A few minutes earlier.
As the Guardian of the Mountains drew closer, it became obvious that it was heading for Rose Fortress.
"The commander of that punitive fleet is pretty smart. Three-quarters of their ships shut down their main engines voluntarily."
Wu Baiyi chuckled.
"As for the remaining quarter, they're either stupid or malicious. Your Excellency, do we follow procedure first, or just open fire?"
Shi Zunhou struck an eager pose as he delivered his familiar line.
Gao Luanqin shot him an exasperated glance. "What procedure are we following this time?"
Shi Zunhou wasn't fazed in the slightest. He explained, "Following procedure means having Xiao Li step forward for a pre-battle exchange, telling them to immediately cease resistance and surrender unconditionally, and finishing with, 'Do not say you weren't warned.'
"If they refuse to surrender, we open fire and sink them.
"If we skip procedure..."
Shi Zunhou paused, then broke into a wide grin, showing off his gleaming white teeth.
"Then we open fire and sink every last one of these fools who can't read the situation!"
Wang Dong laughed and waved a hand.
"Same as always. Skip procedure."
"Understood!"
Shi Zunhou answered loudly.
Then he turned to the gunners under his command. "Did you all hear that? We're skipping procedure!"
The next moment,
more than a hundred brilliant beams of light burst from the Guardian of the Mountains!
They tore across the sky and struck within the punitive fleet,
accurately avoiding every ship that had voluntarily shut down its engines.
They hit the ships of the local nobles who hadn't, led by another battleship!
"Gunfire from the Guardian of the Mountains!"
Aboard Xia Longque's flagship,
the radar officer let out a shout like a slaughtered pig. The chief of staff thought it was impressive that he hadn't lost his