"You have obtained a barely passable hunting bow through your own efforts, and your archery skills have improved."
"Basic Archery: 76/100."
The moment Zhao Xuan took hold of the ox-horn bow and the iron arrows, the system prompt arrived as expected.
As per old custom, he tested the bow first.
He started with the bamboo arrows.
Arrows were consumables; unless it was a critical moment, low-cost bamboo arrows would always be the first choice.
Besides, every time he painstakingly crafted a hundred bamboo arrows, his archery would improve by a point. No one would be willing to give up such a time-consuming yet stable shortcut.
Holding the ox-horn bow in his hand, the tactile feel alone was far superior to the wooden bow he had made himself.
Zhao Xuan slowly pulled back the bowstring, carefully savoring the tension.
This draw weight was definitely more than one *dan*; it was at least one and a half *dan*.
Events proved that maintaining a good relationship with the boss was indeed necessary.
Putting effort into it versus not caring produced completely different results.
After testing, the effective range of the bamboo arrows was one hundred and twenty meters, and at maximum power, they could pierce a three-centimeter wooden board.
The effective range of the iron arrows was one hundred and sixty meters, and they could pierce a ten-centimeter wooden stake.
With this range and power, killing a wild boar would be child's play.
The test shots finished, Zhao Xuan headed up the mountain with two hundred bamboo arrows and ten iron arrows.
His Basic Archery was not yet perfected, so the mountain dweller still needed to work hard.
This time, his target was the wild boar that had chased him a few times before.
Old Zhao did not like holding grudges, so he wanted to settle the score as soon as possible.
On the way, he encountered a hare fleeing in panic; without a second thought, Zhao Xuan raised his hand and shot it dead.
As he bent down to pick it up, the sound of whistling faintly brushed past his ear.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of an iron arrow shooting toward him.
Terrified out of his wits, Zhao Xuan dropped and rolled, plunging into the grass.
His scalp felt cold as the iron arrow grazed past his hair and buried itself halfway into the soil beside him, its fletching vibrating incessantly.
A drop of cold sweat slid down his forehead.
As an archer, he knew very well that if that arrow had hit a vital spot, death would have been certain.
Recovering from the shock, he peered out and saw a dozen people in the distance escorting a richly dressed youth who was strolling over.
Seeing him peek out, the youth decisively nocked an arrow, shot it at him, and viciously cursed, "Commoner, how dare you snatch this young master's prey? Go to hell."
There was no other reason, no reasoning to be had.
You offended me, so I will kill you.
Seeing that Zhao Xuan had dodged, the youth ordered the men behind him, "Catch him."
Angry and panicked, Zhao Xuan saw two burly men come sprinting over and, ignoring the hare on the ground, fled swiftly.
Mid-run, he drew a bamboo arrow and shot it straight toward the eye socket of the leading burly man.
Since the other party wanted him dead, why should he show mercy?
The pursuing brute had not expected Zhao Xuan to fight back and hastily raised a hand to block.
How could a mortal body block an arrow shot from an ox-horn bow?
Unsurprisingly, his palm was pierced right through, dripping with fresh blood.
The brute let out a miserable scream and came to a halt.
Seeing his companion injured, his partner was startled and dared not give chase too aggressively, allowing Zhao Xuan to get away.
...
The more he tolerated it, the angrier he got; the more he backed down, the more he felt cheated.
Having evaded the pursuit, Zhao Xuan was furious. He was just hunting on the mountain; who had he offended?
For no reason at all, his prey had been stolen, and he had almost lost his life.
Gritting his teeth, he sneaked back.
"Useless trash."
Cautiously creeping to within one hundred and fifty meters of that group, he heard the youth reprimanding the two pursuing brutes.
"In the county town, hardly anyone dares to snatch things from this young lord. In this wretched place, someone actually dares to snatch the prey this young lord has set his sights on?"
"I don't care what method you use, even if you turn this mountain upside down, you must find him for me and finish him off."
Hearing this, Zhao Xuan felt as if he could crush his own teeth, staring fixedly at the youth.
Then he looked at the others.
Well, wasn't that Chen Ergou? Why was he in the mix too?
Among the group, a scarred brute grabbed Chen Ergou by the collar. "Aren't you from a nearby village? Do you know the person from just now?"
"Let go of me."
Chen Ergou tried to struggle, but immediately received a resounding slap across the face, which instantly made him docile.
He stammered, "It was too far away, I didn't see clearly..."
"Hmm?"
Before he could finish, upon hearing the scarred brute's heavy nasal grunt, he shivered and hastily changed his tune: "I, I know him."
The scarred brute pressed on, demanding, "Who is it?"
Chen Ergou's mind raced, and suddenly a figure flashed through his thoughts, gradually becoming clear.
That build, though... not quite like it.
"Out with it!"
The scarred brute wore a fierce expression, raising his palm again.
Chen Ergou instantly caved: "His name is Zhao Er, from our village."
He then proceeded to describe Zhao Xuan's situation.
