Playing Both Support and Tank

The Chen Family's private troops were in chaos... Those at the front knew Zhong Qi was a villain, but those at the rear knew only that he had been leading them earlier.

Without anyone competent to issue orders and coordinate the whole force, half of them were at a complete loss, with no idea what to do.

Some near the main house understood what was happening inside, but the highly skilled Wandering Swordsmen barred their way. Those on the outskirts knew nothing of the situation within; after spotting Wang Qi shooting from atop the wall, they actually tried to climb up and catch him.

More importantly, there was Zhong Qi... He hacked his way through the men around him, closing in rapidly with great strides... The courtyard was only sixty paces deep, a distance he could cover in a few breaths.

And apart from the first few rank-and-file soldiers who slowed him down, the ones farther back actually cleared a path when they saw Zhong Qi...

In truth, these private troops were merely tenant farmers from the Chen Family estate who had been handed weapons and given some rudimentary drills. Their discipline and fighting strength were nowhere near those of a regular army.

Faced with this situation, Wang Qi hesitated briefly, then kicked away a soldier who had climbed onto the wall and tried to chop at his feet. Gritting his teeth, he reached into his quiver and drew out five arrows...

He held an arrow between each pair of fingers, with another shaft gripped backward inside his loosely curled fist...

He took a deep breath. The arrow held between his thumb and forefinger was already on the string... Then he pulled it to full draw!

"Twang!"

The string thrummed, and the arrow flew.

His right hand drew the string again and again, feeding the arrows between his fingers onto it and shooting them one after another... Five arrows in rapid succession!

But those five arrows were not aimed at Zhong Qi. They were meant to help the commander of the Chen Family's private troops...

He hooked his war bow back onto the pack behind him. Seeing Zhong Qi about to leap onto the wall, he promptly turned and jumped down...

As he jumped, he chanted an incantation, casting the Light-Concealing Shadow-Masking Spell on himself.

He still could not cast the spell instantaneously, so he had not vanished by the time he landed. Instead, Zhong Qi charged onto the wall just in time to catch sight of his furtive figure...

"Let's see where you can run now!"

Zhong Qi had intended to leap straight into the air and deliver a thunderous strike, but Wang Qi's route was too cunning. Taking advantage of his proximity to the courtyard gate, he hugged the wall and slipped back inside.

The ruthless desperado immediately turned to look into the courtyard, but Wang Qi was nowhere to be seen.

Taken aback, he quickly swung his head back toward the outside... Still no sign of Wang Qi.

He hurriedly jumped down outside the wall, then strode to the courtyard gate and looked again... Where had Wang Qi gone?

"Looks fierce enough, but he hasn't got the brains." Concealed by his spell, Wang Qi mingled with the crowd. He glanced at Zhong Qi raging helplessly by the gate and chuckled, then moved to another spot and climbed back up the same Osmanthus Tree...

Only then did he look toward the inner hall to assess the results of his earlier five-arrow volley...

Inside the hall, one of the Wandering Swordsmen who had been surrounding Chen Shi lay on the floor with three arrows sticking out of his chest.

He had knocked aside the first two arrows of the volley, but had been completely unable to block the remaining three.

Yet Chen Shi, commander of the Chen Family's household troops, was far too disappointing. Even after Wang Qi had disposed of one opponent for him, he still could not break free to take effective command.

With no other choice, Wang Qi decided to stop helping him and turned his attention to Ran Jiao instead.

Ran Jiao was being attacked by four Wandering Swordsmen at once, yet she still managed to protect Master Chen, albeit with difficulty. Her skill was truly impressive.

Her body was extraordinarily supple and agile, allowing her to counter attacks in ways an ordinary person could scarcely imagine... But there were too many enemies, and her stamina was clearly draining badly. Keep defending long enough, and a breach was inevitable...

Wang Qi's gaze sharpened slightly, and he drew another five arrows into his hand... This time, he would ease the pressure on Ran Jiao.

Yet just as his gaze focused and its keen edge emerged, his eyes unexpectedly met Ran Jiao's for a fleeting instant...

Wang Qi was startled... The Light-Concealing Shadow-Masking Spell truly could not fool her eyes.

Ran Jiao was also briefly taken aback, then her gaze changed, seemingly concealing some unspoken meaning.

There was solemnity in it, along with resolve and confidence, as though she was about to do something and wanted Wang Qi to coordinate with her...

Honestly, it was difficult enough to grasp that fleeting change in her eyes, let alone divine her intentions and act in concert with her.

But Wang Qi did not hesitate. Once again, he loosed five arrows in rapid succession...

He did not know how Ran Jiao wanted them to coordinate, but that did not stop him from providing supporting fire that left her room to maneuver.

The five arrows flew toward three of the men around Ran Jiao, divided into groups of two, two, and one.

Two arrows in succession were enough to demand a Wandering Swordsman's full attention, while even a single arrow could provide cover and support... Whatever Ran Jiao intended to do, he trusted these five arrows would be enough to help her.

As he released the bowstring, his gaze remained locked with Ran Jiao's... Then he caught an extreme transformation in her eyes.

Her pupils narrowed sharply, radiating the icy menace of a venomous snake, inspiring terror so intense it seemed to choke the breath away.

Wang Qi hurriedly broke eye contact and vaulted down from the wall again...

That instant of hesitation had allowed Zhong Qi, who had spotted him once more, to catch up!

"This time, I won't let you get away!" Zhong Qi flew into a rage... He had heard the bowstring again and turned, only to see Wang Qi back in that Osmanthus Tree. A furious sense of being toyed with had flooded his heart.

This time, he truly threw all caution aside. He had to cut down this slippery archer, or his wounded pride would never be appeased.

While Wang Qi was still falling through the air, he saw Zhong Qi leap straight over the wall and slash at him in pursuit...

Although launching the attack in midair left his saber stroke somewhat short of power, Zhong Qi was confident it would kill this skulking archer.

But he had misjudged one thing... Wang Qi was indeed an archer, but who said an archer could not fight someone head-on?

Wang Qi flung away his bow and landed first. Reaching back, he seized the hilt of the Self-Defense Iron Sword at his waist and drew it in a reverse grip, striking the middle of the great saber with its pommel.

Wang Qi was not about to meet that great saber head-on with his iron sword. That would have been little different from smashing an egg against a rock.

"Clang!"

Wang Qi already had both feet planted firmly, and his sword pommel struck the middle of the enemy's great saber, where it had the least leverage. The blow gave Zhong Qi a tremendous shock.

His still-descending body was immediately tipped backward, sending him out of control in midair!

Had he reacted quickly enough, he could have used the force to flip backward and open up some distance... Unfortunately, his back was facing the high wall of the Chen Family courtyard!

"Thud!"

Helpless in midair, Zhong Qi slammed back-first into the courtyard wall... It let him quickly regain his balance, but also allowed Wang Qi to dart straight in with his iron sword held in a reverse grip!

Wielding his sword as a saber, he immediately unleashed the Grass-Cutting Saber Technique he had practiced diligently for years...

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