Training

"Are you ready?"

Wu Chuansheng looked at Li Yi, his expression solemn.

"Brother Wu, I'm ready. Let's begin."

After receiving Li Yi's confirmation, Wu Chuansheng gave the order. Several veteran soldiers from the same unit opened the cages in their hands, and with a rustle, five or six sparrows flew out and shot into the sky.

At the sight, Li Yi's eyes narrowed. He drew the Army-Breaking Bow, nocked an arrow, and fired several shots into the sky in quick succession. Within mere breaths, the sparrows overhead fell to the ground one after another with soft thuds.

Looking at the twitching sparrows on the ground, Li Yi nodded slightly.

After this period of training, Li Yi's Killing Arrow had improved rapidly, and his archery skill experience had risen considerably as well.

Watching from the side, Wu Chuansheng revealed a satisfied smile.

"Five sparrows shot down in ten breaths. Not bad, not bad."

"You've more or less completed your training on moving targets. Rest for a while, then we'll begin the final exercise."

After handing Li Yi a towel, Wu Chuansheng walked over to the veteran soldiers and began instructing them to prepare for the final exercise.

A quarter of an hour later, Wu Chuansheng handed Li Yi a quiver of arrows.

Li Yi picked it up and examined it. The shafts were made of bamboo, while the arrowheads were wrapped in white cloth, with lime packed inside the cloth bundles.

These were specially made training arrows. When they struck a target with force, the lime inside the white cloth at the arrowhead would be compressed by the impact, leaving a clear white mark where the target had been hit.

"I'm ready. Begin!"

Taking a deep breath, Li Yi hung the quiver at his waist and fixed his determined gaze on the woods ahead, the site of the training.

"Then begin!"

Wu Chuansheng struck the bronze gong in his hand hard. In an instant, a group of burly men clad in black charged out of the woods, wielding all manner of weapons as they rushed fiercely toward Li Yi.

Kill!

Li Yi entered combat mode in an instant. With a casual sweep of his hand, an arrow was already nocked on the Army-Breaking Bow.

Whoosh~

The arrow flew out in an instant, striking a burly man with a blade squarely in the chest with a smack.

Under the tremendous impact, the shaft snapped at once. Dust burst from the arrowhead, and a clump of lime clung tightly to the man's black clothes.

After being struck by the arrow, the burly man did not utter a sound and simply fell to the ground.

Li Yi's expression remained unchanged. He swiftly drew another arrow and, in the blink of an eye, hit a man hiding behind a bush, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Whoosh~

Whoosh~

Whoosh~

Three light sounds rang out in succession as three burly men were hit by Li Yi's arrows and fell to the ground.

Yet ten men still remained in the woods, charging toward Li Yi.

I need to speed up!

Seeing this, Li Yi's expression sharpened. His large hand swept across the quiver at his waist, and two arrows instantly appeared on the Army-Breaking Bow.

"Is he going for a double shot?"

Wu Chuansheng's pupils contracted at the sight.

Firing multiple arrows at once was a skill only gifted master archers could wield.

Even he, an old archer who had immersed himself in archery for nearly ten years, had only just mastered the double shot!

Seeing Li Yi execute the double shot with such ease and proficiency, Wu Chuansheng could not help but sigh in admiration.

He had never expected Li Yi's talent to be so formidable.

It was not merely a little stronger than he had imagined—it was on an entirely different level.

Whoosh, whoosh~

In an instant, two nearby burly men were struck in vital spots and fell to the ground.

"Spread out!"

A loud shout came from deep within the woods.

At once, the remaining eight men pulled apart, widening the distance between one another.

This made it difficult for Li Yi's double shot to increase his efficiency.

Watching the burly men draw ever closer, Li Yi remained utterly calm.

Did they think this meant I had no other way?

While practicing archery, Li Yi had thought of the famed Gun-Fighting Art from his previous life.

Since guns could have a Gun-Fighting Art, could arrows have an Arrow-Fighting Art as well?

This was a question Li Yi had been pondering all along.

And at this very moment, the perfect opportunity had come to put his idea into practice.

As his thoughts turned, Li Yi took out two more arrows and set them on the Army-Breaking Bow.

"We're so far apart—he can only shoot one person at a time! Everyone, rush him!"

In an instant, all eight men lunged forward!

Seeing this, Li Yi flicked his wrist repeatedly, crossing the two arrows over the bowstring. Their arrowheads parted slightly, aimed in different directions.

Whoosh!

At the sound, both arrows left the string in an instant.

"What kind of archery is that?"

Wu Chuansheng, watching from the side, instantly widened his eyes in shock.

He had seen it clearly. Though the two arrows had been fired at the same time, they had not truly been fired simultaneously.

There had been roughly half a breath between them, and during that interval, the Army-Breaking Bow in Li Yi's hand had shifted slightly as well.

Thud!

Thud!

Two breaths later, two men standing three meters apart were struck by arrows. Looking at the lime marks on their vital points, both wore stunned expressions as they silently collapsed to the ground.

The remaining six had no idea what to do, but at this point, they could only grit their teeth and charge, hoping to reach Li Yi by relying on their advantage in numbers.

"So the Arrow-Fighting Art really is feasible."

Li Yi watched the two fallen men expressionlessly and set another two arrows on the bowstring.

Recalling his previous movements, he refined a few details. Drawing the bow full as the moon, he let loose with a whoosh. Two arrows flew together, striking another two men.

The Arrow-Fighting Art was becoming increasingly smooth and effortless!

