Newbie Guardians

Chapter 21 Feelings

That night, in the girls' dormitory, Lin Yuxi drew a six-pointed star array, and an old figure appeared.

"Elder Sun! How is the matter being handled?"

The aged voice answered respectfully.

"Miss! The bodies of those two have been removed and handed over to Elder Ghost! We are ready for any follow-up assassination attempts!"

Lin Yuxi felt a pang of discomfort.

"Don't call me 'Miss' anymore!"

"Yes, Princess!"

"Just like Elder Bing, call me 'little sister'!"

"Yes, sister... I've heard that besides Mu Lingshan, there's another sharpshooter. Is that true...?"

Lin Yuxi interrupted impatiently. For some reason, she just didn't want Huang Xin to be that sharpshooter.

"Unable to determine at this time! Do not act rashly! Await my command!"

"Yes! I'll take my leave!"

The aged figure quickly disappeared, fleeing as if in a hurry.

As Lin Yuxi cleaned up the traces, she muttered to herself.

"How come he's becoming more and more pleasing to the eye? He's clearly nowhere near as good-looking as Kim Jun!"

In another girls' dormitory, Mu Lingshan meditated as usual, but couldn't enter a meditative state. She had been practicing since she was five, and now at eighteen, for thirteen years, she had never missed a night of breathing exercises, always entering a meditative state instantly with undivided attention. What was wrong with her tonight? Her mind was filled with images of the competition! How could he be so stupid? Didn't he know that was dangerous? She had...she had...she had hugged him for so long...So embarrassing!

On the training ground, Huang Xin stood upright, holding a bow in his left hand and nocking an arrow in his right. Whoosh! The arrow flew more than a hundred meters, passing seven or eight meters above the scarecrow's head, and disappeared without a trace.

Jin Jun stood to the side and patiently explained.

"Your grip on the bow isn't steady enough; you need to strengthen your muscles through training."

Huang Shen focused his mind, channeling all his true energy into his left arm, gripping it firmly. He then drew the bow with his right arm, and whoosh! The arrow shot towards the scarecrow's head, flying fifty or sixty meters before plunging headfirst into the ground.

"This time, my left arm was very stable, but my right arm lacked strength. Huang Xin, how do you manage to switch the strength between your left and right arms so easily?"

"Brother Jin, this is what my grandfather taught me when I was a child." Huang Xin didn't want to expose his family's secret. Of course, he was telling the truth, since his grandfather had taught him those mental techniques word by word.

"What an amazing ability. If you keep at it, it won't be long before you're almost a true guardian!"

"I will try my best!" Huang Xin's eyes were full of determination.

After Jin Jun left, Huang Xin was alone in the training ground, aiming again and again, failing each time. The more he failed, the less willing he was to stop. He wanted to change the future and ensure that all the guardians survived. Completely unaware, a beautiful figure was watching him silently from the shadows behind him for a long time, refusing to leave.

Sun Siyao muttered to herself, "This guy's aptitude is so poor, he's tried hundreds of times and hasn't hit the target even once. How could he possibly become a sharpshooter? He's full of openings; one arrow would be enough to take him down! I should go back and tell Grandpa!"

The next day, in the morning, during the theory class, Huang Xin sat upright as usual, his eyes fixed straight ahead. He didn't want to provoke his ice-sculpted deskmate. It was as if the balding, middle-aged earth science professor, Mr. Liu, on the podium was a stunning beauty, while his deskmate was a monstrous threat.

Seeing his expression, Mu Lingshan felt a surge of anger. Was it really necessary? Did he think she was a monster who would devour people without spitting out the bones? This was the first time she had noticed Huang Xin's posture in the two months they had been sitting together, and she was both angry and amused.

In the afternoon, during the practical training, Huang Xin remained in the far corner, practicing his archery against the scarecrow again and again. He didn't hit the target even once all afternoon. Mu Lingshan, unable to bear it any longer, walked behind Huang Xin and said softly...

"Concentrate your mind and focus your energy on the dantian."

Huang Xin jumped in fright, almost dropping the arrow. Turning around, she saw her ice-sculpted deskmate! Wait, what did she just say? Why does it sound so familiar? Yes, it's a cultivation technique from an ancient text!

"Classmate, I know this mental technique, but I don't quite understand it."

"It means that you should first concentrate your mind and focus all your attention on the dantian (lower abdomen), and try to hold onto the qi there. Then, you should allocate a portion to your left arm to strengthen it. At the same time, you should continue to hold onto the qi in the dantian. Once you are proficient, you can allocate a portion to your right arm to strengthen it. Each time, you can only draw a small amount of qi and continuously replenish the qi in the dantian through breath control. Only in this way can you draw qi from the dantian continuously and send it to any part of your body at will."

Huang Xin felt a sudden ease in his mind, as if a key had been unlocked, and many of his questions were answered.

Seeing Huang Xin's bright, sparkling eyes, Mu Lingshan knew he was having an epiphany and needed quiet, so she quietly turned and left. She didn't know why she had become so nosy today.

That evening, Huang Xin meditated as usual, attempting to use the method explained by Mu Lingshan to guide a wisp of true energy to his left arm, while diligently guarding the energy in his dantian, keeping most of it there. It was difficult at first, but after dozens of attempts, he grasped some key points. When guiding the true energy to his arm, he only needed a sliver of intention. The trick to guarding the dantian was to act as if the previous energy-guiding action had never happened, continuing his breathing exercises to gather the true energy in his dantian. With repeated practice, he gradually became more proficient.

The next afternoon, Huang Shen followed the instructions and practiced archery repeatedly. He found that he had made great progress. Although he still couldn't hit the scarecrow, the trajectory of the arrow was not off, and the distance was getting closer and closer. After another half month, he finally succeeded in hitting the scarecrow between the eyebrows. Although the arrow did not penetrate deeply, Huang Shen was overjoyed and cheered non-stop.

Seeing Huang Xin jumping and skipping around like a fool, Mu Lingshan couldn't help but chuckle, realizing it had been a long time since she'd laughed like that. Last year, at seventeen, her exceptional talent led her to participate in the Guardian Trial. During the futuristic experience after completing the mission, countless monsters attacked the city. She continuously used Ice Spikes and Raging Waves to freeze or repel large numbers of monsters. Later, a massive leader appeared, locking onto her and relentlessly launching ranged magical attacks. A skilled archer, wielding a longbow covered in runes, stood two meters in front of her, repeatedly striking the monster between the eyebrows until finally, when her magic was exhausted, the monster pounced. The archer drew two short swords, fighting to the death. With no magic left, she couldn't use any skills and could only watch helplessly as he relentlessly battled the monster until they exited the secret realm. From that day on, she had intensified her training and hadn't smiled like that since.

Mu Lingshan sighed. The person before her was so weak, so different from the person of her future, yet his actions were so similar. Was it really him? Perhaps, given more time, he could achieve the same. No matter what, she couldn't let the future scenario happen. She had to work hard to improve her cultivation and find a way to obtain the magic bracelet. That way, she wouldn't run out of magic power and could fight alongside him to the very end. Thinking of this, Mu Lingshan's pretty face flushed slightly, her beautiful eyes filled with anticipation.