Chapter 355: Stepping on Thunder, Assault
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Bang!”
In the midst of the jungle at night, even with night vision goggles at their disposal, the environment remained challenging. Moreover, the Iron Bones Hero Regiment had concealed their mines effectively.
As cautious as the scouts were, some still fell victim to the treacherous terrain.
Suddenly, an explosion echoed through the night.
The instant that sound reached everyone’s ears, their expressions shifted.
Wang Ye swiftly turned his head, pinpointing the sound’s origin.
It didn’t originate from him but emanated from the right side. It must have been two to three hundred meters away, and the sound was barely audible.
Considering the circumstances from moments ago, it likely resulted from the team that had split up and entered.
“What’s happening? Who’s responsible for this?”
In this moment, Jiang Nan, whose face was already smeared with green camouflage paint, seemed to grow even paler.
“Captain, it’s me!”
A somewhat rueful voice came through Wang Ye’s earpiece.
It was the deputy company commander.
Before their operation, the radio had been eerily quiet, but the team leaders held the authority.
Upon hearing these words, Wang Ye observed Jiang Nan, who was clenching his teeth.
“You reckless fool, how do you even train?!”
Without giving the deputy company commander a chance to explain, Jiang Nan issued another command.
“Assault team, swiftly implement Plan B.”
The Second Company had more than one battle plan in their arsenal.
The safest approach involved infiltrating from multiple directions, establishing firing positions, and executing a covert attack.
However, there was also a contingency plan.
If their covert operation was compromised, all other considerations would be discarded.
Their mission would be to advance directly, making every effort to reach the mortar’s firing range. Then, they would strike covertly before making a hasty retreat.
Retreating directly was not an option.
Their mission was to assault the Iron Bones Hero Regiment, so retreating after losing soldiers and leaving the enemy unharmed with landmines seemed counterintuitive.
So, why was he talking about revenge?
Wasn’t he just going to make a fool of himself?
Of course, engaging in a direct confrontation wasn’t a viable option either.
Although the Second Company boasted a reconnaissance unit’s elite soldiers, the old adage held true: one good man couldn’t stand against many.
In the forest, Wang Ye trailed behind Jiang Nan, sprinting through the wilderness.
In this tense moment, Wang Ye couldn’t help but feel anxious. The fear of stepping on a landmine and meeting an untimely demise haunted him.
Fortunately, the Iron Bones Hero Regiment remained in a state of readiness for their daily combat drills.
Moreover, they had been stationed in this area for a considerable time and frequently changed training locations. It wouldn’t make sense to bury numerous mines around a training ground. After all, if nothing happened, they would have to dig them up themselves when they wanted to leave.
Furthermore, they couldn’t set up traps like they did at the beginning of the year without prior knowledge of an impending enemy attack. In the forest, small animals could easily trigger those traps, disrupting the team’s rest.
Hence, they had likely set up anti-infantry practice mines, and their numbers would be limited. This allowed Wang Ye and his team to advance without incident, avoiding triggering any of the mines.
Simultaneously, whistles and sirens blared loudly from the Iron Bones Hero Regiment’s side.
Under the night sky, everyone who had been sleeping soundly was rudely awakened.
In reality, the activation of the mines didn’t necessarily indicate an enemy presence. More than ten days ago, at another training ground, a mine had been triggered without any actual threat.
However, based on the evidence at the scene, it appeared to be nothing more than a wild boar that had the misfortune of stepping on a landmine.
Regardless of the actual cause of the explosion, the regiment commander had issued orders to sound the alarm immediately upon any unusual occurrence.
Being cautious was never a mistake.
If it turned out to be an innocent incident, like wild boars or other animals triggering the mine, it could be treated as an emergency gathering drill.
However, failing to sound the alarm in the event of a genuine enemy attack would have dire consequences. Even if this was just a drill, it would surely result in harsh repercussions for the commander and other military officers.
Naturally, Wang Ye had anticipated their reaction and the situation, as had Jiang Nan.
Jiang Nan held a tablet in his hand, allowing him to monitor the movements of the Iron Bones Hero Regiment.
“Are you ready?” He asked, looking at the tablet.
“Ready!” Anping replied promptly.
Not only Anping but also someone from Class 2 responded.
This time, each squad in the Second Company had a 6omm mortar. Once they reached the attack range, the others began to fan out for defense. Meanwhile, Wang Ye and the two other squad members responsible for carrying spare parts and ammunition quickly assembled the mortar under An Ping’s command.
Perhaps they were concerned that Wang Ye might take it easy on them or that he wasn’t familiar with the controls. After all, Wang Ye had initially been carrying the cannon barrel, so logically, he should have been the one firing it.
However, Anping, the squad leader, had taken over the role of the first squad of cannoneers, turning Wang Ye into a human load-bearing machine.
Despite his helplessness, Wang Ye didn’t voice any complaints.
“Listen to my command. From 1,800 meters, adjust the distance and fire 50 meters ahead!” Jiang Nan ordered.
In reality, the Iron Bones Hero Regiment was not visible to the naked eye yet. They were still situated in the mountains and hadn’t descended from them.
However, the Second Company wasn’t fighting alone.
The Second Company had the assistance of reconnaissance drones.
In the obscurity of the night, hundreds of meters above, drones from the reconnaissance battalion silently circled, transmitting live images to the tablet in Jiang Nan’s grasp.
Modern warfare had moved far beyond relying solely on manpower.
As technology advanced, so did the methods of combat.
