Chapter 86: Top-Tier Archer

Chapter 86: Chapter 86: Top-Tier Archer

"It’s still a no!" Jianng Hongfei continued to shake his head.

"Trash!" Lu Yuan cursed.

"What did you say?" Jianng Hongfei’s eyebrows instantly shot up. Lu Yuan actually dared to curse at him?

"Look!" Lu Yuan took out the Wind Thunder Saber and let Jianng Hongfei take a look.

"A Profound Weapon!" Jianng Hongfei knew his stuff and immediately spotted the runic traces on it.

His gaze toward Lu Yuan changed drastically. He thought, "I knew he was a ’Small Silver Coins’! How could he suddenly agree to move the duel up? It turns out he borrowed a Profound Weapon. With a Profound Weapon’s help, one slash can easily break Sunx Jin’s defense, and maybe even..."

"Fine, I agree, but I want a fifty-fifty split!"

"Thirty-seventy. It can only be thirty-seventy," Lu Yuan said, shaking his head with a firm attitude.

"It’s a guaranteed win!

"You still have to borrow the Jianng Family’s name. Could you even pull this off without me?" Jianng Hongfei refused to yield an inch.

"Without you, I can just go find Su the Ninth," Lu Yuan said, curling his lips.

"Him? Do you think he’d play along with you?

"Do you think you have the qualifications to make him play along? Does he look like he’s short on this bit of money?" Jianng Hongfei scoffed. A young master from the Grand General’s Mansion didn’t lack such a small amount and would certainly look down on him.

"I can negotiate with him. Young Master Su will provide the name, and Liu Zhi will act as the mastermind. We can give him thirty or forty percent of the cut in the end.

"Would he really turn down tens of thousands of taels of silver for free? After all, he has nine brothers in his family," Lu Yuan said confidently.

Jianng Hongfei’s expression shifted. It was indeed possible. Resources within large families were not infinite and were allocated based on talent and ability. Only the most outstanding individual would receive the maximum amount of resources and the most dedicated grooming.

"Forty-sixty split. I won’t take any less."

"Deal!" Lu Yuan readily extended a hand.

Jianng Hongfei’s expression changed. He felt like he had taken a loss again.

"Deal!" he said.

"Lu Yuan!" Chen Qiang suddenly appeared, looking displeased. "I was only gone for a day, and you’ve already caused more trouble? Don’t think you can handle Sunx Jin just because you got lucky and killed a High Tier Eighth Grade martial artist."

"Calm down! Calm down!" Lu Yuan quickly placated him. "Squad Leader Chen, it’s about time you fulfill your promise, right?"

"What promise?" Chen Qiang paused.

"We agreed earlier that if I mastered the Nine Glories of Archery, you would have the Squadron Commander assign me a Strong Bow. It’s time to cash that in. I need it urgently!" Lu Yuan reminded him.

"You... mastered it?" Chen Qiang asked in astonishment, finding it unbelievable. How many days had it been, and he had already mastered it? Was this for real?

"How else did I help you last time?" Lu Yuan countered.

"Well..." Chen Qiang’s gaze wavered. He hadn’t had the time to observe carefully during their last encounter. He assumed Lu Yuan merely had precise archery skills, or perhaps had reached a minor stage of proficiency, relying mostly on the power of the Eight-Ton Bow. He never imagined that Lu Yuan had fully mastered the Nine Glories of Archery and the Nine-Star Linked Beads.

"Did you really achieve full mastery?"

"Of course, would I lie to you?

"Otherwise, would I have dared to move the duel up and fight Sunx Jin right now?" Lu Yuan spread his hands.

"But it’s only been a few days..." Chen Qiang was somewhat dazed, feeling as though Lu Yuan was pulling his leg. Or perhaps, Lu Yuan had already been close to mastering it, and the Nine Shining Arrow Technique Secret Manual was merely the final threshold.

"The number of days isn’t the point; the point is that I’ve actually mastered it.

"I urgently need an Eight-Ton Strong Bow and arrows right now, so..." Lu Yuan held out his hand.

"An Eight-Ton Bow!" Chen Qiang clicked his tongue.

An Eight-Ton Bow cost several hundred to a thousand taels of silver. Of course, the squadron had a quota. If a top-tier Archer truly emerged, they could request the Bureau to issue one. It would be an exclusive weapon belonging entirely to the Archer, meaning there would be no need to borrow from the Armory anymore.

