Glory of Special Forces Episode 43 Recap
> Glory of Special Forces Recap
The Warrior Competition was announced, scheduled to take place the following month, and the detachment chief informed the soldiers that the Special Police Academy training would be suspended to allow for intensive training. He stressed the importance of healthy competition as a catalyst for progress, but emphasized that cooperation was equally vital.
A new eight-member training squad was formed for the competition, comprising Yan Poyue, Xiao Yun Jie, Guo Xiaoxiao, Xu Yang, Pei Ta Yan, Mao Lang, Su Jian Fan, and Ren Xiao Chuan. Pei Ta Yan was appointed as the team captain, and Yan Poyue as the vice captain. Captain Lu Tu was to personally lead the team. The chief explained that the training environment would simulate the competition's conditions, including altitude and humidity, to help them adapt.
He also highlighted that this year’s competition would be different, involving international cooperation and information sharing, making language skills crucial for every member. Specialized exported guns were distributed for them to familiarize themselves with, and Gu Meng was assigned to the team as a translator and intelligence analyst. After the briefing, Yan Poyue requested a private conversation with the detachment chief, Qin Feng.
Yan Poyue admitted that while he recognized Pei Ta Yan and his teammates were excellent, he felt a strong internal resistance to fully accepting them. Qin Feng understood his feelings and shared a personal story from a past battle where he sustained severe injuries requiring an emergency blood transfusion. Despite having Type A blood, the battlefield conditions only allowed for a Type O transfusion, leading to a painful rejection reaction.
However, he ultimately survived, and the transfused blood eventually served him well. Qin Feng likened accepting Pei Ta Yan’s team to this experience: refusing would lead to certain failure, while accepting would bring a painful adjustment period but offer a chance at survival and new possibilities. Before their departure, Yan Poyue went to bid farewell to Ai Qianxue. Unexpectedly, Pei Ta Yan also arrived to say goodbye to her, creating a moment of slight awkwardness.
The team then departed by helicopter to a desert location, where their pre-competition training began. The desert setting, chosen to simulate realistic counter-terrorism conditions, was described as open and exposed, making navigation difficult and prone to sandstorms. The veteran "Cheetah" members, including Yan Poyue and Xiao Yun Jie, were eager to prove themselves and channel their frustrations from their academic studies into the rigorous physical training.
Yan Poyue, for his part, diligently continued his foreign language studies even outside of formal training hours. One evening, Guo Xiaoxiao requested extra bullets for night practice, only to discover that Mao Lang had adjusted her gun. She expressed her displeasure, but Captain Lu Tu explained that Mao Lang was an expert sniper and firearms specialist, familiar with both domestic and international weapons.
Mao Lang then detailed how he had analyzed Guo Xiaoxiao's past shooting records, noting a consistent rightward dispersion at ranges over 400 meters. He had identified the trigger pull as the cause and adjusted her sniper rifle's trigger pull from 4. 5 pounds to 3. 8 pounds, optimizing it for both long-range sniping and close-range assault. Guo Xiaoxiao still believed that the person, not the gun, won battles, and that soldiers should adapt to their weapons.
Mao Lang countered that his goal was to make the gun adapt to the shooter, allowing anyone to hit the target instantly, aligning with future computerized aiming systems that rely on scientific calculation rather than individual perception. Later, the team received personalized meals, each tailored to individual physical indicators, height, weight, age, gender, allergens, and combat roles.
Xiao Yun Jie initially found the individual portions and strict no-sharing rule unusual but listened as Pei Ta Yan explained the scientific basis for the diet plans, emphasizing the precise nutritional needs for their specific roles, such as the high protein and vitamin B2 requirements for a machine gunner. Xiao Yun Jie eventually acknowledged Pei Ta Yan’s scientific approach to nutrition, even learning a muscle relaxation technique from Su Jian Fan.
