My wife is the stand-in.

"Where are the other heroes from the Hongdu branch?! These kinds of things are always handled by the heroes of Qunxia Mountain, with the army providing support. How could you be put in charge of the mission? Who in command assigned this task?!"

Oriental Leaf Knight's tone was aggressive, laced with sarcasm.

"The Wuzu troops are directly commanded by the capital. If you have any complaints, you can call the capital to inquire."

Oriental Leaf Knight's face twitched. Looking at the cold eyelights under the Wuzu Alloy Exoskeleton mask, he took a few breaths and pointed at the photographers beside him: "And what about these people? Special operations against evil forces are always dangerous. So far, only drones can track and film them. Who will protect the safety of these reporters?"

"The war correspondents dispatched by the China Military Daily have accumulated rich experience around the world. Their mission is to capture combat footage of the Wuzui Powered Exoskeleton, which is planned to be broadcast in the China Military Daily and China News in the future."

“Mr. Luo Haoyong, your command of the expeditionary force was requested by [Empress of the Sun Palace] from the capital. It was only valid during the period when the automatic artillery position was lost. An hour ago, the automatic artillery position was recaptured by [Stand User] Amanosaki and [Witch Doctor] Zeng Aman. Your command has been terminated. Now [Empress of the Sun Palace] is waiting for you to return and assist her.”

The commander of the elite infantry brigade spoke with a military air, straightforward and direct, giving no face to Dongfang Shuyexia.

Upon hearing this, Amanosaki suddenly realized.

No wonder I wasn't publicly reprimanded by this guy for my late arrival and provocation at the Eastern Leaf Man earlier.

After all that, it turns out that once he started fighting the Taotie, he no longer had a superior-subordinate relationship with him.

Oriental Leaf Knight's face first turned red, then purple, and finally white. He clenched his fists tightly, gritted his teeth, and left without saying a word.

'Those damned soldiers! If it weren't for the capital's backing, I could kill them with a single feather!'

Under the leaves of the Eastern Tree, he thought viciously, feeling as if the gazes of the heroes were pricking him with needles. He quickly moved to a blind spot in their sight and fled as if his life depended on it.

"Everyone!"

The military commander shouted to draw everyone's attention back to him, "The nation is in peril, and demons are rampaging. This is the perfect opportunity for us men to make our mark! You have two minutes to pack your things. We need to get to the scene and set up within twelve minutes!"

Behind the commander of the infantry, the soldiers marched in unison, roaring like tigers, displaying a magnificent and awe-inspiring presence.

The knights in front of him remained silent, turning away to pack up.

Chapter 195: A Glimpse of the Conspiracy

The commander, or rather the captain, of the infantry battalion, who called himself 'Number 3,' actually not only requisitioned the punitive expeditionary force, but also the engineers of several nearby automatic artillery positions.

The reason given was that the artillery pieces might malfunction on the battlefield, so the work of maintaining spare parts and replacing machinery was handed over to these engineers. After all, they were all engineers with military status, so it didn't matter where they worked. For these engineers, being able to get up close to these cutting-edge technologies was more fun than sitting on the battlefield drinking tea, taking a dump, smoking, and waiting for artillery to malfunction.

As for the engineers and superpowered individuals who created these warrior exoskeletons?

In the words of No. 3, "They are all valuable national assets and are not allowed to approach the battlefield. They can only collect data through drones and sensors."

Therefore, Xu Xiangqian, as the position commander, took on the task of leading a small number of soldiers to protect the engineers, and accompanied the main force.

Like all the soldiers, Number 3 was taciturn and refused to utter a single word except for necessary information.

Moreover, his voice was deliberately adjusted by a distortion device, making it impossible to recognize his original voice. In addition, all the soldiers' powered exoskeletons were of a standard height of 2.4 meters, so even the user's body shape could not be distinguished.

Nevertheless, Number 3 still shared some key points with everyone.

For example, four large tracked transport vehicles and eight tanks came with them.

Each transport vehicle can support two soldiers' exoskeletons for maintenance, charging, and equipment replacement at the same time, while the remaining space inside the vehicle stores spare parts.

As for the eight main battle tanks, in addition to artillery support, they were mainly for dealing with the worst-case scenario—if the transport vehicles were captured, they would destroy the transport vehicles with artillery to prevent these equipment from falling into the hands of the bandits.

