Chapter 13: Virtual Training
"Come on, let them witness my power!" Hu Daoke had no intention of dodging. He stood tall on top of the trench, holding the Fire God Cannon, and pressed the button aimed towards the distant enemy.
"Dudududu..."
The Fire God Cannon let out a burst of rapid noise as a stream of bullets flew towards the distant enemies, kicking up dust wherever they hit.
"Haha!!" Hu Daoke let out a boisterous laugh, loudly saying, "Only sissies hide in trenches and shoot; real men stand above and spray bullets!"
"Be careful, these are all artificial intelligences, not the dumb AIs from decades ago." Zhuyan Yu floated in midair, holding her face while speaking to him in a relaxed manner.
"Hmph, with this kind of firepower, does anyone plan to fight back?" Hu Daoke said, unconvinced.
No sooner had he finished speaking than a burst of bullets swept over, hitting him right in the chest. Although he felt no pain, he still fell powerlessly to the ground, and the Fire God Cannon also dropped down beside him.
"Teacher Zhu!" Hu Daoke cried out in a wailing tone, struck and unable to control his body no matter how hard he tried.
"I warned you to be careful; you are already dead," Zhuyan Yu said leisurely.
"Give me another chance, Teacher Zhu!" Hu Daoke begged for mercy.
"I really have no choice with you."
Zhuyan Yu sighed, made a gesture, and soon Hu Daoke could feel control of his body again. He quickly flipped up from the ground and scrambled into the trench, no longer making bold statements but instead grabbed a light machine gun from the weapons rack to find a firing position and open fire.
"100 meters," Luo'er said, squatting with his gun and shouting loudly to Tangmo, "Moumou, you can use magic now."
"Oh!" Tangmo had just stood up, peeking her head out when a bullet came flying, knocking off her hat and scaring her into quickly ducking back down.
Seeing this, Luo'er dropped the rifle and pulled out a Magic Wand. Standing up, he began to silently recite spells, and soon an invisible wall appeared in front of him, reflecting the bullets that hit it.
"I've got you covered, Moumou!" Luo'er shouted, continuing to recite spells, maintaining the Magic Shield.
In Otherworld, shield spells are divided into physical shields and magic shields. As the names suggest, physical shields are used to defend against incoming physical attacks, and one's own side cannot use physical means to attack the enemy, while magic shields are employed to block magic attacks aimed at mages. On the battlefields of Otherworld, alternating use of physical shields and magic shields often leads to unexpectedly effective results.
Tangmo bit her lip and stood up, silently starting to chant the incantations for a fireball spell. Guided by her, a fireball flew towards a distant enemy, striking him squarely and surrounding him in flames. He screamed and flailed about, but was quickly shot down by a barrage from Hu Daoke.
Tangmo kept casting spells, and although her accuracy left something to be desired, she began to get the feel for it.
"50 meters!" Hu Daoke took over Luo'er's role and called out as the enemies had now moved within a fifty-meter range. They were crawling on the ground, making it difficult for them to be attacked, forcing them to suppressive fire.
Just then, a shrill whistling sound came from the sky, followed by an artillery shell exploding not far away, kicking up puffs of dust.
"Incoming artillery; everyone, close ranks!" Luo'er shouted, pulling Tangmo down to crouch. Although they didn't understand Luo'er's order, everyone still obediently moved closer to him.
Soon after, more piercing whistles filled the sky. Once everyone had gathered, Luo'er patted Tangmo on the shoulder and shouted, "Moumou, activate the Level Three Shield!"
"Understood!" Tangmo lifted her Magic Wand to the sky, silently chanting spells, and after a brief lead-in, a faint protective dome swiftly enveloped them all. An artillery shell crashed directly onto the shield, exploding violently; while it looked intimidating, those under the shield didn't even feel the shock wave. Tangmo's Level Three Shield perfectly covered the group from the artillery fire, leaving even the spectating Zhuyan Yu completely astonished.
After completing the initial adaptive training, the squad moved on to using different support weapons to clearly define their roles. Five hours later, they had basically adapted to this combination of magic and modern weaponry in their assault tactics.
As the environment deliquesced and flashed back, the surroundings changed once more. They were now outside a manor in the mountains, guarded by layers of security that seemed impenetrable. The mountain fog enveloped the manor, and the silhouettes of distant figures were faint – an ideal setting for infiltration.
"Listen up," Luo'er said seriously to the group, "finally, we'll simulate a hostage rescue mission one last time. The objective is simple; infiltrate the manor without being detected, rescue the hostages, and withdraw, got it?"
The team nodded in unison without a word.
"Alright, now I'm going to assign everyone's tasks," Luo'er continued, "Hu Daoke and Baiyue, you two will form a sniper team, find high ground to provide reconnaissance and support for the infiltration."
"Me with her?" Hu Daoke, pointing at the ever-stoic Baiyue, said in surprise.
"Yes, your physique and style aren't suited for infiltration operations."
