I snapped to attention, mimicking the squad leader’s accent as I replied, "No can do, no can do! Why is it always me? It should be that kid Lamutso’s turn to speak for once. Equality is the principle of socialism, right?"

The Second Squad Leader snapped, "Comrade Little Hu, why are you always talking nonsense? I told you not to imitate my speech. I’m the leader, and if I tell you to speak, you speak. Don’t talk about whether absolute egalitarianism is okay or not!"

I glanced around at the comrades sitting stiffly, waiting for my speech. As soon as the squad leader wasn't looking, Gawa stuck his tongue out at me. These guys—not trustworthy at all. Now I had to find a way to save face: "Report, Squad Leader, what is the topic for today's discussion? You haven't said yet; how can we speak if you don't tell us?"

Just then, the Political Instructor walked over. Instructor Li Jian was in his thirties, of medium height, a very gentle-looking man. He was a veteran of over ten years, treated officers and soldiers well, and carried no airs. He approached and said to everyone, "Comrades are holding a meeting? I’ll listen in."

The Second Squad Leader quickly snapped to attention and saluted the Instructor. The Instructor waved his hand, telling them to carry on and not let his presence affect their discussion.

The Second Squad Leader was clearly out of his depth. Seeing the Instructor nearby made him extremely nervous, and he didn't know what to say. Perhaps thinking singing was simple, he turned to the soldiers and proposed, "Comrades, let's sing a revolutionary song to boost morale. Okay?"

The soldiers answered in unison: "Okay." The Instructor, listening nearby, almost burst out laughing and quickly covered it up with a fake cough.

The Second Squad Leader, however, didn't notice anything funny. With a solemn face, he raised both hands, making conducting motions: "Comrades, I’ll start us off. Two, oh, Two-Lang Mountain—get ready, sing."

"Two, oh, Two-Lang Mountain, no matter how high you soar, the PLA men are made of iron, determined to forge a path through. Fearless of the blowing wind, unafraid of the falling snow, we shall build the highway all the way to Tibet." The snow outside fell harder. The chorus of a dozen soldiers echoed amidst the whirling snow across the vast Kunlun Mountains. It was hard to tell if the bleak, snow-swept peaks amplified the majesty of the military song, or if the soldiers' voices adorned the desolate loneliness of Kunlun. For a moment, even a few engineers in the other tent were captivated by the singing, forgetting their altitude sickness, gazing at the endless distant peaks, their thoughts surging.

Finally, the Instructor spoke a few words to everyone: "Like all of you, this is my first time in the Kunlun Mountains. The conditions here are indeed extremely harsh, the environment brutally severe. We face the sternest test. But my comrades, we are not an ordinary unit. Our company’s title is the 'Bayonet Hero Company.' This honor was earned by the predecessors of the Sixth Company with their lives and blood. We absolutely cannot tarnish that banner. Now, the Party Central Committee and Chairman Mao have entrusted this glorious mission to us, which is a great expression of trust in our Sixth Company. We must carry forward the revolutionary soldier's spirit of fearing neither hardship nor death to complete this mission successfully. Comrades, do you have the resolve?"

We replied in unison: "Yes!"

The Instructor nodded with satisfaction and continued, "Rest early today. Our small team will be crossing the Great Glacier tomorrow. Everyone must prepare in advance. That’s all, dismissed."

On the morning of the third day entering the mountains, the small team reached the Great Glacier. Legend had it that a very low-lying, small basin existed nearby; that basin was our destination. Because this was a secret mission, we couldn't hire local guides (and besides, no one knew the way). We had to rely on a crudely drawn military map, navigating through contour lines as tangled as wild grass to find our objective.

The Great Glacier consisted of three sections, with immense drops and extremely steep slopes. The highest point exceeded six thousand meters in altitude, perpetually covered in ice and snow. The middle section was the longest, entirely composed of slick, mirror-like ice, hundreds of meters thick. The lowest part dipped below the average altitude of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, sinking deep into the earth like a fissure. Here, the local ground temperature was warmer, creating a rare belt of green vegetation. At the lowest point, the altitude sickness eased. To proceed deeper into the Kunlun Mountains, we absolutely had to pass through the valley beneath the Great Glacier.

Before setting off, the engineer had warned everyone not to make any loud noises while trekking beneath the glacier, lest the snow on the summit collapse and bury them alive.

Everyone dared not even breathe heavily, yet an accident still occurred halfway through. While descending from the glacier into the valley, an engineer from Beijing lost his footing and tumbled down the ice. We found his mangled body in the oasis below the glacier. Luo Ning, the female geological surveyor, who worked in the same unit as him, couldn't help but let out a wail upon seeing the gruesome sight.

A geology expert named Wang quickly covered her mouth with his hand and whispered, "Don't cry out loud."

Luo Ning buried her head deeply in Engineer Wang’s embrace, sobbing painfully. The Instructor led the group in removing their caps, observing a moment of silent mourning for their comrade’s remains. Then, Gawa and I collected the body and buried it in a sack. This engineer had been with us for less than three days. I only knew he was from Beijing; I didn't even get to learn his name before he died so silently.

Big Guy gently scraped at the dirt with his entrenching shovel. After only a few scoops, a large blue fireball, the size of a basketball, suddenly shot out of the pit he was digging. It circled twice in mid-air before darting straight into the crowd. The members of the small team quickly scrambled to avoid it.

The fireball landed, and the blue flames gradually extinguished. It turned out to be a bizarrely shaped ladybug. Its entire body resembled red transparent crystal, and its wings were utterly translucent. Through its clear shell, one could vaguely see the semi-transparent internal organs, within which a faint fire seemed to circulate, giving it an indescribably mysterious and eerie appearance.

