Blocking Arrows with Arrows

At this, Zhao Qiao and Zhuang Yi hurriedly lowered their bows.

Chen Sanshi calmly assumed a stance, coordinating with his breathing technique as he thrust the Plum Blossom Iron Spear at the Black Bear, using the force rebounding from its struggles to simulate combat.

It had to be said that beasts like black bears possessed astonishing strength.

Even badly wounded, a single swipe carried over a thousand jin of force, while a collision could weigh several thousand jin.

Even though Chen Sanshi's strength had risen exponentially after taking up martial arts, direct contact still forced him back again and again beneath that tremendous power. Coupled with the stamina consumed by his spear technique, he was soon drenched in sweat.

At the same time, however, his proficiency was rising at an extremely rapid pace.

As bloody holes appeared one after another across its body, the black bear's attacks slowed until he did not even need to dodge. Seeing that it was about to succumb to blood loss, Chen Sanshi finally drove his spear through its eye and out the back of its skull, piercing it clean through and ending its life.

Boom—

The heavy body crashed to the ground, utterly devoid of life.

Technique: Basic Soldier Spear Technique (Not Initiated)

Progress: (47/100)

Effect: None

In that short span of time, it had gained nearly ten points of progress. The results were clearly excellent.

Unfortunately, there would not always be such a fine live target.

"Whew..."

Chen Sanshi planted the iron spear upside down and took deep breaths to steady his condition.

Only after a long while did Wu Da and the others approach, their eyes wide with astonishment.

Even if that black bear had lost too much blood and become sluggish, it was still absolutely not something ordinary people could contend with.

Was this the difference between martial artists and ordinary people?

Zhao Qiao especially could scarcely imagine that the child who had come knocking on his door not long ago, asking him to bring him to Second Mountain, had become far stronger than any of them in barely half a month.

"Uncle Zhao, Wu Da."

Chen Sanshi said, "Trouble yourselves to chop down some sturdy wood for a stretcher. Let's carry the bear back together."

Zhao Qiao and the other two did not move at once. They stood where they were, looking at him with awkward expressions.

"L-Little Stone."

In the end, Zhao Qiao spoke first. "Could we... take half a share?"

In a cooperative hunt, the gains were naturally divided among everyone.

But they truly had been somewhat... useless!

From the very beginning, Chen Sanshi had been the one to find the Black Bear's den.

Then, he had even saved their lives.

If Chen Sanshi had not been here today, the three of them would likely have been killed or wounded.

On the other hand, even without them, Chen Sanshi could have worn the Black Bear to death with his speed and heavy bow, at most spending a little more time.

But they had recently paid their taxes and were so poor they could barely keep the pot boiling. They had also used up quite a bit of bait on this trip. Returning empty-handed would be rather...

Of course, if Chen Sanshi truly refused, they could only accept it.

Under everyone's uneasy gazes, the spear-wielding youth beneath the setting sun broke into a brilliant smile. "Uncle Zhao, what are you saying? Half a share is far too little. At the very least, each of you should get two shares."

"Huh?"

"No, no, no, no, no!"

Zhao Qiao and the others nearly suspected they had misheard.

How could they possibly deserve that much?

Even if he was willing to give it, they had no face to accept it!

After a fierce round of refusals, Zhao Qiao and Zhuang Yi insisted on taking no more than half a share. Wu Da considered taking one share, but after Zhao Qiao shot him a glare, he obediently followed along and took half a share as well.

Chen Sanshi did not press them further.

He knew they would feel embarrassed as well. Those who worked more receiving more was only natural.

Besides, a bear weighed seven hundred jin, and there were costly things like bear paws. It could sell for no less than fifty taels, so even half a share amounted to more than two taels of silver.

Under ordinary circumstances, that was equivalent to catching over twenty rabbits. It was not as if they had made the trip for nothing.

Chen Sanshi did not feel any heartache over it.

After all, before coming here, he had not known whether he could handle a Black Bear alone, so he had joined up with others to be safe.

Since he had made that choice, there was no need for regret.

Once he had a clearer grasp of his own strength, he could simply hunt alone in the future.

