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Chapter 70: Super Right Leg (2)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Although an immense strength was applied onto her, but Shangguan Bing'er was not torn into shreds by Zhou Weiqing as she expected, instead he grasped onto her shoulders, and hugged her closely.

Shangguan Bing'er was being choked by his grasp, and was gasping for breath; Zhou Weiqing's body was fiery hot, and she could feel it clearly even through the internal armor. Furthermore, his whole body was shivering constantly, and the heat was being transmitted to Shangguan Bing'er who was also starting to feel hotter. In her mind, she was subconsciously remembering that embarrassing day, he… he… shouldn't be doing that again…

Xiao Ru Se was also rather shocked at the side, in her heart she mused: This boy has turned bad…

Actually, what Xiao Ru Se did not know was that in the instance that Shangguan Bing'er appeared, Zhou Weiqing who had been semiconscious then had subconsciously grabbed hold and hugged Shangguan Bing'er totally by instinct. As he hugged her, he instantly felt a cooling breath flood into his body from her, allowing his dazed state of mind to slowly awaken; although his body was still in extreme pain, but that tyrannical, cruel and crazy mood actually started to subside.

The reason for his present condition was naturally once again the black pearl that he had swallowed. The black pearl was not from this world, and the vast amounts of energy it contained was comparable to that of those top Heavenly Jewel Masters in this world. Although Zhou Weiqing had already went through the process of absorption once, and Awakened his Heavenly Jewels in that process, but it had by no means been able completely absorbed. Earlier on, while he was fighting with Xiao Ru Se, he had almost totally exhausted his own Heavenly Energy. In addition to that, he had a strong innermost feeling to of wanting to grow stronger, and that combined had caused the black pearl to act up once again, starting the process of them fusing for the second time.

As compared to the previous time when he had Awoken his Heavenly Jewels, this round of fusing was much lighter. The main reason that he felt the extreme pain in his body was because the energy in the black Pearl was actually improving and evolving his body forcefully, his bones, meridians, muscles, flesh and blood were all going through changes of varying degrees, it was as if he was having his bones broken and re-knit together in a unique way, how could this not be painful? Luckily, Shangguan Bing'er's appearance had allowed him to stabilize his feelings, otherwise Zhou Weiqing might have actually gone crazy.

Zhou Weiqing had taken Shangguan Bing'er as a sacrifice to Awaken his Heavenly Jewels, therefore Shangguan Bing'er's aura was very complementary and linked in some degree to himself. When he hugged Shangguan Bing'er, their auras merged, and the power from both her Heavenly Jewels helped alleviate his pain and stabilize him, allowing his state of mind to sober up. This was the factor that pulled him back from the brink of danger.

*Peng* Zhou Weiqing fell down while still hugging Shangguan Bing'er, his whole body pressing down onto her, almost causing this delicate and exquisite young girl to faint from lack of air. The strangest thing was that his right leg was still curled in a weird angle, although the sounds of bones breaking and moving had obviously lessened.

Both of Shangguan Bing'er's hands fell on Zhou Weiqing's waist, at first to push and resist him, but now they fell into an embrace as their bodies were just too close together. Zhou Weiqing's unique manly scent1 as well as that strong dark aura were mixed together, causing Shangguan Bing'er to feel rather giddy. Although being crushed together with him almost made her faint, but a strange feeling also arose in her heart.

He, he won't do that, that again right? Xiao Se is still at the side too! Suddenly, Shangguan Bing'er felt both ashamed and angry, but Zhou Weiqing's strength was too great, how could she possibly break free?

Luckily, this time, Zhou Weiqing was not doing anything untoward like she imagined, but was only hugging her. Time seemed to stand still, as Xiao Ru Se stood at the side staring dumbfoundedly at them. However, Zhou Weiqing's heavy breathing started to return to normal, the muscles reducing, sounds from his meridians and bones were also gradually quieting down.

Zhou Weiqing's face was pasted right to Shangguan Bing'er's cool tender little face, making her feel constant intermittent gusts of heat emitting from him, though the anxious feelings in her heart had started to relax. He did not violate me, he did not violate me luckily. In Shangguan Bing'er heart she was thinking like that, but she also discovered that this time it felt rather different when Zhou Weiqing was holding her, and she did not feel as repelled as before, but instead had a feeling of being protected, as if that big and tall body would defend her and bring her safety.

Zhou Weiqing's right leg which had been awkwardly arched upwards finally came down slowly, and as it fell down onto Shangguan Bing'er's leg, all the sounds of bones moving and breaking also stopped, and the black tattoos on his body disappeared as well.

"That really hurt." Zhou Weiqing let out a sigh of relief as he slowly opened his eyes, the bloodshot colour had also resided by now, as did the intense pain earlier. What replaced it was an extremely comfortable feeling, as if his whole body was full charged with energy, each and every cell glowing with vigor. It felt as if there was something different with his body, although he could not tell what the difference was exactly. The only feeling he had now was that there was something soft and substantial in his arms.

He subconsciously tightened his arms, moving his body around, and felt that the soft and pillowy object pressed against his body was extremely comfortable, as if it were made to be melded against his, and his heart was indeed full of satisfaction, as he even rubbed his face against it.

"En." A soft cry shocked Zhou Weiqing awake, causing him to finally look up, only to see Shangguan Bing'er with both her eyes shut tightly, that movingly beautiful and tender face so close to his own.

"Errr.. Battalion Commander, why did you run into my arms?" Zhou Weiqing asked in surprise2.

Only then did Shangguan Bing'er realise that he had recovered his state of mind, and she quickly opened her eyes, saying in embarrassed anger: "Let me go now!"

A look of vigilance flashed through Zhou Weiqing's eyes as he said: "I'm not letting you go unless you promise not to hit me."

"You…" Shangguan Bing'er nearly fainted from anger, what made her most helpless was that as Zhou Weiqing recovered his senses, she could feel something below prodding her 'unmentionables'3.

"Oi oi, if you guys want to flirt with each other, you should find a place where no one else is around?" Xiao Ru Se's exasperated voice sounded out. This time though she had finally used her female voice.

"Ah! Ru Se Elder Sis, you are here!" Zhou Weiqing realized that Xiao Ru Se was still at the side, and quickly let loose of Shangguan Bing'er, jumping to his feet and darting sideways to hide behind Xiao Ru Se.

Shangguan Bing'er was breathing rather heavily as she stood up, her beautiful face was deep red as she flushed bashfully. Furthermore, she was also shocked to find out that this short period of time that she had been hugged by Zhou Weiqing, her eighth level Heavenly Jing Energy had been drained by nearly half unexpectedly, and she did not even know when or how it had vanished.

Zhou Weiqing poked his head out from behind Xiao Ru Se, saying with a wronged looking face: "Battalion Commander, I really did not do anything intentionally. This absolutely is another misunderstanding."

Chapter 71: Super Right Leg (3)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Shangguan Bing'er gave a cold humph, taking a look at him, then at Xiao Ru Se. After the embarrassment in her heart had subsided after a while, she asked curiously: "You two?" She also knew that Zhou Weiqing's actions were not intentional and did not blame him.

Xiao Ru Se looked at the sky innocently, as if she had nothing to do with the situation. Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: "I was chatting and comparing notes with Company Leader Xiao after our fight earlier, and we realised that we were actually childhood playmates. Right after that, some problems occurred with my body…"

"But, I just heard you call her elder sis a moment ago!"

Zhou Weiqing looked at Xiao Ru Se's eyes, and saw the warning in them, and immediately understood, saying: "Battalion Commander, don't you think that Company Leader Xiao looks like a pretty girl? When we were young he already looked like that, therefore all our friends called him Elder Sis. It is his nickname." 1

Shangguan Bing'er's breathing gradually stabilised and she said solemnly: "So what happened to you earlier? Why did you suddenly go crazy again?"

Zhou Weiqing said helplessly: "I don't know either! All of a sudden my body started turning cold, and then my whole body was struck with severe pain, after that I don't really recall what happened clearly."

Shangguan Bing'er thought about it for a while, and all of her sudden her expression changed, and she exclaimed: "Could it be the Demonic Change?"

Both Zhou Weiqing and Xiao Ru Se revealed a surprised look on their faces, asking at the same time: "What is the Demonic Change?"

Shangguan Bing'er said: "Zhou Little Fatty, don't you remember? I was telling you about Heavenly Jewel Masters like you who Awaken with the Evil Attribute, which can cause them to have an unstable mental state, and they may eventually turn into a mentally unstable Evil Heavenly Jewel Master?" 2

Zhou Weiqing nodded and said: "I remember! However, you mentioned that those were due to Awakening their Heavenly Jewels, and they usually killed those close to them, normally family members. They definitely do not have my self-control."

Shangguan Bing'er's face reddened, as she actually had no way of refuting his words. Indeed, if Zhou Weiqing did not have sufficient self-control, she would have already died that day, becoming a genuine sacrifice to his Heavenly Jewel's Awakening.

"I heard that amongst those Heavenly Jewel Masters who have the Evil Attribute, some are especially formidable; when their spirit receives a provocation or their body reaches some sort of limit, they enter a special state called the Demonic Change. In the Demonic Change State, these Heavenly Jewel Masters enter a berserk state, receiving a massive short term increase of strength and power, but their state of mind is longer stable even awake, becoming a mindless killing machine. Because their existence was deemed too dangerous, the Skill-Storing Palace of the various large Empires in the world united a collective manhunt to exterminate these Heavenly Jewel Masters, massacring most of them but at a huge loss to themselves as well. From then on, there has never been any news of Heavenly Jewel Masters who have the ability to enter the Demonic Change State."

Xiao Ru Se's expression changed upon hearing the news and she said: "Little… Little Fatty, I will bring you home." In her anxiety, she had almost called Zhou Weiqing by his given name.

Zhou Weiqing naturally understood her meaning; she wanted him to go home to be checked by his father for safety, but he quickly shook his head repeatedly, saying: "No, no, I do not want to go back. Battalion Commander, you are worrying too much, that was not the Demonic Change State earlier; if it were, I would have killed both of you! I can feel now that after I regained consciousness, my body has evolved somehow, I feel like I'm filled with massive strength, it should be a function of the black pearl that I swallowed. Perhaps it is just that the black pearl's power is too formidable, and I am unable to fully absorb it."

