271: Chapter 269: Is It Certain Death?
271: Chapter 269: Is It Certain Death?
When there were five minutes left until the artillery preparation was to be launched, Gao Yang and his group collectively changed the communication frequency on their walkie-talkies, severing the connection with the company-level commanders and switching to the frequency used by the assault team.
Frey, leading a thirty-five-man rocket launcher assault team, had already reached the assault position, across the street from two enemy-held buildings, hidden behind a safe house at a distance of about one hundred and fifty meters.
If they moved further forward, although there was a shed made of sheet metal, they would lose effective cover and be exposed to enemy snipers.
Gao Yang was positioned two hundred meters from the enemy building, and lined up beside him were forty-six snipers, including twenty-five marksman who used semi-automatic sniper rifles and twenty-one snipers.
All the marksman from the Instruction Platoon had been called here, and all snipers who had the freedom to choose their own positions had also been pulled back to this location.
Cui Bo was among these forty-six people, and including Gao Yang, there were forty-seven snipers in total.
It was not groundbreaking to bring snipers together for a mission, but gathering more than forty snipers to deal with an almost equal number of enemies was definitely a luxury treatment for the enemy.
However, Gao didn’t know if his enemies would be moved to tears by this.
Lee Jinfang, Glolov, and Bruce were all ready for the assault.
After completing his initial sniping tasks, Gao would pick up his shotgun and form a four-man assault squad with Lee Jinfang and the other two.
Gao had already placed all the rifle magazines in the backup positions, and what took their place at the most accessible spot were fully packed shotgun shells.
Besides, the slide of his pistol was already open, ready to fire as soon as it was drawn.
Joining Gao and his team in the assault were the first and second squads of the Instruction Platoon, with the first squad following Gao and his team to attack the four-story building and the second squad responsible for providing flank cover.
Everything was ready, just waiting for the artillery to start the pre-attack artillery preparation.
Mortars and rocket launchers had been pulled to the closest reachable point, and all shells and rockets had been unboxed and piled up in the most convenient place for use.
Once the bombardment began, it would be continuous and intense.
The bombardment would not stop until the target buildings were taken.
With one minute left until the artillery preparation was to commence, Gao brought his eye to the scope and aimed at a firing port he was responsible for.
There were no sufficiently tall buildings where Gao and his group were to provide a high elevation firing position, but the advantage of low buildings was that they would not obstruct the firing arc of the rocket launchers.
Finally, the “whoosh” sound of the Type 63 rocket launcher firing marked the beginning of the artillery preparation.
Rockets with trailing flames shot directly at the buildings occupied by the enemy.
Due to the close distance, the rockets hit the buildings almost as soon as their tail flames extinguished.
The Skull Gang now had twenty rocket launchers, capable of firing two hundred and forty rockets simultaneously.
Suddenly, the exterior of the two buildings turned into a massive fire wall, with explosions that never ceased, as if the buildings were putting on a fireworks display.
Following the rocket launchers, the mortars started firing.
However, their targets were not the two buildings but the areas to the sides and rear of the buildings where the enemy was also hiding.
Their goal was to completely cut off the buildings from support on both flanks.
The tremendous power of the rocket launchers and mortars, which had been exerted when the Skull Gang was attacked, had seemed sufficient, but Maide and Abu still insisted on buying more of what they considered game-changing mortars and rocket launchers.
Now, the heavy weaponry they had almost obsessively acquired was demonstrating its power.
Forty rocket launchers fired simultaneously, and not just once but continuously, with plenty of ammunition to shoot freely.
As a result, the 60mm caliber light cannons showed their prowess as the infantry’s best companion, with continuous explosions that allowed the rocket launcher assault team not to worry too much about fire from outside the buildings.
Three minutes into the artillery preparation, the rocket launchers suddenly ceased firing, and the mortars extended their firing to the sides and rear of the buildings.
At the moment the rocket launchers stopped firing, the concealed rocket launcher team leapt out and rushed towards the four-story building.
If the rocket launcher operators were well-trained, and the rocket launcher assault team even better trained, they could have taken advantage of the suppression bombing to get within fifty meters of the building.
However, Gao didn’t dare make such a decision given the quality of the rocket launcher operators.
Although the distance was considerable, the fire preparation had still achieved significant effects.
Frey and his men sprinted until they were nearly one hundred meters from the building without receiving any counter-fire from inside.