"Brother Shi, from now on, you're my real big brother!"

Wu Da laughed, the scar on his face making him look particularly ferocious.

The group swiftly chopped down Wooden Staffs, tied on ropes, hoisted the massive black bear, and headed home.

As they passed the small stream in the valley,

the hunting dog began barking at the opposite bank. "Woof! Woof! Woof!"

Looking closely, they saw two young men in long robes standing in the distance, staring at the Black Bear on their shoulders with displeasure written all over their faces.

Chen Sanshi recognized them immediately.

More than half a month ago, these two were the ones who had tricked Shunzi into working on the canal!

After the incident, he had secretly inquired into their backgrounds.

One was called Li Hao, the other Zhang Chao. Both belonged to Tailei Martial Arts School, though they were merely menial disciples, not even the equals of outer disciples.

After studying martial arts for years, they might not even obtain a breathing technique or cultivate qi and blood.

He had not expected to encounter them again.

"Woof! Woof! Woof—"

As though sensing the pair's hostility, the hunting dog barked louder and louder.

"Little Blackie, stop barking!"

Zhuang Yi hurriedly covered the dog's mouth. "Don't provoke them."

"What's there to fear? We're not hunting on their side of the—"

Before Wu Da could finish,

one of the young men drew his bow and loosed an arrow on the spot. "You damned beast, you dare bark at your grandpa?!"

He claimed to be shooting the dog, but his arrow was clearly aimed at a person.

A willow-leaf arrow whistled toward Zhuang Yi.

The two groups were only forty or fifty paces apart. A Four-force bow could easily kill a man at that distance!

The arrow rapidly enlarged in Zhuang Yi's pupils. His legs turned weak, and his heart went cold.

In the time it took a hare to spring and a falcon to swoop, another Wolf-fang arrow flew in from the side, striking the willow-leaf arrow with incomparable precision and snapping it in half at the waist!

Blocking arrows with arrows!

"What?!"

Zhang Chao's eyes nearly fell out of their sockets.

A moving target, such a tiny mark, in such a short time.

How... how was that possible?!

"A Two-stone heavy bow from the frontier army?"

Li Hao's face darkened. "I-Is that you?"

The two of them had recognized Chen Sanshi as well.

"How did this bastard become a soldier?"

"Run!"

Li Hao and Zhang Chao exchanged a glance, then fled in panicked tacit understanding. They did not even give Chen Sanshi a chance to speak. Only after they had gone far away did they throw back a threat. "Just you wait!"

"Bullies who feared the strong and preyed on the weak."

Chen Sanshi no longer needed to fear them.

After all, they were trash who could not even compare to Qin Feng.

From the moment the other side fired the arrow to the moment Chen Sanshi frightened them away, only a few seconds had passed.

Wu Da and the other two took quite some time to realize what had just happened.

"Brother Chen..."

Zhuang Yi's voice still trembled. "You saved my life. I... I..."

His words came out in a jumble, and he did not know how to express his gratitude.

"It's nothing."

Chen Sanshi said calmly, "If I hadn't struck back, their next arrow would have been aimed at me."

Menial disciples from a martial arts school dared to bully people so brazenly.

It seemed he had no choice but to fight for that military officer position!

If he had the protection of a military officer's status, his arrow just now would not have blocked an arrow with an arrow—it would have taken a life!

"Let's go down the mountain."

After a scare without real danger, the group carried the Black Bear and headed home.

County Town was still under martial law. Nobody knew where that barbarian was hiding; they still had not found him.

It was roughly as Chen Sanshi had estimated.

The Black Bear sold for a total of fifty-one taels.

The others each received more than two taels and five qian of silver.

Chen Sanshi kept the bear heart, worth twenty taels, rather than selling it. He also kept thirty jin of bear meat, leaving him with twenty taels of Silver Flakes in the end.

"That should be enough for a while."

With the bear heart, still warm, wrapped in lotus leaves, Chen Sanshi hurried home impatiently.

Bear heart was a great tonic. It would surely be of tremendous benefit to his recently depleted qi and blood.