You were tasked with guarding the Sihang Warehouse, and you brought out a Tiger tank?

At the mountaintop, in the Hall of Gathering Righteousness.

Xie Heizi was sitting with his legs crossed, holding a wine bowl in his hand, still bragging to a few of his confidants:

"Let me tell you, when it comes to fighting, it's all about terrain! Our Black Cloud Mountain is a natural fortress. Back then, not even a single regiment of the government troops could break through it. That Lin guy from Qing County..."

Before he could finish speaking, a burst of gunfire suddenly erupted from the foot of the mountain.

"Oh, a fight's started?" Xie Heizi's eyes lit up. "Judging from the commotion, the second-in-command's side has made their move?"

However, before he could even be happy for two seconds...

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A muffled explosion rang out, and Xie Heizi's hand trembled, causing the bowl to shatter on the ground with a "crack."

"What...what's that noise?"

He jumped to his feet, his face changing drastically: "Cannons? How come this security regiment has cannons?!"

Although he was illiterate, he knew that this commotion could not have been caused by a hand grenade.

"Report—!"

A henchman tumbled and crawled into the hall, his face covered in blood, crying and shouting:

"Boss! Something terrible has happened! Ghost's Sorrow... Ghost's Sorrow is gone!"

"What?!"

Xie Heizi grabbed the henchman by the collar, his eyes bulging like copper bells: "You're talking nonsense! How long has it been? Not even half an incense stick's time, and Ghost's Sorrow is gone? Where's the second-in-command? What's he good for?!"

"The second-in-command... the second-in-command was shot dead as soon as he showed his face, along with the machine gunner, they're all dead."

The henchman cried with snot and tears streaming down his face: "The government troops have sharpshooters and cannons. We brothers can't even lift our heads! Now the government troops have already charged up and are less than two miles from the gate."

"hiss--"

A collective gasp filled the hall.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Just moments ago they were boasting about how impregnable the pass was, and how one man could hold it off, but in the blink of an eye, their most dangerous pass was leveled like a sandcastle.

That was a resounding slap in the face.

Xie Heizi let go and slumped down on the tiger-skin chair, his eyes glazed over.

"Damn it... we've run into a tough opponent this time..."

But he quickly jumped up again, a ferocious look on his face:

"What are you afraid of? We still have the village gate, the iron birch wood village gate. As long as we guard the village gate, they can't get in. Pass down the order, everyone get on the wall and defend it to the death."

Unbeknownst to him, at that very moment, on the winding mountain road below, four gray-painted armored vehicles were slowly approaching, towing four mountain guns and emitting a low rumble.

-----

The mountain wind howled, stirring up clouds of dust.

Through the telescope, the entire view of Black Cloud Village, a mile away, was clearly visible.

Lin Feng slowly put down the Zeiss binoculars. He had to admit, Xie Heizi was quite something.

The village wall was built against the mountain, using rammed earth mixed with gravel, and the outer layer was covered with logs, reaching a height of three or four meters.

The walls are equipped with firing ports and watchtowers at intervals, and several protruding gable structures can form crossfire to block blind spots.

"That's interesting."

Lin Feng pursed his lips, a playful smile curving his face:

"This stockade is well-built, capturing the essence of infantry drill manuals. It seems that Xie Heizi might have been a platoon or company commander in some warlord's army before."

No wonder.

From the first year of the Republic of China, warlord conflicts never ceased on this ancient land.

The Zhili-Fengtian War, the Central Plains War... there were major battles every three, six, and nine days, and minor battles every day.

Countless scattered soldiers and disillusioned officers, armed with weapons and brimming with killing skills, wandered into the wilderness and became outlaws.

This resulted in the bandits during the Republic of China era being extremely fierce in combat, some even more troublesome than regular troops.

"However..."

Lin Feng patted the cold armor plating of the Sd.Kfz.222 armored vehicle beside him, a hint of mockery in his eyes:

"This knock-off looks intimidating and imposing, and it might be enough to scare a regular security force with only old-fashioned rifles. But against real artillery and armored vehicles? It's nothing but trash."

It's like you've practiced your Iron Shirt and Golden Bell techniques your whole life, thinking you're invincible, only to run into an opponent piloting a Gundam.

This isn't a battle; this is a dimensional reduction attack.

"Commander, should we just blast it?" Zhao Dashan asked, holding his MP18, somewhat eager to try.

"No rush."

Lin Feng waved his hand, his expression turning serious: "There's a saying that goes, 'Strategically despise the enemy, but tactically take them seriously.'"

When a lion hunts a rabbit, it uses its full strength.

Moreover, these bandits were local bullies, and they understood the principle of having multiple burrows better than anyone else.

"Pass down the order: Third Company, First Battalion, stop watching the show. Have them disperse to the back, circle around to the back of Black Cloud Mountain, and block all the exits down the mountain."

Lin Feng pointed to the back mountain area on the map: "Who knows if there are any tunnels or narrow paths in this mountain stronghold that lead to the outside world, or even paths that only monkeys can climb. Tell the Third Company Commander not to let a single fly escape. These guys have blood on their hands; if even one of them gets away, they'll be a menace."

"Yes!" The messenger rushed off.

After setting up the encirclement, Lin Feng took a deep breath and refocused his gaze on the seemingly impregnable mountain stronghold.

"These notorious bandits have committed countless atrocities and are exceptionally cruel. Keeping them alive is just a waste of food. Today, we're here to... cough cough, to rid the people of this scourge."

"attack!"

There were no shouts or attempts to persuade them to surrender.

With Lin Feng's command, the battle officially began.

More than 300 militiamen, led by several junior officers from the system, bent over and used a naturally formed ditch on the hillside as cover as they slowly made their way up.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

When they were about 400 meters away from the stockade wall, the militiamen started firing their guns.

At this distance, the hit rate for these militia members basically depends on faith.

Most of the bullets hit the rammed earth of the stockade wall, kicking up clouds of dust, or flew off somewhere unknown.

"Beat them! Give them a good beating!"

On the stockade wall, the bandits also began to fight back.

"Snap—Snap—"

The bandits had a variety of weapons, including homemade guns, old-fashioned rifles, and even a few golden hook rifles that they had somehow acquired.

Bullets whizzed past, hitting the dirt in front of the militiamen with a soft thud.

"Oh my god!"

A young militiaman was so startled by a bullet that grazed his scalp that he flinched, nearly dropping his gun. He pressed himself tightly against the bottom of the ditch, trembling all over.

"What's there to be afraid of? Even if you lose your head, the scar will be the size of a bowl."

The system soldier squad leader next to him kicked him in the butt: "Stick your head out and aim before you fire. We have heavy machine guns backing us up, what are you afraid of?"

"Da da da da da—"

As if to confirm the squad leader's words, the Maxim heavy machine guns of each company in the 1st Battalion began to roar from the rear positions.

A dense hail of bullets swept against the stockade walls like a torrent of water, pinning the bandits down so they couldn't lift their heads.

With the support of heavy firepower, the militiamen gradually became bolder.

They discovered that as long as they didn't foolishly stand up and become targets, hiding in the ditch was actually quite safe.

The fear of bullets whizzing past your ears gradually transformed into a thrilling adrenaline rush over time.

"Bang!"

The young militiaman finally mustered his courage, poked his head out, and pulled the trigger at a figure peeking out from the stockade wall.

Although he missed, he shouted excitedly and frantically pulled the bolt to load the next bullet.