"When facing these evil forces, I hope you will prioritize protecting the transport vehicle!"

These are the exact words of number 3.

"Tch! What a load of crap! They call it suppressing evil spirits and heretics, but it's really just making us heroes act as babysitters, cleaning up the messes of these iron lumps!"

"What do you mean by 'it is the time for us men to make our mark'? Does that mean we women are not worthy? I might as well go home and save myself from being exposed to the wind and rain in this awful weather!"

The extermination team was very resentful. Although their complaints were different, Amanosaki understood that what bothered them was not the mission itself, but the fact that these things, which were once considered urban legends, had now become real in front of them. These were the ironclad elements that could shake the chivalrous system and harm everyone's interests.

Amanosaki noticed that even the usually carefree Li Junzi had a worried look on his face and a solemn expression.

No one is afraid of difficult tasks, because Qunxia Mountain has a clear and generous reward system, and the opportunity to slay evil spirits can be converted into cash and various social welfare benefits.

Furthermore, with the expansion of Qunxia Mountain and its merits in protecting the territory and ensuring the safety of the people, the people's worship of chivalrous heroes has increased day by day, and the vast majority of chivalrous heroes have a sense of identity with themselves. This is an important part of the spiritual construction of modern chivalrous culture.

People dislike Wu Zu, but at its core, it's fear.

He feared his dream of becoming a chivalrous hero would be shattered, that chivalry would disappear in his generation, that the martial world would no longer be lively, and that there would be no chivalry on the road, only silent tin cans.

So although Number 3 seemed to have directly forced the Eastern Leaf Knight to retreat, in fact, his sharp and direct military style only made the other knights present feel angry, except for Amanosaki.

"When morale is low, it's hard to lead a team." Amanosaki sighed heavily, holding Hinata Hyuga's hand.

Some say that the martial arts world isn't about fighting and killing, but about human relationships and social interactions. Amanosaki doesn't know if this statement is correct, but based on his experience over the years, the martial arts world rebuilt under the government's guidance does indeed place great importance on etiquette. Although Number 3 was just stating the facts, his direct questioning and refuting of the Eastern Leaf Knight's behavior was, in the eyes of the martial arts community, undoubtedly a slap in the face to the entire group.

Hinata Hyuga interjected, "And what about you? Didn't you also disrespect the Oriental Leaf Knight?"

"I'm different. After all, I'm also a knight-errant. Can the inside and the outside be the same?" Amanosaki gave a wry smile.

'Please, I hope we don't have any conflicts during the war!'

Amanosaki knew most of the punitive expeditionary force. If a conflict broke out during the war, the front line would inevitably collapse, and his friends would probably not be able to escape unscathed.

It's said that earthenware pots inevitably break near wells, and generals are bound to die on the battlefield. But if someone dies because of internal strife, that would be incredibly foolish!

Moreover, there are dozens of branch-level heroes and thousands of gang heroes defending the blockade line across the entire Yangtze River!

If the conflict escalates further, this mess could become a major disaster!

He felt a heavy burden on his back; the conflict between the knights and the elite soldiers was almost inevitable.

This responsibility, which fell from the sky out of nowhere, was hard for Amanosaki to accept.

Grinding his teeth, Amanosaki pondered what exactly was going on that led the capital to send out this sensitive force at such a sensitive time.

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"Commander Wang, why can't I contact the front lines with my communicator? Also, my computer and tablet have been forcibly taken offline."

Lin Shuyu, carrying a laptop bag and a stack of documents, rushed into the operations room.

No one stopped her, because [Tianrenxiang] was extremely good at handling paperwork, so Lin Shuyu had memorized all the logistics data and ammunition reserves for the entire region, and she could be pulled in by the staff to attend meetings at any time.

Seeing Lin Shuyu's somewhat angry expression, Commander Wang, who was standing in the secondary position looking at the sand table, gave her a wry smile and shrugged.

A tall man occupied the spot where Commander Wang had previously held. This man, in his early thirties, gripped both ends of the sand table with his bulging muscles, as if he were facing not a sand table, but the actual terrain. He himself seemed to be the embodiment of war, entrenched on this land.

Zheng Lun, commander of the Third Army Group of the C-class, stared intently at Lin Shuyu.

"Lin Shuyu, right? You've come at the right time. The legion needs your strength now. Come with me to the headquarters."

