A-High

At that moment, Zhao Feng, still on horseback, understood. Mounted archery was different from the moving targets in foot archery recognized by the panel. When shooting from horseback, he had to adjust his body to the horse's jolts and find the best moment to release the arrow. That was precisely the difficulty of mounted archery. Every impact of the hooves striking the ground affected the precision of his aim. He had to find the point of balance in an instant and shoot decisively. It all depended on feel.

For the second arrow, he did not rush to shoot. He kept his bow drawn and arrow nocked as he urged his horse onward. Then the second target suddenly rose from the front right. He did not fire immediately, instead waiting a moment until the horse's front hooves landed and his body was briefly steady. Then he released the arrow fiercely. Whoosh! Thud! The arrow struck the bullseye with perfect accuracy, knocking down the wooden target.

"Good!" The examinees watching nearby burst into cheers.

The horse circled back and continued galloping as the third wooden target appeared. Zhao Feng now had a grasp of it. Drawing the bow, nocking the arrow, aiming, and firing all flowed together in one smooth motion. His arrow hit the bullseye and knocked down the target.

"One more hit and he passes!" Huo Shan and Wei Yuan both rose to their feet, tense with anticipation.

Zhao Feng then began following the rhythm of the horse's jolts, accurately seizing those fleeting moments of steadiness. Three arrows in a row struck targets that rose in different directions, knocking each one down.

Compared to the other testing areas, this one suddenly fell silent. Every examinee watching found it hard to believe.

"Zhao Feng, five hits out of six in mounted archery. Excellent!"

The examiner announced loudly.

Xu Commandant, who had watched the field from the reviewing platform with an expressionless face, finally showed a reaction.

"Five out of six in mounted archery. He's a true master archer." He had not paid much attention to Zhao Feng's earlier foot archery, but this mounted archery genuinely surprised him. Zhao Feng was not one of those master archers in the army who trained day and night, yet he had achieved such a result. It made Xu Commandant see him in a new light.

He gestured for his subordinate to bring him Zhao Feng's file.

Beside him, Cheng County Magistrate's gaze paused on Zhao Feng before shifting away.

Zhao Feng returned to the martial arts school's group. "Well done!" Huo Shan patted him on the shoulder.

Clearly stunned by Zhao Feng's mounted archery as well, he said, "Unless something unexpected happens, your combined result for the first event will be A-High. As long as you aren't eliminated too early with an awful performance in the second round, you'll have a good chance of making the list!"

Huo Shan was somewhat excited. Aside from his eldest disciple, Shi Mao, who had participated before as an independent martial artist, this was the first time their martial arts school had entered the martial examinations as a group. He had placed all his hopes on Chu Fan, never expecting Zhao Feng to show such promise as well.

What he knew of Zhao Feng was that he was hardworking and diligent, with solid fundamentals. But Zhao Feng had only recently entered Dark Force and seemed to lack real combat experience. If he encountered veteran Dark Force experts who had seen blood, he would likely be at a severe disadvantage. Huo Shan could only hope he would get lucky with the second event's grouping.

"Wonderful! You brat really hid yourself well!" Wei Yuan laughed heartily, even happier than Zhao Feng himself. The better Zhao Feng performed, the better Wei Yuan's judgment looked.

"Congratulations." Huo Yao walked up with a smile. The sight of Zhao Feng drawing his bow from horseback and hitting target after target had filled her with admiration.

"Have some water." She handed him a waterskin.

Beside them, Chu Fan lowered his head. No one saw how terrible his expression had become, his face flushed a dark purplish red. Zhao Feng's stunning mounted archery made Chu Fan's own earlier performance—nearly failing to stay seated and missing the time limit—look completely childish by comparison.

What irritated him even more was Huo Yao. It had been a long time since she had looked at him with the admiration she had just shown Zhao Feng.

He hated that feeling.

He took a deep breath, slowly calmed himself, and raised his head. Determination returned to his eyes.

Zhao Feng did not look at him, but he sensed the changes in Chu Fan's expression and emotions. He could not help becoming wary. At that moment, he felt someone watching him. Turning his head, he saw a woman in white not far away shift her gaze aside.

He found her somewhat familiar. Only after a while did he remember—wasn't she the woman from Four Seas Trading House who had told him how to use the medicine?

