Xiu Haofeng followed Shi Zhimen's advice and didn't rush to advance.

The task of clearing Secret Spirits ahead isn't really urgent; it's insignificant in the grand scheme of things. As long as Secret Spirits can be cleared within the designated time, the final battle over Qilin Mountain will be the real key to success or failure.

Therefore, Shi Zhimen's suggestion was to train the troops first, using Secret Spirits to hone the soldiers' coordination and battle array execution skills.

Before reaching Qilin Mountain, the entire team must form a true collective combat force, rather than individual combat capabilities of small squads.

It was also coincidental that Leng Zhe gave Ji Nanhong the same advice.

Ji Nanhong gladly agreed and sent instructions to Chen Guan's team, asking the Vanguard Team to slow down their advancement and not rush, coordinating combat with the troops behind.

Upon receiving the messenger's notification, Chen Guan assembled all the squad leaders for a meeting.

The squad leaders, upon hearing that the team's advancement speed was too fast and needed to pause for rest and orders, were somewhat unwilling.

These days, they had killed many Secret Spirits, each gaining a lot of resources, along with points, far better than the treatment in previous teams.

Now, waiting in place for the main troops to coordinate combat would likely mean fewer benefits.

However, they knew they must obey military orders; the upper command forbade advancement, so naturally, they couldn't proceed but had to comply with orders to stop advancing.

"Since we can't advance forward, our team sitting here idle is a waste. I plan to establish a reconnaissance team to scout the situation north of the Yellow Springs River. What does everyone think?" Chen Guan said lightly.

"Can we do that?" Everyone looked at Chen Guan with peculiar expressions.

They're not stupid; north of the Yellow Springs River is not within their mission range. What are they scouting for? Clearly, Chen Guan wants to take advantage north of the Yellow Springs River.

Although there's no rule against going north of the Yellow Springs River, there's also no permission granted. Plus, with the Corps Commander ordering them to rest here, it's not right to privately venture north.

"I think it's doable." Chen Guan's pets need upgrading, and in such a battlefield, Yan Zhi, Ghost Eye, and Paperman upgrade quickly; he doesn't want idleness.

Chen Guan understands why Ji Nanhong slowed the advancement speed—it is certainly to use the Secret Spirits here for training.

Thus, the High-Level Secret Spirits here and large groups of Secret Spirits are not right for Chen Guan to kill; hence, he can only find another path.

Chen Guan believes Xiu Haofeng should also have similar needs and won't advance too quickly; they can undoubtedly seize the moment to slaughter those high-level Secret Spirits ahead of their opponents.

Train one's own troops, slaughter the opponent's high-level Secret Spirits, and one's own pets upgrade their levels—a triple benefit.

Anyway, the upper command only stated they should clear the two areas of north and south of the Yellow Springs River, without prohibiting them from crossing to help.

The group glanced at each other and finally saluted in unison, saying: "We'll follow the captain's orders."

"Let's help them then, but remember—we only kill Third Awakening Secret Spirits and World-Defying Secret Spirits. Don't overdo it; leave some credits for allied forces." Chen Guan paused and added: "Also, remember the virtue of doing good deeds without leaving names—act quietly, don't flaunt your tiny merits all the time."

"Captain is right... We'll certainly learn from captain... be humble and discreet…" All squad leaders eagerly responded.

"Very good, convey our team's spirit, ensure every team member improves their ideological awareness, be noble-minded, rise above vulgar interests, and do good without seeking recognition." Chen Guan was very pleased with these squad leaders' comprehension ability, assigning them to impart ideological work with their team members.

An Yiqi, observing nearby, pondered and took out his notebook, noting a new entry: "Leading a team requires unity of thought, establishment of common principles and values..."

"Yiqi, what are you writing?" Chen Guan asked with curiosity, watching An Yiqi scribble away.

An Yiqi, scratching his head in embarrassment, replied: "You know I used to dread studying; seeing books gives me headaches, so I was always poor in battle array and military knowledge. When joining the Reserve Team, I barely passed written exams by luck."

"Thinking I will follow you, captain, if I can't lead troops, it's truly useless; hence, I want to learn more, at least learn to lead troops. You wouldn't believe it, but learning in actual combat is superior to reading books; I've acquired much knowledge these past days..."

"Learn well; you'll eventually need to handle duties independently. Learning sooner seals your future better than learning later." Chen Guan, surprised by An Yiqi's awareness, felt gratified.

After half a day of rest, Chen Guan led his troops, crossing the temporary bridge built by the main legion at the Gaotian Ridge location, entered north of the Yellow Springs River.

Their march naturally outpaced many from the main troop; Xiu Haofeng's vanguard unit lay far behind them, with none able to spot them.

Chen Guan's team wasn't greedy; they didn't touch ordinary Secret Spirit groups, targeting only escaped Third Awakening Secret Spirits and some Second Awakening Secret Spirits of high quality.

Yan Zhi and Ghost Eye enjoyed quality food, deriving nourishment from Third Awakening Secret Spirits' blood and flesh.

In less than ten days, Yan Zhi reached Level 14, and Ghost Eye Level 13; normally, their rate of leveling wouldn't be so rapid.

Surprisingly, Paperman's leveling seemed slower, never advancing further.

"Captain, we've discovered a Fire Qilin ahead..." the reconnaissance officer reported hastily on horseback, his voice trembling with excitement.

Unlike the reaction to discovering Ink Qilin before, when the team found Third Awakening World-Defying Secret Spirits previously, they were anxious and feared deep inside.

Now, discovering a Third Awakening World-Defying Secret Spirit arouses excitement instead of fear.

"Wonderful... another Third Awakening World-Defying Secret Spirit at last..." Chen Guan was equally thrilled, not only for the gains but for testing the team's combat capacity.

Under the Spirit of the Cheerleaders' encouragement, the team's synergy developed rapidly—within half a month, man-pet coordination appeared mature, yet unchallenged by real difficult battles, preventing guarantee they won't scatter under adversity at first impact.

This Fire Qilin is precisely the test for assessing the team's real combat prowess.

Chen Guan rode on Ghost Eye, leading the team toward the Fire Qilin's location.

In a canyon ahead, Chen Guan surveyed from on high, spotting a whole blood-red Qilin, resembling the size of an Ink Qilin.

"This Fire Qilin appears somewhat different from Nanhong's one." Chen Guan squinted his eyes, noticing this wasn't an ordinary Fire Qilin.

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