Chapter 25: The Natural Commander
Several people shivered at the same time, they felt that Xu Ming was not joking at all. If they really didn't listen to orders, they might actually be killed.
Caruso and the others exchanged a glance, none of them speaking, and listened to Xu Ming's rules with gritted teeth. If Xu Ming's rules were too harsh, they would rather go to the training ground's grass thicket to wrap their stomachs with dry grass and rotten leaves.
Xu Ming paused, understanding their expressions, and said loudly: "After entering the mountainous area, there are only five rules. First, after entering the mountainous area, all actions will be unified under command; second, after entering the mountainous area, everyone must use hand gestures, no one is allowed to speak; third, if there are teammates within 200 meters in front or 30 meters within a 60-degree angle on either side, no one is allowed to fire randomly; fourth, when there are hard obstacles such as stone walls around and teammates are nearby, no one is allowed to fire randomly; fifth, after entering the mountain, it is strictly forbidden to start a fire."
"Do you all understand?"
"I understand!" Only Maya and Kap's voices, everyone else had a face of 'confusion'.
Xu Ming glanced at them and said lightly, "This time entering the mountain, my guess is that it's a test by Captain. Although we can't see Captain's people, he must have a way to watch us. And Captain also clearly told us on our first day here that we will be special warfare team members."
"Please understand what it means to be a special forces member. The tasks that special forces need to complete are generally impossible for others, and the mortality rate is absolutely very high. We're all young, I don't want to explain too much. Assessment, we can't wait until Lieutenant Colonel gives us an assessment task before treating it as an assessment."
"At any time, it is a test for us. The only result of failing the test may be death. If we want to live, there is no second way out. If we cannot demand ourselves at all times, then we do not even have the qualification to choose."
"Look at your faces, now they're all swollen like pig heads, isn't that enough to be etched in your minds?" Xu Ming's tone suddenly became somewhat 'aroused', "If you were on the battlefield, you would already be corpses, Captain gave you a chance to live, is to let you remember, if you want to survive, there is no other choice."
"There are two kinds of people in this world. One is resigned to their fate, like those curled up on the streets waiting for death; the other is not resigned, like those who use every means possible to survive. And we...” Xu Ming's tone suddenly shifted as he loudly declared: “We are desperate, ever since we arrived here, we only have one choice, that is to desperately struggle to live on, because we are the best.”
"Do you understand?"
"Understood!" The remaining six people seemed to have a flame burning in their chests, and they let out a loud shout in unison.
Xu Ming's face was already somewhat red as he loudly shouted: "Tell me, you are the best!"
"We are the best!"
The sound is loud and clear, piercing through the sky.
Ma Shengda, who was still shuttling through the bushes, suddenly stumbled and looked suspiciously in the direction of the sound, with a strong sense of jealousy flowing from his eyes, tightly clenched fists, and trembling uncontrollably.
Lieutenant Colonel Erlang's legs were propped up, a cigar clenched between his teeth, as he gazed intently at the large screen in front of him. On the screen was Xu Ming and their teammates' image, surrounded by hundreds of small screens, which surprisingly showed every corner of the training ground.
Three or five soldiers were busy beside them, and the lieutenant walked over and stood behind the major.
"This kid has a talent for command." The lieutenant colonel pointed to Xu Ming on the screen, spat out a smoke ring, and smiled: "With just a few words, he's already boosted morale. This kid is interesting."
The lieutenant stood silently behind him, his face devoid of any expression.
"You're not someone who doesn't know what's important." The lieutenant colonel seemed to see through the lieutenant's thoughts, as he had been following him for a long time and also knew that the lieutenant was a man who cherished talent. The more excellent Xu Ming performed, the more the lieutenant valued Xu Ming. The lieutenant colonel stood up, patted the lieutenant's shoulder, and said lightly, "I think you should understand."
"Sorry, Major," said the lieutenant coldly. "I'm a soldier, I don't understand politics."
"This isn't politics, Janssens." The major gave him a hard look and said slowly: "Since the war came, there's no more politics. If you want to live, give yourself less trouble."
The lieutenant's body shook slightly, his name was almost forgotten by himself, since entering the army, he had no name, unexpectedly, the major called out his name. This was no longer a superior's instruction to an inferior, but a friend's advice.
"What about him? What's going on?" The lieutenant pointed at Ma Shengda in the corner of the screen.
The lieutenant smiled slightly and said lightly: "Elimination is not something we decide, it depends on them themselves. You have to fully trust the people you care about."
"Yes, Major." The lieutenant stood at attention, his face expressionless.
The lieutenant colonel patted the captain's shoulder with his hand and said with a smile: "Of course, for those who have already lost their qualification for the mission, we can directly eliminate them."
The lieutenant's eyes lit up and he said loudly: "Don't worry, Colonel. I'll keep a close eye on things. If anyone violates battlefield discipline, I'll take care of it immediately."
Due to Ma Shengda's departure, Xu Ming redeployed the formation, himself alone as the vanguard, Harry filled in Ma Shengda's position, and Glenn guarded the right wing together, while everyone else's formation remained unchanged.
Time was pressing, and a mountain road had to be opened up quickly to enter the mountainous area, otherwise they would really starve. Xu Ming tore off a piece of clothing from his body, wrapped it around his right hand, and pushed aside the thorny branches blocking the way, cutting down a patch like harvesting wheat. The thorns on the branches instantly scratched Xu Ming's skin, leaving behind streaks of blood.
Xu Ming seemed to be flowing with someone else's blood, without even looking at it, and continued to chop the thorny shrubs blocking his way. The thorns were not the main obstacle, the key was that there was still a steep slope ahead.
The steep slope is not as vertical and unclimbable as some of the other faces, but it's also extremely treacherous. This is a terrain carved out by rushing water, with rocks scattered irregularly everywhere. The areas with dense thorns are slightly better, although the rocks are steep, at least there's soil, so it's not that slippery.
But the higher it went, the distance between the ups and downs exceeded 1.8 meters, which was a bit higher than Xu Ming. Moreover, after being washed by the flowing water, it became very slippery.
Xu Ming tried to jump a few times, but there was no foothold on the rock and he couldn't climb up. Xu Ming took a deep breath, using his dagger to forcefully "insert" it into the rock, the steel blade of the dagger scraping against the rock with a string of sparks, the dagger sinking into the rock nearly halfway.
Fortunately, it wasn't a "flower" granite! Xu Ming secretly rejoiced in his heart and pulled out the dagger to climb up. He pulled out the dagger and pulled Harry up, then continued to climb. Harry pulled Caruso up and followed Xu Ming to climb, and the others followed suit one by one.
After climbing for about ten minutes, Xu Ming's eyes suddenly lit up. A huge rock seemed to be a turning point, and on the right side, a path leading into the depths of the forest suddenly appeared. The dark, humid forest was like a giant beast crouching at the foot of the mountain, opening its huge bloody mouth.
