Chapter Eighteen: Facing the Enemy! (Requesting Bookshelf, Voting)
“Tell him we are under attack by five divisions of the Daxia army and demand immediate reinforcements!”
Huh?
The Japanese signalman carrying the radio was taken aback.
Five divisions?
Regimental Commander, why the hell didn’t you say we’re being attacked by five entire army groups?
No wonder you’re the regimental commander—you can say such shameless things without blinking!
“Hello, this is the Sakata Regiment…”
While the signalman communicated, Sakata Nobutetsu hurriedly surveyed the surrounding terrain.
Since preparations for retreat were now necessary, staying in such a dangerous location was out of the question.
They had to relocate and hold out until reinforcements arrived.
Noticing two depressions to the north, Sakata’s heart leapt with joy.
The enemy was incredibly foolish!
Such excellent defensive and counterattack positions were left uncleared!
He quickly ordered his men to move closer to those spots.
After the communication ended, the signalman loudly reported, “Regimental Commander! The air force from Taiyuan Airport has been deployed.”
“The nearest unit to us is the Fourth Brigade, once directly under our command. General Nakamura is already leading troops to support us!”
“Expected to arrive first within an hour is the Kuroshima Cavalry Regiment!”
“Alright!” Sakata Nobutetsu exhaled in relief upon hearing the Fourth Brigade was coming.
This Fourth Brigade was not the independent mixed brigade that later formed for policing.
Like the Sakata Regiment, it was also an elite second-line unit.
Comprising two infantry regiments and one cavalry regiment, it numbered over 8,000 men.
It had fought in the Russo-Japanese War and clashed with the Nationalist army multiple times, boasting an impressive record.
Later, it became part of the Kwantung Army’s 3rd Army.
Its status as part of a Type A division of the Japanese army spoke volumes.
“There, and there!”
“We will retreat to those two positions!”
“Tell our brave warriors to hold those spots for one hour; reinforcements will arrive!”
Sakata Nobutetsu still harbored a shred of hope.
“At that time, we’ll coordinate inside and out for a pincer attack!”
“We will surely annihilate these detestable Daxia soldiers!”
“Hai!”
…
Sakata Nobutetsu was still dreaming of a narrow escape and a turnaround victory.
Little did he know, he and the remaining men had already one foot in the underworld.
Li Yunlong noticed the Japanese troops of the Sakata Regiment beginning to fall back toward the two depressions as planned.
A faint smile touched his lips.
The rats were obediently running out.
Next came the extermination.
“Da Biao!”
Old acquaintances all around, when Li Yunlong spoke, Zhang Dabiao immediately understood.
He gave an OK sign.
“Commander, the detonation circuit is flawless and ready for use!”
“Good!” Li Yunlong nodded. “Wait for my order!”
“Ready…”
When nearly all the Japanese troops had entered the depressions, Li Yunlong suddenly waved his hand.
“Detonate!!!”
Zhang Dabiao pressed the detonator without hesitation.
A sharp electric current surged rapidly through the wires.
At a fork in the line, the current split and raced down two paths.
At that moment, Sakata Nobutetsu, still shouting hoarsely from behind cover, cried out:
“Hold the line! Brave warriors, hold on!”
“Reinforcements will arrive soon; hang in there!”
Suddenly, a Japanese soldier lying prone on a dirt embankment felt an uncomfortable sensation beneath him.
Looking down, he saw a dark green metal box buried just under the soil.
Several Chinese characters were inscribed on it.
The soldier, who had some knowledge of Chinese characters, instinctively read aloud:
“This… side… facing… enemy…”
“What? What is this thing?”
Before he could make sense of it, a sharp sizzling sound rang out.
An electric spark ignited the plastic explosive inside the mine.
Boom!
Accompanying the explosive blast, over 700 steel balls and metal fragments from the mine casing tore through the shallow soil, shooting horizontally in one direction.
The unlucky soldier didn’t even have time to scream before being riddled with blood.
The Claymore mine was a directional anti-personnel mine.
Its effective killing range extended 50 meters forward, with a height of 2.4 meters.
The steel balls could inflict moderate injuries up to about 100 meters.
Zhang Dabiao, ruthless as ever, had crazily planted 200 Claymore mines within those two depressions, covering just a few thousand square meters.
The instant of detonation engulfed the entire depressions in flames and smoke.
A deadly storm of steel balls, lethal fragments, and stones rampaged unchecked within the narrow space of several thousand square meters.
Blood splattered everywhere, flesh torn apart!
The lucky ones died instantly.
The unlucky ones collapsed to the ground, screaming like slaughtered pigs.
Their bodies were riddled with holes—enough to trigger trypophobia in anyone.
The scene was truly harrowing.
When all explosions ceased and the smoke cleared, fewer than a hundred Japanese soldiers remained breathing within the two depressions.
Most were wounded, many with bleeding holes in their bodies.
After such relentless blows, the survivors had lost all their initial arrogance.
They looked around in terror, trembling uncontrollably.
Some were so frightened they lost control of their bowels.
This showed just how deeply the ordeal had shocked them.
Li Yunlong had considered firing another round of artillery to finish them off.
But upon seeing through his binoculars the countless bloody holes in the enemy corpses, he knew it was unnecessary.
“My heavens!”
“These Claymore mines are really something else!”
Beside him, Zhang Dabiao nodded enthusiastically.
“Commander, I secretly watched the explosion through the binoculars.”
“My goodness, the countless steel balls—there was nowhere to hide!”
“This thing is wicked!”
Noticing many Japanese soldiers were completely stunned, Li Yunlong snapped back to reality and realized the moment was ripe.
He shouted loudly:
“Bugler, sound the charge!”
With the stirring and urgent blast of the bugle, the soldiers of the 1st Regiment surged down the slopes, rifles raised, howling battle cries.
“Kill!”
“Slaughter the damn Japanese bastards!”
“Kill the Japanese!”
Sakata Nobutetsu, still alive but barely, shoved aside the riddled corpse of his adjutant, Matsuda Takeshi, and staggered to his feet.
Looking at the surrounding Daxia soldiers descending like ferocious tigers and then back at his own men, who resembled walking corpses, he knew the situation was hopeless.
Reinforcements from the Fourth Brigade and air units would never arrive in time.
They were going to lose!
“Baka yarou! Why? Why is this happening?”
Sakata Nobutetsu screamed in frustration and disbelief.