Wang Yu and Zhou Xue watched coldly from the side. They felt a little regretful. If they had supported Zhao Feng back then instead of supporting that ungrateful wretch Chu Fan, could they have been as pleased with themselves as Wei Yuan was now?

But they quickly dismissed the thought. Zhao Feng's potential was too limited. Dark Force was surely the end of the road for him, and he would most likely be eliminated early in the second event's arena matches. There was nothing to regret.

In the distance, Xue Xiangling watched everything from afar. Earlier, she had tried to focus her attention on several young experts she had her eye on, but without exception, their mounted archery results had been poor. She had told herself not to pay attention to Zhao Feng, yet when he took the field, her eyes still drifted toward him involuntarily. When his first arrow missed, she had even breathed a sigh of relief. Then his next five arrows all hit.

There was no doubt that such archery was outstanding even among martial artists. That faint trace of regret in her heart began to grow again.

"Xiangling, what exactly is wrong with you?" Xue Jun had noticed his younger sister looking toward Zhao Feng, and her expression did not look good. At last, he felt that something was off.

"Do you know this Zhao Feng?"

"Not really. Last time, Cousin Wei Yuan introduced him to me for a match, but I didn't go meet him. Later, he even came looking for me." Xue Xiangling gave him a brief explanation.

"So that's how it is. Wei Yuan really has poor judgment and no understanding of social propriety. No wonder his branch of the Wei Family is receiving worse treatment by the day." Xue Jun shook his head repeatedly, full of disdain for his distant cousin.

"Zhao Feng's innate talent is far too poor. Even if he luckily broke through to Dark Force, that would definitely be the limit of his potential. You and I often visit the prefectural city and the provincial capital. We've seen those truly outstanding young talents, with both exceptional natural gifts and family backgrounds. Zhao Feng simply cannot compare to them. My sister is cultured and refined, beautiful and intelligent. She is fully worthy of those young talents. Naturally, she cannot marry beneath herself to a country bumpkin like him." Xue Jun understood his sister's thoughts and approved of her choice.

"Even setting that aside, there are several Dark Force experts in this county who are far beyond his reach, and my sister would be worthy of any of them. Wei Yuan was simply forcing a match. Besides, Zhao Feng was only at Bright Force at the time. That was an insult to the Xue Family." Xue Jun spoke with some anger. Privately, he also hoped his brother-in-law would be a Dark Force expert with a powerful family and background. Such a man would be of great help to both himself and the family. What help could a country bumpkin like Zhao Feng offer?

"Forget it. Cousin Wei Yuan is just too kindhearted. He certainly didn't mean to insult me." Xue Xiangling sighed. Although her elder brother's words aligned perfectly with her own thoughts, Zhao Feng's heroic bearing while shooting from horseback had still planted the tiniest trace of regret in her heart.

"Wei Yuan aside, that Zhao Feng even had the nerve to pester you?" Xue Jun frowned.

"He only just entered Dark Force, yet he is already indulging in wishful thinking. If I run into him during the second event's arena matches, I'll definitely teach him a lesson."

Xue Xiangling nodded at that. It would be good if her elder brother taught him a lesson. Then Zhao Feng would stop pestering her, and that tiny trace of regret in her heart would vanish as well.

After the mounted archery competition ended, the examiners began urgently calculating the combined ratings for the first event.

Most people had failed both rounds and received Grade C. Though Grade C was divided into upper, middle, and lower ranks, there was little practical difference between them.

A small number received Grade B, likewise divided into upper, middle, and lower ranks. Receiving B-High would be quite useful.

Only three examinees in the entire field received Grade A.

On the Huo Family Martial Arts School's side, eldest senior brother Shi Mao passed both events and received B-Middle. Wang Yu, Wei Yuan, Zhou Xue, Chu Fan, and the several Bright Force disciples all received Grade C.

Zhao Feng was one of the three Grade A examinees in the entire field, and the only one to receive A-High. When the government officer announced this result, everyone turned to look at him.

Zhao Feng felt somewhat helpless. He did not like being in the spotlight, but at such a crucial moment, he did not dare hide too much. It was not his fault that using seventy or eighty percent of his archery skill had earned him A-High.