Chapter 8: Devil Training Camp

  Xie Xiaoshuai and Ren Tianqi took the car to the selection training camp, during which neither of them spoke. Xie Xiaoshuai secretly guessed at Ren Tianqi's identity, unable to understand why this superior officer would help him so much, as in Xie Xiaoshuai's impression he didn't know this person at all.

  Even so, Xie Xiaoshuai was still immersed in the sudden joy, and his heart was always a little excited. The hope of entering the Special Warfare Brigade finally had a chance to be realized.

  When Xie Xiaoshuai arrived at the training camp, all the trainees had been tortured for three days. After he settled in, he was taken directly to the training ground. In the muddy pit, the trainees were doing sit-ups in groups of a few people, hugging inflated logs, while the instructors above them used high-pressure water guns to flush each person, increasing the pressure when they got up. The head instructor held a loudspeaker and shouted loudly, sometimes using various tactics to hit the trainees' morale, and sometimes persuading them to quit training and go back to enjoy life, saying it was not necessary to continue suffering. This physical and mental double torture had an effect on people with weak willpower, and nearly half of the trainees dropped out within three days.

  Xie Xiaoshuai, standing by the muddy pit, couldn't help but laugh to himself. It seemed that the selection process for special forces members was always the same old tricks. As for the selection process of special forces members, Xie Xiaoshuai was well aware of it. He knew that without strong willpower and solid military quality, it was absolutely impossible to pass the selection.

  Xie Xiao Shuai was still dazed on this side, while Ren Tian Qi had already completed the handover with the main instructor on that side.

  "Hey, soldier, what are you doing standing there like a corpse?" A somewhat familiar voice interrupted Xie Xiaoshuai's thoughts. He looked up and was stunned to see that the one calling him was none other than his superior officer and acquaintance: Lei Wei.

  "What about you, standing there judging the beauty pageant?" Lei Wei seemed to have transformed into a different person, as if he didn't recognize Xie Xiao Shuai at all. He charged over like a vicious dog.

  Xie Xiaoshuai was still confused about the situation when Lei Wei rushed over and kicked him into the mud pit with a big character, immediately getting a mouthful of muddy water.

  Xie Xiaoshuai got up from a tumble, his face filled with anger as he glared at Lei Wei.

  "Doesn't it feel great, doesn't it feel wonderful to see others being bullied? Now you can enjoy it with them. What are you looking at? Your eyes are still quite sharp, I hope you'll have the strength to keep them open later. Go, find a wooden stick for yourself and do it in one go." Lei Wei shouted loudly through the megaphone at Xie Xiao Shuai.

  Xie Xiaoshuai started his special forces selection with a gloomy mood. Lei Wei, this good friend transformed into a devil coach, while spiritually and physically tormenting the candidates, also took extra care of Xie Xiaoshuai. The training volume was greater than others, as if to make up for the three days of training that Xie Xiaoshuai had fallen behind.

  When Xie Xiaoshuai arrived at the Devil Training Camp on the third day, nearly twenty more people had dropped out of training. His squad leader, Sergeant Li Weiqiang from the Sharp Blade Squad of the Wild Wolf Battalion, was nowhere to be seen after his arrival. It's likely that he had already quit early on. This made Xie Xiaoshuai feel a sense of regret. The renowned Wild Wolf Battalion's Sharp Blade Squad's best squad leader couldn't even last three days in the Devil Training Camp. It seems that the Wild Wolf Battalion indeed has big problems, as Lei Wei said. Of course, this had nothing to do with Xie Xiaoshuai, and he continued his gloomy selection process.

  For three days (six days for other team members), Xie Xiao-shuai and his teammates trained in the morning, at noon, and at night. They were woken up less than two hours after falling asleep by tear gas and emergency assembly whistles to continue training. With the instructors' constant mental torture, even Xie Xiao-shuai gradually felt that his physical and mental exhaustion had reached its limit. One by one, they mechanically executed the instructors' commands like zombies, their brains seemingly unable to think anymore. Those who could still think had all withdrawn from the selection process.

  On the seventh day in the morning, the remaining candidates were gathered together and Instructor Lei Wei gave them their mission.

