Chapter 1 The Stars Turn

The sky was dark, the stars shifted. Large numbers of Japanese troops had already been divided into multiple small units, arriving at Byeokjegwan from Wangjing at different times, and then dispersing outwards from Byeokjegwan. From several directions on the map, they advanced by land and sea, attacking Kaesong.

"I didn't expect the supreme commander to have such wisdom."

Shimazu Tadatsune, clad in samurai armor, was serving as Uesugi Kagekatsu's bodyguard on the campaign, and was currently conversing with Uesugi Kagekatsu.

When they left, Kobayakawa Hideaki's arrogant and bossy attitude caused many corps commanders to wear gloomy expressions, to the point that many were wondering if the operational plan formulated by this good-for-nothing could really effectively capture Kaesong.

Of course, initially, although Uesugi Kagekatsu had also agreed to proactively deploy troops, he hadn't intended to let this waste command them. He only needed to sit in Wangjing and be his supreme commander mascot. However, after Kobayakawa Hideaki grandly analyzed and arranged things on the map, the corps commanders, and even Uesugi Kagekatsu himself, were somewhat surprised.

Instead of a consistently brainless overwhelming force, or letting the monsters transformed from grudges act as cannon fodder to attract firepower in the first few assaults, he had the large units disperse into small units, not focusing on fierce attacks with large forces, but on harassing and exhausting the enemy.

The main force of the Ming army had already arrived in Kaesong, and their logistics must have recovered in the past ten days or so. So, if they fought head-on, the casualties would be very heavy, and there was even a risk of failure. It depended on whether that immortal was there or not, but even if he wasn't, the Ming Dynasty should have placed several Divine Thrones of War in Kaesong. The two Fake Immortals wouldn't easily make a move; their target was only that Ming Dynasty immortal, so they were excluded from the attacking forces.

After all, it was useless to capture the city; if the real immortal returned, and their own Fake Immortals couldn't take action, it would be a one-sided slaughter.

"Yes, constantly harass the enemy, exhausting them before continuing the attack. After multiple harassments by small units, a wave of large troops is pressed on, making the Ming believe our main force has joined the battle. Then, this group deliberately loses, and if they lure the enemy out of the city to fight, they immediately enter the predetermined location for an ambush..."

"If they don't come out, divide into several groups to attack their supply lines, cutting off their provisions. Their main force is in Kaesong defending against the enemy, unable to turn back to rescue. If they come out of the city to rescue, then they will undoubtedly lose."

"Continuous attacks, maintaining a high morale, and they will gradually weaken..."

Since ancient times, in the war of sieges, hard fights were ultimately a last resort. As the saying goes, "Of cities, there are those that must be attacked, and those that must not be attacked."

Moreover, Uesugi Kagekatsu was also satisfied with this small-unit warfare approach.

The shortcoming of the Japanese generals lay in their lack of experience in commanding large-scale engagements. After all, they had never led so many people before, while small-unit operations could greatly leverage their own command advantages.

With numbers ranging from a few hundred to less than ten thousand, the original strength of each corps commander could be maximized.

In fact, since ancient times, once the troop strength exceeded a certain limit, it became difficult to command, because in this situation, once morale collapsed, it would be a rout like a landslide, impossible to save. Not everyone had Han Xin's ability to command as many troops as possible.

However, in the current era, although their own country could still fight well by relying on their wisdom, this tactic seemed a little less effective in the face of the Ming army with cannons.

The opposing Ming Dynasty had already abandoned its brains, only needing to touch the cannons to blow your head to smithereens, highlighting a brute force approach.

However, it should be said that some strategies, even cannons, could not destroy. For example, intercepting supplies and cutting off supply lines was always a very effective surprise tactic, no matter how the war situation changed.

There wouldn't be too many soldiers responsible for escorting supplies, and the militia didn't have high morale and combat effectiveness. In this era of arquebuses and matchlock guns, no one could pull out machine guns for logistical support, so as long as they attacked, they were bound to win!

Win!

...

Katagiri Katsumoto, Kasuya Takenori, Ikoma Chikamasa, Nabeshima Naoshige.

These were the four corps commanders sent out to cut off the supply lines, with a total strength of seventeen thousand. They left the earliest, almost setting out together as soon as they received the mission. Nabeshima Naoshige's eyes were bloodshot, as if possessed, shouting to avenge Katō Kiyomasa.

Everyone knew that he was formerly Katō Kiyomasa's deputy, and he didn't expect that the latter would be directly beaten to death in Haizhou City, without even a chance to escape.

This time, the task of cutting off the Ming army's supply lines was one he had actively applied for from Kobayakawa Hideaki.

At that time, he was very excited, and even his shadow was swaying.

Katagiri Katsumoto and Kasuya Takenori, like Katō Kiyomasa, were also members of the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake." Regarding Katō Kiyomasa's death, they also felt a sense of shared misfortune. This time, going to cut off the Ming army's supply lines was also with the idea of revitalizing the prestige of the "Seven Spears." Their initiative to volunteer made Kobayakawa Hideaki very happy.

