Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

Zhou Rui and his group were heading up the mountain. Having finished searching one side, they were preparing to cross the mountain and camp on the other side.

"Father, if we manage to catch the black bear this time, are you really going to get me a Type 56 Half-Blade sword?" Chen Feiyue asked Chen Ye while clearing the way with his scimitar. Having walked in the mountains all day, the blade he swung was already weak and powerless.

"Of course, your marksmanship is getting better and better. If you get a more powerful gun with a larger magazine, you can catch more prey. I understand the principle that 'a skilled craftsman must first sharpen his tools.'" Chen Ye said with a smug look, feeling extremely pleased that he could utter such a refined sentence.

"That's great. If we have five or six half-cash incense sticks by then, and our family finds one that looks like a 'head-raising incense stick,' then..."

Chen Ye looked puzzled; why had his son, who was talking, suddenly fallen silent?

"What's wrong, son?"

"Jackal, jackal, jackal dog." Chen Feiyue pointed ahead and stammered.

Chen Ye looked in the direction his son was pointing and saw seven or eight jackals gnawing on something. More than twenty other wary jackals turned around and stared at the father and son with cold eyes.

Bang! Gu Dayong's steps, which were almost at the top of the mountain, faltered.

"Ruiwa, did you hear that?"

"Uncle Dayong, hurry, go up and take a look." Zhou Rui did not answer directly.

They were almost at the top of the mountain, so they quickly sped up their climb.

Bang, bang. Gunshots rang out one after another.

The four men climbed up the more than 20-meter-high cliff at an almost sprinting speed.

"Huff... huff huff."

Everyone was panting heavily, tense, and the altitude at the top of the mountain made them feel somewhat oxygen-deprived.

Bang, bang, ... bang.

"Over there, the sound of a double-barreled shotgun combined with the sound of a Type 38 rifle." Having experienced the battlefield, Gu Dayong quickly determined the direction and type of gunfire.

"Uncle Chen Ye and Chen Feiyue seem to use these two types of guns, right?" Zhou Rui asked. In fact, he had encountered the two men in the village, and they did indeed use these two types of guns.

In the distance came howls like the whistling of jackals and the pitiful cries of hunting dogs.

Bang, bang. Only two gunshots remained.

"Damn it, all that's left is the sound of a double-barreled shotgun. Either the gun is lost, or the man is gone. That old Chen, he didn't believe your judgment yesterday, and today he sneaked up the mountain and did something stupid." Gu Dayong lamented his misfortune and was angry at his lack of self-control.

Zhou Rui didn't have a good impression of Chen Ye and his son, but as fellow hunters from the village, he still had to take action. "Let's go. Now that we've found the jackal, regardless of whether we can save anyone, we still have to fight it."

"Let's go. Sanwa, hold the dogs tight and don't let them run away. Everyone, follow me at a steady pace. Don't rush, or we'll all be exhausted when we get to the battlefield." Although Gu Dayong was anxious, he still calmly gave the orders. He couldn't afford to be reckless and get himself caught up in the chaos.

"Yes." "Received." "Received."

The group responded simultaneously, then adjusted their breathing and followed Gu Dayong toward the direction of the gunshot.

It took Zhou Rui and his group almost twenty minutes to cover a distance of just over a kilometer. Fortunately, the intermittent gunfire continued, letting them know that at least some people were still alive.

Zhou Rui would occasionally activate his senses along the way, not to determine the direction of the jackals, but to see if there were any other ferocious beasts nearby.

Zhou Rui and his team are there to be the mantis that catches the cicada, not the oriole that gets caught in the crossfire.

They were almost there; through the gaps in the trees ahead, they could vaguely see the silhouettes of a large number of jackals. The gunshots grew louder, and the air began to fill with the smell of gunpowder.

However, this was actually a good thing for Zhou Rui and his group. It would make it easier for them to approach the jackal pack without being detected.

Gu Dayong suddenly made a gesture, and Zhou Rui and Gu Jiacheng immediately stopped and quietly came up behind him. Only Liu Qingguo couldn't understand the gesture, but he observed Zhou Rui and did whatever Zhou Rui did.

Bang. Gradually, Chen Ye's double-barreled shotgun stopped firing two shots in quick succession. Instead, he fired one shot, then another shortly after. It seemed he was running low on ammunition.

The four men crouched behind a huge tree, with Gu Dayong observing silently from the side. After a while, he turned around and had them gather around him.

Gu Dayong gestured on the ground with a branch, saying, "Gu Jiacheng, Liu Qingguo, you two go fifty meters ahead. There are two pine trees there, one on the left and one on the right. Climb up there; those are your firing positions. Even if you can't see the target from the trees, don't come down, understand?"

When Gu Dayong gets involved in positional warfare, it's as if he's back on the northern battlefield. All his actions and words are in military mode, regardless of whether the opponent is human or animal.

"Understood." "Okay, got it."

"Zhou Rui, follow me to this position. Be 30 meters ahead of Gu Jiacheng and Liu Qingguo. There's a locust tree there. You and I will fire from either side of the tree, forming a triangular firing formation. They might crumble with a single shot, or they might retaliate, but we won't retreat an inch and will hold our ground."

As Gu Dayong spoke, he observed Zhou Rui's reaction to see what kind of person Zhou Rui was and whether he had the courage to stand at the forefront. But Zhou Rui's expression remained calm, as if he didn't think Gu Dayong's arrangement was anything special.

"If we can't hold out, we'll climb the tree temporarily. I'll have the three dogs hold it back and buy us some time."

"Understood." Zhou Rui's voice was calm and steady, without the slightest hint of nervousness.

Seeing that Zhou Rui was not afraid, Gu Dayong continued, "When the time comes, follow my command and use my gunshots as the attack signal."

The three nodded emphatically at the same time.

The four men, bending low, began to move more slowly, two in front and two behind, using the cover of the trees and bushes. After walking a distance, Gu Dayong, leading the three hunting dogs, and Zhou Rui continued forward, while Gu Jiacheng and Liu Qingguo began to separate and walk diagonally to either side.

Zhou Rui followed Gu Dayong behind the locust tree, first peeking out. Then he put down his backpack, took out a spare magazine and placed it aside, then pulled out his dagger and forcefully planted it in the ground. Next, he knelt on one knee, leaning against the tree, assuming an aiming posture, and quietly waited for Gu Dayong's signal.

Gu Dayong observed the situation of the jackals about a hundred meters ahead. The jackals were divided into two groups, circling around the two trees. The two dogs belonging to the Chen family had long since stopped moving and were probably dead in some corner.

Gu Dayong glanced at Zhou Rui on his right and saw that his shooting posture was standard and his breathing was steady, which made him a good prospect.

The reason he chose to play Zhou Rui as the striker instead of his own son was to see what kind of talent this recently famous kid was really capable of. He was confident he could ensure Zhou Rui's safety should danger arise.

Gu Dayong slowly raised the Water Bead in his hand, scientifically known as the Mosin-Nagant. This gun, which had accompanied him back from the northern battlefield, had long been connected to his mind and spirit.

Bang. Gu Dayong pulled the trigger first, and a slightly larger jackal fell to the ground.