Chapter 30: The Three Great Artifacts Revealed

Li Yunlong stared at the large iron tube that Zhang Dabiao had hauled out of the crate, completely bewildered.

The device featured a handle and a trigger at the bottom, with a sight and range finder mounted on top. If one called it a gun, there was no apparent place to load ammunition; if one said it wasn't a gun, its design radiated a sinister, lethal aura.

"Brother Lin," Li Yunlong scratched his head, looking perplexed, "what kind of gun is this? Why can't I even see a loading port?"

Lin Ran took the heavy iron tube and offered a mysterious smile. "Commander Li, this isn't a gun. This is called—a rocket launcher!"

"Rock... rocket launcher?!"

Li Yunlong’s tongue nearly tied itself in knots. To him, this term was ten times more novel than an assault rifle. Previously, the submachine guns, general-purpose machine guns, and assault rifles he had seen still fell within the category of "guns," and he could roughly deduce their functions. In Li Yunlong’s mind, a submachine gun was just a lighter light machine gun; a general-purpose machine gun was a hybrid of light and heavy; and the assault rifle Lin Ran had just shown was a cross between a submachine gun and a rifle. But this rocket launcher? What on earth was this?

Lin Ran chuckled. It wasn't just Li Yunlong—even if the brigade or division commanders were here, they would be just as baffled. The prototype for the RPG was based on the American Bazooka and the German Panzerfaust. Those weapons wouldn't even begin design until next year and wouldn't be officially fielded until 1942. The Bazooka, in particular, had been hailed by the American president as one of the four key tools that won the Second World War. It could handle tanks, fortifications, and artillery positions with ease—it could even be used to take down aircraft!

Li Yunlong leaned in, cautiously touching the icy barrel, and lowered his voice to test the waters: "Brother Lin, is this thing... a piece of artillery?"

"You could say that," Lin Ran nodded. A rocket launcher is a form of artillery, after all.

Old Li smacked his lips, eyeing the somewhat "slender" muzzle, and couldn't help but mutter, "This... is the caliber a bit too small?" Compared to his precious 75mm mountain gun, even a mortar looked thicker than this!

"Small caliber?" Lin Ran laughed, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Commander Li, don't jump to conclusions just yet. Just wait and see!"

He held the RPG launcher steadily and turned to Zhang Dabiao. "Brother Zhang, in that crate over there, you'll find the ammunition. Please bring one out."

Zhang Dabiao pried open the wooden crate. As soon as the lid came off, his eyes went wide! Inside were rows of "jumbos" neatly arranged. The warheads were thick and long, their bodies exuding a cold, hard metallic sheen. They were actually a size sturdier than the shells for the 75mm mountain gun, with a weight that made them look almost like shells for a 105mm howitzer!

Zhang Dabiao took a deep breath and carefully lifted one of the heavy rockets. It weighed at least fifteen pounds! Far from finding it heavy, he was flushed with excitement. The bigger the shell, the more powerful the blast—that was a fundamental truth carved into the bones of every veteran.

"Mr. Lin, this shell is heavy, be careful!" Zhang Dabiao handed the "jumbo" over with great reverence.

"I've got it, I've got it." Li Yunlong lunged forward, snatching the rocket from Zhang Dabiao’s hands as if grabbing a treasure. The heavy, cold texture made his heart race, but looking at the thick projectile and the small muzzle of the launcher, he was still full of doubt: "Brother Lin, is this... is this really the shell for it? It's so big... how are you supposed to fit it in there?"

He gestured, feeling that the two simply didn't match.

Lin Ran shook his head helplessly. "See, you're rushing again!" He looked back at Zhang Dabiao. "Brother Zhang, in the crate next to that one, you'll find the propellant. Bring one of those as well."

Zhang Dabiao promptly complied, pulling out a long, thin object wrapped tightly in thick, oiled paper from the other crate. It looked like a stack of silver dollars wrapped up. With the RPG launcher, the rocket, and the propellant laid out together, an invisible, murderous aura instantly permeated the air. The soldiers watching nearby held their breath; the very air seemed to freeze.

Li Yunlong also fell silent, his eyes sharp as a hawk’s, fixed intently on Lin Ran’s movements. Under Lin Ran’s direction, Li Yunlong and Zhang Dabiao clumsily but carefully screwed the propellant charge onto the tail of the rocket. With a soft "click," the assembly was complete. Lin Ran then personally inserted the assembled ammunition, which looked like a miniature missile, into the front of the launcher. Finally, he unscrewed an inconspicuous safety cap from the tip of the warhead.

"So that's how it's used!" Li Yunlong suddenly understood, his eyes locked on the pitch-black muzzle, his heart pounding like a drum.

Lin Ran took a deep breath and hoisted the heavy launcher onto his shoulder, aiming it steadily at a small, snow-covered hill in the distance. The ammo was loaded; now it was his turn.

