Chapter Sixty-Five
Mental strength was the key to driving Inner Force. Therefore, even though An Jiu had never controlled such powerful Inner Force before, she encountered no major obstacles. However, as that Inner Force continuously expanded her meridians, her body felt as if it were being gnawed by countless ants.
Time passed relentlessly, and the Crane Control Army protecting them grew increasingly restless.
The commander suddenly noticed a faint red glow flickering at An Jiu’s fingertips. In an instant, the glow coiled around the arrow like a spirit snake.
The commander had only recently reached the Transformation Realm, and since his mental strength had yet to break through, he was still unable to materialize his Inner Force. He never expected that the first time he would witness the physical manifestation of his Inner Force would be through someone else’s transformation.
An Jiu had no way of estimating the power and speed of this arrow, so she used the arrow speed of the Transcendence Realm archer opposite them as a reference.
Whoosh!
The arrow, wrapped in a red glow, soared like a dragon, humming softly as it flew toward the opposite side.
This arrow lacked the overwhelming momentum of their opponent’s arrows—it was light, almost like a mere test shot.
The trajectory was slightly off, and the arrow struck the rock face opposite them. The red glow vanished abruptly.
“What happened?” the commander asked in a low voice.
They were both in the Transformation Realm—the difference in power shouldn’t be this vast! The commander felt a twinge of dissatisfaction.
“Clearly, your Inner Force is inferior to theirs.” Weren’t you thick-skinned? An Jiu deliberately aimed to bruise his ego.
“Nonsense! Take this seriously!” the commander snapped.
An Jiu was also puzzled. Previously, she had seen Elder Zhi and the Archery Expert of the Transcendent Realm on the opposite side—their arrows carried immense power. Yet hers had been utterly silent!
She privately considered two possibilities: either she had failed in her first attempt at channeling Inner Force into an arrow, or she had managed to concentrate the force.
An Jiu drew her bow again. After a brief calculation, she adjusted her aim slightly from before and released another arrow.
To understand what had happened with her previous shot, she deliberately focused her Inner Force across her entire fist rather than just the arrowhead.
The black-clad figure standing atop the ancient pine opposite them saw the red streak approaching and immediately nocked an arrow, firing straight at it.
The two arrows collided mid-air with a thunderous explosion, erupting into a blinding white light that illuminated the entire cliff face.
Everyone froze, their eyes drawn to the radiant burst.
Then, a red streak shot through the light like a rainbow piercing the sun, howling as it surged forward.
The black-clad figure atop the pine swiftly leaped to the cliff’s peak. The arrow struck the rock face to the left of the ancient pine, sending shattered stones cascading down the cliff with a deafening crash.
An Jiu felt a flicker of joy—she had confirmed that the reason her previous arrow had been silent was because the force had been extremely concentrated. This meant that the only thing separating her from “Startling String” was the depth of her Inner Force!
“There’s an ambush on the cliff!” someone whispered urgently.
An Jiu looked up and saw eight archers had appeared atop the opposite cliff, their bows drawn.
Almost simultaneously, eight arrows infused with Inner Force shot through the lingering glow of the explosion.
An Jiu fired another arrow, this time dispersing her Inner Force to intercept them.
One against eight was a disadvantage, but the explosive force from her arrow’s detonation pushed several of the incoming arrows off course. The Shadow Guards protecting her and the commander easily deflected the rest with their swords.
No sooner had the first wave passed than a second volley of arrows rained down.An Jiu wasn't having much difficulty handling the situation. Yet she remained completely vigilant, because that Transformation Realm Master hadn't joined the battle yet. Once he entered the fray, the tide would turn immediately.
"That Transcendence Realm archer has already fired over a hundred arrows. He should need to rest soon," the Commander said.
When people approach the pinnacle in certain aspects, they often fall into a near-frenzied pursuit. That Transcendence Realm archer had been provoked by An Jiu's earlier arrow shot without Inner Force, and thus kept experimenting relentlessly. He sought the secret to greater precision in these harsh conditions, sparing no thought for his Inner Force reserves.
After ten consecutive exchanges, An Jiu even resorted to using a powerful crossbow seized from the enemy.
Seeing An Jiu's quiver empty, the Commander immediately ordered, "Bring more arrows!"
The nearby Shadow Guard promptly transferred all his arrows into An Jiu's quiver while cautioning, "Commander, my arrows might not suit her."
Archery required attention to minute details. In such intense combat, even slight deviations could lead to unpredictable consequences.
The Commander wasn't unaware of this, but right now something was better than nothing!
An Jiu drew one of the Crane Control Army's arrows and immediately noticed it felt heavier than Elder Zhi's crafted arrows. But with another wave of arrows approaching, she had no time for adjustments. After slightly altering the arrowhead's direction, she channeled her Inner Force and let it fly.
The winds at the cliff were complex—some rising from below, others blowing fiercely from the north. When meeting the massive rock face, they might even create faint ricochets. Without sufficient time to adapt or calculate the new arrow's properties, An Jiu's shot plunged straight downward, veering about three feet off course due to the wind.
