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Chapter 10 The Banner of Victory
"Just unleash all your abilities right away?" Chen Xuan chuckled to himself. "Isn't it a bit too honest?"
He looked up at Joan of Arc, only to find that her expression had changed. At that moment, her eyes shone like stars, and her gaze was filled with piety.

"Everything I have comes from God, and my only mission is to save my country... so I am willing to give everything for victory."

Joan of Arc said, word by word, "Your Excellency, divine messenger, please help me defeat the enemy!"

Upon hearing this, the soldiers couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

"What did the Commander-in-Chief just say?"

"He said this man was a messenger of the Lord..."

"Are you sure you heard correctly?"

"As you've all seen, that medicine is effective..."

Chen Xuan raised an eyebrow, not bothering to correct the other person's way of addressing him, since it wasn't a bad thing for the transaction anyway.

His attention was now almost entirely drawn to the abilities the other party had displayed, which included not only a mix of white and green abilities, but also a gold one!
"Liberty Leads the People" LV1.

Freedom doesn't require real names, but leaders do; otherwise, how can the people call out your name? You are usually the darling of the times, and whatever you do, you more easily gain the trust of the people. If water can carry a boat, then you are the wave.

The gold badge is defined as "heroic level" in the manual, second only to legendary in rarity, and is an extremely rare ability!

If it were Liu Shuyue, she definitely wouldn't have displayed such abilities.

The other three are also highly related to Joan of Arc's experiences.

These are "Gun Technique," "Holy Banner," and "Blessed Saintess." The latter two are both green-tier; one, by raising its banner, can soothe wounds and boost morale, while the other, while vulnerable to fire, is unaffected by darkness and curses, and its holder is exclusively female…

Chen Xuan could have easily switched them all, but he chose not to.

It wasn't because he had a change of heart.

If all her abilities are taken away at once, can a blank Joan of Arc, who has lost even her marksmanship and command abilities, still achieve victory?

He wouldn't stoop to such a short-sighted act just to achieve a little bit of success.

"Anything else? Let me see them all," Chen Xuan said.

Joan of Arc closed her eyes, probably thinking about how to demonstrate her other abilities. After a while, the three items in the box changed to "Strategist", "Voice of Trust" and "Pure Faith".

Sure enough, she possessed more than four abilities.

"Voice of Trust" LV5.

—You can tell whether someone is approaching you with good intentions or bad intentions just by their voice. Note: This doesn't work for lies; a white lie is still a lie, even if you like it.

"Pure Faith" LV3.

—Faith in a narrow sense is a shackle that binds oneself, while faith in a broad sense is a shield for the soul. Ironically, regardless of which category it belongs to, lives will be lost in bloodshed over it.

As for the white-level strategists, Chen Xuan simply ignored them.

After a brief deliberation, he ultimately chose "Liberty Leading the People" and "Voice of Trust." The former goes without saying; a golden ability is something he couldn't afford to miss, especially given Joan of Arc's current high reputation—even without it, her position as commander wouldn't be shaken. The latter was probably why she trusted him so readily upon hearing his voice; even if he couldn't detect lies, being able to discern likes and dislikes upon first meeting still held considerable value.

The rest of his abilities were all highly related to leading troops in battle, so he left them all to the other party.

Joan of Arc naturally had no objections. The deal was successfully completed.

Just then, a cavalryman brought news that heightened tensions: "Reporting to the commander, the Burgundians are catching up! Their vanguard is less than ten miles away, and I just fought their sentries."

“They’re moving faster than I expected…” Joan of Arc murmured. “They’re all well-trained warriors too.”

“It seems we should say goodbye,” Chen Xuan comforted him. “Nighttime tracking relies heavily on sentries. As long as we eliminate them silently, the enemy’s main force will have no chance of finding you in the darkness. Now that you possess the Spirit Sword Technique, you should be able to do this easily…”

“No, Your Excellency, we’re not going anywhere.” She shook her head. “Since I will win, why not start here?”

"What do you want to do?"

“Thank you for clearing away my doubts…” Joan of Arc touched her chest in a gesture of respect. “I did feel a little confused before, but now I realize that those suspicions were completely irrelevant. As long as we keep pursuing greater power, all obstacles are nothing but illusions, and will eventually disappear in the glory of our Lord. Please bear witness to everything that follows for our Lord.”

She then turned to her soldiers, drawing her sword from her waist with her right hand. "Gentlemen! For the past few years, I have been listening to the voice of God and fighting in accordance with His will. From Orléans to Reims, we have been invincible, and the enemy has fled at the mere sight of us!"

"For a long time afterward, in the constant struggle to recapture Paris, I lost the Gospel of God. I don't want to hide it from you, but today's defeat even made me doubt whether I had been abandoned. But I was wrong. God has once again favored me, and this sword is proof of that!"

She raised her sword high, and a bright white light burst forth from the blade, shooting straight into the sky! In an instant, the darkness of the night receded by three points, and the sword light illuminated a gap in the clouds above!
Chen Xuan was stunned.

Is this the Spirit Sword Technique? Why doesn't it work like this when I use it?
I'd believe you if you told me this was a gigawatt lightsaber!
The sword light illuminated the earth, casting long, long shadows of hundreds of men and the trees.

At this moment, the girl, enveloped in light, resembled a holy statue, sacred and beyond compare.

The enemy's pursuers were closing in.

Chen Xuan couldn't see them, but he could hear the rumbling of hooves—the sound came from all directions, seemingly covering the entire mountainside, and even the ground was trembling slightly.

"Bring me my banner!" Joan of Arc cried out.

A soldier immediately handed over a battle flag embroidered with a crown and fleur-de-lis, which the soldier took with his left hand and pointed directly to the back of the column. "Tonight, victory will be ours! Charge with me! Long live France!"

Another green light rippled outwards from her center.

Chen Xuan was also swept by this light, and immediately felt his spirits lifted, and his strength seemed to have increased significantly.

Is this the effect of the "Holy Banner"?
He thought that boosting morale was only a matter of spirit... but he didn't expect it to be effective on a physical level as well!
Under the green light, everyone was inspired by Joan of Arc. The chaotic torches quickly straightened into an arrow-like formation. The army, which had been filled with a gloomy atmosphere, was now revitalized. The soldiers gripped their weapons tightly, stared at their commander's back, and shouted in unison.

Long live France!

Long live Joan of Arc!

As the enemy's battle cries became deafening, Joan of Arc drew her sword and charged ahead of the enemy troops! The rest followed closely behind, and soon the two torrents formed by countless torches collided violently, intertwining and dissolving into each other like stars in the night sky!
……

……

In a dark room, a red warning light suddenly started flashing, and the computer screen below lit up, with an email popping up automatically.

"Warning: Level C anomalous historical contamination detected!"

"Intrusion location search in progress..."

"It is recommended to revise it as soon as possible."

(End of this chapter)