He deliberately emphasized that Zhao Xuan was skilled in archery and frequented the mountains, directly locking the target onto Zhao Xuan.
He just hadn't expected to hit the mark by a blind stroke of luck.
Only then did the scarred brute release him, looking at the youth with a fawning smile: "Young Master, we've found out."
In the distance, Zhao Xuan, hiding in the grass, felt a chill run through his heart.
Not only did the other party rob his prey for no reason, but they also wanted to hunt him down to the last?
"You did well."
The youth was very pleased with the scarred brute, and pointing at Chen Ergou, said, "Take this young master to find him. Anyone who dares to snatch this young master's prey, this young master will flay him alive."
Chen Ergou bowed and scraped, "At your command."
Having just established a new merit, the scarred brute couldn't help wanting to show off: "Hold on, Young Master. If we go straight to his door now and that brat finds out, what if he dares not return?"
"Why not hunt on the mountain for a while first? When that brat comes home, we can catch him in a turtle in a jar."
The youth pondered for a moment and nodded heavily, "Makes sense."
At the same time, Zhao Xuan drew an iron arrow.
Earlier when he was being chased, he still held a sliver of illusion—was there some sort of misunderstanding?
At this moment, having heard the entire conversation, he only wanted to kill.
First, he hadn't provoked anyone.
Second, he was not someone to be trifled with either.
The moment the scarred brute fawningly made way for the youth, Zhao Xuan made his move.
A brand-new iron arrow accompanied by a piercing whistle tore through the scarred brute's windpipe, kicking up a burst of blood.
The scarred brute's eyes bulged wide as he clutched his throat and dropped to his knees.
He didn't even have time to utter his last words before dying right there.
"Archery is fundamentally an art of killing. You have slain an enemy, harboring a murderous intent; your archery has improved to a certain extent."
"Basic Archery: 79/100."
Killing one person increased his progress by three points.
This made the murderous intent in Zhao Xuan's heart burn even brighter.
Blood splattered onto the youth's face, frightening him into a shriek.
Only then did the remaining attendants snap out of their shock, surrounding the youth and shouting, "Enemy attack! Protect the Young Master!"
From start to finish, no one spared the scarred brute a second glance.
Taking advantage of their panic, Zhao Xuan loosed another arrow.
This time, the target was another five-foot-tall, stocky brute.
The difference was that this time, the arrow pierced straight through his chest, resulting in death.
With a bunch of people huddled together, given Zhao Xuan's archery skills, it was hard for him to miss.
"Everyone, get down!"
It wasn't until the second person died that someone reacted and offered a countermeasure.
The youth was pulled down to the ground. Feeling utmost humiliation with his face touching the dirt, he flew into a rage and shouted, "Commoners, I'm going to kill him!"
"Guard Sun, kill him for me!"
This Guard Sun was the very person who had reminded everyone to duck, and he felt equally aggrieved.
The enemy's archery was too strong; he was nothing like the lowly mountain dweller Chen Ergou had described.
A mere mountain dweller whose archery surpassed his own, practiced over more than a dozen years—what did that make him?
Useless trash?
Nursing a pent-up breath, he pointed in Zhao Xuan's direction: "He's over there! Fire in that direction to suppress him!"
Out of the party of ten, minus the two dead ones, the one with the injured hand, the guide Chen Ergou, and the youth who had been scared out of his wits, the remaining five lay flat on the ground and shot arrows toward Zhao Xuan's location.
Guard Sun gave another order: "Ironhead, you're injured; use your body to shield the Young Master. Fathead and I will use our bows to suppress him, and you three sneak over and finish him off."
"Fathead, you and I will take turns shooting so he can't pop his head up."
The strategy was sound, but he failed to take into account that people can move.
After firing two arrows, Zhao Xuan had long since relocated.
He had calculated that the other side still had eight people. If they rushed forward in a desperate, scattered charge at the speed of those two brutes from earlier, across a distance of one hundred and fifty meters, he simply wouldn't have time to shoot all eight of them.
Moreover, with several of them lying flat on the ground and slopes blocking the way, he couldn't hit them without changing positions.
He hadn't expected that he had overestimated the enemy.
Seeing them shoot arrows toward his previous hiding place and even begin crawling forward, Zhao Xuan showed no courtesy. Aiming at one man on the move, he loosed an arrow.
The iron arrow entered through his right ear and exited through his left, bringing out a trail of yellowish-white matter.
The third person was dead.
At this sight, Guard Sun's pupils constricted violently. He grabbed the youth's arm and said, "Young Master, this man's archery is too strong; we are no match for him. Let's run, or we'll all die at his hands."
Afraid the youth's temper would flare up and he would refuse to leave, he advised further, "Besides, we already know this man's identity. Once we go back and gather men, killing him won't be hard."
The youth had long since been scared out of his wits and hurriedly agreed, "Let's go."
With his sharp ears and keen eyes, Zhao Xuan heard every word clearly from afar and sneered, "Want to leave?"