Chapter 395
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Chapter 395
The Exalted Archipelago had fortified the port of Obuandi, but the area around it had been retaken by the continental forces. Determining exactly what proportion of their forces to send had been difficult, as the borders still needed protecting from potential additional intrusions. The passing of ships was monitored as much as it could be to predict movements, but having people ready in the local area was a necessity to head off such intrusions. Teleportation formations were not common, and it could take days for people to fully recover their energy after going through one- limiting their practicality.
The archipelagos forces had been able to anticipate the coming siege as the forces approached and retook the nearby area, which led to them gathering many of their naval forces in the area as well. At the moment they had a greater number of ships than the continent could bring to bear in the area, leaving them some options to retreat. Likewise the forces on those ships could reinforce the port on land if necessary.
Siege equipment was set up by the continental forces. The enemies had co-opted some of what had been set to defend the area, but their own numbers were minimal. More importantly, they didnt necessarily have the ammunition for a sustained barrage.
The continental forces, meanwhile, had learned from previous incidents. The siege of Yedo had been plagued by various issues. An insurmountable one was the second tier ascension cultivator, with an aura that could suppress the whole battlefield. That made a full assault difficult, though if they had been able to bring down the citys defenses it should have been something they could overcome. Otherwise the invaders from the upper realms wouldnt have stayed put, but come out to attack.The initial instance of this chapter being available happened at N0v3l.Bin.
Larger capacity storage had already been planned before seeing the storage chests from the Ponderous Turtle Clan, but even just hearing about them had been enough inspiration for the formation masters and enchanters to come up with something complete. The final pieces were effectively covered wagons, with both significant physical size to go along with their larger internal area but also for the sake of having sizable openings. A storage bag could only go so far in carrying things before something simply wouldnt fit.
There were limits on the supply wagons as well, but they could easily fit large boulders or similar. Ammunition specially tailored for trebuchets was shipped in significant quantities, ready to be put to use. The same was true for the ballistae- whether it was individual massive arrow-shaped projectiles or bundles of smaller ones meant for creating their own miniature barrage they had sufficient ammunition. And there were a few special pieces, both the weaponry itself and the ammunition. Those were kept concealed for the moment, until such a time as they intended to use the still experimental devices.
Thus began a proper siege, with bombardments meant to break through the walls of the enemy forces. The occupying enemy also counterattacked with the intention of destroying the siege weapons, but though they were within the attacking range of many individuals, there were sufficient defenders and formations to keep them safe- for the most part.
A week passed quickly. As time went on, the northern oceans would freeze even further south, limiting the passage of Exalted Archipelago ships coming to reinforce them even more. Much of the continental navy was wrapped up in keeping those reinforcements from arriving, and while the forces in Obuandi could have potentially tried to break through that blockade, committing so many of their forces would have left the city itself open for retaking.
-----
So far, nobody had been able to open negotiations with the city. It was possible to shout across a safe distance, but so far they had either been ignored or met with vague taunts in return.
Anton imagined that the Exalted Archipelago didnt know how to extricate themselves from the situation they were in. They could simply pack up and leave, but that would be some form of admitting defeat and they clearly thought themselves superior. Maybe they had been, some decades previous. Now, they were at least not overwhelmingly powerful compared to the continents working together. Their losses had consistently matched that of the continental forces in proportion, with the defenders having some advantages.
Maybe there was some secret plan they still had, some way to get a massive victory that would make everything worth it. Maybe they had a specific goal in mind, a specific sect they wished to conquer, but there werent really any signs of that. Theyd simply looted and plundered what they could, which was made exceptionally difficult when they had to contend with the forces of cities and not just sects or clans. A few thousands or tens of thousands of lower ranking cultivators was quite troublesome to deal with for an army of any size.
As a base, the cannon took explosive powder to propel a heavy ball of metal. The greater velocity this achieved meant the individual shots didnt have to be so heavy like in a trebuchet. Yet at the speeds that could be achieved through mechanical power alone, it could only cause damage to unaugmented walls, devoid of defensive formations.
Denser metal for the casing and higher power explosive powder might eventually overcome that, but such things became prohibitively expensive. Taking advantage of the mechanical strengths and adding a cultivators natural energy was better, but the cannon itself had some peculiarities that were difficult.
