"Steady! Hold your position! " Billy shouted as he ran back and forth on the deck. "Where's the ammunition? When will the next batch be delivered?"
"It's on the way. We'll be there soon, Mr. Billy!" A short sailor ran towards Billy, dragging two boxes of ammunition.
"Mr. Billy, two more cannons have been destroyed. Three more gunners are injured," someone reported.
"Get the backup to replace them."
Less than half a meter away from Billy, a cannonball pierced through the hull of the ship and hit the short sailor who was delivering the cannonball. The sailor's arm was completely shattered, and he fell to the ground, wailing in pain.
"Send him to Vincent! Quick! The rest of you, continue firing! "
Immediately, someone dragged the wounded sailor away. The people around them seemed to be used to such a scene, and no one was distracted. Most of the sailors recruited by the Jackdaw were experienced sailors, and they had been fighting non-stop recently. Even if they were rookies, they would have matured by now.
"Damn it! Their cannons are more powerful than ours. If only we still had those 24-pound cannons," one of the gunners muttered as he wiped the blood off his face.
"Let's work harder! Kill them all and get the gold back!"
The busiest person on the Jackdaw right now was none other than the ship's doctor, Vincent. He used to dream of becoming a botanist, and now, he had fully immersed himself in his new role. The infirmary was filled with injured people, and there were no more beds for them to sleep on. Tables, tables, and floors were littered with blood.
Fortunately, Vincent was prepared. He collected fine sand from the beach and scattered it on the ground, solving the problem of slippery soles. After dealing with a pirate who was shot in the hip, he saw a short sailor with an injured arm being carried into the infirmary. After a brief examination, Vincent found that the bones in the sailor's arm were completely shattered. He had no choice but to amputate it.
He took out a piece of wood and asked the sailor to bite on it. He then asked someone to hold the injured sailor's hands and feet while Vincent took out a wooden saw. Just as he was about to start, he remembered Zhang Heng's advice and decided to warm the wooden saw over a candle.
Taking advantage of this time, he removed the wooden plank and let the injured sailor drink a few mouthfuls of rum. He then raised the saw and said, "If you're ready, I'll start."
Zhang Heng, Billy, and the others came up with a plan that worked. The flintlock team that Worden had been relying on all this time did not play their role this time. Instead, they were suppressed by the Jackdaw. Worden could not even lift his head up high on the ship.
However, his expression was as calm as ever. Even though more than half of the flintlock squad had died, he didn't give the order to retreat because the HMS Kent had always held the upper hand.
This had nothing to do with courage or the skills of the gunners. It was all about the difference in firepower. The Jackdaw and Kent were of the same model, and their firepower was about the same. However, due to the lack of ammunition, Zhang Heng had no choice but to replace the 24-pound cannons with 12-pound cannons.
In fact, the Jackdaw's cannoneers had far exceeded Worden's expectations. They were even comparable to the well-trained Royal Navy.
"If this goes on, we won't be able to hold on," said Billy worriedly as he found Zhang Heng on the deck.
The latter killed another gunman in a red shirt and glanced at Annie. "Prepare to execute the backup plan."
"Is this … possible?" Billy was still doubtful.
"Two-thirds of the firearms team has been killed by us. The chances of success are still high, but I need someone to cover me," Zhang Heng said.
"Is six people enough?"
"Two is enough. More is useless." As Zhang Heng spoke, he sent someone to the captain's cabin to retrieve his weapon pouch. There were four rifled rifles inside. Ever since the rifled rifle he got from Barr played an important role in the capture of the Scarborough, Zhang Heng realized the strategic value of rifled rifles. However, he was still under Blackbeard's command at that time, and he was not in a hurry to equip himself with two more. It wasn't until this voyage that he bought three more from an arms dealer.
This time, they finally came in handy.
Zhang Heng crept to the side of the ship and set up one of the rifles. At such a distance, he could actually shoot with a smoothbore rifle. However, if he wanted to hit his target with a hundred percent accuracy, a rifled rifle was undoubtedly more reliable. He aimed at the sailor who was steering the ship. "Listen to my command. Move closer to the Kent."
The Jackdaw's movements didn't escape Worden's eyes. Although he wasn't afraid of a boarding battle, there was no reason for him to give up his hard-earned advantage. So, he ordered the helmsman to turn the rudder.
As soon as he finished speaking, the helmsman fell to the ground.
Worden frowned, but he didn't pay much attention to it. Such accidents could happen at any time during a battle. Chief Officer Chris immediately arranged for someone to take over the helmsman's position. However, as soon as the helmsman took over the rudder, he followed in the footsteps of the unlucky sailor.
"Captain, someone is targeting our sailor!" Chris was shocked and furious.
Worden snorted. "What's there to be afraid of? There's only one person on the other side. We just need to form a human wall in front of us. As long as we can hold them off for a while, we will be able to sink them."
Upon receiving the order, Chris immediately pointed out a few sailors around him. Those whose names were pointed out did not look too happy. However, they had been with Worden for quite some time now, and they knew the consequences of disobeying his orders. To put it bluntly, forming a human wall might not necessarily lead to death. However, if they ran away, they would definitely end up worse than being a human wall.
So, they bit the bullet and surrounded the helmsman and the third sailor. This time, Zhang Heng killed the first sailor who was forming a human wall outside the Jackdaw. After that, he killed the sailor inside the Jackdaw as fast as he could.
Zhang Heng's amazing marksmanship sent chills down everyone's spines. Chris urged the fourth sailor to kill him, but the fourth sailor just stood there and dilly-dallied.
On the other hand, Zhang Heng's position had been exposed, and he was bombarded by intense gunfire. A sailor who was covering him and a sailor who was reloading his ammunition were hit. Fortunately, Zhang Heng managed to buy enough time for the Jackdaw. The distance between the two ships was now less than ten meters.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Zhang Heng moved to another spot and continued to harass the enemy with his reloaded rifled rifle. When the two ships were almost completely stuck together, Anne and the others hooked their claws on the opposite side of the ship, set up a gangplank, and led the vanguard team to the opposite deck under the hail of bullets.
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