Chapter 772: Bait, Engagement, and the Legend of the Magic Arrow

Compared to the keen senses Jier had developed after Knight Training, the Mao Mao, as creatures surviving in the mountain forests, had even sharper perception, especially in this wild environment.

Jier and the seven Mao Mao had not gone far into the Shulin when the Mao Mao on the left began to whimper, indicating it had made a discovery in that direction.

Jier braced himself, focusing all his attention as he leaped from the trunk of one large tree to behind another, then used rapid movement and the cover of the trunks to assault the location where the people were.

"What was that sound?"

A person crouching on a tree heard the jumping and stomping sounds coming from the Shulin beside them, immediately turned to stare intently at the source of the noise, and did not forget to alert their companion in the nearby tree.

But by this time, Jier was less than ten meters away from these two people, a distance that was already very close for him. Jier stopped moving with small jumps, held his Shield in front of him, and charged straight toward the direction where the two were located with quick steps.

"Eh? Eh? What is that!"

"How would I know?"

These two monitoring Bandit had no idea what was happening, and in the blink of an eye, a black shadow crossed the moon-dappled forest floor and rushed to the base of the large tree where one of the Bandit was crouching.

Jier pushed off with both feet, his whole body leaping up as if he had stepped on a spring; without even drawing his Long Sword, he slammed his Shield straight into the person, knocking them heavily off the tree.

After hitting the person, Jier nimbly adjusted his body among the branches and immediately turned his Shield toward the other spot where the sound had come from, defending against potential fierce Arrow strikes.

But there were none; no attack came.

Jier was stunned for a moment, but without overthinking it, he stomped hard on the thick tree branch beneath his feet and, like an ape, flew through the air across the treetops.

In the same way, he used his Shield to heavily knock this person off the tree as well.

Thud!

He landed on the ground himself, but he landed on his feet, unlike the two people he had just knocked from the treetops, both of whom had fallen heavily to the ground.

If not for the thick layer of fallen leaves on the ground to cushion the impact, a normal person falling like this from several meters high would have been severely injured instantly.

Turning around, Jier finally drew his Long Sword, which was wreathed in white light, and together with the Mao Mao that had arrived late, surrounded and subdued the two fellows who were stunned from the fall.

The two young Bandit who had been subdued were still defiant and, after catching their breath, were just about to draw their Short Knife for self-defense to fight, when Jier swung his sword, severing one of their wrists clean off.

"Ah? Ah!!!! Ah—— My hand! Hand!"

This Bandit hadn't realized what happened at first, but after seeing his right hand, still gripping the Short Knife, fly off and land on the ground, he began to scream in agony. The other Bandit immediately and consciously dropped the Short Knife of the same style he was holding onto the ground, which was then snatched up by a nearby Mao Mao as if it had found a treasure.

Jier kicked the mouth of the guy kneeling and wailing, immediately silencing him.

At this moment, Jier felt something was wrong.

Because these two guys, no matter how you looked at them, didn't seem to be carrying bows and arrows as weapons?

They each had a diamond-shaped Hand Shield made of oak on their left arm, which, combined with their Short Knife, gave them some combat capability, but they didn't seem to be the same group as the formidable enemy he had anticipated.

Sensing he had found the wrong people, Jier immediately realized his current danger, and without caring about these two inexplicable people, he growled: "Everyone, get down!"

He then turned and half-crouched, hiding his entire body sideways behind his Elven Metal Shield.

The next instant, a loud clanging sound of impact came from the upper edge of Jier's Shield. At the same time, Jier vaguely felt an Arrow fly silently past just above his head, right where his chest had been a moment before.

But it missed.

"Damn it!"

Jier realized then that these two guys, who knew where they came from, had been used as bait by a truly dangerous Refining Qi Hunter to lure him into acting prematurely and exposing himself.

"Everyone hide behind the trees, Mao Mao, watch out for the Arrow! Counterattack, counterattack!"

While shouting, Jier leaped sideways from his half-crouched position, rolling to hide behind a tree trunk.

The Mao Mao all shrieked and scattered, climbing up the trees. The next moment, there was a continuous sound of tails whipping, and they batted the Crossbow Bolt Jier had given them, sending them toward the general direction from which the Arrow had flown.

