Chapter 141: Cramming at the Last Minute

Chapter 141: Last-Minute Preparations

"Two holy-blooded warriors appear ahead! They're fast! They've already closed to within 100 meters of the machine-gun emplacement—deal with them immediately!"

"On the left, the Mechanicus Church's militia artillery shows up, firing two heavy cannons at our position; the blast radius of fifty meters is a kill zone—everyone take cover!"

"Under the cover of artillery fire, the holy-blooded warriors storm our position—Huang Qi and Huang Yue have fallen; drop your weapons and the rest of you, take them out swiftly!"

"The enemy firing squad advances within range, overrunning our first line of defense; all defenders on that line are killed, and the remaining troops rush to reinforce the line!"

"Ammo is running low on the line—logistics, get the ammunition up here, fast!"

Inside Huangshi City, Huang Yu issued his orders in an orderly fashion.

As his orders rang out, the combatants kept running, swapping weapons, making popping sounds with their mouths to simulate gunfire, mimicking a battle against an invisible foe.

The scene was quite amusing; even the children watching from the sidelines couldn't resist joining in, darting between cover following the adults' steps, hauling ammo and evacuating the wounded according to simple commands.

——

But the problem is, this 'fun' is only for the spectators.

Yet for those who threw themselves wholeheartedly into this impromptu drill, the experience felt far from enjoyable.

Physical exhaustion was comparatively minor; after all, food supplies had surged recently, and each person's fitness was rapidly recovering.

What truly made them suffer was the extreme drill conditions set by Huang Yu.

At dinner time, during the mid-drill break, everyone gathered around Huang Yu, venting their doubts and frustrations.

The loudest man first gulped down a big ladle of water, then shouted at Huang Yu:

"I said, 'Captain, drills are drills, but at least make your objectives reasonable, yeah?'"

"What nonsense—just pulling out heavy artillery out of nowhere? Last time the Holy Hall Guard Brigade only had two cannons; are they really going to deploy an entire guard brigade this time?"

"Exactly!"

As the man's words faded, those nearby chimed in:

"Holy-blooded warriors popping up 100 meters in front of the machine-gun nest is ridiculous—are they invisible, or can they just burrow up from the ground?"

"We may not have the commanders' gear, but our eyes aren't blind!"

"Does this whole lake not even exist? How did the holy-blooded approach without us noticing?"

"This is utterly unfair—real combat would never present such a scenario!"

"Exactly! And your conditions are too harsh—I just picked up my rifle, and you tell me I'm dead from a heavy artillery blast, as if the shell was aimed straight at me."

"At the very least, you should tell us where the shells will land so we can react appropriately."

"Now we know nothing—it's just luck, isn't it?"

"Exactly, this drill is utterly unscientific—just making things up as we go; what good is it?"

The crowd's emotions were clearly heightened; it was obvious they'd been rattled by Huang Yu in the drill just finished.

Because in that drill, Huang Yu's final ruling resulted in the total annihilation of Huangshi City's garrison.

But how could anyone easily accept such an outcome?

Never mind anything else—your judging criteria are completely unreasonable!

Good grief, in actual combat, fighting alongside the brigade commanders, I've managed to take down one or two holy-blooded warriors in close quarters—and now you're telling me that if they get within thirty meters, I'm dead?

Where in the world do such holy-blooded warriors exist? No matter how strong they are, they couldn't possibly be that overpowered.

Everyone thought the drill turned out this way purely because Huang Yu didn't understand the enemy or the battlefield.

Total annihilation wasn't the real outcome; it was merely the ending Huang Yu wanted.

Thus, voices in the crowd arose demanding that Huang Yu step down from directing the drill and let someone with more combat experience take over.

But Huang Yu ignored those voices.

He simply raised his hand, signaling everyone to quiet down, then spoke calmly:

"The brigade commanders have told us all a principle: always estimate the enemy generously."

"That's exactly what we're doing in this drill—estimating the enemy generously."

"You claim these points are unreasonable—think about it carefully; are they really that unreasonable?"

"You say you can fight the holy-blooded to the death, but can you really survive within thirty meters of them?"

"And why should I have to tell you where the shells will land? If the Mechanicus Church really attacked, would they give you the impact points?"

His words fell, and the crowd fell silent.

After a long while, someone finally spoke up again:

"But this drill is still unreasonable—we haven't practiced anything at all; we haven't had a chance to do anything, just listening to you call out names."

