As one side waned, the other waxed. When Black Dog’s pirates retreated, the Moon Island pirates fought even fiercer, slaughtering Black Dog’s crew until they wailed in despair.
“Boys, put your backs into it! Drive these treacherous mongrels into the sea to feed the fish! They sneaked in under the guise of gifts, plotting to work with their allies to wipe us out! Hurry, push them into the sea, seal the gates, and don’t let their ships reach the dock, or we’re in trouble!”
Zhang Mazi brandished his eight-foot spear, ferociously attacking while shouting orders to his Moon Island pirates to strike without mercy.
“Kill them! Wipe them out!”
“These filthy mongrels dared to plot against our Moon Island! No mercy!”
“Quick, slaughter them and lock down the dock! Their ships are nearly here! We can’t let them land!”
The Moon Island pirates knew the stakes were life or death. They roared and fought, using their numbers to overwhelm Black Dog’s crew with spears, arrows, and muskets.
Black Dog’s pirates fell one by one. Now, fewer than thirty remained by his side.
With the Moon Island pirates shouting to kill them all, Black Dog’s men had no escape and fought desperately, but their dwindling numbers were no match for the growing enemy.
Black Dog’s crew teetered on the brink of collapse, with Moon Island’s pirates one final push away from crushing them.
“Boss, we can’t hold on…”
“Let’s jump into the sea. Maybe there’s a chance to survive.”
“Poor Ma and Pa, your son’s been unfilial. I haven’t seen you in five years. I regret it so much. I should’ve sent you the silver instead of wasting it on women.”
Black Dog’s remaining pirates, in despair, uttered their final words.
Black Dog himself was hopeless.
It was sheer bad luck. The plan was nearly complete, just waiting for the leader’s arrival to seal the victory. But a Moon Island pirate chief, relieving himself in the middle of the night, spotted them tampering at the dock, exposing them and dooming their scheme.
Sorry, Leader Mao, I couldn’t complete the task you gave me. You saved my life, and today I’ll repay it with my own.
Black Dog was ready to die in the next moment, regretting only that he couldn’t fulfill Mao Haifeng’s mission.
This would surely make Leader Mao lose face with the government troops.
Sorry, Leader Mao.
In despair, Black Dog swung his katana, struggling to resist, bracing for death at any moment.
“Kill them! Victory is near!”
Zhang Mazi saw the hopeless faces of Black Dog’s crew and licked his lips with bloodlust. They were broken, like a woman pinned down with her trousers pulled off, ready to be taken with one final thrust.
So, Zhang Mazi waved his eight-foot spear, urging his pirates to charge and finish Black Dog’s crew.
“Charge!”
The Moon Island pirates surged forward, swinging their katanas to send the mongrels to their graves.
At that critical moment, the sound of waves breaking and a large ship crashing into the dock rang out.
Black Dog’s crew spun around and saw a sea vessel pulling up to the dock’s gangway.
“Reinforcements! Our reinforcements are here!”
Black Dog surged with excitement, newfound strength coursing through him. He swung his katana, cutting down a Moon Island pirate, and shouted, “Reinforcements have arrived!”
His twenty-odd remaining pirates, electrified, fought like men injected with adrenaline, struggling to survive.
“Damn it! Too late! Kill them quick and seal the dock! Don’t let them land!”
Zhang Mazi saw the ship crash into the dock, realising it was the enemy’s reinforcements, and shouted in panic.
But with their reinforcements’ arrival, Black Dog’s crew’s morale soared. Though Zhang Mazi’s men outnumbered them, the narrow path prevented them from wiping out Black Dog’s crew instantly.
“Hold on, brothers, we’re here!” A group of pirates poured off the ship, rushing to support Black Dog’s beleaguered crew at the dock.
A unit of Zhejiang soldiers, slower to disembark, followed closely, charging forward.
It was the Zhejiang soldiers’ first time on a warship, sailing the seas. Most were landlubbers, nearly vomiting their guts out onboard.
Unused to sea vessels, they disembarked slower than the pirates. But once their feet hit solid ground, they eagerly followed the pirates, their steps unsteady as they rushed off the ship.
“Good thing Lord Zhu noticed something was wrong and ordered us to speed up, or Black Dog’s crew would’ve been driven into the sea by the Moon Island pirates.”
On the ship, Mao Haifeng surveyed the carnage at the dock, speaking with relief to Zhu Ping’an beside him.
Had they arrived even a moment later, Black Dog’s crew would’ve been swept into the sea.
Thankfully, they made it in time, or Mao Haifeng would’ve been humiliated. He’d guaranteed a coordinated attack, but an unexpected mishap on the island nearly cost them. Failure would’ve been a massive loss of face.
“My eyes are sharper than most. Besides Black Dog’s signal lantern, I faintly saw lights flare up on the island. In this situation, the only explanation is that Black Dog’s crew was exposed. With their small numbers, they’d be no match for the Moon Island pirates, so I urged us to rush here. Thankfully, Black Dog’s men fought fiercely, and we arrived just in time.”
Zhu Ping’an smiled faintly, speaking calmly.
His claim of sharp eyesight was a dodge for Mao Haifeng. In truth, Zhu Ping’an had silently invoked “Glorify Ancestors” on the ship and saw two crimson auras clashing skyward from Moon Island—one thick as a tornado, the other frail as a reed.
Clearly, Black Dog had been exposed and was already fighting.
With only about a hundred men snuck onto the island, Black Dog’s crew was no match for the Moon Island pirates once discovered. So, Zhu Ping’an insisted Mao Haifeng’s fleet race to the dock.
They arrived at the last moment, with the dock still under their control, averting total failure.
This mission had already stirred the hornets’ nest. The Moon Island pirates would be on guard, making future attempts to take them down far costlier.
As Mao Haifeng’s pirates joined the fray, Black Dog’s crew turned defeat into victory.
From retreating, they seized the initiative, while Zhang Mazi’s men were killed and pushed back.
When the Zhejiang soldiers entered the battle, their devastating firearms mowed down Moon Island pirates like wheat, forcing Zhang Mazi’s crew to retreat like a receding tide.
