Chapter 108: A New Tactic!

A single company of Japanese soldiers was no match for the onslaught of the Broadsword Unit, and they were quickly shattered and routed. Under the command of Chen Qingzhi, the members of the Broadsword Unit pressed forward toward the edge of the Japanese camp. Just as they were about to break through, they suddenly spotted a large group of Japanese soldiers charging toward them from the left.

Seeing this, Chen Qingzhi immediately sensed trouble; the Japanese reinforcements had arrived.

"Huzi, the enemy reinforcements are here. Tell the men to get ready and execute the tactics we practiced!" Chen Qingzhi said urgently.

"Understood!" Huzi nodded.

"Remember, tell the soldiers to stay sharp and keep the formation tight!" Chen Qingzhi added with a grim expression.

Taking a deep breath, he gripped his broadsword tightly and shouted, "Brothers, the enemy reinforcements are here! Are you afraid?"

"No!"

"Afraid of what? It's better that they're here! Let's give them a taste of our blades!" the soldiers roared with high spirits.

The soldiers of the Broadsword Unit felt a sense of exhilaration in this battle. The Japanese soldiers, who had previously seemed invincible and impossible to defeat, now felt like paper before the sword techniques they had been training so hard to master.

"Good! I admire your courage!" Chen Qingzhi nodded and said in a deep voice, "I know none of you are afraid of death, and none of you are cowards. But we came here to raid the camp, not to throw our lives away! Our mission is complete, so we leave. Our lives are far more precious than those of the Japanese. If they want to keep us here, they’ll have to see if they have the strength to do it!"

Chen Qingzhi bellowed, "Brothers, follow me! Break through! Do you have the confidence?"

"Yes!" the soldiers responded in unison.

"Good!" Chen Qingzhi shouted. He pointed his broadsword toward the approaching Japanese troops and roared, "Follow me! Charge!"

"Kill! Kill the Japanese!"

Following the order, the soldiers charged forward under Chen Qingzhi's lead. If they could scatter the enemy before them, they would break out. The intercepting force was from the Japanese 36th Infantry Regiment, which had quickly dispatched reinforcements upon receiving orders. Due to the urgency, they could not assemble a large force in time, so they sent two companies as an advance guard to block the retreat. The main force would follow shortly to sandwich the raiders between themselves and the 35th Regiment and wipe them out.

As the two Japanese companies charged toward the Broadsword Unit and the unit charged toward the perimeter, an unexpected turn of events occurred. When the two sides were only thirty to fifty meters apart, the members of the Broadsword Unit suddenly pulled grenades from their waists, armed them, and hurled them at the Japanese.

The Japanese had never expected their opponents to throw grenades mid-charge and were completely caught off guard. Three hundred grenades—one from each member of the unit—blanketed the Japanese formation.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The grenades detonated in rapid succession. Many Japanese soldiers were blown to pieces before they could even scream. Others were tossed into the air like ragdolls, falling back to the earth along with the dirt, motionless. They were clearly dead.

And that was only the beginning. Without pausing, the Broadsword Unit members pulled another grenade from their gear, threw it, and then drew their swords to charge. The explosions turned the Japanese formation into a scene of carnage.

The Japanese commander of the 36th Regiment, who had arrived with the reinforcements, stomped his feet in fury. "Baka! These despicable Chinese are too cunning!"

Ignoring the enraged commander, the Broadsword Unit soldiers rushed into the stunned and disoriented Japanese ranks, hacking and slashing. The two companies, already devastated by the two waves of grenades, were decimated by the close-quarters assault. The soldiers utilized the "Break-Blade" style—a fierce, aggressive military technique designed for lethal strikes. Any Japanese soldier who faltered or left an opening was cut down instantly.

Chen Qingzhi, having kicked aside a dazed soldier, did not even look back, charging straight ahead. He knew his men would finish the job. His goal was to break through the line and carve a path of blood.

The Japanese companies had no response to this new tactic. In reality, it was not new; it was the same strategy the 29th Army’s Broadsword Unit had used during the Battle of Xifengkou at the Great Wall. They would catch the Japanese while they slept, eliminate the sentries, rush the barracks, throw grenades, and then finish the survivors with their blades.

Though simple, it was highly effective. Since the Japanese believed in their "Bushido" spirit, they would often clear their rifles of ammunition before engaging in bayonet duels. Suddenly being pelted with grenades during a charge left them completely bewildered. Huzi had taught this method to the Independent Brigade’s Broadsword Unit based on past experiences, and today, it had successfully paralyzed the intercepting force.