The widows who lined up the butterfly array looked at the Ming army rushing down from the mountain for a long time.

In their opinion, these people are not even well maintained in formation, and they are not worth it at all; However, the archers behind them, armed with bows and Franco-muskets, were very unhappy, because such a loose movement made it extremely difficult for them to shoot. While the shooter was struggling to aim, he remembered the Ming army's usual dense and dull charge formation, even if he didn't shoot accurately, he could always hit the people on the side, how could he waste ammunition like now?

Xu Hongneng was sent to carry out such an important task, naturally not only because he was Xu Hai's younger brother, but also because of his ability to command battles, which was no less than that of Brother Nai. He is not as light as his subordinates, and through a distance of observation, he is keenly aware that those seemingly scattered Ming troops have the same number - eleven, and there seems to be a connection between the various 'eleven formations', just like his own 'butterfly formation'.

This is no coincidence, but a formation! A sneer hung on the corner of Xu Hong's mouth and said, "It seems that he wants to follow suit!" He snorted as he spoke: "Painting a tiger is not an anti-dog!" Then he ordered the shooters to stop shooting, and the butterfly array prepared to meet the enemy, and teach these delusional imitators a hard lesson.

The two sides were close to within ten zhang, and the Japanese had completely stopped firing, just waiting for the hand-to-hand combat. Who knew that in the army, a short but powerful javelin suddenly flew out. Before they could react, many of them were nailed to the ground, and even many of them were penetrated back and forth, forming a string of sugar gourds...... There is no way, who makes the pirates like to fight bare-chested and don't wear armor.

But it doesn't matter, strong self-confidence and fierce style are their invincible magic weapons...... If the javelins were killed, it was just an ordinary sword-wielding would-be robber, and the formation of thirty people would be reduced to more than twenty people, which would have no effect at all; If the captain with the folding fan is killed, the rest of the people will consciously merge with the neighboring team and accept the command of the other team's fan, and it will have no effect.

And they also have their own javelins...... I only heard the sound of whimpering conch after the formation, and a team of miscellaneous troops crossed the butterfly formation, ready to launch the first wave of impact to test the reality of the Ming army!

Although it is a miscellaneous army, it is also Xu Hai's army, and the arrogance and ferocity that have been cultivated are also more than ordinary Japanese robbers. I saw them holding swords, guns, clubs, and other swords, screaming and rushing forward desperately.

Qi Jiguang held the drumstick tightly, stood on the stone platform behind the formation, and had an unobstructed view of the formation of the two sides.

'Knock, knock...... Along with this low drum sound, the soldiers of the Qi family army stood still, they were still scattered in formation, but the composition of each group was the same - the captain in front, the rattan players holding javelins on the left and right sides, the two wolf players were tied after the players, and then the four pikemen were on the left and right, and the two at the end were short soldiers, each equipped with a firecracker, and six rockets fired from a bow and crossbow...... This kind of weapon is expensive on the one hand, and it is not suitable for water warfare, so although it was brought out, Taihu Lake was reluctant to use it when it was suppressed by bandits.

Behind the eleven mandarin duck formations, there is also a gang of soldiers, carrying javelins and rockets for everyone, and helping the fighters replenish ammunition at any time.

The captain is the core of every mandarin duck formation, he is not only the brain that directs the team to move and attack, but also the hostage who prevents the team from retreating - if he is killed by the enemy, then the entire array of eleven people will be executed, so everyone is always by the captain's side, protecting him at the same time, and keeping the formation intact.

Seeing that he was about to meet the enemy, the rattan player holding the long shield immediately stepped forward, protected the captain and his teammates behind him, and the rest of the troops followed closely to the card.

The rattan player raised his card to block, and at the same time threw the javelin in his hand to counterattack, one by one, the sharp javelins, with a low roar, shot down a group of pirates rushing in front, but more of the pirates passed the corpses of their accomplices to the ground, brandished their weapons and continued to run forward, and when they were close enough to see the acne on the other side, the white-knuckle battle began!

