Small Victory

Day Six.

After breakfast, Zhen Jin faced the crowd and spoke. "We have just finished the last of our rations."

The others remained silent, standing ramrod straight. They had all long since prepared themselves mentally for this outcome.

Before them, Zhen Jin swept his sharp gaze across the crowd.

"Anyone who still does not understand our situation, step forward!"

No one moved. They stood where they were.

Every face was grim. Within their proudly lifted chests seemed to be hidden molten magma—battle intent accumulated over a long time, a fierce desire to survive!

"Very good. You are all intelligent people. You all understand what awaits us if we lose."

"Over the past few days, Lan Zao has conducted a thorough reconnaissance. Other than the flying squirrel pack, there is no more suitable target nearby."

"Today, if we defeat them, they will be our food. If we fail, we will be theirs."

"I, Zhen Jin, as a Temple Knight and the sole heir of the Hundred Needles Family, will stand with you. I will lead you through hardship, across perilous obstacles, and reap victory. Follow me, and let us claim glory!"

Their morale surged, their wills united as one.

The group set out.

Before long, they arrived at the predetermined battlefield.

This battlefield had been carefully arranged. The most conspicuous features were the low barriers woven from vines and bamboo branches.

These barriers linked together one after another, forming a long defensive line.

If the flying squirrels wanted to cross the line, they would have to take flight. That would give the team members an excellent opportunity to shoot them.

There were three such defensive lines.

Under normal circumstances, a river would have been the best natural obstacle, requiring no laborious human effort to set up.

But first, there was no river nearby. Second, the rivers on this island were quite dangerous as well, often concealing Mad Python Green Vines. Zhen Jin was not the only one to have encountered these Gold-level magic plants; Cang Xu's Exploration Team had also run into them several times, paying the price in blood.

Under Zhen Jin's command, Lan Zao advanced alone, and his back swiftly vanished from everyone's sight.

Most of them formed a battle formation. The formation was very simple: a single horizontal line. Such a formation was convenient for bringing ranged firepower into play.

Cang Xu and Zi Di stood behind the line, at Zhen Jin's side.

Zhen Jin began to pray silently.

"Saint Brilliance Great Emperor, my god, You are wise and mighty. On the battlefield, You always seize the chance of victory. You are the god of knights, the God of War, the god of victory. Please bless me with victory. With faith and glory, with the blood of my mortal enemies, I shall add a glimmer of radiance to Your throne. O god, heed my call..."

The god gave no response.

Zhen Jin sighed inwardly.

Temple Knights would ordinarily pray when facing battle. The Saint Brilliance Great Emperor would generally respond, bestowing divine arts upon Temple Knights to protect them.

But ever since Zhen Jin's Awakening, despite praying many times, the Saint Brilliance Great Emperor had never responded.

That was precisely why Zhen Jin had not prayed aloud before everyone. If no divine art descended, it would inevitably leave a bad impression on the others. They would think that Zhen Jin, this Temple Knight, lacked the god's favor and protection. Before the battle had even begun, their side's morale would take a blow and waver.

The present outcome was not beyond Zhen Jin's expectations. He was also grateful for his wise decision.

The morning sun pierced through the rosy dawn.

The forest gradually bathed in sunlight, its deep ink-green slowly brightening.

The air remained cold. Whenever anyone breathed, visible white mist streamed from their mouths.

As time passed, the chirping of birds grew more and more numerous.

Suddenly, a flock of birds beat their wings and burst from the trees ahead, rising into the sky.

Lan Zao's figure reappeared before everyone.

He was sprinting at full speed, with a large pack of flying squirrels screeching wildly behind him. Several of them emanated the aura of Bronze-level Magic Beasts.

The battle line stirred slightly, then quickly fell silent again.

A gleam flashed through Zhen Jin's eyes, and his spirits lifted—Lan Zao's provocation had been highly successful this time.

The next moment, Zhen Jin shouted, "Ready!"

The Exploration Team members had long been prepared. At his command, they immediately drew arrows and nocked them to their bowstrings in unison.

They all drew their bows, holding without firing.

"Loose," Zhen Jin shouted again.

The team members immediately released their strings. In an instant, the bowstrings thrummed as every arrow shot forth.

Lan Zao did not break stride. Seeing the arrows flying toward him, he immediately threw himself to the ground and rolled with the momentum.

A Flying Squirrel Leader pounced and missed, slamming into the ground. Turf and clumps of earth sprayed in every direction as it smashed out a small pit in the soil.

Rising swiftly with the momentum of his roll, Lan Zao now held a shield in his hand.

Several such shields had been prepared beforehand and laid on the ground.

No arrows struck Lan Zao's shield. The volley converged like a curtain, sifting several flying squirrels from the pack.

A Flying Squirrel Leader pounced at Lan Zao's back.

Hearing the commotion, Lan Zao spun around and swept his shield out fiercely. With a bang, he knocked the flying squirrel away.

"Ready—fire!" Seizing the moment the flying squirrels crossed the vine barrier, Zhen Jin shouted the order again.

More than a dozen arrows formed another thin curtain of shafts, mixed with several iron short bolts fired from crossbows.

The arrow curtain traced gentle arcs through the air and landed accurately among the flying squirrels.

Several wooden arrows struck Lan Zao's shield and leather armor, causing him no harm.

