Chapter 45: Snow Leopard Commando vs. Yamamoto Special Operations Force!

Although Li Yunlong and the Snow Leopard Commando unit had conducted a forced march for two days and a night, they unexpectedly found themselves still a little late.

Or rather, Yamamoto's special operations team had acted ahead of schedule.

Li Yunlong checked the time and thought with a helpless sigh, "It's only past ten o'clock. Yamamoto's special team has clearly engaged the Independent Regiment earlier than expected."

With that thought, Li Yunlong hurriedly took out his map and examined it.

Li Yunlong knew very well that once discovered by the Independent Regiment, Yamamoto's team would execute a blitzkrieg and wrap up the engagement swiftly.

In an extremely short span of time, Yamamoto's team would heavily damage the Independent Regiment and then quickly retreat into the distance.

Therefore, Li Yunlong knew that even if the Snow Leopard Commando rushed to Yang Village now, it would be meaningless.

By the time the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando arrived, Yamamoto's team would have already withdrawn.

Merely relying on the thirty soldiers of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando was definitely not enough to pursue Yamamoto's team.

If they wanted to heavily damage Yamamoto's special team, their only option was to catch them off guard with an ambush!

As Li Yunlong pondered, his eyes swept back and forth across the map.

Finally, Li Yunlong's finger tapped down on a specific location on the map.

Beside him, Zhou Weiguo raised an eyebrow and asked, "Poplar Tree Gully? Aren't we supposed to reinforce Yang Village?"

"The Independent Regiment in Yang Village has already suffered heavy losses, and that outcome is set in stone. Even if we rushed over now, it wouldn't change anything; instead, it would just give those little Japanese bastards a chance to escape," Li Yunlong said in a deep voice.

"This bunch of little Japanese never intended to target the Independent Regiment in the first place. Once discovered, they won't linger and will definitely withdraw immediately after striking."

"And Poplar Tree Gully is the mandatory route they must take on their retreat. We will ambush them right here."

Li Yunlong had already briefed Zhou Weiguo on some of the details regarding Yamamoto's special team.

Thus, as soon as Li Yunlong finished speaking, Zhou Weiguo instantly understood his intention.

"This is indeed a brilliant way to strike this pack of special operations devils!" Zhou Weiguo's eyes lit up.

"It's very difficult to pursue a unit of special operations devils... but if we ambush them, we can definitely catch them completely off guard!"

"Having made a long-distance forced march all the way here, we certainly cannot return empty-handed. We're going to wipe out these special operations devils for sure!"

"That's the spirit," Li Yunlong chuckled softly. "Get ready to move out."

Subsequently, Li Yunlong led the soldiers of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando in a rapid advance toward Poplar Tree Gully.

Upon arriving at Poplar Tree Gully, Li Yunlong spoke in a low voice, "Everyone has been marching all the way here and must be extremely exhausted."

"However, the enemy is right before our eyes, and we must fight!"

"Take some time to rest quickly, ease up, and recover your strength."

"Once the enemy enters the ambush circle, we must unleash our full firepower and strive to annihilate as many of the enemy troops as possible!"

"After this battle is over, I will host a banquet and treat you all in person."

Hearing Li Yunlong's words, the soldiers of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando nodded in response, then sat down right where they were to recover their stamina.

Fortunately, these soldiers possessed an iron will; otherwise, after forty hours of continuous marching without sleep across two hundred kilometers, they would have fallen asleep the moment they sat down on the ground.

At this moment, the psychological exhaustion of the soldiers had reached its absolute limit, but everyone was gritting their teeth and persevering.

...

More than twenty minutes later.

The gunfire in the direction of Yang Village gradually subsided; Yamamoto's special team had clearly ceased combat.

Behind an earthen wall not far from Yang Village.

Yamamoto Ichimoku gave a cold snort and said, "Prepare to withdraw. With the gunfire sounding here in Yang Village, it is no longer possible for us to ambush the Eighth Route Army's general headquarters."

