I only wanted to retire, but I ended up becoming an extremely popular character.

Chapter 96 'Potential Shaping'

However, the small advantage that Zod and his men fought so hard to gain was not enough to truly reverse their numerical disadvantage across the entire battlefield.

Because, just as Zod led his troops into close combat with the Holy Kingdom's army on the front, Lieutenant Pike's troops, who had been lying in ambush on both flanks, simultaneously launched their attack.

On the left flank, Lieutenant Lucien led over a hundred men to press forward from the flank and rear.

On the right flank, Warrant Officer Fersent's hundred-man squad had also completed its flanking maneuver and was charging towards the Imperial army's flank.

The encirclement has begun to tighten.

In Lieutenant Patrick's eyes, Zod, who seemed to be charging forward bravely and fighting to the death, was nothing more than a fish struggling to bite the bait.

As long as he leads his main force to hold the imperial army firmly and prevent them from breaking free, they can eventually close in on the flanks and encircle them from all sides.

No matter how capable that lieutenant was, he couldn't stop the Imperial soldiers, whose morale had collapsed, from being slaughtered one by one.

Gunshots, shouts of killing, and the clash of swords mingled together on the earthen slope, creating a deafening cacophony of death.

Lieutenant Patrick stood atop the hill, a slight smile playing on his lips.

All of this was nothing more than a trap he had meticulously set for that lieutenant of the "Imperial Blade," a scheme to lure him into a trap.

The objective is to annihilate this "Imperial Blade" legion.

However, Zod had already seen through Lieutenant Patrick's intentions.

He knew perfectly well that once the Holy Kingdom's armies on both flanks completed their encirclement, the breakthrough they had fought so hard to create, and the local advantage they had just established, would vanish in an instant.

Even though the individual skills of the "Imperial Blade" legion surpass those of this ordinary Holy Kingdom army.

However, given the disparity in troop strength and the tactical disadvantage of being attacked from three sides, this gap was simply not enough to turn the tide of the battle.

If a defeat occurs anywhere, the army will quickly collapse in the encirclement where there is no room for maneuver.

We must act swiftly and decisively.

The only way to achieve a swift victory is to eliminate the enemy commander.

-

Once the commander of this force is dealt with, these disorganized soldiers, even if they outnumber each other, will be no match for them.

Zod's gaze swept across the chaotic battlefield like that of a hawk.

Smoke filled the air, swords gleamed, and soldiers from both sides clashed fiercely, their shouts and screams echoing throughout the battlefield.

He searched rapidly through the crowd, not missing a single figure in an officer's uniform.

Soon, his gaze settled on a Holy Kingdom officer.

The man stood on the side of the hilltop, his rank clearly that of a lieutenant.

He was engaged in a fierce battle with several imperial soldiers who rushed at him. The Holy Kingdom's standard cross sword in his hand was sharp and ruthless. He had just pierced the abdomen of an imperial soldier, the blade sinking in, and then mercilessly spun it out.

The young imperial soldier's body suddenly stiffened, his pupils dilated, and he fell backward powerlessly, tumbling down the earthen slope, leaving a dark red trail of blood.

Lieutenant Patrick flicked the blood off his sword, his gaze sweeping coldly across the battlefield, resembling a hunter surveying his hunting grounds.

Just as Zod was staring at Patrick, Patrick also noticed the murderous look Zod was giving him.

The murderous intent in his eyes was undisguised, but Patrick's lips curled up slightly as he slowly licked his dry lips with his tongue.

He had been observing this Imperial lieutenant for a while now.

Clearly, Zod was also a 'Hakuzan' (a type of 'Hakuzan'), and his swift swordsmanship and skill, as well as his precise timing, showed he was no novice.

This ignited his competitive spirit; he never expected that a lieutenant from the Empire would also be a "Hakuja".

It's not uncommon for a second lieutenant to belong to the "Imperial Blade" legion, but a "Kakuja" with the rank of second lieutenant is quite rare in any legion, especially one who can master "Kakuja" skills as flexibly as Zod.

