bookrandom Chapter 454: Life and Death Pass: Sniper Covered by Booby Trap
Chapter 454: Life and Death Pass: Sniper Covered by Booby Trap
After leaving the battle, Chen Feiyang stumbled and retreated for several kilometers through the jungle. His heavy breathing was particularly piercing in the silent forest. Lei Tao's words kept echoing in his mind: "...I'm no match for...the chicken..." Guilt and worry washed over him. "If I leave like this, won't Brother Lei be in danger? No, I have to go back to support him." He gritted his teeth, his eyes full of struggle.
Just as he was about to turn back to look for Lei Tao, a dead branch three meters to his right suddenly made a soft creak. Chen Feiyang immediately lowered his center of gravity, knelt on one knee, and placed his modified AK47 on the tree trunk, flicking the safety with his left thumb. Through the gaps in the leaves, he saw three figures moving in a triangle formation—Meng Xiaoyu, holding a VSS sniper rifle, in the center; Li Shuiniu, guarding the left front with a Czech light machine gun; and Li Shuiyang, holding a Scorpion submachine gun, in the right front.
It turned out that after they broke through and moved to a safe area, they had been worried about the safety of Lei Tao and Chen Feiyang, so they returned to provide support, regardless of the danger. Meng Xiaoyu, with her sharp eyes, spotted Chen Feiyang at a glance and exclaimed in surprise, "Brother Chen!" Chen Feiyang walked out from behind the tree and saw the three of them. A warm feeling welled up in his heart, but he couldn't help but feel a little worried: "Why are you here? It's too dangerous here!"
Before they could say anything more, a sudden commotion erupted in the distance. Li Shuiniu's expression changed. "Oh no! Enemies!" Everyone immediately took cover, ready for battle. Soon, a group of Japanese soldiers appeared in their sight. It was none other than Hoshino Shogi's second search team.
Hoshino Shoji's second search team, apparently unaware of their presence, marched forward with undisguised composure. Chen Feiyang observed the enemy's numbers and equipment, quickly formulating a battle plan. He gestured to Meng Xiaoyu, Li Shuiniu, and Li Shuyang, signaling them to prepare for an ambush.
As the Japanese entered the ambush, Chen Feiyang raised his modified AK47 assault rifle, set the safety to "single shot," and quickly locked onto three Japanese soldiers through the optical sight. "Bang, bang, bang!" Three shots rang out, and the three Japanese soldiers, struck between the eyebrows, fell to the ground, dead. The sudden gunfire shattered the silence of the forest, and the Japanese soldiers immediately reacted, seeking cover and returning fire. A fierce gunfight erupted in an instant, with bullets whizzing through the trees, knocking leaves and branches off the trees.
Meng Xiaoyu, hiding behind a large rock, wielded his VSS silenced sniper rifle and killed six Japanese soldiers in quick succession. Li Shuiniu and Li Shuyang provided cover, continuously throwing grenades at the Japanese. The Japanese were thrown into disarray, but they quickly mounted a counterattack, their firepower gradually increasing.
Chen Feiyang watched the enemy's firepower grow increasingly intense and realized that this was not a solution. He shouted, "We can't continue fighting. The three of us, Shuiniu and Shuiyang, will hold off the Japanese. Xiaoyu, we'll buy you ten minutes to set up the booby trap at the pass behind!"
Meng Xiaoyu's eyes flashed, and she nodded quickly, "Hold on! I'll be right back!" She grabbed the anti-personnel mines and modified detonators from her backpack, turned, and ran deep into the woods. Japanese bullets grazed her hair, and without looking back, she dove into the bushes, her figure quickly disappearing into the dense forest.
Chen Feiyang, Li Shuiniu, and Li Shuiyang immediately dispersed, using the trees for cover. Li Shuiniu, emplaced his machine gun between the branches, fired furiously, suppressing the Japanese advance. Li Shuiyang, pulling out a grenade rope and hurling it at the perfect moment, sent two Japanese soldiers flying with a bang. Chen Feiyang, armed with a modified assault rifle, single-handedly targeted the Japanese machine gunners, his bullets piercing their helmets with pinpoint accuracy.
