Chapter 492 - 475: Eye of Truth
The ground shook as Zhang Xiaojiang burst out of the earth three meters away. A gash blossomed on his chest—the arrow had been aimed straight for his heart. If not for his truly incredible Earth Escape Skill, which allowed him to shift sideways even while underground, that one arrow would have been the end of him.
The Dueling Platform was surrounded by a dead silence. After seeing Zhanming in action, the Cultivators—especially the Bow Cultivators—finally understood what a true Bow Cultivator was, the path they should walk, and their defining characteristics!
Flashy moves were just for show; they violated the very fundamentals of being a Bow Cultivator.
Zhanming smiled faintly. "Concede. My arrows are Killing Arrows, and I can’t hold back. You won’t be so lucky next time."
This wasn’t mockery, but confidence. A man who feared death could never become a true master.
In his Cultivation, the very first thing he had to do was completely eliminate his fear of arrows, even when they were fired right in his face.
It was a fear he had to conquer!
’I didn’t come to the Other Shore Battle to make a name for myself; that’s not important. I’m searching for a worthy opponent, a fellow Bow Cultivator. I thought this fatty might be the one, but it seems the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.’
As if sensing the disappointment in the other’s eyes, Zhang Xiaopang grinned. "I think I’ll struggle a little longer."
Liuu Mei was among the Holy Hall Disciples, worried sick. She hadn’t seen Zhang Xiaojiang in three years. As the woman who arguably knew Zhang Xiaopang best, she found she barely recognized him. His face was the same, but his smile had changed so much.
Zhanming wasted no more words. He raised his Cloud-Piercing Bow. He had shown mercy with the first arrow, but since his opponent didn’t appreciate the gesture, it was time to send him to the next life.
In the Other Shore Battle, life and death were of no consequence.
FWOOSH...
It was as if Zhang Xiaojiang had lost his mind. He didn’t even use Earth Escape.
Everyone watched, stunned, as the arrow shot straight through him.
A wave of shock washed over the crowd; the Holy Hall Disciples were too stunned to speak. But Zhanming’s body had visibly tensed.
The Cloud-Piercing Arrow had missed its mark.
Zhang Xiaopang smiled. The hole... showed no blood. In a blur, the image shimmered and solidified. It had been an afterimage.
Everyone was dumbfounded. What was one of the essential qualities of a Bow Cultivator?
Instantaneous evasion speed!
But could anyone imagine a fatty moving at extreme speed?
Everyone had assumed the fatty relied on the suppressive power of his Blast Bow and the elusiveness of his Earth Escape. But... Zhang Xiaopang was a Bow Cultivator!
Zhanming smiled. ’This is getting a little interesting.’ Zhang Xiaopang smiled back.
Wang Meng and the others knew that look. It meant Zhang Xiaopang was finally getting interested.
Among the Holy Hall Beings, it was hard to say who was the most talented, but Zhang Xiaojiang was certainly far from the least.
His only problem was that he was lazy!
But with Wang Meng around, while his laziness couldn’t be completely eradicated, he hadn’t had a chance to indulge it for the past three years. And that was without even mentioning Hu Jing.
The Blast Bow and the Cloud-Piercing Bow faced off at a range of less than ten meters.
It seemed the two Bow Cultivators were finally ready to get serious.
At almost the same time, neither retreated. Instead, both took a step forward.
VMMMMMM—
With a layered, explosive hum, the Blast Bow and the Cloud-Piercing Bow were fired simultaneously.
BOOM...
The arrows collided perfectly, but this was only the beginning. The two Bow Cultivators had truly unleashed their fury. The distance between them shrank as their arrows flew ever faster. Their hands blurred into phantom-like motions. Most terrifying of all, both were simultaneously performing astonishing evasive maneuvers. At this speed, even a slight delay meant being turned into a human pincushion.
Within a ten-meter radius, the two Bow Cultivators were locked in a heaven-defying exchange of rapid-fire shots.
In an instant, everything stopped. Only two meters separated them.
The Blast Bow and the Cloud-Piercing Bow were once again aimed at each other.
And incredibly, both were completely unscathed. To be more precise, in a duel between Bow Cultivators of this caliber, a single mistake meant it was all over.
