The Anonymous Heroes

Wan Tai infiltrates the warlord's territory and begins recruiting local allies to steal the newly arrived rifles. He convinces Meng Gang and Meng's ally Tie Hu to join the plan, and Hong Yingfen joins after threatening to expose the conspiracy unless she is paid and included.

The group sets the first phase of the heist in motion by stealing the warlord's officer uniform and holding a high-ranking hostage to fool the arsenal director. Their goal is to secure permission to transfer the 3,000 rifles to their control.

They intercept a car carrying an officer who holds the required document, but the necessary paper is inside the captured uniform. The only copy of the permission is hidden inside the officer's captured uniform, keeping the plan alive for now. General Jin's direct call to the arsenal director makes approval possible.

Believing the disguised officer and the hostage are Jin's men, the arsenal director approves the transfer. The 3,000 rifles are loaded into a truck secured by Hong Yingfen and prepared for movement toward the train staging area.

The weapons are unloaded from the truck and moved into a railroad carriage. The group completes the transfer under the cover of the ongoing operation and begins the attempt to remove the carriage from the locomotive for concealment.

The plan is uncovered, Hong's father is arrested, and several subordinates are executed by firing squad. General Jin dispatches cavalry to intercept the trio, the hostage officer is killed, and Wan Tai is mortally wounded in the ensuing gunfight. The trio separates the carriage carrying the rifles and escapes as the train derails and crashes, while Tie Hu damages the railway tracks to mislead Jin's forces.

General Jin arrests the 4th Division commander Zijun and disarms the division, suspecting them of complicity in the heist. The trio wanders into a town and nearly gets caught in a gambling den clash, due to Hong Yingfen being known as the daughter of an officer.

They encounter Yan Wang, a local bandit leader pretending to be Wan Tai's comrade, who pulls them into his hideout and threatens them to reveal the weapon's location. A gunfight erupts and Jin's soldiers arrive, killing Yan Wang and the bandits while Meng is captured by General Jin.

Meng challenges Jin to a gamble for his freedom, and Jin pretends to lose to trap him for capture. The trio reunites and meets Chen Sheng, Wan Tai's friend who is disguised as a street vendor and carries a photo proving Wan Tai's identity; Chen reveals Wan Tai's name to the others.

After reuniting, Chen Sheng explains where the rifles are hidden and distributes them to a local militia to arm a rebellion against the warlord. He notes that the trio's names will likely remain unknown to those they helped sow the revolt.

As Jin's soldiers close in, they refuse amnesty and fight back. Tie Hu is fatally stabbed, Meng is mortally wounded while attempting to strike the general, and Hong is killed by return fire. The trio dies holding hands as the general drives away, disappointed by the outcome.

In the final montage, Chen Sheng leads his militia charging down the hill, and flashes of the trio appear together, implying their lasting impact on the revolt even after their deaths.