Everyone exchanged glances, wanting to ask what kind of insect it was, but no one could provide an answer. It was likely an undiscovered species. Engineer Wang curiously leaned closer, adjusted the thick prescription glasses perched on his nose, and excitedly picked up the ladybug, which looked like a red flame, between two fingers, carefully examining it. However, at that moment, the spot where his fingers touched the ladybug ignited with a burst of blue flame. In an instant, fierce fire engulfed his entire body.

Engineer Wang’s body was consumed by blue flames. Large blisters instantly formed on his skin, which then burned away. His glasses warped from the heat and fell to the ground. He collapsed, writhing in agony.

It was too late for us to save him. His screams as he was consumed by the fiery demon echoed through the valley, chilling everyone to the bone. Moreover, it looked like he wouldn't pass away quickly.

Some wanted to use shovels to smother the flames with dirt, but his body had suffered one hundred percent, third-degree burns. Even if the fire were extinguished temporarily, deep in the medic-scarce Kunlun Mountains, he probably wouldn't last an hour or two. Wouldn't that just prolong his torment?

This scene of a living person being incinerated was too cruel. Luo Ning could not bear to watch, turning her head away, her expression frozen. She covered her ears, mouth agape, neither crying nor screaming. The youngest, Little Lin, was terrified, hiding behind Big Guy, shivering uncontrollably.

The Second Squad Leader drew his pistol, intending to end his suffering; he truly could not bear to watch him suffer this way. Furthermore, letting him keep screaming might trigger an avalanche.

The Instructor placed his hand on the Second Squad Leader’s hand, which was pulling back the bolt, and whispered to him, "No shooting. Use the bayonet. I’ll do it."

Tens of thousands of tons of snow hung suspended above the Great Glacier on the summit. Any slight vibration could trigger a catastrophic disaster. The only thing we could do for Engineer Wang now was to drive a bayonet into his sternum quickly and mercifully, letting him die without further pain.

There was no time to waste. The Instructor took the Type 56 semi-automatic rifle with its bayonet fixed attached from a soldier, softly murmured an apology—"Forgive me, comrade"—closed his eyes, and thrust the bayonet into Engineer Wang's heart. Engineer Wang finally ceased his heart-wrenching howling, collapsed, and lay still, but the flames on his body continued to burn.

Just as the Instructor was about to pull the bayonet from his chest, the eerie blue flame suddenly flared brightly and actually traveled up the bayonet, along the rifle barrel.

The flame’s conduction speed was incredible, less than the blink of an eye. Before anyone could discern what had happened, the Instructor’s entire body was swallowed by blue flames.

The Instructor, like Engineer Wang, struggled and screamed in agony. Everyone knew the Instructor well; he was truly a tough man. Though outwardly gentle, his endurance and willpower met the standards of the most outstanding professional soldier. One could only imagine the horrific pain of being burned by that strange fire that would elicit such a cry of agony.

Tears streaming down his face, the Second Squad Leader raised his pistol. At this point, he couldn't worry about causing an avalanche; he couldn't bear to watch the Instructor suffer any longer. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, the Instructor, still engulfed in flames, suddenly spoke: "I order... none of you fire... take the comrades and leave this place quickly..."

Though the pain consuming him was unbearable, the Instructor remained mentally clear. He realized his screams might trigger an avalanche. To stop making noise, he reversed the glowing red bayonet and plunged it into his own heart. After a long, long time, his body burned down to a pile of fine ash.

The remaining members of the small team watched this heroic and tragic scene with aching hearts. Every person clenched their fists, gritting their teeth, trying to hold back the tears welling in their eyes; some had even bitten their lips until they bled.

The valley was utterly silent. The azure sky above reflected on the surface of the Great Glacier, giving a strange illusion that there were two identical skies, making it impossible to distinguish which was up and which was down. This beautiful, ethereal scenery was filled with an atmosphere of uncanny dread.

On the ground lay two piles of ash. Just minutes ago, they had been living men; now they were nothing more than small mounds of dust, burned so thoroughly that not even bone fragments remained. If no one had witnessed it, who would ever believe such a thing could happen in the world?

Suddenly, a blue fireball flew out from the ashes remaining where Engineer Wang had been incinerated. It hovered in the air, facing the crowd, seemingly choosing its next target. Its speed was incredible; within its range of attack, no one could be sure they could escape. A faint vibration echoed in the air, presumably the sound of this peculiar ladybug’s wings vibrating as it flew.

The small team had now lost three members—all key personnel. The Leader, the Political Instructor, and two engineers were gone. The two remaining engineers were Luo Ning, the surveyor, and Engineer Liu from the Shanghai Geological Survey Institute. It seemed this mission was doomed to fail.

With the Instructor gone, the soldiers felt a loss of anchor, but almost everyone facing that eerie blue fireball shared the same thought: "We would rather be buried by an avalanche than be burned to ash alive by this ghost thing."

A few restless soldiers had already raised their rifles, aiming at the ladybug hovering overhead. The Second Squad Leader suddenly stepped forward and addressed them: "Comrades, the Instructor has sacrificed himself. I am the captain now! I command all of you to get out of here alive, okay?"

I understood what the Second Squad Leader intended: he wanted to sacrifice himself to buy precious time for the others to retreat. I grabbed his arm, choking back tears, "No, you’re not even a Party member; why should it be you? If someone goes, it should be me."

The Second Squad Leader shoved my hand away. "You, Little Hu, you're not even a Youth League member! I told you not to imitate my speech, why don’t you listen?" Before he finished speaking, he charged toward the floating fireball without looking back.