Shangguan Bing'er heard his explanation and relaxed slightly, but still said solemnly: "Little Fatty, you should always follow by my side from now on. At least, if anything bad happens, I can still help you restrain yourself. I do not know when that black pearl of yours can finally subside for good."

On hearing Shangguan Bing'er call his name directly, Zhou Weiqing was extremely delighted in his heart, immediately latching onto it and saying: "Bing'er, you can rest assured that I will never leave you."

Only then did Shangguan Bing'er realize her own improper word usage, her beautiful face flushing deep red and she quickly said: "Let's head back to the military compound. I've already helped you get your rank of Squad Leader, but you will still continue being my Personal Aide. Go back and pack your things, we will be heading to the front lines early in the morning tomorrow."

"Yes, Bing'er." Seeing that she had not refuted him when he called her name, especially doing so in front of Xiao Ru Se, the excitement in Zhou Weiqing's grew even further. This should be considered a huge step forward… right?

Xiao Ruse did not say anything further as well; having observed what had happened just now, she had realised that Zhou Weiqing's state had definitely taken an obvious turn for the better once he hugged Shangguan Bing'er, having him stay together with her would obviously be the best choice for now.

As night fell, the military compound outside the Heavenly Bow City was bustling with activity. For the Fifth Regiment, everyone from recruit to veteran, were packing their luggage after finishing their dinner. They had to prepare everything so that they could move off in the early morning after tearing down their tents, and head to the front lines. Only after experiencing real combat on the battlefield would a recruit be considered a veteran, and this would be their only stage in the near future.

Zhou Weiqing was one of the few idle people around; Shangguan Bing'er was especially busy tonight since she was the overall in charge responsible for the entire recruitment this time. Since he had nothing much left to do, he was taking a stroll around the military compound after dinner, as he tried to feel out the changes in his body.

After dinner and some rest, the Heavenly Energy in his body had been basically restored, fully showing the superiority in terms of recovery of the Immortal Deity Technique. He also discovered that his total Heavenly Energy had only increased a little after the events in the woods, unlike the instantaneous massive increase of four stages like when he first Awakened his Heavenly Jewels. However, the greatest change would be the raw physical strength of his body; after coming back, Zhou Weiqing had tried the Purple Dawn Bow once again before returning it to Shangguan Bing'er. He found that he did not need to even apply much strength before almost breaking it. This was purely using physical strength alone!

At the same time, Zhou Weiqing kept feeling that there was something strange about his right leg, especially when he moved his right leg, he discovered something very different.

When he lifted his right leg, he found that it could instantaneously rise above the top of his head unexpectedly; the most mysterious and surprising thing was that he could now lift it behind and beyond his head! Such amazing flexibility, it might even be beyond those Heavenly Jewel Masters who had the Flexible Physical Attribute! Alas, it was only his right leg which had such a change, when he tried his left leg, it did not have the same effect. Furthermore, Zhou Weiqing discovered that his right leg's strength and speed had increased manifold, which was why he felt it had such difference compared with all the other parts of his body.

Alas, at least for now, the change to his right leg was not of any advantage to Zhou Weiqing, and in fact was somewhat detrimental. When he walked normally, it was still relatively alright, but once he started running, he found that the strength of his right leg was too great, the moment he exerted any strength, his whole body would leap forward, causing him to lose his balance. It would probably take some time for him to adapt and get used to it.

Looking at the busy soldiers around him, Zhou Weiqing stood firmly on the ground with only his left leg supporting him, then lifted his right leg and gave out a few kicks into the air. His right leg blurred in the air rapidly, causing several afterimages through its sheer speed, and there was also a faint shrill sound generated in the air, It was as if his entire right leg was boneless, and he could kick from any angle.

Chapter 72: Super Right Leg (4)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Zhou Weiqing couldn't help but grumble a little in his mind. Even if it is evolution of the body, you should at least let me evolve both legs together right? What's up with this evolving of just one leg? It doesn't seem to be easy to control the strength of just the right leg alone.

During dinner time, Shangguan Bing'er had told him that she needed to go to the military headquarters to report the results of this recruitment drive, and also to freight over a large batch of grain and fodder which had been prepared beforehand. The Fifth Regiment would then be returning with a military strength of about two Battalions; that was not just for the new recruits, but also mostly to escort the rations to the front lines. Since they were moving out early in the morning tomorrow morning, Shangguan Bing'er naturally had to handle the matter as the commanding officer1.

Head back to cultivate? Zhou Weiqing mused about what to do, then inspiration struck him. He decided to check in with his Ru Se Elder Sister first.

For military officers of the rank of Company Leader, they already had their own individual tents. Earlier today after they had returned, Xiao Ru Se had told him where her tent was. At this time, since he was idle, he strolled leisurely to outside of Xiao Ru Se's tent, and from outside he could see that the light was shining from within.

If it were any other common soldier, or perhaps even any military officers, they would offer a greeting from outside before entering, but Zhou Weiqing did not care about that. He pulled up the tent flap and walked in directly.

As soon as he entered the tent, he was startled, as the first thing he saw was a head of soft black long hair, with the hair reaching the waist and almost covering the back. The owner of the long black hair heard the sound of the tent flap opening and turned around. Naturally, it was Xiao Ru Se.

When she turned her head, Zhou Weiqing immediately saw that she had been unwrapping a strip of white cloth with its width of approximately one foot, and the cloth strip was encircled around her upper body in an unknown amount of rounds. Although her key positions were currently still covered, but her shoulders, arms and also her slender waist were all exposed to him completely.

As compared to her valiant looking appearance when wearing men's clothing, the Xiao Ru Se now was full of a different kind of special attraction. She was 20 years old now, and her physical growth was naturally better compared to Shangguan Bing'er now. Currently, she was only wearing a pair of long pants, from her slim waist downwards in an astonishing arc that made Zhou Weiqing swallowed hard as he stared with widened eyes, staring at her steadily.

Originally, Xiao Ru Se had a scare when someone entered, but when she turned around to see that it was Zhou Weiqing, she gave a sigh of relief as she blushed, before she said angrily: "Why didn't you call out before you come in! Sit at the side, don't peep!"

"Errr… Elder Sis, isn't it uncomfortable to bind yourself like that everyday? It will affect your growth as well!" Zhou Weiqing said primly.

"Bah, what does a kid like you know? Do you think I really want to do this? It is really too hard for a woman to do well in the army, that is why I dressed up as a man to do so. Turn around! If you keep looking, be careful that I will latch onto you and depend on you. 2" As compared to Shangguan Bing'er's shyness, Xiao Ru Se was much bolder.

Zhou Weiqing grinned, and took a few steps forward instead, as if to get a better look, as he said: "Elder Sis, if you latch onto me, I will be more than happy!"

It was Xiao Ru Se's turn to be a little flustered, and she grabbed the clothes beside her and threw them at Zhou Weiqing. "You dare tease your Sister like that? Don't you want your Bing'er anymore? Be careful or I will tell on you. Turn your head around quickly, or tomorrow I will go and tell Uncle Zhou that you ran off to the army to pick up chicks. Hmph, even taking advantage of her, you will see how Uncle Zhou will take care of you."

Zhou Weiqing shuddered involuntarily; the person he feared the most was his father, and it was as if he could see that gigantic palm brandished at him. He dared not continue teasing her and quickly turned around.

Looking at his fearful appearance, Xiao Ru Se couldn't help but burst out laughing, quickly stripping of the cloth strips binding her upper body, liberating the bountiful pair completely, and that was so comfortable that she couldn't help but sigh in happiness, causing Zhou Weiqing who was listening with his back turned to feel itchy in his heart.

"Alright, you can turn around now." Xiao Ru Se said with a laugh.

When Zhou Weiqing turned around again, she had already changed into a cotton garment, the flat chest earlier was now a bountiful mountain range, and in his heart he was musing: So big, how can this be, is it empty inside? From my estimation, it should be at least 36D… no, it is so pert, perhaps it is even an E cup…

Xiao Ru Se saw that Zhou Weiqing's eyes kept staring at her chest, and said exasperatedly: "Little Brat, you have really learnt the wrong things. Stop staring 3 around like that, let us bro and sis chat for a while, it's been so long. What are your future plans?"

Only then did Zhou Weiqing recover and he quickly said: "Naturally it is to enter the battlefield and kill our enemies, to forge a name and career for myself!"

Xiao Ru Se's brow furrowed and she said: "If it were before, Uncle Zhou would definitely be very happy if you did something like that. However, now…"

Zhou Weiqing was surprised, asking: "What about how?"

Xiao Ru Se said solemnly: "In truth, the situation is not optimistic for our empire. Little Wei, you must remember, what Shangguan Bing'er said was very right. No matter what happens, you must ensure that you do not expose your Heavenly Jewels. These few years, the situation on the front lines have been getting worse, Our Empire is surrounded by the Fei Li Empire on the north and northeastern borders, but since we are attached to the Fei Li Empire, we are saved from dispatching troops to guard those two borders. However, our main enemies come from the southern Kalise Empire. Further south from the Kalise Empire is the formidable Bai Da Empire."

"Just comparing our two empire's pure strength, we do not fear the Kalise Empire, and our land size even surpasses them. However, in recent years, the Kalise Empire's army has been growing in both quantity and quality, and they have gradually started to surpass us. If I am not wrong, I estimate that they are getting a lot of support from the Bai Da Empire."

This was the first time that someone had analyzed the political and military situation of the countries around to Zhou Weiqing, and he listened very intently before asking curiously: "Don't we also have the support of the Fei Li Empire?"

Xiao Ru Se shook her head gently and said: "The Fei Li empire and the Bai Da Empire are both great nations similar in terms of their overall strength. However, due to the difference in geographical position, it has also caused their national policies to be very different. The Bai Da Empire has a very wide land area, and they are situated in the southwest of the continent. As such, they do not need to face any threats from their Western and Southern fronts, as their backs are to the sea there. Even for them, to the East and the North, there are only a few other smaller countries who do not pose any threat to them. However, it is very different for the Fei Li Empire; to the North of the Fei Li Empire, there lies the formidable Wan Shou Empire 4. The pressure on them can be imagined. As such, the majority of Fei Li Empire's military and national strength is at the northern border to guard against the Wan Shou Empire. Although we are attached to the Fei Li empire, the support we get from them is very limited."