"Baga! Concentrate fire!" the Japanese squad leader roared. A barrage of bullets instantly ripped the three men's cover apart, turning it into shards. Li Shuiniu, struck in the arm, gritted his teeth and continued to pull the trigger. Time ticked by, and Chen Feiyang glanced at his watch, sweat trickling down his forehead—seven minutes had already passed.
Elsewhere, Meng Xiaoyu arrived at the pass. This narrow passage, wedged between two mountains, was the perfect location for an ambush. She quickly buried five anti-personnel mines on either side of the road, covering them with pine needles and fallen leaves. She also secured a two-kilogram TNT charge to the central boulder at the pass, connecting the detonator to a tripwire. If triggered, the blast would instantly block the entire passage. Finally, she pulled out the time-delay booby trap Lei Tao had taught her to make and connected it to the surrounding gravel traps and incendiary bomb fuses, setting a chain of detonations.
Meng Xiaoyu half-knelt in the damp dirt, her fingers rapidly tangling the wire. Sweat dripped onto the detonator connector, but she didn't bother to wipe it off, concentrating on adjusting the detonation angle. The distant gunfire intensified, and she knew the pressure on Chen Feiyang and the other two was mounting. By the time the last tripwire was secured, the ground beneath the pass had already concealed three layers of danger: the surface layer of anti-personnel mines, intended to kill casualties; the middle layer of TNT explosives, intended to block the passage; and the time-delay booby trap, like a dormant venomous snake, waiting to reap any that slipped through its net.
Chen Feiyang's back was pressed against the charred tree trunk, bullet casings piled up at his feet. The Japanese MP35 submachine guns unleashed a barrage of fire. Li Shuiniu's machine gun suddenly jammed, white smoke billowing from the scorching barrel. "Xiaoyu hasn't come back yet!" Li Shuiyang hurled his last grenade into the enemy group. Amidst the explosion, over twenty Japanese soldiers advanced through the smoke.
"Buffalo, water sheep, take turns covering the retreat!" Chen Feiyang ripped off the blood-stained bandage and wrapped it around the wound on his left arm. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the swaying bushes toward the pass. Meng Xiaoyu half-knelt, weaving through the mud. Her neck still bore bruises from her fight with the Japanese scouts, but her hands were as steady as a rock as she buried five anti-personnel mines in the fallen leaves.
The rock formations on either side of the pass formed a natural funnel, a perfect death trap. Meng Xiaoyu stuffed two kilograms of TNT into the cracks. Detonators and tripwires intertwined like a spiderweb; the slightest contact would engulf the entire pass in flames. Finally, she pulled out the time-delay booby trap Lei Tao had taught her—a brass casing concealing a triple detonator that not only triggered a chain reaction but also triggered pre-buried incendiary bombs.
The Japanese squad leader brandished his command knife, and more than twenty soldiers fanned out in a flanking formation. Chen Feiyang pulled the trigger, killing the foremost machine gunner, but heard a click—the magazine was empty. Li Shuiyang immediately tossed a spare magazine, and a bullet grazed his ear, slicing off a strand of hair.
Meng Xiaoyu had just connected the last detonator to the tripwire when a slight friction sound suddenly came from the dead leaves three meters behind her. She remained in a half-kneeling position, her left hand quietly pressing the dagger at her waist, and her right hand reached for the silent sniper rifle beside her. The footsteps were getting closer and closer. Two Japanese scouts wearing camouflage nets were surrounding her in a tactical formation. The bayonet of one of them's Type 38 rifle was almost touching her back. At the moment when the muzzle of the opponent's gun was about to touch the back of her head, Meng Xiaoyu suddenly exerted force. She ducked and rolled to avoid the bayonet, pulled out the dagger with her backhand, and slashed it at the left throat of the Japanese soldier. The blade accurately cut into the carotid artery, and blood spurted out. At the same time, another Japanese soldier stepped back and aimed his gun. Meng Xiaoyu took the opportunity to throw the dagger. With a flash of cold light, the dagger pierced the opponent's chest. The man's eyes widened, and a "cluck" sound came from his throat, and he fell to the ground. She quickly examined the two bodies and retrieved two Type 97 grenades from the scout's waistband. Intensive gunfire rang out in the distance, and Chen Feiyang's roar was faintly discernible amidst the roar of gunfire. Meng Xiaoyu strapped the grenades to her waist, grabbed her VSS sniper rifle, and sprinted toward the main battlefield.