"Our special operations rely entirely on catching the enemy by surprise. Now that the enemy is alerted, we have no choice but to retreat."

Hearing Yamamoto Ichimoku say this, the special operations devils present could only nod and accept the order one after another.

"Sigh..." Yamamoto Ichimoku sighed. "If we must blame something, we can only blame our intelligence for being inaccurate. I never expected there to be Eighth Route Army troops stationed in Yang Village."

With that, Yamamoto Ichimoku waved his hand and commanded, "Retreat!"

Soon, Yamamoto Ichimoku led more than a hundred special operations devils in a withdrawal from Yang Village.

Seeing this, Kong Jie could only let the enemy slip away.

Kong Jie knew very well that even if the Independent Regiment pursued them, it would merely result in needless casualties.

...

Poplar Tree Gully.

Yamamoto and his unit of more than a hundred special operations devils quickly arrived at the location.

Under the watchful eyes of Li Yunlong and the others, Yamamoto's special team blundered completely unaware into the ambush circle of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando.

"Open fire!" Seeing this, Li Yunlong gave the order, then took the lead with a Type 40 semi-automatic rifle.

Bang, bang, bang...

In three consecutive shots, three special operations devils died instantly under Li Yunlong's muzzle.

Weijia Dayong was also fiercely pulling the trigger of his Type 40 semi-automatic rifle.

As for the soldiers of the Snow Leopard Commando, they were even more direct, brandishing submachine guns and unleashing a barrage of fire upon the special operations devils in the field.

Bang, bang, bang, bang...

Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat...

Gunfire suddenly erupted in the field, and the terrifying firepower directly crushed toward Yamamoto's special team, catching them completely off guard.

In just a single exchange, a dozen special operations devils lost their lives under the guns of the New First Regiment's soldiers.

Faced with this sudden situation, Yamamoto Ichimoku was also startled, and he quickly ordered, "Everyone, quickly find cover to take shelter and counterattack the enemy!"

The little Japanese soldiers of Yamamoto's team immediately sprang into action, utilizing the complex surrounding terrain to counterattack the soldiers of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando.

Both sides instantly engaged in a complex firefight.

At this moment, the combat effectiveness of Yamamoto's special team was finally demonstrated.

However, the combat prowess of the New First Regiment's Snow Leopard Commando was clearly superior, as they continuously eliminated the special operations devils through mutual cooperation.

During the battle, the soldiers of the Snow Leopard Commando also sensed that the little Japanese devils opposite them were no ordinary troops.

This group of special operations devils distinctly fought using specialized tactical methods.

Therefore, the soldiers of the Snow Leopard Commando grew increasingly cautious, pushing their individual combat skills and tactical teamwork to the absolute limit.

Yamamoto Ichimoku directed the battle from start to finish.

As the battle progressed, Yamamoto Ichimoku also sensed that something was amiss.

"What kind of troops are these people? They actually employ special operations tactics as well!" Yamamoto Ichimoku furrowed his brow deeply and said in a heavy voice, "Moreover, the opponent's special operations capabilities appear to be even stronger than my own team."

Though Yamamoto Ichimoku was extremely reluctant to admit that his Yamamoto special team was inferior to others.

The reality lay right before his eyes, leaving him no room for denial.

Furthermore, the current situation was evidently extremely unfavorable for Yamamoto's special team.

Faced with this predicament, Yamamoto Ichimoku remained remarkably calm, clenched his fists, and said, "We must prepare to retreat."

"Otherwise, once the Eighth Route Army in Yang Village chases after us, we will inevitably be surrounded by their forces."

"Breaking through the encirclement at that point will become troublesome."

After all, Poplar Tree Gully was not far from Yang Village; Yamamoto Ichimoku worried that the Eighth Route Army in Yang Village would detect the situation here and launch a pursuit.

If that happened, Yamamoto's special team would find themselves in an even more passive position...