A Hair's Breadth Away

Tao Chengsi looked at Si Ming with a surprised and uncertain gaze, but in the end he said nothing, only nodded, agreeing to the arrangement.

With little time to spare, everyone immediately split up to carry out their own preparations. Chen Shimi was also woken up by Yun Yinmo using stimulating methods and was then informed of the tactical arrangements and hand signals.

Si Ming opened the "Complete Collection of Martial Arts of the Nascent Spirit Transformation Experts of the Su State" and searched for martial arts according to the table of contents. In fact, this time he was not just going through the motions. He really just wanted to review the martial arts he had learned in the past. It was called "Falling Star Archery Art". He had learned the method of locking onto targets in it to use in conjunction with the shooting of the spiritual energy revolver. Now he wanted to browse through all the moves and techniques.

Thirty minutes of preparation time passed quickly, and the four teams, each with a sense of unease, were invited to different locations for the assessment.

"I will not activate my True Qi in this battle, so you don't need to worry about hurting me. Use any means necessary to defeat me."

Murong Zhe, who had been waiting on the arena for a long time, stood with his hands behind his back, his face serious, showing no sign of holding back. He was like a statue carved by a knife. When his gaze swept over Si Ming, he did not linger for a moment, as if they were complete strangers.

The entire team held their breath, their emotions slightly tense. No one spoke, and they silently gathered their inner energy.

With a loud clang, the assessment officially began!

The first to launch an attack was surprisingly Tao Chengsi, wielding the Bird of Prey Dispersing Stance Sword. His sword was swift and sharp, cutting through the air with a light whistling sound. Suddenly, he turned around midway, shifting from the front to the side, and thrust the sword straight at Murong Zhe's temple.

Qian Yu followed closely behind, holding a Judging Official in each hand. He wielded the Confucian classic "Six Yang Finger Calligraphy," combined with the Vast Righteous Qi Art, his Brush Moves Like Dragons and Snakes, majestic and righteous.

"Using orthodox methods to engage and unorthodox methods to achieve victory, you two truly demonstrated the cooperation between Confucian School and the Diplomatic School. You were quite good."

With a light murmur of praise, Murong Zhe did not move his feet. He flicked his left finger, sending out a burst of energy that deflected Tao Chengsi's Bird of Prey Dispersing Stance Sword, causing a sharp pain in Tao's hand.

At the same time, the right hand forms Twin Dragons Snatch the Pearl, striking directly at the Judging Official. No matter how the opponent changes their attack, they cannot dodge this strike.

Qian Yu was shocked. He realized that since they were both from the Confucian school, his Six Yang Finger Calligraphy had been completely exposed. He immediately disregarded any moves or routines, separated the two Judging Official, and used the move "Twin Dragons Emerge from the Sea" to attack from the left and right.

Since the other person only has one hand, even if the angle between their middle and index fingers is large, it's impossible for them to extend their hand by thirty centimeters for no reason.

As expected, Murong Qing gave up on blocking both pens at the same time and only reached out to grab the Judging Official on the right.

Qian Yu was overjoyed and was about to use the other Judging Official's pen to achieve his goal when he suddenly felt a surge of pure and vast True Qi emanating from the Judging Official that was being held. His own power was completely unable to withstand it, and with a painful groan, he was blasted away.

After the two were defeated, Xiong Aixin, Chen Shimi, and Yun Yinmo launched their attacks.

Xiong Aixin used the move "Black Bear Breaks the Tree" and punched out with both hands. He knew the difference in their cultivation levels, and that it was pointless to divide his strength to defend. So he circulated his inner energy and gathered it all into his fists.

Yun Yinmo held a throwing knife between her fingers, seemingly about to draw it, but it slashed towards Murong Zhe's neck with a smooth, slicing sound, like scissors cutting through cloth.

At the same time, the flying sword controlled by Chen Shimi circled around to Murong Zhe's back and stabbed towards the back of his head.

"A three-pronged attack, the coordination was quite good."

Murong Zhe remained standing still, and with a flick of his left finger, he released a burst of energy to deflect the flying sword. With his right hand, he met Xiong Aixin's fists with one hand, and with a slight exertion, sent Xiong Aixin flying into the air.

Then, he turned his head and exhaled a breath towards Yun Yinmo's throwing knife. The air condensed into a ball, like an invisible Sword Qi, which not only forced Yun Yinmo back but also broke the throwing knife between her fingers, leaving her no chance to take advantage of the situation and throw it as a hidden weapon.

Murong Zhe thwarted the five-man attack without ever leaving his spot. Even though Tao Chengsi had anticipated this, he couldn't help but feel discouraged: Could his six men really win?

Just then, Murong Zhe's expression suddenly changed. Because his view had been blocked by Xiong Aixin's slightly broad body, he hadn't been able to see what was happening behind him. When he forced back the second wave of attacks, before he could even catch his breath, he saw a sharp arrow flying towards his face, right at arm's length.

