Mythical Three Kingdoms-Chapter 1708 - 1628: The Obvious Gap in Experience, Foundation, and Strength (Part 2)
"Retreat!" After Zhu Kashyapa withdrew from the flagship, the three of Gan Ning realized that the opportunity for victory had been lost. They desperately killed half of the escorts on the flagship, smashed the deck, entered the cabin, and set fires everywhere to block the attack of the Kushan Navy. They could only reluctantly issue the order to retreat.
However, Gan Ning had previously taken a risky gamble, intending to use a strong attack to directly end Zhu Kashyapa. Now, retreating was not so easy, and even Gan Ning’s flagship found it difficult to withdraw.
Under Zhu Kashyapa’s command, the Kushan Navy prepared for a shipwreck-to-the-end approach, using their warships to block the way. In such circumstances, even if Gan Ning’s flagship wanted to break through, it wasn’t easy, and the battle lines formed by both sides’ ships were interlocked like sharp teeth!
After Gan Ning issued the order, he soon noticed the situation. The three of them exchanged glances, understanding each other’s intentions, and then directly led their main forces to activate the Legion Talent, engaging in fierce combat on this small island formed by the warships!
With Gan Ning’s demonstration, the officers of Gan Ning’s Navy also had enough awareness. Immediately, all the sailors who were steering, maintaining, and stationed in the cabin rushed out, and directly formed into formations in the manner of infantry combat, quickly gathering together under the command of officers at all levels.
Subsequently, the troops followed their respective leaders. The three led their main forces to charge on this wooden island formed by ship positioning, while the Kushan Navy fought and retreated, gradually gathering together, although compared to Gan Ning’s forces, they reacted a step slower, suffering a hidden loss.
With a deep understanding of infantry combat, Guann Hai directly stopped the unfamiliar naval combat, instead switching to a formation with Sword and Shield at the front, Long Spear behind, Archers, and finally Heavy Crossbowmen, sweeping ship by ship.
After Gan Ning and Taishi Ci gathered their forces on this warship, Kasani’s warships also charged over.
However, at this point, it no longer mattered for Gan Ning. Now, with most of the warships interlocked with the enemy ships, they had to either defeat the opponent or abandon most of their ships. Only a few could retreat along the edge, and abandoning was something Gan Ning couldn’t do.
"Listen up, everyone! Wherever we pass, tear down the railings for me, and nail down every ship that can be nailed!" Gan Ning yelled facing the enemy warships.
"Listen up, on the other side, you are surrounded. If you continue to resist stubbornly, you will be slain without mercy!" Just as Gan Ning was rallying his troops, Kasani suddenly used Telepathy so that Gan Ning and others understood his words.
Gan Ning was first taken aback, then laughed loudly, "Kushan Empire? I’m not afraid of you. If you’ve got the guts, come on, let’s see how capable you are!"
"Hey, how can this guy speak our official language?" Taishi Ci transmitted his voice to Gan Ning from afar.
"How should I know? But we’re in big trouble this time." Gan Ning transmitted his voice to the two, "If things don’t go well, you two withdraw first, we might not be able to beat them."
"Only two Inner Qi Manifestation!" Taishi Ci cursed angrily, "Why would I run away!"
"I’m already a dead man. What does it matter if I die again?" Guann Hai replied coldly.
"You two..." Gan Ning shook his head helplessly, "We might end up being completely wiped out this time, those Kushan bastards are really strong!"
"Hmph, I’m not someone who abandons my comrades!" Taishi Ci glanced at Gan Ning, then grabbed the Sky Piercer with one hand, Inner Qi surged out, forming a clear set of armor on his body.
"Let’s fight, just two Inner Qi Manifestations!" Guann Hai didn’t even bother to conceal his voice transmission this time, his mighty voice resonating directly across. Zhu Kashyapa glanced at Kasani and handed over command to him, as it wasn’t suitable for him to command right now.
