Useless trash deserves to die!
Wang Ba’s mouth curled into a cruel arc.
He did not need to look at the roster.
His gaze, like an awl, pierced through the crowd and precisely locked onto the victor named Li Si and the loser named Zhang Goudan.
"Lock them up."
The icy voice carried not a shred of warmth.
Two personal guards stepped forward and picked up the heavy, dark iron chain.
"Clatter—"
The chain threaded through the ankles of the three men. The frigid touch made all three shudder simultaneously.
Li Si’s face instantly twisted in agony.
The nauseating stench radiating from Zhang Goudan, a vile mixture of stale urine and feces, gripped Li Si’s throat like an invisible hand!
He wanted to vomit!
He wanted to kick this filthy piece of trash, who had just crawled out of a latrine, soaring into the air!
Yet, he could not.
That cold, thick iron chain bound the fates of the three men together inextricably.
Zhang Goudan sensed Li Si’s undisguised disgust, and his already vacant face grew even more desolate.
Subconsciously, he tried to pull his foot back just an inch.
"Don't fucking move!"
Wu Neng’s voice, like a blade dipped in ice, drove straight into both of their ears.
Li Si trembled all over.
Zhang Goudan froze as well.
Wu Neng did not look at either of them.
His gaze remained fixed straight ahead.
On the drill ground, one thousand such deformed trios were experiencing the same silent torment.
The pride and fastidiousness of the victors.
The inferiority and filth of the losers.
Bound by the iron chains, these emotions were infinitely magnified and left to ferment, transforming into internal contradictions and hatreds fierce enough to drive a man mad!
Up on the commanding platform, Qin Cang and Zhang Wei once again found themselves completely speechless.
As they looked down at the thousand bizarre groupings below, their scalps tinged with numbness.
This method of military training had entirely transcended their comprehension.
This was forging cooperation through hatred!
This was honing trust through suspicion!
How utterly insane! How utterly distorted!
Xiao Zhan watched this scene with satisfaction.
The contradiction was precisely what he wanted!
The hatred was precisely what he demanded!
Only in the most extreme environments would human beings discard all useless emotions and retain only the most primitive instinct for survival!
"Instructor Wang."
"Subordinate is here!"
"You may begin."
Wang Ba walked to the center of the commanding platform.
He slowly raised his hand.
The entire drill ground fell into a deathly silence!
Everyone held their breath, gripping the pneumatic rifles in their hands.
That hand fell heavily!
"Engagement! Begin!"
"Boom!"
The anticipated gunfire did not ring out immediately.
Instead, it was a chaotic cacophony of colliding metal and curses!
"Damn it! Where the hell are you walking!"
"Don't pull me! Fuck!"
"Get down! Drop down quickly!"
The moment the order was given, nearly all one thousand three-man squads made the exact same choice—seek cover!
Yet, those damned iron chains became their greatest impediment!
One wanted to go left, while the other wanted to go right!
One wanted to drop prone, while the other remained standing!
"Clatter!"
"Thud! Thud!"
Countless squads tumbled over each other in a chaotic heap the moment they tried to move, completely unable to coordinate!
In the blink of an eye, the drill ground turned into a chaotic mess!
Right in the midst of this pandemonium, the first gunshot abruptly shattered the air!
"Bang!"
A yellow paint pellet traced a precise arc and struck squarely into the back of a soldier who had just stumbled and fallen to the ground!
That soldier belonged to a team consisting of one loser and two victors.
He was the loser.
Last night’s torment had left his body sluggish and stiff.
In the ensuing chaos, he had been a beat too slow, directly tripping his two victor teammates.
And now, this single shot shattered the paint pouch strapped to his back!
"Splat!"
Yellow paint instantly stained his entire back.
He froze.
His two victor teammates beside him froze as well.
Struggling to climb up from the ground, they stared at the patch of yellow on their teammate's back, their faces etched with utter despair!
Wang Ba’s emotionless voice echoed across the entire field.
"Ting Thirty-Two Squad! Eliminated!"
"Tonight, you sleep in the latrine!"
The bodies of the three chained soldiers went limp simultaneously.
Especially the two victors!
Just yesterday, they had been lording it over the mess hall and sleeping in clean quarters!
And simply because of a single mistake made by the piece of trash beside them—
They were about to spend a night in that hellhole!
"I'll fuck your mother!"
One victor suffered a total mental breakdown!
He threw a ferocious punch straight into the face of his loser teammate!
"You fucking trash! You've ruined us!"
The other victor also went berserk, raining punches and kicks down on the loser.
As for the loser, he merely hugged his head, curled up tightly on the ground, and remained completely motionless, letting them beat him at will.
His heart was already dead.
This scene was witnessed by everyone still alive.
An unprecedented terror gripped every single heart!
They looked at the two "teammates" beside them!
Those were not comrades-in-arms!
Those were ticking time bombs ready to detonate at any moment!
Those were the critical keys determining whether they would sleep in a bed or a cesspit tonight!
Wu Neng’s squad was also plunging into crisis!
"Get down!"
Wu Neng let out a low growl, his body instantly dropping low!
Li Si reacted with lightning speed, immediately squatting down right beside him!
However!
Zhang Goudan was too slow!
Terror and exhaustion had made his body immensely rigid!
Wu Neng’s command had to circle around in his brain before it could finally reach his limbs!
Just for that fleeting moment!
The iron chain snapped taut with a violent jerk!
Yanked by the sudden force, Wu Neng and Li Si staggered, almost stumbling right out of their cover!
"Whoosh!"
A blue paint pellet flew past, grazing the very top of Li Si’s scalp!
"Bang!"
The projectile struck the wooden crate behind them, bursting into a splatter of blue paint!
Cold sweat poured down Li Si’s face instantly!
So close!
Just by a hair's breadth!
Their entire squad would have been wiped out!
He snapped his head around, glaring murderously at Zhang Goudan!
His expression suggested he wanted to tear him apart and swallow him raw!
Wu Neng slowly turned his head as well.
He did not curse.
He did not roar.
He simply stared quietly at Zhang Goudan.
That expressionless face was far more terrifying than any bellowing rage!
Zhang Goudan’s body began to shake violently.
He looked at Wu Neng, then shifted his gaze to Li Si’s murderous glare.
He opened his mouth, trying to say something, but not a single word came out.
"Useless piece of trash..."
Li Si squeezed the words out through clenched teeth.
His voice was fraught with utter despair.
How could anyone ever win when locked to trash like this?!
It was over!
The latrine... those words resurfaced relentlessly in his mind!
The first brief and chaotic exchange of fire quickly drew to a close.
Across the drill ground, over a hundred eliminated squads, each consisting of three "corpses," now littered the field.
The survivors remained hidden behind cover, gasping heavily for air.
They stared at those "corpses," then glanced at the teammates beside them.
A profound realization dawned upon everyone.
In this war, the most terrifying enemy was not the unseen gun barrels on the opposing side.
It was the visible, tangible... deadweight right by their side!