At the critical moment, he turned his head and tilted backward in a bridge-like motion, barely avoiding the arrow. However, the sharp force of the arrow still inevitably left a small wound on his face.

Murong Zhe straightened up, ignoring the blood on his face, and looked behind him at Si Ming, who was holding a bow and arrow, his eyes empty and lifeless. He asked in surprise, "Mindless Shot?"

Chapter 102 Almost

Bows and arrows are military weapons, and martial artists rarely choose them as their primary weapons. This is not only because bows and arrows are not suitable for close combat, but also because martial artists who cultivate Internal Cultivation have very keen sixth senses. Once they are aimed at, they will immediately sense it, including when their eyes are on their face, making it impossible for their opponents to launch a long-range sneak attack.

However, all martial arts in the world progress through mutual restraint. In order to deal with this situation, archers also created corresponding methods to deceive the opponent's senses. This is the Mindless Shot.

Completely suppress your killing intent, let your gaze become devoid of light, and turn your mind into nothingness, so that you are like a stone on the roadside. After this, no matter how sharp your opponent's six senses are, unless he regards everything around him as an enemy, he will not be able to perceive the danger of being targeted by arrows.

This is a skill, not a secret technique, so it has nothing to do with cultivation level. Some people may not be able to master the Mindless Shot, even if they have reached the Spirit Transformation, while others may learn it immediately even if they have never used a bow and arrow before.

The simpler a person's mind, the easier it is for them to learn Mindless Shot. Conversely, the more complex a person's mind and the more desires they have, the harder it is for them to learn Mindless Shot. People like Si Ming, who have witnessed the information explosion era, have received dozens of times more miscellaneous knowledge than the ancients and know all sorts of incredible conjectures, belong to the latter category.

However, it is only difficult to learn, not impossible. For Si Ming, as long as there is even the slightest hope of learning, he will definitely be able to learn it!

The Mindless Shot struck, and even the mighty Murong Zhe suffered a setback, almost failing to dodge it. This demonstrated the skill's brilliance, which was why he was so moved. With just this one skill, Si Ming would be sought after as a disciple by sects skilled in archery.

Of course, if Murong Zhe uses his True Qi, he can stand still and let Si Ming shoot at him without any problem.

"What a pity, you missed your best chance because you failed to land a hit on the first strike," Murong Zhe said.

Under intense scrutiny, Si Ming snapped out of his Mindless Shot and said, "There's nothing to regret. This arrow achieved the effect I wanted."

Murong Zhe was slightly taken aback, then looked around and found that the five examinees who had previously attacked him had changed their mindset, and even the atmosphere was different.

The five people who had participated in the battle earlier were only fighting with a desperate mentality. Not only were they somewhat negative, but they were also too tense and unable to exert their true strength. Especially after their siege was thwarted, they felt that they had no chance of winning.

However, after Murong Zhe's face was slashed by the arrow's energy, the five men's mentality changed drastically. They saw a glimmer of hope for victory, their minds became active, and they were filled with energy.

Even against such a formidable opponent, defeat was almost inevitable. If I just put in a little more effort, I might just be able to win...

With this in mind, the five launched another attack.

Tao Chengsi employed unconventional Movement Method, combining them with bizarre footwork. He moved across the ground as if gliding, his movements fluid and seamless, without any hindrance. Moreover, he was completely unrestricted by the human body, able to change direction at any angle and launch attacks from the most difficult-to-defend positions.

Qian Yu changed his style, no longer engaging in direct conflict, nor using the conventional Six Yang Finger Technique. Instead, he used a pair of Judging Official specifically to stab at the joints. If there was any sign of being blocked, he would immediately retract the pens, never allowing any chance of contact.

This fighting style would be self-destructive in a one-on-one fight, essentially handing over victory, but it can serve as a restraining force in a siege.

Xiong Aixin activated some kind of Secret Method, his muscles tensed up, his energy surged, and he became tough and thick-skinned, making him extremely resilient to be hit. It was as if he had truly transformed into a bear. External injuries were nothing to him, and he could even endure slight internal organ tremors. Relying on the fact that his opponent could not seriously injure him with Internal Cultivation, he was knocked away time and time again, but he got up again and charged forward once more.

Chen Shimi controlled the flying sword, launching sneak attacks from various tricky angles, forcing Murong Zhe to be distracted and defend. Even if the True Qi attached to the sword was scattered, he could run over, pick up the sword, and calmly "enchant" it before attacking again. This was the advantage of ganging up, since there were others to hold him back anyway.

Yun Yinmo held a throwing knife, but kept it hidden, instead constantly circling around Murong Zhe, searching for an opening to unleash a thunderous attack, thus also drawing Murong Zhe's attention to himself.