After the throwing, the shield bearer holds the large shield with both hands to provide shelter for the wolf soldiers behind him. The wolf soldiers swept the nearly two-zhang long wolf and swept the ground towards the wolf. There is a way that is an inch long and an inch strong, not to mention this long-handled iron broom-like wolf?

The wolf who rushed in front was swept away by the wolf wolf full of iron hooks and barbs, and the barbs hooked, pulled left and right several times, and when they landed, their skin was open and bloody, and they rolled on the ground screaming miserably, and knocked down their accomplices behind them.

In fact, the duty of the wolf soldiers is not to kill the enemy, but to prevent the Japanese from approaching their real killers - the four pikemen on the left and right!

Seeing that the enemy was swept away by the wolf, the pikemen were in a panic, and the pikemen shook their spirits, and the four spears came out together - Qi Jiguang's marksmanship tempered with whips and military sticks was finally effective at this moment, every shot was steady, accurate, ruthless and fast, and the pike was pierced at a distance beyond the reach of the sword, and then twisted the gun, retracted it and stabbed it again!

In this way, but seeing the blood splashing, one by one the pirates fell in front of the formation, and only a very few passed through the short, medium, and long three-dimensional defense composed of shields, spears, and wolf stalks, and formed a face-to-face with the pikemen!

In the past, this meant that the battle was over, because the main weapons of the Ming army were low-cost spears and waist knives, while the weapons of the Japanese were sharp Japanese knives...... This kind of knife is longer than the waist knife of the Ming army, but shorter than the spear of the Ming army. In the battle, the waist knife of the Ming army is 'difficult to connect with a short weapon', and before your waist knife reaches the other party, your head has been moved, which is useless. If you use a spear, you can stab the opponent before the Japanese knife strikes, but the spear is 'not fast', once it is flashed by the Japanese and approached in front of you, you can only wait for death.

So when the pikemen approached the pikemen, they were all relieved and ready to kill!

But the mandarin duck formation is not afraid of this, because there are two Pu Dao soldiers behind the pikeman, and these two brothers are walking behind the formation, responsible for checking and filling in the gaps - no matter how lively the battle is in front, they will not participate, their eyes are only staring at the front of the pikeman, and when they see that there are Japanese who threaten the safety of their buddies, they will pounce on it with a knife, so that the pikemen can concentrate on the enemy.

Such a set of formations, long and short, both offensive and defensive, is specially designed to fight against the Japanese and is composed of soldiers trained by Qi Jiguang for several years. Once the formation is formed, the eleven people will cooperate with the practice, and they will not even eat and sleep, and they must practice with the same heart and mind, and they will not be able to succeed in a year and a half.

The low-intensity actual combat of suppressing bandits in Taihu Lake allows this formation to complete the run-in in the killing of the enemy, and the improvement of combat effectiveness is more effective than how long it takes to train.

Xu Hong stood behind the formation, at first he watched the people on both sides turn on their backs, and the fight was very lively, but it didn't take long to find that the battle situation was completely one-sided, and the people on his side were killed by javelins, wolf whisks and spears before they broke through the 'hedgehog formation', although they didn't know the structure and mystery of this formation, but at least he knew one thing - with these waste firewood, there was no possibility of consuming the enemy.

The sound of the conch sounded, and those who had been killed in horror were pardoned, leaving five or six hundred corpses behind and withdrawing from the two wings of the butterfly array.

The soldiers of the Qi family army wiped the sweat from their foreheads, gasped a few times, and hurriedly drank some water, ready to meet the real challenge...... Thanks to General Qi for his demonic training, and thanks to Governor Shen for his constant supply at any cost, so that they all have a good body, and after the battle, they did not feel tired.