Zhou Weiqing saw the light and said: "I see, so that means that the Bai Da Empire is able to support the Kalise Empire constantly, thus allowing them to grow their military to surpass ours gradually? That's why the present war situation is in our disadvantage."

Xiao Ru Se nodded and said: "Exactly. The Wan Shou Empire occupies most of the vast northern land, and their entire land area is almost the sum of Bai Da Empire and Fei Li Empire. If not for the fact that the Wan Shou Empire is comprised out of many big tribes, and they are not of one mind, with also the additional fact that they have other threats from other borders, perhaps the Fei Li Empire would have already lost to them. As such, the prospects of our country is really getting more and more disadvantageous. It is lucky that we have Uncle Zhou around to deter the Kalise Empire. However, if this situation continues for a longer period of time, it will only get worse for our Empire."

Chapter 73: Demonic Right Leg (1)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

A cold light flashed in Zhou Weiqing's eyes and he said: "This is not something we can change. Caught between these two big empires, we have no route of escape. Perhaps others can run away, but both Elder Sis and I will never be able to do so. Godfather is a great king, and he has done much and made a lot of progress in governing and improving the country. Alas, our strength is just too small and weak. We can only take things a step at the time now and do our best."

Xiao Ru Se smiled faintly and gave a gratified nod: "It is good that you think like this, it makes elder sis very happy. Little Wei, we are alone here now, just us brother and sister. Although you are still young, there are some words that I want to remind you."

"What words?" Zhou Weiqing asked.

Xiao Ru Se said with a solemn look on her face: "If one day, when the war situation is just too disadvantageous, everyone or anyone can die for our country, but only you must not."

Zhou Weiqing was startled, "What, why?"

Xiao Ru Se's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly: "There is only hope when we live. You are different from any other person. You are His Majesty's Godson, and also the only son of Admiral Zhou. You have the rallying power in the Empire that no one else will have. More importantly, you are a Heavenly Jewel Master, someone with infinite potential and talent. I have also heard of the Alexandrite Cat's Eye, and it is something that exists in legend, an incomparably formidable Elemental Jewel. I believe that as long as you have the time, one day, you will have the ability to change the course of events. Do not think that elder sis is joking. Your cultivation now may be shallow and weak, and you was may not understand truly how terrifying Heavenly Jewel Masters can be. Heavenly Jewel Masters have always made impressive history in the continent, and the most recent one was approximately 15 years ago. A formidable Heavenly Jewel Master, for the sake of his beloved, charged alone into the Wan Shou Empire. Along the way, every road he took, every place he visited, he killed anyone who tried to stop him. When he arrived in the capital city of the Wan Shou Empire, the Wan Shou City, he had already killed thousands of Jewel Masters and Heavenly Beasts from the Wan Shou Empire. At last, when he finally arrive in front of the Emperor of the Wan Shou Empire, he got news that his beloved was not seized by the Wan Shou Empire, and just left without them being able to stop him. At that time, beside the Emperor, there were over a hundred Zong Level Physical and Elemental Jewel Masters, and more than 30 powerful Zong Level Heavenly Jewel Masters, yet nobody could stop him. It is said that this man had 11 sets of Heavenly Jewels."

As she told the story, Xiao Ru Se's eyes revealed a rapt, charmed look, perhaps even a slightly adoring look. "Little Wei, I believe that your talent is certainly comparable to that Senior, perhaps you must even surpass him. If one day, you can cultivate and reach his level, who would dare touch our Heavenly Bow Empire? Even if the empire is in crisis, you will be able to turn the tide then. I believe that you can do even better than Uncle Zhou in the future. Promise Elder Sis that no matter what happens in the future, you must always remain calm."

Zhou Weiqing nodded silently. For the first time since he was born, he felt a heavy weight upon his shoulders. This burden was placed there because his Heavenly Jewels had Awakened, but he would not flinch or shirk away. His natural disposition was to be free and uninhibited, but deep down his bones he was just as stubborn as his father Admiral Zhou.

Xiao Ru Se gave a smile and said: "Dumb kid, relax. Elder Sis was just pointing out the worst possible situation. With Uncle Zhou around, it will not be that easy for us to fall into such a situation. Anyway, I digress. What are you planning to do with Shangguan Bing'er? Don't forget, in the Heavenly Bow City there still is Difuya."

Zhou Weiqing curled his lip and said: "Difuya? Forget it. That girl, I will not be able to enjoy her. If not for the appearance of that black pearl, perhaps I would already have been killed by her. When I left home, didn't I leave a note to my father? There shouldn't be any issue."

Xiao Ru Se laughed as she said: "You are dreaming. Your father might agree without any issues, but do you think His Majesty will agree? Do you know how many times Uncle Zhou has accompanied His Majesty into danger, how many times he risked his life to rescue him? Even if you are not the talented Heavenly Jewel Master that you are now, and you were still the same as before, His Majesty would still force Difuya to marry you. Kings do not say things lightly after all."

Zhou Weiqing's face fell immediately, and he pleaded: "What can I do then? Elder sis, you must help me find a solution! You don't want me to suffer everyday facing Difuya, that proud chick with her eyes on top of her head, right?"

Xiao Ru Se gave a cold humph, "Ideas aren't free you know, shouldn't I get any reward?"

Zhou Weiqing grinned and said: "Heh, Elder Sis, if you are trying to fleece me, you have the wrong man. This little brother is totally cleaned out."

Xiao Ru Se said: "I don't want your money. Little Wei, how about this, if you accept one condition from me, I'll give you some advice."

Zhou Weiqing looked teasingly at Xiao Ru Se's beautiful face, "Kiss you again? That will be no problem!"

"Bah, you're asking for a beating again? Be serious! You must promise me, if some day you really become the pillar of the empire, you must support me in becoming the prime minister."

Zhou Weiqing stared in wide-eyed surprise at her. He had really never expected that the condition that Xiao Ru Se put forward would be that, and was struck dumbfounded for a moment. "Elder Sis, your ambition is really not small! You really have a desire for rank."

Xiao Ru Se gave a cold humph and said: "How could you, a little brat, understand? I just want to show that no matter what men can do, women can also do it equally well. I want to let the men of the world see the strength of women. On what basis do women have to stay at home to do housework, to only be able to assist the husband and teach the kids? Why is it that only men can have power and influence? My lifetime goal is to use my own skill and power to stand above men as well." 1

Zhou Weiqing gave her a big thumbs up, saying: "Now I truly understand the meaning of that saying Women's headdress not given to men. 2 Elder Sis, I support you! However, if you get married in the future, wouldn't there be a lot of pressure?"

Xiao Ru Se gave another cold humph: "When I started practicing archery, I already promised myself that I would not marry my entire life. Why should I waste my energy on men? I have many things that I want to accomplish. At most, I'll find a man to have a child with in the future, then kick him away!"

Zhou Weiqing blinked, "Elder Sis, how about this? Instead of giving the advantage to others, why not let me have the advantage then. After all, we are close. Being able to do bad things without taking responsibility, that's my favourite! Heh."

"Get lost!"

…

The next morning, dawn had just broken, but the military compound outside the Heavenly Bow City which had been there for several months had vanished quietly. By the time the sun had risen, the land outside the city gates had returned to its original smooth state. Under the leadership of the Fifth Regiment, Third Battalion's Commander, Shangguan Bing'er, the entire camp of 3000 soldiers, along with a large amount of military baggage and rations as well as an approximately 5000 strong baggage train, headed south towards the border of the Kalise Empire.

Having such a huge baggage train was necessary. Simply speaking, in war, it was normal to have a 1:1 ratio of support personnel and soldiers in the army. For those elite branches like Heavy Infantry, they required almost two support personnel to support each soldier, while Heavy Cavalry Soldiers might even need more than four support personnel to assist. Only then could these elites display their maximum strength in the battlefield. This was also one of the reasons why such elite troops cost so much to maintain.

Chapter 74: Demonic Right Leg (2)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

With a total strength of about ten thousand people walking down the Stars Forest Boulevard, especially including the Heavy Infantry Companies which slowed down their total speed, it would take them at least 20 days to arrive in at the border.

Due to the fact that Zhou Weiqing was Shangguan Bing'er's Personal Aide, he was also assigned a warhorse and rode at Shangguan Bing'er side. Naturally, he knew how to ride a horse, although it cannot be said that he was skilled in doing so, he was at least competent enough to keep himself from falling. This rascal had gone through a huge change in gear, not only was he garbed in the leather armour depicting his Squad Leader rank, his bow was also no longer an ordinary longbow.

In the morning just before they had departed, Xiao Ru Se had a soldier pass him a brand new Purple Dawn Bow and four quivers of special arrows. Knowing that Zhou Weiqing's strength was immense1, she had given him a higher quality Purple Dawn Bow than even Shangguan Bing'er's, manufactured out of 500-Year-Old Stars Wood. The limbs of the bow were extremely strong and flexible, and the tensile strength was almost twice that of an ordinary Purple Dawn Bow. The bowstring was made out of top quality sinew from a Magic Tenacious Snake, and even the shaft of the arrows from the four quivers were also made using 500-Year-Old Stars Wood, while the arrow tip was crafted from titanium alloy. The value of these four quivers of 200 arrows would almost surpass even that Purple Dawn Bow.

Zhou Weiqing hung just one of the quiver of arrows around his waist, and left the other three hanging on his horse's back. Cavalry archers were also established in the Heavenly Bow Empire, but there was only a single Battalion of them, and they were considered one of the Trump Card Elite Battalions. There were two greatest advantages that cavalry archers had, one was the speed of their horses, and the other was the sheer quantity of arrows that they could carry along. An ordinary archer who was skilled and strong could at most bring 100 arrows along to the battlefield, but if a cavalry archer brought any amount less than 200, he would be despised. With a warhorse helping to bear the load, that little bit of additional weight was naturally negligible.

