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墨書 Inktalez
"What does that mean?" Zhang Yang sat down.
"I'll explain it to you first," Qi Shen said, then gave a brief overview of the outdoor combat training. The training was divided into 12 small teams, each consisting of 5 members, and lasted for 120 hours, which is 5 days and nights. Each small team had a name, and since they all came from Shanhai Province, they simply called themselves the Shan Hai Squad.
The training operated on a points system. The combat zone was located several dozen kilometers away from the Blade Training Camp, in the Gobi Hills. Each person would be assigned two adhesive shoulder patches. During the training, if a team member tore off an opponent's shoulder patch, their team would earn 5 points. If they tore off both shoulder patches from the same opponent, that opponent would be considered "sacrificed" and would return to base to rest, while the remaining members of that team continued to fight.
The training provided handguns, rifles, and blank ammunition. If someone was hit in the limbs, they would need to wait in a designated area for 24 hours before continuing to fight; if hit in the head or torso, they would need to wait 48 hours. Hitting an opponent's limbs earned 2 points for the team, while hitting the torso earned 3 points. After being hit, clothing and helmets would display colored prints made from special materials that emitted colorful smoke upon contact with air.
Once an opponent was hit, their shoulder patches could not be torn off anymore. In other words, if they wanted to tear off a shoulder patch, they had to do it up close.
The rest area was equipped with clean water and food for resupply. Combat was prohibited within the red line of the rest area; however, one had to be cautious of ambushes before entering. Additionally, each entry into the rest area would deduct 2 points. Teams could not enter the rest area without sufficient points.
Before entering the combat zone, each person was only given 500 milliliters of water and a bag of compressed biscuits.
That afternoon, before the outdoor combat training began, Kuro Sijin held a pre-battle mobilization for the 60 trainees:
"Previous training has mainly focused on individual abilities; this time it's about teamwork. No matter how skilled an individual is, if all teammates are eliminated, it means nothing! I’m adding a new rule: regardless of your team's score, if your remaining members drop below two, you will be treated as last place and eliminated!"
At this time, a large area several dozen kilometers from Blade Training Camp had already been set up with 12 temporary bases. Although called temporary bases, they were essentially just trenches dug with some stones piled up; each base was about two kilometers apart. This part of the Gobi had many small hills; indeed, Kuro Sijin chose the location well.
"Damn it, our base is too exposed; I see Iron-Blood Squad near a small cluster of Poplar Trees," Liang Ming said as he jumped into the trench and paced back and forth.
"The position of Iron-Blood Squad might not be a good thing; they're more visible as targets," Qi Shen replied.
"I think we should remove these stones," Zhang Yang suggested thoughtfully. "Remove them? Leave no cover at all?" Liang Ming was somewhat surprised.
"Do you mean to dig the trench deeper?" Qi Shen pondered: "Yeah, that would indeed increase concealment. Plus with the provided blank ammunition, even if we poke our heads out of the trench to try and shoot someone’s helmet, it won’t be easy."
Without hesitation, the three men let the two women rest first and grabbed their entrenching tools to start digging. They even made steps at both ends of the trench for easier access.
"Which team should we attack first?" After a brief rest, Qin Wen took out the temporary base map and asked.
Shi Qing stared at the map and slowly said, "There are already more than one small squad planning to target the Iron-Blood Squad."
Qi Shen was already used to Shi Qing's cryptic abilities and interjected, "It's that small area of Poplar Trees; the target is too obvious. So what do we do?"
At this moment, all five of them looked up together: "Take advantage of the chaos!"
Night had completely fallen. The Gobi Desert, which had been scorching hot during the day, saw a sudden drop in temperature at night. The Shan Hai Squad's base was devoid of stones, and from a distance, it seemed like someone was peeking out from the trenches, as if guarding against an attack. However, upon closer inspection, it turned out to be just a few helmets placed around.
Behind a small barren hill several dozen meters from the Iron-Blood Squad's base, Qi Shen and Liang Ming, wearing straw hats made from camel grass, lay motionless on the ground. At that moment, Qin Wen and Shi Qing suddenly darted out from one side, seemingly fleeing for their lives. In the darkness, shadows moved swiftly, brushing past the Iron-Blood Squad's base through a small patch of Poplar Trees before disappearing in an instant. All that could be heard was a breathless voice saying, "Two small squads are coming over; hurry up!"
"Did you hear that?" Inside the Iron-Blood Squad's base, the five team members stood alert. The leader, Iron Stone, said, "Only the Shan Hai Squad has two women; are they here to scout or to sow discord?"
"That's not right; look over there." One team member pointed to an open area about 50 meters ahead.
The Iron-Blood Squad's attention was immediately drawn there. In the night, two or three figures could indeed be seen moving in that direction.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Iron Stone raised his gun and aimed before firing three shots without hesitation. However, after the gunfire, the figures continued to sway. "Did I miss?" Iron Stone couldn't help but voice his surprise. According to the rules, although blank rounds were used for shooting practice, if hit, the struck person should immediately stop any combat-related actions and enter a resting area before rejoining after sufficient time.
Iron Stone had always been confident in his shooting skills; facing such results left him momentarily stunned.
"Not good!" Iron Stone suddenly shouted, signaling his team members to quickly evacuate the base.
The five members of the Iron-Blood Squad swiftly left the trench and moved toward a nearby walnut grove. Just as they entered the grove, gunfire erupted from within it, while another team ambushed them from outside the trees. The Iron-Blood Squad found themselves caught in a pincer attack.
The people inside the walnut grove coordinated with those outside, clearly having planned this in advance. The Iron-Blood Squad was on the verge of becoming sitting ducks.
Iron Stone felt somewhat frustrated; participating in real combat field training and being wiped out on the first day would surely make them a laughingstock if word got out. However, it was evident that two small squads had joined forces to eliminate the Iron-Blood Squad. Given the current situation, it seemed hopeless to turn things around.
At that moment, an unexpected situation occurred. Gunshots rang out, and all ten members of the Iron-Blood Squad were shot in the back. Colorful smoke began to rise from the prints on their clothes, filling the air with a peculiar scent.
This meant that each of these ten individuals had given three points to the shooter, and they could no longer move; they could only raise their hands to signal and would have to stay in a designated area for 48 hours before returning to the battle.
The five remaining members of the Iron-Blood Squad were taken aback. Could more people have arrived?
Just as they were feeling somewhat disoriented, a figure suddenly flew out from a nearby Poplar Tree and in the blink of an eye was among the five. This person spun left and right, weaving in and out, almost dizzying the five. Finally, this individual managed to stand firm in front of Iron Stone. Iron Stone was still somewhat alert and suddenly raised his gun, aiming at the person's chest.
"Captain Iron, put down your gun. Your squad has already been eliminated," the person said, raising his hand and shaking ten shoulder insignias, a faint smile appearing on his pale face.
"I didn't expect that while we were setting a trap for you, we ended up being caught ourselves by your Shan Hai Squad," one of the robust leaders among the ten members of the Surround Iron-Blood Squad clapped his hands.
"Thank you for your kindness." Liang Ming and Qi Shen stepped forward with their guns, while Shi Qing and Qin Wen emerged from deeper within the Poplar Forest. With ten shoulder insignias totaling 50 points, and with ten bodies shot earning another 30 points, they had accumulated enough points—80 in total—ensuring they wouldn't have to worry about going to the rest area without any points for food and drink.
"I have one more question," Iron Stone asked the ten members of the two allied squads. "There are only ten of you; what about those two or three moving figures about 50 meters ahead?"
"Figures? How would we know? Oh wait, it seems there really are some moving..."
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