Chapter 194: Hold! I

Regiment Commander, hello! Political Commissar, hello!

A military vehicle stopped outside the exercise directing unit's tent.

Seeing the newcomer, the Training Section Chief, responsible for this exercise, immediately led his men in a salute.

Wang Zhongxi walked in with a smile, glanced at the display, and asked, "How's the fight going, any outcome yet?"

The Training Section Chief immediately reported the situation: "This exercise has been underway for thirty‑two hours; both sides have already suffered over half their losses, but the Third Battalion holds the advantage."

Half an hour ago, the Third Battalion launched a continuous assault, crushing the Second Battalion's outer defenses in one blow; the main position is now precarious.

Furthermore, the Second Battalion's Battalion Commander was hit by artillery fire and has withdrawn from the exercise; the Company Commander of the Sixth Company and the Instructor of the Second Battalion have also fallen in succession…

"And what about the Third Battalion?" Wang Zhongxi asked further.

"The battalion‑level Headquarters is intact, and the command systems of the Seventh and Eighth Companies are likewise fine; only the Company Commander and Instructor of the Ninth Company withdrew from the exercise yesterday during the day."

Based on the battle situation, the Third Battalion indeed holds the advantage at present.

I believe it won't be long before we secure the final victory of the exercise.

But Wang Zhongxi was still a bit surprised: "I truly didn't expect it—Second Battalion managed to hold out this long; in past exercises they lasted at most twenty hours."

The Training Section Chief explained: "There was an unexpected development on the battlefield this time—a sharpshooter in the Second Battalion's Sixth Company; he helped the unit break the enemy's assaults several times and repelled their charges. Without him, they probably wouldn't have held up to now."

"Is that Lu Yang?"

When the sharpshooter of the Sixth Company was mentioned, Tan Yuanzhou naturally thought of Lu Yang.

The Training Section Chief nodded in response: "Even though he's only a private, his performance on the battlefield rivals any veteran's."

"In the first exercise where the First Battalion faced the Second Battalion, he single‑shot the Battalion Commander of the First Battalion, helping his unit secure an early victory."

"In this exercise, not only was his performance steady, it was even better than before. As soon as he entered, he caused the Third Battalion to lose many combat engineers, forcing a revision of the battle plan because of him."

"The reason the Third Battalion hasn't broken through the position so far is not only the minefield near the main position and the few heavy anti‑tank cannons, but also partly because of Lu Yang."

"I've, as Training Section Chief, planned so many exercises, confrontations, and competitions for the Regiment, yet I've never seen any soldier wield a gun to such an extent, even shaping the battlefield's rhythm with his own hands."

Tan Yuanzhou had been busy with work the past two days and hadn't been able to attend to this matter.

So upon hearing it for the first time, he wore a completely shocked expression, truly a bit incredulous.

He knew Lu Yang's shooting skill was good, but good shooting skill and battlefield performance are two different matters; in that sense, this kid is still a born warrior.

Wang Zhongxi, on the other hand, beamed; although he hadn't been able to attend in person, he had heard the report over the phone and knew about the recent development on the exercise field.

He had originally assigned Lu Yang to the Sixth Company rather than the Seventh Company for balance, and it now appears to have been very effective.

Tan Yuanzhou smacked his lips and teased, "Fortunately you didn't throw Lu Yang into the Third Battalion's Seventh Company; otherwise this exercise would have been impossible to fight."

Wang Zhongxi hummed, "The Regiment can't let one unit dominate; the Seventh Company is already strong enough. If we gave them another sharpshooter, wouldn't Gao Feng just take off from the spot?"

Tan Yuanzhou frowned, "However, even if Lu Yang performs excellently, the Second Battalion will still lose this time."

Based on the current battle situation, he analyzed: "The minefield on the Second Battalion's main position, along with a few anti‑tank rocket launchers, are their only defenses, but those alone cannot stop the Third Battalion's multiple charges."

"Moreover, the Second Battalion now lacks even an overall commander, so its defense can't be coordinated as before."

Wang Zhongxi, however, disagreed: "I think the Second Battalion still has a sliver of hope; if they can hold on another twelve hours, they'll receive artillery support from the rear."

Tan Yuanzhou: "That may be, but with their current strength, I'm afraid they won't hold out to the end, right?"

Wang Zhongxi: "It's a matter of human effort; how could a living person die from holding in urine?"

Although the Regiment Commander is optimistic about the Second Battalion, the others have no confidence at all that the Second Battalion will win.

Lu Yang certainly has ability, but no matter how capable, he's only one person and cannot overturn the entire battle's direction.

In at most two or three hours, the Second Battalion's main position will be overrun, followed by a sweeping push.

Facing those armored behemoths dubbed "mobile fortresses," the infantry are like children without the strength of a bound chicken, utterly powerless to resist.

"The Second Battalion's main position can't hold any longer!"

"Without unified command from the Battalion, their defense is as flimsy as paper!"

