The mission was completed smoothly. The group blew up the Japanese gunpowder depot, and the captain even infiltrated the camp and killed the Japanese leader, Masao Yamamoto, successfully thwarting the Japanese plot to launch another sweep.
The suicide squad members scattered and fled along different routes, agreeing to regroup at the base camp.
Xiao Ma and the captain were assigned to the same group. When they were escaping from the Japanese camp, they were discovered by the main force of the Japanese army. In order to save Xiao Ma, the captain was hit by a Japanese mortar, losing both legs and suffering serious injuries.
Little Horse carried the captain on his back and fled all the way to the front of Hongxi Village.
"hehe!"
Hearing Xiao Ma's confident words, the captain couldn't help but smile wryly, which aggravated his injury, causing him to cough a few times.
In the quiet night of the mountain village, the sound of coughing carried far, and not far behind, the gibberish of Japanese soldiers could be heard.
"Baka yarou! It's just ahead, hurry and catch up!"
A group of Japanese soldiers were in hot pursuit. Hearing the coughing, they became even more energized and quickened their pace to catch up.
The captain, who possessed superior martial arts skills and profound internal strength, had sharp ears and eyes. He could hear the slightest movement within a hundred meters of him. At this moment, he had already heard the commotion behind him.
"Little Horse, put me down! We can't escape anymore. Don't go any further, or we'll endanger the innocent people in the villages ahead!"
The captain brought up the old story again, speaking to Xiao Ma.
"What? The Japanese have caught up with us?"
Xiao Ma was taken aback and quickly stopped, finding a place to put the captain down.
"That's right, Little Ma, give me my gun and broadsword! Hey, I'm going to take a few Japanese devils down with me before I die!"
The captain lay on the ground, panting for a while, and said with a flushed face.
Tears welled up in Xiao Ma's eyes, and he knew that this was a sign of his dying breath; the captain was on his last legs.
"Captain, I'm so sorry, I've dragged you into this!"
The captain waved his hand, not wanting to discuss the topic any further.
"Little Ma, you'd better run for your life! If you have a chance, please pass on a message to Renjia Town in Xiangtan: My master's surname is Xiao, and his given name is Ning!"
"Please convey my message: I, Xiao Weihua, cannot return to pay my respects to my master and mistress. I am sorry for the great kindness they have shown me in raising and teaching me. I can only repay them in the next life!"
"However, I have lived up to my conscience. I died on the battlefield fighting against the Japanese pirates, wrapped in a horse's hide. I died a worthy death!"
As if entrusting his last words, the captain revealed his origins to Xiao Ma on his deathbed.
It turns out that he was one of Xiao Ning's many disciples.
According to the sequence "Heaven and Earth, Black and Yellow", and "Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, Hai", he is the 527th disciple of the Xiao family.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Ma muttered a few words: "Xiao Weihua, Xiao Ning from Renjia Town, Xiangtan! Captain, I've got it!"
Then, urged by the captain, Xiao Ma tearfully said goodbye and fled for his life alone.
Just then, a gunshot rang out, and Xiao Ma, who had only run a few meters, was shot and fell down.
"pony……"
The captain's eyes widened in fury as he shouted.
He raised his gun and returned fire towards the direction from which the gunfire came. "Bang! Bang! Bang!" Several shots rang out, each hitting its mark, and several Japanese soldiers fell down.
"Snap!"
When Xiao Weihua pulled the trigger again, he found that the gun was out of bullets and the Mauser pistol in his hand had become a piece of scrap metal.
The Japanese detachment, with nine men remaining, was already close at hand.
"Sigh, his gun is out of bullets!"
The leading Japanese soldier laughed wildly.
"Captain, is that the famous Great Sword King Xiao Weihua? He doesn't look like much at all!"
The Japanese soldiers, armed with long spears, surrounded Xiao Weijinhua, laughing loudly, but did not fire. Instead, they treated him like a prisoner, mocking him wantonly.
Hearing the Japanese soldiers' gibberish and seeing their expressions, Xiao Weihua knew perfectly well that they were mocking him.
Without making a sound, he secretly circulated his qi and adjusted his breathing, mobilizing all the remaining internal energy in his body. He drew the large cleaver beside him and slashed out with all his might.
"Sweep through the enemy ranks!"
Xiao Weihua didn't use any fancy moves; he simply swept his sword across the ground, and a moon-white blade of energy swept by. Several Japanese soldiers surrounding him were instantly cut in two and fell to the ground.
"Baka yarou, shoot! Kill him!"
Squad leader Kazuo Yamamoto narrowly escaped death, but upon witnessing the horrific scene—five soldiers instantly decapitated, their deaths mirroring those of his father, Masao Yamamoto—he roared in fury.
"Bang bang bang!"
The remaining Japanese soldiers, still in shock, dared not hesitate upon hearing their commander's order, and immediately raised their rifles and pulled the triggers.
Several bullets left the barrel and headed towards Xiao Weihua.
"Clang clang clang!"
With flashing blades, Xiao Weihua wielded his broadsword, using the last bit of his inner strength to deflect all the incoming bullets.
"devil……"