Gao kept his focus on the scope from beginning to end.
When he finally spotted a red glow in the narrow firing port through his scope, he immediately pulled the trigger.
Following his shot, the sound of sniper rifles firing became one with the surroundings, then the gunfire never ceased.
After firing, Gao didn’t notice anyone returning fire from the shooting port he targeted, but the other sniper rifles were firing incessantly.
Gao stole a glance outside and saw muzzle flashes emerging from firing ports in the buildings, especially from the highest fourth floor.
Snipers perched on that floor had high ground advantage; the bullets fired by Gao and his team would only be blocked by sandbags, and enemy snipers and machine gunners were cautiously firing once and shifting positions.
All six heavy machine guns roared into action, trying to suppress the firepower from the two buildings, but not every gunner could match Glolov’s shooting skills.
Their suppression, while intimidating, was not very effective.
Gao Yang watched as members of the rocket launcher team fell one by one, regretting for the first time that he had agreed to Frey’s request to personally join in the assault.
The artillery preparation and sniper suppression had had some effect, but clearly not enough to disable the enemy’s ability to counter-attack.
As Gao Yang grew increasingly anxious, Li Jinfang suddenly shouted, “They’re within fifty meters, assault team, go!”
Upon hearing Li Jinfang’s shout, Gao Yang immediately stood up, slinging his rifle over his back and grabbing the shotgun at his side, he dashed out to join Li Jinfang, heading straight for the four-story building.
As he dashed out from the street corner, Gao Yang felt a jolt in his back.
Although he heard a crisp sound and knew he had been hit, it seemed to have struck something minor on his back.
Flames burst out from a bush on his left, and the firepower from the building also targeted them.
Gao Yang didn’t stop running, and as he continued to charge forward, he yelled, “Rabbit, to the bush on our left!”
Cui Bo immediately swung his gun toward the bush Gao had mentioned, while at the same time, Li Jinfang extended his left hand and roared, “Second squad, clear both sides of the building!”
The second squad rushed forward, and Cui Bo’s bullets had already torn open a soldier hiding outside the building.
Frey was much further ahead than Gao Yang and the others, but when he felt confident to hit the small space of the firing hole, he suddenly came to a quick halt.
Amid the crossfire, he knelt on one knee, took a brief aim, and fired his rocket launcher.
The rocket hit the sandbags at the firing hole but still managed to burrow into the building’s interior and explode—the first rocket to do so.
After making his successful hit, Frey immediately got up and continued to sprint forward in an S-shape.
As he got closer, the remaining twenty or so rocket launcher marksmen fired their weapons from a kneeling position, and the interior of the four-story building was alight with the flashes of explosions.
At least fifteen rockets had successfully penetrated the shooting holes, but the rocket launcher team paid a heavy price.
As they launched while kneeling, bullets from the suppressed enemy fire struck down four more of their number.
The efforts of Frey and his team had silenced the enemy on the first and second floors of the four-story building.
By the time Frey and the others reached the foot of the building, no more tongues of flame had darted from the windows of those floors.
The entrance to the building was completely blocked by sandbags, and the large French windows were also barricaded, leaving only a small firing port.
To enter the building, Frey’s team would need to clear a path first.
Frey, running at the front, reached a sandbagged firing port and used the rocket launcher tube—still unloaded—to shove a sandbag from the window opening.
Seeing the sandbag being pushed aside, Frey paused in surprise and then shouted with joy, “The sandbags can be pushed away; we don’t need to blast an entrance!
Get some people here to breach it!”
Just as Frey excitedly shouted, something round and rolling was thrown out from a nearby firing port.
It was as if a current flashed through Frey’s mind—he leaped forward and caught the object with both hands, just as a baseball player would catch a fly ball.
After catching the round object, Frey, just before hitting the ground, managed to throw the rolling thing back out the firing port, much like a baseball player must throw the ball back as quickly as possible after catching it.
After he had thrown the round object back to where it came from, Frey finally had the chance to shout, “Grenade!”
As Frey shouted and lay on his back, the grenade exploded beside him inside the room.
Just then, Frey despairingly saw two grenades fall from the sky, with their landing spot right on his head.
Frey rolled to the inside as fast as he could, but as he started to move, he already knew he was doomed.
No matter which direction he tried to evade, the grenades would hit the ground and explode before he could escape their blast radius—in other words, he was a dead man.
(To be continued.
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