Munitions Empire-Chapter 1982 - 1862: Supervisory Battalion

"We really don’t need to keep fighting like this." The young soldier said as he struggled to move his body, trying to find a slightly safer cover.

This is really too cramped. The hastily constructed barricade is practically a foul-smelling garbage heap. The smell is bad enough, but the space to hide people is pitifully small. There is muddy water here, as well as debris and broken bricks, burst sandbags, and of course all kinds of household waste.

"Isn’t the Tang Empire said to treat prisoners well? Why don’t we surrender?" His voice trembled slightly, as if squeezed from the depths of his throat, filled with despair.

He painfully lifted his head, gazing at the distant, crumbling building that was once their stronghold, but now a nightmare in their hearts.

Fear wrapped around his heart like a cold serpent, suffocating him. He gripped his rifle tightly, with sweat soaking his palm, aware of the danger he was in with the cold metal.

"I don’t know why we can’t surrender either." Another older soldier spoke in a deep, helpless tone, seemingly devoid of hope, allowing the dust from his helmet to fall down: "The Supervisory Battalion knows, why not go and ask them?"

After saying this, he raised his head to show the young soldier a smile that was worse than crying, his eyes carrying a hint of mockery.

"Damn it, should I ask those devils?" The young soldier shook his head vigorously, deep fear written on his face: "You know the Supervisory Battalion people, each of them is a hellish fiend!"

"You know those people are devils?" The older soldier snorted, bitter and helpless: "They never hesitate to kill their own. If you have the chance, you might surrender, but walking over now, you’d certainly be shot dead by our own from behind."

In these past two days, they’ve seen more than one soldier choose to surrender out of fear or inability to endure the battlefield’s torture, many raising their hands only to be shot by the Supervisory Battalion from behind. Sometimes, soldiers executed by the Supervisory Battalion outnumbered those killed by the Tang Army.

"Those bastards." The young soldier cursed under his breath, eyes filled with anger and despair: "Aren’t they worried for themselves? Aren’t they afraid of death?"

He tightened his grip on his rifle, knuckles turning slightly white from the force. In the distance, the dilapidated building stood silently, seemingly mocking their helplessness and despair.

Also in these past two days, they witnessed a skirmish between soldiers ready to surrender and the Supervisory Battalion: first, the would-be surrendering soldiers killed two of the Battalion’s older troops, then other Battalion members killed seven or eight of the surrendering madmen. That day they slaughtered each other until blood ran like a river on the stronghold, following which the Tang Army seized their position.

The remaining soldiers of the Laines Empire fled to this place like a pack of lost dogs, barely stabilizing the situation, with morale sinking to unprecedented lows.

Meanwhile, Jade City itself is on the verge of collapse. The Tang Army is strategically dividing and encircling the besieged Allied Forces within the city. Casualties among the forces are increasing daily, and the situation grows worse by the day.

Those who understand know the outcome has long been decided, and now what remains is just a group of thoroughly insane madmen struggling in their death throes.

"I wonder if they’re afraid of dying." The older soldier lowered his voice and glanced cautiously around, confirming there were no Supervisory Battalion nearby, then continued: "Did you see the flyers the Tang Army sent over yesterday?"

He referred to the brightly printed flyers the Tang Army shot onto the Allied Forces’ defensive positions, printed by Brunas City’s factory, exquisitely crafted, and very targeted in content.

"Are you talking about the paper so hard it couldn’t even be used for wiping? The pictures on it are quite interesting, with a dog wearing our Supervisory Battalion’s helmet." The young soldier was slightly taken aback, recalling those brightly colored flyers.

"Of course I’ve seen them, but..." He scratched his head embarrassedly, cheeks tinged with red, like a child who had done wrong, avoiding the older soldier’s eyes: "I can’t read very well."

Literacy rates in the Laines Empire haven’t significantly improved over the years, and now, with the progression of the war, the quality of soldiers has severely declined, with literacy among Laines Empire’s soldiers being quite rare.

"Hmph, you’re just an ignorant fool!" The older soldier glared at him resentfully, his rough face marked by the traces of time, his deep eyes carrying a hint of frustration.

"Telling you to learn a few more characters any chance you got, yet all you did was indulge in eating, drinking, and playing, never remembering a single damn thing!" He spat in anger, full of frustration: "And now, look where you are, you can’t even understand the path the Tang Army points out!"

"You, you understand it?" The young soldier scratched his head embarrassedly, his dark face flushing slightly, eyes full of curiosity and a touch of hope: "What exactly does it say? Surely, it’s not urging us to surrender again?"