Shangguan Bing'er was dressed in her silver armor with a white cloak trailing behind her, making her look extremely valiant as she led the troop from the front. Zhou Weiqing fell into position slightly behind her. Besides them, there were also two Companies of Scouts leading the way, in charge of clearing the path and building bridges or in general ensuring a smooth passage for the rest of the army. 2

"Bing'er, I want to get down and take a walk, my right leg is still feeling irritable, I need to move around to help myself adapt." Zhou Weiqing said in a low voice that only the two of them could hear.

"En, go ahead, as long as you follow the main troop that's fine." Shangguan Bing'er nodded and said. Ever since Zhou Weiqing started acting proper around her, she had also started treating him differently. Ever since that day he had hugged her, Shangguan Bing'er was a little afraid to look into Zhou Weiqing's eyes. Her heart was rather conflicted, she was afraid that Zhou Weiqing might suddenly relapse, but was also faintly anticipating a hug like that day.

Zhou Weiqing vaulted off his horse, giving Shangguan Bing'er his customary honest smile, then he landed on his right foot and his body shot off like an arrow as he entered the nearby woods.

The way he bounded off was very charming, particularly since his speed was extremely quick, only relying on the strength of his body. Alas, after he entered the woods, Zhou Weiqing discovered that he had misjudged his own speed.

*Peng* his body made intimate contact with a huge tree. Luckily, he had managed to block the impact with his arm, so he did not have it too terribly.

"F***!" Zhou Weiqing slid down from the tree, feeling rather dispirited, lifting his foot to kick the Stars Tree, which was large enough for 2 men to hug, in front of him.

A dull thumping sound rang out, and the dispirited Zhou Weiqing was shocked into staring, his jaw dropped so open that you could shove 2 eggs into his mouth.

The huge Stars Tree that he kicked had unexpectedly flown off in the air, smashing into another large tree at the side and falling to the ground with a loud crash and bang.

"Crap!" Zhou Weiqing looked down at his right leg which had kicked down that tree unexpectedly, he did not feel anything from his right leg, and it was as if everything was normal. However, he had actually kicked down an entire Stars Tree! For a Stars Tree of such a size, even if they were to use saws, four men would still take an entire day to bring it down. Yet, he had actually smashed it down and thrown it back with just a kick.

In an instance, the dispirited feeling he had because of he was unused to the unequal strength of his legs was swept away. Zhou Weiqing quickly took off his pants and looked at his right leg.

On the surface, it seemed as if his right leg and left leg were not different in any way, but the difference in strength was unexpectedly to such a huge degree. Furthermore, despite kicking such a thick and rough tree trunk, he did not feel any pain at all.

He focused his will and manipulated his Heavenly Energy from his Dantian to move down into his legs, and as he did so, the differences in both legs once again showed itself.

As the Heavenly Energy coursed through the legs, both obviously felt more powerful, but on the surface, his left leg remained unchanged, but the skin of his right leg immediately showed the familiar black tiger tattoos once again, spreading across the entire right leg, surrounded by a black grey aura, and it also seemed to naturally tilt backwards a little. Zhou Weiqing saw that his right leg had become fully jet black, and as he moved it, it felt as though his right leg had turned into an incomparably powerful whip.

Using his left leg as a pivot, he took a leap forward and reached the front of another huge Stars Tree. His right leg swept forth like lightning, moving so rapidly that it blurred the air and seemed to leave a shadow behind.

This time, when his leg made contact with the tree, the sound had actually changed from a "Ping" into a "Puff". The Stars Tree in front of him was once again knocked away and flew off, though the point of fracture now was actually extremely smooth, looking as if it had been cut off by a sharp knife blade.

Zhou Weiqing was even more shocked by what came next, as the tree flew in the air, its leaves suddenly started to wither and turn yellow quickly, and the bough itself started emitting a grey air, before withering. When the tree landed on the ground, it unexpectedly smashed into smithereens.

"This, this was really too awesome…" Zhou Weiqing looked at his right leg, then looked at the shattered Stars Tree, and muttered to himself: "Bing'er said that those Heavenly Jewel Masters who have the Demonic Change will lose control their minds; it doesn't seem like I have the Demonic Change, instead I have this Demonic Right Leg. With such strength, if it hits a human at full strength, how much damage would it do?"

Furthermore, Zhou Weiqing discovered that pouring Heavenly Energy into his leg for the kick did not consume much Heavenly Energy at all. All of a sudden, he thought of something in his heart, recalling at once the huge winged black tiger that he had seen several times.

There were three places where the black tiger had left him with a deep impression; the first was its pair of ferocious bloodshot eyes, the second being its large dual wings, and lastly was the tall, hooked scorpion tail.

His right foot had turned black completely, and it also seemed to hook upwards automatically. Didn't this just seem like the scorpion tail of that black tiger? Had his right leg evolved from that?

By now, he was completely certain that that the black pearl was probably the Internal Core of the huge black tiger that he had seen, and he was absorbing the abilities of this extremely formidable black tiger.

Chapter 75: Demonic Right Leg (3)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

"It looks like this is indeed a Demonic Right Leg. Wahaha!" Zhou Weiqing danced around with joy. Although it was currently difficult for him to control his right leg properly, and was rather problematic when moving right now, its sheer strength more than made up for that. After all, he could slowly train to control that great strength, but who else could have such an awesome right leg? This was absolutely in the territory of a secret weapon.

During the following long and dreary travel, Zhou Weiqing actually became the busiest person. He followed close to the troop, but did actually join them, instead moving forward completely on foot, unceasing using his Demonic Right Leg to improve its coordination with the rest of his body, and to ensure that he could control its strength. After these ten days of hard work, he had basically adapted to it. Although it couldn't be said that he could fully control it perfectly, he could at least move normally, and was whenever necessary he could still make use of its strength.

After much experimentation, Zhou Weiqing found that the strength of his right leg was truly quite terrifying, when he injected Heavenly Energy into the leg, it was boosted more than five times that of any other body parts. What was even more fearful was that it did not feel any pain, which was by itself another formidable weapon. When he discovered that fact, he was a little frightened and quickly inspected his 'third leg' carefully 1; once he determined that it was not affected by the Demonic Right Leg, he breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed greatly. If his third leg no longer had any feeling, he would not want to live anymore…

The army has marched constantly towards the south, and although the Heavenly Bow Empire was not very big, they had still taken 20 days to get close to the front lines.

"We just need to go forward another 300 miles before we arrive at the camp on the frontlines." Shangguan Bing'er said to Zhou Weiqing. As they travelled together, although she wasn't exactly very amiable, but she was not malicious or harsh, just treating him like an ordinary subordinate.

Zhou Weiqing could obviously feel Shangguan Bing'er relaxing a little after she said those words. He knew from what Xiao Ru Se told him that this was Shangguan Bing'er's first time carrying out such a task, and now that she was on the verge of completing it, it was natural for her to feel a little relieved.

After all, Shangguan Bing'er was considered an important national treasure of the Heavenly Bow Empire, even if she was on the frontlines, the military command would not dare to put her in any danger, after all, a Heavenly Jewel Master who had not fully grown completely was still relatively vulnerable. If anything happened to her, it would be a huge loss to the entire Empire and their future plans.

"Bing'er, I want to discuss a matter with you." Zhou Weiqing said solemnly.

Shangguan Bing'er shot a look at him and said: "Speak."

"When we reach the military camp, let me return to the Company, I want to go forth into the battlefield to fight and kill the enemy.��� Zhou Weiqing was not joking, he knew that if he followed Shangguan Bing'er, he would likely not have any chance to actually enter combat.

Shangguan Bing'er was a little surprised, "You don't want to follow me?"

Just as Zhou Weiqing was about to explain himself, all of a sudden, his expression changed drastically; both his feet trod on the stirrup, as he used that as a pivot to throw his entire body sideways, leaping forth and hugging Shangguan Bing'er in his arms, his momentum knocking her off her horse.2

*Peng* in the next split second, an arrow flew past their bodies, almost brushing them, before nailing deep onto the nearby road. If Zhou Weiqing had been just a little late in reacting, that arrow would have pierced right through Shangguan Bing'er.

"Enemy attack!" Zhou Weiqing gave a loud shout as he held onto Shangguan Bing'er and vaulted away, hiding both of them at the underbelly of her horse.

Shangguan Bing'er also awoke to the situation, and both of them suddenly simultaneously thought of something: Silent Tracking Arrow.

That arrow, before it struck, it did not give out any sound, nor did it stir the air at all as it passed, otherwise with Shangguan Bing'er's 8th Stage of Heavenly Energy, she could not have possibly missed it. Zhou Weiqing had only been able to dodge it because of a sudden sense of danger in his heart, and he had reacted subconsciously to save her. This was not the instinct of a human, but the instinct of a wild animal – that large black tiger.

"It isn't the Silent Tracking Arrow, it should be the Silent Arrow, otherwise I would already be hit by it. Let go of me." Shangguan Bing'er said rather rapidly.

Zhou Weiqing had by now quickly taken off the Wind Hat from his head to use as a shield, but Shangguan Bing'er was still embraced in his arms. Of course, she was wearing her armor now, and it wasn't exactly comfortable hugging her now.

"We've almost reached our main campsite, how could there be an enemy ambush here?��� Zhou Weiqing said as he began to circulate his Heavenly Energy. This was his first time actually facing a real enemy, and if he were to say that he wasn't feeling anxious, that would be a lie.

At this moment, that inexplicable sense of danger arrived once again; he had not let go of Shangguan Bing'er yet, so he just carried her and tumbled away once more. *Puff* blood spurted out from the position that they were just in, as Shangguan Bing'er's horse was shot and pierced through with an arrow, as it savagely pierced through where they had been a moment ago.

At this time, a disturbance arose in the troops, as the archers quickly nocked their bows and shot around into the surrounding areas, while the infantry troops quickly surrounded the area, trying to protect their commander.

However, at this time, there were only the sounds of explosions as well as screams. Zhou Weiqing led Shangguan Bing'er weaving in and out of the crowd. She had Activated her Heavenly Jewels and leapt out of his embrace; although she was wearing armor, she still moved as swiftly as wind as she flew off.

