CHAPTER 366: CHAPTER 171: DO YOU WANT TO JOIN US?

A prepared ambush and an unprepared counter-ambush cannot be said to be entirely unrelated, they are worlds apart.

After determining the position of the Guard Brigade led by Jin Zhong, Chen Jian first confirmed the ambush location and then arranged for drones to drop a large number of small heat sources made of lime around the ambush point as bait.

Immediately after, he prearranged 14.5 caliber anti-aircraft machine guns, accompanied by two 12.7mm heavy machine guns modified on cat cars, along with several 201 machine guns, and the arm-shield close-in weapon systems on Mengshi vehicles, creating an impenetrable circular defense line.

Once the Guard Brigade led by Jin Zhong reached the predetermined ambush location, he immediately organized the accompanying team members to open fire deliberately to expose their position, attracting all the mantis monsters around to the vicinity of the ambush point.

At this moment, although the mantises, without the unified command of higher-ranking monsters, still had a certain level of intelligence and could even utilize the cover of the night and the jungle to execute reasonably perfect small-scale attack strategies, it was clear that the battle was essentially over the moment they stepped into the trap.

Chen Jian carefully controlled the pace of battle, creating the illusion of "the enemy’s numbers are constantly decreasing" with ever-disappearing bait heat sources.

The monsters, embroiled in a bitter fight, completely misjudged the form of battle; they were like fish that swallowed the hook, thinking that with a bit more effort, they could completely drag the fisherman on the riverbank into the water.

But obviously, all this struggle was just the process of reeling in and letting out the line.

When the potential energy accumulated by the gathering of a large number of monsters was finally exhausted, it was time for the counterattack.

Ninety or so soldiers from the Guard Brigade, paired with a dozen Huaxia Army warriors, all mobilized, charging head-on towards the monsters still attempting to move forward.

At this point, Chen Jian ceased to intentionally suppress the density of his side’s firepower.

When the firelight spouting from the close-in weapons and heavy machine guns illuminated the night sky on the southwest side of Jingkou City, the furious roars of monsters were transformed into cries of fear.

The gunfire completely ceased in less than 10 minutes, and on the hillside clearing in front of Chen Jian, there were already no less than two hundred monster corpses left behind.

Jin Zhong looked numbly at the Huaxia Army warriors who were clearing the battlefield and gradually shooting the monsters, his gaze filled with a much deeper confusion than "shock."

He didn’t know how these people managed to do it.

The Huaxia Army faced several hundred monsters, yet they numbered only 12.

Yet, they were so composed and unhurried, as if they weren’t here to fight, but merely to shoot targets, to have a picnic.

Was it the difference in firepower?

That might not necessarily be the case.

The Huaxia Army truly began to reveal their fangs and expose their unparalleled powerful firepower, really only in the last 10 minutes of the battle.

Before that, they even intentionally avoided using too much heavy firepower, instead opting for point shooting and precise shooting to intercept the monsters.

That kind of firepower, what’s the difference from the firepower of the nearly hundred Guard Brigade soldiers under my command?

But why is it that they could stop the monsters, yet my own team could not?

Jin Zhong’s mind was very messy.

He subconsciously walked towards Chen Jian, taking off his helmet as he spoke:

"Sir, thank you for your assistance."

"It’s nothing."

Chen Jian waved his hand and then asked:

"How are your casualties? Do you need to first go to the new city to recuperate and rescue?"

"If possible, that would be best."

Jin Zhong was not pretentious, gratefully bowing to Chen Jian, and then said:

"My brothers and I will remember the kindness of the Huaxia Army."

"That’s not necessary—just mutual support between allies."

Chen Jian casually replied, while Jin Zhong firmly said:

"We will repay you."

"How will you repay us?"

Chen Jian asked with amusement, continuing:

"Do you have anything we need? Or, are you planning to defect and join the Huaxia Army with your men?"

This sentence directly rendered Jin Zhong slightly stunned; awkwardly, he smiled and then clumsily changed the subject:

"Sir, you jest... but fighting alongside you once again today indeed made us feel the Huaxia Army’s unrivaled strength."

"A mere dozen people could achieve a combat annihilation against a group of monsters. It’s truly... impressive."

"It’s not a difficult task."

Chen Jian shrugged, answering:

"As I said, we have already figured out the habits and combat methods of the monsters."

"They have intelligence, but it’s limited."

"We just used their perception of heat sources to set up a small trap."

"Of course, I won’t deny that the Guard Brigade under your command was originally also part of the bait."

