The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

Seeing that Commander Li seemed somewhat skeptical, Liu Wei responded confidently.

"I'm sure Commander Li has heard about the Longyan Troops' achievements. Back then, with just a few hundred men, we were able to annihilate an entire Japanese regiment. Now, with tens of thousands of men, eliminating one or two Japanese detachments is a piece of cake."

Commander Li instantly sensed the imposing aura emanating from Liu Wei, and after a moment of contemplation, he made a decision.

"Commander Long's battle plan is bold and ambitious, aiming to annihilate two elite Japanese divisions at Taierzhuang. Even though my Fifth War Zone has assembled over 200,000 troops, I am not confident of achieving that."

"How about this, I'd like to meet with your Dragon Legion Commander first. Let's set the time for tomorrow, and the place will be Taierzhuang."

Liu Wei clearly sensed that Commander Li's attitude had softened somewhat.

So he readily agreed, "No problem, I'll send a message to the Dragon Legion Commander right away."

Soon, Long Fei called back to say that he would arrive in Taierzhuang before noon the next day.

Commander Li, knowing he would meet Long Fei the next day, asked Liu Wei and Gao Hong to stay overnight in Xuzhou, and then head to Taierzhuang together early the next morning.

In addition to rocket artillery, Xu Peng concentrated all other artillery fire and unleashed a barrage of bombardment on the Japanese 63rd Regiment on the right flank.

At the same time, Xu Peng ordered a telegram to be sent to Commander Sun of the 22nd Army Group, informing him that the Japanese troops on the front of the 127th Division had been wiped out.

Currently, the Longyan troops are shelling the Japanese 63rd Regiment, which is attacking the 125th Division on the right flank. Once the shelling ends, they will launch an annihilation campaign against the Japanese.

Xu Peng hoped that Commander Sun would order the 124th Division to hold its ground, while the 127th Division would encircle the Japanese 10th Regiment on the left flank.

At the same time, the 125th Division was ordered to launch a counter-offensive against the Japanese 63rd Regiment as soon as the artillery fire ceased.

After receiving Xu Peng's telegram, Commander Sun immediately inquired with the commanders of the three divisions at the front. After receiving confirmation, his thinking underwent a significant change.

Previously, the 22nd Army Group faced immense defensive pressure, and Commander Sun had even mentally prepared for the collapse of the defensive line.

Unexpectedly, the appearance of the Dragon Flame Force quickly turned the tide of the battle, proving that the rumors about the Dragon Flame Force were true.

Xu Peng's call now is clearly a golden opportunity to turn the tide and we must seize it.

Immediately, Commander Sun, following Xu Peng's instructions, issued orders to all units.

Then, in order to witness the battle firsthand, Commander Sun left the command post and went closer to observe.

When Fukuei Shinpei saw that his regiment had suffered heavy casualties from the bombing, he felt immense regret.

If it weren't for Akashiba Yaezo, he would have ordered his troops to break out to the rear long ago. If they had succeeded, they could have fought their way back together with the rest of the division.

Now, the regiment has suffered heavy losses under such intense artillery fire, and it is unlikely that it will be able to break out now.

Fukuei Shinpei could only order his troops to hold out to the death, determined to hold out until the rest of the division arrived, amidst endless frustration.

But expectations are just expectations and can never become reality. Reality is often not only unsatisfactory but also very cruel.

After the artillery fire ceased, the Fourth Army and part of the reserves surrounded the Japanese 10th Regiment on its left flank.

Other units then launched a fierce attack on the Japanese 63rd Regiment.

Currently, the Japanese 63rd Regiment has lost several hundred soldiers after several battles with the Sichuan Army's 125th Division.

Now, after being bombarded by artillery fire, nearly two thousand more have been killed or wounded.

Currently, the entire regiment has only about a thousand soldiers, and at least a quarter of them are wounded.

The Dragon Flame Legion, which besieged the 63rd Regiment, had a force of 16,000 to 17,000.

In addition, the remaining 4,000-plus men of the 125th Division of the Sichuan Army launched a counter-offensive.

