Divine Arrow

"Not good!"

Xie Daqian's pupils contracted. He spun the whisk in his hand, its white tail hairs resembling startled little snakes, coiling and twisting.

Invisible magical energy transformed into streams of turbulent flow, like whirlpools in water, drawing in and swallowing all three arrows.

For a moment, the arrows, capable of shattering stone, seemed to plunge into water, their power diminished layer by layer, until Xie Daqian finally caught them.

The arrow feathers trembled, as if unwilling.

However, a few wisps of the whisk's tail hairs slowly fell, turning to dust and dissipating in the wind.

Xie Daqian's hand, holding the arrows, trembled slightly, his expression growing more solemn.

What a domineering archery style!

His cultivation was superior to this young man's, but not by much. And the opponent, holding a divine bow with killing intent, was a hundred paces away, holding all the advantages.

If only those Guardian Soldiers could have come, I could have endured a few divine arrows and killed him up close!

"Young man—"

His response was arrow after arrow, piercing the air and striking towards him. The whistling sound of the arrows was like a fierce storm. One person, one bow, possessed the might of ten thousand arrows piercing the sky.

Xie Daqian desperately swung his precious whisk. It was a magic treasure he had nurtured for decades, one he was usually reluctant to use, but now, its tail hairs were falling off strand by strand.

Arrows lay scattered across the ground, and his whisk was almost bald.

His magical energy was being rapidly depleted. Xie Daqian's eyes flickered with uncertainty. He understood clearly that if this continued, he would be like Gao Chong in Tiao Huache, worn down to death!

I must find a way to get close!

However, Zhou Sheng understood this as well and gave him no opportunity.

"The Strategist speaks too poorly, enraging Huang Zhong. At thirteen, he learned archery and horsemanship, his fame guarding Changsha. Since submitting to the Imperial Uncle's command, he took Wu Gorge with a single horse and saber..."

The singing began again, this time a passage from Mount Dingjun. Zhuge Liang worried that the aging Huang Zhong could not defeat Zhang He, so Huang Zhong bravely volunteered. Zhuge Liang then mentioned an Iron-Core Bow in his tent, stating that if Huang Zhong could draw it, he could go.

The old Huang Zhong, invincible with his divine arrows his entire life, could not stand such a provocation. He immediately boasted, vowing to draw the bow.

"Bow!"

A line of operatic recitation, powerful and majestic, filled with heroic spirit, like surging hot blood colliding and echoing in his aged chest.

The next moment, Zhou Sheng drew the Treasure Carving Bow in his hand into a full moon. The faint golden light in his pupils had almost solidified, making it impossible to look directly at him.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Three more arrows were shot, but these were not fired simultaneously. They were shot in rapid succession, the legendary Consecutive Arrows.

Consecutive Arrows were a technique of rapid firing, emphasizing arrows like beads in a string, continuous and unbroken.

Before one arrow landed, the second was already released. Before the second landed, the third was shot. This gave no room for a breath.

Swift as a fierce storm, powerful as thunder and lightning!

Xie Daqian's expression changed drastically. His whisk successfully blocked the first arrow, but before he could recover, the second arrow was already upon him.

With a crisp zi la sound, like tearing silk.

His precious whisk was completely bare, all its tail hairs torn apart by the arrow's energy. Even the handle had cracks.

But the third arrow followed closely, the most powerful one.

The first two arrows were merely to clear the path. This final arrow was the true killing blow!

Boom!

The arrow shattered two layers of stone walls, finally embedding itself deeply into the third, leaving only half of its humming, vibrating shaft exposed.

Drops of blood mixed with brain matter fell from the arrow's fletching.

Xie Daqian stood frozen on the spot, his once bright eyes gradually dimming, filled with intense unwillingness.

A large hole had appeared in his forehead, pierced through by an arrow. There was no possibility of survival.

The third arrow was too fast and too fierce. Although he had opened his Aperture of the Eye and could see the arrow's trajectory, his magical energy had been too depleted, and he hadn't managed to regulate his breath. Even though he saw it, his body could not dodge in time.

His painstakingly cultivated Dao cultivation only allowed him to die a moment later than a normal person, delaying it by a few breaths.

