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Chapter 2629 The Invincible Warrior (Third Update, Please Subscribe)
war!

The fighting continues. Although the situation in southern Lebanon is improving, northern Lebanon remains under Syrian control, and battles of varying scales continue to occur from time to time in different areas.

The Lebanese government forces and coalition forces are still carrying out various missions in southern Lebanon. After all, their mission is not just fighting, but also reconstruction, and restoring peace to this land.

This is precisely why the coalition forces proceeded steadily and cautiously, without any rash advances.

After a long period of effort, things are now returning to normal. In a way, perhaps this is the story of the Five Warriors of the Western Front.

On the mountain road, four Warrior off-road vehicles were driving. The machine gunners stood inside the vehicles, half of their bodies exposed, operating the MAG machine guns and watching their surroundings warily.

The soldiers inside the vehicle mostly appeared relaxed. After all, they had just completed a mission, and some of them were even more relaxed afterward, with a hint of reminiscing on their faces.

War is cruel, but sometimes, some experiences can be beautiful.

Looking at his comrades in the rearview mirror, Liu Xingyang thought for a moment and reminded them:
"Don't let your guard down just because this mission seems easy. No matter what, this is still a battlefield, and there are always all sorts of risks on the battlefield."

He turned to look at his subordinates in the car and said in an extremely serious tone:

"Our mission is to fight, to win, and to survive. We say every day—the names of heroes will be remembered. I don't want any of your names to be remembered; I only want you to return safely to your families. Do you understand?"

Liu Xingyang was serious, so much so that everyone nodded in agreement as they listened.

This was not because the platoon leader was cowardly, but because it was the responsibility of a commander. A commander's responsibility is to lead his men to victory while protecting them as much as possible.

For the military, there has always been a consistent view that the most precious thing is human life.

"Platoon leader, they're just a bunch of terrorists. We can defeat them as easily as cutting melons and vegetables."

Then, the soldiers in the car started chatting. While they were talking, Qiao Zhiwei, who was driving, saw a flock of sheep on the hillside and road in the distance. A shepherd was grazing the sheep there, so he immediately slowed down.

According to operational regulations, patrols are not allowed to stop except in special circumstances, not even to use the restroom, and must maintain a distance from civilians, especially under these circumstances.

"Attention, there are shepherds ahead interfering with traffic. Slow down your speed."

As soon as the platoon leader's voice came through the radio, laughter erupted from behind:
"Dawei, be careful, don't let it be another bell-ringing incident..."

They say this because sheep are a bit dim-witted; they not only like to stand in the middle of the road, but they also stand there and watch as convoys run over them, lying there wailing.

Such incidents occur almost every time we patrol.

Because they can't stop their cars, to avoid giving attackers an opportunity, they honk their horns from a distance when they see a flock of sheep. If the flock is still on the road when they arrive, then sorry... they can only run into it.

However, there is no problem if a sheep is hit; the owner can receive compensation from the nearby coalition forces based on the actual number of sheep run over.

Although the coalition forces have only been here for a few months, the shrewd locals have already discovered that killing sheep with coalition vehicles seems to be a way to make money, because for every sheep killed, the military will compensate the locals with the equivalent of 20 Lebanese pounds.

Although this compensation price was set by the military based on Beirut's market price, it was still much more valuable than the sheep would normally be worth if they were raised and sold. Moreover, the coalition forces didn't even want the sheep after killing them; the dead sheep were still theirs.

Therefore, sometimes, when some shepherds see military vehicles approaching, they simply ignore their sheep. Although it will be troublesome to claim compensation later, they are sure to make a profit, so much so that they wish they could keep more sheep.

This is why sometimes "bowlers" happen—like hitting a bowling ball, hitting a dozen or more heads at once.

Seeing Qiao Zhiwei repeatedly pressing the horn, trying to disperse the flock of sheep in front of him, Liu Xingyang said:

"Just maintain your speed,"

As he finished speaking, Wang Changde said:
“That’s right, Zhiwei, don’t rush this. You can’t rush this. I heard from a comrade that once when they went on patrol, they honked their car horn loudly, and nothing happened. The sheep immediately stood up and ran away, but the shepherd just beat the sheep to death with a stick and then demanded compensation from them…”

"Holy crap, I can't believe it..."

Amidst everyone's astonishment, the convoy finally approached the flock of sheep. Although they were going to ram them directly, they still slowed down. At the urging of the horns, the sheep finally dispersed. As the convoy passed, everyone even looked at the shepherd, wondering if he would kill a sheep with a stick.

Fortunately, nothing went wrong, and the shepherd didn't do anything like the crazy thing that would kill a sheep with a stick; instead, he waved to them.

The convoy continued onward, chatting along the way, naturally discussing the battle and the risks that might be encountered during it.

"I've heard that terrorists hide among civilians and sometimes they'll suddenly throw grenades at you. What should you do if you have to react in the event of a grenade attack?"

Hearing the question coming from the back of the car, everyone laughed and joked:
"Then take off your helmet and sit on it properly with your butt."

