Cruel War

Chapter 8 Cruel War

The brief battle concluded, and Kyle began collecting the spoils of war from the battlefield.

When German soldiers died, all the items they carried became available for extraction.

"Huh? What's this?" Kyle looked at the two sheepskin scrolls he'd found on a German soldier. With a thought, the information for two item cards appeared before his eyes.

[Encrypted Map One]: Contains detailed terrain maps of the German forces' operational area, as well as the location of our temporary base.

[Encrypted Map Two]: Contains intelligence gathered by an elite German squad on the deployment of US forces, operational camps, and supply routes in the combat zone.

"No wonder they dared to penetrate deep behind enemy lines; it turns out they were an elite squad dispatched by Germany," Kyle mused, his expression thoughtful. He then card-ified the two sheepskin maps and attached them to himself.

Maps were like strategy guides, showing the distribution of both armies and the detailed terrain of the region. It was no wonder the German forces were putting so much offensive pressure on the Americans.

Kyle quickly extracted all the equipment from the German soldiers and then moved on to the military supplies on the American military vehicles.

Kyle never thought he could have too much ammunition. He felt no guilt in taking all the military supplies that should have been plundered by the enemy for himself.

Finally, looking at the completely looted military vehicle, Kyle thought for a moment, cleaned out the two US soldier corpses in the driver's seat, and then card-ified the slightly damaged military vehicle, attaching it to himself.

With the card extraction complete, Kyle was now carrying a vehicle's worth of military supplies, truly armed to the teeth.

Ready to depart, Kyle stood on a small hill, looking towards the engagement zone not far ahead, and muttered, "It's time to join the fight on the front lines."

Having experienced the baptism of his first kill, Kyle had a deeper understanding of his own strength. He believed that with the ability cards and item cards he possessed, he could even charge into a large-scale war.

Since this was a destined experience in his reborn life, he welcomed the war to come with even greater intensity!

Frontline Combat Zone.

"Boom!"

"Da-da-da!"

The cacophony of artillery and gunfire mingled, like a symphony of thunder and rain. Amidst the crimson and blue flames of muzzle flashes and the blinding daylight of exploding shells and grenades at night, American and German soldiers fiercely engaged each other.

The American forces were primarily defending, using earthen craters and piled-up earth as cover, forming a linear defense to continuously block the German soldiers attempting to break through the front line.

Although bullets and shells relentlessly harvested the lives of advancing German soldiers, using the corpses of their fallen comrades as cover, the German forces still advanced inch by inch, closing the distance between the two combat zones.

"These Nazis must be brainwashed; they're completely suicidal warmongers!"

A Black Sergeant leading a US squad gritted his teeth, scanning the surrounding soldiers who were desperately holding on with bloodshot eyes. He clenched his fists and growled into the combat radio, "Our squad's ammunition is running low! Haven't the reinforcements and supplies from the rear arrived yet?!"

"If this continues, our central defense line can only hold for another ten minutes—"

As soon as the Sergeant finished speaking, a dull artillery blast suddenly sounded. The shell, trailing a piercing whine, landed on a dirt crater a few meters in front of him. A soldier nearby was instantly vaporized.

"What is this?" The Sergeant, thrown to the ground by the blast's impact, struggled to his feet despite the ringing in his ears and his body's discomfort. He looked forward from the destroyed crater fortification and saw a massive steel machine crawling forward like a monster, its wheels crushing the corpses of countless German soldiers into a bloody pulp.

"Those Nazi beasts, holding back until now, and they're deploying tanks? I was wrong, it's not ten minutes, it's ten seconds before the defense line is torn open!" The Sergeant's expression turned to despair.

The German tank continued to advance, adjusting its firing direction. Just as the second shell was about to be fired, a similarly dull and massive artillery blast echoed from behind the Sergeant.

"Boom!"

The rocket launcher not only emitted a piercing sound but also spewed thick smoke from its tail, tracing a parabola through the sky over the combat zone. It accurately crossed a distance of forty meters and landed directly on the barrel of the German tank.

Just as the tank's second shell had not yet been fired, it was engulfed in a brilliant explosion of sparks. The steel tank turned into a pile of scrap metal, causing casualties among the German soldiers who had been following closely behind, attempting to break through.

"Nice!"

The American soldiers who witnessed this scene cheered.

Even the Black Sergeant's eyes widened. The desperate situation had been instantly reversed by this single rocket launcher. He couldn't help but turn his head.

Behind the defensive line of craters, about ten meters away, stood a strong and handsome young man, a rocket launcher resting on his shoulder with one hand. It was Kyle, who had just arrived.

Seeing many soldiers' gazes focused on him, Kyle smiled slightly:

"Soldier Kyle, here to reinforce!"

This grueling and brutal defensive battle lasted the entire night!

From nightfall until the eastern sky turned the color of fish belly, and the first rays of dawn fell upon the front-line battlefield, the German army finally abandoned its suicidal breakthroughs and retreated like a receding tide.

In this sense, it could be considered a brief victory for the American forces—

It was a Pyrrhic victory! The defense line was fractured, and the battlefield was littered with the corpses of German and American soldiers, piled high like mountains. Miles of land had turned into scorched earth, stained crimson by blood.

Countless surviving American soldiers lacked the strength to even cheer. After enduring a night of continuous high-intensity combat, they were mentally and physically exhausted. Many had already fainted, their hands still tightly gripping their rifles as they fell.

Kyle also sat in a dirt crater, his face etched with fatigue. His body was covered in blood and dirt. The experience of this night was unprecedented.

Despite possessing the skill level of a sharpshooter, with each bullet claiming a life, the harsh battlefield environment and the endless onslaught of the enemy placed immense pressure on him.

It was like a tug-of-war against death, requiring constant tension in his body. A moment of relaxation could allow enemy bullets to create bloody wounds anywhere on him.

This was large-scale warfare!

Only after the enemy retreated did Kyle throw down his overheated rifle. The barrel smoked and hissed, clearly having served its purpose and been rendered unusable.

"Soldier, your name is Kyle, right?" The Black Sergeant leaned over with difficulty. His left eye was completely gone, and one of his hands hung limply from a gunshot wound, but he still grinned, showing his white teeth. "You're so young, this is your first time on the battlefield, isn't it?"

"That's right," Kyle replied, panting.

"It really is your first time on the battlefield. And to encounter such a large-scale war, your performance was truly outstanding. You can't be treated as a new recruit at all. I'll put in a special commendation for you with the Captain when we get back," the Sergeant said with admiration.

"Whatever. After experiencing a war like this, the fact that I'm still alive is already a blessing from the goddess of victory," Kyle said with emotion.

"Yes. Being alive is a great fortune," the Sergeant smiled and said, "Wait a little longer. Reinforcements from the rear will arrive soon to relieve us, and we can get a good half-day's rest."

"Rest? I'm afraid I can't," Kyle shook his head, patting his uniform pocket. "I have a very important item that I need to deliver to the Captain!"