Hidden Shadow – CH 065

Chapter Sixty-Five: A Shocking Arrow (2)

Mental power was key to activating internal energy, so even though An Jiu had never controlled such strong internal energy before, she did not encounter much resistance. However, as the internal energy continuously expanded her meridians, her body felt as if it were being devoured by countless ants.

Time continued to pass, and the Konghe Army protecting them gradually became anxious.

Suddenly, the commander noticed a red light emanating from An Jiu’s fingertip. In an instant, this red light coiled around the arrow like a serpent.

The commander had just reached the Transcendent Realm, and because his mental power had not yet broken through, he could not materialize his internal energy. He had not expected that the first time he saw the physical form of his internal energy would be through someone else’s transformation.

An Jiu did not know the power and speed of this arrow, so she could not estimate it. She used the arrow speed of the Transcendent Realm archer opposite her as a standard to calculate.

Whoosh!

The arrow, wrapped in red light, flew towards the opposite side like a swimming dragon, its soft murmur echoing.

This arrow lacked the overwhelming force of its opponent’s shot; it was light, as if merely a trial.

The trajectory was slightly off, and the arrow struck the opposite rock, the red light vanishing abruptly.

“Why?” the commander asked in a low voice.

“We are both at the Transcendent Realm; the difference in power should not be this great!” The commander was slightly dissatisfied.

“Clearly, your internal energy is inferior to the opponent’s.” Was he not supposed to be thick-skinned? An Jiu was determined to slap him in the face.

“Nonsense, be serious!” the commander snapped angrily.

An Jiu was also puzzled. Elder Zhi and the Transcendent Realm archer she had observed before all fired arrows with immense power, while her arrow had been completely silent!

She secretly considered two possibilities: either her first attempt at using internal energy had failed, or she was able to concentrate her power.

An Jiu drew her bow, briefly estimated the distance, adjusted her position, and then fired another arrow.

To find out exactly what had happened with her previous arrow. This time, An Jiu deliberately concentrated her inner strength in her entire fist, rather than just at the tip of the arrow.

The black-clad man standing atop the ancient pine tree, seeing the approaching red lightning, immediately drew his bow and fired an arrow straight out.

The two arrows collided on the cliff face, exploding with a deafening roar and illuminating the entire cliff in a blinding white light.

Everyone paused, turning to look at the white light.

A streak of red light, like a rainbow piercing the sun, shot out from within the light, whistling through the air.

The black-clad man on the ancient pine tree quickly leaped to the cliff top. The arrow below struck the cliff face to the left of the pine tree with a thud, sending shattered rocks crashing down.

An Jiu felt a surge of joy, for she was now certain that her previous arrow had not made a sound because of the extremely concentrated force. This proved that she was only lacking internal strength to reach the level of “Startling the String”!

“There’s an ambush on the cliff!” someone whispered.

An Jiu looked up and saw eight figures wielding bows and arrows that had appeared on the opposite cliff face.

Almost at the same time, eight arrows infused with internal energy were fired simultaneously, piercing through the lingering light.

An Jiu fired another arrow, this time using a technique that diffused internal energy, to meet the attack.

Being outnumbered by eight was a disadvantage. The force generated by the exploding arrows deflected several from their original direction, which the guards protecting her and the commander could easily block with their swords.

Just as the first attack passed, a second wave of arrows arrived.

An Jiu dealt with this without difficulty. However, she did not relax for a moment, because the Transcendent Realm expert had not yet joined the battle. Once he joined as well, the situation would immediately reverse.

“That Transcendent Realm expert has already fired no less than a hundred arrows. He should rest for a while,” the commander said.

When a person was close to reaching their peak in certain aspects, they fell into a near-mad pursuit. The Transcendent Realm archer, stimulated by An Jiu’s previous arrow without internal energy, continued to experiment. Seeking the secrets to greater precision in such harsh conditions, he had spared no effort.

In ten consecutive battles, An Jiu even used a powerful crossbow she had seized from the enemy.

The commander noticed An Jiu’s quiver was empty. He immediately ordered, “Bring me arrows.”

The nearby guard promptly transferred all the arrows from his own quiver into An Jiu’s, adding, “Commander, my arrows might not be suitable.”

Archery required grasping many tiny details; in such tense combat, even a small deviation could have unpredictable consequences.

The commander was not unaware of this, but in the current situation, it was better than nothing!

An Jiu drew an arrow from the Konghe Army. She immediately noticed it was heavier than the arrows made by Elder Zhi, but seeing another wave of arrows approaching, she could not worry about that. She only slightly adjusted the arrowhead’s direction before channeling her inner strength and firing.

The wind at the cliff edge was complex, blowing up from below and from the north, with great speed. It could even slightly deflect back when encountering the massive rock face. An Jiu did not have enough time to adapt or assess the new arrow’s trajectory. The arrow, once released, plummeted downwards, its trajectory skewed by the wind by more than three feet.

