417: Chapter 414: Breakthrough the Minefield 417: Chapter 414: Breakthrough the Minefield The cheerful celebration lasted for a very short time.
After the crisis was averted, a new problem now lay before Gao Yang, and that was, how to continue the attack action.
Having just experienced a life-and-death situation, but Sirte and Tommy were veteran soldiers who had seen many battles.
Although it was inevitable to feel scared afterward, what set them apart from ordinary people was their ability to break free from fear in a short time.
This was precisely where the value of veterans lay: they, like everyone else, could feel fear, but they could control their negative emotions and also knew when to feel it and when not to.
Sirte and Tommy rested for about five minutes, and both almost simultaneously regained their composure.
Once Tommy collected himself, he immediately stood up, patted the dirt off his buttocks, and said in a deep voice, “I’m okay now.
Let me talk about the minefield.”
Gao Yang nodded, asking, “How about it?
Can we cross the minefield?”
Without hesitation, Tommy said, “I think it’s no problem.
The enemy’s minefield is of a warning nature.
Although they are bounding mines, the placement is quite simple.
It’s a long blockade line with as few mines as possible, with almost no depth.
In other words, as long as we break through a very narrow blockade, we can get through the minefield.”
“What reasoning did you use to make that judgment?”
Tommy squatted on the ground, picked up a stick, and started drawing a diagram on the ground, saying, “The minefield is newly laid.
I don’t know if they have completed the work of surrounding the entire camp with minefields, but if the enemy intends to use mines to prevent and kill any potential attacks, they would likely use this kind of trapezoidal minefield, narrow at the front and wider at the back.
When someone triggers the mines at the front, the mines at the back would also be activated, and even if the mines are discovered, they cannot be cleared quickly.
The minefield in front of us is laid out horizontally, and the enemy uses very long tripwires, with multiple tripwires restraining each other.
They placed mines on the terrain that is easiest for people to cross, and in places that are difficult to pass, they just hung a line, which means, even if someone triggers the tripwire, the mines might explode far away.
So, I believe the enemy has only laid a minefield that mainly serves as an early warning.
Of course, on major routes, it’s both lethal and warning, whereas on secondary routes, for example, areas that are difficult to pass, it just serves as an early warning.”
Sirte spoke up loudly, “Buddy, if it’s just a warning minefield, wouldn’t it be a better choice to use only tripwires?”
Gao Yang had the same doubts as Sirte.
From his observation of the way the minefield was laid out, the tripwires for the mines were hung high in the air, not the common low ones that hang near the feet.
“The enemy has hung the mine’s tripwires quite high, this is to avoid being touched by animals, which is consistent with the characteristics of a warning minefield.
But if they only intend to use mines for warnings, why would they bury bounding mines?
If an animal steps on them, not only would there be the problem of false alarms, but it would also waste a lot of mines in a large area.”
After hearing Gao Yang’s question, Tommy nodded and said, “You’re right, but the answer I actually already gave earlier.
That is, the enemy chooses to lay lethal bounding mines on the main routes, and the reason they are not worried about animals triggering them is because they have a strong smell on the mines they buried.
When sweeping, I could smell a stinky odor.
I don’t know what the source of the smell is, but it’s definitely a scent that more sensitive animals would avoid.”
Sirte shrugged and said, “There are few large animals in the rainforest.
The main large animals that move on the ground here are peccaries and giant anteaters, both of which have a very sensitive sense of smell.
If sprayed with a chemical scent that frightens them, indeed, there isn’t too much concern about animals triggering the mines.”
Gao Yang immediately said, “Good, I understand now.
That means we can continue preparing for the attack.”
Tommy looked at his watch and said, “We still have more than two hours before it gets dark.
There’s enough time.
I’ll find a safer route and clear the mines.”
Glolov said, “Then, what about when we retreat?
We were lucky this time, coming here right after the rain, we could easily spot the mine tripwires.
But after dark, it’s going to be troublesome.”
Sirte said loudly, “No worries, I know the small trails from Teodulo’s camp to the outside world.
Rest assured, no one is foolish enough to mine their own path, unless they want to die.”
Gao Yang waved his hand and said, “Great, Worker Bee, it’s up to you now.
Do you need to rest a bit more?”
Tommy shook his head and replied, “No need, I’m not that fragile.
You guys wait here for me.
I’ll come back and lead you over once I’ve found the route.”
Tommy went off on his own to find a safe route.
He had only just strolled at the gates of hell, and now he was about to face the mines again — it must be said, Tommy was quite courageous.
