Chapter 32

"You..." Zong Shichang was about to draw lightning to blast him, but in an instant, he lost his target.

It wasn't that Zhao Xing ran too fast, but that many straw dolls suddenly stood up from the ground around him.

The yellow straw dolls were similar in color to the earth, and with Zhao Xing covering them with some sand and soil, they were impossible to detect!

This guy actually buried the straw dolls underground to act as a "ground-hiding demon"!

"What's the use of weaving so many straw dolls? Hmph, the straw doll method is nothing but a petty trick!"

"I can easily destroy it!"

Zong Shichang drew lightning to attack.

"Boom-crack!"

A bolt of lightning descended from the clouds, accurately striking a straw doll.

But the effect took Zong Shichang by surprise!

He discovered that this golden straw doll only had a patch of charred black on its chest and did not show the smoking and burning he had imagined.

"What's going on? Can straw dolls also withstand heavenly lightning?"

Zong Shichang felt it was somewhat absurd.

He was not good at the straw doll method and had always looked down on such spells, feeling that the weaving method was troublesome and complex. Young Master Zong couldn't do this kind of delicate work that was like a woman's.

Who would have thought that the straw dolls Zhao Xing wove were completely different from what he had seen before!

"Boom-crack! Boom-crack!"

Several more bolts of lightning struck down. Zong Shichang spent a great deal of effort before he finally managed to deal with one of them.

"How much heavenly lightning can you draw?" Zhao Xing stayed under the cover of the straw dolls, looking at Zong Shichang with a half-smile.

These were just the straw dolls he had placed at the edge of his territory for early warning, crudely made, not even reaching first-turn strength.

The 20 Mighty Vajras that crawled out of the bamboo forest were the true guards.

"Give Young Master Zong some intensity."

Twenty Mighty Vajras swarmed forward.

"What? There are so many more?!"

Zong Shichang was startled.

These 20 straw dolls that appeared later were clearly not the same kind as the previous ones.

Each one was golden, not withered yellow, and they were robust in shape and quite spirited.

Zong Shichang took a look; the Mighty Vajras jumped three or four meters in a single leap. Damn it, is this the mobility a straw doll should have?!

"Wind, come!"

Zong Shichang couldn't care about attacking anymore; he had to block these Mighty Vajras first.

Although he was already at the fourth stage of Qi Gathering, with strong blood and great power, he didn't dare to let these straw dolls surround him.

An Agricultural Officer's close-combat ability is relatively weak. Besides, who plays spells like a martial artist engaging in hand-to-hand combat?

"Whoosh~"

A strong westerly wind blew toward the Mighty Vajras.

Zong Shichang's wind control technique was decent; he blew up the sand and stones on the ground without letting the wind force go downward excessively, which would have been a waste.

"Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!"

The sand and stones hit the bodies of the straw dolls, actually emitting the sound of metal clashing.

It did indeed block them for a moment, but the effect was far from Zong Shichang's expectations.

Instead, the sand and dust blurred his own vision, and he didn't notice two straw dolls quietly sneaking behind him.

"Rustle, rustle, rustle, rustle..."

A different kind of movement came from within the wind.

"What the hell is that?!" Zong Shichang tilted his head and saw two vines swimming on the ground, like spirit snakes!

All Grass and Trees are Soldiers: Entanglement Straw Doll!

The Entanglement straw doll made of green vines can extend its vines to trap enemies.

"Slap!" A vine whipped Zong Shichang's right arm. Although he dodged it, a red mark appeared on his right hand.

"What kind of straw doll is this?!" Zong Shichang jumped away, but before he could think, a second and third vine whipped over.

He dodged once or twice, but ultimately couldn't dodge the many more vines.

Zong Shichang's hands were bound, one to the left and one to the right, pulled taut.

He couldn't cast spells, so the wind vanished and the thunder dissipated.

He tried to break free but found it useless. The green vines had amazing resilience, with the addition of triple toughness! The Entanglement straw doll was very difficult to shake off.

The next moment, his feet were also bound, pulled apart to the left and right.

"Ah, oh..."

