Devil's Army

After breaking through the Second Regiment's resistance, the Japanese troops at the railway bridge continued their advance towards Tonghua County.

Meanwhile, two groups of Japanese troops at the ferry crossing and on the highway had already launched a fierce attack on Tonghua County.

After the 3rd Battalion of the Japanese 19th Division and the 3rd Battalion of the Korean 6th Division broke through the Ji'an (now Ji'an) ferry crossing, they continued to advance towards Tonghua County.

The 3rd Regiment of the 2nd Border Defense Brigade retreated to the mudflats on the north bank of the Hunjiang River ferry crossing.

The Hunjiang River is about 50-80 meters wide. The mudflats on the north bank are narrow, and there are hills and highlands of 30-50 meters on the sides, covered with dense forests.

At this time, the First Army's air force was engaged in fierce fighting with the Japanese air force and had no time to attend to the Japanese troops on the ground.

The Japanese army's fierce artillery fire suppressed the firepower of the Third Regiment, and a large number of soldiers rushed to the north bank of the Hun River.

The soldiers of the Third Regiment attempted to block the Japanese army from crossing the river, but were met with fierce bombardment from Japanese tanks on the opposite bank.

In less than half a day, the Japanese army successfully landed on the beach and continued to advance into the rear of the Third Regiment.

The soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Regiment fought and retreated, withdrawing to the position of the 2nd Battalion in Changgang Mountain (Changgang Village, Qinghe Town).

This is a necessary route on the wanted highway, with a narrow valley and slopes of 40-50° on both sides, offering good views through the forest.

The battalion ambushed the Japanese troops on both flanks. After the Japanese entered the valley, they blocked their head and tail, and launched a surprise attack in the middle, catching the Japanese off guard.

Subsequently, the main force of the Japanese army continued to arrive. The disadvantage of the Second Battalion's insufficient manpower became increasingly apparent. However, the Second Battalion occupied the terrain advantage, which temporarily masked their disadvantage of insufficient manpower.

The Japanese commander quickly realized that the Nagaoka Mountain Devil Unit was not large in number and ordered his soldiers to launch continuous attacks on both sides of the mountain slope.

The artillery also continuously bombarded the Second Battalion's positions to cover the infantry's attack.

Seeing that the Japanese artillery fire was too intense, the battalion commander left behind a few observers and the main force temporarily withdrew.

The Japanese artillery bombardment was coming to an end, and the Japanese infantry began to launch an attack on the Second Battalion's position from their gunboats.

Seeing that the Japanese artillery fire had thinned out, the battalion commander knew that the Japanese would launch an attack soon. Before the observer could give him a signal, he immediately led his soldiers back to the position.

Sure enough, the Japanese infantry soon began their charge.

The battalion commander arranged for a squad of soldiers to be dispersed throughout the position to provide limited resistance to the Japanese attack.

Seeing that the firepower of the "Devil Unit" had thinned out considerably, the Japanese soldiers assumed that the units had been killed by their artillery fire and, as if injected with adrenaline, excitedly charged forward.

When the Japanese soldiers rushed to within 100 meters of the position, the battalion commander suddenly ordered them to open fire.

The fierce bullets swarmed towards the Japanese troops who were launching an uphill attack, like locusts.

The Japanese troops rolled down the mountain like harvested rice stalks.

The remaining two mortars of the Second Battalion also extended their firing range to attack the Japanese reinforcements.

The Japanese army's fierce attack was finally repelled. By then it was already late, and the Japanese army did not launch a new attack.

The soldiers of the Second Battalion finally breathed a sigh of relief.

They believed that as long as they could hold off the Japanese army, their reinforcements would arrive soon.

After dinner, it was already past 8 p.m. The second deputy battalion commander suggested to the second battalion commander that they launch a night attack on the Japanese army to cause them some trouble.

The second battalion commander considered it for a moment but did not agree.

Although the attacking Japanese force was fierce, it was well-organized, indicating that the Japanese commander was cautious. A hasty night raid on the Japanese might have resulted in the raiding force getting caught in the crossfire.

Their primary task now is to hold their ground and await reinforcements.