A Bow Cultivator’s aim is ruthless, allowing for not even the slightest error.
At point-blank range... were they aiming for mutual destruction?
Without hesitation... VMMMM—
Two streaks of white light!
The two ruthless men had actually fired!
BOOM...
Elemental Power erupted as the two arrows collided head-on. But a subtle difference became apparent: Zhang Xiaojiang’s Elemental Power was slightly weaker than Zhanming’s. In a grueling battle with no margin for error, this was a fatal weakness.
Zhanming, of course, had noticed this as well. In a real battle, one must use their full strength. Only an idiot wouldn’t exploit such an advantage.
Zhanming began a suppressive volley with his Cloud-Piercing Bow. Each arrow was incredibly precise, yet flawlessly executed.
’Only through relentless tempering can one achieve such a Bow Technique,’ Wang Meng thought with a slight nod. ’In that respect, Zhang Xiaojiang is still a little behind.’
There were no shortcuts to a Bow Technique like that. It required practicing one arrow at a time, over and over, ideally with the guidance of an expert.
A group of uninvited guests had appeared in the crowd. They were not from Starlight Academy, but from the Jiuling Sect, and their leader was Song Yifan.
Zhanming was the second-strongest master in the Jiuling Sect and also one of the most powerful Bow Cultivators of the Star Alliance’s younger generation. The phrase "one of" was being put to the test here, in the Other Shore Battle.
His Bow Technique was flawless.
Song Yifan had already advanced, so he’d come to watch. He had heard Zhanming was up against a Holy Hall Disciple, but he never imagined Zhanming would actually be locked in such a grueling fight with a fatty.
Fortunately, however, Zhanming had now seized control of the situation.
A precise, flawless technique, combined with slightly superior Elemental Power, was more than enough to secure victory.
Zhang Xiaojiang’s Blast Arrow had no room to display its power. At this speed, his Earth Escape Skill was useless—trying to use it now would be tantamount to letting his opponent open fire at will. It was pure suicide.
Zhang Xiaojiang’s disadvantage was widening. His defensive shots increased as his offensive ones dwindled. Yet Zhanming didn’t rush in for a quick victory. He was like the most patient of hunters, slowly wearing down his prey’s fighting spirit.
Zhanming actually admired his opponent’s resilience, but it was time to end this.
He pressed his advantage.
A smooth glow radiated from the Cloud-Piercing Bow. His Life Artifact Arrow Technique was coming.
BOOM...
An arrow loosed with a deafening roar, but then it vanished. All the Cultivators saw was an explosive flash of light!
The Jiuling Sect disciples broke into smiles. This was Zhanming’s signature move: the peerless Nine Heavens Transcending Arrow!
There was only one way to deal with this move: don’t let him use it. It was a guaranteed killing blow.
The technique didn’t rely on the Life Artifact; the artifact simply served to amplify the move’s power to its absolute zenith.
It was a signature technique, forged through countless attacks.
The fatty was pierced through again. This time, it had to be for real!!!!
But then the hole closed up. The fatty was still standing there, whole!
The tempestuous exchange between the Bow Cultivators ceased. Zhanming stood frozen.
Song Yifan and his group looked on in disbelief. That was supposed to be an undodgeable arrow, yet he had somehow dodged it.
Dead silence. How was that possible???
A silver light gleamed in Zhang Xiaojiang’s eyes, and a look of respect graced his chubby face.
’I deeply admire people like Wang Meng, who are not only supremely talented but also incredibly diligent. All hardworking people deserve respect. As a fellow Bow Cultivator, I know just what kind of effort it must have taken to perfect an arrow like that... an effort I’m not capable of myself.’
’It’s just a shame that sometimes, hard work doesn’t guarantee success.’
A look of pity appeared in the eyes of the Holy Hall Beings—not for Zhang Xiaojiang, but for Zhanming.
Zhanming had met his bane. To be precise, Zhang Xiaojiang was the ultimate counter to Bow Cultivators. This was his true gift.
It was the same thing that had so impressed Wan Jing when Zhang Xiaojiang first joined the Holy Hall: his eyes.
The Eye of Truth!
Zhang Xiaojiang’s greatest reward for reaching Minor Perfection wasn’t his Blast Bow; it was the Eye of Truth. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)