Interestingly, the three Crossbow Bolt used for the counterattack were all batted out by the three melee Mao Mao with great difficulty, while the ranged Mao Mao, who were more skilled at using their tails to whip projectiles, took advantage of their companions' counterattack to move rapidly toward the more flexible and free left and right sides, attempting to surround the opponent or force the besieged enemy to be overwhelmed and unable to cope.

As for the two unlucky Bandit, they were so scared that they scrambled to hide under the roots of the nearest large tree, while frantically piling dead branches and leaves onto themselves in an attempt to conceal their presence.

And it must be said, this behavior, which looked quite silly in the daytime, was actually quite effective in the forest under the moonlight at night.

That is, if the opponent was just an ordinary person like them.

As soon as Jier hid behind a tree trunk and tentatively poked his head out, he flashed back the next instant. But even so, a small piece of the Hard Cowhide Armor on his right shoulder was taken off by a sharp Arrow.

Jier gave a wry smile; with the power of this kind of Arrow, let alone Hard Cowhide Armor, even if he were wearing Metal Armor, it would make no difference if a slightly weaker spot were hit.

The force of the opponent's Arrow was astonishingly great, and very strange; if it weren't for the fact that they flew without a sound, forcing him to rely on intuition to dodge, they would have had terrifying power, whistling as they tore through the air and pinning themselves heavily into the tree trunks.

One hit—Jier knew that if he were hit by one of these special Arrow, he would be finished.

But this was not the time to surrender; the battle had only just begun.

Sure enough, as Jier waited for the right moment, the Mao Mao that had flanked left and right had already reached suitable attack positions; although they were not entirely clear on the enemy's number and exact location, they had grasped the general direction.

The Mao Mao, children of the mountain forest, used speed and agility beyond the Hunter's expectations to vaguely surround the Hunter in a semi-circular formation.

Yongqi Maomao used a low, rumbling sound to transmit a signal that only they understood, though as soon as it made a sound, an Arrow with astonishing momentum shot straight toward it.

But Yongqi Maomao had prepared to dodge beforehand; it tucked its tail, and the entire Mao Mao defied logic by rising straight into the air from its spot, avoiding the trajectory aimed at the low-lying beast Monster.

It turned out that Yongqi Maomao had wrapped its tail around the branch above its head in advance; as soon as it made a sound, its tail exerted force, pulling the entire Mao Mao up rapidly and dodging the flight path of the Arrow specifically targeting low-lying beast Monster.

Following Yongqi Maomao's low howl, the other Mao Mao that heard the command launched attacks one after another, especially the three ranged Mao Mao, who, relying on experience and superior technique, had roughly grasped the enemy's position after the enemy's successive attacks.

The enemy was not staying in one place either; the Refining Qi Hunter was actually using several Rope tied to branches in advance to launch attacks on Jier and the others while swinging in the air.

Because the position of each shot was different, and as the body swung like a pendulum on the Rope, even the height of the shot was different.

Coupled with the obstructed observation at night and the deceptive equipment on the Hunter, it was almost impossible to grasp the Hunter's exact location.

Attacking in this manner actually placed extremely high demands on the shooter's technique, as their body was constantly in motion while they had to ensure they didn't fall to the ground, and their shooting had to be very accurate; if they weren't Refining Qi Hunter of the God of Hunting, enjoying the blessing ability and possessing full night vision, such combat performance would be almost impossible to achieve.

But this Hunter had also mastered this technique through arduous training.

After estimating the enemy's position in that instant, the three ranged Mao Mao relied on their long-standing tacit understanding and launched attacks by whipping their tails in sequence.

Snap!

A Crossbow Bolt was whipped out with full force, narrowly grazing the Hunter's head and face.

But the Hunter, who had hunted countless beast Monster, although young, was extremely experienced; his breathing didn't change in the slightest, and the next moment he hung upside down, hooking his feet onto another Rope, and while swinging, shot an Arrow at the Mao Mao that was engaging him.

This Arrow was not the Armor-Piercing Heavy Arrow of Elf Metal used to deal with armored enemies in a straight line, but a spiritual Arrow infused with the Spirit of the Poisonous Snake, specifically designed to deal with such agile beast and Monster.

Hiss—Whew—

This strange arrow, with a metal fang-shaped tip, emitted a hissing sound the moment it was fired, twisting left and right in the air as it flew rapidly toward its target.

The poisonous snake spirit inside the arrow had long been famished; it had to strike the enemy's body and tear at the enemy's soul to make the restless Spirit of the Poisonous Snake feel at ease.

