi's ship.

A fine layer of sweat formed on Li Kuiqi's forehead, which was washed down by the rain and flowed into his eyes, stinging painfully.

He didn't even bother to wipe his sweat, and looked northwest again, where he could see the indigo sea in the distance, indicating that the shipping route was near.

He was confident that he was very familiar with this waterway and could sail through at full speed, while Lin Qian would definitely have to lower the sails and proceed with caution.

With a combination of fast and slow movements, he was absolutely confident of escaping the pursuit!

He can survive as long as he reaches that waterway!

Meanwhile, his crew on his ship, watching the approaching St. Anna, felt a fear as overwhelming as a tsunami.

They couldn't beat him in a fight, they couldn't catch him in a chase, and they couldn't escape him in a run.

For the first time in their lives, these ruthless pirates tasted despair. "Brother, maybe we should... surrender..." Finally, one of them couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed on the deck, saying bitterly.

All the pirates thought the same thing, and since someone had taken the lead, they all spoke up boldly.

"Surrender, I don't want to die..."

"Brother, we can't escape now, let's surrender..."

Li Kuiqi cursed angrily: "Bullshit! As long as we get there, as long as we can get into the waterway, we'll live!"

"Brother, there's no chance anymore..." came the desperate voice of the subordinate.

Li Kuiqi turned around angrily, but before he could even speak, he was stunned.

He saw that the Santa Ana was only a hundred paces away from him, its massive bow forcefully cutting through the waves.

Li Kuiqi could already see the densely packed crew members on his deck.

The waterway that would allow him to escape was still at the far end of the world.

Li Kuiqi's heart sank to the bottom of the sea.

"Brother! Let's lower the price!"

Li Kuiqi's gaze slowly swept over his men on the deck, all of whom looked at him expectantly.

Li Kuiqi, unwilling to accept defeat, raised his ghost-head broadsword and slashed at the deck, splitting a large hole in it.

"I, Li Kuiqi, will never surrender!"

At that moment, shouts rang out from the Saint Anna: "Surrender and you will not be killed! Surrender and you will not be killed! Surrender..."

On the ship, the pirates' expressions changed upon hearing this. Everyone looked at Li Kuiqi, and for a moment, no one spoke, creating an extremely strange atmosphere.

"Surrender and you will not be killed! Surrender and you will not be killed! Surrender and you will not be killed!"

As the Santa Ana drew closer, the shouts from its crew became increasingly clear.

The pirates under Li Kuiqi's command silently gripped their knives.

Suddenly, a pirate rushed forward with a sword drawn and slashed mercilessly.

In the midst of the wind and rain, a loud clang was heard, and the knife was sent flying, falling into the sea.

The pirate was severed from his chest to his upper abdomen, blood gushing from the wound. He collapsed on the deck, twitched a few times, and then lay still.

Li Kuiqi was covered in blood, which flowed freely with the rain, making him look like a ferocious demon.

The other pirates, far from being afraid, drew their swords and surrounded them.

Some shouted and charged forward, and the pirates shouted back, their cries like the wailing of ghosts and howls of wolves.

In an instant, flesh and blood flew everywhere on the bow deck, the sounds of weapons clashing were incessant, and the roars and screams were chilling.

In the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Li Kuiqi was severely injured and covered in blood. He leaned on his knife and knelt weakly at the bow of the boat, blood flowing uncontrollably from his wounds.

There was no one standing alive around him.

The thick blood, despite repeated washing by the heavy rain, could not be washed away and flowed into the sea like a stream through the gaps in the deck.

A pirate, now only an upper body, crawled on the deck, his limbs torn and his abdomen filled with blood. He stopped moving after a few breaths.

Chen Jiao muttered, "Is this even human?"

At this moment, the large sailing ship had already sailed to the side of Li Kuiqi's ship, with the two ships only twenty paces apart.

On the St. Anna, all the crew members stood by the ship, watching this scene in silence.

Lin Qian had assumed that Li Kuiqi would surely die if the pirates swarmed him, but he was unexpectedly brave. Sensing something was wrong, she whispered to Chen Jiao, "Do you have any usable matchlock guns?"

Chen Jiao went to the deck to inquire, and all the crew members shook their heads. The sudden downpour had caused all the matchlock guns to become damp and waterlogged, and they could no longer be used until the barrels and touch holes were completely dried.

Just then, Li Kuiqi slowly stood up, leaning on his knife. As he exerted himself, more blood flowed from the wounds around him, but he was completely unaware and staggered into the cabin.

A moment later, he staggered to the cabin door, holding a torch in his hand.

In Li Kuiqi's vision, the sky and earth turned dark red. His eyes were fixed on the large sailboat and on Lin Qian.

A surge of overwhelming hatred welled up in my heart.

Li Kuiqi rose to fame at the age of thirteen. His brute strength was unmatched, and countless souls perished under his Ghost Head Blade. He dominated the Min-Yue seas for more than a decade, enjoying smooth sailing and never suffering a defeat.

With his natural talent, he considered himself a hero of his generation and believed he should achieve unparalleled feats.

In his eyes, Lin Qian was nothing more than an unknown nobody. Why should he be defeated so humiliatingly?
What makes Lin Qian think she can defeat Li Kuiqi?
We lost like this, we just floated in the sea like a dead fish, I'm so unwilling to accept it!
Two streams of bloody tears flowed from his eyes.

He was used to seeing the pathetic state of those leaders and ship owners before their deaths.

Now that things had come to this, he realized that lamenting was useless and resolved to emulate Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, and die a glorious death!

"Lin Qian! Cough cough cough..." As soon as Li Kuiqi spoke, a large amount of blood gushed from his mouth, choking him and causing him to cough repeatedly.

At this moment, Chen Jiao returned to Lin Qian's side and said, "Master, there are still a few dry matchlock guns left in the gunpowder room. I have ordered someone to fetch them."

Li Kuiqi continued to roar, "Lin Qian, I refuse to accept this! Cough cough cough... I'm down there..."

"boom!"

A gunshot rang out from the gun deck.

A burst of blood erupted from Li Kuiqi's chest, and the rest of his words were stuck in his throat as his mountain-like body crashed backward.

Lei Sanxiang's mocking voice came from the gun deck: "You son of a bitch! What are you babbling about!"

(End of this chapter)