378 The Militarys Defea (1/2)

The formation of the Fourteenth Brigade was a few kilometers in length, yet Chen Fan had plowed through the columns, killing everyone in his way. The arrangement of footsoldiers in a formation hadn't changed much from during ancient times: the stronger soldiers and better-equipped soldiers were placed at the front of the column. Therefore, by the time Chen Fan broke through the front line, he annihilated the squishier units in the middle and the rear. Most soldiers that brought up the rear were defenseless Engineers and Signallers.

”Oh my god!”

One of the pilots in the AH-1 Cobra was stunned by the bloody aftermath. He didn't even notice that his grip on the center stick had loosened.

Unlike the footsoldiers, these pilots had a bird-eye's view over the battleground and could see the situation clearly. They watched as thousands of Japanese soldiers swarmed toward Chen Fan like a horde of ants, Chen Fan charged at them with incredible speed, turning into a wash of azure light that streaked across the land. The azure light melted through the footsoldiers as if it was melting butter.

The scene had reminded the pilots of those legendary warrior generals who could face ten thousand soldiers by himself.

”Incredible, he is a paragon of strength and might!”

Kobayashi Sawano exclaimed.

As the Lieutenant colonel of the fourteenth brigade, he was in charge of the helicopter squad. He was lucky enough to be on one of the helicopters that escaped Chen Fan's attack.

”Sir, what should we do?”

The pilot asked urgently.

The three remaining helicopters had risen to over a thousand meters above the ground. Despite being safe, they lacked any means of striking Chen Fan at such a great distance. The helicopter's arsenal mainly came in two forms: Gatling-type cannon and missiles. It was impossible to even get a visual on Chen Fan at such a distance, much less landing a shot. Missiles were also out of the question since it was more likely to kill their own comrades than Chen Fan.

”Call in air support. We are fighting with an enemy of unrepresented prowess. We are losing our grip on the situation.” Kobayashi Sawano ordered with a solemn face. ”The army alone wouldn't be able to contain this freak.”

The pilots and other soldiers nodded in agreement.

They had reckoned that the battle had already turned into a slaughterhouse with air support. The soldiers on the ground had little to no chance of fighting back. Such was the conundrum facing most modern armies; despite bringing the boots on the ground, taking the brunt of the enemy attack, they rank far below air force and navy on the priority list.

So important was the air superiority that without it, it was almost impossible to achieve victory.

That was also the reason that the American Government could push her weight around on the world stage.

Meanwhile, Ai Jinqi and the other tourists cheered for Chen Fan's victory while standing at the top of a train cart. Chen Fan was their hero, the lone-star that had answered their distress call and fell upon earth to save them. Not even a thousand-strong army could have stopped him.

Red Sparrow allowed herself to cheer with the crowd very briefly before she pondered on the danger that was still lurking.

As a super-soldier from the Special Case Departments, she knew the real strength of the modern military was not in its army, but the air force. Most of the time, it was up to the airforce to dish out as much damage as possible while the army brought up the rear.

”Chen Beixuan had defeated the fourteenth brigade, I bet the Japan Self-Defense Forces will send in their air force now.” Red Sparrow thought to herself as she still tried to come to terms with Chen Beixuan's astonishing power. Whichever way she put it, Chen Beixuan's achievement was unbelievable.

Japan's Self-Defense Forces were weak in combat effectiveness due to its smaller size. Its overall power was a far cry from that of China, Rusia, France, and England, much less that of the USA. However, Japanese forces were one of the best equipped in east Asian if not the entire world. Red Sparrow found it unthinkable that Chen Fan was able to utterly defeat the fourteenth brigade.

A nagging thought appeared in Red Sparrow's mind.

She found that Chen Fan was single-handedly rewriting the power dynamic between martial artists and the nations of the world.

If the news about this battle got out, it would shake the entire world including the Dark World. Chen Beixuan's name would instill fear and respect for leaders of all nations around the world.

”However, if he could handle the Japanese air force still remained to be seen”

Red Sparrow thought in her mind.

Having reached the end of the fourteenth brigade's formation, Chen Fan turned around and came after the shattered formation once again.

His attacks had devastated the fourteenth brigade. With the Azure Thearch Longevity Body, Chen Fan waded through the flood of bullets and gracefully evaded shells from Tanks or high caliber armor-piercing rounds.

Once, twice, thrice…

After Chen Fan went in and out of the army formation the seventh time, he had already killed over a thousand soldiers. The heavy casualties took a toll on the fourteenth brigade's morale as their defense line finally collapsed.

Countless Japanese soldiers dropped their guns and turned on their heels. They drove away with the Humvees that they brought here, and soon even the armored vehicles also turned around to catch up with the deserters.

Tanaka Masakazu stood in a movable commander's platform and reflected on the humiliating defeat. He knew that regardless of what would happen to Chen Fan, he and this battle would be remembered as the most humiliating defeat by a foreign force in Japanese history. He would also become the first Lieutenant colonel in Japanese history to desert the battlefield.

”Did we win? Did we?”