The machine gunner also offered his opinion:

"You should kick them away quickly with your feet, but that's hard to do because you don't even have three seconds."

Platoon leader Liu Xingyang stated directly:
"Just do it like you do in training, try to lie down in the opposite direction, burying your face down between your forearm and body armor to reduce the fatal damage from the explosion."

Then he added:

"Look at the ground. If it's soft sand or soil, the impact of a grenade will cause the fragments and the direction of energy to be very random."

However, on hard ground, anyone within about 3 meters will almost certainly be injured; whether they live or die depends on their personal protective equipment and luck.” Hearing what the platoon leader said, Wang Changde thought for a moment and replied:

“I think I could take off my helmet, lunge at the grenade, and then jump onto it to hold it in place. Kevlar helmets are theoretically capable of stopping grenade fragments.”

His words made everyone burst into laughter, and Liu Xingyang then said:
"Kid, that's just theory... If you actually do that, you might die. The safest way is to lie down and leave it to fate."

Despite the platoon leader's reminder, Wang Changde remained silent. He simply turned his gaze to the window and quietly looked at the distant, rolling mountains.

The group continued chatting idly. About half an hour later, a call suddenly came from the radio.

"Cobra 12 encountered a small arms and rocket attack while patrolling the S32 area. The area was immediately sealed off to prevent the terrorists from escaping..."

The sudden order immediately turned the soldiers, who had been joking around, into serious men. Liu Xingyang took out a map, looked at it, and then picked up the walkie-talkie to contact the command post.

"Tiger 9 has set up a checkpoint at the Highway 17 bridge in Zone L11."

Soon they arrived at their destination, Highway 17 Bridge, a highway bridge over a mountain stream. The soldiers quickly set up a checkpoint at the bridgehead.

Then, they began checking pedestrians and cars. All vehicles and pedestrians were searched, which is the most troublesome part of the counterinsurgency operation.

You never know when or how militants will appear. But they always exist.

Just like the terrorists who attacked Cobra Squadron, although the large number of terrorists have fled to the north, there are bound to be some scattered remnants who continue to resist.

Soon, the bridgehead was crowded with cars.
As the sun set, dozens of cars lined up at the bridgehead across the mountain stream, waiting to pass through the checkpoint. Wang Changde stood at the bridgehead, AR-15 rifle at the ready, his wary gaze sweeping over the cars—every passing vehicle here could potentially harbor a deadly threat.

No one knows which car is safe or dangerous, but they have to check them all.

Qiao Zhiwei was inspecting the underside of a truck with a vehicle inspection mirror, while Private Zhao Changyong stood on the other side of the checkpoint, holding a gun. The driver inside the truck was motionless, and the air was so quiet it was suffocating. In a place like this, no one would test someone else's bottom line.

Cars slowly drove through the checkpoint, and one after another, cars and pedestrians walked towards the other side of the bridge in the setting sun.

Among the waiting convoy, a white Wuling pickup truck slowly followed. When the truck reached the bridgehead, Wang Changde waved to signal the vehicle to stop, his right hand unconsciously resting on the trigger guard of his rifle, even though the truck's rearview mirror had a cross hanging from it.

But something seems off.

This is a gut feeling.

"Turn off the engine and show me your ID!"

Qiao Zhiwei strode forward and knocked on the driver's side window.

The car window slowly rolled down, revealing a man's face. He had typical Middle Eastern features, with a cross hanging not only on the rearview mirror but also around his neck, as if to deliberately identify himself.

Something is obviously wrong.

This thought grew even stronger in Wang Changde's mind.

"Certificate."

As Wang Changde scrutinized the car owner, the man took out his documents from the glove box, and it seemed there were other things as well.

"Watch out for what he's holding!"

Wang Changde suddenly roared. Almost at the same time he spoke, a grenade appeared in the man's hand, and his finger had already pulled the safety pin. Qiao Zhiwei and Zhao Changyong's expressions changed drastically, and they instinctively raised their guns, but it was too late to stop the other man's actions.

The grenade was thrown and landed in the open space between the soldiers.

Everything happened in an instant; even Wang Changde didn't have a chance to fire.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment. Qiao Zhiwei could even hear his own heart pounding. He stared at the grenade, his mind blank—the distance was too close, there was simply no time to dodge.

Although they had discussed various coping strategies beforehand, people were actually somewhat bewildered at that moment.

"Grenade!"

At this critical moment, Wang Changde made a move that caught everyone off guard.

He abruptly ripped off his Kevlar helmet and practically lunged forward.

In that instant, his body flew forward almost like a rocket, slamming into the grenade, helmet and all.

With the edge of his helmet pressed tightly against the ground, he used his body to shield himself from the grenade.

Qiao Zhiwei, Zhao Changyong, and two nearby comrades were speechless with shock. As they lay down, all they saw was Wang Changde's figure frozen in front of them.

The next second, a violent explosion made their eardrums ache. Those around only saw a cloud of smoke suddenly erupt beneath Wang Changde, thick smoke and debris flying everywhere…

(End of this chapter)