Having said that, Huang Yu's face broke into a mysterious smile.

He coughed once, then said:

"Rest easy—this round you're dead first; next round I guarantee Huang Ze will be the first to fall."

"With over forty of you, do you really think I don't know how to make you all train?"

"Damn it!"

Not far off, the man named Huang Ze cursed helplessly, but it was clear he had no recourse against Huang Yu.

They've made up their minds to play it this way—what can you do?

With a major enemy looming, drilling is better than not drilling.

Worst case, after the drill we can find an open spot and practice some more.

Thus, the uproar sparked by dissatisfaction with the drill was quickly quelled.

After everyone had eaten dinner and taken a brief rest, Huang Yu ordered all lights in Huangshi City extinguished and proceeded with his planned 'night combat drill.'

And obviously, without sufficient illumination, the difficulty of combat more than doubled.

Almost nobody could fight effectively; all they did was run between cover, trying to memorize their routes in the darkness.

This made everyone feel the drill was pointless, and they repeatedly suggested firing off a couple of the flares still in the warehouse to try a drill under illumination.

But Huang Yu rejected that request too—this time not because he had some special agenda.

It was simply a reluctance to waste such precious equipment.

It wasn't until approaching midnight that the drill was finally called off.

After a day of training, the group, somewhat weary, sat together listening to Huang Yu's debrief; though their faces were dust-covered, it wasn't apparent that their stamina had been pushed to the limit.

After all, their daily labor is also grueling; their endurance had already been forged.

Seeing that everyone's gaze remained clear, Huang Yu nodded in satisfaction.

He had never intended to crank up the drill's intensity too high, given that combat could break out at any moment—just enough would do.

Of course, this is also one reason he set the drill conditions so harsh.

After briefly summarizing the drill's results, Huang Yu had arranged the watch posts; but just as he was about to dismiss the troops and send them off to rest, a black dot suddenly appeared in his field of view.

Huang Yu turned dubiously toward the dark speck, and immediately he saw, beneath the dim starlight, upon the lake’s glimmering surface, something swiftly approaching.

In an instant, Huang Yu’s hairs stood on end.

The next second, he bellowed hoarsely:

Enemy attack!!

The Holy Blooded have closed to within five hundred meters!

Everyone, prepare for battle!

This time it’s for real!!

His voice echoed across Huangshi City, and just then a gunshot cracked suddenly from the lake.

Bang!

That shot jolted the dazed crowd fully awake, and everyone sprang from cover.

No extra orders were needed; the muscle memory forged in drills still guided their movements.

Some sprinted to the anti‑air machine‑gun emplacement on the highest point, others grabbed nearby rocket‑propelled grenades, while many more clenched their rifles and felt their way to their stations.

Huang Yu drew the flare he carried from behind him, briefly recalled He Shuo’s instructions, and without hesitation pulled the trigger.

Pop!

After the soft report, a bright star rose into the sky.

Huangshi City was instantly illuminated, and only now could the crowd see their surroundings clearly.

The enemy! The enemy is swimming across!

Their numbers are at least a hundred, and the swiftest Holy Blooded have closed to within three hundred meters—about to land!

The situation had become dire, but at that moment gunfire from Huangshi City finally erupted.

Rat‑tat‑tat‑tat——

At least five Type‑191 pistols aimed at the Holy Blooded on the raft, laying down a dense hail of bullets; in moments the fighter was forced to leap into the water.

Immediately afterward, someone lofted a rocket‑propelled grenade onto the lake where the Holy Blooded had fallen.

Boom!

A tremendous explosion rang out; as the spray fell, the Holy Blooded surfaced.

And greeting him was an even tighter barrage of bullets!

Rat‑tat‑tat‑tat‑tat——

Rat‑tat‑tat‑tat——

The gunfire merged into a roar, and the Holy Blooded’s corpse floating on the water was torn apart.

Having confirmed he posed no further threat, the defenders of Huangshi City swung their barrels and kept searching for nearer targets.

Clearly, Huang Yu’s assault drill had proved useful.

He could not teach them deep tactics in so short a time, yet he did instill two crucial notions.

First, if you don’t want to be killed by the Holy Blooded, take them out beyond a hundred meters.

Second, go hunt the target rather than wait for it to find you!

Guided by these two ideas, everyone threw themselves into the fight with fierce zeal.

