Chapter 195: Boundless Heroism

Gao Yuan was riding a bicycle, a very decent mountain bike worth tens of thousands of yuan, because he was naturally entitled to preferential treatment.

Xinghe also rode a bicycle, sometimes racing ahead of Gao Yuan, sometimes suddenly squeezing the brakes and falling behind, giddily delighted.

In the entire Expeditionary Army of over five thousand people, only four did not have to pull a cart behind their bicycles. One was Commander-in-Chief Liu Muyang, one was Xinghe, and the other two were elite guards responsible for Xinghe's personal protection.

Xinghe rode her bicycle up next to Gao Yuan and said with pride, "How about it? I'm not bad at riding, am I? Do you know? I've been practicing how to ride a bicycle at Base 10 these past few days. How is it? I'm pretty good, aren't I?"

"Yes, quite good."

"Watch me let go."

Xinghe took both hands off the handlebars, looking very smug.

As Xinghe, like an overjoyed pup, rode her bike on the expressway, the two elite guards always managed to keep a distance of about twenty meters from her, neither too close nor too far.

An expert is truly an expert; Gao Yuan was curious how the two of them managed to coordinate so well with Xinghe.

Now, two full companies of the Sharp Sword Special Combat Brigade were responsible for protecting Xinghe, but aside from having so many special forces soldiers specifically for her protection, an additional eight people were assigned to guard her, because while the special forces' responsibility was to attack, these eight were solely responsible for protection.

The convoy proceeded on the Taihang Mountain Expressway.

The Taihang Mountain Expressway ran north to south along the Taihang Mountains. Starting from Base 10, they needed to travel only about eight kilometers via a minor road to access the highway, and the exit they took was at least a hundred kilometers from the exit Gao Yuan used the last two times he departed for Ji City.

Why not depart from the exit nearest to Base One but instead from the more southerly Base 10? Because it was closer to Taihang Mountain Expressway, it had a relatively sparse population, and if the Serpent People discovered a large number of people emerging from the mountains, they would be at least a bit further from the core Base One.

All in all, this was a Long March, a Long March of at least ten thousand kilometers, and the main mode of transportation for the entire Expeditionary Army was the bicycle.

A force of five thousand people obviously could not move as one large group, to avoid excessive attention from the Serpent People, the five thousand had to disperse into scattered small squads and proceed slowly along the expressway.

With roughly a hundred people per squad, those with combat tasks were more closely spaced, while those without combat duties were more spread out, thus extending the five thousand-strong force to nearly thirty kilometers.

Thirty kilometers long, think about what that meant—it meant that Gao Yuan and his companions had been riding for quite a while on the expressway, but the rear of the force had not even set out yet.

They avoided the national highways and provincial roads because those roads too often passed through many towns and villages, while a fully enclosed expressway would obviously be much safer.

However, such a long-distance ride couldn't be accomplished in one go; they had to make it from one point to the next, estimating only a few tens of kilometers per day. Under current conditions, they couldn't just keep riding; they needed scouts ahead, and when they encountered danger, they had to fight, so they couldn't travel too quickly.

The most troublesome part was that although every soldier in the Expeditionary Army carried a gun, opportunities to fire it were scarce. So, in most cases, the troops responsible for trailblazing had to engage in combat with cold weapons and clear obstacles.

Thus, the dangers of this expedition were evident, and people are not made of iron. Along the way, they had to resupply, rest, and lodge, and each of these steps meant potential problems.

The Expeditionary Army of five thousand would inevitably suffer casualties and ailments during the campaign; it was only a question of how many losses there would be.

Therefore, it was impossible to predict how many would ultimately make it to Africa. The most optimistic estimate was that half would arrive; the most pessimistic was the loss of the entire force, leaving none behind.

Because the conditions were extremely harsh, as harsh as they could be.

Why say so? Because even in ancient warfare, when a large army of tens of thousands was mobilized, it required hundreds of thousands to manage logistics. Even if the ancient armies had to march thousands of miles on foot, they at least didn't have to worry about food.

Even when deep in enemy territory, they could live off the land, which meant seizing sustenance from the enemy.

But what about now? Now it was a post-apocalyptic disaster. There was no reliable supply even in Shenzhou's own territory, let alone abroad. Who would give their life-saving food to a foreign military force? Regardless of how noble the foreign army's mission was to save humanity, in the face of survival, how many people could be so selfless as to give the food that sustains their own lives to others, even if those others were there to save them?

Impossible, it would never be possible. Human nature is always selfish.

So, some things can't be said, but the difficulties are real and insurmountable.

Thus, from the moment this army set out, its fate was sealed. Most people in this army would die; in fact, the vast majority would die.

Anyone with a bit of common sense knew the fate of this Expeditionary Army. The leaders knew, and of course, the soldiers of the Expeditionary Army knew too.

And yet, the large force was still organized, assembled, and departed on schedule.

Shenzhou staked everything it had without looking back because this battle determined the fate of the nation, and indeed the fate of humanity.

The officers and soldiers of the Expeditionary Army did not shrink from this knowledge. They knew what would happen, not possibly, but certainly, and yet they came. If sacrifice was inevitable, then they would sacrifice, simply because they were soldiers.

Military orders were as heavy as mountains, and the blood was still hot, so Shenzhou sent out an Expeditionary Army.

Only Shenzhou could send out an Expeditionary Army.

Let's be clear, under the current conditions, to be able to form an organized, large-scale force composed entirely of elites, who else could do it?

In other nations, even if they had soldiers with hot blood willing to sacrifice their lives to fight against the Aliens, would every nation have the executive power of Shenzhou?

But now, Shenzhou had sent out the Expeditionary Army. It was a choice between preserving the remaining strength to protect the last survivors, or making a final, desperate gamble for a future. Shenzhou chose the latter.

Therefore, this was an Expeditionary Army destined with no retreat, and an army destined for the vast majority to die without sadness, but only with fervent resolve and towering pride.

The people of Shenzhou had them for protection; the fate of humanity was in their hands to save, just because they were Shenzhou's Soldiers, duty-bound and undeniable>.