"If it weren’t for your presence, even if we could drive the monsters away, we couldn’t have achieved such a big success."

After hearing these words, it was as if a thorn had been driven into Jin Zhong’s heart.

He certainly understood what Chen Jian meant.

It wasn’t about the Guard Brigade being weak enough to be used as bait by the Huaxia Army on the spot.

But rather, even in the eyes of the monsters, the Guard Brigade was weak enough to have no choice but to become bait.

This hurt far more than the slight disdain hinted at in Chen Jian’s words because this is... an undeniable fact.

---- Since it’s a fact, what’s the point in arguing?

Jin Zhong took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and said with a slightly resigned expression:

"We are truly no match for the Huaxia Army."

"To be accurate, there’s a significant gap."

"This gap even makes it completely unclear to me how you managed it."

"Using limited firepower, limited manpower, yet achieving results we could hardly imagine."

"This is far beyond a matter of ’equipment disparity.’ You guys..."

"It’s certainly not an equipment disparity."

Chen Jian interrupted Jin Zhong and then said:

"This isn’t even a tactical disparity; it’s a systemic disparity."

At this point, Chen Jian casually took a 191 rifle from Huang Meng beside him, handed it to Jin Zhong, and asked:

"If you were to use this rifle, how many bullets would you need to kill a mantis monster?"

Jin Zhong hesitated for a moment, tentatively asking:

"Perhaps 10 shots, or 20 shots?"

"Wrong."

Chen Jian shook his head, replying:

"1 shot to intimidate, 3 shots to disable, 5 shots for certain death—regardless of where it hits."

"After being hit once, the monster would be so terrified by the penetrating wound that it would lose all coherence, it would lose its aim, forget its pre-agreed strategies with its fellow creatures, and become so panicked that a large number of vulnerabilities would be exposed."

"When hit with 3 shots, the monster will undoubtedly be disabled; it may still be able to move, still be able to attack, but its movements will become slow and inaccurate."

"Hit with 5 shots, it will definitely die within 10 seconds, regardless of whether it was still moving at the moment of getting hit."

"So, the bullets we fire at one monster are capped at 5 rounds."

"At most, we might go up to 10 rounds, but absolutely no more than 15."

"Now, here’s the problem: with the weapons in your hands, using your so-called ’Conqueror’ multi-barrel guns, how many rounds does it take to kill a monster?"

At this point, Jin Zhong vaguely realized what Chen Jian was expressing.

He pondered briefly and frowned in response:

"50 rounds, or 60 rounds?"

"So, is this still an equipment disparity?"

"No."

Chen Jian’s lips curled with a playful smile.

He began to speak:

"Still 5 rounds."

"In fact, because you’re using larger caliber bullets and less stable trajectories at close range, the stopping power exerted by your weapons is even stronger than ours, and the lethality greater."

"But why do you arrive at the judgment of 50 rounds, 60 rounds?"

"Because you have no confidence."

"Because none of you have confidence."

"You don’t believe in the fundamentally different weapons you hold, nor do you truly trust your comrades."

"So, as long as you see the monster still moving, you continue firing your rounds indiscriminately at the same target."

"This is a tremendous waste."

"On the surface, this is a battlefield resource management issue."

"But in essence...it’s a systemic issue that can never be resolved."

"You lack a system, and naturally cannot form standardized combat strategies."

"That’s the difference between you and us, understand?"

As the words fell, Jin Zhong instinctively widened his eyes.

Chen Jian’s words were like a splash of cold water, instantly making the hair all over his body stand on end.

Systematization, standardization.

These two words kept echoing in his mind, and in a daze, he realized that all his previous efforts to improve combat effectiveness were merely castles in the air.

And at this moment, Chen Jian hadn’t yet closed his mouth, which spat out blades.

He continued:

"So do you understand why some places in the Church Protection Army still retain line infantry?"

"Because, at your level, that indeed is the optimal solution for battlefield resource management issues."

"In some sense, your Guard Brigade might even be inferior to those line infantry."

After this statement, Jin Zhong was completely dumbfounded.

He stared into Chen Jian’s eyes, wanting to say something, but ultimately failing to speak.

After a long silence, he finally trembled as he opened his mouth.

"So...can this issue be resolved?"

"No."

Chen Jian laughed heartily and replied:

"None of you have a support system; how can you have confidence?"

"We have scientific training programs, standardized equipment, close-defense cannons, and 14.5mm high-caliber machine guns, do you?"

"Stop kidding."

"To solve this problem...there’s only one way."

"Join us."

"How about it, want to join?"