Chapter 248

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Protagonist:

Lv Muzhi

Time passed second by second; the Japanese Army launched poison gas strikes at multiple points along the Xi Cheng Xian Shang simultaneously, with five key locations targeted.

For a full six hours, the Japanese Army did not launch an attack, but kept firing poison gas shells, releasing poison gas smoke while taking advantage of favorable winds.

Xi Cheng Xian Shang Position 3, Huang Wei's 67th Division defense zone.

Inside the Gas Mask Fortress, the air was maintained through the filtration system.

The officers and soldiers could only observe the outside world through a few periscopes; outside, apart from the occasional explosion sound, there was dead silence.

That feeling of knowing danger was everywhere and the enemy might pounce at any moment, yet being forced to passively wait, consumed every officer and soldier's nerves.

Huang Wei was always commanding inside the forward cover, staring fixedly at the outside through the observation hole.

"The devils are wearing down our patience..." Huang Wei, cooped up in his gas-proof suit, had sweated through his clothes in November's weather, and breathing with his gas mask on was not smooth.

"I have a feeling the little devils are about to move; the stretcher team, get ready; the troops inside the Gas Mask Fortress, get ready; once the frontline is in danger, put on your gas masks and come out to fight!"

The words had barely fallen when the familiar sound of howitzer explosions rang out!

The little devils started firing conventional howitzers; it looked like they were preparing for their attack.

Boom boom boom boom—!

Violent explosions enveloped the position; after the artillery bombardment lasted about twenty minutes, another muffled explosion of poison gas shells rang out.

Immediately after, under the cover of poison mist and cannon fire, a sound at first extremely faint but growing clearer reached the ears of the soldiers holding the forward position.

Rustle rustle...

It was the sound of a large number of footsteps stepping on mud, coming from directly ahead and from deep within the poison mist on the flanks, from far to near, from sparse to dense!

The little devils did not choose to open fire, but quickly charged toward Huang Wei's position, the closer the better.

"Devils! The devils are coming up!" a sentry in a gas-proof suit shouted loudly, while pulling the alarm rope beside him.

Sharp whistles and bells instantly rang out inside the position!

"Everyone, get in position! Japanese infantry is attacking!" Huang Wei roared into the communicator: "Machine gun firepower blockades the front! Mountain gun positions, according to the predetermined firing data, cover the front of our position and carry out area interdiction fire!"

The Xi Cheng Xian Shang Position 3, silent for several hours, instantly awakened and burst into fierce resistance!

Rat-tat-tat-tat—!

The Type 24 heavy machine guns fired at the shadowy figures lunging out of the poison mist.

Whoosh—boom! Whoosh—boom!

The mountain gun position behind the position, according to previously marked firing data, fired shells onto the possible Japanese attack routes at the front of the position.

The Japanese charged forward recklessly, looking like they would fight to the death, emerging in groups from the poison mist and rushing fiercely toward Huang Wei's position.

A fierce battle instantly broke out on the position, both sides fighting until the sky darkened and the earth dimmed...

Inside a field hospital about twenty kilometers from the Xi Cheng Xian Shang, Chen Cheng and Lv Muzhi, accompanied by a group of guards and military medical officers, walked between the temporarily erected tents and crude wards.

Both men's faces were extremely grave; most of the wounded came from the most forward key defense areas, and many had exposed skin showing terrifying redness, blisters, and ulceration...

From the start of the battle, these people were sent to the rear field hospital, showing how quickly lewisite took effect.

A military medical officer with chapped lips stepped forward to report: "Commander, according to these patients' descriptions, this poison gas is not quite like the mustard gas we encountered before."

"It takes effect too fast... the brothers soon felt their skin burning with pain, then they couldn't open their eyes, and couldn't catch their breath..."

Lv Muzhi stopped beside a young soldier's bed.

That soldier's entire face and neck were covered with dense dark red blisters, his lips chapped and peeling; hearing the noise, he barely opened a slit of his eyes.

"Little brother, how do you feel?" Lv Muzhi leaned forward, trying to keep his voice calm.

The soldier's throat moved once, and he weakly said: "Com... Commander,... mist... drifted over"

Another soldier couldn't bear to listen: "Commander, I'm the one who brought him here; the poison gas shell exploded right near him, and in less than ten counts, this brother of mine was shouting in pain; I don't know how the brothers and commanders on the frontline are..."

Chen Cheng listened on the side, turning to the military medical officer: "Is there a way?"

The military medical officer shook his head bitterly: "For now, it's mainly washing and relieving symptoms."

"Taking mustard gas as an example, once contact is made, the damage is already done; there is no cure in the whole world; subsequent infections and complications are the real headache..."

"How many frontline poison gas wounded have been admitted?" Lv Muzhi asked.

"Since yesterday's poison gas attack, the severely poisoned wounded sent down from each division have already exceeded eight hundred... just from the 59th Division, five hundred were sent down."

Chen Cheng explained: "The 19th Group Army's 59th Division defense line was the Japanese Army's key target; the Japanese 16th Division concentrated poison gas, tanks, and over a thousand infantry for a fierce attack!"

"In the emergency, most soldiers inside some Gas Mask Fortresses only wore gas masks before rushing out to fight the enemy, thus stabilizing the position;"

"but the 59th Division sent down nearly five hundred soldiers burned by poison gas at once, not counting gunshot wounds..."

"The number of gas-proof suits is far from enough; plus losses from high-intensity combat, two thousand gas-proof suits deployed on a fifty-kilometer defense line are still a bit short..." Lv Muzhi sighed.

Chen Cheng comforted him: "Professional gas-proof suits are too expensive, and the fifty-kilometer defense line is too long; we spread our limited gas-proof suits evenly across the battle line;"

"as long as the Japanese Army concentrates attacks on several points and uses poison gas in coordination, the situation becomes quite dangerous."

"Go, to the Xi Cheng Xian Shang Command!" Lv Muzhi made a quick decision, turned, and walked out.

Chen Cheng followed closely behind; Lv Muzhi walked ahead while saying: "Immediately notify Zhang Fei and Liao Yaoxiang; have their two brigades end their rest and refit status, move closer to the frontline, and be ready to join the battle at any time!"

Inside the Xi Cheng Xian Shang Defense Command, telephone rings, telegram clicks, and staff officers' urgent reports intertwined.

Xue Yue and several other division commanders and brigade commanders were already waiting there, all with tense expressions.

Beside them stood a man in a Zhongshan Suit; Xue Yue explained: "This is Shen He, Section Chief of the Lixing Society; according to the Lixing Society's reconnaissance, the Japanese Army transported a large quantity of chemical weapons by sea, as well as a large quantity of gas-proof suits; I fear the Japanese Army's poison gas offensive on the Xi Cheng Xian Shang will be very prolonged;"

"According to their information, the Japanese Army is even preparing to deploy the Imperial Guard Division!"