Ultimate Firepower
Chapter 339 - 323: Excessive Firepower

Chapter 339: Chapter 323: Excessive Firepower

"Finding two 23mm High Altitude Guns was not a difficult task for Gao Yi, and there was no need for Shaman to step in, as Shaman’s side would definitely be closely watched. Involving the National Intelligence Bureau could easily lead to leaks."

"Although Abdulla already had a team that could ensure loyalty, this team mainly followed Shaman and was not deployed around the world. Therefore, if the National Intelligence Bureau wanted to stir things up in Baghdad, they had to rely on veterans from the past, and who knows how many of them were with the CIA."

"So they couldn’t ask Abdulla for guns; they had to go through Grasse."

"Now, the Pentagon was splitting the money, and it wouldn’t be right if they didn’t put in some effort on this matter."

"Moreover, simply unlocking an arsenal they controlled and taking out part of the seized weapons and equipment was not a big deal."

"If it hadn’t been for the need for secrecy, Gao Yi would have really picked from the active equipment of the Iraqi Defense Army."

"However, a storeroom filled with seized ISIS weaponry could also meet their needs."

"They came quietly at night, drove up two trucks, and since there weren’t enough people, Gao Yi and his team had to do the job themselves. It was still not appropriate to let the War Axe Mercenary Group handle it at this stage."

"They drove a van, all four of them came, and then Grasse himself came, so Peter’s team couldn’t just stand by."

"The storeroom doors were wide open, they even saved the step of unlocking, the truck could simply back up to the door, and they could start moving items from the storeroom onto the truck."

"Grasse held a list and whispered, ’The Type 75 high-caliber machine gun...it’s over here.’"

"There was an area in the storeroom specifically for storing machine guns, where several 14.5mm high-caliber machine guns were stacked. In pursuit of the best combination of great firepower and small size, the 14.5mm high-caliber machine guns were the best choice they could now take."

"’The RPGs are here. We have boxes of unopened RPG-27. Should we take them?’"

"As they started to drag out the old but still functional high-caliber machine guns, and upon hearing Grasse’s tip, Gao Yi didn’t hesitate, ’RPG-27, definitely take them, just RPG-7 for the mercenaries, grab these RPG-27 as well.’"

"The manifestation of the fear of inadequate firepower is wanting to take any powerful weapon, useful or not, just to have it on hand."

"The storeroom was messy and cluttered. Some weapons had no ammunition, and some ammunition had no matching weapons, but they could definitely pick out enough items required by Gao Yi and his team."

"Grasse pointed to the corner and said, ’Want the mortars? From 60mm to 120mm calibers, all available; as for the shells...uh, we have those too.’"

"Gao Yi looked at Feng Biao."

"Personal weapons must be taken, but the mortars, with their longer range, were not necessary."

"Gao Yi’s team didn’t plan to take them into the wilderness to engage enemies directly. They planned to hide in buildings, wait for Freedom Wind to come close, and then fire from all directions, so the minimum range of mortars, which starts at tens of meters away, was unnecessary."

"Moreover, firing a mortar was a technically demanding task. It was easy to launch but hitting the target accurately was not. Whether the mercenaries Gao Yi found could use mortars was also an issue."

"But he left this decision to Feng Biao."

"Feng Biao didn’t hesitate to reply, ’Don’t need the mortar, where’s the grenade launcher? We can take more of those.’"

"On the battlefield, the iron rule was to bomb if possible, and only resort to bullets if bombing was out of the question."

"’Of course, there are grenade launchers, but only Russian models.’"

"Basically, they took what they liked, and it didn’t cost them anything, as long as they could carry it."

"Feng Biao glanced around and said, ’Directional bombs, land mines.’"

"Grasse checked the list and added, ’The list has directional bombs, but I’m not sure where they are. There are no anti-infantry mines. These consumable items are basically unrecoverable. ISIS didn’t have many. However, we do have some anti-tank mines.’"

"Feng Biao replied helplessly, ’Forget it...no, never mind what type of mine, take whatever you find.’"

"Gao Yi couldn’t help but ask, ’What do you need anti-tank mines for?’"

"Feng Biao smiled, ’Mines are a sniper’s perfect partner, the best companion. No matter what type of mine, having a few around gives you peace of mind. Well, take the anti-tank mines too; they can be easily modified into bombs with remote detonation, which are very effective and also very safe. Bring them along.’"

"The Iraqis have extensive experience in modifying anti-tank mines into roadside bombs, and these devices are inherently simple to modify, which Feng Biao understood well."

Directional bombs were nowhere to be found, but the anti-tank mines were neatly stacked one by one, looking rather unsettling because there were no boxes or packaging; the mines were just piled up one on top of another.

Gao Yi looked uneasy and said, "Are the mines just left out like this?"

"TM-62 anti-tank mines, trigger weight 180 kilograms, you could jump on it and it wouldn’t explode, just toss them and lay them anywhere."

