The maidservants in the inner courtyard hurriedly moved, their footsteps light and silent on the ground. They carried white paper to the dedicated training ground for archery and laid out a one-meter square sheet of paper beside Li Guanyi, then presented him with the finest writing tools.
Li Guanyi picked up a brush and moistened it on the inkstone.
He then began to write down formulas, arranging various data on one side.
The originally assumed symbols were replaced with characters such as heaven, earth, and man.
His calligraphy had been taught by his aunt; during times of poverty, he had written with his finger dipped in water on stone tables and with a twig on damp sand, always managing to leave a mark. At this moment, as his characters appeared, the sounds of idle chatter around him quieted down.
Oh? He really has some skill.
Many people gathered around Li Guanyi.
Some curious disciples of the Xue family ran out to call friends who were not present.
Teaching martial arts through numerology was something they had never seen before. Today, whether it was an eye-opener or just a spectacle, it would not be a bad thing.
Xue Shuangtao watched Li Guanyi, his eyes blinking slightly, curiosity rising in his heart, wondering how Li Guanyi would proceed.
Only Xue Changqing continued to draw his bow, shooting arrows tirelessly, even though he had not hit the target once. At only eight years old, despite practicing the Xue family's internal skills since childhood, his bow strength was insufficient, and his archery skills were lacking. The arrows fell around the target.
Those practicing archery here were all disciples of the Xue family.
Naturally, they all knew the situation of this young master of the Xue family. Now, with this numerology master making such bold claims, they were all curious, and deep down, unbeknownst to themselves, they harbored strong skepticism, even a hint of disdain.
This skepticism stemmed from their long-standing experiences.
Thus, the older they were, the more they rejected and resented it.
Archery was an extremely profound martial art!
To hit the target required hundreds or even thousands of practice shots.
They had all gone through this process.
How could it be determined by mere paper and brush?
The surrounding voices began to rise, and even whispers became noisy as more people gathered.
Li Guanyi raised his brush, glanced around at the curious gazes, and showed no signs of timidity. He simply placed the brush down and smiled, saying, "Alright, that's about enough."
Xue Changqing had shot many times without hitting the target and felt somewhat frustrated, saying:
"If you win, I will naturally obediently go back with you to learn numerology."
"Moreover... I can even give you a daily allowance!"
He lifted his head, puffed out his chest, "I’ll increase the money!"
"But what if you lose?"
Li Guanyi smiled and replied, "If I lose, then I won’t force you to learn. How about that?"
Xue Changqing's eyes lit up, saying, "It's a deal!"
After a pause, he should have been excited and looking forward to not having to learn numerology, but when he thought about it, if Li Guanyi won, wouldn’t that mean he could really use numerology to help him hit the target? That would also be a happy thing, right?
For a moment, he didn’t know whether to hope Li Guanyi would win or lose.
Amidst this complex emotion, Li Guanyi had Xue Changqing draw the bow while he remained seated, determining the angle and direction. He estimated and said, "The arrowhead should be three fingers up, hmm, slightly down, that’s good."
"Draw the bow fully, shoot."
So simple?!
Is he playing me?!
Xue Changqing’s fingers instinctively loosened.
The arrow was shot out.
The others laughed and watched the spectacle. When shooting arrows, elders would usually stand beside their disciples to help stabilize their stance; the angle of the shot depended on feel, how could it be done just by watching?
Indeed unreliable, even the young lady was deceived by this person.
Just a kid...
With a dull thud, the Xue family warriors' thoughts became focused.
The previously low murmurs converged into a noisy chatter.
At this moment, there was a sudden silence.
The change was too great.
One could even hear the faint trembling sound of the arrow's tail after it struck the target.
Xue Shuangtao's eyes widened slightly as he looked at the arrow that had hit the target, then turned to the young man, a glimmer of surprise flashing in his eyes. Xue Changqing, in disbelief, stared at the arrow, murmuring, "I... I hit it?!"
"I hit it!"
"Sister, I hit it!!!"
The Xue family disciples discussed among themselves, their eyes filled with surprise, disbelief, and some thinking it was just luck, a mix of reactions.
Li Guanyi was about to rise when his movement paused slightly.
A warm current flowed through his chest.
The bronze cauldron hummed, and the jade liquid had silently begun to increase, indicating... Li Guanyi raised his head slightly, not seeing the old man, but it seemed he could hear the low growl of a tiger's throat, a tiger paw the size of a lion's head pressing beside him.
Heaven knows how he discerned both elegance and laziness from this simple action.
The blue-clad youth sat cross-legged, his gaze showing no ripples.
Around him lay the spread-out white paper, on which clear and powerful characters were written. A massive, majestic white tiger paced around the young man, its tail slightly raised like a long whip, its blue eyes fixed on Li Guanyi.
The ancestor of the Xue family had arrived.
Li Guanyi retracted his earlier intention of letting Xue Changqing hit the target and then stopping.
When the fish is hooked, one must use heavy bait.
He picked up the brush again, calmly calculating, and suddenly said, "Draw the bow and nock the arrow."
The Xue family disciples, who had just begun to discuss and argue, were taken aback, looking at each other.