The anti‑air machine gun on the highest point spat tongues of flame, tracer rounds carving long arcs across the lake.

The gunner clearly was not familiar with the weapon; even between short bursts he paused unusually long.

But this was not a fatal flaw.

He had learned how to aim at a target and how to sweep fire into the densest clusters of men.

He had grasped a truth:

This gun was never meant to kill; it is meant to suppress!

Under the relentless alternation of short and long bursts, the enemy’s advance on Huangshi City slowed instantly.

Seizing the moment, Huang Yu quickly spotted the enemy’s weakest flank and bellowed new orders:

“Only a dozen or so on the east—no Holy Blooded! Leave five to hold it!”

“The rest, hurry to the west and reinforce the line! Throw grenades!”

“The enemy on the east has landed! Open fire!”

“Don’t let them form up! Don’t let them shoot!”

His voice trembled with a hint of hysteria, and indeed everyone in Huangshi City felt the same.

They were afraid, they were tense, yet they were also exhilarated.

The real battle had begun.

This time, without the regiment leaders’ aid, they had to rely on themselves!

Explosions kept rattling the air, and Huang Yu suddenly saw a fierce flash of fire erupt in the distant woods.

“Artillery strike! To the north!”

“Take cover!”

In an instant, everyone ducked their heads.

When the shell landed in Huangshi City and detonated with a thunderous boom, the gunfire that had just paused resumed.

Rat‑tat‑tat‑tat——

The anti‑air machine gun trained on the flickering firelight in the woods across the north lake spat a torrent of bullets, instantly shredding the trees that had served as cover.

The gunner could not tell whether he had hit anything, for over a kilometer is still too far.

Thus, cautiously, he kept firing short bursts into that direction during lulls in the barrage, switching to the landed foe only when the artillery fell silent.

By then, the enemy’s pace had quickened.

And the swiftest among them had already closed to within a hundred meters.

They were Holy Blooded!

A crystal‑clear thought flashed through everyone’s mind:

We must not let them come within thirty meters.

If they get within thirty meters, I am as good as dead!

In an instant, more than ten rifles swung their barrels toward what they deemed the prime target.

The Holy Blooded were indeed swift.

Yet no matter how fast they were, they could not survive such a dense hail of fire.

Moreover, to delay the Holy Blooded, more than ten grenades had already been thrown.

The explosions blocked their advance, and when they were forced to halt or change course, a fire line like a viper had already struck!

“Bang bang bang bang— —”

Dozens of bullets were fired at the same narrow area; even if blind, several could hit!

The two vanguard Holy Blood soldiers collapsed instantly; another hesitated a moment before decisively retreating, and only then, using the Holy Blood soldiers as a distraction, did the enemy who had successfully landed finally organize an effective first wave of attack.

——

Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to call it a counterattack.

The sound of single-shot rifles mixed with automatic rifles came from the riverbank, bullets whizzing over the heads and sides of the Chinese troops.

But they were not frightened; instead, they hunkered down in the pre‑built cover, tense yet steady as they pulled the trigger.

Two lines of defense opened fire simultaneously, instantly suppressing the enemy's gunfire.

And this time, the casualties they suffered were no longer a small number!

They were too close.

And the terrain they occupied was far too open.

Even in terms of elevation, they held no advantage!

The enemy's grenades were often blocked by the piled‑up cover, while the Chinese troops' grenades could easily explode among them!

This ambush failed to achieve its intended effect, and when the 022 heavy machine gun's barrel pointed at the enemy landing on the beach, the outcome of the battle seemed already decided.

Half an hour later.

The last enemy who hadn't managed to escape was captured and brought before Huang Yu.

Huang Yu stared at him coldly, gun pointed at his head, and asked:

"How many of you are left?"

"Where is your main force?"

"Main force?"

The blood‑splattered man coughed, shook his head, and said:

"There is no main force left; this is all we have—my hunter mercenary squad is wiped out, where would a main force come from?"

"Impossible."

Huang Yu frowned and said:

"This is clearly just a probe; you're nothing but cannon fodder."

"Tell me where the main force is behind you, tell me their plan, and I can let you live!"

As his words fell, the man's emotions suddenly collapsed.

Then he screamed hysterically:

"Damn it! I already said it—there's no main force left!"

"What the hell artillery! What the hell probe!"

"We've already given it our all, damn it!"

(End of chapter)