At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

At the bow of the ship, Su Mu stood with his hands behind his back, facing the wind.

His gaze was indifferent and cold as he quietly surveyed the chaotic and utterly collapsed Dongyi naval battle below, taking in everything.

The cannons blasted the enemy lines to smithereens, and the fierce winds fueled the fire that burned the ships. With the advantage of timing and terrain firmly in their grasp, the enemy forces had completely lost all power to resist.

The time is now perfectly ripe!

So he immediately issued the order.

"Pass down the order!"

"Nine Dragon-class warships form a blockade of the sea. All subsequent ordinary warships advance to surround and eliminate the remaining enemy!"

At a single command, military orders are absolute!

Instantly, the Great Qian Navy camp erupted in cheers!

The long-suppressed fighting spirit of countless naval soldiers erupted completely.

woo woo woo...

The urgent bugle call to charge suddenly resounded across the vast sea, echoing in all directions!

A dense array of ordinary warships from the Great Qian Dynasty sped out from behind the giant dragon ship. The warships, large and small, were layered upon each other, with thousands of sails racing and cutting through the waves. Like a tide, they rushed towards the remnants of the Eastern Yi forces in the sea of ​​fire, their momentum overwhelming and earth-shaking!

"kill!!"

"Exterminate the Eastern barbarian bandits! Leave no one alive!"

The soldiers of the Great Qian Dynasty were in high spirits and full of fighting spirit, but they were not reckless or impulsive. They did not rush directly into the raging sea of ​​fire to fight, so as not to be affected by the flames and lose their fighting strength in vain.

All the warships were arranged in an orderly fashion, forming an impenetrable encirclement around the perimeter, effectively blocking all escape routes for the Dongyi warships.

Immediately afterwards, countless archers stepped forward, stood at the bow of the ship, and drew their bows and nocked arrows!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

A barrage of crossbow bolts rained down like a dense curtain of smoke and fire!

The remnants of the Dongyi army in the sea of ​​fire were already scorched and battered, their warships collapsed and their formation completely broken. The soldiers were demoralized and had long lost their ability to fight.

They were trapped in a sea of ​​fire, with towering flames in front of them and the Great Qian forces surrounding them from behind, leaving them with no way to advance or retreat.

In an instant, the entire East China Sea battlefield was reduced to a one-sided massacre and annihilation!

A rain of arrows reaped the remaining lives!

……

On the flagship of the Eastern Barbarians, Minamoto no Yoshikiyo gazed at the utterly collapsed and irreversible battle situation before him, his blood running cold and his face ashen.

He fought his entire life and commanded the Eastern Barbarian navy for decades, but he had never seen such a crushing defeat.

The more he thought about the terrifying thunderous cannons and the indestructible steel behemoths of the Great Qian Dynasty, the more desperate he became.

The 150,000-strong elite Dongyi navy, which had been invincible in the East China Sea for years, was shattered and destroyed in a sea of ​​fire in less than half an hour!

"It's completely over!"

"The Eastern Barbarian navy has been utterly annihilated!"

Looking at the densely packed Daqian warships closing in from the outside, and listening to the earth-shattering sounds of battle, Minamoto no Yoshikiyo's eyes were filled with extreme despair and fear.

He whirled around to face Ito Jinmu, who stood behind him, his voice hoarse and trembling: "Your Majesty! The tide has turned! Our army has been completely routed and has no strength left to fight!"

"The Great Qian Navy's fighting power is terrifying beyond our ability to withstand! This place is extremely dangerous; we must not linger here!"

"Your Majesty, please evacuate immediately and return to the capital of Dongyi as soon as possible!"

"Your Majesty is the foundation of the Eastern Barbarians. If Your Majesty is trapped here, the Eastern Barbarians' century-old foundation will be completely destroyed!"

Standing to the side, Gennosuke Shimazu's eyes were bloodshot, his whole body surging with murderous intent, and the hatred in his chest almost devoured him.

His elder brother was killed by the enemy, the entire army was defeated and wiped out, and the blood feud was right before his eyes. He wished he could rush forward and fight to the death with the soldiers of Daqian, even if it meant mutual destruction!

But he still had his senses. He watched helplessly as the Great Qian forces closed in on him, launching an unstoppable offensive, and saw his soldiers perish in the flames. He knew perfectly well what was going on.

Now that the war situation has completely collapsed, let alone revenge, even self-preservation is a luxury.

Once the Emperor falls in the East Sea, the entire Eastern Barbarian lands will be utterly destroyed and never recover!

With the greater good of the nation and its people at stake, personal grudges must be put aside for the time being!

Gennosuke Shimazu said to Shinbu Ito in a deep voice, "Your Majesty! General Minamoto is absolutely right!"