Only then did Zhou Weiqing see the enemy clearly. There weren't many of them, only around ten or so, but they were moving at extremely astonishing speeds, especially the person who was charging in the forefront, both hands brandishing an exaggeratedly large warhammer, with each of the warhammers as large as a tabletop, with a seemingly evil aura. As the arrows shot towards him, they were all easily deflected, and none of the melee troops were able to even get close to him. In a short span of time, more than ten soldiers had died a tragic death to the huge warhammer.

This person looked to be over 40 years old is, with a whiskered, scruffy face, his upper body was bare, revealing his tough body, swarthy flesh, and unbelievably inflated muscles. What drew Zhou Weiqing's attention the most was his right wrist, where five Physical Jewels clearly encircled.

His Physical Jewels each had two colors, half was Yellow Jade while the other half Ice Jade. Yellow Jade represented Toughness, and improved defense, while the Ice Jade represented strength. No wonder he was so ferocious, this was clearly a Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master. At this point, two out of his five Physical Jewels were glowing with a sparkling light; clearly the pair of warhammers were the Consolidated Equipment of that two Physical Jewels.

Besides him, there were twelve other enemies, all of them were Physical Jewel Masters, each holding different weapons. There were four of them with Four Jewels each, and the rest of them had Three Jewels each. The twelve of them moved together, sweeping away the ordinary troops facing them. The rain of arrows pouring down on them simply did not have much effect on them, as they forged a path directly heading for Shangguan Bing'er.

Chapter 76: Demonic Right Leg (4)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Zhou Weiqing instantly realised that they had to be here specially to assassinate Shangguan Bing'er. Although these Physical Jewel Masters were extremely strong, it was still impossible for them to destroy an entire army of ten thousand. Daring to appear like this, their goal could only be Shangguan Bing'er. Without question, these people were most likely from the Kalise Empire. To have sent out so many strong Physical Jewel Masters, they were really intent on ensuring her death!

Shangguan Bing'er wove, duck, and dodged. She managed to dodge another Silent Arrow, but it was so close that she broke out in a cold sweat; it was really too difficult to dodge this type of Silent Arrow. Even a full agility type Jewel Master like her needed to focus all her concentration in order to do so, and any tiny mistake would put her in danger of being hit.

At this moment, a shrill sound resounded out, followed by a loud explosion, and the five-Jewel Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master in the vanguard slowed down momentarily as an arrow exploded onto his huge warhammer, affecting his speed. Such strength, the arrow naturally came from a Purple Dawn Bow, but it was not shot by Zhou Weiqing, but by Xiao Ru Se.

"Don't panic, stay organised. Heavy infantry go ahead to slow them down, archers flank the enemy from the tree lines and start concentrated fire, light infantry start flanking and surround them." Xiao Ru Se's calm voice issued out orders unceasingly. Although their commanding officer Shangguan Bing'er was at a loss, Xiao Ru Se still stayed very calm.

Currently, Shangguan Bing'er had no time to care about any others. She was too obvious a target, and was also the enemies' goal. The hidden enemy who kept shooting Silent Arrows was constraining her ability to do anything, and she was totally unable to counterattack at all. The only thing she could do was to make use of the Wind Wielding Boots to move around swiftly, barely dodging the continuous barrage of Silent Arrows. She could tell that this hidden enemy was at least a Four-Jewel Low Level Zun Physical Jewel Master, and probably had more tricks up his sleeve.

No matter the Heavenly Bow empire or the Kalise empire, they both had less than a hundred Jewel Masters each. The number of Jewel Masters appearing here was already almost a quarter of the entire Kalise Empire's Jewel Masters. One could tell the sheer determination the Kalise Empire had in wanting to kill off Shangguan Bing'er.

"Little Fatty, kill that hidden archer!" Xiao Ru Se's voice resounded in Zhou Weiqing's ear.

Facing such a chaotic battleground, Zhou Weiqing was reminded by Xiao Ru Se that the most important thing was to get rid of that biggest threat – the hidden archer shooting those Silent Arrows. Shangguan Bing'er's most outstanding ability was her speed and agility, and as long as she was not plagued by the Silent Arrows, it would be easy for her to evade those Physical Jewel Masters.

Moving swiftly, Zhou Weiqing dashed into the woods at the roadside. In the chaos, no one paid attention to this mere soldier who unexpected leapt to the side at an astonishing speed.

The attribute wheel disk appeared in front of Zhou Weiqing's eyes again, and he was at this time both anxious and excited. He wasn't afraid now; after going through Consolidating Equipment and Skill-Storing, he had gotten many skills to improve his survivability. Not knowing what sort of opponent the hidden enemy was, he could only estimate where he was hiding from the general direction the Silent Arrow came from, as he quickly moved through the woods. That hidden archer kept changing positions as he shot, but there was always some trace to be found.

With the boost from the Wind Attribute, Zhou Weiqing was also extremely fast, his keen senses extending to a radius of 20 meters; as long as there were any clues, he would find them. At this point, the improved senses from the black tiger was proving its use.

Suddenly, he had a cold feeling of impending doom, and he instantly dropped down to the floor without any hesitation, hitting the floor briefly before leaping up and moving off once more, changing his position twice. In that very moment, a Silent Arrow had pierced through a huge tree where he once was.

Zhou Weiqing grabbed his Purple Dawn Bow in his left hand, extracting an arrow from his quiver, and while in the process moving quickly, he quickly shot off an arrow through sheer instinct. He had not aimed, knowing that it was impossible to hit his target now. However, relying on the sheer force of the formidable Purple Dawn Bow, his arrow flew out with a shrill sound as it stirred the air. Anyone hearing this sound might even have a scare. Despite his keen senses, he was still greatly pressured by the Silent Arrows. He could feel that he was only less than 100 yards away from the hidden enemy, as long as he could affect the enemy's firing rate a little, he would have the opportunity to close the gap.

Indeed, after his arrow burst out, the hidden enemy paused a while. A loud, angry curse rang out right after that: "Dammit, is that the Legendary 'Heaven Soaring Shot'? How dare he frighten me, Xiao Ye Ye, blast him to death."

"Ah! Young Master, my firing distance is insufficient; my range is only 50 yards, he is currently more than 70 yards away."

"You fool! Why don't you simply tell our enemies where to find us huh? Look, he's now 50 yards away, quick!"

Indeed, in the short period of time when the two of them were speaking, Zhou Weiqing had leapt and bounded like a leopard ahead, not in a straight line but taking a zigzag course, making use of the surrounding bough and shrubbery as cover to conceal his body as he charged along.

*Whiz* Another Silent Arrow flew at him. That hidden archer was truly accurate; Zhou Weiqing had already exerted all his strength and speed to try and dodge it, but that arrow managed to speed down towards his path. As the distance was much nearer, the arrow's speed was also a lot quicker. However, just as it was about to hit him, Zhou Weiqing suddenly disappeared.

Zhou Weiqing had always feared death, for him to dare to run in these woods in search of such a dangerous hidden enemy, the biggest advantage he was depending on was of his first Spatial Skill – Blink. With that skill, even if he could not beat that enemy, he was confident of escaping with his life.

Just as Zhou Weiqing dodged that Silent Arrow, he suddenly saw a huge orange-red fireball with a one foot long diameter coalesce in the sky, before flying towards him with a trailing bright fiery tail.

Not only did the enemies have Physical Jewel Masters, they even had Elemental Jewel Masters!

On that fateful day, Zhou Weiqing had nearly been killed by Difuya's fireball. This fireball in front of him was obviously many times stronger than that of Difuya's. It was clear just from the size and look of it.

Zhou Weiqing did not dare to underestimate it, quickly holstering the Purple Dawn Bow on his back, circulating his Heavenly Energy instantly to release his Icy looking Overlord Bow into his grasp. At the same time, he also circulated his Wind Attribute's power, maximising his speed, and in a flash he drew the Overlord Bow to its maximum, firing off an arrow like a bolt of lightning.

With a shrill howl that was even several times stronger than when fired from the Purple Dawn Bow, Zhou Weiqing shot forth this arrow. At the same time, his body dropped down to the ground once again, narrowly evading a Silent Arrow.

*Bang* The giant fireball was struck by the arrow, which had the explosive effect from being shot out by the Overlord Bow, exploding in mid air and causing fire to rain down everywhere from the skies. The orange flame poured down in a 30 yards radius, cutting off the line of sight of both sides completely.

Zhou Weiqing did not stay idle, proning down on the ground while drawing the Overlord Bow once more, shooting another arrow from where the enemy's speech had originated from.

Earlier on, he had been suppressed by the Silent Arrow barrage of the enemy, and he had been repressed for so long. Finally having this opportunity to catch his breath, furthermore the enemy was also unable to see him now, how could Zhou Weiqing not seize this opportunity? Just releasing the Overlord Bow alone took up nearly 50% of his Heavenly Energy; since he had already brought it out, he wanted to make full use of it.

*Bang* Another fierce explosion resounded in the distance; the explosive effect of the Overlord Bow was truly overbearing. It was exactly the opposite effect from the Silent Arrow; each arrow shot out was accompanied with an astonishingly loud, shrill sound, and as soon as it touched an object, it would explode instantaneously. Furthermore, the speed of any arrow shot from the Overlord Bow was far beyond what the naked eye could follow. It was almost as if once the sound of the bowstring being released came from Zhou Weiqing, before the shrill sound of the air splitting had ended, an explosion would sound off in the distance.

Chapter 77: The One Deciding Arrow (1)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

"Damn, what sort of skill is this? Young Master, quickly leave now." A row of fireballs rose up into the air on the opposite side of him. This time, there was a total of five fireballs; although they were individually smaller than the previous one, they were all still orange-red in colour.

This time, Zhou Weiqing did not try to shoot the fireballs, instead drawing the Overlord Bow to its maximum and rapidly firing out three arrows. These few days, whenever he was free, he had been learning the Rapid Fire Archery skill from Xiao Ru Se. Although he wasn't as accurate as she was yet, he had at least improved his firing rate, and coupled with the sheer power of the Overlord Bow and its explosive effect, he did not even need to be that accurate; as long as he managed to shoot an arrow within an acceptable range, it was sufficient.

As expected, once the three arrows were fired out, the enemies were thrown into a mess. All the fireballs started dropping out of place, but not a single one managed to fly and hit their proper target.