"Boom!" Li Shuiniu's Czech light machine gun suddenly exploded, scorching fragments slashing his cheek. Chen Feiyang dragged him toward the new bunker, but Li Shuiniu's grenade launcher came into play at this moment. A shell exploded in the enemy group, killing three Japanese soldiers. But more bullets rained down, and Li Shuiniu was shot in the thigh, blood soaking his trouser leg.
Meng Xiaoyu finally rushed back and, without a word, drew her VSS silent sniper rifle. She aimed at the Japanese commander's chest and fired three times. Before he could even scream, he collapsed in a pool of blood. The Japanese, without their command, fell into a moment of confusion, and Chen Feiyang seized the opportunity to shout, "Retreat to the pass!"
The four fought and retreated, the Japanese pursuing them relentlessly. As the first row of enemies entered the pass, they triggered the tripwires set by Meng Xiaoyu. The anti-personnel mines exploded first, sending shrapnel raining down like steel, knocking three Japanese soldiers to the ground. Then, the TNT charge pulverized the huge boulder in the center of the pass, sending the debris careening towards the pursuing troops behind them.
The Japanese squad leader howled, commanding the remaining soldiers to scatter and break out, unaware that this was a trap set by Meng Xiaoyu. She pressed the detonator, and the delayed booby trap exploded. The incendiary bombs formed a wall of fire, transforming the entire pass into a living hell. More than a dozen Japanese soldiers struggled in the sea of flames, their screams echoing through the valley.
However, just when everyone thought they were safe, a sharp sound suddenly pierced the air. Chen Feiyang instinctively dodged to the left, but was still a step too late. He felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder—a 7.7mm bullet had grazed his shoulder socket, instantly staining his camouflage uniform red.
"Sniper! Scatter and take cover!" The moment Meng Xiaoyu shouted, Li Shuiyang rolled sideways into the bushes to the right, the muzzle of his Scorpion submachine gun pointed upward. He removed the smoke grenade ring from his tactical vest and rested his thumb on the safety pin, ready to disrupt the enemy's vision. Li Shuiniu, using a fallen tree as cover, half-crouched and positioned his Czech light machine gun at the fork of the trunk, slowly moving the barrel horizontally in the direction of the suspicious direction.
Chen Feiyang, resigned to the pain, lunged forward and left, ripping the hem of his camouflage uniform to wrap around his bleeding left shoulder. He rolled into a rocky depression, the butt of his modified AK47 resting against his shoulder, quickly tracking the cliff face. Meng Xiaoyu crept low, resting his VSS sniper rifle on a prominent rock face. His prone shooting position kept his body nearly parallel to the ground, minimizing his exposure.
"Maintain fan-shaped alert!" Chen Feiyang groaned, catching his breath. "Shui Niu, suppress, Shui Yang, scout!" Li Shuiniu immediately pulled the trigger. The 7.92mm bullet exploded in the rubble below the cliff, stirring up dust and smoke that temporarily obscured the sniper's vision. Li Shuyang seized the opportunity to duck and sprint, using the bushes for cover to circumvent the side, rapidly scanning the crevice in the cliff with his infrared telescope.
Suddenly, Li Shuiyang lowered his voice and shouted rapidly, "Three o'clock! There's a reflection in the cracks in the rock!" Meng Xiaoyu's pupils shrank slightly, the crosshairs of her sniper scope precisely capturing the fleeting flash of metal. She exhaled softly, slowly applying pressure with her index finger in three stages. The first bullet grazed the edge of the rock, sending debris flying and revealing the sniper's hiding spot. Before the attacker could move, the second bullet shattered the sniper scope glass, and the third pierced her throat.
"Hurry! The gunfire will attract reinforcements!" Chen Feiyang tore off a strip of his shirt and bandaged it urgently, blood quickly soaking through the fabric. The four men retreated in a diamond formation, alternating positions. Li Shuiniu held the rear, firing continuously. Li Shuyang, armed with a grenade launcher, remained on guard. Meng Xiaoyu retreated, his sniper rifle trained on the high ground. As they disappeared into the depths of the dense forest, the faint sound of Japanese boots trampling dead branches could be heard in the distance.