The sniper heard the command and knew it was ti to provide covering fire for the retreat. He quickly took the grenades hanging on his body and threw them forcefully ahead. A normal person could throw a grenade up to 40 ters, but for well-trained Special Forces, throwing 80 ters wasn't a problem—with the strongest able to reach nearly 100 ters.
A score of grenades whistled through the air, landing perfectly around the enemy and detonating in rapid succession. Shrapnel flew in every direction, hitting the ard personnel who had stood up to give chase. Screams mingled with the blasts, and it was then that Luo Zheng gave the order to retreat to the "scholar," and ten snipers, under cover of the smokescreen, turned and ran.
If the enemy's assault had been more flexible and less adamant, Luo Zheng might have held his ground until nightfall. However, the ferocity of the enemy's attack, utterly disregarding their own losses, put trendous pressure on Luo Zheng, forcing him to withdraw ahead of schedule and adjust his retreat plan.
The first and second squads retreated down the eastern slope, while Luo Zheng led the third squad to the south. Everyone grabbed ropes and rushed down—the cliff rappelling was a skill the Special Forces had to master. With ropes in hand, cliffs presented little challenge compared to flat ground.
The first snipers to descend grasped the ropes and charged downwards, leaping to land on an outcrop of rock. This first drop was about ten ters. Upon landing, they crouched to absorb the montum, then sprung up and continued leaping down, holding onto the ropes with one hand. Their palms were protected by tactical gloves, so there was no worry of abrasions.
With three ropes and three people descending at a ti, the twelve mbers of the third squad, including the "scholar" and Luo Zheng, could all rappel down in four rounds. As the second batch descended, Luo Zheng saw a large number of ard warlords storming up the slope, and he imdiately ordered those still on the cliff to open fire, diverting the pursuers' attention and providing cover for those retreating on the eastern side.
As the gunfire sounded, the ard group surged forwards, enraged. They had lost many n to finally gain the higher ground, only to find it deserted. Turul was raging like thunder, and with the sound of gunfire, he naturally refused to give up. Luo Zheng, witnessing the horde of ard n catching up, couldn't help but smile.
After several exchanges of fire, the third group descended. Luo Zheng quickly called out, "Scholar brother, hand your gun, you and the squad leader of the third squad, retreat swiftly."
"What about you?" the Scholar yelled in surprise.
"Never mind , hurry up," Luo Zheng said impatiently, raising his voice.
Reluctantly, the Scholar and the squad leader of the third squad grabbed the ropes and went down. Luo Zheng didn't imdiately follow; instead, he took cover behind an outcrop and suppressive fired at the approaching enemy. The assailants were truly ignited by the battle, charging forward recklessly with wild howls. Sustained gunfire hit all around Luo Zheng, sparking off the rocks and putting him in a precarious situation. Forced to rely on instinct, he fired his weapon.
He held them off for a while, and realizing the enemy was less than a hundred ters away, Luo Zheng guessed that the Scholar and squad leader had made it down. He couldn't wait any longer. Swiftly drawing a Japanese sword, he rolled over and slashed the rope, then hurriedly got up, took a couple of steps forward and pounced, cutting another rope.
"Da da da!" A barrage of bullets shot towards him, tearing up the surroundings. Luo Zheng jumped in shock as he felt bullets striking him, causing sharp pain, but fortunate to be wearing a bullet-resistant vest custom-made by the Equipnt Team—far superior to the standard issue for Special Forces otherwise he would have certainly died.
Without ti to check his wounds, Luo Zheng rolled again and grabbed another rope, twisting his body in a bizarre motion to stabilize his center of gravity as he hurriedly rappelled down to an outcropping of rock, continuing to leap downwards.
The sound of bullets grew closer to his ears. Guessing that the enemy had reached the top of the cliff, he dared not rely on the rope for further descent. Landing on an outcrop, Luo Zheng paused to look up. The top of the cliff was obscured by rocks, completely out of sight. He swung his Japanese sword, severing the rope.
"Captain." Soone shouted from below, it was the Scholar.
Luo Zheng judged from the voice that it wasn't too far to the bottom, leaned his head to look down, but couldn't see clearly due to the protruding rocks, and hurriedly asked, "How much further? Can you see ?"
"Can't see you, only the falling rocks, by the sound of it, shouldn't be too high anymore." The Scholar shouted back.
"Quickly gather the ropes on the left and right side, leave the middle one for ," Luo Zheng yelled.
The rope was an important tool for descending. Although it had been cut, it absolutely could not be taken by the enemy, otherwise, it would be troubleso. After giving out the commands, Luo Zheng tied the rope he held to a protruding rock, tugged it to ensure stability, then grabbed the rope and continued to jump down.
"Rat-a-tat!" Intense gunfire erupted from the top of the cliff, striking the rocks, causing sparks to fly and stray bullets to whiz by. Luo Zheng was startled and swiftly took cover under a protruding rock. The cliff top was out of sight from below, but the concentrated bullets hitting the rocks could create ricochets. One careless mont could lead to a deadly hit.
"Captain." Down below, the Scholar shouted anxiously.
"It's alright, everyone take cover," Luo Zheng yelled back, while observing his surroundings. He chose a route and patiently waited. A few minutes later, surmising that the militants on top of the cliff had vented enough and the shooting stopped, Luo Zheng grabbed the rope and quickly jumped down, seeing the river below after a few descents.
Just as Luo Zheng was about to jump down again, he suddenly felt tiny rocks rolling down from the cliff, startling him. He swiftly looked up, and as more small rocks fell, he realized that the pursuers were climbing down the cliff. This thod of pursuit was slow, but the sheer number of enemies was overwhelming.
Luo Zheng quickly jumped down. The river was deep and cool, and the current not too strong. Surfacing, he saw everyone taking cover under the slope of a huge rock, their faces anxious as they watched him. The Scholar even approached him. Touched, Luo Zheng asked, "Everyone okay?"
"We're all fine, not a single one missing," the Scholar quickly replied.
"Good. Let's retreat quickly, the enemy is coming down. Notify the first and second squads to regroup at that mountaintop," Luo Zheng said, pointing towards the highest peak to the south, which was easy to identify. He nodded approvingly as he saw two snipers gathering the ropes and slinging them over their shoulders, then moved forward.
They waded through the river, rushing quickly towards the south. Their gazes were resolute, their morale high. After the recent battle with countless enemies killed and everyone safely withdrawn, everyone had full confidence in Luo Zheng's tactical command abilities and were full of confidence for the upcoming task.
Having conveyed the orders, the Scholar watched Luo Zheng's retreating figure and silently marveled. This encounter had shown him that Luo Zheng's tactical command skills were much more profound, and a look of reverence appeared in his eyes—a respect for strength.
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