The crossbows were in the hands of the best shots, so none of their bolts flew toward Lan Zao.

The remaining arrows all had wooden tips. There were no iron arrowheads yet; only the foremost ends of the shafts had been charred black, carbonized, and sharpened.

Such arrowheads naturally could not do much damage to Lan Zao, nor did they pose much threat to the Flying Squirrel Leaders. But they could still kill or wound ordinary flying squirrels.

When that curtain of arrows fell, several more flying squirrels dropped to the ground. Some died on the spot, while others shrieked wildly from their wounds.

After two volleys, more than a dozen flying squirrels had lost their ability to fight, collapsing midway through their charge.

The flying squirrel pack began to fall into disorder.

Most continued pursuing Lan Zao, while a smaller number charged directly at the formation.

"Ready." Zhen Jin spoke again. "Fire!"

With the third volley, everyone's movements began to lose their synchronization. Though an arrow curtain formed in midair, it was clearly less orderly and dense than before.

But now that the two sides were closer, the arrows still inflicted considerable casualties on the squirrel pack.

Bai Ya and Huang Zao simultaneously aimed their Crossbows at the Flying Squirrel Leaders.

Though the leader squirrels had been struck by arrows, their movement was only hindered; they were not truly injured. Instead, their savagery was provoked, and they grew even faster.

There were two leader squirrels in total.

One fixated on Lan Zao, while the other lunged at the battle line.

"Fight freely." After giving the order, Zhen Jin immediately drew his daggers. His arms flexed fiercely as both hands threw at once!

The two Flying Squirrel Leaders were struck by daggers almost simultaneously. After crashing to the ground, they rolled several times with the momentum before lying utterly still. Bright red blood quickly flowed from the fatal wounds in their eye sockets, spreading over the surrounding grass.

At this distance, they were already within the range of Zhen Jin's Flying Daggers.

Zhen Jin's physical strength was astonishing. The force behind his throws was far greater than that of a Crossbow.

Without their leader squirrels, the squirrel pack immediately fell into panic. The team members fired freely, and only a few flying squirrels managed to rush before them, only to be stabbed to death by several wooden spears at once.

After a brief struggle, the few remaining flying squirrels scattered in all directions with a crash.

"Phew... We won."

"Those two Flying Squirrel Leaders both died by Sir Zhen Jin's hand."

"My lord's might is divine!"

Lan Zao returned to the formation with his shield.

Wooden arrows were embedded in both his shield and shoulder armor.

With only a brief sweep of his gaze, Zhen Jin knew Lan Zao was completely uninjured. He patted Lan Zao's shoulder. "Well done."

"It was all thanks to my lord's command." Lan Zao bowed his head and spoke respectfully.

Everyone understood that the key to victory in this battle had still been Zhen Jin. His Flying Dagger skill was breathtaking, and he had eliminated the two most threatening Flying Squirrel Leaders at once, utterly crushing the squirrel pack's morale.

"Rest briefly. Then we'll continue the hunt," Zhen Jin ordered.

"Yes, my lord!" The team members answered in unison, their morale rising another notch beyond what it had been before the battle.

The way everyone looked at Zhen Jin had changed as well.

Before this, doubt and worry had lingered in their hearts. After all, everyone knew that Zhen Jin was risking everything by hunting the squirrel pack.

No one knew what the outcome would be. Even with Zhen Jin's status as a noble and a Temple Knight, there was no guarantee that the hunt would succeed.

If they failed, the entire Exploration Team would collapse and be destroyed. And as their leader, Zhen Jin would bear the primary responsibility from which he could not absolve himself.

But now, their first proper hunt had achieved a sweeping victory, and all the worry in their hearts was wiped away. They had once doubted Zhen Jin's decision, but now it seemed wise and decisive no matter how they looked at it.

"Sir Zhen Jin is a Temple Knight, after all!" Light gleamed in Bai Ya's eyes.

"Yes. To serve under Sir Zhen Jin is truly my good fortune," Huang Zao said with deep feeling.

"Following Sir Zhen Jin, we'll definitely be able to set sail again."

The others spoke quietly among themselves, their gazes upon Zhen Jin filled with reverence.

A small victory had made them truly acknowledge Zhen Jin's leadership.

For Zhen Jin had begun to fulfill his promise. He really could lead them toward victory and win glory—it was not merely empty talk.

"My lord, I knew none of this would be a problem for you." Zi Di smiled beside him, faint traces of affection showing in her amethyst eyes.

Cang Xu exhaled a breath of stale air and thought, With this, the entire Exploration Team has escaped danger.

Their previous situation had been like standing at the edge of a cliff, with one foot already hanging over empty air.

Though the food replenishment had been scant, this thorough victory swept away everyone's worries. The entire team drew closer together, tightly gathered around Zhen Jin, their one and only core.

Yet just as their morale soared and they celebrated in high spirits, a strange noise suddenly came from the distant forest.

Squeak squeak squeak—the sounds were dense and unceasing.

The Flying Squirrels that had fled had actually brought in the main force!

"Ah, so many Flying Squirrels! They're charging over!"

"How did we alarm this many Flying Squirrels?"

"We were only on the outskirts!"

For a moment, the Exploration Team fell into panic.

"Hahahaha!" Zhen Jin suddenly burst out laughing.