"The current situation is beyond saving. The only way to save the Eastern Barbarians is to break through and retreat immediately, defend the capital, and hold onto our territory! Your Majesty, please evacuate immediately!"

Ito Shinmu's body trembled slightly, his face was as pale as paper, and his eyes were filled with fear and embarrassment.

Standing at the bow of the ship, he witnessed the annihilation of 150,000 naval troops and the loss of the nation's elite forces to the sea. His heart was filled with fear and despair.

As the Emperor of the Eastern Barbarian Kingdom, he held a high position and was incomparably noble. He had never experienced such a desperate situation before, nor had he ever felt such fear of the country's imminent demise.

In fact, from the moment the cannons roared and the battle collapsed, he had already begun to consider retreating, wanting only to escape this infernal sea of ​​blood.

Hearing the two high-ranking officials remonstrate in unison, he no longer hesitated and hurriedly gave the order in a stern voice:

"Quickly! Issue my order: board the imperial ship immediately and evacuate this place at full speed! Return to the capital!"

Before he could finish speaking, Gennosuke Shimazu immediately raised his hand to stop him, his expression grave and urgent: "Your Majesty, you mustn't!"

Ito Shinmu was taken aback, then asked hastily, "Why? If we don't leave now, there will be no other chance!"

"Your Majesty, your imperial ship is ornately decorated and uniquely designed, with golden sails and carved railings—it's far too conspicuous and eye-catching!"

Gennosuke Shimazu spoke extremely quickly, rapidly analyzing the situation.

"Now the Great Qian warships have surrounded us on all sides, and all eyes are on our remaining main force!"

"Once the imperial ships attempt to break out, they will immediately become the primary target of the Great Qian's artillery and warships! This is tantamount to exposing their location, and certain death is inevitable!"

These words instantly sent a chill down Ito Shintake's spine, causing him to break out in a cold sweat.

He was completely flustered, losing all his imperial composure, and repeatedly asked urgently, "What you say makes sense! Then, in your opinion, how should we escape?"

In this critical moment, Shimazu Gennosuke's mind raced, and in an instant, he devised a plan to escape. He immediately turned to Minamoto no Yoshikiyo and said:

"General Yuan! Immediately mobilize the remaining five elite escort warships that were not affected by the fire to protect the imperial ship!"

"Select an elite assassin whose build resembles His Majesty's, have him don His Majesty's golden dragon-patterned armor, and have him stand at the bow of the imperial ship, impersonating His Majesty!"

"At the same time, Your Majesty, please remove your dragon robe and armor, change into the plain clothes and uniforms of an ordinary soldier, and follow me on the most inconspicuous ordinary auxiliary ship, blending into the fleet, to break through together and head straight for the shore!"

"To confuse the real with the fake, to deceive the enemy! To use the imperial ship to draw enemy fire and create an opportunity for His Majesty to break out!"

"Great plan! We'll do as you say!"

Minamoto no Yoshikiyo responded decisively. At this moment, there was no other way but to use this feigned escape to save the Emperor's life!

The military situation is urgent and cannot be delayed!

The two immediately divided the tasks and the entire army was quickly mobilized.

A tall, elite assassin of similar stature quickly donned the Emperor's golden armor and dragon robe, standing proudly at the bow of the magnificent imperial ship, feigning majesty.

Meanwhile, Ito Shinmu hastily shed his noble robes and all imperial accessories, donning a set of ordinary soldier's armor covered in dust and utterly unremarkable. He lowered his head, concealing all his charisma and demeanor, and silently boarded a very ordinary small warship.

Soon, five intact elite warships of the Eastern Barbarians escorted the magnificent imperial ship, cutting through the sea of ​​fire and shattering the broken ships and debris, and rushed at full speed toward the coastline, feigning a breakout by the main force, creating a huge spectacle that attracted all eyes!

This commotion instantly disrupted the battlefield situation and was immediately noticed by the Great Qian Navy, which was besieging the area from the outside!

The nearest ordinary warships of the Great Qian Dynasty immediately detected the breakout movement. Seeing the magnificent imperial ship leading the charge, they immediately concluded that it was the core main force of the Eastern Barbarians and the Emperor fleeing!

"The Emperor of the Eastern Barbarians is running away!"

"Full speed ahead! Stop them!"

Several warships immediately changed course, cutting through the waves and speeding away to encircle and intercept the imperial fleet, relentlessly pursuing it!

Ye Qingzhou's gaze was sharp. Looking out over the battlefield, he immediately spotted the breakout fleet that suddenly emerged from the sea of ​​fire. He locked his eyes on the particularly eye-catching and magnificent imperial ship, and his expression changed drastically.

"Is the Eastern Barbarian Emperor trying to break through and escape?"

