Chapter 343: The Yuanmu Bow

The longbow was compact, its perfect curve drawing all eyes.

Ke Ko Wenbin gathered his cards and grinned broadly.

"To be precise, it was Uncle Ren and Uncle Lu taking turns to pour it down—those days, I could smell the wine just standing outside the alley by the gate! Uncle Liu couldn't hold his own at all; he passed the bow out half-drunk."

Xiang Fang Su clicked his tongue in amazement: "To drink your way into obtaining the Yuanmu Bow from Uncle Liu? That must've emptied several wine cellars."

"When I was little, the Yuanmu Bow hung on the Liu family wall, out of my reach—I asked Uncle Liu to fetch it for me, and he refused! I'll remember that for life!"

Bai Bai Yinbin reached out to touch it, but Ke Ko Wenbin slapped his hand away.

"Aishui hasn't tried yet—whose turn is it to go?"

"Damn it!"

"Yeah, Aishui goes first."

"Try it quick!"

All eyes turned to him; Liang Qu was eager to try.

Though he'd never heard the name Yuanmu Bow, the exaggerated reactions of the others made its extraordinary nature clear.

The rhino-hide box's surface was covered in intricate black-and-red speckles; Liang Qu reached in, carefully grasped the bow grip, and as he lifted it, a heavy weight surged up from his wrist.

At the same time, the dark bow detached from the velvet cloth and suddenly came alive—fine red bloodlines spread from the center of the grip, weaving like a spider's net around the entire bow.

The red net pulsed with alternating light and shadow, as if breathing.

A sharp, unmistakable craving surged from the bow's body.

The Yuanmu Bow was demanding his blood qi!

Liang Qu was startled: "This…"

Lu Lu Kaiyun closed the rhino-hide box and smiled: "Don't panic—try channeling your blood qi into it."

Liang Qu steadied his mind and actively poured his blood qi into the longbow.

A vast torrent of blood qi flooded in; the glowing red net on the bow gradually stabilized.

At this moment, more intricate blood filaments began to grow and spread from the center of the grip, all flowing unerringly toward the bow's tips.

When the tips were entirely covered in a deep crimson net, a breathtaking sight appeared!

Several blood filaments sprouted from the bow tips, intertwining and twisting into blood cords that raced toward each other.

At the parallel center point behind the grip, the two ends of the filaments entwined like tiny hands, gripping and fusing, thickening, until they became one single red bowstring.

Utterly miraculous!

Liang Qu had assumed the Yuanmu Bow was empty and needed stringing—after all, all bows require it; you unstring them when not in use to relieve tension. He never imagined the Yuanmu Bow could grow its own string.

The others were thoroughly pleased with Liang Qu's stunned expression.

That was exactly the effect they wanted.

The Yuanmu Bow might not be an exceptionally powerful bow, but its uniqueness far surpassed all other great bows.

Everyone who saw it would be dumbfounded.

Even if Uncle Liu's current strength couldn't fully utilize it, he still treasured it as a treasure.

Lu Lu Kaiyun smiled and asked: "Aishui, do you think the Yuanmu Bow is a spirit weapon?"

"Isn't it?"

Liang Qu touched the bowstring; it felt uniquely rubbery.

He could clearly sense the Yuanmu Bow's vitality—more vigorous than his Dragon Fubo Bow before it had absorbed Jin Yu, unmistakably the living quality unique to spirit weapons.

Lu Lu Kaiyun shook his head: "The Yuanmu Bow is alive—that's certain—but strictly speaking, it isn't a spirit weapon; it has never undergone spirit infusion."

Liang Qu was puzzled: How could a weapon gain life without spirit shaping?

Ke Ko Wenbin chuckled: "The reason is simple—the Yuanmu Bow wasn't forged. It grew directly from the sacred tree, Tianyuan Soulwood!"

"Grew into this shape naturally?!"

Liang Qu raised the great bow, unable to believe such elegant curves could be a natural product.

"Cough, cough—of course, some secret method was used to guide its growth. Beyond that, no forging techniques were applied. Unlike spirit weapons, it has no master.

The Yuanmu Bow possesses self-generated spirit. If you must call it a weapon master, then the bow itself is its master—you need to cultivate a bond with it."

Xiang Fang Su nodded: "When Uncle Liu plucked it from the sacred tree, it was like harvesting a ripe fruit.

The fruit is the seed—it's alive. And the Yuanmu Bow doesn't need to be planted in soil; it grows and repairs by absorbing the blood qi of martial masters."

I heard my father say that when first taken, the Yuanmu Bow's power suited a galloping martial master, similar to your hundred-forged great bow. But as Uncle Liu used it in campaigns across the land, the Yuanmu Bow absorbed blood qi continuously, and now it has matured to near Great Wu Shi level."

Don't worry it's too powerful for you to draw.

The more blood qi you pour into the Yuanmu Bow, the stronger its draw becomes. Before reaching Great Wu Shi level, it can handle any amount—and vice versa."

Ke Ko Wenbin said: "Aishui, use it while nurturing it. In a few years, you'll easily reach the Hunting Tiger Great Wu Shi level—and perhaps even trigger its evolution into a Master-level divine weapon!"

All of them knew the Yuanmu Bow's wonders well.

As children, they often begged to borrow it from the Liu household, but Uncle Liu almost never agreed—only once, during his sixtieth birthday banquet, when he was half-drunk, did he promise to lend it for winter hunting.

Xiang Fang Su and the others, once they finally got it, didn't hold back—they kept it until after the New Year, returning it only at the start of spring.

Ever since, whenever Uncle Liu saw them, he'd mutter about how drinking had ruined him.

Lu Lu Kaiyun said: "Uncle Liu also said you may use the Yuanmu Bow—anyone the Emperor personally encourages can't be unworthy—but if you ever stop using it, you must return it to him."

"If my flesh grows back and my teeth age, I have no right to keep such a treasure. That's only fair."

Liang Qu couldn't put down the Yuanmu Bow.

As a wooden bow, its surface felt like smooth, warm lamb's fat jade—far more comfortable than the cold, iron great bow, with superior balance and weight distribution.

"Any arrows? I'm itching to shoot."

"Yes! I brought a few quivers along—use them freely before dark; the cost is on me and Lu Kaiyun!"

Ren Ren Yipeng pulled several leather quivers from beside his feet.

Inside, the arrows were neatly arranged, completely full.

Pulling one out, the shaft was covered in brown patterns, tough and hard; the feathers were sharp as iron blades.

Ordinary arrows would shatter mid-flight under impact; arrows fit for martial masters were expensive.

Liang Qu didn't hesitate—he poured in blood qi, drew the string, released it slowly to test the tension, then drew an arrow, igniting his Golden Eyes.

From his spine's great dragon down to the five toes of his feet, every muscle tensed and trembled; his dragon sinews and tiger bones ground together, emitting a roar like a qilin beast, threads of lightning flickering, swirling Starfall Arrow Qi wrapping around the shaft.

Watching, Xiang Fang Su and the others blinked in surprise—not because they felt threatened, but because they hadn't expected Liang Qu to enhance a single arrow to this degree.

Then came a thunderous explosion!

The air howled; the arrow pierced the forest, its wind force snapping branches on both sides.

A faint crimson streak slowly faded, leaving behind a cross-shaped starlight in the sky.

Though autumn hadn't deepened, leaves fell thickly, piling into a dense carpet on the ground.

Two nearby giant trees looked as if they'd been shaved bald, their bare branches swaying.

Liang Qu exhaled deeply.

"Phew—powerful!"