Chapter 64 The Japanese: Damn it, we've become trapped prey!

However, the enemy’s celebration was short-lived—the sharp whistle of shells suddenly split the air. As the black shapes above rapidly grew larger, one soldier’s face turned ashen and he cried out, “Run! That’s rapid-fire…” But before he could finish, a thunderous explosion tore through them, flinging those who hadn’t managed to retreat into the air. Their densely packed assault tactics proved suicidal under such overwhelming firepower. Amid the relentless roar of explosions, not even the enemies crouching on the ground could escape death. With powerful fire support, the 211th Regiment swiftly regrouped and reclaimed the lost ground in less than ten minutes. Thus, the battle between both sides devolved into a bloody and stagnant tug-of-war.

As the fighting in Wangkou City grew ever fiercer, the Butokawa Brigade, marching midway to the front, suddenly received grim intelligence: their main force had been pinned down in Wangkou by Chengyun’s troops. “Major Butokawa, bad news! The two divisions under Lieutenant General Amatani are stalled in Wangkou, fiercely attacked by Chengyun’s forces! The 13th and 14th Regiments have suffered devastating losses! At this rate, the main force can’t rendezvous with us before sundown!” An anxious sub-lieutenant reported, “That means we’ll be isolated, easy prey for an encirclement by Chengyun’s army!”

With each new report from the front, Butokawa, the commander, was rocked by unprecedented shock. Having served as a military observer in previous anti-Chengyun campaigns, he knew Chengyun’s army well. He remembered that even Wang Lin’s elite units had been forced to retreat time and again before Guo’s troops. In terms of fighting strength, Guo’s men had at best been on par with a third-rate division of the enemy. Yet now, this once-dismissed force had handed them a crushing defeat at Wangkou.

“What on earth has happened? Could they really have changed so much in just these few months?” The more Butokawa thought, the more uneasy he became. If the entire imperial army had reached this level, conquering this land would be nearly impossible. Standing atop a barren, shell-churned field, he gazed toward Wangkou, his mind swirling with doubt and anxiety. He could not fathom how a force once considered negligible could now display such astonishing combat ability in so short a time.

According to Amatani’s original plan, Butokawa’s vanguard was to bypass the town and, while Chengyun’s 7th Reinforced Division concentrated on attacking Wangkou, launch a surprise assault in the rear to cut off their supply lines. If luck allowed, striking at the 7th Division’s headquarters would be ideal. Even if that failed, disrupting their attack would buy precious time for Amatani’s reinforcements. The enemy’s signature tactics of frontal assault combined with flanking attacks had produced many victories, often overcoming greater numbers with fewer troops. Especially when outnumbered, their tactical prowess allowed a single regiment to hold back an entire enemy division, and when scaled up, their divisional units swept forward as if unopposed.

But now, hemmed in by terrain and Chengyun’s fierce defense, Butokawa’s main force was trapped, caught between the 7th Reinforced Division and the 63rd Brigade. The entire operational plan lay in ruins. Butokawa realized that pressing forward blindly would be catastrophic. He immediately ordered his busy signalers to request reinforcements from Lieutenant General Amatani, hoping for new instructions.

But what Butokawa did not know was that, even as he sent his telegram, he was buying his enemy precious time for reinforcements. Ahead of them, a new Chengyun force had appeared—the 66th Infantry Brigade, advancing down a dusty road straight toward their position.

Confronted with this sudden turn, Butokawa regained his composure. He knew this would be a contest of life and death. Amidst the gunfire and shouts that filled the battlefield, Butokawa and his brigade had to choose: charge forward with courage or be forced to retreat. At this decisive moment, Butokawa did not wait for Amatani’s orders. Resolutely, he commanded his entire brigade to prepare for battle, demanding that even in adversity, they display their valor. “Let everything that stands in the way of imperial soldiers be destroyed!” His voice rang out across the battlefield, and under his call, his troops reformed their lines, preparing to launch a decisive assault against the 66th Brigade.

The confrontation between the two armies had become not only a contest of arms but a test of will and courage.

Under Major Butokawa’s command, his soldiers surged like a tide against the skirmish line of the 66th Brigade, brimming with confidence, certain they would break through with ease. But in an instant, the ground ahead transformed into a sea of fire. The air thundered with artillery and the earth was churned into clouds of dust—each explosion heralding imminent death.

The 66th Brigade, now equipped with newly issued heavy weapons, had forged an almost impenetrable defensive line. Old-model light and heavy machine guns, wielded by their hands, became scythes of the reaper, mowing down enemy soldiers at the forefront of the charge. Across this smoke-filled, shell-blasted battlefield, Butokawa’s fervent orders stood in stark contrast to the calm responses of Liang Fei, the commander of the 66th Brigade.

Liang Fei stood at a makeshift command post, his binoculars sweeping every detail of the field. He understood both the enemy’s reckless bravery and the overwhelming firepower of his own troops. When he gave the order to open fire with all guns, the enemy’s charging lines were instantly frozen, then toppled in swathes. The ground was littered with broken limbs; smoke and the stench of blood and fire assaulted every soldier’s senses.

“Damn it, I’ve waited too long for this day! It was this pack of beasts who killed our Commander Guo—if I don’t avenge him, I am no man!” Liang roared, “All guns, full fire! Unless I give the order, the guns do not stop!” His voice carried the weight of years of pent-up vengeance.

Immediately, the battlefield erupted with even denser gunfire and cannon blasts, rolling toward the enemy like a furious tide. With every volley, they made it clear who truly ruled this land. The enemy, who had believed they could break through the lines in one fell swoop, found themselves suddenly prey, trapped at the center of a deadly web of fire. Struggling forward, they were repeatedly driven back by unrelenting barrages.

Each fallen soldier struck Butokawa’s heart like a hammer, forcing him to confront the cruel reality of war—victory could no longer be won by courage alone. Overwhelming firepower and heavy artillery were now the arbiters of fate.