"Let you bandits see the power of our Kushan Empire, if you want war, we’ll make you submit!" Kasani roared, and all the Kushan ships surged with endless Cloud Qi.
A hint of shock appeared on the faces of Gan Ning and others, but they quickly marshaled their Cloud Qi to strengthen the military formation’s defense. Unfortunately, the ships were intricately locked together, and the Cloud Qi Gan Ning could mobilize was limited, as the rest was firmly fixed in place.
However, what happened next surprised Gan Ning. Kasani’s mobilization of Cloud Qi formed a Group Defense Formation, creating an invisible passage over warships that were not too far apart based on the concept of this defensive formation.
As Kasani flattened the Group Defense, all the ships were successfully connected. As long as the distance was not too far, the spread-out Group Defense allowed movement from one ship to another on top of it.
This was another use of the Kushan Empire’s naval Group Defense, a method that linked their navy into one piece, and naturally, a tactic for the Kushan Infantry to fight at sea.
With dozens of warships flattening out the Group Defense, it wasn’t just suitable for infantry to form up; even cavalry could run on it without any issues.
Gan Ning’s face turned dark as ink as countless cavalry were indeed deployed on the warships by the Kushans. Seeing their skilled Riding Skill, Gan Ning understood they weren’t merely decorative but actual cavalry proficient in the Riding Skill.
Though in a battlefield full of obstacles, Gan Ning was curious about the purpose of the cavalry, what happened next nearly blinded him.
These cavalry faced obstacles as if they were trained countless times, naturally leaping over them without slowing down. At this point, Gan Ning realized that the abilities displayed by this cavalry were likely due to some sort of Elite Talent.
Although this automatic obstacle-crossing Elite Talent seemed highly unscientific, it was sufficient to allow cavalry to fight in most environments. Not to mention, in the present condition, none of the Central Plains’ three great cavalry forces were their match.
As Kushan Infantry appeared one by one, and the continuous military formations took shape, the expressions of Gan Ning, Taishi Ci, and Guann Hai turned increasingly bitter, as victory seemed completely out of their reach.
With the opponent’s cavalry starting to charge on the warships and a rain of arrows descending with commands, Gan Ning and others, already at a manpower disadvantage from the start, found no way to showcase any advantage from their military formations under the constraint of the opponent’s rain of arrows.
"Fire, fire!" Gan Ning shouted, but the voice carried an unmistakable hint of powerlessness.
The disparity in strength and naval combat techniques was too significant; even given the opportunity for infantry combat, and despite the difference in Legion Talent, more reasonable troop arrangements and proper utilization of complex terrain allowed the Kushan Navy to firmly suppress the Han Army on this battlefield.
[It’s no good, it seems my decision was a mistake.] Gan Ning cut down a Kushan officer with one slash, blood splattering all over him, unfazed. He knew where he’d gone wrong; he’d not only underestimated the Empire but also been overly arrogant.
"Regroup the troops!" As the Kushan Navy continued to accumulate advantages over the Han Army through various efforts, Gan Ning finally made up his mind.
Kasani watched Gan Ning regroup his forces; a look of admiration showed in his eyes. Though there was much immaturity in naval warfare, with the tactics he grasped, Gan Ning had already performed quite well, making him worthy of recruitment.
"Surrender, you’re no match for us!" Kasani slightly loosened the encirclement, allowing Gan Ning and others to gather together, speaking in a tone of appreciation.
Gan Ning looked at the blood-stained deck, at his soldiers almost all wounded, yet steadily following him; he silently bowed his head. They were already near the few warships on the edge back then.
Taishi Ci and Guann Hai slowly approached. Seeing the two panting heavily, their Legion Talent dissipated, and even Guann Hai bleeding from the right waist, Gan Ning silently transmitted his voice to Mi Fang and Xu Sheng. The two looked surprised, then Gan Ning suddenly struck and knocked out Taishi Ci and Guann Hai, directly throwing them towards Xu Sheng and Mi Fang.