The eight arrows continued their approach unscathed.

Those were arrows imbued with the power of a ninth-tier cultivator! Seeing no way to dodge, An Jiu gritted her teeth and drew the bowstring with her bare hands.

Everyone around her was focused on preparing to deal with the arrows, but only the commander saw her movement.

Her hand gesture was different from usual; all five fingers gripped the string, as if holding four arrows simultaneously!

With the bow fully drawn, a faint black aura condensed between her fingers. The instant she released her grip, a sound like the cry of an eagle, the call of a crane, and the cry of a phoenix resounded throughout the valley. Four of the incoming arrows exploded in mid-air, while the other four veered off course.

No one saw the arrow, yet a man suddenly collapsed on the opposite cliff.

The master archer on the cliff was horrified. He immediately crouched down to examine the body and found a thumb-sized hole in the chest and abdomen. Turning him over, he found a corresponding hole in the lower back, from which blood mixed with the liquid from the shattered internal organs gushed.

“It’s ‘Startling the String’! It’s ‘Startling the String’!” his voice trembled with excitement.

The others were also shocked, but much calmer than he was. After all, those standing at the foot of the mountain could not understand the urgency of being so close to the peak.

“Madman, let’s go!” one of them said.

Seeing that he did not react, the man urged, “Madman, there’s a peak archery master on the other side. There’s no point in our staying any longer. Let’s go!”

Several people roughly dragged the fallen master archer away, and he did not resist, only repeatedly muttering, “Startling the String.”

The one in the worst situation was undoubtedly the commander of the Konghe Army. He continuously poured his inner energy into An Jiu’s body, and An Jiu finally condensed four arrows of pure inner energy, instantly draining the inner energy from his meridians.

Fortunately, those people did not attack again. The commander knelt on the ground, his inner energy slowly filling his parched meridians, and he finally felt a little better.

“It’s the ‘Startling the String,'” An Jiu murmured.

A ‘Startling the String’ with four arrows at once!

An Jiu could not understand why Elder Zhi, who had been obsessed with archery for so many years, could not shoot ‘Startling the String’ while she could! And she felt it was an exceptionally easy thing, almost without any obstacles.

But her inner energy was almost zero! It was clear that heaven was fair; few were born with everything.

The enemy ahead quickly retreated.

The commander quickly regulated his breathing, led everyone down the mountain, and began to count the number of people.

Almost all the Konghe Army members who had ambushed the temple were wiped out by the enemy. The losses among the trial participants were even more devastating. They began by killing each other to seize the fragments of the Heavenly Book and the map, and were later indiscriminately slaughtered by the mysterious organization. Ultimately, fewer than twenty remained, including members of the Mei and Lou families.

The Mei and Lou families, previously immersed in tremendous grief, suddenly felt incredibly fortunate.

Mei Tingzhu remained silent. If it had not been for Fourteenth Young Lady’s arrow that startled the Transcendent Realm expert on the plank road, and if it had not been for Fourteenth Young Lady rushing to seize the powerful crossbow inside the tower, they would all be minced meat by now.

Only now did she realize that the almost unnoticed Fourteenth Young Lady was actually the key to their good fortune! How could a seemingly delicate, defenseless woman possess such formidable strength!

“Do not collect the corpses for now,” the commander ordered. “Retreat.”

“Commander!” the Konghe Army shouted.

One of them said, “The rules of the Konghe Army require that the bodies be properly disposed of. This loss is enormous, and the commander will definitely be criticized. If the aftermath is not handled well, I am afraid…” This group was mostly composed of followers of the commander, and naturally, they did not want their leader to be ousted upon their return.

“Listen to me!” The commander’s tone was cold and authoritative. “As the commander, I have a responsibility to ensure that your lives are not sacrificed in vain. Hear my order: retreat immediately. We will deal with the bodies after dawn!”

“Yes!” the crowd responded in unison.

An Jiu glanced at him; even now, he was not forgetting to win people over!

The group quickly retreated, and the trial participants followed them to the Konghe Army’s nearby encampment.

From the outside, it was an extremely ordinary house, a small courtyard with two entrances and about seven or eight rooms.

The owners of the house were a couple from the Konghe Army in disguise. They came and went normally, and there was nothing unusual about the place.

The male host, noticing the white crane on their robes, offered them three rooms without a word, along with hot water and medicine.

Shortly after, the “hostess” arrived with two middle-aged women, bringing food.

Two large basins held noodles slowly cooking, with bits of egg in them, looking rather plain.

The Shadows removed their masks, each taking bowls and chopsticks, and after filling their bowls with noodles, squatted down and wolfed them down.

Meanwhile, the trial participants in the other room stared at the basin full of noodles, completely devoid of appetite.

Not to mention their usual lavish meals, having just experienced such a major upheaval, even with their stronger wills than most, they could not eat without a care in the world.

“Please eat something,” an old woman said gently. “This day will come eventually. Life is short; do not mistreat yourselves.”