"Woo!"

The first Mao Mao to counterattack let out a wail; it felt that disaster was imminent, but there was nothing it could do. Unlike the melee Mao Mao, it could not miraculously block such a cunning and insidious arrow.

At the same moment, the second ranged Mao Mao also launched a counterattack as it had done before; *snap*, the crossbow bolt it fired also shot straight toward the source of the hissing arrow.

Unlike the straightforward crossbow bolt, that insidious tracking arrow possessing a Spirit of the Poisonous Snake did not fly particularly fast, especially since the spirit controlling the arrow loved to twist and turn in the air, needlessly increasing the flight distance.

Therefore, the second ranged Mao Mao's crossbow bolt actually drew closer to the enemy first.

Unexpectedly, the young Hunter, seeing the crossbow bolt flying toward him, actually did the abnormal thing of actively meeting the bolt with his chest when he was in mid-air and unable to dodge.

Something that shocked the Mao Maos happened: when the crossbow bolt hit the enemy's body, a cluster of red light burst from the enemy's chest, deflecting the crossbow bolt that could have severely wounded the enemy.

"Woo-loo-loo!!!"

Yongqi Maomao was furious; it immediately changed its combat plan with its companions, no longer waiting for a better opportunity, and as the third ranged Mao Mao countered, Yongqi Maomao also whipped its tail to fire its own crossbow bolt.

One didn't work, what about two?

But at this moment, the first ranged Mao Mao to counterattack could only despairingly curl up its body, whipping its tail wildly in mid-air, hoping the tail would catch a tree branch to temporarily change its body's trajectory and dodge the tracking arrow flying and twisting from side to side.

But at this very moment, the ground shook violently, and then Jier, following the hissing sound in the air, crashed heavily toward that direction.

The insidious tracking arrow hurriedly tried to dodge, but the limited time was not enough to fully avoid Jier's tall frame; the two metal fangs on the arrowhead still struck Jier's thigh, then twisted left and right, trying to drill inside.

Landing with a roll, Jier grabbed the strange arrow that had pierced the hard cowhide Armor on his thigh, then exerted force with his right hand and snapped it in half with a fierce crack.

When the cold, slick arrow broke into two pieces, it even emitted a desperate hiss.

This made the other tracking arrow Jier had previously obtained at his waist feel a sense of "the rabbit dying and the fox grieving," becoming even more docile.

The first ranged Mao Mao landed softly on the fallen leaves in the forest; it unfurled its curled-up body and touched itself in confusion, wondering why it hadn't been injured.

But by now, Jier could not spare the time to explain that he had just saved this Mao Mao's life; after forcibly snapping the strange arrow, he directly exploded with all the Life Energy in his body and charged forward with large strides.

By this time, the third ranged Mao Mao and Yongqi Maomao had roughly grasped the enemy's position and the trajectory of his movement between tree branches using the Rope.

They fired crossbow bolts from two different directions, left and right, flying rapidly toward the enemy in mid-air.

But the young Hunter saw everything clearly; he secretly spat in disdain, ignoring this ineffective attack entirely. With his left leg hooked and wrapped in the Rope, he braced his right leg against the tree trunk behind him. No longer attempting to swing, he pushed off the large tree, and having found a good point of leverage, he pulled a special arrow from the quiver on his back.

This was a special Magic Arrow that every renowned Refining Qi Hunter possessed only one of, and each Hunter's was different, entirely dependent on the Monsters and Magic Beasts the Hunters themselves hunted to create these Magic Arrows.

Such arrows were generally divided into three grades; the lowest grade was made using special materials from the bodies of powerful Monsters and Magic Beasts, carrying some of the special abilities of those Monsters and Magic Beasts.

Because the Monsters and Magic Beasts obtained by Hunters were all different, their power and effects were also different. Some were less powerful than an Armor-Piercing Heavy Arrow, while others far exceeded the former. Some had strange and bizarre abilities, while others were particularly dangerous.

This was already very powerful, yet it was only the lowest grade of Magic Arrow made by Church Priests for Refining Qi Hunters.

The next level up, the Intermediate Magic Arrow, was similar to the tracking arrow; it required a powerful Spirit to be infused into the foundation of a low-grade Magic Arrow. Generally speaking, whatever Monster or Magic Beast it was, its body materials were used to make the arrow, and then its Spirit was infused at the same time.

