I Can Merge Techniques

On the way back, he had already completed the Refinement of the "Shadowless Needle."

He paid no mind to the Cultivation Technique that came with the Refinement process.

But obtaining this "Shadowless Needle" was the greatest unexpected surprise of his journey.

"Shadowless Needle..."

Chu Fan muttered to himself, his eyes glinting with excitement.

The value of this needle far surpassed his destroyed Black Gold Silk Armor and that Broken Shield!

If he hadn’t been wearing the Black Gold Silk Armor and protected by his "Vajra Undying Body," he would have likely met a humiliating end, falling to this vicious needle!

From the fragmented memories obtained during the Refinement, Chu Fan learned that the needle was forged from a rare treasure called "Source Essence Gold," fused with the Demon Core of an ancient "Ghost Shadow Beast," and then consecrated by an Artifact Refining Grandmaster for forty-nine days.

It was minuscule and could completely conceal its presence when activated;

It was indestructible and flew as fast as lightning;

And most terrifying of all, it emitted not a single trace of Primordial Qi fluctuation as it traversed the void!

This was a peerless, deadly weapon tailor-made for sneak attacks and assassinations!

It arrived without a shadow and left without a trace, killing unseen!

Back in the valley, even with his current level of Divine Sense,

he had failed to detect such a terrifying weapon hidden behind him. That alone was a testament to its horror!

Chu Fan twitched his hand, and the "Shadowless Needle" in his palm floated up nimbly, like a darting fish.

Then—

WHOOSH!

With a flash of silver light, the Shadowless Needle vanished from before his eyes, completely merging with the void!

Chu Fan closed his eyes. Using the Divine Sense imprint he had left within the needle, he could clearly perceive its location and status.

Yet, whether he used his naked eye or his Divine Sense to probe, he could no longer see or sense any trace of the "Shadowless Needle"!

A sharp glint flashed in Chu Fan’s eyes, and the Spirit Array Map of the "Demon Dragon Celestial Spirit Scripture" suddenly activated!

In an instant, his Perception Power surged by more than tenfold. Within a radius of several hundred feet,

he could even hear the faint breeze from a moth’s flapping wings!

But even then, his senses registered that patch of void as completely empty. There was not the slightest hint of the Shadowless Needle’s presence!

’What a treasure! This is truly a peerless treasure!’

The ecstatic joy in Chu Fan’s eyes was unmistakable!

With this treasure, his assassination capabilities would reach a terrifying new level!

With a thought, the vanished silver needle tore through the void and flew silently back into his palm, its cold, faint silver light reappearing.

As he stroked the needle’s cold body, an incredibly bold idea flashed through his mind like lightning!

Chu Fan shot to his feet, pushed open the door, and strode toward the Martial Arts Arena in the courtyard.

Standing in the center of the empty Martial Arts Arena, Chu Fan had a thought, and the ancient, heavy "Sunset Bow" appeared in his left hand.

The bow’s frame was solid and imposing, faintly exuding a Fierce Evil Qi.

Then, he gripped the "Shadowless Needle" in his right hand and slowly circulated his Primordial Qi.

The silver needle suddenly transformed, growing in the wind until it was the same length as a Black Kite Arrow.

Chu Fan steadily nocked the arrow formed by the Shadowless Needle onto the string of the Sunset Bow!

The heaven-defying Traits of "Moon Eclipse Arrow" after its Second Limit Break appeared in his mind:

[Soul Split: When the arrow hits a target or its weapon, it releases an intangible "Soul-splitting Force"...]

[Breaking Gang: This is the state of divine mastery in archery... At this point, grass, wood, bamboo, or stone can serve as an arrow, and even common iron can pierce Gang Qi and vanquish evil.]

Chu Fan looked toward the distant target.

Then—

He drew the bow and released!

SWISH!

There was no earth-shattering sound, no dazzling light. The moment the bowstring vibrated, the arrow formed by the Shadowless Needle vanished into thin air!

It was as if it had never been fired at all.

The next instant—

PFFT!

At the far end of the Martial Arts Arena, an extremely faint cracking sound suddenly came from the target, which was made of hundred-year-old ironwood reinforced with three layers of tanned Demon Beast Hide.

A tiny hole had appeared in the very center of the target. The Shadowless Needle had passed clean through it and embedded itself deep into the wall behind!

This arrow...

Invisible!

Unseen by the naked eye, undetectable by Divine Sense!

Soul Split! It damages the soul on contact, making it impossible to defend against!

Breaking Gang!

It can shatter Protective Gang Qi for a one-hit kill!

This was no longer an arrow, but a silent, inescapable death sentence!

Chu Fan made a beckoning gesture with his left hand. The "Shadowless Needle" embedded in the wall hummed softly before turning into a streak of light and flying back into his palm, reverting to its slender, needle-like form.

Gripping this peerless, deadly weapon, Chu Fan’s heart surged with a joy that could not be contained.

The gains from this trip had far exceeded his expectations, beyond imagination.

And he hadn’t even had the chance to inspect the Sumeru Ring of Ye Chang’an, the Alchemy Master!

The Shadowless Needle alone made this a total victory.

He had only lost a Black Gold Silk Shirt and a pair of Black Gold Silk Gloves.

However, after the battle in Cyan Yang Ancient City, he still had over a dozen pairs of Black Gold Silk Gloves in his Sumeru Ring. He could just unravel them later and re-weave them into a shirt.

Besides that, by taking a sword strike from Princess Zhaohua head-on, he had also gotten a rough idea of the limits of the first layer of his "Vajra Undying Body."

...

「Evening drew near.」

On the Martial Arts Arena, the evening breeze stirred Chu Fan’s long hair.

He wasn’t in a hurry to return to his room and count his spoils. Instead, he took a deep breath, submerged his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness, and looked at the familiar panel of the Map of Mountains and Rivers.

[Skill: Moon Eclipse Arrow (Second Limit Break 3355/3500) (Traits: Soul Split; Breaking Gang)]

Since arriving in Qing Province City, he had spent most of his time immersed in cultivating the "Demon Dragon Celestial Spirit Scripture" and the "Twelve True Forms Fist," so his archery practice had been somewhat neglected.

He only practiced for short periods when he had free time to teach Zhao Tianxing.

Even so, thanks to his solid foundation and the panel’s heaven-defying nature, the skill’s Experience Points had quietly accumulated over the past month. It was now just a stone’s throw away from the Third Limit Break.

He knew very well that Ye Chang’an’s Sumeru Ring definitely held many precious Elixirs, Spirit Grass, and Treasure Plants.

But for him, the real treasure trove, his greatest reliance, was ultimately the Map of Mountains and Rivers panel, which could turn the decaying into the miraculous and where mastery, once achieved, was permanent.

Chu Fan gathered his thoughts, took a Quiver from his Sumeru Ring, and slung it over his back. There on the Martial Arts Arena, he began his tedious yet focused training.