Battle Communication

Xiao Chongyang had long since heard about how Lin Xuan and several other youths from the Garrison had hunted a black bear, which only made him more interested in the meat on Lin Xuan's bones.

He felt he had been stuck in the Breath-Connecting Realm for a long time without any further progress, and he feared his innate potential had reached its limit.

Following the old adage that one should consume what one lacks, he subconsciously felt that by eating Lin Xuan, his martial arts potential could be revitalized and elevated to a higher level.

However, Lin Xuan had spent almost the entire month hiding at home eating black bear meat, never showing his face, which left Xiao Chongyang with no opportunity to strike.

Now that Lin Xuan had come out to buy a new bow and weapons before heading out to hunt alone, it presented them with a perfect opportunity.

Xiao Chongyang chose to act alone specifically to remain hidden; besides, there would be no need to dispose of the body, as Lin Xuan had not reported to the authorities, and no one would know who did it.

With so many bandit dens in the area, who would ever suspect him? Even if Lin Xuan had powerful backers, they would have no way to seek revenge.

If there were more people involved, it would only create flaws, and with more witnesses, the risk of exposure would increase.

It was already evening, and the sun was setting.

Lin Xuan appeared to be walking along the road in a leisurely manner, but in reality, he was already prepared for battle.

He could still feel someone tracking him, constantly monitoring his movements.

He took the bow and arrows from his back, nocked an arrow, and aimed toward the wheat field by the road as if targeting a beast, while actually using his peripheral vision to scan for his pursuer.

"Whoosh!" Lin Xuan turned and fired at the person who had been tailing him the entire way.

The strike was like thunder, catching the target completely off guard.

As the sky had grown dark, Lin Xuan did not know if the arrow had hit its mark, but he heard a wail of "Ah!" coming from the spot where he had aimed.

Following that, the figure began to limp toward a certain location.

Lin Xuan capped his quiver and sprinted toward the man at top speed.

During the chase, he continued to fire arrows at the man; he wasn't sure if he hit him, but the man's pace was slowing down with every step.

Lin Xuan fired a whistling arrow into the sky.

The sound was like a skyrocket, and upon hearing the signal, Lin An, who had been waiting for Lin Xuan's orders, quickly rose, grabbed her waist saber and bow, and rushed toward his direction.

After chasing for a distance, Lin Xuan deactivated his talent, Sharp Eyes.

Because it was late, the talent's negative status—a severe reduction in night vision—made it nearly impossible to see the details of the terrain. Although he had previously consumed the Bear Heart to enhance his eyesight, it did little to offset the negative effects of Sharp Eyes.

Lin Xuan watched as the man headed toward a dense forest. Even though he was very close, he suddenly felt that the man was doing it on purpose, intentionally leading him into the woods.

He realized immediately that the man wasn't injured at all; that scream had been faked entirely to lure him further away from the residential area.

It seemed he had come prepared!

Lin Xuan felt a sense of dread. While they were still in the plains, the man was fleeing toward the forest; if there were an ambush waiting inside, he would surely be in grave danger.

He changed his strategy, turning and sprinting toward open ground to render the man's ambush useless.

The man let out a surprised sound, clearly not expecting him to stop the pursuit so suddenly.

"Did you see through my plan? It won't matter anyway." He pulled a bow from somewhere and fired it at Lin Xuan.

An arrow whistled toward Lin Xuan.

Lin Xuan's strength had increased, as had his entire body, including his reaction time. He reached out and caught the arrow as easily as an eagle snatching a chick; the projectile could not cause him any harm.

Following this, the man drew his blade and charged, running much faster than when Lin Xuan had been chasing him.

Lin Xuan drew his own blade; this brand-new, finely forged Goose-Quill Saber had just been sharpened and had yet to taste blood.

"Clang!" The two blades collided, throwing off a bright but fleeting spark in the pitch-black environment.

Lin Xuan felt a sharp pain in the web of his hand from the impact and realized instantly that the man's strength surpassed his own! If he had been evaluated by Centurion Qin as being at the mid-stage of the Bone Binding realm, then this man, even if not in the Breath-Connecting Realm, was at least at the peak of Bone Binding; otherwise, he wouldn't be so difficult to handle.

While martial artists in the Bone Binding and Breath-Connecting realms possessed incredibly tough physiques, they could still be wounded by cold weapons; it was simply that their reflexes were faster, making them harder to hit.

Lin Xuan did not hesitate. He pulled the wire between his fingers, triggering the mechanism of his Sleeve Arrow. The vicious weapon shot from his wrist, flying directly toward the man's face.

Xiao Chongyang laughed. His reflexes were lightning-fast; he performed a standard "Iron Plank Bridge" maneuver, bracing his feet against the ground and arching his waist and upper body backward to dodge the arrow.

Almost in an instant, he pushed off the ground with one hand, flipped his feet up, and regained his balance.

Lin Xuan seized the opportunity, raised his Goose-Quill Saber with both hands, and swung toward the man's neck.

To his surprise, Xiao Chongyang blocked with his own blade in his left hand, and with another clang, their weapons clashed once more.

This strike lacked the previous force and was easily parried, causing Lin Xuan no great pressure. He pulled back, steadied his stance, and slashed at his opponent again.

Xiao Chongyang had regained his footing and was now more than capable of handling Lin Xuan. He swung his blade diagonally, their weapons crossed again, and a third shower of sparks flew.

This time, Lin Xuan's hand was badly shaken. If the man kept this up, he would soon be at a disadvantage and likely killed.

Though they had exchanged many blows, the fight had lasted only a few breaths of time.

Just then, Lin An arrived. She raised her Sleeve Arrow and fired at Xiao Chongyang.

She moved silently, approaching from Xiao Chongyang's flank like a ghost. This sudden strike caught Xiao Chongyang off guard, but his cultivation in the Breath-Connecting Realm was no mere show; he managed to dodge the arrow.

Lin Xuan was horrified to see this. He hadn't expected the gap between them to be so vast; if this continued, they would both surely die at this man's hands.

Without turning his head, Lin Xuan kept his eyes on Xiao Chongyang and commanded Lin An, "Don't get close! Just keep shooting him from a distance."

At Lin An's level, if she were to get within close range, she would be killed by a single strike from the opponent, so she had to maintain her distance from this person.

Xiao Chongyang let out a cold snort and charged toward Lin An with his blade raised; he knew she was the weaker one and intended to eliminate her first to avoid being surrounded.

Lin Xuan curled his lips into a sneer. He never fought unprepared battles; long before setting out, he had already accounted for the worst-case scenario, assuming that the person attacking him would be a martial artist in the Breath-Connecting Realm.

Choosing to head out at the Hour of the Rooster was also something he had calculated from the very beginning.

Therefore, his method of dealing with the situation was actually very simple: render this Breath-Connecting Realm martial artist blind.

In the blink of an eye, Lin Xuan opened the Book of Fate.

Grant talent [Sharp Eyes]?

[Yes]