Chapter Seventy-Four: The Catapult Drill

Seeing the TNT explode more than a hundred blocks away, Mo Fangyuan couldn’t help but think of the redstone cannon. That was the most basic introductory machine in redstone technology. As long as you had hands, you could basically make one. The catapult directly hurls TNT to a designated spot, while the redstone cannon launches TNT, causing it to explode upon arrival. Though the process is different, the intent and results are the same.

By comparison, the redstone cannon boasts greater range and higher accuracy, but it consumes far more resources. Its principle is to use the force generated by TNT explosions to propel an object, thus achieving the launch effect. To propel the object further, you need more TNT explosions generating a proportional amount of thrust.

Simply put, you use a large number of activated TNT blocks to drive a delayed-activation TNT or some other blast-resistant block.

The catapult’s range is clearly inferior to the redstone cannon. Though its reach and precision are lacking, it’s easy to operate and sparing in its resource consumption. Moreover, the method of making a redstone cannon with fences and water, or with slabs and TNT, doesn’t work in the Block World, for such buggy mechanics simply don’t exist here.

Using flowing water to enhance the force of a TNT explosion is by far the most resource-efficient method in redstone cannons. But since Block World doesn’t have this feature, it means another, more material-intensive method must be found to construct a redstone cannon.

That would require vast amounts of obsidian, redstone, TNT...

Given how poor the Block Kingdom is, it’s clear they can’t afford it.

“I’d love to build a cannon too! But there’s no money! No manpower, no resources!” Mo Fangyuan thought.

As the saying goes: “In poverty, rely on tactical maneuvers; in prosperity, blast away!” This saying fits the Block Kingdom’s current predicament perfectly.

“The wise words ring true…” The more Mo Fangyuan went through, the more he respected the old masters—how right they had been!

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

The young block folk were sweating and toiling away, dismantling the training ground with reckless abandon, striking a scene that reminded Mo Fangyuan of his own mischievous youth.

By midday, Mo Fangyuan had tested the defense company’s training and the performance of the catapults several times. The catapult packed a punch—a stone block, if it hit head-on, could deal over twenty points of damage; a critical hit could reach thirty or forty. If they switched the stone for iron blocks, obsidian, or anvils, the damage would be even greater.

By then, the once-flat ground was pitted and cratered by stone blocks and TNT explosions—enough to make anyone with obsessive tendencies weep.

The upshot was that Mo Fangyuan now had a solid grasp of the catapult’s attributes. Aside from being unwieldy, the rest of its qualities were satisfactory.

Feeling that the testing was sufficient, Mo Fangyuan decided to move on to the part he most dreaded: live combat drills.

He would send these vigorous, hot-blooded freemen soldiers to bombard monsters.

“Alright!”

Mo Fangyuan waved to Lin Ye in the distance, who, upon seeing the signal, acknowledged and set to work.

Simulated training alone wasn’t enough. Only real combat against actual monsters could truly test their abilities.

After all, as the saying goes: “Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.”

“This is your first practical trial! The best way to test your abilities and push your limits! The only way to break your shackles!”

“Do you see those evil, vicious monsters?”

“Now! Open fire on them! Show them your strength!”

The previous night, Mo Fangyuan had ordered the Watchers to capture some monsters for training purposes.

Spare them? Why bother! Were the monsters merciful when they slaughtered the block folk?

If he ever encountered some soft-hearted, brainless saint, Mo Fangyuan would gladly present them to the zombies as a gift.

Monsters were hard to catch.

The monsters now tied up in the training ground had taken several nights to gather—a total of 130.

Each monster had been bound in advance and secured to a target, scattered across the training field.

They all shared one trait: they were far from the defensive company’s position, so they wouldn’t emit negative effects that might frighten the freemen soldiers.

“Yes, sir! Mission will be accomplished!” Company Commander Li Jianqiang replied with resolve, though his movements betrayed a slight hesitation.

“Ah, just as I thought…”

Even after all this training, and with the monsters so far away, the freemen still felt fear.

It was as if eagles had encountered killer rabbits—trembling uncontrollably.

“No matter what difficulties you face, never give up! Face them with a smile! The best way to conquer fear is to confront it!”

Mo Fangyuan was a little angry. They were all the same—two shoulders and a head. A few cuts and they’d be dead. If he wasn’t afraid of monsters, how could these proud young men be?

So he raised his right fist high and shouted that familiar line.

“Go and defeat it! Grind your fears into the ground! Show them the might of Block Kingdom’s sons!”

“Yes!”

At that moment, all the freemen soldiers of the defense company were emboldened by Mo Fangyuan’s words, roaring their response.

Their sluggish loading speed suddenly surged.

“For the Kingdom!”

Commander Li Jianqiang led the charge, hurling a furious TNT block at a monster bound eighty blocks away.

The creeper twisted its delicate body, looking almost adorable as it squirmed against the ropes.

And then—it exploded.

A violent blast and blinding fire instantly engulfed the ten monsters, creeper included.

It was as though shrieks echoed in the blast, but when the smoke cleared, only scraps of rotten flesh and bone remained in the crater left by the TNT.

With their commander’s success leading the way, the freemen soldiers’ morale soared.

Stones and TNT, fueled by the block folk’s righteous fury, rained down on the defenseless monsters.

“Yes, not bad!”

Mo Fangyuan smiled once more.

To draw their swords against evil monsters—these freemen soldiers had taken the first step toward becoming true warriors.

A few more live drills, and they could move to the second stage—letting the monsters get a little closer.

Boom! Crash! Boom…

All morning, the training ground echoed with the violent blasts of TNT and the collisions of stones with blocks.

“Comrades! You have taken the first step toward becoming glorious block warriors… I am very satisfied with today’s drill! You did well!”

“But don’t get complacent! This is just the beginning! Countless challenges await you! Countless difficulties stand before you to be conquered!”

“These hardships are unending, ever-flowing, and will be with you throughout your military service!”

“Do you know why?”

“Because you are the pride of the Block Kingdom! My pride! The pride of the people! Overcoming difficulty is the mark of the strong! Only you can defeat the monsters and become true heroes!”

Mo Fangyuan thought: No one understands motivational speeches better than I do.

“Do you have the confidence to become true heroes?”

“Yes!”

The freemen soldiers’ spirits soared higher still.

“Is that all? Is that your loudest? Do you have it?”

“Yes!!”

“Louder! I can’t hear you!”

“YES!!!”

“Good! Future heroes! I look forward to your glorious tomorrow… Now, dismissed!”

Mo Fangyuan, seasoned in the art of speech, knew there was nothing a good speech couldn’t solve.

If one wasn’t enough, deliver another.

And if that still didn’t work, it meant there weren’t enough speeches, or they weren’t delivered frequently enough, or the motivation wasn’t strong enough.

“Your Majesty, I see it now!”

Lin Ye, too, was stirred by Mo Fangyuan’s words, and perhaps finally understood what it took to become a truly qualified leader.