Chapter 8: Main Text Chapter Eight Avalanche

Main Text Chapter Eight Avalanche

The Squad Leader had just rushed out two steps when he stopped, and before us appeared an unbelievable sight: the strange ladybug emitting a fire-like aura had split into three copies, each the same size as the original.

One of the three blue fireballs shot straight at the Squad Leader, while the other two shot into the crowd like lightning, hitting the Squad Leader, Cook Lao Zhao, and Signalman Xiao Lin—three people in total. Their bodies burst into flames, and they simultaneously let out agonized screams, writhing and struggling on the ground, trying to roll to extinguish the fire.

A terrifying thing happened: because the soldiers had been overly nervous when facing the fireballs, they had all opened the safeties of their weapons, and the magazines were fully loaded with rounds chambered.

The signalman Xiao Lin was only sixteen at the time; he lacked the courage and psychological resilience of the Instructor and Squad Leader in the face of death, and the demonic flames burned away his reason. In the agony of being scorched by the flames, his semi‑automatic rifle discharged 'tap‑tap‑tap‑tap', and amid the heavy gunfire three of his comrades were struck by stray bullets and fell in pools of blood.

The situation deteriorated to the worst possible degree; the Instructor would rather kill himself than let us fire, yet in the end someone still pulled the trigger. Although being attacked by the strange fire insects was terrifying, it paled in comparison to the horror of an avalanche triggered by gunfire—an avalanche meant utter destruction, and every member of the squad would die. In the valley below the glacier, shouting might have only a thirty percent chance of triggering an avalanche, but gunfire would certainly bring about the worst possible outcome—two hundred percent.

Seeing Xiao Lin's confused state as his rifle fired wildly, stray bullets flying and accidentally killing three comrades, I had no time to think; I gritted my teeth, raised my rifle, and fired three‑round bursts, striking down Xiao Lin, the Squad Leader, and Lao Zhao as they writhed in agony in the fire.

The report of the rifle rounds echoed in the valley; because the valley was narrow and the glacier's ice walls were like mirrors, it was practically a natural loudspeaker, causing gunshots, shouts, and sobs to reverberate wave after wave without cease.

I had not yet freed myself from the anguish of having personally shot my comrades; my mind was filled with their living voices and appearances, my thoughts grew hazy, and suddenly I felt a coolness on my head. Coming to, I reached up and found a snowflake had landed on my forehead.

At that moment the weather was clear, the sun hanging in the sky flashing brilliant light—snowfall was impossible. When I felt the snowflake, my heart sank, and the first thought that sprang to mind was: 'Finally, the avalanche has come.'

At that moment, above the burning corpses of the three fallen comrades, a blue fireball rose from each. There was no longer any need to worry about firing, for Ga wa's marksmanship was the best in the squad; he raised his rifle, aimed or not, and fired three shots, each striking the center of a fireball. The ladybugs inside were far smaller than the bullet's caliber, their bodies utterly shattered by the rounds, and the flames vanished with them.

After this brief but brutal clash, our platoon of eight soldiers plus the Squad Leader and Instructor—ten people in all—now had only me, Dagezi, Ga wa, and three other soldiers left alive, plus Liu Gong and Luo Ning, the two intellectuals.

Snowflakes fell thicker and thicker from above, a rumbling roar came from the sky, the whole valley trembled, I lifted my head and saw the snow slab rolling up a storm like a white tsunami, rolling down toward the valley where we were.

Dagezi grabbed my arm and shouted, 'Lao Hu! Damn it, at this point you're still looking at whatever—hurry up and drop it!'

Our position was in the middle of the valley; the snow from the avalanche would surely fill the whole valley, leaving nowhere to run, yet at this life‑and‑death juncture humans instinctively make one final struggle.

Luo Ning had already fainted from fright on the ground; Dagezi hoisted her onto his shoulder, while I and Ga wa dragged Liu Gong by pulling and hauling, running toward the opposite side of the glacier, hoping to reach a slightly higher slope on the far side before the avalanche fell, to seize this last sliver of life.

Even in our darkest moment we did not discard our rifles, for a rifle is part of a soldier's life and to throw it away is to forsake one's honor. But we had no attention for anything else—we flung aside all equipment, trying to shrug off our packs, yet in the hurry there was no time; the five survivors tugged at each other and sprinted madly.

The avalanche came with terrifying speed, sweeping forward with the force of moving mountains and overturning seas; the energy of the collapsing, tumbling snow shook the valley, and for a moment the earth heaved and the mountains swayed.

I had heard descriptions of avalanches before, but I never imagined that heaven and earth could contain such a mighty silver wave; in that instant everyone's heart turned to ash, and even growing two extra legs would not let us escape.

Yet heaven leaves no one without a way; the violent shaking triggered by the avalanche split a large, downward‑sloping crack in the steep slope before us.

The airborne snowstorm had already arrived; there was no time to think, we surged forward and plunged into the crack opened in the rocks. The slope below the fissure was steep, and we did not expect such a great drop—we piled up, tumbled down, rolled a few times, and landed at the bottom of a large cavern.

Soon after, a massive slab of snow rolled down from behind, sealing the mountain crack with a tight fit, kicking up countless snow particles that made the five of us choke and cough violently. The rumbling overhead continued for a long time before finally subsiding; hearing that roar, we knew that untold tons of snow now lay above us.

In the darkness we could see nothing; having escaped death, a long time passed before anyone spoke, a thick Northeastern accent revealing it was Dagezi, who called out, 'Anyone who can still breathe, make a sound—Lao Hu, Ga wa zi, Liu Gong, Luo Gong, are you all there?'

I felt as if my whole body were about to shake apart; the pain left me temporarily speechless, and I only gave two grunts to show I was still alive.

Ga wa answered with a sound, pulled out his flashlight, and swept it around; Luo Ning sat dazed on the ground, seemingly uninjured, while Liu Gong lay beside him, eyes tightly shut in unconsciousness, his left lower leg broken with a white shard of bone protruding.