Chapter 137: Repulsion

"Good! A brilliant strike!"

Upon seeing the outcome, Huzi let out a booming shout, a look of elation sweeping across his face.

He truly had not expected that a desperate gamble—treating a dead horse like a living one—would actually yield results, completely obliterating the little Japanese devils' tanks. It was nothing short of an unexpected surprise!

To wipe out all six of the little Japanese devils' tanks in one fell swoop immensely relieved their pressure. Not only did they hold the county town, but they also dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese troops. It was truly killing two birds with one stone!

Huzi could already picture the ugly expression on the Japanese commander's face once he received this news.

The mere thought filled Huzi with boundless exhilaration!

"Pass down the order, keep firing! Give it to the little Japanese devils hard and wipe them out completely!" Freed from his anxieties and burdens, Huzi immediately launched a counteroffensive against the enemy.

"Thud, thud, thud..."

The cannons continued to roar, though this time their targets were shifted directly to the Japanese infantry.

Shell after shell slammed into the midst of the Japanese forces, tearing countless enemy soldiers into heaps of minced meat with severed limbs scattering everywhere.

These cannons were primarily designed to shoot down aircraft. Although their caliber was only 37 millimeters, their destructive power was formidable.

Among the aircraft currently in active service with the Japanese military, not a single one could escape after being struck by this type of cannon, and even tanks were unable to spare themselves.

When cannons meant for anti-tank and anti-aircraft warfare lowered their barrels and targeted infantry, what kind of devastation would they unleash?

Shell after shell blasted outward, striking the Japanese soldiers and often tearing their bodies directly into piles of flesh and pulp. Because of the sheer explosive force, however, it did not vaporize the entire corpse; thus, in the aftermath of the bombardment, the ground was littered with severed limbs and fragmented flesh, while gushing blood stained the earth a dark, bruised red.

A thick, pungent stench of blood assaulted the senses, leaving not a blade of grass growing in its wake!

This gruesome spectacle utterly terrified the little Japanese devils!

Every single Japanese soldier wore a look of sheer panic, desperately wanting to retreat. No matter how frantically their officers shouted and urged them on, they could no longer halt the completely collapsed situation.

"Baka! Hold your ground! Hold the line! Attack! Quick, quick, resume the attack!"

A Japanese captain was waving his command saber and shouting at the top of his lungs.

Yet even as he spoke, an incoming cannon shell struck him directly, punching a massive hole right through his body. The blood and internal organs in his abdomen were vaporized in a single instant.

Through the gaping wound, the ground behind him could be clearly seen.

The officer had not even registered the tearing of his abdomen; he merely felt a stabbing pain in his gut and instinctively looked down, only to find that his entire chest cavity had already been blasted away. Just as a flicker of panic flashed in his eyes, his vision went entirely black, and he lost consciousness forever.

He crashed heavily to the ground, dead beyond any doubt!

This gruesome sight only deepened the terror of the panic-stricken Japanese, driving them to flee frantically toward the edges of the battlefield.

The Japanese formation had finally collapsed, and their will to fight was thoroughly shattered. The enemy soldiers completely lost any desire for battle; at that moment, they possessed only a single thought: escape!

Flee this place!

Flee as far away as possible!

In the eyes of the Japanese soldiers, the defenders were a horde of demons!

They possessed a strange weapon capable of obliterating the Empire's tanks and turning soldiers' bodies into shredded pulp. Faced with such armament, the Japanese troops could muster no will to resist whatsoever.

While the resilience of the Japanese soldiers was strong—often capable of erupting into formidable combat effectiveness and persisting even in the harshest environments—that was always premised on the ability to perceive a glimmer of hope. Only then could they display fierce martial valor!

Yet now, under these circumstances, seeing the invincible armored vehicles of their Empire so effortlessly destroyed, and witnessing their valiant comrades slaughtered without the slightest capacity for resistance—even being blasted into heaps of meat—how could they possibly continue to fight?

This was simply a battle with zero hope of victory!

Therefore, these little Japanese devils ran for their lives, desperately wishing to evacuate the area as fast as possible.

The shredded flesh on the positions and the blood-soaked earth filled even these battle-hardened Japanese soldiers with profound panic!

It was simply too terrifying!

"Baka! Hold the line! No retreating! The Empire has no soldiers who fear death!" The Japanese officers shouted frantically, attempting to salvage the collapsing battle lines, even invoking the Emperor and the Bushido spirit, but it was entirely futile.

The Japanese soldiers only fled all the more desperately.

Witnessing this, a look of utter despair surfaced on the faces of several Japanese officers. They knew the defeat was irrecoverable!

This offensive, aided by the Empire's armored vehicles, was supposed to capture Dingyuan in one fell stroke. They never imagined it would culminate in a total collapse of the battle, with countless casualties and even their tanks destroyed. They could well imagine the harshest punishments awaiting them upon their return!

Sighing inwardly, these Japanese officers wore bitter expressions as they joined the fleeing soldiers in retreat.

With the battle lines already shattered, even if they wished to hold the position, how could they possibly cope with the firepower of the Chinese army relying solely on themselves?

If they didn't run now, were they supposed to wait around to be killed by the Chinese army?

Compared to being shot dead, they would much rather go back and endure the reprimands of their regimental commander.

...

Back in Dingyuan County town, seeing the Japanese soldiers fleeing in disarray, all the defenders wore expressions of elation, which soon erupted into roaring cheers echoing throughout the entire city of Dingyuan.

"We've beaten them back! We've repelled the little Japanese devils!"

"You little Japanese devils, you've finally met your match!"

"Look at those devils run! They probably wish their parents had given them two extra legs!"

The soldiers expressed their excitement in various ways, and Huzi was equally overjoyed.

He never imagined that a few strange cannons could actually force the Japanese to retreat in such disarray. It was nothing short of a miracle!

Yes, to Huzi, and indeed to the ordinary soldiers, repelling the Japanese this time was an absolute miracle!

The situation had already grown perilous, with the Japanese on the verge of breaking through, yet a few cannons had managed to shatter their morale and snatch victory from the jaws of disaster. If that wasn't a miracle, what was?

When this news was reported back to the headquarters, Chen Qingzhi and Su Zuxin were both awaiting the outcome of the battle. Upon receiving the report, Su Zuxin repeatedly exclaimed that it was a miracle, his face beaming with excitement, but Chen Qingzhi remained far more composed.

Was it truly a miracle?

Not at all!

Using anti-aircraft cannons by leveling their barrels to deal with armored vehicles was a highly practical technique, and its effectiveness was remarkable!

It was simply that domestic anti-aircraft guns were currently scarce, making such tactics naturally known to very few!

And Chen Qingzhi, having undergone rigorous scientific training, naturally knew the most appropriate methods to deal with the little Japanese devils!