At this moment, just 50 yards from Zhou Weiqing, two youths were in a shabby, disorderly state.

One of them was dressed in an all-white outfit, without any armor, holding a shining golden short bow in his hands, and on his right wrist encircled four glowing Physical Jewels. His Physical Jewels were made out of 2 types of jade – the Agility Dragonstone Jade and the Flexibility Waxy Jade. This man was rather handsome; alas at the moment he was in quite a sorry state. His golden hair though was rather attention drawing, complementing his golden short bow's colour.

At his side was someone who looked like his subordinate, dressed in a rather plain cloth clothing. Just like his young master, he seemed to be around 20 years of age, and on his left wrist encircled three red ruby Elemental Jewels; it seemed like those fireballs were fired out by him.

Under Zhou Weiqing's angry suppressing fire using his Overlord Bow, this pair of Master and Subordinate were in a disorderly state, rolling and tumbling as they fled the scene.

Zhou Weiqing had successfully suppressed the 'Silent Arrow's from this side, but the other side of the battlefield was a totally different story.

Under Xiao Ru Se's direction, the Heavenly Bow Empire's troops were no longer in a mess and were organised in trying to fight back. Alas, the group of more than ten enemies were all Jewel Masters, and against their Heavenly Energy and Skills, it was rather difficult for ordinary soldiers to do anything in this short period of time.

"Battalion Commander, let's retreat" The threat of the Silent Arrows had suddenly vanished, and Shangguan Bing'er was finally able to relax a little. At this moment, Xiao Ru Se's voice sounded out.

Even though they liked to compete with each other, Xiao Ru Se knew how important Shangguan Bing'er was to Heavenly Bow Empire. Furthermore, she was Little Wei's girlfriend.

Despite Xiao Ru Se's warning coming at a relatively timely moment, Shangguan Bing'er had already fallen back into a predicament. It wasn't that she did not want to retreat, but even at that moment when the Silent Arrows stopped firing, 3 Physical Jewel Masters from the opposing team had charged forth to surround her instead. Two of them were mainly Agility-Type Physical Jewel Masters, and were also had four Jewels respectively.

Although Shangguan Bing'er was a rare dual-agility type Heavenly Jewel Master, she was after all still only with 2 sets of Heavenly Jewels, and was only a Mid Level Heavenly Shi Master; compared to that, her enemies had 4 Jewels each, winning her in both Heavenly Energy levels and number of Consolidated Equipment. The only things he could do was to swiftly shoot out Wind Blades, using her own speed coupled with the Wind Wielding Boot's boost in order to keep herself from falling. However, it was nigh impossible for her to escape their encirclement. At the same time, the other Jewel Masters were constantly getting closer. As soon as one or two more managed to join the fray, Shangguan Bing'er would likely be unable to continue defending herself successfully.

Xiao Ru Se was also very anxious. In their troops, there just weren't any other Jewel Masters at this moment. The enemy ambush had came too suddenly, and it had appeared jut as they reached their campsite, and at a point where their guard was at its lowest. If not for Zhou Weiqing's danger 1 Senses and quick reactions, the first arrow would have probably already injured Shangguan Bing'er, and they would likely have all been wiped out by now.

*Peng* *Peng* sounds resounded unceasingly, as the Heavy Infantry units who were attempting to stop the enemy were constantly knocked back by a pair of large warhammers. That 5-Jewel Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master was just too strong, and his strength and defense were too shocking. Both his warhammers were covered in a white light as he focused his Heavenly Energy onto them – he had obviously broken through the Heavenly Jing Energy stage and was in the Heavenly Shen Energy stage, and he was just bulldozing his way through the Heavy Infantry Elite troops. Only Xiao Ru Se's Rapid Fire Arrows were able to give him a little trouble, but he was still slowly making his way towards Shangguan Bing'er's little fray. Once he actually reached her, one could definitely imagine the result.

Right at this moment, that Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master suddenly gave forth an explosive shout, as he swung both his warhammers rapidly, his whole body seemingly spinning in a whirlwind. The Heavy Infantry troops who were surrounding him were instantly smashed away, flying away from him, and he leapt up in a ferocious pounce, closing the distance in an unbelievable bound, both warhammers smashing down towards Shangguan Bing'er's head. Simultaneously, two other Physical Jewel Masters also charged forth, and together with the original three Physical Jewel Masters surrounding Shangguan Bing'er, they formed a perfect encirclement which blocked every possible retreat of hers. Their cooperation was unbelievably smooth, and their attacks, from the twin warhammers smashing down, or the mass of attacks from the others in all directions, seemed to spell doom for Shangguan Bing'er.

"No… it's over…" Xiao Ru Se closed her eyes in despair. Even though they were rivals, she certainly could not bear to watch Shangguan Bing'er be smashed into pulp.

Shangguan Bing'er herself was also in despair. She had tried every trick in her book, but there just wasn't anything she could do in this scenario. The opponent had clearly planned this ambush perfectly to target her, and her own combat experience was also rather lacking. It looked like this would the fragrance diminished and the jade perished 2

At this critical moment, a loud cry resounded in the skies suddenly. An explosion blew up, as a black arrow slammed into the warhammers descending upon her, the strong explosive impact forcefully halting its descent. More amazingly, right at the centre of the explosion, 12 black tentacles shot forth like lightning, entwining all the enemies in the radius of 25 yards, including the Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master. All of the enemy Jewel Masters in the ambush were instantaneously held in place for a while.

It was still relatively okay for the Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master; he was after all in the centre of the pulling force. However, it was not so for the other six who were surrounding Shangguan Bing'er. Due to the sheer surprise of the attack, the four 3-Jewel Masters were instantly drawn in by the skill, and an unlucky one just happened to hit his head on the huge warhammer. Although the constitution of Physical Jewel Masters were strong, metal hitting head was still a tragedy in making and he instantly fainted, bleeding from the head. The other 2 remaining 4-Jewel Masters were strong enough to resist the pull, though their attacks were interrupted as a result, as they stumbled a few steps closer to the Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master.

How could Shangguan Bing'er not seize such a great chance. Like a volcano who had been dormant for too long, she erupted suddenly. 3

Chapter 78: The One Deciding Arrow (2)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Three Wind Blades flew out, viciously cutting into one of the Four-Jewelled Physical Jewel Master who was unable to move; Shangguan Bing'er's Wind Blades had already evolved once since she had gotten her second pair of Heavenly Jewels, and as she sent the three Wind Blades slicing in at the same time targeting the enemy's frail neck, the result could be imagined. That Low Level Zun Physical Master's head was instantly cut off. At the same time, her Purple Dawn Bow also moved swiftly as she shot out a Silent Tracking Arrow without hesitation, slamming right into the forehead of the other Four-Jewelled Low Level Zun Physical Jewel Master, piercing right through his brain. It looked like he wouldn���t live much longer as well.

This was the true fearful power of a Control Skill, especially when taken by surprise, when the body was instantaneously controlled, they could only take any incoming attacks passively. Although Shangguan Bing'er was only a Mid Level Heavenly Shi Jewel Master, she was after all still a Heavenly Jewel Master, and her strength was still more than comparable to a Three-Jewelled Ordinary Jewel Master. With her sheer speed, she had seized the opportunity to finish off two of the enemies.

The fierce explosion had also startled Xiao Ru Se and attracted her attention. Her response was also just as swift, and her Purple Dawn Bow did not idle at all, as she 'Roll-Called' 1 the Three-Jewelled Physical Jewel Master who had been knocked unconscious. Under normal circumstances, that Physical Jewel Master might not have feared her arrows, but with him unconscious and unable to circulate his Heavenly Energy, how could he protect his own body?

In a flash, the situation on the battlefield had reversed, as three out of the thirteen enemy Physical Jewel Masters had perished. More importantly, once the explosively strong arrow had appeared along with the Control Skill with the 12 black tentacles, the courage of those Jewel Masters had also been shaken.

The Darkness Attribute was already quite rare, let alone one having such a strong supplementary explosive effect.

"Elemental and Physical Jewel Fusion Technique! It is Zhou Shui Niu! Quick, we have to retreat now!" The Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master did not bother about his own dignity, going all out in breaking free from the black tentacles, rolling on the floor and turning to flee.

Seeing that their leader had fled, the other Jewel Masters naturally turned to flee as well.

Although they had charged and fought fiercely just a moment ago, these Jewel Masters had also consumed much of their Heavenly Energy during that period. Their original plan had been to flee immediately after taking out Shangguan Bing'er, otherwise, once they were full surrounded by the entire army, they would not be able to escape.

Shangguan Bing'er's face was a mask of frost, and the Purple Dawn Bow in her hands repeatedly shot forth arrows. At this time, without anyone to suppress her, she was able to fully show the superior strength of a Heavenly Jewel Master. Her Silent Tracking Arrow was even stronger than the Silent Arrow that had been suppressing her earlier, being a Heavenly Jewel Master coupled with the fact that her arrow had the 'Tracking' ability. When she was shooting at those Three-Jewelled Physical Jewel Masters, her firing rate was just too fast for the opponent to resist, even if they were able to survive the arrows, their speed in escaping was greatly reduced in doing so. By the time these enemies had escaped the tight encirclement, less than half had managed to do so, as only the five strongest enemies had managed to do so. Of the remaining, two had been captured and the rest had been finished off by Shangguan Bing'er's Silent Tracking Arrows.

Shangguan Bing'er did not give pursuit, standing there panting for breath, her beautiful eye full of vigilance. Dozens of Heavy Infantry Troops surrounded her, their shields raised up high in order to protect her.

That fight could be said to be the most difficult fight that Shangguan Bing'er had ever experienced since birth, and she had barely managed to survive. If not for that sudden arrow striking the strongest member of the enemy party, the Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master, and also Controlling the other 12 enemies, which allowed the two girls to instantly make a counter attack and kill three enemies instantaneous, perhaps the result of the entire fight would be completely different. Not only would she die, all of the enemy Physical Jewel Masters would probably have escaped unharmed.