Gao Yang and the others waited intently for news from Tommy, and after he had left, Lucica turned to Bruce, who was right beside her, and asked, “Who is he?”
Since regaining consciousness, Lucica had remained silent and indifferent to everything around her, neither making a phone call to Pailano nor giving Sirte, who suddenly joined them, a second glance.
Gao Yang was pleased to see this, and Bruce, who knew the inside story, was also pleased that Lucica wouldn’t request to make a phone call to Pailano.
Sirte said he knew the way to Teodulo’s camp, and after hearing Lucica’s question, Bruce hesitated before responding, “A friend of Ram’s.”
Bruce didn’t know if Lucica would next ask to make a phone call to Pailano, but after staring deeply at Sirte for a while, she remained silent.
After a long silence, she said softly to Bruce, “Thank you.”
Bruce looked at Lucica in astonishment and said, “What?
Are you thanking me for treating you?
If so, you don’t need to thank me, I am a military doctor, and treating you is my duty.”
Although a bullet ant bite is very painful, Lucica’s main danger was an allergic reaction.
Bruce had been by Lucica’s side for the past two days, not for any special reason but simply because she was the only one who needed his care.
Gao Yang saw Bruce and Lucica talking.
Lucica usually said no more than necessary, so he was a bit worried.
But Bruce knew what he was worried about and discreetly gave Gao Yang an ‘OK’ gesture.
Gao Yang then relaxed and stopped paying attention to what Bruce and Lucica were saying, instead focusing on Tommy’s actions.
Entering the minefield definitely required vigilance, and choosing a safe route required even greater caution.
After waiting for about an hour, Gao Yang finally received a response from Tommy.
“Boss, I have found a safe route.
I am going to start clearing the obstacles.
I am not far from you, so everyone needs to be careful.
Repeat, I am going to start clearing obstacles, be careful.”
Gao Yang immediately responded, “Ram copies, make sure you’re extra careful.
If it’s too difficult, abandon the task.
Repeat, if it’s too difficult, abandon it.
Don’t take risks.”
Searching and confirming the locations of mines took a long time, but clearing tripwires did not take too long.
Just five minutes later, Tommy said over the radio, “Obstacles have been cleared, I am going forward to scout and confirm there are no new minefields ahead.
Wait for my message.”
“Good job, stay extra cautious.”
After roughly twenty more minutes, Tommy finally sent back a message, “I’ve scouted forward about a hundred meters and found no new minefields.
I am heading back now.
Wait for me.”
It gets dark quickly in the rainforest; as soon as the sun sets, darkness almost instantly falls.
Gao Yang glanced at his watch; there were less than forty minutes until sunset, so they had to move quickly through the minefield to reach a safe area within that time.
Gao Yang called out, “Get ready.
Once Worker Bee returns, we’ll move out immediately.
We must reach the safe zone before it gets dark.”
Tommy returned more quickly than expected, taking only ten minutes.
As soon as Tommy arrived, he hoisted his backpack, gathered all his belongings, and gestured, “We need to use a tight formation now.
Keep a three-meter distance, follow the person in front closely, and never leave the path I’ve taken.”
Gao Yang promptly said, “Understood.
Lucica, inform your people.
Big Dog, Rabbit, you two cover our rear.
Toad, Can Opener, you walk behind me.
Little Fly and the guide in the middle, let’s move out now.”
Although under time pressure, Tommy’s pace was slow.
They couldn’t afford to be careless just to save time; they had to be steady, so Tommy couldn’t go too fast.
Gao Yang followed closely behind Tommy, not daring to miss a step.
Their team’s formation was dense; if a bounding mine detonated, it could result in death or serious injury, and none could escape.
After passing through the minefield’s warning line slowly but safely and allowing the team to reach the end of the route that Tommy had scouted and marked, it had almost become dark.
Only then did Gao Yang breathe a sigh of relief.
Although it was already dark, they were now only about four hundred meters away in a straight line from Teodulo’s camp.
Even if it wasn’t dark, they could not proceed any further.
Gao Yang waved his hand and ordered, “Regroup here.
Rabbit, Big Dog, you two keep watch.
After two hours, Toad and I will go for close reconnaissance.
The rest of you, get ready for combat, prepare to support or attack on command.”
Sirte raised his hand and said, “Commander, I request to join you on the scouting mission, as I am familiar with the terrain.”
After hesitating for a moment, Gao Yang nodded and answered, “I accept your request.
In two hours, you will join Toad and me for close reconnaissance.” (To be continued.
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