Wild Boar

Information surfaced in his mind line by line.

Lu Chuan's breathing hitched, then quickly returned to normal.

He forcefully suppressed the excitement in his heart and made his voice sound more casual:

"Uncle Wang, I've taken a liking to this old bow. It can't be used anymore anyway, and keeping it would only take up space. Why don't you... let me have it too?"

Wang the Blacksmith smiled when he heard this. "Chuanzi, this thing is just a decoration. It might fall apart one day. If you like it, take it. Why talk about money..."

Lu Chuan shook his head, his attitude firm. "That won't do, Uncle Wang. One matter is one matter. Name your price. Any amount is fine."

Seeing how serious he was, Wang the Blacksmith simply said:

"Since you insist on paying... How about this? The new bow is three taels and five mace. This worn bow can count as half a tael. Let's round it up to four taels!"

Lu Chuan did not hesitate at all. He immediately nodded. "Good! We'll do as you say, Uncle Wang—four taels even!"

Lu Danian had been listening nearby. He opened his mouth, wanting to ask why his son wanted this useless broken bow and had needlessly taken on another half-tael of debt.

But when he saw Lu Chuan's unusually resolute profile, he swallowed the words that had reached his lips.

After leaving the smithy, Lu Chuan spoke first. "Dad, aren't you going to ask what use I have for this bow?"

Lu Danian shook his head. "I assume you have your reasons. I won't ask too much about it."

Lu Chuan felt somewhat relieved when he heard this, but he still came up with an excuse:

"There's a senior brother at our Martial Arts Hall who likes antiques. I bought this bow to build a good relationship with him..."

Lu Danian immediately felt much more at ease. "That's good, that's good..."

Now that he had the bow and arrows, the first thing Lu Chuan needed to do was test its power.

He avoided his parents and brought the Worn Treasure Bow to his room.

[Weapon: Worn Treasure Bow]

[Quality: Mortal Grade, Superior]

[Description: A treasure bow crafted with Century Ironwood Core and Tiger Sinew as its primary materials by a master artisan. Due to the passage of time and improper storage, its materials have severely deteriorated.]

[Collection Effect: Grants Basic Archery · Perfection]

Lu Chuan stroked the Treasure Bow once more, his eyes shining.

"Whether it's century-old ironwood or tiger sinew, both are exceedingly rare treasures."

"Looks like Uncle Wang was right. This bow really was passed down from his great-grandfather. Now it's fallen into my hands instead."

[Collect?]

"Collect!"

As soon as the command was given, a massive stream of information surged into his consciousness.

Vast experience and insights washed over his understanding, yet rapidly fused together and became part of him.

Lu Chuan opened his eyes, and an unparalleled sense of mastery over bows and arrows welled up from within.

[Basic Archery · Perfection: Open a Stone Bow; within one hundred paces, every arrow finds its mark]

This meant that as long as the bow's draw weight was sufficient, he could strike wherever he aimed within one hundred paces.

Unable to hold himself back, he picked up the brand-new Zhe Wood Heavy Bow, drew out a feathered arrow, and quickly walked to the open ground outside.

Without any unnecessary flourishes, Lu Chuan spread his feet slightly and assumed his stance. He nocked the arrow, hooked the string, and drew the bow.

The one-stone hard bow, which required one hundred and twenty jin of force to draw fully, opened steadily and firmly in his hands, its string taut as a full moon.

His target was an old tree a hundred and ten paces away.

"Whoosh!"

The string twanged and the arrow flew. In the next instant, the arrow had been driven solidly into the trunk of the old tree.

Nearby, Lu Danian happened to witness the scene and was so shocked that he could not speak.

He opened his mouth, his voice dry and hoarse. "G-good... good archery."

Lu Chuan lowered the bow and turned to give his father a chuckle. "Dad, you're the one with the good bloodline. You passed all your strength on to me."

The remark had scratched Lu Danian right where it itched, and unconcealable pride spread across his face.

