Insufficient balance

  With the order personally signed by the deputy commander, we pulled out a military tent from the arsenal with a handcart used to deliver tofu, three Type 85 submachine guns, one squad-used light machine gun, and one domestically-made sniper rifle equipped with a microwave rangefinder, along with 21,000 rounds of ammunition.

  Ignoring everyone's astonished gaze, we set up a tent on the playground and started from that afternoon. The sound of submachine guns firing in bursts, single shots, and three-round bursts, accompanied by loud shouts and roars, echoed across the playground until late at night without stopping, and instead grew more intense. By the time the wake-up call sounded the next day, when the soldiers ran out of their rooms to do morning exercises, most people had dark circles under their eyes.

  When these soldiers ran into the training ground, they were all stunned by what was in front of them.

  The training ground was littered with shell casings, and in just one night, I don't know how many rounds of ammunition we consumed. I held the submachine gun and frantically swept it across a trench, bullets pouring down like rain onto the ground, splashing up mud waves everywhere. The thirty rounds in the magazine were quickly depleted, and I swiftly jumped into the cover behind me. Those observing soldiers hadn't even figured out what was happening when Long Sun Ting suddenly leapt out of the bunker I had just fiercely attacked, holding a light machine gun and firing a burst at my hiding position.

  We're like sworn enemies, firing at each other with submachine guns, the intense killing intent startling those soldiers' eyes to dart wildly. Seeing Yang Qing's movements becoming slower and slower as he crawled through the barbed wire with his sniper rifle on his back, Chang Sun Ting roared: "You pig, if you crawl any slower, I'll directly shoot your ass into four pieces, and spare you from becoming a ghost under the enemy's guns on the battlefield!"

  Chang Sun Ting's gun muzzle turned without hesitation, and several bullets hit less than a meter behind Yang Qing's body, scaring Yang Qing to shudder all over and desperately speed up his movements.

  Several instructors, also known as human killing machines, stood in the distance, quietly watching our decisive battle. Zhao Tie Xiong nodded and said: "They really dare to play with their lives, but this is indeed a good way to quickly improve survival skills. Experienced old soldiers are better at protecting themselves on the battlefield than new recruits because they can judge the trajectory of bullets and shells through sound and make the most reasonable military evasive action. People who have not experienced real combat cannot understand the fear and trembling that comes from the heart when bullets fly over their heads. The sooner you overcome your fear, the sooner you can exert your true strength on the battlefield!"

  Veteran sniper Zhang Xiangshang whispered after a long silence: "They're looking at that fat guy carrying the sniper rifle!"

  Yang Qing was crawling under the iron wire mesh with his hands and feet, due to his physical weight, his back had been scratched by the sharp steel thorns on the iron wire mesh, leaving dozens of fine blood marks, mixed with the sweat that kept seeping out of his body, and the floating dust unique to the training ground, making his back a mess. However, these were already common sights on the training ground and nothing special.

  Seeing the puzzled gaze of his companions beside him, Zhang Xiangshang reminded them: "You notice the route he crawled!"

  After watching for three whole minutes, Zhao Guoxiong exclaimed: "No way?! This fatso is frantically shuttling back and forth in the limited space under the barbed wire, and can actually pinpoint the angle and firepower of the light machine gun in Long Sunting's hand, choosing the most advantageous route to cover and hide. Even a seasoned sniper who has undergone special training for more than four years may not have such a venomous eye!"

  "He's afraid of death! Although he knew that Chang Sunting wouldn't really shoot him, he was afraid that Chang couldn't accurately control his weapon. In fact, just now, because of the recoil, the gun muzzle deviated slightly, and Yang Qing would have been shot to pieces by a stray bullet. Faced with the threat of death, he is using all his intelligence to find a safe course of action. In the blind spots where Chang's firepower can't reach, he will slow down to give himself a chance to catch his breath. Once he enters the danger zone, he will speed up desperately. A person like him who is born with excellent judgment, as long as he receives proper training, will inevitably become an outstanding sniper!"

  Wang Sanxi said, "It seems that Xiang Shang has already seen your talent and has the intention of taking you as his apprentice. Looking at all the snipers in Lanzhou Military Region, there won't be anyone more excellent than you. Only someone who can see through his strategic mind like you is qualified to be his teacher."

  "No!" Zhang Xiangshang shook his head and said, "Give me three weeks to instruct him, it's not as good as letting him follow those two perverted cowards to participate in this inhuman training. Although their training methods are full of naive and unrealistic ideas, lacking the refinement after actual combat testing, at least they are making an effort to improve themselves. To train someone like Yang Qing who is both intelligent and lazy, one needs to have extraordinary charm, to take responsibility and gradually ignite the passion that lies dormant within his body. I've always been used to being alone, and I don't think I have this kind of demanding leadership ability!"

  Zhao Guoxiong said discontentedly, "Aren't they just two new recruits who cause big trouble as soon as they enter the army? At most, it's just some young people's arrogance, how can it be as serious as you say?"

