Atop the snow mountain, sunlight fell upon him, providing Luo Zheng a sense of warmth as his lips, which had turned purple from the cold, started to crack, a sign of dehydration. Experienced individuals knew that on a snow mountain, water was more crucial than food, similar to in a desert; eating snow only increased thirst, and lack of water could cause headaches, edema, frostbite, and other potentially fatal ailnts. Luo Zheng opened his canteen and drank a big gulp of water, swallowing it slowly in several sips for better absorption. In this ice and snow world, drinking water in large gulps wouldn't quench one's thirst.
"There are still three people whose positions we can't find. Let's discuss what to do," Lan Xue's voice sounded in the headset.
Luo Zheng set down his canteen and raised his sniper scope to continue searching. The area ahead was eerily quiet, with no signs of anything suspicious. Snow Bear's snow cave digging was extrely skilled; one could move freely below while the surface remained undisturbed, making it difficult to notice anything odd.
"Everyone hold on, find a place to hide and report your positions," Luo Zheng whispered as he glanced up at the sun, noticing it was already the afternoon. They had been fighting since early morning, having passed more than half the day already. Although they had killed seven enemies, the whereabouts of three remained unknown. These three were like three sharp swords hanging over everyone's head, creating a repressive atmosphere.
Luo Zheng carefully recalled the details of the fight up to that point. The first enemy was killed by a grenade trap, and the second, who went to check on his fallen comrade, was suddenly shot and wounded by Mountain Eagle, bleeding too much, and had since died. These two were successful ambushes. At that ti, the enemy had sent two snipers over, and the rest seed to be behind.
The last one was ambushed by Snow Leopard. The enemies didn't retreat, which ant they were still ahead in the snowfield, caught between assaults from both fronts. However, with the remaining enemies not revealing themselves, there was nothing they could do on their side. How could they break this standoff?
"Ghost, little brother, I have another enemy sniper's heavy coat. How about I bring it to you to see if we can draw out the enemy? With you three snipers and Snow Leopard Brothers watching from behind, I guess they wouldn't dare to fire," Ghost Hand whispered suggestively.
"No, it's too dangerous," Luo Zheng refused the suggestion without hesitation.
However, Ghost Hand didn't listen. He stripped off the heavy coat of another sniper who had been killed on the slope, took the white camouflage and weapons as well, glanced at the sled and backpack but decided against it for now, and said, "I'll co back for these later," as he climbed up the slope shouting, "I'm out."
"Get back," Luo Zheng urgently called out.
However, Ghost Hand did not obey and chose to expose himself, walking towards the mountain top where Luo Zheng was, while cautiously keeping an eye on his surroundings. Everyone who saw this was shocked, suddenly alert.
In the snowfield, the Major saw Ghost Hand's exposure and felt his face turn ashen with rage, hearing a comrade's voice in his ear, "Captain, let shoot as payback for our brothers."
"No, it would expose your position. I don't want any more casualties," the Major imdiately refused, feeling a surge of rage. Had he still had more than five n, the Major wouldn't mind exchanging fire one for one, but with only two n left, and one enemy still hidden and of unknown location, this hidden enemy was like a sharp sword pressing down on the Major's mood, keeping him from acting rashly.
"But?" the comrade protested reluctantly.
"No buts," the Major insisted firmly, perhaps realizing his tone was a bit harsh, or perhaps feeling the need to soothe his comrade, the Major chuckled bitterly and said, "The enemy has exposed four of their locations; there's still one more. With our capabilities, avoiding attack from the four exposed enemies isn't a big deal, but the position of the other hidden one is uncertain. We can't plan the evasive movents well, it's too risky."
"All my brothers have died in battle, and my life has no aning anymore. Let draw the fire of that hidden enemy. Once we've pinpointed the positions of all five of them, you must have a way to kill them, right?" urged the surviving mber of the Snow Bear team.
"Too many people have died; I don't want to see any more dead," the colonel said in pain.
"Captain, a Snow Bear might die in battle, but the Snow Bear's spirit must not be lost," the other pleaded excitedly.
"Spirit?" The colonel paused, then realized that from the beginning, he had led the team to attack with that very spirit. Although sowhat reckless and negligent, there was no mistake in his tactics; hesitating now was like moving to another extre. Wasn't this another mistake?
Thinking this, the colonel's eyes sharpened as he coldly said, "You're right. If we let him just walk over there, it will only make the enemy more arrogant. We might as well die; all our brothers are gone. What's the point in just the two of us clinging to life? Let's fight together. Even in death, we should die like brothers, and be brothers again in the next life."
"Yes," the other said with excitent.
"Listen to my command. The enemy is coming up the slope, and there's no one behind it—a blind spot. Run to the back of the slope after firing, and be quick. Drop all your gear to avoid slowing down. The enemy is skilled, so run three steps then swiftly change direction; not more, not less," the major instructed coldly.
"Yes," the other acknowledged, quickly aiming at Ghost Hand, eyes burning red with murderous intent.
"Three, two, one, fire!" the colonel commanded coldly, aiming towards the mountaintop and pulling the trigger without hesitation.
"Swoosh, bang!" The sounds of two gunshots rang out almost simultaneously, sounding like one, but the echo of the bullets was distinct. As a bullet whizzed by a rock on the mountaintop, Luo Zheng, hidden on the other side, was startled and dropped down. Before he could ask what was happening, he heard a scream over the headset—it was Ghost Hand, causing him alarm. Peeking out, he noticed a Black Shadow flash toward the slope with incredible speed.
"What happened?" Luo Zheng asked, panicked.
"Got shot, but it's not lethal," Ghost Hand said angrily, "Did you spot the enemy?" If being shot didn't reveal the enemy's position, it would be a great loss.
"The enemy is too fast, extrely cunning, and has unpredictable movent techniques. Plus, they were close to the slope; I didn't have a chance to shoot," Lan Xue replied in frustration.
"How bad is the injury?" Luo Zheng asked quickly, surprised.
"Luckily, it wasn't a sniper rifle. The bullet was blocked by the bullet-resistant vest and body suit; it didn't penetrate, but it did damage a rib in the chest," Ghost Hand said lowly, annoyed. Lying on the ground and playing dead, he searched for suspicious targets, not expecting to expose himself and take a bullet only to let the enemy escape. These bastards were indeed formidable.
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