The explosion, for example, basically meant that augmenting the cannon ball with energy would be extremely inefficient. An explosion at the rear of the ball would damage the coating of energy, and augmenting just the front was basically impossible even if it the ball didnt turn over in the process of being shot.
Using energy to augment the explosion saved on materials, but at some point it was too much for the projectile or in a few unfortunate cases for the structure of the cannon itself. The cultivators on those projects had been lucky that they always had their defensive energy in place, so the explosions had mostly knocked them back a few hundred meters from the test firing point.
Ultimately they had developed a system where individual cultivators were responsible for separate parts. Some fortified the barrel, some augmented the explosion, and some provided augmentation directly on the cannon ball. There was lost energy still, but with crews rotating out it was spread throughout more people. And they only had a few cannons to begin with.
Grant was taking special care to make sure the one next to him was properly set up- the area around it was just as important given the recoil of the firing. Stopping the recoil was energy intensive, so having it in a proper area where it could roll back and absorb the recoil on its own was their next best option. And though he wasnt an expert in formations, he also had to consult with those involved in that field to make sure their shots wouldnt have to bust through their own defensive formations. It would be a serious mistake if they left all of their other siege weaponry vulnerable on accident, and costly.
Deciding that other factors were as good as they were going to be, Grant carefully measured the angle of firing. He had to get some input from a cultivator with long range senses, because that was much better than guessing the distance and the slope. The first shot needed to be impactful, before anyone was ready for it. Taking a few shots to properly range the cannon would be unfortunate.
He took the position of manning the cannon ball itself for the first shot. He had enough experience with the position that he could avoid using too much energy and causing drag on the barrel while still making it optimal for penetrating at the other end. Several others gathered around, all in Essence Collection. They put their power together, holding the cannon firm and triggering the explosion.
Grant knew he would have been deaf without proper energy defenses in place, and even then he had trouble hearing for a moment. But he didnt need to hear to see and sense the impact. The combined energy of the cultivators plus the power of the actual explosion itself provided a deceptive amount of force. The natural energy involved was little more than a late Life Transformation expert could gather alone, drawing some small amount of attention but not ushering any response from the defenders.
That power combined with the explosive force, and the way it combined to shoot the heavy ball of metal forward meant that when it impacted the defensive formation, it only encountered the standard always active defensive level. It punctured through that without stopping, punching a hole in the wall behind it as well. It was unclear if it broke through any formation runes, but it kept its momentum for quite some time.
So it was a success, though Grant wondered if it would have been better if it could explode where they wanted it. The difficulty with that was getting through the defensive formation first before exploding. That was a feature he was completely uncertain of how he might reproduce it, and honestly he hoped he never had to.
The enemy would likely be ready for future shots from this cannon- or another one- but even if they reacted and took it head on, the expenditure on their part to defend against it should hopefully be higher. At the very least, theyd have to focus on a couple more groups not made of Life Transformation people which would free up some of their stronger cultivators to do more.
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Chapter 395
The Exalted Archipelago had fortified the port of Obuandi, but the area around it had been retaken by the continental forces. Determining exactly what proportion of their forces to send had been difficult, as the borders still needed protecting from potential additional intrusions. The passing of ships was monitored as much as it could be to predict movements, but having people ready in the local area was a necessity to head off such intrusions. Teleportation formations were not common, and it could take days for people to fully recover their energy after going through one- limiting their practicality.
The archipelagos forces had been able to anticipate the coming siege as the forces approached and retook the nearby area, which led to them gathering many of their naval forces in the area as well. At the moment they had a greater number of ships than the continent could bring to bear in the area, leaving them some options to retreat. Likewise the forces on those ships could reinforce the port on land if necessary.
Siege equipment was set up by the continental forces. The enemies had co-opted some of what had been set to defend the area, but their own numbers were minimal. More importantly, they didnt necessarily have the ammunition for a sustained barrage.
The continental forces, meanwhile, had learned from previous incidents. The siege of Yedo had been plagued by various issues. An insurmountable one was the second tier ascension cultivator, with an aura that could suppress the whole battlefield. That made a full assault difficult, though if they had been able to bring down the citys defenses it should have been something they could overcome. Otherwise the invaders from the upper realms wouldnt have stayed put, but come out to attack.The initial instance of this chapter being available happened at N0v3l.Bin.
