A familiar feeling assaulted him once again.
And this time, it was more intense than ever before.
Chen Sansi stood there, feeling his archery skills improving rapidly.
From seventy steps to eighty steps, and finally a hundred-step piercing!
A target the size of a willow leaf a hundred steps away was nearly invisible to the ordinary person.
Yet he could hit it with every shot, and that too, three shots in an instant!
Twenty instants make one finger snap.
Three instants, roughly one second.
From drawing the bow to aiming and then firing, it only took one second.
Even the top snipers of his previous life needed two seconds to aim!
Besides the improvement in archery, more noticeable was his body.
For some unknown reason, his body began to grow and reshape for the second time, with his bones changing to better suit bow usage, reaching the extreme limit.
Archer.
For archers, the longer the arms, the more suitable they are for pulling the bow.
Thus, his arms became sturdy and elongated, resembling those of an ape.
The power of the back determines the upper limit of drawing the bow.
Thus, his backbones became more compact, and his waist slim yet powerful.
Ape arms and a wasp waist, the bones were astonishing!
The whole process, as if anesthetized, was completed with rapid speed.
Accompanied by this, the fatigue on Chen Sansi's body was swept away, leaving him feeling refreshed and full of energy.
He opened his eyes again.
Unbeknownst to him, night had already fallen.
The vast target range was empty, with only the bright moon hanging high.
Chen Sansi simply ate some leftover dry food from noon, then went to the Martial Arts Arena, picked up the Mei Hua Iron on the Lan Qi, recalled the thirty-six basic military spear techniques, and slowly began to practice.
The muscle strain from overlapping Pile Work and spear techniques followed, causing uncontrollable physiological shivers. He almost shattered his back teeth, yet his hands did not pause for a moment.
Previously when practicing spear techniques, his body resembled an aged, rusted heavy machine—although operable, each movement required great effort, wasting much time.
Now, with a small achievement in archery and a remodeled body of ape arms and wasp waist, it was like replacing old parts of the machine with new ones.
Hence, when the machine operated again, although still heavy, it became several times smoother.
The fourth spear technique, complete!
The fifth spear technique, complete!
The sixth route...
He practiced one after another.
Without the breathing skill to mitigate side effects, there were several moments when Chen Sansi felt his lungs about to burst and his throat clotted with blood.
Every time this happened, signaling that his body reached its limit, he would pour a ladle of cold water over himself, rest for a moment, then continue.
Chen Sansi, holding the White Wax Wood Pole, felt increasingly familiar with the Mei Hua Iron Spear, and his practicing movements got faster.
The tenth route!
The eleventh route!
Continue!
The universe turned, days and nights shifted.
Gradually, soldiers reported to the military camp, making it bustling.
Xu Wencai emerged from the tent, stretching towards the sky.
"The day's plan starts in the morning!"
He was looking through a Scroll Book and faintly heard the sound of shouting, that kind which was strained to the utmost.
Xu Wencai found it noisy and followed the direction of the sound until he saw the scene.
The rising sun spread its rosy light across the sky.
On the Martial Arts Arena, there was a bare-chested youth.
The youth wasn't very big, but his physique was exceptionally good, muscular yet streamlined, with a frame that was broad at the top and narrow at the bottom, looking from a distance like an inverted triangle.
However...
The youth was flushed all over, his eyes filled with blood, waving a Mei Hua Iron Spear as if he were a mad, starving wolf.
"Has Shanshi been practicing all night? Has he gone mad?"
Xu Wencai hurriedly went back to pull Zhu Tong awake.
Since they were new and had no houses, they all slept in the dormitory tents: "Old Zhu, you better go stop him, or there will be trouble!"
Zhu Tong arrived at the Martial Arts Arena and couldn't help but shudder when he saw this scene.
This wasn't trouble brewing.
This was clearly...
He was about to master it!
He watched the youth's movements, which clearly showed the final route of the basic military spear technique!
...
Outside the military camp, the clash of armor and disordered footsteps arose simultaneously.
The soldiers who had left the previous day returned to camp with dark circles under their eyes.
