Even if I'm a useless bum at Whampoa Military Academy, I'll be invincible in the War of Re

At the Third Battalion's position at Shimenkou, hundreds of Japanese soldiers, wearing gas masks and carrying guns, cautiously crept up. Although the officers repeatedly boasted that all the Chinese would be poisoned to death, most of the veterans remained very cautious.

In their view, even if most people were poisoned, there was still danger; it was impossible for them all to die, as a single bullet could take someone's life.

The officers were furious, but they could only swallow their anger; there was no one to punish everyone.

As the distance drew closer, Major Honda estimated they were only a few dozen meters away, so he loudly encouraged the Japanese soldiers:

"Warriors, do you see? There's not a single living soul left on the Chinese position; they've all been poisoned. Charge in and kill them all!"

Upon hearing this, the Japanese soldiers were energized, straightened up, and prepared for their final charge.

This was the moment Battalion Commander Lü had been waiting for. His starting pistol fired, instantly igniting the position.

The soldiers of the Third Battalion, who had been waiting impatiently, began firing at the Japanese. Countless bullets swept towards the Japanese like a storm, leaving blood and flesh flying everywhere they passed, with dead and wounded scattered all over the ground.

Major Honda once again collapsed to the ground in frustration, trembling as bullets whizzed past his head.

Other Japanese soldiers weren't so lucky. They rushed to the front, facing a hail of bullets, and were either killed or wounded by the dense barrage of bullets.

The gas masks greatly impaired the Japanese soldiers' vision, making it impossible for them to see what was happening around them, and their reactions were also much slower than when they weren't wearing them.

The officers and veterans were the first to react, screaming in terror:

"There's an ambush! Get down quickly!"

"You idiot, you've been tricked!"

"Banzai, thrust forward!"

Those who dared to charge forward and were defiant would immediately be shot dead by a few bullets; the battlefield did not believe in any bullshit Bushido.

In a short time, more than half of the Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded. The rest obediently lay on the ground to avoid bullets, while the stubborn ones went to report to the Yasukuni Shrine.

Major Honda's gaze toward the defending troops' positions was filled with hatred. He was now almost a lone battalion commander. What kind of unit was this that even poison gas couldn't do anything to them?

The remaining Japanese soldiers fought back in a panic, but with little effect; they were mostly just trying to bolster their courage.

Major Honda wanted to order a retreat, but he couldn't report back to the regimental commander, so he had no choice but to grit his teeth and exchange fire with the defenders.

Colonel Kurahayashi Kimito, commander of the 58th Infantry Regiment, was already cursing and insulting every woman in Major Honda's family. Senior staff officer Major Chiba didn't dare to utter a sound.

"Fire! Fire! Bomb the Chinese positions flat!"

Major Chiba quickly tried to dissuade him:

"Commander, the warriors are too close to the Chinese positions. They're risking friendly fire."

"You bastards! These cowards don't deserve to be called warriors. They deserve to fake their deaths!"

Colonel Kurahayashi was furious, but he didn't insist on firing any more. The two sides were too close, and the error margin of the mountain guns was too great. If too many friendly fire incidents occurred, he would have a hard time explaining it.

"Chiba-kun, this is the Empire's most advanced special missile! Why aren't the Chinese reacting at all? Are they immune to all poisons?!"

Colonel Kurahayashi's question was somewhat absurd, but Major Chiba patiently explained:

"It seems that the 71st Army has been equipped with gas masks on a large scale, so special ammunition is not very effective against them. From now on, we can only rely on conventional warfare."

"Commander, the opportunity has been lost. Let the warriors retreat first; continuing the fight will only increase casualties."

Colonel Kurahayashi did not get angry this time, but snorted coldly:

"Useless trash, we'll deal with them when we get back!"

Major Chiba breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Colonel Kurahayashi finally relent, and then ordered his men to issue a retreat order to Honda's battalion.

After finishing, he said:

"Commander, I suspect that the Chinese garrison has been replaced. It is no longer the 61st Division, but another well-equipped unit."

Colonel Kurahayashi arrogantly declared:

"So what if we replace them with an elite team? They're all trash compared to the 58th Regiment!"

Major Chiba was so choked that his eyes rolled back. This was a common occurrence in the Japanese army, where people underestimated their enemy. Even at this stage of the war, most officers still did not regard the Chinese as equal opponents.

