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In late 1573, Limahong gathered an army of 3,000 Chinese warriors, renegades and vagabonds and fled to the island of Saludong. There, he and his band of outlaws sought refuge, established their own kingdom and waged war with the Spaniards.
By this time, a force of 40,000 soldiers and 135 ships was sent by the Ming emperor to kill and capture the pirates. Limahong and his troops first arrived in Ilocos Sur in early 1574 where they quarreled with the Spanish commander, Juan de Salcedo. After a brief struggle with the Spanish army, his troops were driven away from the city. The pirates then chanced upon merchant ships from Manila doing trade with the Chinese, and learned from two captured ships that Manila was a new and relatively unprotected Spanish settlement. From this information and the knowledge that China had a no-war policy with its neighbors during that time, he decided to capture Manila and establish himself as ruler of his would-be kingdom and stronghold.