Darkstone Code

Chapter 1220 - 1218: Day One, Night

Darkstone Security’s deployment temporarily stabilized the front line, with each battle vehicle becoming an "island of defense," playing a crucial defensive role.

Before the enemy destroys these vehicles, they cannot effectively advance.

Whenever there is a clear enemy presence, the turret of the four-barrel autocannon rotates, followed by the sound of the Death God’s scythe, shredding anyone hiding behind anything!

It’s not artillery, making it difficult to cause extensive fragmentation damage, but in certain situations, its advantage in cutting down infantry is notably superior to artillery.

Some retreating Federation soldiers breathed a sigh of relief, including some allied soldiers, looking at the things painted with the Darkstone Security Company’s emblem, suddenly feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity deep down.

Their parents gave them life, naturally instilling a primal closeness toward them.

Now that Darkstone Security saved their lives, they naturally felt a certain indescribable fondness toward Darkstone Security.

There’s no telling what’s so good, yet it exudes familial closeness.

A heavily armed Darkstone Security staff member began to attempt organizing a counterattack.

Ryan felt relaxed, with no sign of tension on his face. Watching the fearfulness on the faces of the Federation soldiers, he thought of his past self.

Everything has changed, he thought.

He found his current situation strange; he no longer felt tense when bullets flew near him or woke up startled from gunfire and artillery sounds.

On the frontline, as long as he held a gun, he could sleep anywhere, anytime.

In contrast, when he returned to the Federation for rest not long ago, he found it difficult to sleep on a soft spring bed.

It was the first time he found a spring bed so uncomfortable; during the night, he sat up from insomnia, placed a sheet on the floor, and gradually fell asleep on the hard ground.

He disliked life without combat and sometimes became nervously edgy over trivial matters.

Like in the morning when someone crouched outside his door trying to shove a bill under it. Not knowing why, he suddenly opened the door, kicked the person in the face, and quickly locked the unfortunate person’s neck.

If his family hadn’t pulled him back in time, he might have been sued for killing a postman.

Fortunately, the company helped him resolve these issues and sent him back to the battlefield.

When he smelled the gun oil on his weapon, it was like smelling a girl’s fragrance, the touch of the gun more satisfying than caressing a girl’s tender skin.

Just like at this moment, despite bullets whizzing past his ear, he bore a faint smile.

He might be ill, but he didn’t mind this kind of illness!

In a daze, with a forward throw and a one-handed support on the ground, he completed a shoulder forward roll, then leaned behind cover, ready to enter combat at any moment.

He carefully discerned the direction from which the gunfire came, then quickly glanced up.

He ducked, closed his eyes, and in the darkness preserved the last second of everything seen, with those things transforming into a simple black and white sketch, slowly fading.

Within those four or five seconds, he identified the enemy, checked his weapon, released the safety, and took a deep breath!

Pivoted, half-squatted, glanced up, straightened his back, pulled the trigger, a distant splash of blood, pivoted, and retreated to cover.

A comrade behind another piece of cover gave him a thumbs-up, clearly indicating he successfully eliminated someone.

Darkstone Security’s combat system operates in groups, each consisting of six: one sniper, one gunner, two assault troopers, and two grenadiers.

Above the group are squads, platoons, and companies, operating with a more efficient system.

Ryan made some gestures, intending to advance to a more forward position, which required someone to coordinate with him, temporarily suppressing some enemies, thereby creating an opportunity.

The gunner and sniper began to respond, machine gun fire erupted, and the sniper quickly poked his head out, aimed at an enemy straight ahead, and pulled the trigger.

The sudden fire suppression might last only four or five seconds, but it was enough for Ryan to vault over his current cover, kicking off it with his feet for initial acceleration, then sprinting to the next cover.

With a successful tactical move, Ryan could attack more enemies from a narrower angle...

Scenes like this unfolded on the battlefield; every group carried out different tasks under squad, platoon, or company tactics, with vehicles occasionally providing fire support.

But this doesn’t necessarily mean Darkstone Security is better than the Peng Jieao forces.

Perhaps realizing that Darkstone Security Company personnel were more professional than Federation soldiers, Peng Jieao’s flanking troops also began to take things seriously. From the fourth minute of Darkstone Security’s engagement on the field, the first battle vehicle was blown up.