Was it Marshal Zhou? That should be impossible! As the the battle situation at the border area was temporarily stable, Marshal Zhou had been recalled back to the Capital City to report on the activities, and should not be returning to the front lines in the near future. Yet, that formidable arrow just now, that was obviously a Dark Attribute based Elemental and Physical Jewel Fusion Technique. Wait. Could it be him?

In this moment, Xiao Ru Se walked over, her delicate eyebrows furrowed tightly as she arrived beside Shangguan Bing'er, saying: "Battalion Commander, are you alright?"

Shangguan Bing'er shook her head, saying: "I'm fine, I just used up too much Heavenly Energy. Thank you, Company Leader Xiao. If not for your instructions, our troops would have suffered much more damage. I might also…"

Xiao Ru Se said: "You shouldn't thank me, but Little Fatty instead. You know…"

Shangguan Bing'er froze in place: "Is it really him? Where is he?"

Xiao Ru Se said: "How would I know? Our losses this time are not low, but, we can also consider this to be quite a great achievement and merit. I will let everyone check out our casualty numbers and treat the wounded."

Shangguan Bing'er sighed lightly: "I'm sorry. I really am not a qualified Commander."

Xiao Ru Se said lightly: "You were the focus of the enemy, how could you have found the opportunity to instruct the troops. Furthermore, you are truly an outstanding Heavenly Jewel Master. Anyway, let's rush to the military camp first." Ever since she knew about Zhou Weiqing and Shangguan Bing'er's relations, her attitude towards Shangguan Bing'er's had noticeably improved. After all, 'Fertiliser and Water should not be irrigated to an outsider's fields' 2, she considered Shangguan Bing'er's as her future little sister-in-law. Of course, occasionally in Xiao Ru Se heart, there was also a little sour feeling.

At this time, Zhou Weiqing appeared from amongst the surrounding soldiers. When he saw that Shangguan Bing'er was all right, he gave a big sigh of relief.

That amazing arrow earlier was naturally shot forth by him a moment ago, Earlier, when he had managed to suppress that Master and servant pair with his Overlord Bow, he had originally wanted to pursue and finish them off. However, before he did so, he suddenly felt an inexplicable feeling of intense restlessness and fear surge forth in his heart, and he quickly rushed back to the edge of the woods, just reaching in time to witness Shangguan Bing'er being besieged from all sides. At that critical moment, he could not care about anything else, making use of his Overlord Bow with the Touch of Darkness Skill, his Elemental and Physical Jewel Fusion Technique that had essentially changed the entire course of events singlehandedly in a single, deciding arrow.

Shangguan Bing'er looked at Zhou Weiqing with an unusually gentle look, saying in a soft voice: "Thanks."

Zhou Weiqing grinned, thinking in his heart secretly: What is there to thank. Isn't it normal to protect my own woman?

Xiao Ru Se raised up her thumb at Zhou Weiqing, such an amazing arrow that was the deciding factor in a fight. It was truly too beautiful.

Compared with their relaxed situation here, the side of the ambushing enemies was a scene of gloom and sorrow.

The leader was the youth in white clothing who was shooting forth the Silent Arrows. After escaping from the soldier's encirclement, the five Physical Jewel Master had met together with this Master and servant pair.

"Trash, you bunch of trash! So many of you just to take out one little girl with a mere rank of Two Jewels, and yet you still failed."

The Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master with the twin warhammers said with a bitter smile: "Your highness, much apologies. Please calm down. You also saw for yourself in the distance, that sudden arrow appearing with such overbearing power. We did not have the means to deal with it. I'm afraid that Zhou Shui Niu is nearby, if we did not run at that point, perhaps we would all be totally annihilated."

This white clothed youth was in fact the Kalise Emperor's ninth son, Bai Jiu. He was 25 years old this year, yet he had actually already managed to cultivate up to four Physical Jewels, and was one of the most outstanding princes in the Kalise empire, and was even in charge of governing the Jewel Masters of the Kalise Empire. This time he had personally led a strike team to assassinate Shangguan Bing'er. Alas who knew that all their planning and efforts had came to naught.

Chapter 79: The One Deciding Arrow (3)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

Bai Jiu gave a cold hmph. "Bullshit, if it were Zhou Shui Niu, do you really think that you could have escaped with your life? Not just you, even I would have lost my life there. Furthermore, I had also obtained the news the day before yesterday that Zhou Shui Niu was still in Heavenly Bow City. How else would I have carried out this plan."

The Mid Level Zun Physical Jewel Master 1 also realised his mistake then. "Right! Although the power of that arrow was strong, its actual destructive power has insufficient. If it had been fired by Zhou Shui Niu, it should have claimed my life there and then. Could it be…"

Bai Jiu nodded, "That's right, besides Shangguan Bing'er, it seems that the Heavenly Bow Empire have another Heavenly Jewel Master in their army, but his cultivation level should not be high, at most being similar to Shangguan Bing'er with two pairs of Jewels. His pair of Heavenly Jewels should be of the Darkness and Strength attributes, just the same as Zhou Shui Niu. If not for him, my Silent Arrows could have killed Shangguan Bing'er at the beginning. Let's retreat and return to our base to plan further. It seems like this time, I might need to beg my teacher to go into action. I definitely must not allow Heavenly Bow Empire to gain two more Heavenly Jewel Masters. Xiao Yeye, just a moment ago, you said that the fellow vanished when dodging my Silent Arrow?"

The subordinate following Bai Jiu around was the Fire Attribute Elemental Jewel Master Luo Xiaoye 2 Xiaoye was his personal servant since childhood, and had grown up together with him, and also doubled as his personal bodyguard.

"Yes! Your Highness, I think I saw him vanish for a second. Otherwise, how could he possibly evade your Silent Arrow so suddenly!"

"Did you see it clearly?" Bai Jiu's brow furrowed.

Luo Xiaoye muttered: "Probably not very clearly."

Bai Jiu sweatdropped 3 and said: "You fool, if you didn't see clearly, then why did you report it!"

Luo Xiaoye blinked and said: "But… you didn't see clearly either right?"

"Xiao Yeye——"

"Your highness, we should retreat quickly." This Luo Xiaoye may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he was not silly at all.

"I'll deal with you when we get back."

…

About an hour later, Shangguan Bing'er had finally led the troop in reaching the military base on the front lines.

In the border of Heavenly Bow Empire and Kalise Empire, there was a large patch of mountain ranges, hills, bogs and other complicated terrain, fully cutting off both countries from one another. The military strength of the Heavenly Bow Empire only consisted of Five Regiments, of which one was stationed at the Heavenly Bow City as a guard, one stationed to guard the eastern border of the Empire, and three Regiments stationed here at the Kalise border, guarding the important pass between the two countries. Due to the complexity of the terrain, both sides rarely had any form of large-scale war, but there were always constant small skirmishes. The most commonly used forms of combat was to deploy a small troop to harass the opposing side. Having a war between two countries actually being primarily based on guerrilla warfare, it was truly a rather unique phenomenon.

The camp encompassed more than ten square miles where the three Regiments totally more than 30,000 were stationed. With their tents under the open skies, it felt as if there was a faint killing aura in the atmosphere, which could cause fear in a person unused to the place.

When Zhou Weiqing saw the huge military compound, his heart was set aflame as his blood boiled. This. This was the military compound on the front lines. This was where his father lived and fought most of his time. Father, do you know that your son has also arrived at the front lines?

The number of casualties from the earlier battle had been counted, and more than seventy troops had perished, 40 severely wounded, and more than a hundred with minor wounds after the ambush by the enemy Jewel Masters. That was an extremely terrifying number! After all, the enemy ambushing party only numbered 13 people, including the two hidden members, there were only a total of 15 people ambushing them. From the start of the fight to the end, it had barely been 15 minutes. Furthermore, their target had really only been Shangguan Bing'er, yet they had still suffered such a huge loss of so many trained soldiers. From this battle, you could truly see the tyrannical killing power of Jewel Masters on the battlefield.

As their troop entered the Fifth Regiment's camp site, they split up and returned to their respective Battalions. Shangguan Bing'er went to report to their Regimental Commander, while the Third Battalion was temporarily commandeered by Xiao Ru Se to return to their camp.

In the Third Battalion, Xiao Ru Se's actual authority actually exceeded Shangguan Bing'er's. Besides Company Leader Mao Li who was was Shangguan Bing'er's closest subordinate, most of the other Company Leaders in the Battalion would follow her lead.

Xiao Ru Se calmly and quickly finished arranging the three Companies of troops, and she had also arranged a personal tent for Zhou Weiqing, situated right beside Shangguan Bing'er's tent.

"Little Wei, you should go and have a rest first. With your status as a Squad Leader and the Personal Aide of the Battalion Commander, you do not need to attend the drills and trainings. As long you practice your archery when you are free, with your other skills, you should be fine. Anyway, having left for so long, I better go back and examine the situation of entire Battalion."

Zhou Weiqing nodded and said: "Elder sister, you go ahead, I'll cultivate by myself."

Xiao Ru Se left, and Zhou Weiqing also entered his own tent. It was an individual tent; after all Xiao Ru Se would naturally take good care of her own little brother. It was normally a tent that was only assigned to an officer of rank Company Leader and above. The entire tent was made out of tanned cowhide, not only did it block the effects of weather, it also had amazing thermal insulation. Being almost 20 square meters large, it was also fully stocked within with many daily necessities, and was much better when compared to the various small tents in the encampment.

In doing so, Xiao Ru Se was actually not being excessive. After all, not only was Zhou Weiqing Marshal Zhou Shuiniu's only son, just his Heavenly Jewel Master status alone would mean that living in such a tent was already an injustice to him. Of course, that would normally only happen if he announced his status.

Zhou Weiqing put down the gear he had been carrying, and flopped down onto the bed. However, he did not have the mood to rest currently, and images of the previous fight flashed through his mind unceasingly as he tried to process it.

Without a doubt, his own actual combat experience was just too insufficient. Furthermore, his usage of Heavenly Energy had also been extremely inefficient. When he had shot that final arrow, he had totally exhausted all of his Heavenly Energy. He had so many strong Skills Stored in his Elemental Jewel, yet when he wanted to fight at his full strength, he wasn't even able to use all of them once through.

