Chapter 427: Mukoda Koya, With No Way to Retreat

Jiang Anguo hadn't expected that the little devil's division commander would be so bold, moving the headquarters to the north bank of the Mijie River, so quickly that by the time he reached the south bank, the headquarters had already been shifted to the front line.

The little devil discovered us ahead of schedule.

"Xiao Si, hand me my gun!" Jiang Anguo shouted loudly.

"Yes, Young Master!" Xiao Si immediately handed the Mauser sniper rifle behind him to Jiang Anguo.

Jiang Anguo caught it, looked through the scope, and now it was even clearer: it was the little devil's lieutenant general, the 18th Division commander Mukoda Koya.

Mukoda Koya also saw the opposing Huaxia officer through his telescope.

But when he saw the other side take a rifle from the side and aim at him, he was terrified and instinctively dodged to the right.

"Bang!"

A 7.92mm bullet grazed Mukoda Koya's ear, knocking half of his left ear off.

If Mukoda Koya's single‑shot speed were any slower, his head would be gone.

"Protect the division commander!" The Japanese guard soldiers below reacted instantly, quickly pulling Mukoda Koya down from the platform.

Mukoda Koya instantly ducked among the Japanese soldiers, but a painful wail escaped his mouth.

Losing half an ear is a disgrace.

Yet he felt some relief; had he not dodged, he would have been left here.

Jiang Anguo set his weapon down, lifted his telescope, watched the panicked Japanese soldiers, glanced at the WarSystem, and received no kill notification for the Japanese division commander—clearly his shot had missed.

"What a pity!" Jiang Anguo sighed.

Jiang Anguo knelt on one knee behind a hastily built machine‑gun bunker, the barrel of his German Mauser 98K sniper rifle still warm.

"Young Master, was that a high‑ranking Japanese officer just now?" Xiao Si asked from the side.

Jiang Anguo nodded, "That man is the little devil's division commander; if he hadn't run so fast, we could have left him here."

Jiang Anguo's firing point was only six hundred meters from the opposing Japanese position.

He knew better than anyone that firing under the eyes of the Japanese Class A Division was like actively beating war drums.

Position exposed, the outcome was set.

Sure enough, after only a dozen seconds, a muffled cannon roar came from the opposite Japanese position.

The Japanese 18th Division is elite among elites; the Class A Division's organization includes the most seasoned artillery units, many of which fought in the Songhu Campaign, the Battle of Wuhan, and even swept the British Army across Southeast Asia, with combat experience so rich it makes one's hair stand on end.

They need no precise calculations; merely from the general direction of the gunfire they can quickly lock onto firing parameters, and two rapid rounds arrive in an instant.

"Dong dong! Dong—!"

The Japanese Type 94 75mm mountain gun shells, whistling sharply, slammed around the spot where Jiang Anguo had been standing; earth exploded into spray, tree trunks as thick as a bowl's rim were blown in half, shrapnel and fragments whistled past, the previously relatively flat position was instantly riddled with deep pits, smoke and dust billowed, obscuring the sky.

But Jiang Anguo had already vanished.

The moment he pulled the trigger and the bullet left the barrel, he felt no attachment, turned and shouted a low "Withdraw" to the Guard Company soldiers behind him; the entire elite Guard Company, like a swift cat, slipped along a pre‑dug trench, quickly retreating over two hundred meters to the second‑line defenses of the main position, all in a few seconds, perfectly evading the Japanese retaliatory artillery.

Squatting in the sturdy earthen fortification, Jiang Anguo brushed dust off his shoulder, stared at the sniper point now covered by artillery fire, his eyes showing no fear, only a flash of cold, sharp brilliance.

That's the effect he wanted!

The Japanese 18th Division entrenched around the outskirts of Mandalay, its light and heavy machine‑gun positions, mortar positions, and artillery positions were well concealed, using jungle and earthen slopes to build tight hidden works.

Previously, William and Song Yunfei's bombing formation had been carrying out bombing missions over Mandalay city, targeting the Japanese command, ammunition depots, and transport hubs; they knew nothing about the Japanese field positions on Mandalay's outskirts, and blind bombing not only wasted ammunition but also failed to precisely destroy Japanese fire points.

And Jiang Anguo's shot was a precise fuse, forcibly exposing all the Japanese hidden fire points— the Japanese would inevitably mobilize front‑line firepower, even artillery, to counterattack; those machine‑gun muzzles spitting flames and artillery batteries raising their barrels would instantly be laid bare in the Chinese observation.

"Jiang Sanpao!"

Jiang Anguo sprang to his feet, shouted loudly at the communications soldier, his voice cutting through the battlefield noise, clearly transmitting: "Open fire for me! Immediately contact William at Lashu Airport, have his bomber squadron take off urgently, target: all exposed artillery positions and fire points of the Japanese around Mandalay's outskirts, bomb them to death!"

"Yes!"

The communications soldier immediately crouched, quickly turned the crank of the field telephone, the crackling of electricity sounding, and the order instantly reached the Mijie River artillery position several li behind.

The Mijie River artillery position was already poised.

On the position, two clear artillery lines were neatly arranged, majestic.

On the left were the Type 94 75mm mountain guns that had been transported for this operation, their barrels blackened, bodies sturdy, the artillerymen crouched beside the guns, wiping shells, eyes tense.

Using Japanese weapons to destroy Japanese positions.

On the right were twenty‑four brand‑new German 105mm howitzers, their barrels robust, carriages steady, the black muzzles pointing directly at the Japanese position ahead, exuding a chilling pressure.

These twenty‑four 105mm howitzers were not obtained by Jiang Anguo exchanging points, but were rewards the system granted for completing campaigns, which he had kept in reserve and never used.

Now, facing the elite Japanese 18th Division, it's the perfect moment to unleash heavy weapons and a thunderous counterattack.

As for 150mm and 155mm howitzers, they're unnecessary; the 105mm can reach Mandalay, and using larger guns would feel like using a cannon against mosquitoes.

After all, Myanmar's sky now belongs to Jiang Anguo.

Artillery Regiment commander Jiang Sanpao is Jiang Anguo's hand‑picked confidant, specializing in concentrated fire.

His artillery skill is superb, temperament fiery; upon hearing the command over the phone, his dark face flushed bright red, his eyes erupted with fierce battle spirit.

He abruptly drew the pistol at his waist, swung it hard toward the sky, shouted with all his might: "All artillery, attention! Target: Japanese front‑line fire points, artillery positions! Range 363, bearing 1651! Fire!"

"Fire—!"

The messenger's shouts rose and fell, echoing over the artillery positions.

The next second, a deafening roar of artillery erupted!