This was actually the first time they had fought head-on with the Japanese Bandits, and they were able to win the first battle and beat the opponent to chop melons and vegetables, which played a great role in improving the morale of the soldiers, and they were full of energy, clenching the weapons in their hands, ready to meet the next wave of challenges.

As soon as those miscellaneous would-be robbers retreated, Xu Hong drove the main force to the front of the Ming army, and the commanders of both sides raised their hands at the same time, and the soldiers held their breath and gathered their strength, waiting for the moment when the order was issued!

Folding fans flying! Where the long knife goes! Mandarin duck array against butterfly array!

The folding fan flew, all the Japanese robbers waved their knives up, waving into the air, the quality of the knife was really good, the chopping of those would-be robbers was really fast, the Ming army only saw a piece of white flowers, and they didn't see the action clearly, they all brushed and chopped down, and at the same time, the short knife in the other hand was also flirted from the hidden direction, which made people unguardable...... If it was usual, it would have been cut down.

At this moment, the usefulness of the wolf soldiers is highlighted, and no matter what the other party moves, I only sweep the wolf in my hand back and forth, just like erecting a fence for my teammates around me, no matter how the wolf can not break through with a knife, giving the Ming army soldiers great confidence and stabilizing the slightly flustered formation.

When they found that they were like tigers eating the sky, they had nowhere to eat, so they were so anxious that they screamed and waved their knives to chop the heads of the wolves, but those wolf wolves themselves were big bamboos, and even if they were cut off, they could still be waved and blocked, and they would not immediately lose their effect.

Moreover, how could the pikemen allow them to go wild, and the iron spears resolutely stabbed out, and immediately stabbed the fierce and fearless widows over a piece.

Where have the pirates ever seen such a battle? They all looked at the captains holding folding fans, and those captains didn't know what to do, so they had to swing the fans from side to side, directing them to dodge left and right.

The pirates staggered left and right, all dressed in brightly coloured robes, and they were so dazzled that they didn't know where to shoot.

Qi Jiguang saw it, frowned slightly, and beat the drum continuously.

Hearing the general's order, the mandarin duck array shrank one after another, four groups back to back, each group handed over the back and flanks to the teammates in the formation, and they concentrated on dealing with the enemy in front.

Far from passive resistance, they relied on a solid formation and attacked the Japanese with long-range weapons such as javelins, muskets, bows and arrows.

The two sides of the battle still didn't realize anything, but the silence of the onlookers was already dizzy, such a dazzling formation change, the offensive and defensive conversion was completed in an instant, the flaws and opportunities were fleeting, and he couldn't even breathe for breath!

As an official who knew the strength of both sides, he was qualified to judge the superiority of both sides - this Japanese army was fierce and well-organized, and its combat power ranked among the top three he had seen; And the discipline, cooperation, and individual martial arts of the Qi family army completely surpassed the scattered Ming army, and I am afraid that even Yu Dayou's personal soldiers are not opponents!

He originally thought it was an evenly matched dragon fight, but who knew that such a scene would appear - the Ming army with a certain degree of attack and defense had no way, and watched his accomplices fall, but he couldn't move anyone in the formation.

If he is not mistaken, it seems that from the beginning of the war to the present, the Ming army has not suffered any losses...... There were only a few minor injuries, and they still insisted on not getting out of the line of fire. This was unimaginable in previous battles, and in silent memory, even if you won in the past, you had to kill 1,000 enemies and injure 2,000 yourself, and if you were defeated, the losses would be even greater...... He couldn't help but make some difficulties, such a 'zero casualties, high casualties' battle results, if he reported it, he would definitely be criticized by the military department and the imperial history, saying that he had falsely reported the results.

When the prefect starts to worry about this kind of thing, it means that the battle is decided.

When Xu Hong saw his subordinates fall one after another, but he was never able to break through the other party's ghost formation, he almost fainted in distress, these 3,000 people were the old ones who supported his right to speak in the gang, how could they be so meaningless damage.