Eight arrows continued their unimpeded approach.
These were arrows imbued with ninth-level power! Seeing no way to dodge, An Jiu gritted her teeth and drew the bowstring empty-handed.
While everyone else focused on defending against the incoming arrows, only the Commander noticed her movement.
Her hand position differed from the usual arrow-gripping stance—all five fingers grasped the string as if simultaneously holding four arrows!
At full draw, faint black energy seemed to coalesce between her fingers. When she released, a sound resembling an eagle's screech, a crane's cry, and a phoenix's call echoed throughout the cliff valley. Four of the oncoming arrows exploded midair while the remaining four veered off course.
No one saw any arrows fly, yet someone on the opposite cliff suddenly collapsed.
The Transcendence Realm Master on the cliff was horrified. He immediately crouched to examine the body, finding a thumb-sized hole through the chest and abdomen. Turning the corpse over revealed a corresponding exit wound in the lower back, from which blood mixed with pulverized organ fragments gushed forth.
"It's 'Startling String'! It's 'Startling String'!" His voice trembled with excitement.
The others were equally shocked but far more composed—after all, those standing at the mountain's base couldn't comprehend the urgency of being one step from the summit.
"Madman, let's go!" one of them urged.
When he didn't respond, the man pressed, "Madman, they have an archery grandmaster! Staying here is pointless—let's go!"
Several men forcibly dragged the prostrate Transcendence Realm archer away. Surprisingly, he offered no resistance, merely muttering "Startling String" repeatedly under his breath.The most miserable situation here was undoubtedly that of the Crane Control Army commander. He continuously channeled Inner Force into An Jiu's body, and in the end, she condensed four pure Inner Force arrows at once, instantly draining all the Inner Force from his meridians.
Fortunately, those people did not attack again. The commander half-knelt on the ground as the Inner Force in his dantian slowly replenished his dried-up meridians, finally allowing him to feel slightly better.
"It's Startling String," An Jiu murmured.
Four arrows of Startling String at once!
An Jiu couldn't understand why Elder Zhi, after obsessing over Archery for so many years, still couldn't shoot a Startling String, while she could! Moreover, she found it incredibly easy, almost without any obstacles.
Yet, ironically, her Inner Force was nearly zero! It seemed heaven was fair—few were born with everything.
The enemies ahead quickly retreated.
The commander soon regulated his breathing and led the group down the mountain to begin counting their numbers.
Almost all the Crane Control Army members previously hidden in the temple had been destroyed by the enemy. The losses among the trial participants were even more severe. Initially, they had turned on each other to seize the Heavenly Book Fragment and the map, only to be mercilessly slaughtered by the mysterious organization later. In the end, fewer than twenty remained, including the group from Mei Shi and Lou Shi.
The Mei and Lou families, who had been immersed in immense grief earlier, suddenly felt incredibly lucky.
Mei Tingzhu remained silent. If not for Mei Shisi's arrow startling away the Transformation Realm Master on the plank road, and if not for Mei Shisi rushing forward to seize the crossbow in the pagoda, they would have already been reduced to pulp.
Only now did she realize that Mei Shisi, who had seemed almost invisible, was actually the key to their survival! How could someone who appeared to be a delicate, pampered woman with no strength possess such formidable power?
"Don't collect the bodies for now," the commander ordered. "Retreat."
"Commander!"
The Crane Control Army members shouted in unison.
One of them said, "The Crane Control Army's rule is to always dispose of the bodies properly. With such heavy losses this time, the commander will surely face criticism. If the aftermath isn't handled well, I fear..."
Most of this group were loyal followers of the commander and naturally didn't want their leader to be ousted upon their return.
"Listen to me!" The commander's tone was cold and brooked no argument. "As your commander, it's my duty to ensure your lives aren't wasted in vain. Follow my orders—retreat immediately. We'll deal with the bodies at dawn!"
"Yes!" the group responded in unison.
An Jiu glanced at him, surprised he still had the presence of mind to win over hearts at a time like this!
The group quickly withdrew, and the trial participants followed them to the Crane Control Army's nearby outpost.
From the outside, it looked like an utterly ordinary civilian house—a small two-courtyard compound with about seven or eight rooms.
The owners of the house were a couple disguised as Crane Control Army members. They came and went normally, showing no signs of anything unusual.
The man, spotting the white crane insignia on their clothing, silently gave them three rooms and brought them hot water and some Medicine.
Within two quarters of an hour, the "wife" arrived with two middle-aged women, bringing food.
Two large basins were filled with plain noodles, sprinkled with bits of scrambled egg, looking rather bland.
The shadow unit members removed their masks, took bowls and chopsticks, served themselves noodles, and crouched in the room to wolf them down.
In another room, the trial participants stared at the full basin of noodles, their appetites completely gone.Not to mention they were used to indulging in delicacies from land and sea. Having just suffered such a major upheaval, even though their mental fortitude was stronger than most, they couldn't bring themselves to eat without a care in the world.
"Please have some food," an elderly woman said gently. "This day was bound to come eventually. Life is short—don't be too hard on yourselves." (To be continued...)
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