Larger capacity storage had already been planned before seeing the storage chests from the Ponderous Turtle Clan, but even just hearing about them had been enough inspiration for the formation masters and enchanters to come up with something complete. The final pieces were effectively covered wagons, with both significant physical size to go along with their larger internal area but also for the sake of having sizable openings. A storage bag could only go so far in carrying things before something simply wouldnt fit.
There were limits on the supply wagons as well, but they could easily fit large boulders or similar. Ammunition specially tailored for trebuchets was shipped in significant quantities, ready to be put to use. The same was true for the ballistae- whether it was individual massive arrow-shaped projectiles or bundles of smaller ones meant for creating their own miniature barrage they had sufficient ammunition. And there were a few special pieces, both the weaponry itself and the ammunition. Those were kept concealed for the moment, until such a time as they intended to use the still experimental devices.
Thus began a proper siege, with bombardments meant to break through the walls of the enemy forces. The occupying enemy also counterattacked with the intention of destroying the siege weapons, but though they were within the attacking range of many individuals, there were sufficient defenders and formations to keep them safe- for the most part.
A week passed quickly. As time went on, the northern oceans would freeze even further south, limiting the passage of Exalted Archipelago ships coming to reinforce them even more. Much of the continental navy was wrapped up in keeping those reinforcements from arriving, and while the forces in Obuandi could have potentially tried to break through that blockade, committing so many of their forces would have left the city itself open for retaking.
-----
So far, nobody had been able to open negotiations with the city. It was possible to shout across a safe distance, but so far they had either been ignored or met with vague taunts in return.
Anton imagined that the Exalted Archipelago didnt know how to extricate themselves from the situation they were in. They could simply pack up and leave, but that would be some form of admitting defeat and they clearly thought themselves superior. Maybe they had been, some decades previous. Now, they were at least not overwhelmingly powerful compared to the continents working together. Their losses had consistently matched that of the continental forces in proportion, with the defenders having some advantages.
Maybe there was some secret plan they still had, some way to get a massive victory that would make everything worth it. Maybe they had a specific goal in mind, a specific sect they wished to conquer, but there werent really any signs of that. Theyd simply looted and plundered what they could, which was made exceptionally difficult when they had to contend with the forces of cities and not just sects or clans. A few thousands or tens of thousands of lower ranking cultivators was quite troublesome to deal with for an army of any size.
As a base, the cannon took explosive powder to propel a heavy ball of metal. The greater velocity this achieved meant the individual shots didnt have to be so heavy like in a trebuchet. Yet at the speeds that could be achieved through mechanical power alone, it could only cause damage to unaugmented walls, devoid of defensive formations.
Denser metal for the casing and higher power explosive powder might eventually overcome that, but such things became prohibitively expensive. Taking advantage of the mechanical strengths and adding a cultivators natural energy was better, but the cannon itself had some peculiarities that were difficult.
The explosion, for example, basically meant that augmenting the cannon ball with energy would be extremely inefficient. An explosion at the rear of the ball would damage the coating of energy, and augmenting just the front was basically impossible even if it the ball didnt turn over in the process of being shot.
Using energy to augment the explosion saved on materials, but at some point it was too much for the projectile or in a few unfortunate cases for the structure of the cannon itself. The cultivators on those projects had been lucky that they always had their defensive energy in place, so the explosions had mostly knocked them back a few hundred meters from the test firing point.
Ultimately they had developed a system where individual cultivators were responsible for separate parts. Some fortified the barrel, some augmented the explosion, and some provided augmentation directly on the cannon ball. There was lost energy still, but with crews rotating out it was spread throughout more people. And they only had a few cannons to begin with.
Grant was taking special care to make sure the one next to him was properly set up- the area around it was just as important given the recoil of the firing. Stopping the recoil was energy intensive, so having it in a proper area where it could roll back and absorb the recoil on its own was their next best option. And though he wasnt an expert in formations, he also had to consult with those involved in that field to make sure their shots wouldnt have to bust through their own defensive formations. It would be a serious mistake if they left all of their other siege weaponry vulnerable on accident, and costly.
Deciding that other factors were as good as they were going to be, Grant carefully measured the angle of firing. He had to get some input from a cultivator with long range senses, because that was much better than guessing the distance and the slope. The first shot needed to be impactful, before anyone was ready for it. Taking a few shots to properly range the cannon would be unfortunate.