  Zhang Xiangshang smiled and shook his head. Yang Qing's appetite was at least twice that of others, and during the training run, he couldn't even finish 400 meters without panting as if his lungs were about to explode. Although his body had long since recovered, he still managed to spend another month in the hospital, successfully dodging the new recruit training course. He's truly a lazy and gluttonous piece of rotten wood.

  Fu Yuxue and Chang Sunting, like him, were new recruits who enlisted at the same time. In less than half a year, they made a name for themselves in the X Corps. Even the old soldiers looked at them with some awe in the military camp where the strong were respected. This was not something that could be achieved by just one crazy cross-country run to avoid punishment. To turn Yang Qing's useless wood into treasure, even more powerful means like those of a magician were needed. Looking at Fu Yuxue suddenly jumping out from cover and firing wildly, Zhang Xiangshang always felt that there was something extra about him.

  Bullets were laid out in the open on the training ground, and when all the magazines were empty, Long Sunting and I sat around the ammunition box on the ground. With a command, we started competing to see who could load the bullets into the magazine faster. When we finished loading the last magazine and put it back into the submachine gun, a new round of shooting began, and whoever loaded first got the right to shoot first.

  Yang Qing was kicked into the sewer that had once trapped him halfway, crawling to a new manhole cover, he could stick his head out and aim at the target and shoot one shot. Calculating 20 meters per section of sewer, he wanted to finish shooting 1,000 rounds in three weeks, he had to crawl at least 20 kilometers of sewer! This poor fat guy rubbed his body against the sewer repeatedly, he didn't just fall asleep once in the sewer, every day he received nearly abnormal training, smelled enough of the sewer's smell, and his appetite became extremely poor. Three weeks later, when he weighed himself, he had lost over 20 pounds.

  I and Zhang Songting were in the military camp, day and night, crazily shooting at each other. In the end, for training purposes, we set up twenty bricks around us, jumped out of cover and shot at each other. I wasn't wearing any nano-level bulletproof vest, guaranteed to have a hole with one shot. Hearing bullets flying past my ears, the closest brick suddenly exploded into countless fragments. The thrill is unimaginable for those who haven't experienced it personally. Even though I've always thought myself as someone with extraordinary courage, after each shootout, I'd lie on the ground, gasping for air, covered in cold sweat.

  The military police and some officers kept protesting to us, saying that we disturbed the normal rest of all the troops in the division. I didn't care at all, I was going to go to the battlefield to get killed anyway, what's there to be afraid of? Even if a heavy machine gun is firing crazily right next to my ear, when I'm tired, I can sleep soundly with my submachine gun in my arms amidst the pile of shell casings. A good soldier must learn to relax as much as possible during intense battles and enjoy even just ten minutes of good dreams, only then can he recover his energy.

  Three weeks later, the military uniforms on our three bodies had been thoroughly dyed black by gunpowder. On my and Zhang Sun Ting's right shoulder blades, our uniforms were torn with a large hole, revealing the strong chest muscles inside that had been bruised from withstanding the recoil of the rifle. The three submachine guns and one light machine gun were all shot to pieces. Kicking away the empty ammunition boxes, we three formed a triangular shape, trampling on the scattered shell casings as we slowly walked out of the training ground.

  In just three weeks, not a hint of innocence could be found on us. I believe anyone who has felt the sensation of bullets whizzing past their ears more than a hundred times will have a will as tough as steel wire. The one who changed the most among us was Yang Qing. After three months of hard work with Long Sun Ting and the last three weeks of hellish special training, his physique had basically returned to normal. His round face now had sharp, chiseled features, and his eyes gleamed with a sharp, clever light that was both alert and cunning. From constantly crawling through iron wire mesh and waterways, his arms and legs were covered in thick calluses, so much so that he might not even feel pain if he were hit with a stick.

  The soldiers on the road saw us and involuntarily made way for us, some of whom had experienced small-scale border wars even jumped at the corner of their eyes, although there were only three people, but as they walked by, they felt a fierce killing aura that only thousands of troops would rush together.

  Captain Zhang Xiangshang, who had been paying close attention to our training, carefully observed us for a full five minutes, nodded his head in satisfaction, let out a long sigh, and slowly walked away.

  He observed for a full five minutes, unable to find any weakness in our momentum. Yang Qing, that cunning bastard, was constantly changing his position with seemingly steady steps, hiding behind Fu Yinxue and Chang Sunting's bodies. Even if he were to launch a surprise attack on this guy without him noticing, the success rate wouldn't exceed 50%.

  If on the battlefield in an enemy relationship, Zhang Xiangshang has a 90% chance of shooting and killing me or Changsuntian, but he also believes that under the influence of momentum, he also has a 90% chance of avoiding Yang Qing's counterattack. This is purely an intuitive judgment, and finally, Zhang Xiangshang's conclusion is: in single-handed combat state, absolutely cannot be an enemy with this three-person team!

  This conclusion made Zhang Xiangshang involuntarily produce a feeling of "the rear waves of the Yangtze River pushing the front waves", of course, this does not mean that the team they formed can win, as long as... there is no leader like Fu Yuxue! Zhang Xiangshang dares to confirm that in this small group, Fu Yuxue is absolutely a soulful character.