Chapter 784: Monster

A low-slung, new-model German tank, with an appearance and size that seemed similar to a Tiger, was crossing over the barbed wire that was blocking the German advance. Its wide tracks easily crushed the wooden stakes that held the barbed wire in place. An anti-tank rifle, issued to the front lines by the Soviets as an emergency measure to deal with German tanks, fired a bullet that left only a shallow mark on this tank’s armor plate.

“Quick! Get the 45mm anti-tank gun in the anti-tank gun position over there ready! The enemy tank is approaching! It has already broken through the first frontal trench!” a Soviet frontline commander shouted, lowering his binoculars and ordering the signals runner beside him.

To the left of this command position, not far away, a 45mm anti-tank gun concealed in the bushes had already aimed its barrel at the brazen German tank. It was now just waiting patiently, waiting for that tank to enter the dangerous trap on its own.

And that new German tank was rampaging through the Red Army’s position as if in an uninhabited land, charging left and right like a steel monster. The Soviet soldiers in the trenches were torn to pieces by the tank’s hull-mounted machine gun, their flesh and blood a mangled mess. The Soviet soldiers who jumped out of the trenches were also turned into sieves by the German infantry covering this tank. Shells landed next to this tank but could not harm it in the slightest. It was like a mobile fortress, so strong it was despairing.

“Damn it! That German Tiger tank is a bit strange! Its armor has been thickened, and its shape has also been changed a lot… This is a new Tiger tank! Not the old kind,” the Soviet commander muttered, carefully studying the terrifying tank with his binoculars.

His position was rapidly collapsing under the devastation of this steel behemoth. The anti-tank rifle was as effective against this tank as shooting a locomotive with a BB gun. The only thing he had any confidence in now was the 45mm anti-tank gun on his position, and the tank units that were coming to support them.

BOOM! Finally, the hidden killer revealed its ferocious fangs. The anti-tank gun, after the opponent had entered a range it was confident in, fired its first shell cleanly.

The warhead instantly cut through the air, crossed a distance of several hundred meters, and struck the frontal armor plate of this German monster. The huge impact force caused the entire projectile to deform. The solid warhead twisted and broke, and finally, due to the angle, it ricocheted off and fell into a trench not far away.

“Didn’t penetrate? At this range, it can destroy a German Panther tank! I only fired because I was very confident!” the gunner of the anti-tank gun shouted, staring at the opponent in the distance. In such a long battle, the Soviet army had also gained some experience in dealing with German tanks. For example, the relatively old Panther tank, the Soviet army was now very experienced in destroying.

Of course, firing from a distance of 700 meters could only penetrate the side armor of a Panther. In actual combat, it had long been proven that using a 45mm anti-tank gun against German tanks was not very effective. The main reason this weapon had not yet been phased out was because its production was so large that they had to make do with it.

“Reload, quick! No one is listening to your explanations! Second round, get ready! Quick! Quick!” the commander of the Soviet anti-tank gun, standing by the cannon, shouted in terror. “That thing is turning its turret! My God! Fire, quick!”

The coaxial machine gun on the new German tank swept over with a hail of bullets. Tracer rounds flew like rain towards the concealed Soviet anti-tank gun on this position. The bullets clattered against the gun shield, and the two loaders who were holding shells were hit and fell to the ground, screaming.

“Fire! Fire! Damn it!” the Soviet commander shouted, clutching his helmet. Bullets struck the earth above his head, kicking up a shower of debris. A rain of bullets hit the anti-tank gun position, instantly turning it into a hell on earth. No one dared to raise their head rashly, because the gun shield of the cannon was being struck by a dazzling shower of sparks.

BOOM! In a flurry, the second anti-tank shell was fired, but it seemed to have missed the advancing German monster. It landed regretfully on the path the new German tank had just taken, kicking up a cloud of earth and doing nothing else.

“Didn’t hit! It’s getting closer! The other side must be new recruits, they haven’t fired yet. Keep loading ammunition, let’s go for broke!” the commander shouted, peeking over the top during a lull in the enemy’s firing. He saw that the enemy tank had closed to about 400 meters.