In a flash of brains, he decided to use the 'defeat strategy' at the bottom of the box, and he blew the conch with a 'woo'.

The widows who circled around the mandarin duck array, heard the slow sound of the conch, and slowly retreated down - this is not a real retreat, but to lure the other party to pursue, Xu Hong's eyes are very vicious, he saw that the weapons of the Ming army are of different weights, the formation is slightly cumbersome, the pursuit distance is long, the formation must be scattered, and the perfect defense no longer exists. At that time, without his instructions, those experienced captains will wave their fans and command their subordinates to turn around and strike a blow, and they will definitely be able to break the formation!

His wishful thinking played well, now it depends on how Qi Jiguang responds.

Seeing that the other party began to retreat, the captains all listened intently to the drumbeat, wondering whether they would chase or not.

They didn't have to wait long, 'Boom... Boom... Boom...... Knock, knock... Boom... Boom... Knock knock! Then the drums sounded.

"Points! Sancai! "Points! Sancai! "Points! Sancai! "Almost at the same time, all the captains, turned the drums into orders!

At the moment of the order, the wolf soldier quickly stepped forward, overtook all his teammates, and stood at the front of the group, two pikemen followed closely behind him, and the shieldman and dagger stood on the pikemen's flank, protecting their flanks. This is one of the changes of the Mandarin Duck Formation, known as 'Sancai', which is mainly used to charge and attack, or to pursue when the enemy army is defeated. The advantage is that the number of people in the formation is reduced, after all, it is much easier for five people to maintain a formation than eleven people! And it is also offensive and defensive, and when dealing with the defeated enemy army, it has a greater advantage!

I saw that under the leadership of the wolf soldiers, the Qi family army launched a fierce pursuit! The Japanese robbers ran for a while, brandishing a long knife and turned around, they wanted to kill the sharp spirit of the Ming army, who knew that in the face of the three-talent formation with excellent attack and defense, they still could neither attack nor defend, as long as they were hung by the wolf, they would be pierced by spears in an instant, although they were not afraid of death, and rushed with knives, but in addition to being pierced all over the body, there was no effect at all.

We have said that the Japanese are not afraid of death, but on the premise of hope, if they feel hopeless, the speed of collapse is no less than that of the Ming army.

After all kinds of attempts, they couldn't stop the attack of the Ming army's morale, and the Japanese began to retreat, Xu Hong saw that the general trend had gone, and if he didn't want to be defeated, he had to retreat immediately. I had to close my eyes tightly and blow the retreating conch.

The Japanese finally stopped grinding, stepped on their short legs, stepped on the clogs, and retreated with the conch all over the mountains.

"Pursuit! Pursuit! Qi Jiguang immediately made a decision and ordered the troops to pursue the whole line.

The Ming army relied on the three-talent formation, and rushed out with the murderous sound of the Japanese invaders.

Seeing that the battle situation was decided, Qi Jiguang finally sat on the ground, gasping for breath, he took off his helmet, and there was white gas steaming, which showed how nervous he was.

"Let's drink some water," Shen Mo said as he passed the kettle, smiling.

Qi Jiguang nodded, took the copper kettle, drank it all, wiped his mouth, and said with a long sigh of relief: "It's not ugly." ”

Shen Mo grabbed his arm, and said with a straight face: "The Ming Dynasty must thank you, Brother Yuan Jing." Before this battle, Shen Mo had completely despaired of defeating the Wako head-on, and he thought that unless something big happened...... For example, Xu Hai and Wang Zhi suddenly pinched each other, or said that he turned against the fake widow and so on...... Otherwise, the Ming army would not have been able to defeat the Japanese invaders, at least for the foreseeable period.

But after this battle, Shen Mo regained his confidence, and he began to believe that the Japanese could be defeated, and not in the future, but now!

The significance of this to the Ming Dynasty is tantamount to a man who is so poor that he wants to hang himself, and suddenly finds that there is an altar of gold and silver buried in the house......

(To be continued)