Hadn't he already hit the target? What more did he want to do?
Only Xue Changqing obediently followed, excitedly drawing the bow. Li Guanyi observed, confirmed the angle, and simply explained. Xue Changqing released the bowstring, and this time the arrow struck the tail of the previous arrow, splitting the fletching of the first arrow.
A sixteen-year-old disciple of the Xue family murmured, "…连珠 (Lian Zhu)?"
连珠, or "string of pearls," tests not the power but the skill and precision.
Some people can shoot a boulder with one arrow, but asking them to shoot in a连珠 manner is quite difficult, focusing on sheer strength, while this advanced technique appeared in a child who couldn’t even hit the target half an hour ago.
Li Guanyi said again, "Draw the bow, nock the arrow."
Xue Changqing shot two more arrows, both hitting the fletching of the previous arrow, four arrows connected, for mathematics and physics, as long as the parameters are determined, the results will be the same. Li Guanyi could only marvel at how different a martial artist was, able to ensure the stability of their shots.
The rest of the Xue family, however, were in disbelief.
Xue Shuangtao's voice rang clear, "参连 (Can Lian)."
The first arrow is shot, followed by three arrows in succession, each arrow connected, like pearls strung together.
This was a test of skill among the six arts of a gentleman, assessing not the power of the arrows but the control of precision.
They were deeply shaken, and the disbelief in their eyes vanished completely.
Li Guanyi dipped the brush in ink again, saying lightly, "Draw the bow, nock the arrow."
The Xue family disciples instinctively tensed up.
More?!
Three more arrows were shot.
This time, the arrows formed a cross pattern with the first arrow.
Xue Shuangtao's eyes brightened, whispering, "井仪 (Jing Yi)."
Four arrows aligned, resembling the form of a well.
This was also a five-shot assessment in archery.
Only the sound of arrows piercing the air could be heard.
【Hit the target】
【String of pearls】
【Can Lian】
【Well form】
In the Xue family training ground, there was complete silence, only the faint sound of Xue Changqing's breathing. Li Guanyi said calmly:
"Draw the bow, nock the arrow."
The Xue family disciples held their breath.
For some reason, they suddenly felt that the young man sitting cross-legged over there had become extraordinarily tall, and the calmness of his voice, unchanged in tone, carried an indescribable sense of overwhelming pressure that made them feel breathless.
Only Xue Changqing was extremely excited, immediately drawing the bow and nocking the arrow, while Li Guanyi confirmed the angle.
He lowered his gaze, seeming to calculate something, saying, "Release the arrow."
The arrow shot out.
It spun through the previously filled target, hitting the bullseye steadily, the force seemingly enough to pierce through the already fragile target.
For a long while, there was no sound, and Li Guanyi lifted his brush.
The Xue family disciples all changed color.
The young man calmly placed the brush on the stand.
Xue Changqing asked, "Master, are we not practicing anymore?"
What more is there to practice? Your hands are already trembling.
Li Guanyi shook his head, saying, "There's no ink left."
Only then did the Xue family disciples notice that the ink in front of the young man had dried up.
At that moment, the main gate suddenly opened.
Outside was the vast blue sky, and an old man with white hair entered. The wind blew, causing the white paper filled with ink characters beside the blue-clad youth to flutter. The young man remained seated, his expression still calm, with no ink stains on his clothes or hands.
"Hahaha, what a numerology master, truly talented beyond measure."
The disciples of the Xue family displayed expressions of respect and admiration.
"Ancestor!"
Xue Changqing ran up quickly with his bow and arrows, "Grandfather, grandfather, I hit it! I did it, you must teach me the 神弓一十三式 (Divine Bow Thirteen Techniques)!"
The old man laughed heartily, reaching out to ruffle his grandson's hair, affectionately saying, "Good, good, good! My Changqing is also a great talent. It seems that in this generation, my family's 【破云震天弓】 (Breaking Cloud Shocking Heaven Bow), which has been sealed for over a hundred and thirty years, finally has someone who can wield it."
《神弓一十三式》
【破云震天弓】?
Li Guanyi was curious and stood to pay his respects.
The jade liquid in the bronze cauldron had warmed to more than half.
Unfortunately, Xue Changqing had reached his limit; otherwise, Li Guanyi could have delayed a bit longer. However, it wouldn’t be good to harm the child for this, but reaching seventy percent was enough. There would be more time, and in a month, he would surely succeed.
The old man looked at him, admiration in his eyes, saying:
"Young Master Li, truly impressive skills."
Li Guanyi replied, "It’s just numerology."
The old man laughed, "Just numerology? I have never heard of such numerology; I am quite curious."
He thought for a moment and said, "I wonder if I could take a stroll and chat with you for a while?"
Li Guanyi looked at the old man and the white tiger beside him.
The old man appeared calm, but from the face of the white tiger's manifestation, a hint of curiosity could be seen. Li Guanyi pondered; the manifestation seemed less capable of hiding emotions than the true form, lacking the depth and cunning. He composed himself and smiled, replying:
"Of course."
At this moment, the jade liquid in the bronze cauldron had reached seventy percent.
(End of Chapter)