"Of course. Just look at what your father was like back then... Ahem. Let's go. Pack up. While it's still early, let's bring down a boar, just the two of us!"

A wild boar was no rabbit or pheasant. Father and son both understood the danger involved.

The old saying in the mountains went, "One Boar Two Bears Three Tigers." It ranked them not by strength, but by how deadly they were to hunters.

Wild boars had coarse, thick hides. Adult boars in particular spent years rolling in mud and repeatedly rubbing themselves against pine trunks to scratch their itches. Pine resin mixed with mud and hardened over their bristles, making them as hard as if they were wearing a layer of armor.

This was the meaning of "Wild Boar Armor."

With an ordinary hunting arrow, insufficient force or even a slightly off angle would fail to pierce this defense and would instead easily enrage the vicious beast.

Even with Lu Chuan's current strength and archery, he did not dare be the slightest bit careless.

Bringing along his experienced father would give him the benefit of Lu Danian's tracking skills, as well as an extra measure of protection.

Lu Danian truly lived up to his reputation as an old hunter. Not long after entering the mountains, he identified fresh boar droppings and hoofprints among the ground mixed with snow and mud.

After examining several pits that had been dug up and some broken shrubs, he quickly determined a wild boar's route.

"Well, our luck is pretty good today," Lu Danian said in a lowered voice, pointing at a clear line of hoofprints ahead.

"Judging by the way it walks and the dung pile, it's a Lone Boar."

In winter, when the weather was frozen cold, wild boars usually moved in groups to withstand the bitter chill.

Hunting a group of boars was extremely risky, as it was easy to be surrounded.

Though a Lone Boar was often larger and more ferocious, it was ultimately fighting alone. To hunters, the risk was relatively manageable.

The father and son followed the tracks, lightening their steps and moving forward while holding their breaths.

After passing through a sparse patch of woods, they saw a grass thicket sheltered from the wind ahead.

A colossal beast was curled up in a pile of dead grass, emitting deep snores. This was the target they had been tracking.

However, when Lu Danian got a clear look at the wild boar's full appearance, his expression changed dramatically. He grabbed Lu Chuan behind him.

"Chuanzi, this is bad! We were too hasty... It weighs at least five hundred jin!"

Lu Chuan focused his gaze on it, and his heart tightened as well.

The creature in the nest was far more massive than he had expected.

Its black bristles were like steel needles, its shoulders and back rose high, and its neck was short and thick. Judging by its build, Lu Danian's estimate of five hundred jin was only the minimum.

"If one arrow can't take it down..." Sweat broke out in Lu Danian's palm.

"When this thing goes berserk, it wouldn't be strange for it to smash through a tree as thick as a bowl. I'm afraid our two legs won't outrun its four hooves."

After the initial tension, excitement rose in Lu Chuan's heart instead.

Wild boar meat was not cheap. If they butchered a five-hundred-jin boar like this, his family could live comfortably for quite some time!

"Dad," he said steadily, "find a sturdy old tree and climb up. Watch from a distance. Leave this fellow to me."

Lu Danian instinctively wanted to object, but when he saw the sharpness beneath Lu Chuan's calm gaze and recalled his godlike archery, he swallowed the words on his lips. "Be careful."

With that, he climbed up an old pine tree and fixed his eyes firmly on the ground below.

Lu Chuan slowly took down the Zhe Wood Heavy Bow and drew out a hunting arrow.

The wild boar was sleeping deeply, its enormous head buried far into the grass nest. All the vital points on its head were covered.

If he failed to kill it in one strike, the risk would multiply.

His gaze swept over the wild boar's massive body.

In the end, he locked his arrow onto a spot toward the front of its side ribs—the location of its heart and lungs.

Lu Chuan adjusted his breathing, slowing his heartbeat.

Under his tremendous strength, the bowstring slowly drew open.

"Whoosh!"

The arrow left the string and tore through the air, sinking with pinpoint accuracy into the spot Lu Chuan had targeted.

"ROOOAR!!!"

A shriek, savage and violent to the extreme, exploded through the air.