Chapter 113: Out of Ammunition and Food

"This group has immense firepower; they must be special forces from China. But they cannot withstand our encirclement from all sides. Once we kill them, we can declare to the world that our Holy War is invincible!" A terrorist leader’s face revealed a feverish, excited expression. Even his subordinates were in high spirits; if they could kill these men, even if the operation were to fail, the strategic objective would far exceed expectations.

"We will advance in a trapezoidal formation and snipe the enemy snipers whenever possible. Once the snipers are down, our artillery can wipe them all out!"

On the rooftop.

"Except for the War God Squad, everyone else, state your last words," Zhou Qi said calmly.

"Officer Zhou, why?" Xie Chengyang raised his head, asking in confusion.

Zhou Qi sighed, looking at the distant red sun, and said, "The members of our War God Squad died a long time ago."

"What?" Everyone was shocked. Qin Yang kicked Xie Chengyang in the backside and cursed, "Quit your damn rambling. If you’re told to speak, then speak. Don't waste time. Once the fighting starts again, you won't even have the chance to leave a final message."

"Next are the last words of our soldiers. They want to say something to their families before the end."

Shen Haoyun walked forward hesitantly, not knowing what to say, scratching his head. Cheng Mu barked, "Hurry up."

"What do you want to say to your family?" Zhou Xiao felt her fingers trembling as she opened the recording system, tears falling onto her phone screen.

Shen Haoyun said, "Tell Grandpa and Grandma, Dad and Mom in Shen Village that Shen Haoyun did not bring shame upon you. Although I will sacrifice myself, I am able to engage in a final battle against the terrorists and make a sacrifice to protect the country's security; my death is worth it. It’s just that I’m an unfilial son; I didn’t leave a successor for the Shen family in this life. I’ll be your son again in the next. If I really die and there’s no photo left, look for Comrade Zhou Xiao. She has my last photo on her phone; it turned out quite well."

After Shen Haoyun finished, the next was an armed policeman. He first wiped his shoulder patches and arm badges, then adjusted his collar. After posing for a photo, he said, "My name is Liu Shun. Bao'er, when you hear this recording, I might already be dead. Dad wasn't a good father; I wasn't even by your side when you were born. You probably hate me, don't you? I'm truly sorry. Dad will make it up to you in the next life. When you grow up and understand what Dad said, I don't ask for much—just call me 'Dad' in front of my tombstone. I will be content."

"Next," Zhou Qi pulled someone else over.

"My name is Xu Hu. Dad, I'm sorry. I did too many things that hurt you in the past. I wasn't good enough, but now my conscience is clear. You always used to talk about how other people's children were. I don't ask for anything else, but next time you talk about me, just say my son is a soldier, a soldier who protects his home and country."

"Next."

From beginning to end, Zhou Qi remained absolutely calm. At this moment, he could not allow sentimentality to occupy his mind.

"My name is Xie Chengyang. I won't mention my unit designation. Mom and Dad, if you can hear this, don't blame your son for not being by your side to support you in your old age. I'm sorry."

"My name is Zhou Kehai. Dad, you always hoped your son would be a soldier standing tall and upright. I don't know if I truly achieved that now. Take good care of Mom. You always said that we Zhou men bleed but do not weep, but this time, I'm sorry."

"My name is Wang Yang. Mom, you have to take care of yourself. You didn't want me to join the army, but I did it anyway. I don't regret it; I truly don't. My only regret is not being able to stay by your side. If I survive, I will definitely take you to the place you want to visit most and have a big meal."

"Hehe, my name is Tan Long. I’m a bit vulgar. Dad, you know my account password. It contains my salary and the money I hid from you—hehe, it's all yours now. I probably won't have the chance to hide secret funds with you anymore. Next time you hide money, don't let Mom catch you, or there will be no one to bail you out."

"..."

Zhou Xiao silently saved all their recordings.

***

Qin Yang coughed and said, "Alright, everyone pay attention. The enemy is coming up. Get this woman down."

"Are you really not going to record anything?" Zhou Xiao asked anxiously.

Qin Yang glared at her: "Get down."

Zhou Xiao descended. The tears on her face had not stopped. Trembling, she uploaded the recordings one by one to the internet. Because the network signal was poor, it was slow, and this wait made countless people anxious. When the recordings began to appear one by one, the entire nation fell into silence. The recordings seemed to erode the defensive barriers of everyone's hearts, echoing constantly in their minds.

At the same time, in a certain mountain village.

Shen Haotian rushed into his family courtyard, looking at his aunt, uncle, and grandparents who were chatting and laughing, and said anxiously, "Big Brother, Big Brother..."

"What's wrong with your big brother?" the elderly man asked with a smile. "Look at how anxious you are. He should be at work now, right?"

"Our director gave me permission to come back," Shen Haoyun said, trembling. "It’s going crazy on the internet. Big Brother is leading his unit in a life-and-death struggle against terrorists. This is a recording sent by someone on the front line."

