Chapter 534

The news of the great victory at Eagle Beak Valley, as if wings had been added, at noon the next day was sent back to Black Cloud Stronghold by an express horse.

"Great victory! Chief Lin, Chief Chao, great victory at Eagle Beak Valley!"

The messenger almost fell off his horse, his voice hoarse from excitement, yet his face overflowed with uncontrollable excitement.

"Our army crushed the Jin troops' Eagle Beak Valley supply base! In battle we slew over 170 Jin troops and captured over 30!"

"We burned the enemy fortifications, seized over 300 stone of provisions, captured 200 intact sets of armor, countless arrows, and moreover over 40 pack horses!"

"Our army... our army suffered only over 10 lightly wounded, with not a single killed in action!"

The news was like dripping cold water into a boiling oil pot, and the entire Black Cloud Stronghold instantly exploded!

"We won! We won!"

"Instructor Lin is mighty! Heavenly King Chao is mighty!"

"And there is Mr. Chen's 'Dawn' technique!"

"Hahaha, let those Jin dogs know how formidable we are!"

The camp, originally somewhat gloomy due to insufficient provisions and external pressure, was instantly flooded by a wave of jubilation.

Soldiers ran to and fro informing each other, waving their weapons, the gloom on their faces from the past days was swept away by pride and exhilaration.

This clean, swift victory with brilliant results boosts morale more than any words.

When Lin Chong, Chao Gai and others led the troops laden with captured goods and escorting prisoners, bathed in the afternoon's slightly glaring sunlight, returning in triumph, the cheers outside the fortress gate erupted like a mountain-shouting, sea-roaring tide.

Chen Wen stood among the crowd, seeing the spirited Lin Chong and Chao Gai, though fatigued yet unable to hide their sharpness, seeing the soldiers whose eyes grew firmer after baptism by blood and fire, seeing cart after cart of life-saving provisions and the armaments of the equipped troops, his heart also surged.

This victory's meaning extends far beyond mere battlefield gains.

It was like a shot of adrenaline, injected into the Northward Aspiration Army's veins, giving this fledgling force genuine confidence and resolve.

It proved to everyone that the Northward Aspiration Army could not only survive in the cracks, but also take the initiative to strike, dealing a heavy blow to powerful enemies!

However, beneath this great joy and clamor, Chen Wen felt a more internal, more profound change.

In the process of deciding to launch a counterattack, formulating battle plans, mobilizing resources, and even finally employing Ability Granting to empower the elite;

While awaiting the battle results, simultaneously monitoring the north and south fronts, in the torment of strained focus;

In the myriad affairs of receiving the news of the great victory, coordinating the arrangement of captured supplies, comforting the prisoners, and contemplating the next step's strategy……

He clearly felt that the Growth Progress Bar inside him, representing the system's level, was increasing at an unprecedented speed, solidly and steadily!

This growth was not simply derived from a single bout of physical labor or skill practice.

It was more like a comprehensive accumulation.

It was the experience of overseeing the whole situation and making key decisions;

It was the practice of effectively using one's own abilities to influence and change the battlefield;

It was the pressure and tempering from bearing heavy responsibility and sustaining a large organization forward through adversity.

Each time of careful deliberation, each decisive decision, each successful application of Ability Granting at a critical point yielding significant results, all seemed to turn into intangible nourishment, feeding the rise of that progress bar.

Especially in this Eagle Beak Valley battle.

He first attempted Gradient Granting, allocating different multiples of enhancement effect according to different mission needs.

This not only greatly optimized the utility of Ability Granting, reducing unnecessary consumption, but also elevated his understanding and mastery of this core ability to a new level.

He could feel that the accumulation of the progress bar had reached an extremely full state.

It seemed only one final step away, and he could break through some invisible barrier and enter a brand-new realm.

Thirty-twofold efficacy.

And the newly unlocked abilities, according to the prompts of 'causal fragments' and the system description, named 'Script Reading' and 'Limited Remote Granting'.

All of this is already within reach.

Night fell once again.

The clamor of celebration gradually subsided, and the camp returned to orderly tranquility.

Only the regular footsteps of the patrol squad and the occasional low groans from the distant wounded soldiers' camp reminded people of the day's fierce battle.

Chen Wen stood alone on the high platform beside the drill field, gazing southward.

His fingertips lightly rubbed the waist token representing the Shi Dun Squad.

The brief, warning-like tremor during the day prevented him from fully immersing himself in the joy of the northern victory.

The undercurrents in the south had not lessened in the slightest due to the northern sunshine.

On the contrary, they seemed to have become even more turbulent.

"Growth... still needs to be faster."

Chen Wen muttered to himself.

The path of the Northward Aspiration Army is destined to be strewn with thorns.

Merely possessing the strength to shatter a forward outpost is far from enough.

In the future, what they will face is the stronger main force of the Jin troops, the more cunning Iron Crow Army, and the more complex overall situation.

And all of this requires greater strength as its foundation.

Individual strength, and the strength of the entire faction.

He drew a deep breath of the cool night air, sinking his mind and spirit into his body.

The brimming Growth Progress Bar emitted a soft yet firm light, as if responding to his anticipation.

The accumulation is already deep enough.

The opportunity for a breakthrough may be just around the corner.

What he needs to do is to continue forward, handling well every matter at hand, whether it's consolidating the north or laying out plans in the south.

In the tumultuous and complex situation, find the path that will truly make both the Northward Aspiration army and himself strong.

The night was dark and vast.

The residual warmth of the great victory in the north still lingers, while an unknown crisis in the south has already shown its first signs.

And Chen Wen's growth, too, is quietly approaching the next critical turning point amidst the intertwining of ice and fire.