Sun Chuanting's brows knit tightly into a deep frown.
Lao Nanfeng stood beside him, watching the footage as well.
"Mr. Sun, how do you think this can be countered?"
Sun Chuanting considered it carefully for several seconds, then slowly shook his head.
"If we rely only on flintlock rifles and hand grenades, then those defenses are indeed impossible to break through. However—" he paused, "—we do not rely only on flintlocks and grenades. With cannons, those wooden barricades can be blown apart."
He continued gravely,
"In future operations, artillery must take priority. We must also prepare more heavy cannons."
Lao Nanfeng chuckled.
"Exactly. The Dao Xuan Tianzun sent us this footage precisely to remind us of that."
Sun Chuanting nodded.
"This video is extremely instructive. I'll turn it into a dedicated lesson for the cadets, so they never forget it. Weapons themselves are dead things—but people adapt. The enemy will constantly devise new and strange ways to counter our arms. If we underestimate them, people will die."
Meanwhile…
Back in Gao Family Village.
Bai Yuan, clad in flowing white robes, leapt down from the train.
It had been a long time since he'd last returned, and a wave of emotion surged in his chest.
In recent years, his attention had been focused entirely on Luoyang, Xiaolangdi, and the Gao Family Village navy. Now that he was back, he found that Gao Family Village itself had changed yet again.
The population had clearly grown larger, and the villagers' spirits were visibly higher. Prosperity and cheer seemed to hang in the air everywhere.
He had barely walked a short distance from the station when someone bowed deeply to him.
"Mr. Bai! Long time no see."
Bai Yuan turned, recognizing the face only after a moment. He laughed.
"Oh—Gao… Gao… Gao what was it again?"
The man said quickly,
"I'm Gao Laba! Gao Laba, the rice-noodle shop owner."
"Ah! Yes, yes, yes—Gao Laba," Bai Yuan said. "I remember now."
They exchanged a few polite words, and Bai Yuan continued on.
Every so often, more people greeted him.
"Mr. Bai!"
"Mr. Bai!"
"Oh, you are…?"
"I'm Li Da."
"Ah! Yes, yes, yes—Li Da. I remember clearly now."
By the time he finally reached the school, Bai Yuan felt as if his memory had just endured an endurance trial.
Even the gate guard recognized him.
"Mr. Bai, are you here to see Young Master Bai?"
Bai Yuan laughed.
"Indeed. I haven't seen my son in ages. I've come to challenge him to a duel—of mathematics!"
The guard immediately made a strange face.
"Mr. Bai… perhaps you should challenge him to a shooting contest instead. As for mathematics—it would be best not to challenge the Three Scientific Titans of Gao Family Village."
If the guard hadn't said that, it would have been fine. But those words struck a nerve.
"Hmph!" Bai Yuan snorted. "Mathematics is one of a gentleman's Six Arts! I value it greatly. Why shouldn't I challenge my own son? Don't look down on me!"
Fuming, he marched straight toward the research laboratory.
The guard watched his back, shaking his head.
"The waves behind push the waves ahead… the front waves die upon the shore. Mr. Bai, take care."
Soon, Bai Yuan arrived at the most mysterious, profound, and baffling place in the entire school—the research lab.
The moment he stepped inside, he nearly tripped over a cannon barrel lying waist-high on the floor. Startled, he quickly stepped around it.
As he went deeper, he saw half-assembled steam engines, strange axles, and even a mechanical leg meant for the mass-produced Dao Xuan Tianzun units.
After searching for a long while, he finally spotted Young Master Bai, huddled together with two other vaguely familiar men. The three were bent over a palm-sized metal disc, absorbed in discussion.
The disc had six holes.
At a single glance, Bai Yuan recognized that each hole was perfectly sized to hold a bullet.
He instantly forgot why he had come at all and hurried over.
"What are you researching?"
Young Master Bai heard a voice but didn't even look up, failing to recognize his own father.
"Repeating flintlock rifles," he replied flatly.
Bai Yuan froze.
"What?"
Young Master Bai explained patiently,
"Look—this disc has six chambers. Load six bullets into it, then attach it to the flintlock. Fire one shot, rotate the disc, align the next chamber with the firing mechanism, and fire again."
Bai Yuan's eyes widened.
"Amazing! Brilliant! Quick—make one for me!"
Young Master Bai said nothing, his brows only furrowing more deeply.
Another middle-aged man spoke instead.
"That won't be possible so quickly. The main issue is the rotating disc itself. Once added, it compromises the barrel's airtight seal. When fired, gas leaks through the gap between the revolving chamber and the barrel, weakening the bullet's force."
Bai Yuan turned.
"And this gentleman is…?"
"Song Yingxing," the man replied.
"Ah, yes, yes, yes—Song Yingxing," Bai Yuan said. "I remember clearly now."
Another man added,
"There's also the mechanical issue. The recoil puts enormous stress on the barrel, and the revolving mechanism could be damaged easily unless we further improve steel quality."
Bai Yuan nodded.
"And you are…?"
"Wang Zheng."
"Ah! Yes, yes, yes—you're Wang Zheng. I remember now."
The three scientists stared at the disc in silence, deep in thought.
Bai Yuan suddenly said,
"Then why not abandon the disc altogether? Use a magazine instead—a spring at the bottom pushing bullets upward. Each time a shot is fired, the spent cartridge is gone, and the spring feeds the next round. Wouldn't that be mechanically simpler? Easier to seal, less fragile?"
"Hm?"
All three men turned to stare at him at once.
Only then did Young Master Bai finally recognize his father. He jumped up and bowed deeply.
"Father—you've arrived."
Bai Yuan snorted.
"Hmph. I've been standing here forever. Is this truly the first time you've noticed me?"
Young Master Bai broke into a cold sweat.
The other two ignored the family drama completely.
Wang Zheng's eyes lit up.
"Mr. Bai's idea is excellent. However, we currently use paper cartridges. With continuous firing, unburned paper residue could easily clog the barrel. Therefore, we could design a hinged mechanism at the rear—manually open it to eject debris while simultaneously feeding the next round…"
The more he spoke, the more excited he became, immediately sketching designs.
On the wall, the portrait of the Dao Xuan Tianzun seemed to grin.
He could tell that, without realizing it, the scientists of Gao Family Village had just stepped onto the development path of the Kalthoff Repeating Rifle.
Indeed—once the foundational principles exist, technological progress becomes inevitable.
At that moment, Bai Yuan suddenly said,
"Right—enough about repeating bullets. I almost forgot why I came."
Young Master Bai straightened.
"Please speak, Father."
Bai Yuan's expression turned solemn.
"A few days ago, Lao Huihui's heavy cavalry launched a sudden raid on Luoyang. At the time, the Dao Xuan Tianzun was absent, so we couldn't deploy the Dao Xuan Tianzun's reconnaissance hot-air balloons. As a result, the enemy and our scouts arrived almost simultaneously."
He paused, face dark.
"This cannot continue."
"We need reconnaissance methods that do not rely on the Dao Xuan Tianzun."