Running in a zigzag pattern was indeed the best way to evade sniper lock-on, but it also consumed a tremendous amount of energy. One had to master the rhythm of their movements to execute a perfect zigzag; otherwise, it was just a futile run that exposed one's position.
Unable to dodge, Lei Zhan frantically called out on the comms channel, "Yan Wang, any situation?"
Yan Wang, the Thunder's sniper, was hidden on a high vantage point, scanning the surrounding forest. He reported, "Report, Lei Shen, nothing visible. The opponent is completely still, making them very difficult to spot."
The dense surrounding forest severely obstructed vision. When the enemy was stationary, even the most skilled sniper would struggle to locate them.
Lei Zhan understood Yan Wang's point and directly ordered, "Cover Old Fox's retreat!"
"Understood!"
Yan Wang focused his attention, trusting Lei Shen's judgment that an assault team was indeed lurking nearby. He hadn't expected them to encounter such a tough opponent so soon. It seemed the brutes on the other side were quite daring to target their whetstone.
Just as Old Fox and Little Bee were rapidly retreating, Qin Feng issued his own command: "Eagle, snipe that Master Sergeant First Class!"
"Understood!"
Bang!
As Qin Feng's order was given, a gunshot rang out simultaneously.
The next second, Old Fox, while running, was enveloped in a cloud of white smoke. He was eliminated!
"Holy hell!" Old Fox couldn't help but curse.
After all, it had only been a single exchange from the moment the Thunder assault team detected their opponents to their actual engagement. This Master Sergeant First Class, Old Fox, with 22 years of service, was the first to be eliminated! Old Fox was renowned for his jungle traversal skills, as cunning as a fox – hence his codename. Yet, such a wily individual had been taken down with a single shot. It was incredibly frustrating!
Seeing Old Fox enveloped in white smoke, Yan Wang's eyes blazed. He immediately locked onto He Chenguang's hidden position.
"Bastard! You're asking for death!"
The moment Yan Wang locked onto He Chenguang, Qin Feng urgently shouted, "Eagle, transfer immediately!"
Without a word, He Chenguang grabbed his sniper rifle and violently rolled over.
Bang!
As He Chenguang transferred, at almost the exact same moment, the tree he had just occupied was hit.
"Damn, that was close!"
Looking at the bullet hole in the tree, He Chenguang's back ran cold. The opponent's locking speed was terrifyingly fast; they had identified him in less than two seconds. If Qin Feng hadn't warned him so quickly, he would have been headshotted!
At this moment, Wang Yanbing's voice, the second sniper, came through Qin Feng's earpiece: "Boss, I've locked onto his position, but his position is a bit high. Requesting to transfer..."
However, before Wang Yanbing could finish his sentence, Qin Feng suddenly leaped up, aiming his perfect Type 10 heavy sniper rifle horizontally. The muzzle was pointed towards the bush 1,500 meters away.
Bang!
A muffled sniper rifle shot echoed through the jungle once more.
Immediately after, a cloud of white smoke emerged from the bushes where Wang Yanbing had locked on.
"Holy hell!" Wang Yanbing slapped his thigh. "Boss beat me to it! No, wasn't Boss observing the enemy? When did he become a sniper? That's not right, was that a jumping shot?"
Wang Yanbing was dumbfounded. He had spotted the opponent's location, but his own position was downstream, making it impossible to lock onto the target. He could only find a higher vantage point to snipe. Otherwise, he wouldn't have needed to ask Qin Feng for permission to transfer. Instead, Qin Feng, from a lower position, had directly jumped up and shot!
This in itself was astonishing. Jumping shots weren't unheard of, but what was truly terrifying was that Qin Feng had used a heavy sniper rifle, had jumped while shooting, and had hit the target on the first try! What was going on? Luck? As a sniper himself, Wang Yanbing knew the extreme difficulty of such a shot, especially with the recoil of the Type 10 anti-materiel sniper rifle. It was hard enough to jump with such a weapon, but Qin Feng not only jumped but also hit his target.
"Brother, I offer my condolences. Who told you to run into the freak Bai Yun?"
Compared to Wang Yanbing's commiseration, Yan Wang was even more shocked. His eyes were wide open, and he instinctively turned his head to look at the thick smoke emanating from himself. He coughed, waving his hand to dissipate the smoke, and then looked towards the fleeting figure in the distance.
"Holy hell!" Yan Wang couldn't help but exclaim. Who could tell him what had just happened? Yan Wang was utterly incredulous. His sniper position was higher than the opponent's, and they had terrain advantage with an earth embankment in front of them, blocking the opponent's line of sight. The opponent had to shoot upwards, and even if they could lock onto him, they shouldn't have been able to hit him. This was common sense and Yan Wang's combat experience. But what had he just witnessed? The situation defied all logic! The opponent had jumped up to shoot! A jump shot! This was a classic move from shooting games, a sniper technique that all snipers dreamed of. Yan Wang had even practiced this technique, but his accuracy was less than 10%. In other words, he might miss ten times out of ten, hitting the target purely by luck. Yet, he had been eliminated this way! Yan Wang felt his faith shaken. "I was taken out by a shot with less than a 10% chance of success. That guy's luck is too damn good."
Helpless and eliminated, Yan Wang sat down on the ground and, with a sigh, called out to Lei Zhan on the comms: "Lei Shen, I'm eliminated." Yan Wang felt an unspeakable sense of frustration and sadness. He had just returned from training abroad, and this was supposed to be his chance to prove his sniper skills. But the reality was that he had been taken down in the first exchange, without even a chance to perform. This was simply too much! It was a slap in the face. Weren't they supposed to be amazing after training with foreign armies? Now, they weren't so great, were they? It was humiliating! He might as well not have gone, as he had lost face completely.
Not far away, the spotter Yuan Bao was also filled with horror. "Holy crap! They're using game tactics on the battlefield? This guy is too much of a monster!" In his time as a special forces soldier, Yuan Bao had never encountered such an incredible sniper, not even among the most skilled instructors from foreign armies. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it even if Yan Wang had been killed. "If this is luck, then that guy has unbelievable luck." "But is it really luck?"