He took the position of manning the cannon ball itself for the first shot. He had enough experience with the position that he could avoid using too much energy and causing drag on the barrel while still making it optimal for penetrating at the other end. Several others gathered around, all in Essence Collection. They put their power together, holding the cannon firm and triggering the explosion.
Grant knew he would have been deaf without proper energy defenses in place, and even then he had trouble hearing for a moment. But he didnt need to hear to see and sense the impact. The combined energy of the cultivators plus the power of the actual explosion itself provided a deceptive amount of force. The natural energy involved was little more than a late Life Transformation expert could gather alone, drawing some small amount of attention but not ushering any response from the defenders.
That power combined with the explosive force, and the way it combined to shoot the heavy ball of metal forward meant that when it impacted the defensive formation, it only encountered the standard always active defensive level. It punctured through that without stopping, punching a hole in the wall behind it as well. It was unclear if it broke through any formation runes, but it kept its momentum for quite some time.
So it was a success, though Grant wondered if it would have been better if it could explode where they wanted it. The difficulty with that was getting through the defensive formation first before exploding. That was a feature he was completely uncertain of how he might reproduce it, and honestly he hoped he never had to.
The enemy would likely be ready for future shots from this cannon- or another one- but even if they reacted and took it head on, the expenditure on their part to defend against it should hopefully be higher. At the very least, theyd have to focus on a couple more groups not made of Life Transformation people which would free up some of their stronger cultivators to do more.
Chapter 395The Exalted Archipelago had fortified the port of Obuandi, but the area around it had been retaken by the continental forces. Determining exactly what proportion of their forces to send had been difficult, as the borders still needed protecting from potential additional intrusions. The passing of ships was monitored as much as it could be to predict movements, but having people ready in the local area was a necessity to head off such intrusions. Teleportation formations were not common, and it could take days for people to fully recover their energy after going through one- limiting their practicality. The archipelagos forces had been able to anticipate the coming siege as the forces approached and retook the nearby area, which led to them gathering many of their naval forces in the area as well. At the moment they had a greater number of ships than the continent could bring to bear in the area, leaving them some options to retreat. Likewise the forces on those ships could reinforce the port on land if necessary.Siege equipment was set up by the continental forces. The enemies had co-opted some of what had been set to defend the area, but their own numbers were minimal. More importantly, they didnt necessarily have the ammunition for a sustained barrage.The continental forces, meanwhile, had learned from previous incidents. The siege of Yedo had been plagued by various issues. An insurmountable one was the second tier ascension cultivator, with an aura that could suppress the whole battlefield. That made a full assault difficult, though if they had been able to bring down the citys defenses it should have been something they could overcome. Otherwise the invaders from the upper realms wouldnt have stayed put, but come out to attack.The initial instance of this chapter being available happened at N0v3l.Bin.Larger capacity storage had already been planned before seeing the storage chests from the Ponderous Turtle Clan, but even just hearing about them had been enough inspiration for the formation masters and enchanters to come up with something complete. The final pieces were effectively covered wagons, with both significant physical size to go along with their larger internal area but also for the sake of having sizable openings. A storage bag could only go so far in carrying things before something simply wouldnt fit.There were limits on the supply wagons as well, but they could easily fit large boulders or similar. Ammunition specially tailored for trebuchets was shipped in significant quantities, ready to be put to use. The same was true for the ballistae- whether it was individual massive arrow-shaped projectiles or bundles of smaller ones meant for creating their own miniature barrage they had sufficient ammunition. And there were a few special pieces, both the weaponry itself and the ammunition. Those were kept concealed for the moment, until such a time as they intended to use the still experimental devices.Thus began a proper siege, with bombardments meant to break through the walls of the enemy forces. The occupying enemy also counterattacked with the intention of destroying the siege weapons, but though they were within the attacking range of many individuals, there were sufficient defenders and formations to keep them safe- for the most part. A week passed quickly. As time went on, the northern oceans would freeze even further south, limiting the passage of Exalted Archipelago ships coming to reinforce them even more. Much of the continental navy was wrapped up in keeping those reinforcements from arriving, and while the forces in Obuandi could have potentially tried to break through that blockade, committing so many of their forces would have left the city itself open for retaking. -----So far, nobody had been able to open negotiations with the city. It was possible to