Plop!

Xie Daqian knelt on the ground and slowly fell.

At this moment, intense unwillingness and regret filled his heart. After decades of cultivation, he had finally opened his Aperture of the Eye. Not only had he joined the Longhua Sect, but he was also valued by the Incense Master and entrusted with important tasks.

After the matter with Magistrate Zhu was resolved, he would be promoted to an Incense Protector within the sect and receive even higher-level Mysterious Skill and Secret Techniques!

But all of this was destroyed by that kid who sang Ghost Opera!

Thinking of this, filled with intense unwillingness, he mobilized his last bit of magical energy and, in his pool of blood, formed one final Mudrā.

The next moment, Zhou Sheng, who was far away, felt a strong sense of danger.

Immediately after, the eaves above his head exploded, and a ferocious and terrifying figure emerged.

It was a Giant Centipede with forty-nine pairs of purplish-black legs!

Its dark red carapace seemed to ooze blood. Its antennae forked, and its mandibles were dark green. As soon as it appeared, a foul stench wafted over, making one feel dizzy and groggy.

Zhou Sheng's skin crawled instantly. This centipede was enormous, almost demonic, and must be highly venomous!

In a moment of extreme danger, the rigorous, almost brutal training his Master had subjected him to in the past finally saved his life.

Countless hours of grueling practice had become instinct. His brain hadn't even had time to process the danger before his body automatically dodged.

With a push off his toes, he leaped into the air, spinning like the wind. This was a "spinning dodge" (xuánzi), a dodging maneuver from opera.

At this very moment, the attacking centipede, in Zhou Sheng's eyes, became just another pebble shot by his Master during Blanket Skill practice.

"Double Flying Swallows," "Striding Tiger," "Flying Kick"...

In a flash of lightning, his posture was elegant, his movements crisp and decisive, possessing the agility of a bird and the swiftness of a fierce tiger.

He made the giant centipede's multiple lunges miss completely. Its venom landed on the roof tiles, even corroding and cracking them.

He heard a series of sharp cracks – the sounds of his hands and feet colliding, his sleeves fluttering as he dodged.

Thirteen consecutive sounds, known in opera as "Thirteen Sounds of Flying Heaven," a highly difficult and complex dodging maneuver.

Years of hard training and sweat had culminated in this stage skill.

Finally, he ended with a bow stance, his feet rooted to the ground. A jet-black feather arrow was already nocked on his great bow.

Just then, the giant centipede leaped into the air, exposing its softer underbelly.

Whoosh!

The arrow, like a bolt of black lightning, pierced the giant centipede instantly, pinning it to the stone wall.

A centipede, even dead, doesn't go limp.

Seeing its legs still wriggling, Zhou Sheng didn't hesitate. He shot several more arrows, practically turning the centipede into a sieve.

As the Luoshu in his mind glowed, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. His back was already drenched in cold sweat, he didn't know when it had happened.

That was incredibly close!

It turned out the Daoist priest, who seemed helpless against his divine arrows, was actually stalling for time, allowing his pet monster to burrow underground for a sneak attack!

The opponent's strategy was brilliant. The burrowing technique perfectly countered his eagle eyes and had almost succeeded.

Fortunately, Zhou Sheng hadn't hesitated at all. With his Consecutive Arrows technique, he had pierced the opponent's head first!

One step faster meant life or death.

If he had been a step slower, during his standoff with the Daoist priest, he might not have been able to dodge the centipede's ambush.

"Don't, don't kill me!!"

Seeing even Daoist Priest Xie dead, Magistrate Zhu was completely panicked. He frantically turned to flee, his eyes filled with terror.

But the next moment, an arrow pierced his left kneecap.

Thump!

His body collapsed to the ground. Dragging one leg, he crawled forward with difficulty, leaving a long trail of blood.

His eyes were filled with a desperate longing for life.

Zhou Sheng looked at him coldly, as if seeing that dark night, at the bottom of the cold Pear Blossom River, how Uncle Xu, with his unresolved resentment, had crawled inch by inch.

Thank you to Chen Yixun of Jichuan Street for the 3000-coin reward, and to Fanchen Guowang for the 100-coin reward. Sending virtual hugs!