Ye Qingzhou stood at the bow, his expression stern, and immediately gave a stern order: "Main guns in position! Aim at the breakout fleet and open fire to intercept!"

The ship's artillerymen immediately took their respective duties, quickly adjusting the angles and loading shells!

Boom! Boom!

Two cannon shots boomed and exploded, the shells carrying flames and lightning as they shot through the air!

Unfortunately, the two sides were still some distance apart, and the accuracy of the long-range bombardment was slightly off, failing to hit the ship directly and only landing on the sea surface on both sides of the fleet.

The violent explosion created towering waves, and the powerful shockwaves violently rippled the Dongyi warships, but failed to sink the enemy ships directly.

"The distance is too great; artillery fire will be insufficient to accurately eliminate the enemy!"

Ye Qingzhou's eyes were resolute as he issued another order in a deep voice: "Full speed ahead for the Youlong warships! All smaller outer warships, surround them! Hold them off at all costs, stop them at all costs!"

With the military order given, all the warships of the Great Qian Dynasty accelerated, encircling and pressing forward step by step, like an iron barrel, tightly blocking the way for the imperial ship.

Countless arrows and small flints rained down, continuously damaging the escorting warships.

After a fierce chase and battle, all four elite Dongyi warships escorting the ship were sunk or destroyed and buried at sea. Only the magnificent imperial ship that pretended to be the emperor was successfully intercepted and surrounded.

"We've stopped them! We've stopped the Eastern Barbarian Emperor's ship!"

"The Eastern Barbarian Emperor has been captured alive! Mission accomplished!"

The morale of the pursuing Daqian soldiers soared, and they were overjoyed. They rushed forward, quickly boarded the ship to take control of the situation, captured the assassin wearing golden dragon armor and impersonating the emperor on the bow, and quickly escorted him ashore to the main ship.

They all thought that they had made a great contribution by successfully capturing the Emperor of Dongyi!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the sea of ​​fire, an inconspicuous small warship, taking advantage of the moment when the imperial ship was drawing all the firepower, silently evaded all the encircling warships, and sped away at full speed through the gaps in the waves, fleeing towards the shore.

On the stern of the warship, Ito Kamu, Minamoto Yoshikiyo, Shimazu Gennosuke, and others stood there in a disheveled state.

Covered in dust and soot, their clothes disheveled, and their faces pale, the men turned back to gaze at the still-firing cannons and raging flames of the East China Sea battlefield. Looking at the utterly destroyed and devastated naval wreckage, they felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow.

If they hadn't followed Gennosuke's plan and hadn't switched places, they would have been prisoners by now, captured alive by the Great Qian!

A single thought can make all the difference, even life and death!

"thump!"

Unable to suppress his grief and despair any longer, Minamoto no Yoshikiyo's legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees on the deck. Gazing at the vast ocean, tears streamed down his face, and he wailed in anguish, his voice filled with sorrow and despair.

"Gone...all gone..."

"My 150,000 elite naval troops of the Eastern Barbarians! All the warships and equipment accumulated over decades! Destroyed in a single day! All perished in the Eastern Sea!"

"Fifteen years of painstaking training, the very foundation of the nation's navy, utterly destroyed! I am devastated!"

Each wailing was heart-wrenching, filled with endless regret and anguish.

The 150,000-strong navy was the capital that allowed the Eastern Barbarians to dominate the East China Sea. It was the most elite fighting force in the country. In today's battle, the entire army was wiped out and vanished without a trace!

Ito Shinbu stood at the stern, his body trembling slightly, his face pale, his eyes bloodshot and filled with endless gloom.

He was also in unbearable pain, his heart was being torn apart, and his liver and intestines were being ripped apart.

World War I destroyed the nation's navy, lost all of the elite troops of the Eastern Barbarians, completely opened up the coastline, and left the country with no natural defenses!

After this battle, the Eastern Yi's national strength was greatly damaged and its vitality was exhausted. It has fallen into an unprecedented crisis of national subjugation!

Endless regret, fear, and sorrow overwhelmed his mind, but he was, after all, the emperor of a nation, and even when facing a desperate situation, he had no choice but to suppress the grief in his heart.

"It's too late for grief now."

"With the navy completely destroyed and the coastal defenses collapsed, our Eastern Barbarians are in imminent danger."

"The most important task at hand is to return to Kyoto immediately, reorganize domestic affairs, mobilize the garrison, strengthen the city's defenses, and set up defensive lines!"

"Only by firmly defending our territory and stabilizing our foundations can we contend with the Great Qian and find a chance to regroup!"

The once arrogant and domineering Emperor of the Eastern Barbarians, who once roamed the East China Sea, is now like a stray dog, fleeing in disarray with his remaining troops and returning to the capital in a panic!