"Everyone! Step back ten paces!"

Li Yunlong and the soldiers, as if obeying a military order, retreated in unison, their eyes never leaving Lin Ran and the "lethal weapon" on his shoulder. Lin Ran squinted one eye, locked onto the target through the simple sight, and pulled the trigger with a steady finger!

"Sssss—whoosh!!!"

A shrill whistle, as if tearing the air apart, suddenly rang out! A fierce tongue of flame erupted from the rear of the tube, kicking up the snow on the ground! At the same time, the ferocious rocket, like an enraged dragon of fire, dragged a long, orange-red trail of smoke and roared out of the barrel at a speed the eye could barely track. In an instant, it crossed several hundred meters and slammed into the innocent hill!

"BOOM—!!!!"

A thunderous explosion shook the earth! The ground trembled, and everyone felt a jolt beneath their feet, their ears ringing. Looking up, they saw that the hill, which had been perfectly intact, had been blown away by more than half.

"Hiss—!!!"

Gasps echoed all around. The soldiers stood dumbfounded, like statues. Li Yunlong was so stunned by the horrific sight that his scalp tingled and his hair stood on end! Yet, just a moment later, a crystal-clear realization struck his mind like a bolt of lightning, making him tremble uncontrollably with excitement!

He grabbed Lin Ran’s arm, his voice hoarse and distorted by extreme agitation: "Brother Lin! It’s god-like! Truly a god-given weapon! If this thing hits the little devils' 'iron tortoises' or blows up their bunkers, does it... does it crack them open in one shot? Does it?!"

Lin Ran nodded. A true expert—he saw it at a glance. "Exactly! Commander Li has a sharp eye! This is a weapon specifically designed to tackle those hard nuts and iron lumps! Forget tanks—if a plane flies low enough, you can even use it to take down aircraft!"

"Good! Good! Good! Too good! Hahaha!" Li Yunlong laughed toward the sky, his grin stretching almost to his ears. His mind raced through countless beautiful scenarios of using this rocket launcher on the battlefield. Bunkers? One shot to collapse them! Tanks? One shot to write them off! Solid fortifications? One shot to flip them over! Especially for a unit like theirs that specialized in guerrilla warfare, this was a tailor-made god-tier weapon!

He had just seen that the aiming method for this thing was the same as a rifle! That was the real point! Aim and fire! Hit and run! The enemy wouldn't even have a chance to react.

Li Yunlong looked at the rocket launcher in his hands, then leaned into Lin Ran’s ear, his voice trembling: "Brother Lin, this... how many did you bring for me?"

Lin Ran curled his lip. "Not many, just 800."

"Clatter!" Li Yunlong stumbled, and if not for Zhang Dabiao’s quick reflexes, he would have sat right down on the ground.

"That's not many?!"

"That’s enough for me to arm a whole rocket brigade! Every man carries one—wherever we go, we blow things up!"

Lin Ran was stunned. "A rocket brigade?"

Li Yunlong scratched his head. "Hehe, I was just talking nonsense."

Lin Ran smiled. "Forget a rocket brigade; in the future, we’ll even have a Rocket Force!"

"Really?" Old Li stared at Lin Ran with burning eyes.

Lin Ran nodded firmly.

"Good! Good! That’s good! Hahaha!" Li Yunlong laughed heartily, as if he could already see the future scene of thousands of rockets firing in unison, crushing everything in their path. Rubbing his hands like a child awaiting the grand finale, he leaned close to Lin Ran and whispered: "Brother Lin! Tell me! This time... how many earth-shattering treasures did you bring for us? Let me be happy once and for all!"

Lin Ran counted on his fingers: "Besides the ten thousand assault rifles I mentioned, the 800 rocket launchers, there are 1,000 mortars, 100 155mm howitzers..."

"What?! 155mm howitzers?!" Li Yunlong jumped up as if his tail had been stepped on, his voice shifting in pitch! This was a real, heavy-duty piece of artillery! The kind that could shake a man to death. "The little devils' main artillery is only 152mm! Brother Lin, you... you actually brought 155mm?! My God!" Li Yunlong felt his perception of reality being refreshed yet again.

Lin Ran waved his hand, signaling him not to get too excited. "See, rushing again. I haven't finished."

"There's... there's more?!" Li Yunlong felt his heart about to jump out of his throat. He looked at Lin Ran as if looking at a mobile arsenal.

Lin Ran nodded, a mysterious smile playing on his lips. "The last thing, not many—just 200 107mm rocket launchers."

"107mm rocket launchers?" Li Yunlong was baffled once again. "Brother Lin, this... what kind of fresh gadget is this 107mm rocket launcher?"

Lin Ran didn't explain directly; he just gave a wave of his hand. "Come, I'll take you to see them, and while we're at it, we can bring the supplies back..."