The Mountain Tiger armed forces had suffered a heavy loss in the west, losing eight soldiers in one fell swoop.
Long Zhan had thought Shah would lay low for a while, not recklessly sending troops out again, allowing them to hold on smoothly for a few more minutes.
But the reality was exactly the opposite of what he expected.
Less than a minute later, a Taliban squad appeared again from the south, still ten men strong, with the same objective—to enter the woods.
Murphy, stationed there, with his teammates' support, faced little pressure and easily repelled the squad.
None of the Taliban soldiers in that squad died on the spot. Three were wounded but dragged back by their comrades, hiding inside a building, wailing in pain.
Then the last remaining front, the east side, faced the same situation.
Ditz, having learned from the previous three encounters, had already prepared countermeasures. As soon as the Taliban squad showed up, he sent them a 40mm grenade.
Taking advantage of the squad being stunned by the blast, he followed up with rapid rifle fire.
Five of the Taliban immediately went down.
The rest showed no will to fight, no stubborn resistance—they turned and fled at the sight of snipers.
Such repeated probing attacks were clearly abnormal.
Long Zhan sensed something was off.
"Hey, guys, it seems Shah is probing us—sending a squad from every direction. He's probably gathered enough intel. A big move might be coming. Don't forget the big guns I gave you."
Feeling the danger, Long Zhan warned everyone over the radio.
"Using soldiers' lives to gather intelligence—Shah must see Taliban fighters as disposable. I truly feel sorrow for those who've died," Marcus lamented.
Ditz chuckled, "That's the Taliban I know—just a bunch of lunatics."
"Everyone, stay alert. Fanatical desperados are the hardest to deal with. Heather's waiting for me back home; I'm not ready to give up my life here…"
"Hey, guys, the situation isn't looking good," Murphy began but was cut off.
Matt, observing from the mountainside, noticed something unusual and said urgently, "A large number of Taliban are gathering toward the south—at least 40 fighters, possibly more."
"Forty?"
Murphy, responsible for the south, paled upon hearing the number.
"Too many to hold. Even with the Claymore mines, it's dangerous. I suggest we all move east and hold the line together."
"No way, that's too risky," Marcus rejected Murphy's suggestion with a heavy tone. "Shah commands over 200 armed fighters; at least 100 still combat-effective. If you all move towards me, we'll lose control of other positions, creating new breach points. Once they get into the woods, with trees and terrain cover, we can't hold them off."
Murphy remained calm and clear-headed—truly an outstanding commander.
"Going it alone is too dangerous for you. You're facing too many targets, and your firepower can't cover them all. I agree with Marcus—that way, at least you'll be safer," Ditz advised.
"This situation is definitely bad, but I think differently. This is an excellent opportunity for us."
While everyone felt the pressure, Long Zhan spoke out with a completely opposite view.
"Opportunity? Are you crazy?" Marcus couldn't understand.
"In the most dangerous crises, the best chances often lie hidden."
Long Zhan didn't argue or beat around the bush. He spoke frankly: "If we can take down these forty, we'll seriously scare Shah—he won't dare make any moves for a while. The main force will arrive in half an hour. If we win this fight, we can drag the mission out until it's completely done."
Delaying time was Murphy's squad's core mission—not wiping out the armed villagers.
"If we can kill them, sure. But with our manpower, we simply can't take them all down quickly. If even a small portion gets into the woods, it could be catastrophic for us."
Though Marcus lowered his voice to avoid being overheard by the villagers, his anxiety and frustration were unmistakable.
"Do it my way, and there's a chance. Let's see if Murphy's got the guts," Long Zhan said, getting a bit impatient, going straight for a challenge.
The Taliban in the village were gathering; there wasn't time to waste.
"Long, what do you need me to do? Just say it."
Murphy didn't want to waste more time either. Trusting Long Zhan's previous outstanding performance, he chose to believe him.
Essentially, he was entrusting his life to the man upstairs.
"What you have to do is simple—don't shoot; let them get close. Leave the rest to me. Follow my orders precisely."
After speaking, Long Zhan worried Murphy might hesitate, so he emphasized: "When the time comes, my situation will be even more dangerous. I'm not playing with my life."
The hidden meaning was clear: don't worry, we're all grasshoppers on the same boat—everyone's risking their lives, not just you.
"OK, I'll cooperate."
Murphy didn't argue and agreed immediately.
This upcoming battle was high risk, high reward. Long Zhan dared not relax in the slightest. After ending the radio call, he immediately began preparations.
First, he switched to a fully loaded new ammo pouch, then returned to the roadside to retrieve the Claymore mines.
Finally, he shifted about twenty meters south—less than thirty meters from Murphy—crouching and sneaking closer to the village.
After advancing about fifty meters, he stopped and fixed a Claymore mine on a tree trunk about one meter above the ground.
The mine's blast face faced west to east, perfectly forming a 90-degree angle with Murphy's south-to-north mine placed about twenty meters ahead.
In other words, the centerlines of the two mines extended forward, covering a roughly thirty-meter area between them.
This placed the two mines, facing different directions, so their lethal blast zones overlapped, creating a deadly storm with no place to hide.
Even though sparse trees were scattered in the area, seemingly providing cover from blasts, any enemy entering this zone would be hit by 1,400 steel balls with 360-degree no-dead-angle coverage.
After placing the mines at such a tricky angle, Long Zhan moved closer to the village, stopping at just twenty meters.
He found a dirt mound, set up his machine gun, and waited silently for Shah's main force to appear.