However, the few Household Commanders at the front were all glowing with vitality, full of energy.
"The new girls at the Spring Pavilion, they really are delightful," said one.
"Exactly, exactly, so tender they're almost dripping," another added.
"Fatty Wang, from now on, we're kindred spirits. Please look out for us," another said.
"Hahaha, naturally, of course," Fatty Wang agreed.
"Guys, better keep it low for a while."
Unlike them, Commander Liu looked haggard as if he hadn't rested well, "Lord Thousand Households was furious, demanding that we must find that barbarian assassin within ten days. He's truly angered this time."
"Old Liu, you're just too serious,"
Householder Xiong said, "That barbarian's strength is no small matter. With the little silver we're paid, why risk our lives?"
"You're right, who knows why the Thousand Households is so urgent. It's very likely that the barbarian has already fled."
Wang Zhi stopped walking, "What's that noise?"
At the edge of the Martial Arts Arena, a dense crowd squeezed together, each stretching their necks to get a look inside.
"What's going on? I never see you this eager during regular training, go away!"
Wang Zhi kicked a few people away, making a path through the crowd, clearing a view for himself.
He saw a red tassel flashing, and a Mei Hua Iron Spear constantly swirling in the hands of a young man, causing gusts of wind and scattering dust. It was the thirty-six basic movements of military soldier's spear technique, a complete, smooth sequence of thirty-six movements!
"Bang—"
On the Martial Arts Arena, the Mei Hua Iron Spear moved like lightning, piercing through a dummy, scattering straw everywhere, as if splashing the enemy's blood toward the sky.
Chen Sansi had completely exhausted his last bit of Qi Power and could no longer support himself. He used the iron spear as support, planting it into the ground and kneeling on one knee, gasping large breaths of the bloody scent.
"It's done!"
Even without the Breathing Skill, he had managed to train in the basic spear technique.
Regardless of whether he could become a Selected Point, at least his position as a military soldier was secure.
...
"Damn it…,"
Commander Liu's eyes were wide as he tapped the shoulder of the person in front of him, "Old Xiong, wasn't he still practicing archery yesterday?"
Householder Xiong dropped his toothpick in shock, "Yeah, right. I also remember that when we left, he was still practicing archery."
"That means he started practicing the spear last night, and by this morning he could do it smoothly," said Commander Liu.
Commander Liu swallowed hard, somewhat in disbelief, "One… one night, and he can perform the spear technique this smoothly?"
Learned in one night!
What does this signify?
Most importantly, this guy had no Breathing Skill!
Without the Breathing Skill, not only would it greatly slow down the training Progress, but the pain endured during the process is hardly less than the torture of prison!
What kind of talent and determination must one possess to achieve such a feat?
Moreover, how quickly could he master it if he had the Breathing Skill? Perhaps midnight, or a few hours, or even less…
No way, this kid has to stay!
No matter how he offended the Tianyuan Martial Arts Academy, I'll help him resolve it myself.
"Old Xiong, you have no shame!"
Commander Liu snapped back to reality and suddenly noticed that Householder Xiong had already eagerly moved forward.
He rushed forward and tightly grabbed the other's arm, "We had agreed that you guys can't compete with me for people."
"Bullshit, when did I ever say that?"
Householder Xiong struggled hard.
"Blockhead, such a rare talent would be wasted in your hands!"
"You're talking about me? If you weren't following in your father's footsteps, you wouldn't even make it to be a flag leader!"
"Blockhead, wanna try?"
"Let's go!"
The soldiers exchanged glances. They had heard that this boy had offended someone, and he should soon be unable to survive in the military camp. Yet, what they saw with their own eyes was two Lord Household Commanders almost fighting over him?
That's often how things are.
If the young man merely had decent talent, they might have felt pity but wouldn't necessarily want to spend their connections to help.
However, if they could see truly rare value in him, those connections wouldn't matter anymore.
Just as Commander Liu and Householder Xiong were arguing fiercely.
A sly voice chimed in.
"Little stone, we had a deal that I'd teach you in two days.
"Come on, today is the second day."