It was left crippled there, the entrance and exit blown open, with two vehicle drivers ablaze running out, only to be slain quickly beside the vehicle.

The intensity of the confrontation between both sides began escalating!

War is always brutal; no one knows when a bullet might take them away, or perhaps it will be shrapnel, or a stray bullet from somewhere unknown.

The only thing everyone can do is to try their best to eliminate the enemy!

Neither side was able to break through the other’s line, and as the sky gradually darkened, the battlefield was scattered with raging fires or freshly extinguished embers.

Ryan spat out some bloody spit, quickly looked up, and a hint of joy appeared on his face.

"They’re starting to retreat!"

The news quickly returned to the camp, and the commanders roughly understood why the other side was retreating—due to supply issues.

Since they had to detour through the dense forest around the front line, they were destined not to carry too many supplies; too much wouldn’t allow them to pass through the dense forest.

Things like bullets, whether carried by people or horses, ultimately have their limits.

After a whole day of fighting, their ammunition was pretty much used up, while Darkstone Security firmly pinned the battle line near this area, giving them no further opportunities to advance.

In the rear, they blew up some of the Federation’s ammunition depots, making it difficult for them to obtain supplies themselves.

If not for the people from Darkstone Security, they might have already attacked near the front-line command post, where there would be another supply depot.

Now, without supplies, leaving while there is still some ammunition left is the best choice, otherwise, once all the ammunition is exhausted, these people might end up staying here permanently.

Soon after, a new issue arose—whether or not to pursue.

The commanders thought it was better not to pursue; it was dark, and if the enemy launched a counter-ambush, they could lose the current advantage.

The president’s request was for them to control the situation in the rear before considering support for the front.

The Peng Jieao people eventually left in the dark, and people started cleaning up the aftermath. Looking at the rear camp, now akin to ruins, the soldiers of the Federation were bewildered.

This... is war?

Everywhere lay bodies in various death postures, a sight that some young soldiers couldn’t bear, leading them to vomit under the weight of such heavy pressure.

Employees of Darkstone Security quietly cleared the battlefield, placing the bodies into body bags and then delivering them for incineration.

This was currently the hottest time in Nagariel, and here, nestled between the primal jungles, if these bodies were left unchecked, they would soon decompose in the hot and humid environment, breeding various deadly and potentially contagious viruses.

Blazing fires continued to burn the bodies, producing a peculiar smell that caused some soldiers who had just recovered to vomit again uncontrollably.

It was a mix of the aroma of meat and animal fat being heated, with the final scent of scorching.

Ryan carried his comrade’s body to the incineration area, throwing it into the flames with the help of others.

The four watched the body bags engulfed in flames, all lowering their heads.

This time, their team lost two members, which was quite normal for four people.

Initially, Ryan found it hard to accept; each comrade’s departure felt like his responsibility—he blamed himself for not doing well enough, for failing to kill the enemy in time, or identify hidden foes.

Until now, he had started to become numb to these matters.

He held two dog tags; he would take them back and hang them in the company’s lobby display cabinet.

Not to exhibit them, but to remind people that although some may not be widely known, they once gave the most precious gift of life for this country, the people, and the company!

The fire gradually consumed the two body bags, merging them with the flames. Ryan raised his head, watching the flames flicker and ignite stars in the sky, he suddenly thought, if one day he also died, would it be like this?

On returning, his squad was assigned new members, who also brought some new rules.

"From today on, each group will patrol, and we will set up identification codes, changing every two hours."

"If someone can’t provide the correct code and resists, they can be killed on the spot..."

After the Peng Jieao infiltrated the camp, Darkstone Security summarized some issues, like how to distinguish between friend and foe.

They hadn’t encountered such shameless individuals before; of course, this can’t be blamed on the Federation people—they hadn’t participated in World War I, so they didn’t know to what extent people could go to for victory.

So the identification code became a good method; sometimes, primitive and simple means effective.

The constantly changing code could minimize the risk of infiltration, appearing primitive but very effective for the current situation.

At night, Ryan’s team was still on patrol, and as the shift change approached at one o’clock, he suddenly stopped.

Perking his ears, he gazed into the distant darkness, "Listen, what sound is that?"