Even if Wang Ye hadn’t become a soldier in his later life, he was aware that drones had become a principal force and a crucial focus of application and research within the military.
He had even seen numerous military drone models in videos and media coverage.
Of course, in this era, such technology remained relatively rare. Only a handful of enthusiasts dabbled with drones, and the military didn’t deploy them in significant numbers. It was primarily the A division headquarters that possessed these assets, and Wang Ye had never encountered the Iron Bones Hero Group before.
“Bang!”
“Bang!”
Two muffled cannon reports sounded in succession.
Two mortar shells were launched.
Naturally, these mortar rounds weren’t intended to strike the Iron Bones Hero Group’s camp directly. Instead, they burst in mid-air like fireworks.
However, this didn’t diminish the effectiveness of the artillery fire.
The division headquarters housed an operations department responsible for analyzing the mortar shells’ power, the trajectory data of the shells fired, and the current status of the Iron Bones Hero Regiment via computer systems. Subsequently, they would communicate with the Iron Bones Hero Regiment to report casualties.
“Quick, prepare more mortar rounds!”
At this juncture, the two mortar rounds in Wang Ye’s possession were promptly deployed.
In reality, the entire class had brought six mortar rounds for this mission.
It might not seem like a substantial amount, as the two squads collectively possessed only 12 mortar rounds, but they intended to make the most of them.
The combined twelve mortar rounds brought by Jiang Nan’s two squads proved to be sufficient. Additionally, other directions had their own reserves of mortar rounds.
If they unleashed all the mortar shells, it could result in at least a hundred casualties, if not more.
However, Wang Ye and his comrades had little time to dwell on the outcome of the engagement.
“Quickly… Retreat!”
Jiang Nan issued the order, prompting Wang Ye and the others to grab the mortars and make a hasty exit.
The sneak attack had reached its conclusion.
There was no alternative. If they were detected in advance, they wouldn’t have the time or conditions to approach any closer. This was the only viable course of action.
As for the reason they retreated after the battle instead of capitalizing on the chaos to advance further:
That was because they had exhausted all their artillery rounds, while the Iron Bones Hero Regiment still had plenty in reserve.
It was certain that the Iron Bones Hero Regiment possessed enough artillery rounds to blanket all the locations based on the sound of the mortar fire and the mid-air explosions.
If they didn’t retreat, they’d be walking into a storm of shells.
“Fucking idiots!” Within the Iron Bones Hero Regiment’s underground command center, the group leader received a call.
His face, though unpainted, appeared as if it had been slathered with ghastly green paint. His fury was palpable.
The command center had transmitted the order.
The Iron Bones Hero Regiment had suffered sixty-three fatalities, forty-eight seriously wounded, and seventy-two lightly injured soldiers.
The casualties were substantial. As the group leader scrutinized the artillery map sent by the drill command center, along with the various casualty markers, he angrily issued a command, “Order the artillery companies to retaliate!”
The artillery of the Iron Bones Hero Regiment, however, could not retaliate.
After firing the mortars, the scouts rapidly withdrew.
With just twelve cannonballs and two mortars to fire, even with distance adjustments, the entire volley took less than ten seconds to unleash.
Certainly, this wave of attacks had not been without casualties.
On the side led by the deputy company commander, when they triggered the landmine, one soldier was confirmed dead from the explosion, and another was seriously injured.
However, compared to the losses suffered by the Iron Bones Hero Regiment, the Second Company had emerged from the engagement in a significantly better position.
Nonetheless, this was merely the beginning.
“Split up here. Class Two, head to the right,” Wu Jianfeng ordered after more than ten minutes of running through the forest.
This mission wasn’t conducive to a concentrated battle since it wasn’t a direct confrontation. Staying together would expose them to heavy losses if they were targeted by artillery fire. Therefore, dividing into smaller groups was the most suitable approach for this engagement.
Now that Jiang Nan had issued the order, he turned to the second squad leader and added, “Remember, 1 don’t care about the outcome. After this mission is over, you need to bring back at least 50 ‘heads’ for me. Otherwise, when you return, be prepared to spend a month working in the logistics farm, feeding pigs!”
Yes, I promise to complete the mission!” The second squad leader replied earnestly and led his team, Class Two, to the right.
Class One continued to follow Jiang Nan. At this moment, Jiang Nan also looked at Wang Ye and the others. “What are you waiting for? Our group is the same. You also need to bring back at least 50 ‘heads,’ or I’ll personally take you to learn the ropes of pig farming!”
“Yes, sir!” Anping responded with a serious expression.
Wang Ye and the rest didn’t need to say anything, but at this moment, Wang Ye couldn’t help but think, “Just pigs? Is there a training program for sows too?”
Of course, Wang Ye didn’t actually voice such thoughts.
“We’re out of the artillery zone now,” Jiang Nan announced once more. “We’ll set up an ambush here. Anping, arrange the firing positions!”
“Yes, sir!”
Wang Ye was currently invisible. Even if Jiang Nan issued the order, it wouldn’t directly apply to him. However, since Anping had given the order, Wang Ye must have been included.
Soon, Wang Ye found himself positioned behind a slope.
This was his designated ambush point.
As he lay there, Wang Ye muttered to himself, “Four consecutive times, don’t fail me.”
With only 13 individuals, including the communicator, Jiang Nan, and the female soldier Lil Man, they had already set up a well-coordinated ambush.
Their firing positions formed a crossfire.
Regardless of which direction the Iron Bones Hero Regiment approached from, they were bound to be caught off guard by the initial wave of the ambush.