"But this guy isn't fit either!" Hu Daoke said, pointing at Cheng Ziang, reluctant to accept it.
"He has quick reflexes, suitable for close-quarters combat," Luo'er explained after observation.
"Little Ke, make sure to get along well with Yue'er!" Tangmo chimed in from the side.
"Fine, I get it," Hu Daoke reluctantly accepted the arrangement, turned, and awkwardly greeted Baiyue, "Uh, looking forward to working with you..."
Baiyue turned her face away, ignoring him, which only added to his frustration.
"Baiyue, you're the sniper; take him and find a suitable sniper position. Once it's set up, notify us via radio, understood?"
Luo'er received significantly better treatment than Hu Daoke did; at least the other party nodded in acknowledgment.
"Hu Daoke, you're the spotter. You know your tasks, don't you?" Luo'er continued.
"I know—reconnaissance, guiding the sniper to assassinate. Pretty much that," Hu Daoke said with a bitter expression.
"Alright, you two hurry up and find a position to get ready. We need to make our corresponding preparations too."
Baiyue, silent, hugged the rifle and turned to leave. Hu Daoke reluctantly glanced at Tangmo and then followed behind, no choice but to tag along obediently.
"Luo'er, am I suitable for an assault team?" Tangmo asked, feeling a bit guilty about the incident that day.
"Don't worry, you don't have to use a gun."
"Then what do I do?" Tangmo asked, spreading his hands in confusion.
"You just need to provide magic support!"
"I can do that. Don't worry, Luo'er. When it comes to magic, I'm really good!" Tangmo perked up as soon as magic was mentioned.
"Cheng Ziang, I'll lead, Moumou in the middle, and you cover our rear. Is that okay?" Luo'er looked at him and asked.
"Okay!" Cheng Ziang rarely spoke up, his tone still devoid of any emotion.
"Good, let's move!" With that command from Luo'er, the three of them slowly approached the manor from the dense forest outside.
Meanwhile, Baiyue and Hu Daoke were looking for a sniper position. They found an area of high ground with a clear view, and after clearing away some brush, Baiyue spread a canvas on the ground and lay down, setting up the M70 hunting rifle with a silencer and tripod. She then called up a menu out of thin air, and immediately a ghillie suit covered her body.
"Uh," Hu Daoke hesitated for a moment, then put on a ghillie suit as well, fearfully laying down next to Baiyue, and said with little confidence, "Heh, happy cooperation, huh!"
Baiyue glanced at him, pursed her lips, and finally uttered her first lengthy sentence, "Set up Guile Thunder!"
"Oh!" Hu Daoke smacked his head, quickly stood up, took out some Guile Thunder from the menu, and ran off to set them up around their position.
After setting up, he ran back and then took out a pair of high-precision binoculars and started his observation. The entire manor lay before them; he could see every guard's face as clear as day.
"Uh..." Hu Daoke hesitated and glanced at Baiyue again before activating the radio earpiece, "Uh, the sniper position is set up."
"Understood, from now on, your team's codename is Hawkeye, and our team is Codename Short Sword, got it?" Luo'er's voice came through the radio.
"Got it, what next?"
"Search for our location and provide us with information on enemy movements," Luo'er directed earnestly.
"Understood." Hu Daoke began to search for Luo'er and the others' location. His binoculars had a wide enough field of view, that despite the thin mist, he quickly located Luo'er and the others.
They were lurking outside the manor's surrounding wall, perfectly tucked into the blind spot of an elevated enemy position, thus remaining undetected.
"Short Sword, we've seen your position." Hu Daoke now began to report earnestly.
"Received, direct the sniper to our position," Luo'er reminded at the end.
"Oh," Hu Daoke nodded and quickly said, "Three o'clock direction, outside of the manor wall, about 200 yards!"
Upon hearing the instructions, Baiyue moved her gun muzzle and also located Luo'er and company's position.
"Locked on!" she said coldly over the radio.
"Hawkeye, report on the surroundings!" Luo'er commanded softly.
"Uh...there's an enemy behind the wall, leaning on a building. But that's a blind spot... wait a second," Hu Daoke said while shifting his view, "There's another enemy facing him, but he looks like a patrolman."
"Good, when he leaves, take that guy out!" Luo'er decided they would break into the manor from here.
"Understood, sniper lock on that guy!" Hu Daoke directed.
"Locked on!" Baiyue quickly acquired the target, an AI slacking against the wall, her fingertip on the trigger, starting to regulate her breath.
"He's gone; fire!" Hu Daoke gave the order as soon as he saw the patrolman turn around.
"Pfft!"
Even with the silencer, Hu Daoke could still hear the muted sound. In the distance, the enemy went down, but the others were quickly alarmed by the gunshot. In this foggy and silent environment, the dull sound still managed to alert these AI-controlled enemies.
"Damn, we seem to have been exposed!" Hu Daoke exclaimed nervously, watching as the enemies swarmed towards their sniper spot. A blinding signal flare was shot into the air.