A short while later, everyone who had rushed out of the woods had been wiped out, each struck by Li Yi's arrows.

And the closest one had still been twenty meters away from Li Yi!

"Good, good, good!"

Looking at the people sprawled all over the ground, Wu Chuansheng studied Li Yi with immense delight.

"You have completed the most crucial training for Killing Arrow—shooting at moving human-shaped targets."

"From here on, you can only rely on yourself to comprehend the path ahead through battle!"

"You've more or less mastered the fundamental essentials of Killing Arrow!"

"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Wu."

Li Yi looked at Wu Chuansheng gratefully.

At Wu Chuansheng's signal, the veteran soldiers lying on the ground in the woods, who had been cooperating with Li Yi's training, climbed back to their feet one after another.

They stared at Li Yi in shock, finding it hard to accept that he could hit different targets so far apart at the same time.

Such archery had utterly surpassed their understanding.

"So this is the power of [Cloud-Piercing Arrow]?"

"Looks like the seed recruit from the infantry camp won't be taking first place in the newcomer assessment this time."

"Yeah. After all these years, could the title of first place in the newcomer assessment finally fall to our archer squad?"

For a time, everyone in the archer squad's camp was discussing Li Yi's miraculous, bizarre archery.

The conversations around him did not affect Li Yi's state of mind.

After speaking with Wu Chuansheng for a while, Li Yi returned to his tent.

"This Army-Breaking Bow truly is extraordinary!"

During the training just now, he had discovered that although the Army-Breaking Bow was short of four dan, its power was not much weaker. Perhaps after it was repaired in the future, it could possess the force of five or six dan!

After maintaining the Army-Breaking Bow, Li Yi opened his skill panel.

[Archery (Proficient): 720/800]

[Effect: Can draw a four-dan horn bow and fire three consecutive arrows]

After this period of training, Li Yi's Archery skill experience had been steadily increasing.

And during the training just now, his grasp of the Arrow-Fighting Art had instantly earned him a large amount of experience. He was only 230 experience points away from advancing his Archery skill to the next realm.

Just as Li Yi sat in his tent, reviewing and summing up the various strengths, weaknesses, and shortcomings of the Arrow-Fighting Art, a burst of footsteps sounded outside. Then the tent flap was lifted.

"Li Yi, Li Yi, I've got good news to tell you!"

Han Jia rushed into the tent excitedly, looking at Li Yi with high spirits.

"What news?" Li Yi asked curiously.

Han Jia gulped down a mouthful of water, caught his breath, then looked at Li Yi and said:

"Do you remember Hundred-Commander Song Jie, the one who led us to wipe out the rebels before?"

"Of course I remember!"

The silver Li Yi had used to buy the breathing method and the Army-Breaking Bow had been rewarded by Song Jie. Naturally, he had not forgotten.

"I've already passed Hundred-Commander Song Jie's assessment. Once the newcomer assessment is over, I'll be able to join his personal guard unit!"

Song Jie's personal guard unit?

Han Jia's words gave Li Yi a slight start.

The Chen Kingdom followed a military merit system, yet its officials were steeped in corruption, with few willing to do their jobs seriously.

As a result, it was difficult for these conscripted soldiers to form any truly formidable fighting force.

In wars against the other kingdoms, they mostly had to rely on the personal guard units under these officers' command.

To maintain their power and standing, these officers would also pour vast resources into training their personal guards.

For Han Jia to join Song Jie's ranks was a very good path forward as well!

After all, Han Jia's family circumstances were not good either.

"That's wonderful news. Congratulations!"

Pushing aside the thoughts in his heart, Li Yi congratulated Han Jia repeatedly.

"Oh, right. Hundred-Commander Song has already taught me how to cultivate a breathing method."

Previously, Han Jia had never managed to scrape together the ten taels of silver needed to learn a breathing method. All this time, he had only been tempering his sinews and bones.

Then, brimming with excitement, Han Jia roughly explained the breathing method he had obtained.

But upon hearing it, Li Yi fell silent.

The breathing method Han Jia had received was precisely the [Gale Breathing Method]!

Looking at the tall, powerfully built Han Jia, born with divine strength, Li Yi could not help but lapse into silence.

"Han Jia, I've cultivated this breathing method for some time now. Though it is a good method, it doesn't suit you. If you get the chance in the future, you should switch to another one as soon as possible."

The [Gale Breathing Method] emphasized lightness and swiftness, which differed from Han Jia's fierce and forceful path. If he continued cultivating it, it would only slow Han Jia's path of cultivation.

Hearing Li Yi's words, the excitement on Han Jia's face faded slightly. Helplessly, he said, "I know this breathing method isn't a very good fit for me, but you know how it is. It's the only breathing method I can get my hands on right now. I can only cultivate it for the time being and switch later if I get the chance."

Han Jia's words laid bare the helplessness of many newcomers.

As newcomers with no background and no resources, they could only seize every resource within reach. They had no right to be selective.

Han Jia's experience also made Li Yi realize that Cavalry Commander Cao Li had been right.

Song Jie, who had risen from the ranks of ordinary soldiers, truly did not have much in the way of foundations. He did not even possess a powerful breathing method to reward his personal guards with.

Letting out a soft sigh, Li Yi said to Han Jia, "This breathing method suits me fairly well, so I've gained quite a few insights from cultivating it. Since you haven't begun cultivating it in earnest yet, I'll explain them to you first."

Seeing that there was no one around, Li Yi laid out some of his own insights to Han Jia without holding anything back.

As his friend in the army, the stronger Han Jia became, the more benefits it would bring Li Yi.