Chapter 41 (1/2)
That nuée ardente started raining down torrential sparks.
The blue sparks rained like cats and dogs.
The droplets landed on the ground, instantly creating a hole on the bluestone slab. The blue sparks continued to burn as they permeated the soil, burning a continuous downward tunnel that extended like it wanted to burn through to the other side of the Earth.
Xing Hechou, who was directly facing the sparks, could not avoid them in time. Before he was submerged, however, a figure bathed in golden light dashed into the rain and sprinted toward Xing Hechou.
The beautiful young man called Hui Bing had transformed into a monster-muscled man. His body was so engorged that the gray robe he was wearing was ripping at the seams.
His arms spread out and extended upward, palms clasped above his head, his two middle fingers pointing toward the sky. With his palms as a core, the golden light started expanding, forming something akin to a huge golden bell that surrounded him.
[Skill Name: Golden Bell (3)]
[Category: Melee]
[Effects: Automatically blocks any external physical or power attacks]
[Consumption: Physical Points 20%]
[Learning Requirement: Strength more than or equal to 8, Intelligence more than or equal to 6, Perception more than or equal to 7]
[Remarks: Gold is impermeable and trains your heart and mind]
Hui Bing dashed into the rain with his golden bell, casually kicking the rubble on the ground and a bronze halberd embedded there toward Xing Hechou.
Xing Hechou caught the halberd and spun it high above his head, successfully blocking the sparks of the rain. He ran over to Hui Bing and the two of them were now secure under the golden bell.
Pitter-platter, pitter-platter. The rain fell on the bell, unable to pierce it, and simply flowed down its surface.
Wang Guan’s expression became ugly. “Die!”
He extended his palm, which concealed a talisman, toward Xing Hechou. Thunder started to congregate and a thunderstorm appeared inside the Hall of Great Strength.
Thunder Palm!
Swish…
Something pierced the air in the direction of Wang Guan’s forehead. Before he could question his decision, he lifted his Thunder Palm and blocked his forehead.
Boom!
An arrow embedded itself into Wang Guan’s palm. The Thunder Palm talisman exploded. Thunder roared and lightning struck, brightening the hall as though it was daytime.
The explosion caused a see-through hole to form in Wang Guan’s palm. One could see the other side through it.
“Ahhhhh!”
Wang Guan clenched his waist and looked up into the distance with a terrifying expression.
Liu Wudai, who was wearing nightwear, looked like an agile black cat. She squatted behind a pile of rubble, nicked the arrow, and pulled the bowstring taut under the moonlight.
The bow was a Hoyt hunting composite bow with an 85-pound draw-weight and a speed of 332 inches per second according to the IBO (International Bowhunters Organization) standards.
The arrow was an aluminum carbon composite hunting heavy arrow with a 300-degree archer’s paradox and 850 grains per inch.
Using the mechanism of modern technology, the Hoyt hunting composite bow could push the draw-weight to 90, 100, or even more pounds.
This was possible but unnecessary. After all, the composite bow of the 80-pound range could easily tear through the flesh and bones of any living organism, capable of hunting animals at the peak of the food chain like bears, lions, and elephants.
What could the bow of a higher draw-weight shoot then?
Liu Wudai’s answer to that question was ‘a demon’.
She nicked the arrow and pulled the bowstring taut. The compound wheel slid and the hunting heavy arrow flew toward Wang Guan once more with a clang.
The arrow point spiraled and the shaft trembled. An extremely thin thunder snake engulfed the arrow, increasing its speed and allowing it to rip through the air.
Wang Guan sensed a cold, foreign danger almost instantly, as though he was one step inside his coffin. This was a feeling he had not experienced in an extremely long time.
The previous time this had happened had been at the Nanzhili suburban execution ground, the moment the executioner had been about to swing the beheading sword down.
Wang Guan gave up his human shape without hesitation and transformed into a towering human-faced black ape. He was wearing a violet-gold robe, holding an alms bowl in one hand and a Vajrasaki in the other. He was neither a demon nor a Buddha.
The thick Vajrasaki blocked the arrow, causing the Vajrasaki to break and Wang Guan’s palms to rot off.