"I regret to decline. My mission from the branch is to assist Commander Wang in deploying and distributing flood relief supplies. I will not go anywhere else until I receive a new mission from the branch."

Lin Shuyu took a slow breath.

It is quite difficult to remain calm and composed in front of someone like Zheng Lun, who holds a high position at a young age and has served in the military for many years, possessing an iron will and an unyielding toughness that brooks no dissent.

Out of politeness, Lin Shuyu did not use her supernatural abilities.

"And after the supplies are distributed, please let me go find my boyfriend."

Ding Ding Deng!

Zheng Lun strode up to Lin Shuyu, his robust physique exuding an imposing aura.

“According to the Special Warfare Regulations, as the army group commander, I have the authority to mobilize all resources within the area under my command.” He paused slightly, then emphasized, “Including manpower, and you.”

"According to information from agents infiltrating the heretical sects, there are thirteen gathering places of heretical sects near the Hongdu branch's basin. The Hongdu branch and the provincial government have urgently dispatched people to suppress them, and heroes from nearby branches and the main headquarters are also on their way. The situation is extremely dangerous."

"what!"

Lin Shuyu exclaimed in surprise.

Zheng Lun glanced at Lin Shuyu with satisfaction, believing that the critical situation had prepared her mentally.

But in fact, what Lin Shuyu was worried about was Amanosaki's safety.

Chapter 196: Hinata's Battlefield Temptation

It can only be said that, as expected of those from the military, the Wuzu Brigade moved very quickly. Compared to the Xia Ke, who were used to fighting alone and whose tactics tended to be more like special operations, they were much more efficient.

In less than ten minutes, the somewhat bulky team arrived at the canyon exit and quickly set up defenses.

The main force of the expeditionary force of knights arrived just as the metal fortresses were fully set up.

These chivalrous heroes were very reluctant to cooperate with the soldiers, so in order to justify refusing to help with the defense, they simply arrived late on purpose.

Because Amanosaki arrived earlier, he knew better than the other warriors that the defensive positions blocking the entire intersection were mostly made of machinery.

Using remote-controlled machinery, the engineers quickly inserted the metal balusters carried by the tanks into the ground, poured a ring of quick-drying concrete around the outside, wrapped them with barbed wire, and dropped landmines directly into the middle.

These abattoirs were used in modern warfare to block the advance of large vehicles such as tanks. On Earth, the most memorable image of these things for people around the world is probably the Normandy beaches in black and white photographs.

The Nazis used this cheap industrial contraption made of metal and concrete to set up densely packed beachheads to restrict tanks.

Simply put, this metal chevaux-de-frise is a modernized version of the ancient barricade. However, while bamboo or wooden barricades were used to restrict horses, metal chevaux-de-frise are used to restrict modern heavy machinery.

Number 3 wasn't sure if any of the gathered demons were large, so he simply followed a textbook approach, like a military manual.

The only difference is that there are no foxholes or machine gun emplacements here.

Instead, there were earthen mounds piled up in front of the tanks to protect them, and wooden-like soldiers standing straight on the horizon.

Amanosaki felt that these guys were deliberately posing to provide reporters with excellent shooting angles.

Reporters from the China Military Daily were spread across various branches of the military, and even tried to interview the martial arts heroes, but they were refused by the heroes in a fit of anger.

Number 3 ignored them and just led his men to work until the ground shook and a cloud of murky yellow dust rose up in the canyon. Only then did the captain of the militia take over the megaphone and urge everyone to take their positions in a stern voice.

Perhaps he was aware of the resistance from the heroes, so he didn't interfere but let everyone make their own arrangements.

In a sense, this also reflects his trust in the "dedicated personnel for dedicated tasks" that Qunxia Mountain has been promoting for many years, as an ordinary person.

When facing evil forces, experienced heroes are always calmer than others.

"Alright, let's get in position."

Amanosaki said to Hinata Hyuga.

Hinata nodded gently and silently stuffed his pockets full of energy bars.

"Gemstones are limited, so spend them sparingly and eat something to recover."

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Unlike most swordsmen, Amanosaki did not stand near the fortress. He had no desire to compete with the warriors or show off in front of reporters to gain publicity. Instead, he climbed onto the rocks in the canyon and observed from above with the Magician's Eye.