Twenty thousand troops surrounded a thousand or so Japanese soldiers, in addition to the advanced weaponry of the Longyan troops.

It was a one-sided crushing and massacre.

Tiger tanks and Greyhound armored vehicles tore through the Japanese defenses without any resistance, and then relentlessly crushed, shelled, and strafed the Japanese.

The Japanese soldiers could only scatter and flee, utterly powerless to fight back.

The soldiers following closely behind the tanks and armored vehicles also unleashed a frenzied barrage of fire on the Japanese soldiers.

Fukuei Shinpei was brandishing his sword, directing his men to fight to the death, when a Tiger tank spotted him and fired a high-explosive shell at him.

Fukuei Shinpei and his dozen or so Japanese soldiers were immediately blown to bits.

The Sichuan Army brothers of the 125th Division have fought extremely fierce battles since they left Sichuan to fight against the Japanese.

Besides the backwardness in individual combat capabilities and weaponry, it was also related to the Nationalist government's blind adherence to conservative and rigid defensive tactics.

But today the situation is completely different; the Japanese soldiers were instead driven away in disarray.

Therefore, upon receiving Commander Sun's order, the 125th Division leaped out of their trenches and launched a counter-offensive against the Japanese after the artillery fire ceased.

"Brothers, the chance for revenge has come! Today, let's kill all these bastards, leave no one alive!"

"Those bastards, today is their death day. Kill them all, kill the Demon Platform."

"Kill...kill people...kill..."

The bitterness and sorrow that had been suppressed in the hearts of the Sichuan Army brothers for so long were finally released at this moment through bullets and bayonets, directed at the Japanese devils.

A thousand or so Japanese soldiers were hardly enough to kill so many people. In less than twenty minutes, the shouts of battle came to an abrupt end.

The ground in front of the 125th Division's position was littered with the corpses of the Japanese 63rd Regiment.

Chen Dingxun, commander of the 125th Division, is recuperating in Zhengzhou due to illness, and his position is currently being filled by deputy commander Wang Shijun.

Commander Wang took the lead and, after killing seven or eight Japanese soldiers, was unfortunately wounded in the left arm by a bullet.

As the Sichuan Army medics were treating his wounds, Xu Peng arrived at the position and saw Wang Shijun, who was wearing the rank of major general.

Xu Peng is now wearing the uniform of the Dragon Flame Legion, with two general stars shining brightly on his shoulders.

Upon seeing that the other party held the rank of lieutenant general, Wang Shijun quickly stood up.

Xu Peng smiled and stepped forward to help him up: "Are you the commander of the 125th Division? I am Xu Peng, the deputy commander of the Dragon Flame Legion."

Wang Shijun hurriedly saluted and said, "Hello, Deputy Commander Xu. I am Wang Shijun, the acting commander of the 125th Division of the 22nd Army Group."

"Commander Wang, how are your injuries?" Xu Peng asked with concern.

Wang Shijun shook his head dismissively: "It's a minor injury, I got a bullet wound."

Xu Peng nodded and asked, "Commander Wang, my next task is to annihilate the Japanese 10th Regiment."

"This is the so-called 'Devil's Unit,' the elite of the Japanese. I wonder if the 125th Division would like to lend a hand."

Xu Peng kept a low profile because Long Fei had previously instructed that the Dragon Flame Legion did not need battle merits.

Therefore, it might be wise to give the credit to the Sichuan Army, which has been marginalized and looked down upon.

This way, the Sichuan Army will become renowned and fearsome, and no one will dare to underestimate them again.

“Deputy Commander Xu, aren’t you saying the opposite? It’s clearly you who are helping our Sichuan Army.”

Xu Peng waved his hand casually: "Commander Wang, that's not important. What's important is that the Sichuan Army wiped out the Japanese devils' invincible Oni-Akashiba Devil Unit."

Wang Shijun now understood the deeper meaning behind Xu Peng's words, and a look of gratitude appeared on his face.

"Deputy Commander Xu, thank you. Our Sichuan Army is willing to lend a hand and fight the Japanese devilish Oni-Akashiba Unit to the bitter end."