The thing that left him the deepest impression was the final moment when the opposing six Physical Jewel Masters had surrounded Shangguan Bing'er, limiting her movement, and doing so right at the moment when their leader's two warhammers were smashing down upon her. Such coordination in that single instance was so exquisite. It made Zhou Weiqing understand that even Jewel Masters needed to coordinate. If not for the fact that Shangguan Bing'er was a dual agility type Heavenly Jewel Master, she would likely not be able to last long enough for him to return and help. Even then, if not for the surprise factor of his strong control skill, plus the fact that there were so many soldiers assisting from the side, the final result might still have been her death.

Coordination, coordination. Their Jewel Masters are able to coordinate so well with each other. However, my Elemental Jewel has six attributes… I should be able to coordinate my skills right…

Zhou Weiqing faintly understood that today when Shangguan Bing'er was in danger, the reason why he could sense it so promptly was because Shangguan Bing'er was the Sacrifice that helped him to Awaken his Heavenly Jewels, and they shared a connection. Yet, what would happen if the person in danger was Xiao Ru Se? He wouldn't have had the same sense of danger.

To protect his family, those he loved, to protect his own motherland, he needed much more strength. At this moment, in his heart surged a huge amount of heartfelt respect to his father. All these years, it was his father who had protected the Heavenly Bow Empire!

As he thought about that, Zhou Weiqing vaulted back into a standing position. Focusing his will, the four energy whirlpools at the Four Death Acupuncture Points he had broken through immediately accelerated their churning. Without a doubt, what he needed the most now was Heavenly Energy.

Chapter 80: The One Deciding Arrow (4)

Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations

After these few months of practice, Zhou Weiqing's Heavenly Energy had already reached the normal fourth level of Heavenly Jing Energy. However, to attempt breaking through the Yongquan Death Acupuncture Point, it was still insufficient. He had tried attempting it a couple of days ago, but before his Heavenly Energy had circulated to his knees, it had already run out. In order for him to even attempting breaking through the Yongquan Acupuncture Point, he needed to at least reach the Zhu San Li Acupuncture Point first, and make use of it to accelerate the circulation speed towards the San Ying Jiao, before using it once again to accelerate towards the Yongquan Acupuncture Point. Obviously, this process needed a large amount of Heavenly Energy accumulated.

The Fifth Regiment, headquarters.

"What? You want to resign from the post of Third Battalion Commander? Viscount Shangguan, are you joking?" The Fifth Regiment's Commander stood up in surprise as he looked at Shangguan Bing'er, who had a firm look on her face.

Shangguan Bing'er said solemnly: "Regimental Commander, I am certainly not joking. I have realised that I do not have the ability to commanded troops well, let alone a whole Battalion of soldiers. In terms of directing troops, I am severely deficient. I do not want to have a high rank just because I am a Heavenly Jewel Master. That is extremely unfair to the men and officers of the Third Battalion. Directing an army is a profound skill, and after much self-examination, I feel that my ability is insufficient. If I continued directing the Third Battalion, I'm afraid larger issues might rise up. For the sake of the soldiers and officers of the Third Battalions, please comply with my request. I would rather remain in the military command as a normal soldier to join in the fighting, than be an incompetent Battalion Commander."

At this time, there were three people in the Fifth Regiment headquarters. Besides Shangguan Bing'er and the Regimental Commander, Gao Shen, who also had a similar rank of Viscount, the Fifth Regiment's Vice-Regimental Commander Qian Zhantian who concurrently held the post of the First Battalion's Battalion Commander, was also there. They looked at each other in dismay, feeling a big headache from her request.

Gao Shen said: "Viscount Shangguan, you just managed to kill off six enemy Physical Jewel Masters, and captured two alive. I was just about to report this to the military headquarters to get you your military accomplishments, why go through all this trouble? You can slowly learn how to direct the troops."

Shangguan Bing'er shook her head vigorously once more, saying: "That was mostly Company Leader Xiao's merit. If not for his good directions, perhaps not only I would be killed by the enemy, the loss from our army would also be much higher. I cannot allow my own command training to come at the cost of the blood of our Third Battalion's men. Please comply with my request."

The nearby Qian Zhantian said: "Battalion Commander Shangguan, you should know that the reassignment of military officers of the rank of Battalion Commander and above is not something that we can decide by ourselves. Why don't we turn in your resignation to the military headquarters when we make our report, and we can let the higher ups decide."

Shangguan Bing'er said: "Then, Regimental Commander, please order for Company Leader Xiao to be the temporary acting Battalion Commander, I will no longer participate in commanding of the Third Battalion."

Gao Shen saw that she was really firm and said helplessly: "Alright, as Viscount Shangguan wishes."

"Thank you, Regimental Commander." Shangguan Bing'er said with a military salute, before leaving.

The two officers exchanged dismayed looks once again, and Qian Zhantian said in a low voice: "That girl, she's outwardly soft, but inside she is really extremely tough willed. Still, it was quite a rash decision by the headquarters to give her a rank of Battalion Commander so early. After all, she had not undergone genuine military academy training yet."

Gao Shen said: "That was the will of the Commander-in-Chief. Actually, his plan was to just let her feel the atmosphere of war in the front lines, having a personal feel before entering training again slowly. However, she is truly not suitable to continue staying at the military camp in the front lines. Today's ambush was obviously pre-planned by the Kalise Empire. I shudder to think what would happen if anything were to happen to her here, how can I face the Commander-In-Chief? I will write this report to the military headquarters instantly, the messenger hawk can pass on the message quickly and back, and I believe we should have the answer in ten days. Lao Qian, move the First Battalion and stationed yourselves beside the Third Battalion, strengthen the defense, and ensure the safety of Viscount Shangguan."

"I understand. I really hope that Viscount Shangguan will grow into her power earlier. Alas, she is a girl, I do not know if it is right to place such a heavy burden onto her shoulders in the future, to have to take over from Marshal Zhou…"

...

"Little Fatty, are you in?" Zhou Weiqing was cultivating in his tent, when Shangguan Bing'er's voice resounded out from outside.

"I'm here." Stopping his cultivation, Zhou Weiqing jumped down from his bed, and raised the tent flap. Shangguan Bing'er walked in from the outside, and Zhou Weiqing immediately noticed that her mood was rather off, and she looked rather lonely, desolate and despondent. It was truly out of sorts from her usual self. Furthermore, this was also the first time she had called out his name directly.

"Bing'er, what's wrong?" Zhou Weiqing pulled out a chair for her.

Shangguan Bing'er looked up at him suddenly and said: "Am I very stupid? I cannot even direct the troops properly. I…"

Looking at her sudden agitation, Zhou Weiqing was given a scare. "Bing'er, how could you say that? What happened today was totally not your fault. Furthermore, thanks to you, we managed to deal a heavy blow to the enemies."

Shangguan Bing'er shook her head and said: "I am not a qualified commander, Little Fatty, do you know? Actually, I have totally no idea how to direct an army, to deploy troops and formations. Before today, I always believed that as a Heavenly Jewel Master, even if my commanding capabilities were not up to speed, I could still make it up through my own personal strength. Today, I finally understood how foolish that thought was. Heavenly Jewel Masters and army commanders are two totally different concepts, no wonder Company Leader Xiao always refused to accept me. He is right; in comparison, he is much more suitable than I am to be the Battalion Commander. I have already turned in my resignation to the Regimental Commander, and I expect that the order should be relayed down before long."

Zhou Weiqing patted his own shoulder, saying: "I'll lend this to you?"

Shangguan Bing'er blanked out for a moment, looking at Zhou Weiqing's caring eyes, and after a hesitant moment, she walked forward to him, laying her head gently on his shoulder. However, she actually maintained the rest of her body away from him.

Zhou Weiqing's mind was filled with tender and protective feelings, and he lifted his arms to embrace her. However, he was stopped by her as she said: "Do not move."

Zhou Weiqing immediately stopped his hands, saying: "Alright, I am not moving."

She stood there, gently resting her head upon his shoulder, as she closed her eyes slowly, saying in a low voice: "Little Fatty, do you know? Actually, I am so very tired, my heart has always been very tired… very tired."

"I understand. You are after all only 16 years old, and yet as the only other Heavenly Jewel Master in the empire besides Admiral Zhou, so much has fallen upon you. The responsibility and expectations you are shouldering is so high. Not only must you continually cultivate and improve your strength, you are also trying to adapt to the army, it is really too tough on you."

"I do not fear tough labour, Little Fatty, you know? No matter how tough it is, no matter how tired I am, I can still persist and carry on. But today, seeing so many of my soldiers die before my eyes… in one fell swoop, more than 70 lives just vanished like that, even amongst those severely wounded, if more than half of them can continue on in the army it would be considered good already… Almost 100 lives were ruined because of me… Before this, they had never let me join the battlefield… Before today, I had never done anything as a true Battalion Commander. Today… was the first time I killed a human…the first time I saw so many people die before me. I felt really uncomfortable in my heart, extremely uneasy. I do not think I can continue being a Battalion Commander any longer. I cannot stand the thought of having another day where more soldiers will perish because of my inadequate directions. I really do not want to see them die in front of me."

Zhou Weiqing's heart stirred, he had not expected that this was the first time that Shangguan Bing'er killed someone or seen death. No wonder her response was so huge. Watching so many people die to to protect her, how could her heart withstand it. Feeling her body trembling sligtly, Zhou Weiqing said solemnly: "Bing'er, let me withstand all of that for you."

Shangguan Bing'er's body stiffened. She understood completely what he meant. With his talent, if he disclosed his identity as a Heavenly Jewel Master, without a doubt, much of the pressure on her would shift to him. If in Shangguan Bing'er's heart, her feelings towards Zhou Weiqing was extremely conflicting, and in the mass of conflicting emotions, indignation accounted for a majority of it. In that instance as he said those words, it felt as if all the discontent and indignation vanished. At this time when she was at her frailest, when she most needed comforting, Zhou Weiqing's calm and insistent words touched her heart for the first time, moving her deeply. Before this, even if his arrow had saved her life, she did not have such a feeling, but only at this moment did she really feel that this shoulder belonged to a man she could depend on.

The arms hanging at both sides of her body lifted quietly, as she held Zhou Weiqing gently. The distance between them finally disappeared as she embraced him voluntarily for the first time. 1