As Chen Fan gazed at the distant wildebeest's massive form, he couldn't help but feel fortunate.
He hadn't anticipated the wildebeest's lightning-fast reaction, which allowed it to deftly evade his initial arrow. In hindsight, it made perfect sense; the creature had been observing their group closely all along, particularly when he had drawn his bow. He could distinctly feel its attention fixated on him.
Fortunately, he had upgraded [Basic Archery] to level 4 and improved his riding and shooting skills to level 2 the previous night. Without these enhancements and the 30% accuracy boost, landing the second arrow would have been quite challenging.
As for the third arrow, it seemed a tad superfluous.
"Add 9 experience points," a message popped up in his mind.
Chen Fan displayed a surprised expression. He hadn't expected the wildebeest to yield such a substantial amount of experience points upon its demise.
Combining this with the experience gained from the previous black rat and wasteland rabbit, hunting low-level beasts seemed to grant experience points in the range of 1-9, occasionally 1-10. While a bit modest, it was still acceptable.
His gaze shifted downward, landing on [Basic Archery], and he was taken aback to see that his proficiency bar had soared to 30%. In other words, those three arrows had contributed a whopping 15% increase in proficiency!
"Whether it's aiming at stationary or moving targets, actual combat truly offers the fastest proficiency growth," he mused.
At this point, those around him began to react as well.
"Wait, did I read that correctly? The wildebeest, it was shot?"
"Yes, you read it right. The arrow in its neck took it down."
"So, Xiao Fan nailed the wildebeest before it could accelerate?"
"What kind of archery is this? Brother Wei, this surpasses mere skill, doesn't it?"
Admiration filled the faces of everyone present.
Indeed, they were genuinely convinced.
Even Chen Guodong couldn't help but be astounded by Chen Fan's performance. He had assumed that Chen Fan's high accuracy was limited to stationary targets, but now he excelled at hitting moving ones as well. Had Chen Fan concealed his true abilities last night?
Chen Fan grinned sheepishly and said, "Why are you all looking at me like that? I'm just a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse. If I tried that again, I might not succeed."
Nevertheless, everyone wore expressions of unwavering belief.
"Xiao Fan, you used that excuse last time. Need to come up with something fresher next time," the bald man teased as he patted Chen Fan on the shoulder.
"That's right, Xiaofan, what's the point of being modest? Your archery skills are exceptional, and we're thrilled about it."
"Exactly, today's our village's biggest prey haul ever! The villagers will be overjoyed when they see us bringing back so much game!"
"What's the big deal? With our sharpshooter Xiaofan here, we'll have a bounty of prey every day from now on."
"Indeed! When we set out this time, we all latched onto his coattails. Way to go, Xiaofan!"
The group chattered excitedly, spattering saliva in their enthusiasm.
Yesterday, the Wei family brothers had left, and the hunting team returned empty-handed. This morning, they feared repeating their previous failure, but then this unexpected windfall came their way.
It was exhilarating, to say the least.
Chen Fan smiled at them. Regardless of the circumstances, he had demonstrated that in a world where ordinary individuals were as insignificant as ants, he could lead the village's people to survive.
Although it was just temporary, hope was like a flickering flame, destined to one day ignite a roaring wildfire.
Thus, in addition to further honing [Basic Archery], his next priority was to acquire more martial skills to fortify his body and become stronger.
As he lost himself in thought, a large, calloused hand landed on his shoulder. Turning around, Chen Fan saw Chen Guodong smiling at him.
In the stockade, the atmosphere remained as tranquil as ever.
On the open area in front of the warehouse, Wang Pingping and the others continued to practice marksmanship. The lame man stood nearby, visibly preoccupied.
"Uncle Zhang, are you concerned about Brother Fan and the others?" Wang Pingping inquired.
The lame man cast a glance at him and replied, "You've got plenty of things to do. It seems that others will take a break later. You don't need to worry."
"No, no," Wang Pingping sighed inwardly, regretting his loquaciousness but unable to help himself.
Zhao Feng chimed in, "Uncle Zhang, with Chen Fan's archery skills, do you think he can hit the wildebeest?"
"Calamity," the lame man responded without hesitation.
"Oh no?" Wang Ping was dumbfounded. "Brother Fan is so powerful. The last time he shot arrows, he didn't miss a single shot. How could he have missed his prey?"
"Yeah, yeah," echoed others.
The lame man fixed a penetrating gaze on Wang Ping and asked, "Boy, before you understand why this mutation occurred, do you think our traditional martial arts were inferior to those foreign combat techniques?"
Wang Ping felt a bit overwhelmed by the sudden change in topic but nodded honestly. "I don't know."
"It's because they lack real combat experience," the lame man explained. "Whether it's Taijiquan, Xingyiquan, or Baguaquan, they lack practical application. How can they stand up to foreign techniques? Xiaofan's archery is no different. No matter how impressive it looks, its true worth in the wilderness is uncertain."
"You're in the same boat. You may be wielding guns now, but if you were to face ferocious beasts in the wild, your legs might turn to jelly, let alone holding onto your firearms tightly."
Everyone fell silent, pondering his words.
Although they weren't entirely convinced, the prospect of venturing out the next day was indeed daunting.
"But..."
Just as the lame man was about to offer words of encouragement, a commotion erupted at the stockade's entrance, louder than ever before.
In an instant, several puzzled looks were exchanged.
"What's happening?" Wang Ping gazed in the direction of the commotion, perplexed.
"Could it be the hunting team returning?" someone speculated.
"No way! How could they come back so soon?" a young man retorted instinctively.
"You can send someone from the hunting team to retrieve the prey; that's one thing. But Uncle Guodong and the others just left. Could they have returned this quickly? Did they bring back the prey?"
The lame man shared their bewilderment. In the past, the hunting team wouldn't return until late in the evening. If they came back early, something unusual must have occurred.
Why the sudden early return?
"Let's go and find out," he suggested, limping forward.
A vague suspicion gnawed at him: Could it be that they've brought back some prey?
Before they reached the scene, they heard excited voices spreading the news that it had been a fruitful expedition. Not only had they captured several wild rabbits but also a wildebeest weighing two to three hundred catties!
As they neared the commotion, they squeezed through the crowd, struggling to get a glimpse. When they saw the prey laid out on the ground, their pupils dilated, and disbelief painted their faces.
However, the lame man noticed a common thread among these captured animals: they all had arrows embedded in their bodies, each hitting its mark flawlessly.
"Could it be... it's him!" His face paled, and a certain figure flashed through his mind.