Chapter 45: Plastic Catapult
Starting Chapter 43 of "The Great Ming in the Box": The toy store was filled with colorful toy weapons.However, as Li Daoxuan scanned row by... See what happens next!
The toy store was filled with colorful toy weapons.However, as Li Daoxuan scanned row by row, he found almost none that were usable.
The toy guns meant for children were no good; if you put this thing into the scenic box, it grew hundreds of meters long.
Finally, he found a rubber band gun that was ten centimeters long, but when placed in the scenic box, it became twenty meters, also impossible for the tiny people to use.
If he couldnât find any usable âmodern weapons,â he could only split toothpicks into fine pieces, break them into short sections around one centimeter long, put them into the scenic box for the tiny people to use as spears.
But, the villagers hadnât practiced martial arts or trained in formations, so even with spears in hand, they were of little practical use.
They definitely needed âprojectile-typeâ weapons to help them fight the enemies safely.
Projectile-type, projectile-typeâŚ
Suddenly, Li Daoxuanâs eyes lit up!
On a low-profile shelf in the farthest corner of the toy store, there was surprisingly a box of miniature plastic catapults.
It was only three centimeters per side, very crudely made, fully plastic in structure, and the mechanism was extremely basic, relying solely on plastic elasticity to function as a catapult; a child could press the âthrowing armâ down with a finger, and upon releasing it, the plasticâs rebound force would make the throwing arm spring up.
Li Daoxuan chuckled happilyâsuch fun! Why hadnât he seen such an amusing little toy as a child? He simply picked up the entire box and walked to the checkout counter: âBoss, how much for this catapult?â
The boss glanced over: âOne yuan each.â
Li Daoxuan couldnât help but complain: âWith so little plastic and such shoddy workmanship, youâre really charging one yuan for this?â
The boss said: âThen why not take the whole box? There are fifty in there; Iâll only charge you twenty-five yuan for it.â
Li Daoxuan took out his phone, scanned the code, and completed the payment.
Returning home and sitting before the scenic box, he immediately saw a bustling scene in Gaojia Village: all the tiny people were hard at working.
The female tiny people were split into two groups: one was cooking to give the men a big meal before heading to battle, and the other was heating oil in a small pot just two millimeters wide, with canola oil bubbling inside.
The male tiny people were busy doing heavy labor: they were moving leftover stones and beams from building the âDao Xuan Deity Caveâ toward the town wall to serve as rolling logs and stones.
On the town wall, another group of tiny people listened attentively as Mr. Bai lectured.
Li Daoxuan perked his ears to catch it: âHold the spear like thisâkeep your palm steady⌠if any bandits climb up below⌠just thrust down like thisâŚâ
How funny!
There was also a group of elderly people and children inside the newly built âDao Xuan Deity Cave,â kneeling devoutly before the sacred statue, earnestly praying, begging the Deity to protect everyone safely from harm.
This lively commotion within the box was exactly what Li Daoxuan loved to watch.
He secretly felt grateful he hadnât swatted all the bandits to death with his hand; otherwise, thereâd be nothing so entertaining to see.
Alright!
Time to provide a small bit of help to them.
Li Daoxuan spoke aloud: âGao Yiye, tell everyone to get ready; Iâm going to send weapons down.â
At this, Gao Yiye gave a startled shudder, her face lighting with joy, and she quickly announced loudly: âEveryone pay attentionâthe Deity is bestowing weapons upon us now.â
With those words, the original hundred-odd people of Gaojia Village grew solemn at once; the young people who had been listening to Mr. Baiâs advice on defending the defenses stopped immediately, looked upward, and wore expressions of deep reverence.
Mr. Bai, boiling with frustration, thought bitterly: Iâm teaching you all how to fightâyou should be respectful toward me. But here you are, listening one moment, then suddenly turning to stare at the skyâabsolutely absurd.
That cult witch said something about the Deity bestowing weapons, a scam, right? After playing supernatural tricks and performing a spirit-summoning dance, she hauled out a pile of rusty broken swords and daggers from the warehouse, handed them out to everyone, yet declared they were bestowed by the evil deity.
Tricks like these, Mr. Bai had heard so many times that his ears were calloused.
Just as he was thinking this, he heard Gao Chuwu beside him shout loudly, âItâs here, itâs here, look quicklyâŚâ
âItâs coming down!â
âPay respects to the Deity!â
The original residents of Gaojia Village knelt down to the ground one after another with a thud. Yet the group brought by Mr. Bai stood there foolishly, unaware of what was happening.
Mr. Bai fixed his gaze on the sky and finally saw.
Unbeknownst to them, a low cloud had appeared overhead, only about seventy zhang above the ground. Within the cloud layer, a colossal object was slowly descending.
Green!
Rectangular!
Carrying a giant spoon!
At that moment, Mr. Bai couldnât recognize what it was.
No, what it was didnât matter anymore. The key question was, how did it slowly descend from the cloud layer? How was that achieved?
Could it be⌠that it was truly bestowed by the Deity from the heavens?
He was utterly stunned.
After the colossal object slowly landed and steadied, Mr. Bai saw clearly: its main body was two zhang long and two zhang wide, perfectly rectangular, and that spoon on top was attached to a long arm, fixed by a mechanism.
âCat⌠catapult!â Mr. Bai exclaimed in surprise. âThis is a strangely shaped catapult.â
He could recognize it as a catapult at a glance, but others couldnât. The villagers of Gaojia Village and the tenants of Bai Family Fortress were still foolishly dazed, completely baffled about what the Deity had bestowed upon them.
Gao Yiye shouted at the top of her voice, âEveryone, listen well. This thing bestowed upon us by the Deity is called a catapult. First, place a stone in the spoon on the throwing arm, then pull that mechanism beside it, and it will launch the stone out.â
Everyone: â???â
Gao Yiye shouted loudly, âLi Da, the Deity orders you to bring the big hammer over, stand next to that mechanism. When I say hit, you swing the hammer and strike that mechanism with all your might.â
Li Da quickly responded, gripping the big hammer, and stood by the catapult.
Li Daoxuan gently picked up a stone and placed it into the spoon.
That stone was adorably small to him, like a bead, but what the villagers saw was a large stone floating up out of thin air and flying into the spoon.
Everyone: âWow!â
Mr. Bai: â!!!â
He, who was full of contempt for the cult just moments ago, now felt his mind couldnât cope.
Gao Yiye shouted loudly, âHit!â
Li Da used all his strength, swung the big hammer in his hand, and with a thud, struck the mechanism.
The mechanism of the catapult released. The massive throwing arm whooshed up, sending the large stone in the spoon soaring. It streaked across the sky with a terrifying roar, flying from one end of the village to the other, crashing down with a boom. Sand and stones flew everywhere, an awe-inspiring spectacle.
After a pause, the villagers cheered in unison, âSo powerful! Celestial artifacts! Celestial artifacts!â
Mr. Bai sighed in exasperation. âA bunch of sightless foolsâcatapults on the battlefield are just this strong.â
Even as he said this, he glanced at the sky, and reverence swelled in his heart. Truly, there was a deity in that cloud. This catapult looked peculiar; perhaps it really was a celestial artifact.