117: Chapter 117: Battalion Commander of the Vanguard Battalion!

"Always prepared!"

Li Mo stomped his feet sharply and saluted once more.

From the moment he returned from the Qiyuan Mountains, Li Mo understood that a great war was about to begin; it was a rare war in which three countries were throwing their full strength into the fray.

Young soldiers longed to perform meritorious service.

Although war is cruel, for Li Mo, and indeed for all the soldiers in The Military, it was an opportunity to establish their careers and achieve glory.

No matter what arrangements Zhao Zhenyuan had for him, Li Mo could accept them calmly.

At this moment, Zhao Zhenyuan's secretary also guessed what Zhao Zhenyuan was planning to do and immediately voiced an objection.

"Marshal Zhao, now is not the time! This group of people has never been tempered on the battlefield, nor have they experienced a real battlefield! There will be problems!"

Zhao Zhenyuan waved his hand and then said: "I understand what you are saying, but there is no time to let them gain experience now! Even if it means paying a heavy price, we must take the Alien Ruins in the Qiyuan Mountains and the two high-concentration star crystal mines!"

"Our food and supplies do not come for free! They are paid for by the taxes of the Great Xia people! At a time like this, we must fight for their interests!"

"For the future energy supply of Great Xia, this battle must be fought!"

The secretary ultimately failed to dissuade Zhao Zhenyuan, and what Zhao Zhenyuan intended to do was, naturally, to promote people on the eve of battle.

"Li Mo, listen well. I am now promoting you to the rank of Captain, and appointing you as the Commander of the 1st Battalion of the Great Xia Northern Expeditionary Force's Vanguard Battalion. Your old superior, Zhang Ruxue, will be the Commander of the 2nd Battalion. You two may select elite soldiers from The Military to form your teams!"

"As the Vanguard Battalion, your mission is to rush to the Qiyuan Mountains without stopping, do your best to harass the enemy troops while ensuring your own safety, and delay the enemy's advance as much as possible!"

"Remember! Do not be reckless! And do not throw eggs against rocks! I will be waiting to see your battle achievements!"

Good heavens!

Being promoted directly from Second Lieutenant to Captain, and even commanding a battalion of soldiers—Zhao Zhenyuan was practically gambling.

Li Mo had long heard that Zhao Zhenyuan was a genius in commanding troops, especially skilled in lightning strikes and using small units to attack the enemy; it seemed that his reputation was well-deserved.

One had to know that the main force hadn't even been assembled yet, and he actually dared to send Li Mo and Zhang Ruxue out first to attack the enemy's main force!

That took some serious guts!

Two battalions of soldiers would amount to a few thousand people at most, while the enemy had an army of 500,000!

Just thinking about it made Li Mo's scalp tingle!

How exciting!

"What? Are you afraid to go?"

Seeing Li Mo hesitate, Zhao Zhenyuan questioned him.

Li Mo shook his head and then said: "That's not it. I can accept this mission, but I have a request."

Li Mo's request was actually very simple: he needed the best weapons and equipment.

In modern warfare, having elite soldiers alone is not enough. For example, those heavy weapons of the White Gull Empire are extremely threatening even in this current era.

Furthermore, they were going to go up against an enemy army of 500,000 with only a few thousand people; it was impossible to just charge in with bayonets from the start—that would be no different from seeking death.

The best way to fight was to conduct long-range attacks and harass them using guerrilla tactics, trying their best to delay the enemy's advance.

After listening to Li Mo, Zhao Zhenyuan revealed a satisfied smile: "Good! I really didn't misjudge you! Perhaps you really can hold them off with two battalions! Speak, what do you need? I will approve everything for you!"

Actually, Li Mo didn't need much. First, the soldiers he selected had to be equipped with the latest individual combat gear, which could minimize casualties.

As for heavy weapons, that was simple. Great Xia's heavy weapons were currently far inferior to those of the Baiou Empire. It just so happened that Li Mo had just captured a batch of heavy weapons in the Qiyuan Mountains, and Zhao Zhenyuan only needed to provide a portion more to fill the gaps.

The secretary was speechless upon hearing this and said slowly: "You kid has too big of an appetite. Do you know that the weapons of the Baiou Empire all have significant research value? Furthermore, we didn't capture many weapons from the Baiou Empire to begin with, and you..."

Zhao Zhenyuan smiled: "Enough! Secretary! Stop talking! They are fighting a hard battle where the odds of survival are slim! How can we not even provide them with the necessary equipment? We cannot let heroes bleed and shed tears!"

Zhao Zhenyuan waved his hand, not only approving all the heavy weapons Li Mo had captured for him but also approving many more heavy weapons of the Baiou Empire from the armory.

These heavy weapons were enough to assemble an entire heavy-armed battalion.

Li Mo naturally had his own ideas for wanting these weapons. The technological development of the Black Earth Tribe was the most backward, and some tribes' technology was still stuck in the primitive era.

Naturally, they had no equipment to resist heavy weapons.

When the people of the Baiou Empire fought against the people of the Black Earth Tribe, their heavy weapons often caused massive casualties to the enemy.

With these heavy weapons, they could better delay the enemy.

Of course, there was one more crucial point: in this current high-martial era where everyone's strength is astonishingly high, heavy weapon positions could be relocated at any time, which meant they could use these heavy weapons to conduct guerrilla warfare!

Zhao Zhenyuan satisfied all of Li Mo's requests, handed the requisitions Li Mo needed to him, and instructed: "Li Mo, I have satisfied all your requests! You must fight this battle beautifully for me!"

"I cannot give you a specific time for the main force's arrival yet. At the earliest, it will be three days; at the latest, ten days. In the worst-case scenario, you must hold out for ten days before we can arrive! Can you complete the mission?"

Li Mo replied with a firm tone: "Report, Leader! Guarantee to complete the mission!"

"Good! Assemble the troops for me immediately! It must be fast! The Black Earth Tribe's main force will not wait for anyone!"

After accepting the appointment, Li Mo rushed back to the camp without stopping to arrange tasks for everyone in the Moyu Squad.

Zheng Jiahao was the smartest and had the best eye for people, so it was most appropriate for him to go and select personnel for the Vanguard Battalion.

Xu Feng was strong and good at getting things done, so he was tasked with organizing the heavy weapons Li Mo had secured.

As for Qin Zhengnan and Wu Yuqing, Li Mo immediately gave them corresponding positions. They were both descendants of the Martial God Family, and most people in The Military dared not offend them. Li Mo needed to quickly build a combat-ready team, and there would definitely be friction between the individuals.

Therefore, someone was needed to coordinate relationships, and Qin Zhengnan and Wu Yuqing were the most suitable people to do this coordination.

With Li Mo's arrangements, he could be described as knowing people and assigning them well, placing everyone in the most suitable position according to their characteristics.

Originally, Zhao Zhenyuan estimated that it would take Li Mo at least two days to assemble a battalion of soldiers. He didn't expect that in just one day, Li Mo had recruited over a thousand people, which was the number of soldiers for one battalion of the Vanguard Battalion.

Even Zhang Ruxue, who already had a certain foundation in The Military, was about half a day slower than him!