"Let’s go, come with me to find the Squadron Commander," Chen Qiang decided decisively. If it were true, they had to issue him one. This was an excellent opportunity to bolster their team’s strength.

The two went to find Qin Gang. Qin Gang happened to be in today.

"Lu Yuan..." Qin Gang examined Lu Yuan seriously. "Have you truly mastered the Nine Glories of Archery?"

"I wouldn’t dare lie," Lu Yuan said, clasping his fist. "My eyesight is sharp. I can clearly see a fly from a thousand meters away."

This was a type of archery talent.

"Oh?" Qin Gang’s interest was piqued as he glanced outside. "Then tell me, what are the colors of the beaks on those three little birds on that roof?"

Following his line of sight, there were three irregularly spaced houses of varying heights. The furthest and tallest building was over eight hundred meters away, and there were five small birds perched on it.

Lu Yuan took a single glance. "Yellow. All five of them are yellow."

It was noon, and the sun was blazingly bright. Any reflective surfaces inherently carried a tint of yellow. However, this didn’t stump him.

"Not bad," Qin Gang nodded with a smile. "It seems our squadron has indeed gained a top-tier Archer.

"Good! Very good!"

"That’s fantastic!" Chen Qiang rejoiced. Now that the Squadron Commander had verified it, there was no mistake.

"About that bow and arrow..." Lu Yuan reminded them.

"We’ll issue them!" Qin Gang waved his large hand without any hesitation. This was a great boon for the entire squadron; how could he refuse?

"Thank you, Squadron Commander." Lu Yuan finally smiled as well.

"However..." Qin Gang’s expression suddenly shifted. "Your duel with Sunx Jin is canceled.

"An Archer excels in long-range attacks. You are no match for Sunx Jin in close combat!"

Archers were at their strongest when they maintained their distance. Once an enemy closed in, everything changed. If Lu Yuan wanted to defeat Sunx Jin, it was best to keep him at least two hundred meters away. Otherwise, his chances of winning were less than twenty percent, perhaps even less than ten.

"I am confident!" Lu Yuan’s gaze was firm.

"Oh?" Qin Gang’s eyes flickered, thinking of the person backing Lu Yuan. "Really? How confident?"

"One hundred percent!" Lu Yuan was brimming with confidence.

"One hundred percent!" Chen Qiang was the first to cry out in alarm. How could that be? He hadn’t been this confident a moment ago, but now...

"One hundred percent..." Qin Gang was also surprised. One hundred percent meant absolute certainty. He scrutinized Lu Yuan carefully but couldn’t discern what his trump card was.

"Are you sure?"

"I’m sure! I wouldn’t joke about my own safety and future," Lu Yuan said with a calm and open expression.

"Alright, I’ll go find you a bow." Qin Gang smiled and headed straight for the door. "Let’s go check the Craft Workshop first. If they have one, I’ll give it to you right away. If not, we’ll go to the Armory and retrieve one for temporary use."

With a Squadron Commander stepping in, the authority involved was entirely different. Lu Yuan would be able to borrow it for a long period of time.

"The Craft Workshop..." Lu Yuan smiled. He thought, "It would be best if Yan Qing takes this job. I can rest assured of the quality, and he can earn Contribution Points. It’s killing two birds with one stone."

"I know a Craftsman in there named Yan Qing," he said aloud.

"Oh?" Qin Gang gave Lu Yuan a look of surprise. This kid hadn’t been at the Demon Suppression Bureau for long, yet he actually knew Master Yan. "Craftsman Yan Qing is not an ordinary man. Whenever he takes action, it’s bound to be an Upper Grade Profound Weapon. However, he generally doesn’t forge Mortal Weapons."

"He will forge mine." Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes. Forging a Mortal Weapon was fast and would only take an hour. The main issue was gathering materials from the Demon Suppression Bureau; otherwise, he could forge it himself.

"Then it’s up to you." Qin Gang was intrigued. How exactly did this kid befriend Yan Qing? It seemed their relationship was rather unusual.

"By the way, Sunx Jin knows we are investigating the Sunx Family’s collusion with the Evil Cult. We might need to move our operation up," Lu Yuan suddenly added. "After my duel with him, it will be time to make the arrest!"