Perhaps because Lin En's speech carried a strong Eastern style, or perhaps because his use of certain vocabulary was not quite appropriate, the soldiers remained silent after listening, each quietly smoking. When only cigarette butts remained in their mouths, a sudden explosion rang out like thunder, and the atmosphere in the carriage was suddenly shattered, like a slowly expanding balloon suddenly bursting. Everyone startled in place, and in an instant, another explosion followed, accompanied by the sharp, grating sound of metal friction. The armored vehicle abruptly came to a halt. People in the carriage were caught off guard, tumbling into a heap. Before they could recover, another explosion roared, as if the fiercest thunderstorms of summer were exploding right next to their ears.
After a moment, the armored vehicle started moving again, but instead of continuing its previous path, it quickly veered to the left.
Wolfram was the first to climb up the handrail, looking out from the machine gun position, and hurriedly reported, "Two tanks have been hit! Damn it, it's the ruins of the factory on the left front... There are Soviet artillery and possibly tanks there! They're still firing at us! Everyone, take cover!"
Just as he finished speaking, explosions echoed once again. Though dazed, Lin En felt the armored vehicle turn again, this time to the right. To clarify the situation, he quickly asked Wolfram, "Gordon, are we advancing towards the attack?"
The veteran climbed up and looked out, "No, no! Damn it, we're using the one hit in front, the 'Black Panther,' as a shield. Sir, get everyone ready to disembark! Quickly!"
Using a half-track armored vehicle as a shield for the "Black Panther"? Lin En was surprised, but then he thought: in naval battles, it's normal for light ships to shield the main ships from torpedoes. Extending this to land combat made sense, but it was unusual for an armored vehicle to take the place of a tank as a shield, indicating that the "Black Panther" likely carried important figures.
Thinking this, Lin En was already in motion. As the armored vehicle stopped with a slightly slower brake, Lin En supported himself and looked outside. Sure enough, there was a "Black Panther" on the right. Its body was intact, but the left track was broken, turning it into a helpless beast with firepower but no mobility. Strangely, its cannon seemed normal from the outside, yet it hadn't fired back at the Soviet ambush point hundreds of meters away. Instead, the two leading Panzer IV tanks were hastily reversing to provide cover.
Seeing soldiers in the driver's compartment jumping out in panic, Lin En realized that this armored vehicle was undoubtedly being used as a shield for the "Black Panther." He quickly signaled for the soldiers to evacuate the carriage. Noah, sitting at the back, pushed open the door and rushed down, followed closely by Tank Z and Techimer, while Bruhl urgently shouted, "Sir, get out quickly!" He hefted the heavy night vision equipment and moved to the rear of the vehicle.
With the heavy battery box back on his back, Lin En felt like he had aged prematurely. His movements and steps slowed. After struggling out of the carriage, he heard bullets whizzing past him. Scanning left and right in a hurry, he saw Noah, Tank Z, Techimer, and Bruhl darting into a ditch beside the road. Without hesitation, Lin En followed suit. As he splashed into the cool water, feeling the spray on his face, he realized it was a water channel!
Not having time to inform Wolfram, Lin En saw a series of reddish lights flying towards them. He was right beside the armored vehicle, and before he could utter another syllable, one of the lights hit the vehicle in front, causing a violent explosion. Though not powerful, it knocked down the armored soldiers who had rushed over from the Panzer IV. Another Panzer IV quickly reversed to take the place of the half-track armored vehicle as a shield. When the tank landed, the driver even braved danger to climb out and run towards the "Black Panther."
In such a dire situation, Lin En didn't hesitate. He quickly crawled out of the water channel, calling out, "Bruhl, Marcos, cover us. The rest, follow me!"
In the blink of an eye, the wreckage of the armored vehicle that had fallen beside the "Black Panther" suddenly exploded. Though not a fierce explosion, it directly knocked down the armored soldier who had rushed over from the Panzer IV. Another Panzer IV reversed to take the place of the half-track armored vehicle as a shield. When the tank landed, the driver even braved danger to climb out and run towards the "Black Panther."
With his legs aching from the impact of the bullets, Lin En saw the scene unfold before him. The tank's crew was likely inside, and Lin En couldn't help but feel anxious. He saw a figure quickly climbing out from the turret of a tank that had rushed over from the Panzer IV, but before the soldier could land, he was hit by incoming bullets and fell down. The other Panzer IV also reversed to provide cover, while its driver climbed up the turret, trying to open the hatch from above to speed up the rescue.
Struggling with the pain in his leg, Lin En crawled to the tank's hatch for the third time. Just then, a bullet from afar hit his right leg, and the tearing pain made him cry out. Despite the imbalance, he didn't fall. With his mind blank, he gritted his teeth and crawled up again, entering the tank's hatch. Though dark, he could hear coughing and crying inside. Reaching out, he grabbed something soft next to the driver's seat and pulled. It turned out to be a frightened child. She was so small and light that Lin En easily pulled her out. As soon as she landed, she rushed to the thin man next to her, calling out "Daddy." The man, seeing Lin En getting shot just now, begged urgently, "Quick, save them... Please... hurry!"
Enduring the intense pain in his leg, Lin En leaned against the tank's hatch, pulling out the fourth child from inside. He was amazed by the capacity of the tank's interior space. If all the children were here, there should be six in total (the extremely sad scene of the Empire's destruction must be remembered by many people), plus Goebbels and his wife, that's eight people. Even if three children occupied the space of one adult, there were still four passengers, plus the two tankers who got off the tank earlier...
Boom!
Another huge explosion came from nearby, and Lin En felt the brightness in his field of vision rapidly intensify, piercing his eyes to the point where he couldn't keep them open. Holding tightly to a little girl who appeared to be only three or four years old, he collapsed under the powerful shockwave. Despite his desire to persevere, he quickly lost consciousness.