Heaven's Punishment Squad

After handing all the Merchant Guild's affairs over to Lux, Jiang Chuan gathered the Gold Coins and craftsmen and prepared to set off for Bilgewater.

That night, Gaster was drinking Demacia's famous wine on the balcony when Lux came out to join him.

Lux asked her father, "Father, why did you agree to that man's terms so easily?"

Gaster smiled. "My dear daughter, you haven't yet seen the true value of the Steam Engine. As he said, Demacia is a country with a thriving mining industry, which means our miners have to work harder than those in other countries. If House Crownguard provides machines that can ease the workers' burden, then even before we consider the money we could make, our reputation would rise to its highest point. And this machine is far more efficient than I imagined. If we can monopolize its sales, it'll be an enormous source of income. I'd also bet that if Demacia turned down the machine, he'd offer it to Noxus instead. That would be a huge blow to us. That's why he's so confident."

Lux said, puzzled, "War benefits no one. I think he knows that, too."

Gaster shook his head. "That may be true for others, but perhaps not for him. There's always a look in his eyes that makes him seem out of place in this world, as if he's playing a game. Someone like that won't care about war. Maybe nothing in this world can truly hurt him. What a frightening man, Mr. Roland."

Lux thought for a moment. "Father, I spoke with him a few days ago. He knew not only that I could use magic, but also about the Illuminators. I plan to use the Merchant Guild to keep an eye on him, in case he does anything that harms Demacia."

Gaster nodded. "Lux, perhaps he means Demacia no harm. But since he recommended you to manage the Merchant Guild, you should do it. It'll be good experience for you. We can't have Garen take over the family forever. As for the Illuminators, I'll speak to them. This is also a way of protecting Demacia, so those old stubborn fools will understand."

Looking at her father's aged back, Lux said, "Father, I won't let you down!"

Gaster ruffled his daughter's hair and smiled. "Lux, if I could make Demacia stop rejecting magic, I'd do everything in my power to make it happen. I failed. I'm a terrible father."

Lux shook her head. "Don't say that, Father. You're the best father in the world. Demacia can't accept magic overnight. It's not something we can control."

Gaster smiled. "We'll talk about that another time. It's too cold out here. Let's go inside."

Jiang Chuan used the Gold Coins he'd earned from the Steam Engine to buy a great deal of supplies in Demacia: steel, iron, saltpeter, gunpowder, and all sorts of other goods. They were all essential for developing Bloodfang Island.

When it was time to set sail, the ship slowly got underway. It was the same ship they'd arrived on. Standing on deck and gazing at the endless sea, Jiang Chuan thought, This time, I'm damn well getting a ship of my own once I'm back. I'm never sailing on this thing again!

The crew pulled up the anchor, and with the wind behind them, the ship slowly sailed toward Bilgewater!

After another grueling three months at sea, Jiang Chuan finally returned to Bilgewater.

Back on Bloodfang Island, Kelly reported the recruits to Jiang Chuan. The Heaven's Punishment Squad was finally assembled.

Kelly was the squad leader. The other members were York, Joe, Buck, Jenny, and Donahue.

Jiang Chuan also devised a special training program for them.

As the squad leader, Kelly needed to focus above all on command. Along with daily physical training, she would study reading, writing, drawing, and other skills with Jiang Chuan.

York and Joe had been orphans living on the streets. They were small and weak, but they'd often stolen food, so they were pretty handy with their hands. Jiang Chuan decided to train them as assault troops. Along with reading, writing, and drawing, they would also study firearms.

Buck was a big man. Jiang Chuan only needed to build up his physical strength and teach him to read. In the Heaven's Punishment Squad, Buck would serve as heavy firepower, responsible for providing cover and laying down suppressive fire.

Jenny was a girl, and Jiang Chuan wanted her to learn from Novia. Novia knew far more than he did about makeup and disguises.

During testing, Donahue had shown an astonishing talent for sniping. Jiang Chuan had no intention of stifling his talent. A skilled sniper could give the enemy a real headache.

After arranging the Heaven's Punishment Squad's training plan, Jiang Chuan took more than ten craftsmen from Demacia to the site where the walls were to be built and gave them a rough idea of the desired height and thickness.

Steve was an experienced old craftsman. After Jiang Chuan told him the dimensions, Steve shook his head. "Mr. Roland, walls of this height and thickness could take two or three years to build. And we're on an island, so transporting the materials will be a major hassle. It could take three and a half years to finish completely."

Jiang Chuan smiled. "We'll build these walls differently from the way you're used to. I'll provide a faster construction material."

Jiang Chuan had decided to build the walls because he'd found limestone west of Bloodfang Island. With limestone, he could make cement. And with cement, what was there to stop him from building walls? He'd bought plenty of Volcanic Ash in Demacia for mixing with the limestone to make cement.

Jiang Chuan ordered his men to quarry limestone in western Bloodfang Island, then mix it with Volcanic Ash. The first cement in history had been made this way. It was inferior to modern cement, but still good enough for Jiang Chuan's purposes.

At first, the craftsmen were skeptical. Jiang Chuan coated two stones in cement and left them overnight, proving that his method worked. The craftsmen began working with the new material, and Jiang Chuan estimated they could finish the walls in just two months.

That night, after teaching the Heaven's Punishment Squad, Jiang Chuan began working with Master Nuo on the Fortress Cannon's components and ammunition.

Building the Fortress Cannon wasn't difficult for Jiang Chuan. The problem he needed to solve now was the ammunition.

The simplest method was to load a large iron ball and use gunpowder to propel it, causing damage on impact. But this method had serious drawbacks. Setting aside the trouble of loading the iron ball, simply recovering it would take a lot of manpower. So Jiang Chuan decided to use the design of a shotgun shell to make a Shotgun Cannon round. The oldest shotgun ammunition he could think of was just gunpowder and a handful of steel balls.

This type of round could cover a wide area, and steel balls were far cheaper to make than iron balls.

Jiang Chuan and Master Nuo discussed it until well past midnight before finalizing the Fortress Cannon's design. The structure itself would stay the same; only the ammunition would be changed to resemble shotgun shells. The cannon carriage and barrel couldn't be modified. The Fortress Cannon blueprint Jiang Chuan had drawn was based on a later, improved design—already close to perfect. Master Nuo couldn't find anything unreasonable about it.

Early the next morning, Jiang Chuan got up and put the Heaven's Punishment Squad through physical training. Then he took Jenny to Novia's tavern.

When they arrived, Novia smiled. "Long time no see."

Jiang Chuan smiled. "Thanks for lending me your fleet this time. It's a shame we didn't find an alchemist, or this trip would've been perfect. The main reason I came was to ask you to teach this girl a few things."

Novia frowned. "Teach her what?"

Jiang Chuan looked her in the eye. "Once we start opening branches, you won't be able to manage them all by yourself. You only need to teach her a few basic skills."

Novia thought for a while, then said, "All right, you owe me a favor. Leave her here, and I'll teach her well."

Jiang Chuan smiled. "Deal."

Jiang Chuan was confident leaving Jenny with Novia. Although Novia was a member of the Black Rose, she'd lived in Bilgewater for so long that she'd already become part of this region. Giving Jenny to her would help the Heaven's Punishment Squad, and it would also bring Novia into closer contact with him. If he could get this intelligence expert on his side, his future plans would be much easier to carry out.