Chief Armaments Master of the Ming Dynasty

When the news arrived, chaos erupted at the camp.

Wang Ziyong was shocked and furious, and his injuries worsened again. He developed a high fever and began to talk nonsense.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Liu Sanba and Hu Laowai jumped out and suggested that they immediately split up and break through the encirclement, each relying on their own abilities to escape.

One of them suggested in a sarcastic tone that it would be better to "feign surrender" to the government troops and save their lives first.

The two sides argued again, and their men took sides, almost splitting the camp.

Lin Fan knew that the opportunity had come, and it might be the last one.

That night, he found Han Jinhu and Tian Ergou and got straight to the point:

"Brother Han, Er Gou, the government troops are closing in. We can't stay in these mountains any longer. Chief Wang is seriously ill, and Liu and Hu each have their own agendas. Staying here means certain death. I want to leave, head north, to join General Li Zicheng. Will you come with me?"

Han Jinhu had long been disappointed with Wang Ziyong's troops, and upon hearing this, he did not hesitate:

"Brother Lin, I'm with you! This place is no human being!"

Tian Ergou was a little scared, but thinking that staying might make things worse, he gritted his teeth and said:

"I'm going with Master Lin too!"

"Okay." Lin Fan nodded, "But we can't just leave like this. We need to prepare and create chaos in order to escape."

He laid out his entire plan.

He had a batch of newly made, powerful gunpowder, as well as a small amount of flint and sulfur.

He planned to use this to create an "accident" when the government troops were approaching and the internal situation was chaotic. Then, he would take advantage of the chaos to break through to the north with necessary supplies and a few absolutely trustworthy companions.

"We need horses, at least two. We need rations, weapons, gunpowder, and most importantly, tools. I'll prepare those."

Lin Fan instructed, "Brother Han, try to find a way to exchange for or 'get' two horses from Liu Sanba or Hu Laowai's disgruntled men. Er Gou, keep an eye on the saltpeter deposits. Before we leave, collect as much purified saltpeter as possible; it might be useful on the road."

Han Jinhu and Tian Ergou accepted the order and left, their expressions tense but resolute.

Lin Fan then returned to his secluded little cave and carefully divided the five or six pounds of the best quality gunpowder he had accumulated over this period into several moisture-proof leather bags and bamboo tubes.

They also made several simple hand-thrown gunpowder packs with flint ignition devices using thick cloth and leather—these can be seen as the earliest prototypes of "thunderclap bombs" or "hand grenades." Although crude and dangerous, they might be surprisingly effective in close combat or creating chaos.

He also packed up some key tools, such as a small hammer and several good-quality files.

The situation became even more critical the next day.

Warning smoke signals from the government troops searching the mountains to the south could already be seen.

Scouts reported that the main force of the government troops was pressing in from two directions.

Panic gripped the camp. Liu Sanba and Hu Laowai each gathered their confidants, and the argument escalated into a standoff, almost turning into a fight.

Wang Ziyong was unconscious, and his personal guards could not control the situation.

In the afternoon, Han Jinhu secretly brought over two fairly strong mules, and also obtained some dried meat and fried noodles.

Tian Ergou also brought a small bag of saltpeter crystals.

The time has come.

Night fell, and the mountain wind was biting.

Lin Fan, Han Jinhu, Tian Ergou, and two other old soldiers who had been persuaded by Han Jinhu and were equally disillusioned with the Wang army, the five of them, leading two mules and carrying prepared packs, quietly left the noisy and chaotic main camp and headed northeast along a hidden, treacherous path that Lin Fan had already scouted out.

After walking about a mile, we came to a fork in the road.

One path leads deeper into the mountains, while the other follows the ridge, pointing north.

Lin Fan stopped and looked back towards the valley where the main camp was located. Firelight flickered there, and shouts and curses could be faintly heard.

"Let's do it here," Lin Fan said in a low voice.

He instructed Han Jinhu and the others to lead the mules to hide behind a large rock in the distance, while he took out two prepared bamboo tubes containing nearly two kilograms of gunpowder and a large amount of gravel and iron filings from his baggage. The fuses were specially lengthened.

He carefully buried it in a conspicuous spot at the fork in the road leading to the deep mountain path, disguising it slightly with withered grass and stones, but deliberately leaving a trace.

Then he pulled the extended fuse to a boulder a dozen paces away.

"Brother Lin, what is this...?" Han Jinhu asked, puzzled.

"Leave a 'memorial' for the government troops, and for Liu Sanba and his ilk," Lin Fan said coldly, striking a tinderbox and lighting the fuse.

*Sizzle!* The fuse sparked in the darkness and quickly burst into flames.

"Go!" Lin Fan shouted, and the five men and two mules quickly rushed up the mountain ridge path leading north, heading into the darkness without looking back.

They had only run a hundred or so steps when two muffled and violent explosions suddenly came from behind them, almost simultaneously!

Boom! Boom!

The firelight flashed briefly at the crossroads and then went out, but in the silent mountain night, the sound carried far.

Gravel and metal filings flew everywhere in the explosion, hitting the surrounding rocks and trees with a crackling sound.

Almost simultaneously with the explosion, chaos erupted in the main camp area!

Terrified shouts, the neighing of warhorses, and the clanging of weapons being drawn mingled together.

"There's an ambush!"

"The government troops are coming!"

"It's cannons! The government troops have cannons!"

"Run!"

The camp, already on the verge of collapse, was completely destroyed by this sudden explosion from "the rear".

No one bothered to investigate the origin and power of the explosion.

In the midst of extreme panic, people only believed the worst possibility—that government troops had cut off their retreat!

Liu Sanba and Hu Laowai, no longer caring about their internal strife, each led their trusted followers and fled desperately in what they considered safe directions.

The entire camp scattered like birds and beasts in an instant.

Lin Fan and his group of five lay prone on the ridge and looked back. They saw that the camp, which had been dotted with campfires, had suddenly fallen into darkness and chaos. The scattered torches, like startled fireflies, were frantically fleeing in all directions.

In the distance, the government troops seemed to have been alerted by the explosion as well, with the faint sound of bugles echoing through the air, and the long line of torches searching the mountains quickened its pace.

"Let's go!" Lin Fan said without hesitation, turning around and disappearing into the darkness of the north.

The chaos caused by the explosion is temporary; we must take this opportunity to get far away from this place of trouble.

The mountain road was rugged, and the night was as dark as ink.

But a fire was burning in Lin Fan's heart.

The explosion was not just a means to create chaos and escape; it was more like a declaration, a ritual to completely sever ties with the past.

Even a small spark can start a prairie fire.

The road ahead is uncertain, but my mind is made up.

The gunpowder in the bag was crude and dangerous, and the map in his hand was simple and blurry.

But he knew that in the North, in that wider, more chaotic, and more hopeful land, there was a man named Li Zicheng, whose banner bearing the word "闯" (chuang, meaning to break through) was slowly rising amidst the smoke of history.

And he, carrying the sparks from another world, is heading there.