  "Listen up, young recruits! Today's training is going to be a real treat, one that you'll never forget. You're going to trek through ten kilometers of dense jungle, followed by ten kilometers of armed infiltration, and finally, twenty kilometers of cross-country running in full gear. You must complete this within the allotted time, or you'll be eliminated."

  Lui's words were like a heavy hammer pounding on everyone's heart. For the physically and mentally exhausted contestants, it was like an insurmountable mountain.

  "What are you waiting for? Do I need to carry a sedan chair to lift you up? Charge!" Seeing a group of new recruits standing there in a daze, Lei Wei snatched a Type 56-1 assault rifle from the hand of an instructor next to him and fired it into the air.

  Upon hearing the gunshot, Xie Xiaoshuai was the first to react and led the charge out.

  Except for Xie Xiaoshuai, everyone else was unaware that today was the last subject of this stage. When all the candidates' physical and mental limits had been pushed to the extreme, a comprehensive subject similar to an Ironman triathlon would be introduced as the final test. At this point, all the candidates were on an equal footing in terms of physical ability, and those who did not meet the standard had already been eliminated. Whether or not they could complete it depended solely on their willpower. Xie Xiaoshuai's mind recalled the brainwashing-like words his father often told him: "Special forces don't need people with weak willpower; only the most tenacious warriors are qualified to become special soldiers."

  Although Xie Xiaoshuai has been tempered for many years, it is also a test for him now. Because those who can still stay in the training camp are not much different from each other, they are all half a catty and eight taels.

  Xie Xiaoshuai has been leading the way, at the forefront of the team, because now he is the only one who can still think calmly, knows how to adjust his pace and rhythm, and reasonably allocate his physical strength.

  But after the ten-kilometer armed crossing was completed, Xie Xiaoshuai felt a sense of fatigue from his heart, he didn't know how to control the pace of his feet anymore, and people also felt dizzy, swaying left and right, taking mechanical steps forward. It just felt like the backpack on his back was like a big mountain pressing down on him, and his beloved gun was like a thousand-pound weight hanging around his neck.

  "Damn old Lei, pretending not to know me? What kind of six emotions don't recognize that? Actually dare to kick me into the mud pit, wait and see how I'll deal with you later."

  "Abnormal old Lei, what's with the fake enthusiasm? You're just a smiling tiger."

  "After training is over, I must beat you to death, you dare to bully me."

  Xie Xiaoshuai was cursing Lei Wei in his heart, trying to distract himself while thinking about how he would get revenge on Lei Wei to boost his morale. Meanwhile, Lei Wei was proudly holding a telescope, observing the situation, unaware that he had become Xie Xiaoshuai's target for motivation. Of course, maybe except for Xie Xiaoshuai, who was an exception, no one else dared to do so.

  Ten kilometers, five kilometers, one kilometer, Xie Xiaoshuai stumbled and staggered forward step by step, getting closer to the finish line.

  When there were still fifty meters to the finish line, Xie Xiaoshuai knelt on the ground because his legs had no strength to stand up. His eyes were blurred and he could not see the scene in front of him. At this time, those who were not far behind him also overtook him one after another.

  Xie Xiaoshuai had only one thought in his mind: he wanted to join the Special Warfare Brigade.

  "Get up, get up..." Xie Xiaoshuai said vaguely.

  "Lei Wei is right in front of me, I must hit him, I must hit him." Xie Xiao Shuai continued to encourage himself, but his legs still didn't react.

  "Ah!!!! Lei Wei, I'm going to beat you to death, you damn bastard!!!!! Ah!!!!!!" Xie Xiaoshuai let out a loud roar with the last bit of strength in his body, slowly getting up from the ground, and somehow finding the energy to charge forward step by step.

  Finally, Xie Xiaoshuai surpassed the person in front of him and was the first to cross the finish line. With only one thread left on his glasses, he stood swaying from side to side in front of Lei Wei.

  "Lei Wei, I'm going to beat you to death, you son of a bitch." After finishing speaking, he directly fainted.

  Lei Wei stared at Xie Xiao Shuai in shock, never expecting that Xie Xiao Shuai had actually relied on the thought of beating him up to complete the final training subject. Looking at Xie Xiao Shuai being quickly tended to by the medical staff, Lei Wei's face was filled with a bitter smile, it seemed that this good friend and younger brother had been harboring deep resentment towards him for these past few days.