He gripped the cross-shaped sword in his hand and quickened his pace.

Imperial soldiers tried to stop him along the way, but Patrick did not even slow down.

The sword flashed, and the soldier clutched his throat and collapsed.

In another flash, another person was slashed to the ground.

Like a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, he cut straight through the stalemate of the battle and rapidly approached Zod's location.

Zod moved as well.

His swift swordsmanship was no less impressive than Patrick's; with each stroke, he precisely eliminated those who tried to stop him, as well as the Holy Kingdom soldiers who were fighting the Imperial soldiers with their backs to Zod.

His steps did not falter in the slightest; all his movements were so fluid and graceful.

The distance between the two was rapidly decreasing.

The surrounding soldiers seemed to have sensed something and instinctively dodged to the sides, creating a narrow clearing in the chaotic battlefield.

Just as they were about to get close, Lieutenant Patrick struck first.

He suddenly raised the cross-shaped sword in his left hand high and shouted in a deep voice, "Cross Slash!"

As the sword slashed down, a cross-shaped strike shot out, tearing through the air and carrying a fierce killing intent as it headed straight for Zod's face!

However, just as Patrick swung his sword, Zod's sword also came down.

"Wind Breaker!"

In an instant, dozens of fine arcs of sword light, like countless sharp feather blades, shot out from in front of Zod and swept across the front in an overwhelming manner!

Two slashes formed from 'potential' collided violently in mid-air, less than three meters apart, canceling each other out. A deafening roar exploded between the two, and the shockwave from the collision of 'potential' spread in all directions, kicking up debris and dust, briefly obscuring their vision.

At that very moment, Patrick moved.

His right hand appeared to be clenched into a fist, but in reality, his thumb was pressing down on the other four fingers, which was a precursor to a finger-flicking motion.

But unlike a normal finger snap, he is about to snap out more than one finger.

"Hibari I"

With Lieutenant Patrick's low shout, the 'potential' gathered at his fingertips suddenly shot out.

This time, however, what flew from his fingertips was not the transparent "dot" energy that Zod was familiar with, but a "lark" that emitted a faint light.

It spread its wings, leaving a faint trail, and flew nimbly across the short distance between the two like a real bird, heading straight for Zod's chest!

This is "potential shaping"—an advanced application of "potential".

Unlike the ordinary 'potential' which is simply condensed and released, 'potential shaping' requires users to mold 'potential' into a specific shape according to their own ideas.

This requires not only an extreme control over 'potential', but also the ability to condense a sufficiently high energy density within a unit volume.

When ordinary 'potential' covers the surface of the human body, it is as thin as air and cannot be distinguished by the naked eye.

Only when the density of 'potential energy' per unit volume is large enough will a faint light visible to the naked eye be revealed.

Just like the "Lark" that Patrick released at this moment, its clearly visible outline and the trailing light traces all demonstrate the deadly energy it contains.

Only by achieving such density can we ensure that the "potential" for successful shaping will not be lost or dissipated during flight after the body leaves the body.

This means that the more clearly the form of 'potential' is visible to the naked eye, the faster it moves and the more powerful it is.

Zod knew that Lieutenant Patrick's "Skylark" was not on the same level as Lieutenant Eric's "Bloodbeak" that he had encountered in Tono Village, or his own "Flying Tooth".

"Bloodbeak" and "Flying Teeth" are just the simplest energy projections, which can only be considered basic applications of "potential".

The lark that is spreading its wings and swooping in front of us is the real sign of entering the field of 'potential shaping'.

The so-called "potential shaping" is not like "potential liberation," which is a landmark ability to leap to the second level of "Hakuja."

It is merely an advanced application of 'potential', and theoretically any level of 'Hakuja' has the opportunity to master it, provided that their control over their body and the application of 'potential' reach a considerably high level of proficiency.

Zod has not yet mastered 'potential shaping'.