"If we launch two more assaults, locate and clear their remaining minefield positions, even if the enemy has anti‑tank rocket launchers, it won't be a problem!"

Inside the Third Battalion's Headquarters, the Company Commanders and Platoon Leaders looked extremely excited, as if victory were already theirs.

But the Battalion Commander's expression was not as bright as expected; instead, it was rather solemn.

The battle originally planned to be resolved in just over ten hours ended up being forced to drag out to nearly three times that length, and it was fought in a clumsy, halting manner.

Many of the early organized charges were brutally repelled, and a tank and two armored vehicles were blown up.

The Third Battalion Commander issued the following order: "The longer the battle drags on, the more we must fight steadily; haste leads to failure. Right now, what we need to do is consume as much of the Second Battalion's ammunition as possible."

"Their heavy rocket launchers are already few in number; find a way to create a breach and force them to use them."

"Machine gunners and the Mortar Squad, sharpen your eyes; when you spot a slightly larger cannon barrel, go and engage it."

"After firing, take cover; absolutely must not be targeted by their snipers. If you locate that kid's sniper position, concentrate fire on it directly."

"Yes!"

Facing a highly mobile sniper like Lu Yang is indeed hard to deal with.

Earlier they were still considering having the best shooters specifically target him.

As a result, the best shooter, Guo Yongwen, unfortunately was taken offline during reconnaissance.

The other shooters combined still couldn't match Lu Yang's skill, so there was no need to forcefully sacrifice heads.

Long‑range mortar fire, together with blasting the sniper position to pieces, is the optimal solution, as it can maximally block and restrict Lu Yang's movements.

The Third Battalion Commander ordered: "Let the assault team launch three more raids, with irregular intervals between them; do not give them any chance to rest."

"We hold the initiative on the battlefield; continuous defense will keep them on edge, both body and mind exhausted."

"When the third wave of raids is finished, that's when we launch the final assault, catching them off guard!"

"Gao Feng!"

"At once!"

"When the time comes, you lead the charge, break up their main position, and wipe out the Second Battalion without leaving a single piece of armor!"

Yes!

Gao Feng took the order, quickly left the tent, and relayed the order.

Upon learning that an all-out attack would be launched soon, Ding Tengfei was especially excited.

Although, up to now in the drill, he has just been a bystander.

But being able to see with his own eyes how intense the firefight on the front line is, he already feels satisfied.

Especially, when he heard that someone on the front battlefield kept being taken down by Lu Yang, Ding Tengfei's inner feelings became even more restless.

He even fantasized that, during the final all-out attack, he could defeat him; in that case, he would be the Seventh Company's greatest merit, and the company commander and battalion commander would look at him with new respect.

Although Ding Tengfei knows this hope is very slim, but what if he manages to find a loophole?

Compared to the Third Battalion, at this moment the Second Battalion's position is filled with smoke and dust, and bullet casings litter the ground.

The outer positions have been completely breached; the soldiers behind the main position all show fatigue and cannot muster spirit.

They have been fighting continuously for over thirty hours, without closing their eyes the whole time.

The enemy repeatedly launched harassing attacks on them, leaving them utterly exhausted.

Moreover, not long ago the battalion commander was killed by artillery fire, losing their backbone, and it made everyone feel as if their souls had been sucked out.

According to reason, the battalion commander's authority should devolve to the company commanders below, and indeed that is the case.

The Sixth Company's headquarters was completely wiped out, so overall command could only choose one from the Fourth Company commander and the Fifth Company commander.

But it is said that the Fourth Company commander and the Fifth Company commander have had some disagreements over battle deployment, and to this day they still have not reached a unified opinion.

Because they are of equal rank, neither will yield to the other, and they argue incessantly.

Internal troubles and external threats, plus the fact that there are now few heavy tubes capable of damaging tanks and armored vehicles.

This also causes every soldier in the Second Battalion to be under a dark cloud, unable to muster any fighting spirit, even feeling that this is a battle they are sure to lose, simply waiting for the enemy to roll over them.

Behind the position, the few dozen remaining soldiers of the Sixth Company sit in their respective areas, dazed and numb, drinking water and chewing sweet, nauseating, hard-to-swallow compressed biscuits.

Including the previous drill, the soldiers have been fighting continuously for three days, with total rest time adding up to less than five hours.

Under such high pressure, even Lu Yang feels a kind of mental and physical exhaustion, unable to muster spirit.

He knows that the enemy will soon launch an all-out attack, and he knows that with the current defending forces of the main position, they cannot possibly stop the enemy's tracks.

But to lose just like that, Lu Yang is truly unwilling.

He wants to win!

After drinking the last sip from his water bottle, Lu Yang seemed to have made some decision.

He shouldering his rifle stood up, took seven or eight grenades from the ammunition box and stuffed them into his pockets.

He also took an assault rifle and several magazines, preparing to leave the position alone.

Lu Yang, where are you going?

Stop!

I told you to stop!