Young Master Zong was suddenly forced into a split, doing a mid-air "one-word horse" (split), and then landed heavily on the ground.

"Hiss~"

A man's pain—those who know, know. Zong Shichang was in so much pain he couldn't even speak.

At this moment, the Mighty Vajras rushed over.

Without a word, they gave Zong Shichang a punch.

"I surr..."

Before he could say he surrendered, he was directly knocked down.

"I surrender!"

Zong Shichang quickly shouted loudly, fearing that Zhao Xing hadn't heard him. He knew that straw dolls execute the caster's orders and wouldn't stop until the goal was achieved.

Fortunately, after he was knocked down, the Mighty Vajras stopped moving.

The dust settled, and the straw dolls separated, revealing Zhao Xing's leisurely figure.

"Brother Zong, how was that?"

"You don't talk about martial virtue; you actually ambushed me." Zong Shichang maintained a calm and composed appearance: "I still have many secret techniques I didn't use; I just accidentally fell into your trap. Besides, what kind of skill is it to use straw dolls? When Agricultural Officers fight, how can there be hand-to-hand combat?"

Lying on the ground, his mouth was still tough. Being in a "five-horse dismemberment" posture on the ground, Zong Shichang was actually still unconvinced. Zhao Xing immediately retorted: "You were the one who said there were no restrictions, so where does the talk of an ambush come from? Besides, doesn't the straw doll method count as an Agricultural spell?"

"I..." Zong Shichang was speechless. Even if he looked down on the straw doll method, he couldn't deny it; that would be too lacking in class.

Snap! Zhao Xing snapped his fingers, letting the straw dolls release Zong Shichang, then turned and walked toward his own territory: "If Brother Zong hasn't had enough, we can fight another day. I'll be waiting for you to break my straw doll method."

Zong Shichang watched Zhao Xing turn away, and his composure instantly broke. He no longer had that calm and composed look. He grimaced and looked toward his crotch, then reached out to touch it.

"Phew, luckily it only broke a little skin. It won't affect anything, it won't affect anything..."

The sparring match between Zong Shichang and Zhao Xing came quickly and went quickly.

Coupled with the flying sand and stones and the rising dust during the process, only a few people saw it clearly.

"How are his straw dolls so fierce?" Wen Nanxing sat and watched the battle from afar. "Zong Shichang didn't even last two rounds; he only cast Draw Lightning and Strong Wind and was defeated. It seems I also need to re-evaluate the straw doll method."

Wen Nanxing had also ignored the straw doll method. Over the years, the straw doll methods passed down by the imperial court had become fewer and fewer. At first, there were dozens of types, but later there were only a few left.

But seeing Zhao Xing use straw dolls, Wen Nanxing's view of them changed greatly.

"Interesting, he is actually also good at using straw dolls." A strange look flashed in Xiao Ze's eyes, and he became more curious about Zhao Xing. "The Mighty Vajra is mentioned in the Eighty-One Methods of Willow Transmission. I didn't expect him to actually know how to use it... Should I ask him for advice?"

Xiao Ze's heart itched. He also liked using straw doll spells, but his teacher didn't know many, only a few. Xiao Ze had learned for a long time and only knew three. Now that he saw this, he couldn't help but want Zhao Xing to teach him.

"Forget it, let's wait until the assessment is over." Xiao Ze resisted. Not everyone was as unrestrained as Zong Shichang. The most important thing now was to get a good ranking in the Beginning of Autumn assessment.

On the invigilation platform, Gao Linong looked at Zong Shichang's limping figure, and his whole mood soured. A second ago, he was still gloating, thinking that Wen Nanxing and Xiao Ze had their spiritual energy stolen by Zhao Xing, but he didn't expect that the next second it would be his own disciple's turn to suffer.

And it was in full view of everyone; his prize student couldn't even beat a straw doll. It was truly shameful. Tang Wanchun and Pang Yuan, those two old things, were probably laughing their heads off inside!

Gao Linong secretly glanced over, and sure enough, he found that the corners of his two colleagues' mouths were harder to suppress than a waterwheel.