"Tell Grandpa and Grandma, Dad and Mom in Shen Village that Shen Haoyun did not bring shame upon you. Although I will sacrifice myself, I am able to engage in a final battle against the terrorists..."

"Oh, my child!" The elderly grandmother cried out and nearly fainted. The people around her hurriedly supported her and grabbed Shen Haotian, asking, "What exactly is going on? What is happening?"

"Turn on the news."

Shen Haotian turned on the TV. The first thing they saw was a news report: "Our frontline soldiers are engaged in a life-and-death struggle with terrorists and are facing a desperate situation. One of the hostages has clearly communicated the situation on the front line, but what shocks us is that this news is being delivered in the form of a series of final, life-and-death recordings."

Meanwhile, in more than twenty places across the country, similar tragedies were unfolding. They had never dreamed that their children, who had simply gone to join the army, would encounter a terrorist attack.

"These are the most adorable words I have ever heard. They are the manliest of soldiers."

Recordings appeared in the hearts of everyone across the nation. They replayed them over and over, tears flowing endlessly. Both sides of the strait were following this unprecedented war, and major news channels were broadcasting the story.

On the roof of the final stronghold, Shen Haoyun looked at Zhou Qi and the others, asking, "You don't seem too worried?"

"Hmph, now that the matter has blown up this big, if reinforcements still haven't arrived, the military will likely lose all face. If I don't put some pressure on them, they really won't take us seriously," Qin Yang sneered. "This time, I want to see how they clean up this mess."

"Are you really just going to...?" Shen Haoyun asked bitterly.

Zhou Qi smiled coldly. "It’s not the first or second time we’ve stood against the military; there’s nothing to fear. Now, let’s change our defensive strategy. The main attackers will be the War God Squad, and the secondary attackers will be the Parasol Group. We must conserve ammunition as much as possible. The enemy will surely change their tactics after their new deployment. Qin Yang has already pinpointed the enemy commander's location. As long as we kill the commander, this group will become a disorganized mob, and our chances of survival will increase significantly."

"Understood."

No one had any doubts. After all, the marksmanship of the War God Squad needed no further explanation.

Qin Yang kept his eyes fixed on a certain spot. The enemy seemed to know there were super snipers here, so they were hiding very effectively. He was in no mood to snipe the others; he had to keep his eyes on this position to take out the last two terrorist commanders. As a result, the pressure on the other snipers increased significantly, as they had to constantly snipe the enemy’s artillery to prevent shelling.

"Come out."

Aiming at where one person was hiding, Qin Yang took a deep breath. The moment the enemy poked his head out, he fired. The guy seemed to sense he was being targeted and, as if possessing premonition, ducked back into his hiding spot. But Qin Yang had fired a high-explosive round, and the target wasn't the man himself, but the rock in front of him.

*Bang.*

The bullet exploded instantly, the high-explosive charge detonating. The guy screamed and rushed out of his hiding spot, covered in wounds. Qin Yang took the opportunity to fire a second shot, hitting the target dead-on. The moment the target died, Qin Yang locked onto the second commander. That one was hiding even better, refusing to show himself. A cold sneer curled the corner of Qin Yang's lips.

The Ghost Soldier snuck over silently. With Qin Yang constantly creating sniping pressure, the enemy didn't notice the Ghost Soldier's approach—these guys were, after all, born assassins. A military knife sliced across his neck. Meanwhile, Qin Yang fired a shot for show and said, "OK."

"Good!" Zhou Qi shouted.

At this moment, the enemy's advance, which had changed to a staggered formation, began to turn chaotic, giving everyone a massive boost in confidence.

Down below, Zhou Xiao watched the replies coming in one after another, her heart unable to settle.

"Ammunition is running low. One by one, soldiers are being carried down. I can see that even in death, their spirits are still fighting."

"Why haven't our reinforcements arrived? Why?"

Zhou Xiao wept silently. Outside, the calls for justice were growing louder. With such a tragic battle occurring on their own borders, why couldn't the troops provide reinforcements? Forced to respond, the military issued a statement: "The enemy's terrorist action this time was planned. It is not just this isolated unit fighting; we are countering terrorist actions in other areas as well. Our reinforcements are on the way. We hope everyone can understand and pray for all our frontline soldiers."

Countless people were refreshing Zhou Xiao's personal page, hoping for new information.

"My phone is almost out of battery. I might not be able to post many more updates. I am sorry, everyone."

One hour later.

"Out of ammunition and food. A member of the War God Squad—the one who refused to record his final words—that soldier, only in his twenties, who fought against hundreds of terrorists and rescued all of us hostages, is now severely wounded. He is holding a Tang sword, looking at his brothers: 'Are you afraid of death?' 'No!' 'What is the Chinese Army best at?' The answer that shook the heavens, spoken in unison: 'Close-quarters combat!' I beg you, I beg the reinforcements, please come quickly. Outside, there are hundreds of crazy terrorists, and they have fewer than thirty people left."