The two thought at the time that it must be a recognition of their abilities that made him smile so happily.

Since this was the case, they would surely live up to their lord's expectations...

Kobayakawa Hideaki was like a second-generation ancestor. The two of them had served as retainers of Toyotomi Hideyoshi before the Korean War, and they were already familiar with following Kobayakawa's rude orders. They just didn't expect that this time, Kobayakawa Hideaki would show extremely high military skills, even Date Masamune, who had been constantly arguing with him before, was speechless.

Perhaps war could transform people. Even without going to the front lines, some people could analyze the battle situation from behind and make strategic decisions from afar.

After all, he was Lord Hideyoshi's adopted son. It was normal for him to have some special talents and abilities, instead of being a skinny otaku sprawled on the Korean king's seat in Wangjing, staring blankly at the ceiling.

This was how he should be, like a supreme commander!

Advancing by land and sea, Katagiri Katsumoto and Kasuya Takenori traveled by water, taking boats to a stretch of mountains, mooring their boats on the rocky shore where there was no port.

Then, they hid the boats to prevent them from being washed away by the sea, and led seven thousand soldiers to cross the mountains, trekking through the wilderness. Katagiri Katsumoto further divided his troops, turning one team into three. Gradually, the entire mountain range was filled with Japanese soldiers.

They were very familiar with the Ming army's supply route. After all, how many days had Kaesong changed hands under the joint attacks of both sides? If they couldn't figure out the logistics route, these days of scouting would have been in vain.

"Date Masamune's information is accurate. Look, the Ming army has appeared."

Katagiri Katsumoto and Kasuya Takenori commanded the central army, while the other two routes were entrusted to their deputies, dispersed in the mountains.

Soon, on the route provided by the scouts, the flags of the Ming army appeared in the distance.

This was a necessary road from Haizhou City to Kaesong, surrounded by mountains, making it difficult to invade normally. However, the Divine Throne possessed by Katagiri Katsumoto was the "Ama-no-Sakuto-no-Kami" (God Who Opens Paths in Impassable Lands), who specialized in opening roads where there were none.

Therefore, they entered this range of mountains without much hindrance. In the place under the sky where there were no roads, paths would be opened for them.

However, using a large amount of divine power would inevitably be noticed by the enemy's mages. It was impossible to do it silently. That was a skill that only Marici had, but unfortunately, she was dead.

Therefore, he only opened a section of road before stopping the use of divine power.

Waiting for the Ming army at the predetermined location, they observed that the Ming army's movement speed was not fast, but it was very orderly. Soldiers were in the front, followed by supply carts, with many militiamen escorting a large amount of materials.

"Attack now?"

Kasuya Takenori asked. Katagiri Katsumoto shook his head, "Let them pass. When the carts have traveled halfway, the other two teams will go down, one with fifteen hundred men to block his front army, one with fifteen hundred men to cut off his retreat. We here have four thousand elite soldiers. We will rush out from here to boost our momentum, raise morale, and cut his center, so that he cannot take care of both ends."

"Look, they are transporting supplies day and night. The Ming army is indeed preparing for a big wave. Fortunately, Mr. Uesugi advised us to take the initiative to attack. Otherwise, if we keep dragging on, we may not be able to defend Wangjing."

Katagiri Katsumoto sighed heavily, unconsciously clenching the hand holding his katana.

The Ming army was typically brute force. Now they were stockpiling supplies to prepare to wipe out their own forces in one fell swoop. So, not giving the enemy a chance to prepare at this time was the most correct approach.

Even if they had an advantage in troop strength, and putting aside the enemy's immortals and their own two immortals at the same time, the fighting between the soldiers and generals below, in the confrontation of national prestige, even after swallowing the national prestige of Korea, the combination of the two still did not give Japan a very obvious advantage.

And on the other side, there were a large number of firearms.

"Wait, what are those weapons?"

Katagiri Katsumoto was observing the Ming army when he suddenly saw several huge weapons being transported. Although they were covered with cloth, making it impossible to see the real details, it could be judged from the outline that these large weapons were something they had never seen before.

This surprised him, and then gradually turned into fear.

That... should be cannons, right?

No, the breech-loading guns and the Ming army's own cannons were not so big. These were almost three or four times larger, and the length was at least ten feet!

The gun carriages carrying these heavy weapons were twice as long!

"This is a new type of cannon!"

As for the power, just looking at it, you could tell that it was far superior to the breech-loading guns!

Seize it, it must be seized!

A voice in Katagiri Katsumoto's heart was shouting loudly! This time, it was not just about cutting off supplies. As long as they could seize these new cannons, the Ming army would not only lose important resistance weapons, but the strength of the Japanese army would also be greatly improved!

Not only that, but next to these cannons, there were other weapons being transported that were covered with cloth! Whether those were supplies or armaments, they must be very important materials for Kaesong, which was about to be severely harassed!

He was extremely excited and gave orders to his deputy:

"Establishing merit is today!"

Win!