BOOM! The third shell left the muzzle. This time, the shell struck the tank’s frontal armor plate again, but unfortunately, at a distance of 400 meters, it still failed to penetrate the German tank’s armor. In fact, given the performance of this anti-tank gun, even at a distance of 100 meters, it would be helpless against the frontal armor of most German tanks.

BOOM! The German tank finally fired a shell. It turned out that the main reason this armored monster had not fired was out of contempt, not nervousness. This shell accurately hit the anti-tank gun position. From the time it had stopped until it fired, not even two seconds had passed. This was all thanks to the simple gun stabilization device in the turret, which provided pre-aiming while on the move.

The shell fired by this new German tank was much more effective than the one fired by the Soviet anti-tank gun. It instantly hit the anti-tank gun, turning it into a pile of parts. The gun barrel and carriage were twisted and scattered around the crater, and all the Soviet soldiers in the vicinity were killed by this one shot.

“Damn it! Haven’t our tanks arrived yet? How long is that Tiger tank going to rampage on our position?” the Soviet commander asked anxiously again, lowering his binoculars. The reason he was so sure this new tank was a Tiger was because the cannon it used was almost identical to the Tiger’s.

“Calling division, calling division! This is defensive position seven. The German tank is breaking through our line… Comrade Commander, we need tank support! I repeat! We need tank support!” a Soviet soldier with a radio shouted into the microphone over and over again.

“The tanks to support you set off half an hour ago. Please hold on a little longer! They should be arriving soon!” a reply came from division headquarters in the headset. In this situation, the voice on the radio saying that the tanks were coming soon was undoubtedly heavenly music to the ears of these frontline soldiers.

BOOM! Just as all the Soviet soldiers were praying that their friendly tanks would arrive to drive off the German tank, from deep within the woods, a shell accurately struck the front of the new German tank’s turret. The huge explosion made everyone involuntarily squint.

At a range of at least 1,000 meters, the Soviet tank’s cannon had still not been able to penetrate this German tank, but the huge force was like a heavy punch, shaking off some of the items hanging on the German tank. The vibration also affected the crew inside. It was clear that this tank would not be able to return to its previous swaggering state for a while.

“Nice! That was a great shot!” a Soviet Red Army soldier shouted, looking up. But he had just finished shouting when a bullet from the opposite side flew through his steel helmet, leaving a not-so-small hole in his head.

In fact, this shot was a little off. If it had been a little lower, this powerful shell would have surely hit the side of this new German tank and penetrated it. Unfortunately, the shell had hit the strongest part of the entire tank, the front of the turret, so it had not been successful.

But this shot was also a lucky one, because given the accuracy of the Soviet Stalin tank, to hit the target on the first shot was already an over-performance. And this shot was a solid hit, temporarily disabling the German tank.

From the woods behind the Red Army’s defense line, a Stalin tank drove out, its dark gun barrel pointing at the now-immobile new German tank. Behind this Stalin tank, another one drove out, and then, one after another, T-34 tanks followed, a full six or seven of them.

“Urrah!” Seeing their own tanks appear on the position, all the Soviet soldiers let out a cheer. But before this cheer had even died down, a Stalin tank at the very front was penetrated in the front of its hull by a devastating shell and exploded into a ball of fire.

Before people could recover, a second shell appeared like a thunderclap, striking the turret of another Stalin tank like a heavy hammer, instantly shaking this tank so badly that it was completely disoriented. The Soviet soldiers were so scared by this sudden scene that some of them, with their mouths open in a cheer, couldn’t even close them.

From the woods on the German side, a similar steel behemoth crashed through a small tree, completely ignoring the falling snow, and charged out of the forest. And to the side of this tank, another new-model tank, just as menacing, drove out, crushing the shaking bushes.

These tanks spread out in parallel, covering their friendly tank. Behind them followed several armored cars, deploying a large number of German grenadiers. One after another, the Soviet tanks were destroyed, caught fire, and burned. And amidst these raging flames, a swastika flag was being raised.

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