Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

”SWISH—CRACK!”

A stone suddenly shot out from the side, striking the arrow shaft mid-flight. The Arrow snapped in two and tumbled to the ground.

”SWISH—”

Almost at the same instant, another stone flew straight for the bald-headed man’s face.

Unfortunately, it missed its mark, grazing past his ear and embedding itself in the dead tree trunk behind him with a dull thud.

”Who is it!?”

The bald-headed man whipped his head around, his gaze following the stone’s trajectory.

Among the dead trees to his left, a figure weaved through with ghost-like speed, rapidly approaching them.

Indeed.

The figure was none other than Chen Cheng.

He had originally planned to use the jar of Golden Ring Treasure Snake Medicinal Wine as bait to lure the four bandits over, then ambush them on the path for a surprise attack.

Unfortunately, his opponents were too cautious, and his plan to ambush them failed.

Fortunately, he already knew the extent of Liu the Crooked’s strength and could thus deduce the strength of the other three. Even if the ambush failed, he was completely unfazed by the prospect of a direct confrontation, one against four.

[Archery]: Entry Level (2/300)

Just now, as he watched the bald-headed man draw his bow and shoot, the Vertical Eye Mark had already granted him Entry Level Archery.

Throwing also counted as archery.

To hit the target with one out of two stones was quite impressive for someone who had just reached the Entry Level.

”SWISH SWISH SWISH—”

Chen Cheng didn’t slow down, continuously throwing pebbles as he rapidly closed the distance. Although his accuracy was atrocious, his general aim wasn’t bad, and it was enough to disrupt the bald-headed man.

The latter dodged left and right in a sorry state, completely unable to find an opening to draw another arrow.

Archery was his signature skill. Without it, he was as good as useless and posed no further threat to Chen Cheng.

”Lord Wei, hurry!”

The bald-headed man shrieked at the top of his lungs while dodging the incoming pebbles.

Liu the Crooked and the other two reacted instantly, already sprinting over.

Liu the Crooked drew a Short Saber from his lower back, its blade so dark it didn’t reflect any light. He closed in and slashed horizontally, aiming straight for Chen Cheng’s waist and ribs.

Chen Cheng twisted his body to the side to evade. The blade scraped against his fur coat, shearing off a few strands of fox fur that drifted down into the pile of dead leaves.

Before Chen Cheng could regain his footing, the sound of wind whistling from above had already reached him.

The one-eyed man gripped a Familiar Copper Rod with both hands, bringing it down on Chen Cheng’s head with a mighty gust of wind. The rod was as thick as a child’s arm, and a full-force swing was powerful enough to shatter stone and sunder mountains.

The mere wind from the rod’s descent was enough to press Chen Cheng’s hair against his temples.

With no time to think, Chen Cheng raised an arm to block.

”BAM—”

The rod and arm collided. Had it been anyone else, the bones in their arm would have likely been shattered to dust.

However, Chen Cheng’s reaction was lightning-fast. He channeled his Blood Qi, let his Dragon Scale Shirt absorb most of the Power, then unleashed Dark Force from his muscles. It acted like an invisible barrier, knocking the Copper Rod aside and sending a shockwave back that numbed the one-eyed man’s hand, nearly making him drop the weapon.

Just as Chen Cheng was about to counterattack, the third man closed in.

This man was as thin as a bamboo pole, his face a sallow yellow. He wielded a pair of Crane Beak Needles, his techniques sinister and cunning.

Taking advantage of Chen Cheng’s unstable footing, he aimed his twin needles at both of Chen Cheng’s sides. The tips glowed with a faint green light—they were undoubtedly poisoned.

In a flash, Chen Cheng used the Harmonious Step Technique to adjust his center of gravity. With a light twist of his waist, he smoothly slipped past the pair of Crane Beak Needles.

But before he could even catch his breath, Liu the Crooked and the bald-headed man attacked again.

The three of them coordinated with exceptional tacit understanding.

Rod, saber, and needles—for long, medium, and close range, respectively. Their fierce attacks wove an inescapable net, trapping Chen Cheng where he stood.

Fortunately, he had already condensed his Four Pillars of Blood Qi. His superior strength was enough to compensate for his disadvantages in numbers and tactics. Though the situation looked fraught with peril, his defense was actually watertight.

However, there was still one more opponent.

”WHOOSH—”

Not far away, the bald-headed man had already loosed an Arrow.

As the sharp whistle of the Arrowhead tearing through the air pierced his eardrums, Chen Cheng only had time to catch a glimpse of a cold glint out of the corner of his eye, shooting straight for the spot between his eyebrows.

”WHOOSH—”

The second arrow followed immediately after, aimed at his throat.

”SWISH—”

The third arrow, straight for his Heart.

The bald-headed man’s Archery was truly extraordinary. He fired three arrows in rapid succession, the interval between them so short they were practically nose to tail.

Chen Cheng’s reaction was incredibly fast. While dealing with the three men surrounding him, his body instinctively swerved, and the shaft of the first arrow grazed past his temple.

He could even feel the faint tremble as the fletching brushed against the loose strands of hair on his forehead.

On the dead tree trunk thirty feet behind him, the Arrow was buried half a foot deep, its tail quivering like a viper’s flicking tongue.

Before his body could return to an upright position, he snapped his head back in a way that defied common sense, his spine bending backward to its absolute limit. The Arrowhead of the second arrow scraped past his Adam’s apple, a cold sensation on his skin. It was truly a hair’s breadth away.

Although he had dodged the first two arrows, his body was now locked in position. For a split second, he was unable to make another move.

The third arrow tore through the air with a piercing shriek, aimed straight for his heart as if it had been precisely calculated.

In that instant, time seemed to freeze.

The Arrow rapidly grew larger in the pupils of Liu the Crooked and the other two. Their eyes lit up, the excitement in them nearly overflowing, as if they could already see the scene of Chen Cheng being pierced through the heart.

”SWOOSH—”

In the next moment, Chen Cheng’s right hand suddenly swung around in a chopping motion, his five fingers spread wide. His speed was nothing short of incredible.

Unfortunately, he was half a beat too slow...

His fingertips were still about an inch from the Arrow—the equivalent of 3.3 centimeters from his past life.

Normally, such a small distance would be insignificant, but at this moment, it was like an insurmountable chasm.

Another hair’s breadth difference.

Only, where before he had dodged danger by a hair’s breadth, this time he was missing his only chance to save himself by that same tiny margin.

The excitement in the eyes of Liu the Crooked and the others intensified. They were already preparing to pounce at the first opportunity to land the finishing blow, determined not to give Chen Cheng the slightest chance to recover.

However.