I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

It didn't matter how many laborers died in this iron mine; the Japanese, from the captain to the soldiers, wouldn't care. They could just send out more men to capture a batch. But the death of a Japanese soldier was a different story, especially under such strange circumstances. They had to find out exactly what happened, otherwise, if panic broke out, the troops would be difficult to lead!

Kato Nobuo stopped in front of the several Nationalist army prisoners, his sharp eyes sweeping over each of them, and asked sternly:

"Who hid these metal pieces? You have three minutes to stand up and confess or report someone, or you can save your life. Otherwise, everyone in this room will die!"

After speaking, he raised his wrist to check the time and stood quietly in place, waiting. His sharp eyes, like knives, swept over everyone, giving the impression that no one could escape his notice if there was any unnatural change in them!

As soon as he finished speaking, the laborers around him unconsciously moved away from the group of prisoners, instantly isolating the twenty-odd men!

Silence! A deathly silence filled the scene! Everyone's breathing became heavy, and several KMT prisoners clenched their fists and gritted their teeth, clearly ready to fight the Japanese to the death at any moment!

Three minutes passed quickly, and still no one stepped forward. Kato Nobuo lowered his wrist and spoke again:

"Yosh! It seems the man who hid these iron pieces isn't the courageous hero you Chinese people claim to be! Well then, you'll all go to hell with him! Once you get to the King of Hell, you'll naturally know who dragged you into this, and you can seek revenge!"

"Machine gunners, prepare!"

After speaking, Kato Nobuo raised his hand, signaling to the Japanese soldiers beside him to prepare to fire. They had done this kind of thing many times before: one person fighting the Japanese brought disaster to the entire village. Under immense pressure, someone would usually step forward to confess or point out who did it; after all, when faced with the test of survival, too many people couldn't withstand it!

Sure enough, just as Kato Nobuo's raised right hand was about to fall, a prisoner stepped forward from the crowd.

"Don't shoot! I know!" the man shouted as he stepped forward, one hand still raised high. He was flustered and looked extremely disheveled. His face no longer showed the previous fortitude and resilience, but instead he was bowing and scraping like a lapdog.

"Yosh! Tell me, who hid these iron pieces and what are they planning to do with them?" Kato Nobuo's lips curled into a triumphant smile as he looked at the person who had stepped out from the crowd with great interest and disdain in his eyes!

When the KMT prisoners in the crowd saw this guy step forward, they all glared at him with hatred, gritting their teeth as if they wanted to devour him alive! Especially the one named Luo Xiang, whose hands were clenched tightly and whose sharp eyes seemed to want to pierce through the other's spine!

"Tai... Tai-kun, it's him! He's the one who hid these iron pieces! Yesterday he even boasted that he would kill the Japanese to avenge himself! After I found out, he even tried to kill me to silence me. You all have to protect me!" As he spoke, the guy pretended to be scared and hid behind Kato, which was quite comical.

The man was pointing at Luo Xiang! At this moment, Luo Xiang was glaring at his former squad leader with a face full of resentment, as if he wanted to devour him alive! Back then, the four of them were transporting two cartloads of grain back to their unit when they encountered the Japanese conscripting men. It was this squad leader who, upon seeing the Japanese, turned and ran without firing a single shot! The other three, seeing their squad leader run away, followed suit. As a result, the four of them hadn't gone far before the Japanese caught up with them and brought them to this godforsaken place.

Now all four of them have become the Japanese soldiers' laborers. Considering there were only two Japanese soldiers and six or seven puppet troops, the four of them had a good chance of winning if they fought back. It's all that coward's fault!

"Sir! He hid these iron pieces himself! If you don't believe me, search him and you'll find more! And didn't you find these things in the second bunk near the pillar? That's his bunk! This guy is just crying wolf, trying to confuse the situation and hide his true purpose!" Luo Xiang naturally wouldn't give up easily, and stood up, pointing at the squad leader angrily.

"Sir! He's framing me! Where would I get a piece of metal on me?" The squad leader quickly argued, even turning out his pockets to prove his innocence.

With a crisp "clang," a piece of iron about the length of a palm fell down. It was similar to Zhao Mancang's dagger, with one end wrapped in a strip of cloth—a simple dagger indeed!

The scene fell silent! The squad leader stared blankly at the piece of metal on the ground. With witnesses and physical evidence all there, he couldn't explain himself no matter how hard he tried!

"Baka! How dare you mock the Imperial Japanese Army! Your conscience is utterly wicked! You're all dead!" Kato Nobuo saw the piece of iron on the ground and immediately realized that this was the real owner of the iron!

Those Chinese are so cunning!

The matter was now simple. The two Japanese soldiers immediately tied up the squad leader and took him away for interrogation. The rest of the men were given a stern warning and then urged to enter the mine to begin their day's work.

I don't know what kind of torture that squad leader went through. At lunchtime in the morning, I saw him lying on a wooden stake, covered in wounds, his clothes stained with blood, barely clinging to life!

That night, Zhao Mancang didn't dare to steal anything from the courtyard again; the Japanese soldiers were keeping a closer eye on these laborers. Searchlights were installed on both guard towers, shining back and forth. The newly added searchlights brought the area near the mine pit into view, and an additional patrol team was formed, each equipped with flashlights, expanding their patrol area to the mine pit region.

"My God! What are those Japanese devils doing? Are we even going to be able to get out tonight?" Tiger trembled as he looked at the scene outside from inside the toilet. Trying to make a scene under these circumstances would be suicide!

"It has indeed become much more difficult, but the things that need to be done still need to be done! Otherwise, all the previous efforts will have been in vain!" Zhao Mancang stared into thought as he looked at the searchlights sweeping back and forth.

The more the Japanese did this, the more it proved they were afraid of vengeful ghosts seeking revenge. These tactics were simply a way to reassure everyone that someone was behind it all.

The more this happens, the less we can let the Japanese succeed. As long as the Japanese are in disarray, their opportunity will come!

"What? You're still doing it?! That's just asking for death!..." Tiger became even more worried; if he kept pretending to be a ghost, he might really become one!

"Let's go back first, I'll think of something!" Zhao Mancang said, and then he slipped out of the restroom, the latter quickly following behind.

Back at the thatched hut, everyone woke up. They'd gotten used to waking up at this time for the past few nights with extra meals. Everyone was filled with anticipation at the return of the two.

"The Japanese are checking things strictly tonight, so we can't go out to get food. Everyone, bear with it and we'll have an extra meal later when things calm down," Zhao Mancang explained before sitting back down in his bunk and deep in thought.

"It's alright, everyone's used to it. As long as you're all safe and sound, that's all that matters. We're all counting on you to lead us out!" Da Zhao fully utilized his talent for setting the pace, being the first to speak up and comfort them.