shout across a safe distance, but so far they had either been ignored or met with vague taunts in return. Anton imagined that the Exalted Archipelago didnt know how to extricate themselves from the situation they were in. They could simply pack up and leave, but that would be some form of admitting defeat and they clearly thought themselves superior. Maybe they had been, some decades previous. Now, they were at least not overwhelmingly powerful compared to the continents working together. Their losses had consistently matched that of the continental forces in proportion, with the defenders having some advantages. Maybe there was some secret plan they still had, some way to get a massive victory that would make everything worth it. Maybe they had a specific goal in mind, a specific sect they wished to conquer, but there werent really any signs of that. Theyd simply looted and plundered what they could, which was made exceptionally difficult when they had to contend with the forces of cities and not just sects or clans. A few thousands or tens of thousands of lower ranking cultivators was quite troublesome to deal with for an army of any size.As a base, the cannon took explosive powder to propel a heavy ball of metal. The greater velocity this achieved meant the individual shots didnt have to be so heavy like in a trebuchet. Yet at the speeds that could be achieved through mechanical power alone, it could only cause damage to unaugmented walls, devoid of defensive formations.Denser metal for the casing and higher power explosive powder might eventually overcome that, but such things became prohibitively expensive. Taking advantage of the mechanical strengths and adding a cultivators natural energy was better, but the cannon itself had some peculiarities that were difficult.The explosion, for example, basically meant that augmenting the cannon ball with energy would be extremely inefficient. An explosion at the rear of the ball would damage the coating of energy, and augmenting just the front was basically impossible even if it the ball didnt turn over in the process of being shot.Using energy to augment the explosion saved on materials, but at some point it was too much for the projectile or in a few unfortunate cases for the structure of the cannon itself. The cultivators on those projects had been lucky that they always had their defensive energy in place, so the explosions had mostly knocked them back a few hundred meters from the test firing point. Ultimately they had developed a system where individual cultivators were responsible for separate parts. Some fortified the barrel, some augmented the explosion, and some provided augmentation directly on the cannon ball. There was lost energy still, but with crews rotating out it was spread throughout more people. And they only had a few cannons to begin with. Grant was taking special care to make sure the one next to him was properly set up- the area around it was just as important given the recoil of the firing. Stopping the recoil was energy intensive, so having it in a proper area where it could roll back and absorb the recoil on its own was their next best option. And though he wasnt an expert in formations, he also had to consult with those involved in that field to make sure their shots wouldnt have to bust through their own defensive formations. It would be a serious mistake if they left all of their other siege weaponry vulnerable on accident, and costly.Deciding that other factors were as good as they were going to be, Grant carefully measured the angle of firing. He had to get some input from a cultivator with long range senses, because that was much better than guessing the distance and the slope. The first shot needed to be impactful, before anyone was ready for it. Taking a few shots to properly range the cannon would be unfortunate.He took the position of manning the cannon ball itself for the first shot. He had enough experience with the position that he could avoid using too much energy and causing drag on the barrel while still making it optimal for penetrating at the other end. Several others gathered around, all in Essence Collection. They put their power together, holding the cannon firm and triggering the explosion.Grant knew he would have been deaf without proper energy defenses in place, and even then he had trouble hearing for a moment. But he didnt need to hear to see and sense the impact. The combined energy of the cultivators plus the power of the actual explosion itself provided a deceptive amount of force. The natural energy involved was little more than a late Life Transformation expert could gather alone, drawing some small amount of attention but not ushering any response from the defenders.That power combined with the explosive force, and the way it combined to shoot the heavy ball of metal forward meant that when it impacted the defensive formation, it only encountered the standard always active defensive level. It punctured through that without stopping, punching a hole in the wall behind it as well. It was unclear if it broke through any formation runes, but it kept its momentum for quite some time. So it was a success, though Grant wondered if it would have been better if it could explode where they wanted it. The difficulty with that was getting through the defensive formation first before exploding. That was a feature he was completely uncertain of how he might reproduce it, and honestly he hoped he never had to. The enemy would likely be ready for future shots from this cannon- or another one- but even if they reacted and took it head on, the expenditure on their part to defend against it should hopefully be higher. At the very least, theyd have to focus on a couple more groups not made of Life Transformation people which would free up some of their stronger cultivators to do more.
