As night fell, the student soldiers, numerous in number and lacking proper food and rest, along with the need to care for the wounded, were not moving quickly through the dense forest.
The 125 student soldiers lined up in a single column, with those in the back holding onto the hem of the clothes of those in front, and advanced in the dark.
Since Milan had no companion star, the area was plunged into darkness after the star set. However, apart from Brandon, who was leading the way, the others dared not use torches for illumination, as the light in the night would easily reveal the team's position.
Lieutenant Brandon took the initiative to walk at the front of the column, brandishing his saber to clear a slightly easier path for his comrades behind him.
Brandon has become someone you can rely on.
The group carefully climbed across a rushing stream by passing a fallen, dead tree. The dead tree was then pushed into the stream, and Zhang Fan led them to a cave.
Before each battle, the Ryan National Army would record the terrain map around the battlefield into the soldiers' battlefield recorders, which was a great help.
The student soldiers were captured during the transfer, so only Zhang Fan carried a battlefield recorder with him.
After entering the cave, Zhang Fan asked Brandon to cut down some small trees to cover the entrance.
Finally, they could start a fire. Everyone gathered around the fire, the flickering flames illuminating their young faces.
If it weren't for this war, these young people would still be on campus, and wouldn't have gone to the Ryan National Army for internships until the second half of the year. At the end of their internships, some outstanding graduates would be retained by their original units, while others would be assigned to new units under the school's arrangement.
Now they've skipped the transition phase and gone straight from school to the battlefield.
"Sir!" Brandon and several male soldiers concealed the cave entrance, swept away any traces in the vicinity with tree branches, and returned to the cave to report to Zhang Fan.
"Pack your weapons and follow me."
Zhang Fan led Brandon and 10 other strong male soldiers out of the cave and continued up the mountain.
"Sir, where are we going?" Brandon stayed close to Zhang Fan throughout the climb.
“Go get our dinner,” Zhang Fan replied.
"Dinner? Up in the mountains?" Brandon was a little taken aback.
“Yes, just follow us.” Zhang Fan said helplessly. It seemed that the people in this world had lost the ability to survive in the wild.
Wilderness survival training is an essential skill for Chinese soldiers. During field training exercises, they often give you a knife and then throw you into a primeval forest or a deserted island, only to come back to pick you up 10 days later.
Compared to the history of the Chinese army crossing the grasslands, this place is simply paradise, full of resources.
The proverb that once described the abundance of resources in the Great Northern Wilderness, "You can beat a roe deer with a stick and scoop fish with a ladle, and pheasants fly into your cooking pot," is a true reflection of this place.
However, with over a hundred people, eating pheasants would definitely not be enough to satisfy their hunger; they would need to hunt some larger animals.
Milan's nights are only illuminated by dim starlight.
The group moved forward with their bodies low to the ground, stopping at a hillside. The soil looked as if it had been plowed, and Zhang Fan turned over the soil and picked up a tuber of a type of potato.
The cut end of the tuber was fresh, still covered with oozing white sap, and had teeth marks on it.
"Everyone else stay put. Brandon, come with me." Zhang Fan waved his hand and led Brandon away stealthily.
After walking uphill for about 200 meters from downwind, Zhang Fan heard a noise ahead.
Snore...
A wild beast was rummaging through the ground 100 meters ahead, its long fangs digging into the earth and exposing the tubers underneath.
"Toothed pig" is what the locals call this wild animal, but Zhang Fan prefers to call it a wild boar. Apart from the slight difference in appearance, the meat of the toothed pig tastes the same.
Brandon and Zhang Fan lay motionless behind the bushes downwind.
"Sir, is this the dinner you were talking about?"
"Yes, haven't you ever seen a boar?"
“I’ve seen it before,” Brandon said somewhat embarrassedly. “But what I’ve seen before are pieces of Japanese pork in supermarkets. This is the first time I’ve seen a whole, live Japanese pig.”
"Are you confident you can take out our dinner with one shot?" Zhang Fan pointed to the laser rifle in Brandon's hand.
The sniper rifle in Zhang Fan's hand was an old live-fire rifle, and the sound of firing it was too loud, which would easily attract the attention of the Fars soldiers.
The laser rifle in Brandon's hand is a high-end model. This type of gun uses energy blocks as bullets and is widely used in space combat. It is quiet, has low recoil, and is suitable for hunting.
“Sir, I can give it a try,” Brandon said softly, without refusing.
"Good!" Zhang Fan patted Brandon on the shoulder with satisfaction. "But you only have one chance, remember that!"
“Hmm.” Brandon nodded. He knew, of course, that unless they killed him instantly, they wouldn’t be able to find the wounded and escaped tusk boar in this pitch-black environment.
Brandon released the safety on the laser rifle and confirmed that the energy block in the magazine had been injected.
The tusk was still rooting around in the tubers on the ground, its two eyes shining brightly in the night, like two red fireflies flitting about on the ground.
Brandon pressed his right eye against the gun, his index finger on the trigger, and breathed softly.
"Whoosh—hiss!"
puff!
The two red fireflies went out at the same time.
Before the boar could even grunt, an energy bullet entered through its right eye and exited through its left, piercing its head.
"That's great!" Zhang Fan couldn't help but praise.
"Hehe." Brandon couldn't help but laugh; he was very satisfied with his performance.
Brandon's confidence is back, which is a good thing.
Zhang Fan also felt that he hadn't misjudged Brandon. As an outstanding graduate of the Royal Military Command Academy of the Duchy of Ryan, Brandon's military skills were quite good.
The 124 Ryan Military Academy student soldiers below were not bad in quality; what they lacked was spirit and the process of applying what they had learned to battlefield experience.
An hour later, ten male soldiers carried two pigs, each weighing over 300 kilograms, down the mountain and towards the stream.
As Zhang Fan walked, he picked wild ginger, scallions, and garlic along the way. The ecological environment here was so good it was like a self-service supermarket.
"Sir, what are these?" After reaching the foot of the mountain, Brandon was already carrying a large bundle of various plants.
"Seasonings?" Zhang Fan asked, somewhat puzzled. "Didn't your school teach you how to find food in the wild?"
“I taught him.” Brandon nodded. “Find airdrop sites in the wild; they’ll have individual self-heating rations.”
Zhang Fan was speechless; this was yet another true reflection of the saying "Why don't they eat meat porridge?"
On the bank of the stream, the male soldiers who stayed behind had already dug a large pit, filled it with water, and the soldiers kept carrying hot stones out of the cave and throwing them into the pit.
The hot stones quickly brought the water to a boil, and the two pigs were thrown into the scalding water to remove their hair.
"Who among you knows how to handle the food?" Zhang Fan turned on the small flashlight on his helmet and shone it on the boar in the pit.
The people around looked at each other, but no one responded.
“Alright, I’ll demonstrate once, and you can follow along,” Zhang Fan said, pulling out his dagger.
Dissecting and gutting—in ancient times, there was the butcher Ding who dissected an ox; today, there is Zhang Fan who dissects a pig.
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