Such Magic Arrows could mostly unleash the full power of the most formidable special move the Monster or Magic Beast had in life, often possessing the special qualification to end a battle.

Interestingly, most Refining Qi Hunters, during the hunting process, when victory was certain, used these Magic Arrows to deliver the final blow to the Monster or Magic Beast they were about to defeat. In any case, after killing the Monster or Magic Beast, they could still make a new Magic Arrow, and it could also avoid the enemy's final desperate attack, steering clear of fatal danger to the Hunter.

As for the highest grade of Magic Arrow, it was built upon the foundation of the first two, with the Church Priests who made the Magic Arrows collectively performing a Divine Art to imbue the already powerful Magic Arrow with the mighty power of the God of Hunting.

This grade of Magic Arrow was extremely rare; only very well-known Hunters could obtain the permission of the Church and the gods to gain the qualification to make and use such Magic Arrows.

In some widely circulated heroic legends, this most powerful type of Magic Arrow was often the final means by which those heroes made a desperate counterattack to defeat powerful enemies.

Among the more well-known deeds in recent years, there was the 【Arrow of Depriving Light】 used by the Justice Knight Cuisipa during the Great Holy War for the gods' struggle for Faith. It was said that once this arrow was fired, the entire battlefield could not see light for nearly half a month, and everyone who walked into the range of the arrow's power could only fight desperately in close quarters in an environment where they could not see their own fingers.

Another instance was several decades ago during the "rebellion suppression" war on the southern border of the Empire, when a certain Empire General fired an 【Arrow of the Underworld Passage】 he had prepared in advance, forcibly opening a passage to the Underworld in front of the hundreds of thousands of Undead Freedom Army organized with the support of the Southern Magic Society.

The hundreds of thousands of undead army all fell apart as a result, their spirits forcibly sucked into the deep Underworld.

This move caused the undead army that the Magic Society had painstakingly organized to disappear, forcing them to negotiate a ceasefire with the equally exhausted Empire Army.

Of course, having said that, this young Hunter's Magic Arrow certainly did not have that astonishing power; he had not yet participated in any hunting operation to kill a Magic Beast. This Magic Arrow he cherished was merely the lowest-grade Magic Arrow made from the body materials of a Monster.

Not only was it the lowest grade of Magic Arrow, but the materials used were not from a Magic Beast, but from a Monster. It could be considered one of the most basic and common types of Magic Arrows.

But this did not mean its power was insufficient; on the contrary, this Magic Arrow made from a Man-eating Flower was simply too easy to use to kill a single enemy.

The Man-eating Flower was a type of Monster plant common in the Swamp Region of the Kingdom's Central Province, which liked to suck the blood of animals that passed by it.

When it was a small flower, it was no different from a mosquito bite; because the flower's fangs contained blood-activating components, it was actually quite effective for elderly people in treating blood vessel blockage diseases.

But if one accidentally let this Monster grow up, the several-meter-tall flower would crawl in the Swamp like a worm, hunting various mindless wild beasts attracted by its floral scent, as well as boat-rowing fishermen who were unlucky enough to encounter them.

After the Monster was defeated and made into a Magic Arrow, it was red and green overall, the arrow was light, the fletching was a pair of emerald green leaves that could adjust and sway at any time, while the arrow shaft was the stem of the Man-eating Flower, densely covered with tiny barbs and fangs, and the very tip was the arrowhead, which was a beautiful little flower bud.

It looked as beautiful as a work of art, but once the flower arrowhead was fired and hit the enemy's body, this flower bud would bite the enemy's body tightly, using an extremely powerful suction force to draw all the blood from the enemy's body out through the arrow shaft.

Finally, it would be sprayed out through the hole at the end of the arrow.

After the young Hunter defeated the Man-eating Flower, he had the Priest of his superior make a total of two of these Magic Arrows; he used the first one to defeat a Forest Violent Bear. That man-sized man-eating bear finally died on a patch of grass with a withered body. That stupid fellow thought a human arrow was not dangerous, and as a result, he was carelessly shot in the back by the young man crawling in the tree.

The Forest Violent Bear's blood dyed the entire patch of grass red.

This made the young Hunter very confident in his Magic Arrow.

He believed that the young Knight not far away, who was colluding with a foreign god, would also bleed to death in a moment.