Narrow Road Encounter (Seeking Reads)

"Kill!"

Seeing this, Chen Sandao shouted, "Brothers, close in quickly! Don't give him another chance to shoot!"

They were only twenty or thirty paces apart, which was why Meng Qingshan had managed to hit both arrows. Otherwise, with his archery skills, he would have been a master at outlining human silhouettes.

Within a few breaths, these men had rushed right up to him. Meng Qingshan's face darkened as he held his bowstring without shooting again, instead assuming a stance to meet the enemy.

In an instant, several long blades surged in from three directions like a tide, bearing down directly on Meng Qingshan.

The only martial arts Meng Qingshan could use against them now were the Eight Directions Palm Technique and the Mountain Breaking Spear Technique.

Facing several saber-wielding mountain bandits, fighting barehanded was clearly not a wise choice.

Yet if he wanted to use the Mountain Breaking Spear Technique, he lacked a suitable weapon in hand.

But at this moment, he had no other choice.

Life was not a prearranged exam that told you the time and content beforehand.

Just like this sudden ambush—if Meng Qingshan had known in advance, he would certainly have brought a long spear that suited his hand.

However, after inheriting the original owner's memories, Meng Qingshan was no inexperienced youngster with no real combat experience whatsoever.

Facing these mountain bandits from Black Wind Stronghold, he did not panic.

"The ancients said: 'A blade whether you stick your head out or pull it back; when narrow paths meet, the brave prevail.'"

Meng Qingshan recited silently to himself, then charged head-on with the Ox Horn Bow in hand.

At this critical moment, a flash of insight struck him. When he had killed that wild boar last time, at the instant he thrust out with the short knife in his hand, hadn't he treated the knife as a "palm" and struck with it?

If that was the case, why couldn't the Ox Horn Bow in his hand now be treated as a long spear?

After all, this was not really a game where one had to equip the corresponding weapon in order to use the corresponding skill.

His eyes suddenly lit up, as though he had grasped some principle.

Long Wind True Qi immediately flowed ceaselessly from his lower abdomen, forming a cycle through his waist, shoulders, arms, and upper arms.

The Ox Horn Bow that had originally been used for shooting arrows was suddenly wielded by him like a long spear.

Meng Qingshan's Strength attribute had never been low, and now, bolstered by True Qi, the Ox Horn Bow swept out with a whistling roar. Its momentum seemed to carry a gale with it, and its power was astonishing.

Struck fiercely by the Ox Horn Bow, the people of Black Wind Stronghold instantly staggered back. Their arms went numb, leaving them unable to attack again for the moment.

Seeing this, Meng Qingshan acted decisively and pulled a feathered arrow from his waist.

With a wet pfft, the neck of the nearest mountain bandit was pierced by an arrow. The tail of that arrow was tightly gripped in a large hand—and its owner was none other than Meng Qingshan.

"Ghk, ghk~"

The mountain bandit stared fixedly at Meng Qingshan, his eyes seemingly filled with unwillingness, while a hair-raising, strange sound emerged from his throat.

At the same time, a fierce gust of wind arrived abruptly. Meng Qingshan hurriedly raised the Ox Horn Bow crosswise before him to block.

With a crisp crack, the Ox Horn Bow could not withstand the heavy blow and snapped in an instant.

Although Meng Qingshan withdrew and dodged quickly, he still failed to avoid it completely and was struck by a slash.

Meng Qingshan had no time to care about his wound.

He decisively discarded the broken Ox Horn Bow in his hand, seized the long blade from the fallen mountain bandit, and continued this battle of life and death.

Although the Long Wind Heart Method spoke of "leaving room in every move," Meng Qingshan put all his strength into every strike now, not daring to leave the slightest margin.

With life and death hanging by a thread, True Qi surged wildly through his body. He swung his blade at an enemy beside him, shouting inwardly at the same time, "This move is the Stepping Palm Strike from the Eight Directions Palm Technique."

As the blade came down, another mountain bandit from Black Wind Stronghold fell with a cry.

In that hair-trigger instant, Meng Qingshan keenly sensed a sharp saber wind rushing in from behind him.

Alarm bells immediately rang in his heart. His instincts told him that the attacker was Chen Sandao, renowned for his vicious saber techniques.

He swiftly rolled forward to evade.

However, although Meng Qingshan had pushed his body to its limit, he still failed to completely avoid the slash.

He only felt a chill on his back, followed by a searing pain, sharp and clear as needles piercing his flesh.

Fortunately, his timely roll had avoided the blade itself, and only the tip had cut a gash across his back.

Otherwise, that single slash would have been enough to rob him of his fighting strength.

With True Qi protecting his body, Meng Qingshan immediately mobilized the True Qi within him. As it circulated, the wound on his back quickly contracted, and not much blood flowed out.

"Good lad!"

Chen Sandao had no intention of giving Meng Qingshan a chance to catch his breath. His second strike came whistling close behind, so fast it was like lightning tearing through the night sky.

Meng Qingshan was already wounded, and his movements had slowed compared to before. He had no time to dodge—but he had no intention of dodging either!

A blade thrust toward him with ferocious speed. Meng Qingshan raised the long blade in his hand and held it steadily across his chest.

As Chen Sandao's Wild Goose Feather Saber closed in, he deftly flicked the long blade in his hand upward, knocking Chen Sandao's strike away from its original target. The saber tip drifted upward, yet it left a glaring wound on Meng Qingshan's shoulder.