192: Chapter 192 Reserve Force

The air in the sealed barracks was stagnant. Every batch of soldiers who entered followed the instructions of the Death Warriors strictly, sitting quietly on the floor with their eyes closed, attempting to catch that indescribable, strange sensation the Death Warriors spoke of—the fluctuations of Ethereal Energy.

But as time passed minute by minute, batch after batch of soldiers were judged to be eliminated. Reality cruelly proved that geniuses with extraordinary talent were never found everywhere. Outside the barracks, the expressions of the several officers waiting grew increasingly grave, their brows filled with a complex mix of anxiety and expectation.

Before long, it was finally the turn of Zhang Xiaochuan's platoon.

Under the orderly commands of the platoon leader, the group walked steadily into the barracks and sat cross-legged as the others had, fully immersing themselves in the attempt to sense it.

Unexpectedly, just over ten seconds after Zhang Xiaochuan sat down, he perceived countless tiny, dust-like transparent particles in the haze, slowly boring into his body through his pores. It was gentle yet clearly discernible—a peculiar sensation he had never felt before.

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately raised his hand to signal.

"Hmm? Is there a situation?" A Death Warrior looked up at him, his tone flat, clearly not thinking of a talent response. After all, the highest record documented by the Blue Star Defense Department was thirty-odd seconds of sitting before catching Ethereal Energy fluctuations. He didn't believe at all that someone could sense it in just over ten seconds, assuming the soldier just had some other trivial matter to report.

"Reporting, Chief! That strange sensation you mentioned, I've felt it," Zhang Xiaochuan replied truthfully, suppressing the astonishment in his heart.

These words were like a sudden clap of thunder, instantly breaking the dead silence in the barracks. All the soldiers who had been sitting with their eyes closed snapped them open, their gazes focusing on Zhang Xiaochuan, filled with shock and disbelief.

The Death Warrior's brow furrowed slightly, and he cautioned with a hint of seriousness: "Are you sure? This is no joking matter. You must not report falsely, or you will face the consequences."

Zhang Xiaochuan took a deep breath, slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, and responded with a firm gaze: "Reporting, Chief! I am sure!"

"Good, come with me." The Death Warrior said no more, stood up immediately, and led Zhang Xiaochuan out of the barracks.

Outside the barracks, when the group of officers saw someone being led out early, their eyes instantly lit up. They quickly surrounded them and asked eagerly, "Comrade Lu Yu, who is this young soldier?"

"He says he can sense a special substance permeating his body; he should be someone with Ethereal Energy talent," Lu Yu, the Death Warrior, reported succinctly and truthfully.

"Fantastic! Our division finally has a talented individual!" An officer with the rank of Major General laughed out loud, the gravity of the past few days swept away instantly.

The other officers also broke into smiles, filled with relief. Only Zhang Xiaochuan, standing among them, remained bewildered, standing there blankly, completely unaware of what monumental significance his perception held.

Lu Yu did not delay much. After handing Zhang Xiaochuan over to the officers present, he turned and returned to the barracks to continue presiding over the subsequent talent testing.

It took an entire day for all the soldiers in the division to complete the screening, yet in the end, very few successfully sensed the Ethereal Energy. This went to show that people with Ethereal Energy talent were truly as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns; it was by no means easy.

Fortunately, the East is vast and populous. It could rely on its massive population base to achieve a qualitative change through the quantitative screening of talented individuals.

After more than half a month of comprehensive screening, five hundred and sixty-four Ethereal Energy Talent Holders were successfully selected from the millions of troops—it was no exaggeration to say they were one in ten thousand.

This group of precious talented individuals was immediately gathered by the state and rushed to the Capital for exclusive training.

When the news reached the Blue Star Defense Department, everyone at headquarters was shocked. Their previous screening methods had been too conservative, and they never expected that the military strength of the East alone could unearth such a large number of extraordinary reserve forces.

Since the day he was selected, Zhang Xiaochuan's life for the next half-month was like an unreal dream. The division commander and various chiefs, whom he rarely saw, made special trips almost every day to visit him, showing him great care and concern. His own treatment saw a leap forward; as a recruit who had only been in the army for two years, he was exceptionally granted the rank of Major, and his monthly salary skyrocketed from less than a thousand yuan to over twenty thousand yuan. Overnight, he transformed from an ordinary recruit into a high-profile lucky star, stepping onto a fast track in life that others could hardly reach.

Not only that, Zhang Xiaochuan's family also received special treatment from the state due to his outstanding talent. His father, originally a grassroots clerk in the government who had been working diligently in an ordinary position into his forties, was promoted two levels within a single week, becoming a section chief; his mother, an ordinary medical worker in a hospital, was also promoted to department head. It truly lived up to the saying: "When one person achieves success, the whole family shares the glory."

Of course, the state provided such generous treatment and exceptional promotions for a reason. Each of these talented individuals was a core force for the future protection of Blue Star. Even though soldiers already possessed a sincere heart of patriotism, human hearts have always been complex and unpredictable. Now that Zhang Xiaochuan and the others were of extraordinary value, only by winning them over with care and settling them properly in advance could the hearts of these talented individuals be completely stabilized, ensuring they remained loyal to the nation and their mission, and fully committed to the subsequent cultivation of extraordinary power.