He also borrowed a razor from Pei Ta Yan, noting Pei Ta Yan’s emphasis on military appearance as a reflection of self-discipline. Xu Yang, observing the new team members, praised their specialized knowledge and teamwork, noting that their higher education made them formidable. Xiao Yun Jie, though agreeing privately, cautioned Xu Yang not to say these things to Yan Poyue.
Xiao Yun Jie later found Yan Poyue gazing at the scenery; he then relayed Pei Ta Yan's dietary explanations, suggesting they learn from each other rather than compete. Yan Poyue, no longer focused on rivalry, admitted he felt a bit "old" compared to their highly educated counterparts and pondered who would represent the future of Cheetah, himself and his peers, or Pei Ta Yan and his team. The twelfth Warrior Competition soon commenced.
During the opening ceremony, Xiao Yun Jie struggled to understand the chairman's English speech, which focused on the increasing complexity of international counter-terrorism and the competition's emphasis on real combat skills for special forces. Guo Xiaoxiao, however, understood a challenging remark from another country's soldier regarding female participants and promptly used physical action to silence him, demonstrating her prowess. Xiao Yun Jie then encountered Sergei from Country R, an old acquaintance from a previous competition.
Despite their language barrier, they exchanged pleasantries. However, upon returning to their camp, Gu Meng discovered an eavesdropping device on Xiao Yun Jie, confirming that the competition had already begun. Xiao Yun Jie realized Sergei's earlier warmth was a deceptive tactic. Pei Ta Yan identified Sergei as his team's strategist.
Xiao Yun Jie also inquired about a striking female officer, whom Pei Ta Yan identified as Katherine Hu, a Chinese-born S Country special forces expert in mountain warfare and sniping, known as the "White Phantom" due to her formidable skills. Captain Lu Tu then reiterated that the organizing committee remained tight-lipped about the exact competition content but emphasized that the difficulty would be high, focusing on counter-terrorism scenarios like hostage rescue, urban warfare, precision shooting, and rapid deployment.
Yan Poyue stressed the importance of focusing on their primary rivals: Country A, a dominant military power and the previous runner-up, and Country R, which had rapidly improved its capabilities. Katherine Hu then announced the first mission: a modified An-26 passenger aircraft had been hijacked by a group of highly trained mercenaries. The plane, carrying 33 passengers and 5 crew members, was forced to land in S Country and would arrive at a military airfield in 20 minutes.
The number and objective of the terrorists remained unknown. Xiao Yun Jie largely missed the details, but Yan Poyue accurately recalled the critical information: 33 passengers, 5 crew, and an unknown number of terrorists. Negotiations with the hijackers were reportedly unsuccessful. Pei Ta Yan quickly translated the Russian blueprints of the An-26, noting the added challenges of an unfamiliar Soviet aircraft, the foreign country context, and the terrorists' unclear motives.
When a team member suggested infiltrating through the cargo hold, Pei Ta Yan deemed it too risky due to the aircraft's potential modifications. He then instructed Gu Meng to return to the command center to use a laser microphone to monitor other teams' mission progress, collecting all communication, weapon discharge, and even catering details to glean useful intelligence.
Yan Poyue initially expressed discomfort, calling the tactic "nasty," but Pei Ta Yan countered that in war, unlike sport, gathering precise intelligence before battle was paramount. He then outlined their tactical plan: split into three groups – Team A (Pei Ta Yan, Ren Xiao Chuan, Su Jian Fan) for security door assault, Team B (Yan Poyue, Xiao Yun Jie, Xu Yang) for cargo hold assault, and a sniper team (Guo Xiaoxiao, Mao Lang) for external cover.
The R Country team commenced their mission first, while other teams were ordered to cease tactical discussions. The R Country team completed their assault in an impressive four minutes and thirty-four seconds, eliminating all four terrorists with no casualties to their own team. However, the committee announced that four hostages were injured, one with a broken arm, directly caused by the R Country team. Furthermore, their use of anesthetic without confirming the identities of passengers was deemed an extremely dangerous action. Captain Lu Tu remained composed, awaiting the final verdict from the committee.