Feng Biao didn’t take it seriously; he handled one anti-tank mine in each hand and went back and forth to the vehicle with Lin Xianghua four times. However, these things were quite heavy, and since there was no packaging box, the two of them only took eight in total, which was enough.

As for ordinary machine guns, rifles, hand grenades, and such, there was no need for those; the Mercenary Group brought their own and had plenty, so there was no need to move them again.

Twenty RPG-27s, eight anti-tank mines, two 14.5mm high-altitude guns, and four AGS-17 grenade launchers, but not many grenade rounds, only a little over seventy.

Looking around, there wasn’t anything else worth taking in the warehouse.

Gao Yi said to Grasse, "That’s it then, let’s load up and go."

Grasse nodded and then whispered, "Once you’ve decided on the ambush location, two ZU-23 pickups from Madyin will be sent over, along with a truck loaded with a 19-barrel 70mm rocket launcher nest—ISIS doesn’t have these rockets, these are from the US Army used in Apaches, and we can easily get the specific rockets for it. There’s also a pickup loaded with a 63-type 107mm rocket launcher—well, it has sufficient rockets too."

High-altitude guns were too conspicuous; dragging them around the streets of Baghdad city was too likely to be exposed. So it wasn’t that Gao Yi was not using high-altitude guns, but it wasn’t time to take them yet.

The high-altitude guns were definitely going to be used, this was agreed upon, Grasse even found the right ones to use, but now he was offering an additional rocket launcher truck, which was uncertain if it could be used.

Gao Yi looked again at Feng Biao.

Feng Biao said to Lin Xianghua, "I’ve never fought such a well-equipped battle, but do you think we really need the rocket ordnance?"

Lin Xianghua responded without hesitation, "Of course, it’s necessary, but do we have enough people to operate them now?"

Feng Biao was counting on his fingers and murmured, "Two high-altitude guns, counting the drivers, each gun needs at least two people to operate, two high-altitude machine guns, that’s at least four people, the grenade launchers take four people, and two heavy machine guns need another four people, that’s sixteen people there already."

Lin Xianghua spread his hands and said, "Right, we have seventy people in total—if we spread everyone out, these heavy weapons would need to be positioned at at least six fire points, and even if we leave just four infantrymen at each fire point for protection, we’re short-staffed."

Feng Biao dismissively said, "We’re ambushing, not fighting a trench war; what do we need so many infantry for? But let’s forget about the rocket launcher nest, it requires even more manpower."

Gao Yi felt that this firepower was already a bit over the top, even if Freedom Wind brought an entire platoon, falling into his trap would mean only one thing—death.

No matter what heavy armor or no armor, in the face of artillery, there is no difference.

Feng Biao said to Grasse, "Forget about the rocket launcher and stuff; just bring the two high-altitude guns over. Actually, I think even those are not necessary, the key is to find the right place to use the guns."

At that point, Gao Yi nonchalantly asked Grasse, "Have you found a suitable place yet?"

Finding a suitable ambush location was a very intellectually demanding task.

There were many places suitable for an ambush, but the more suitable they were for ambushing, the less usable they became.

No one was foolish; if Gao Yi found a spot especially suitable for setting up a pocket formation, hiding his men within, only to start fighting as soon as Freedom Wind’s men arrived, it would certainly be ideal, but after a fierce attack in Libya with heavy losses, they had to be more cautious.

What if seeing another trap location alarmed Freedom Wind’s men to the point that they dared not enter?

So the ambush point had to be chosen wisely.

It first had to facilitate hiding for Gao Yi’s men, because living ostentatiously in a luxury hotel in Baghdad while being chased by the CIA would be too suspicious.

Easy to hide, but only easy to hide, not the right battlefield for an ambush. With that in mind, there weren’t many places to choose from in Baghdad.

This kind of thing, of course, you’d ask the local tyrant Grasse, and Grasse did not let Gao Yi down; he immediately said, "I’ve selected three places; you choose one. Either the east side of the Mutana Bridge, where the residential areas are sparse and traffic convenient, making it suitable to hide and escape, but if Freedom Wind blocks the bridge, you’re left with only one direction to run.

Another one is Baghdad’s southern suburbs, also near the Tigris River, with a plantation area, convenient for traffic but sparse population, suitable for a battlefield.

There’s also a spot between Baghdad and Madyin along the highway, with some factories beside the road, both abandoned and in use, suitable for hiding heavy equipment, because many vehicles come and go every day, pulling guns in wouldn’t draw attention, but I haven’t arranged it with the factory yet—though, I should be able to find a factory. Personally, I think this is the most suitable place, for any special forces, attacking a building in a less dense factory is much simpler than in a busy downtown area."

Gao Yi didn’t have any particular research, so since Grasse said the factory was better than a busy area, then the factory it was.

Gao Yi nodded and said, "Then, contact them as quickly as possible; once you find a good spot, get everyone over there. The factory is good, it’s also convenient to hide people, let’s settle on that."