Ahead, the remnants of Honda's battalion were fleeing in disarray, leaving behind piles of corpses;

As a top student who graduated from the Army University, Major Chiba had already keenly sensed the danger, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

When Major Honda returned, the 58th Regiment's artillery group couldn't wait to retaliate, bombarding the Shimenkou position with rows of shells. Colonel Kurahayashi nodded repeatedly, and his expression improved considerably.

Colonel Kurahayashi stopped taking shortcuts and instead engaged in a proper positional warfare battle with the 646th Regiment, which was the Japanese's forte.

The Shimenkou position was just an ordinary earthen fortification, and the terrain was not particularly dangerous. Colonel Kurahayashi did not believe that it could not be taken; he had a full-strength infantry regiment under his command.

Although it was a flanking maneuver, they still carried the regimental artillery; eight 75mm mountain guns bombarded the defending positions relentlessly, pounding them back and forth several times, without the defenders reacting. This gave Colonel Kurahayashi even more confidence, and he said smugly:

"Good heavens, the Imperial Army's artillery fire is really fierce. It seems that the Chinese only have a few 20mm mortars and dare not show themselves in the face of the Imperial Army's powerful artillery fire."

The Chinese positions have been destroyed. Which brave warrior is willing to go and collect the bodies of the Chinese?

As Colonel Kurahayashi spoke, he glanced intentionally or unintentionally at Major Kitahara, who understood immediately and stepped forward to volunteer for the mission.

"Commander, the Kitahara Battalion is willing to fight and will certainly not disappoint you!"

"Alright, I know of Kitahara-kun's prowess, so I'll leave it to you then!"

Colonel Kurahayashi spoke very politely, while Major Kitahara left with a murderous aura. Major Chiba wanted to say a few words of advice, but stopped himself, knowing that saying discouraging things at this time would be bad luck.

The artillery fire had just ceased when the Third Battalion's position was already bustling with activity. Squads of soldiers emerged from the dilapidated anti-tank guns, covered in dust, but no one paid them any attention.

At the command of their platoon and squad leaders, they swiftly returned to their battle positions. Although many trenches had been leveled, it did not affect their fighting.

Life goes on, the fight continues.

Third Battalion Commander Lü Zeng, also covered in loose dust, was observing the enemy situation through binoculars when Deputy Battalion Commander Lin Feng approached and said:

"The Japanese are serious now, at least a battalion! Should we call in artillery support?"

Lü Zeng shook his head and said:

"We can handle these Japanese devils. The regimental artillery company will not be exposed for now. Let our own artillery company give the Japanese a few shots first."

Remember, only fire ten rounds, don't let the Japanese get caught up in it!

"Ten rounds will only take a few breaths, don't worry, we'll move on after that, they won't be able to hold us off!"

As soon as Lin Feng finished speaking, he couldn't wait to give the order. Lü Zeng's expression returned to normal. He came from the Fourth Regiment of the Training Corps, which was an elite German-equipped division, but it was still far inferior to the Tiger Legion.

The current configuration of the three battalions is unique in the whole country; even the Japanese can't compare.

This is the source of his confidence to take on an entire Japanese battalion single-handedly; he dared to fight even an entire regiment!

The artillery company didn't keep Lü Zeng waiting long. Before the Japanese soldiers even entered the 6-meter range, the first volley of six shells slammed into the Japanese ranks, instantly igniting the battlefield.

The Japanese skirmishers were spread out, but every shell had a hit, some hitting three or five targets, others two or three, shattering the Japanese's well-organized formation.

With four mortars and two infantry guns, this firepower was comparable to a regiment of the 71st Army and exceeded that of a Japanese battalion.

Since the Type 94 mortar was widely deployed to the troops, the Japanese also had their own mortars, which were even deployed to the battalion level in first-class divisions.

Kitahara Battalion reinforced itself with two 90mm mortars and two infantry guns to launch a counterattack, but by the time they opened fire, the 3rd Battalion's artillery company had already moved away.

The Japanese suffered dozens of casualties, but this did not have a significant impact on the Kitahara Battalion, which had over a thousand men; it only disrupted their formation considerably.

Although Major Kitahara was furious, he did not call a halt to the attack. Instead, he charged forward under the gunfire, and no one cared about the unfortunate man who was hit.

Before the Japanese could catch their breath, the defenders' M1919 machine guns spewed out long tongues of fire again. Two to three hundred meters is the optimal range for machine gun fire, and the Japanese were slaughtered and felled.

"Baka yarou, fire! Take out the Chinese machine gun!"