Chapter 1787 – Assassination Encounter
“No one can hurt me, let alone these inexperienced little brats.”
Jiang Pengji rolled her eyes internally.
In her original world, there were a few people she couldn’t defeat in a pure martial arts competition, but in this world?
Haha, a bunch of hopeless fighters thinking they could even touch the hem of her clothes?
As it turned out, you can’t recklessly plant flags, because you never know when reality is going to smack you in the face.
Among the six arts, “Shooting” is similar to “Controlling,” with five controlling techniques and five shooting skills: “White Arrow,” “Three Linked,” “Sharp Shot,” “Measure,” and “Well Ritual.” When the academy originally set the examination items, the big shots wanted to divide “Shooting” into five small sections based on the five controlling techniques, each with a score of six points. However, after examining these five shooting skills closely, Jiang Pengji felt that simply testing the “Five Shots” seemed too easy, lacking challenge, and wouldn’t accurately distinguish the students’ shooting abilities.
To this, the big shots reacted with: “???”
What on earth was this Lan Ting fellow talking about?
Did she not know how difficult it was to master the Five Shots?
If “Five Shots” were an exam item, how hard would it be to achieve a full score?
If someone could get a full score, at least they’d rank as a Duke in the military camp, with great promotion potential if they excelled in battle.
How did it suddenly sound so effortless coming from Lan Ting’s mouth?
Jiang Pengji demonstrated the Five Shots on the spot; mind you, besides Liu Xi, who studied archery for two months before the age of twelve, Jiang Pengji had no prior experience. In other words, she was a self-taught expert, yet she could easily execute the Five Shots.
With her skills, Jiang Pengji proved to Mr. Yuanjing and the others that humans were not the same.
“Mastering the Five Shots is fundamental for the students at Golden Scales Academy. If they can’t even handle the basics, what are they learning?”
Mr. Yuanjing understood Jiang Pengji’s strictness with students, and after some thought, they canceled the Five Shots assessment and switched to a Three Shots test.
Don’t underestimate the reduction from five to three; the level of difficulty increased by more than double.
When the examiner announced the Three Shots project, many students looked dazed.
“What good is mastering Five Shots? The enemies on the battlefield are alive, not stationary targets. You are also soldiers with legs, riding horses, not wooden stakes standing still.” Jiang Pengji admonished the candidates, interrupting their thoughts.
Yes, Jiang Pengji shamefully changed the exam’s requirements.
Originally, students were to shoot at stationary targets from various distances, scoring based on the number of rings hit.
Of course, they had to use all five shooting techniques to achieve full marks.
Under these conditions, at least one hundred fifty out of the two hundred participants from Golden Scales Academy could obtain full marks.
What’s the difference between everyone scoring full marks and everyone receiving zero?
Naturally, they had to increase the exam’s difficulty to distinguish between students’ shooting skills.
So, Jiang Pengji merely added a little difficulty on top of the Five Shots: 😏
Everyone: “???”
Is Prince Lan really sure it’s just a little difficulty?
Was it a misinterpretation of the phrase “a little bit of difficulty,” or did they misunderstand?
When Sun Lan heard the details of the Three Shots project, her face turned pale, and the girls lining up nearby wore serious expressions.
“Something tells me… after this test, no one will maintain a full score…”
Was Prince Lan really testing them?
Was it really just to toy with them?
Feng Yi said, “There are always people more skilled than you, and heavens beyond heaven; you shouldn’t speak too highly of yourself. There are certainly many students with exceptional archery skills.”
What if someone did score full points under such brutal conditions?
Sun Lan thought of her classmates in the girls’ class and humbly acknowledged, “What Rong Li said is reasonable.”
The first project is fixed-target shooting; as long as the arrow doesn’t miss, they can score. To achieve full marks, candidates must use three or more shooting techniques.
The second project is moving targets, with a dozen scarecrows on movable pulleys, their vital points marked by red circles. Students must also use three or more shooting techniques to hit the targets to achieve full marks.
The third project is even crazier, requiring students to ride horses while shooting at various types of scarecrows that move irregularly. Students need to employ three or more shooting techniques to accurately hit the vital points of special scarecrows for full marks.
Seeing the students had understood the rules, Jiang Pengji announced the start of the assessment.
“Just a bunch of kids who’ve never seen blood on the battlefield and haven’t even gone hunting—how could they possibly achieve full marks?”
The onlookers mumbled, unanimously believing it impossible for these students to score full marks.
With such harsh exam items, even the best archers in the military camp wouldn’t dare boast of a perfect score.
The outcome?
Hmm…
When the first full score was achieved, all those chattering voices fell silent.
“Truly a good seedling; make sure to remember her name. If she can’t serve after turning back, I will seek out the Lord for her.”
Jiang Nongqin was present today as well; she was maintaining order and protecting the Lord while also scouting for talent among the freshmen.
The female camp had indeed been developing robustly over the years, but only half the forces were on the front lines; the rest primarily comprised logistical military doctors. Frankly speaking, this did not benefit the female soldiers in vying for real power in the military. Unfortunately, there were no female generals from proper military families; she had to shift her focus to the students at Golden Scales Academy. The few girls who had left early were already under her command, showcasing evident quality and skill.
Students from Golden Scales Academy learn everything; military strategy is also a mandatory subject, making their quality on par with that of those from military families.
Among the top performers, with proper training, they could bear the banner of the female camp.
The vice general beside her quietly noted down the names.
Compared to the previous Five Controlling techniques, the number of students achieving full marks for this subject was significantly lower.
As of just now, one hundred eighty students had completed the test, but only nine achieved full marks, seven of whom were girls.
Jiang Pengji muttered, “There are still about twenty left to take the test. Perhaps one or two more might achieve full marks, making it a nice round number.”
This result significantly crushed the confidence of many once-promising students, leaving those still waiting even more anxious.
“I’m falling behind compared to xxx’s archery skills; he got twenty-five points even with a mistake. I’m sure I’ll do worse…”
“I heard certain girls in our class performed exceptionally well in the Five Shots, but even they made mistakes and lost points today…”
As the remaining twenty students queued, they whispered among themselves when one of them noticed their classmate looking particularly off.
“Are you okay? You looked distracted earlier, and now you’re even paler. If you’re feeling unwell, you should tell the examiner early.”
This classmate had always performed well, better than them, and their score for the Five Controlling Techniques was twenty-five, while this classmate had come in last.
Not just last in their class, but among two hundred students—only nineteen points!
Seeing their classmate looking dazed and pale, it seemed their health affected their performance.
“I—I’m fine…” the classmate said, their gaze wavering, voice weak. “Maybe I just had a bad breakfast. Please don’t tell the examiner; if I take the test and bomb, I’ll still get some points. If I don’t take it, it’s a zero, and I really don’t want to repeat the year…”
“Then lean on me for support; take a breather until it’s your turn.”
Students at Golden Scales Academy have shared meals and living quarters for years, with occasional frictions, but overall, they remain united and friendly.
“Thank you!”
Soon enough, it was this classmate’s turn.
“Wishing you good fortune!”
With a pale face, the classmate slightly lowered their head, weakly curling their lips.
Jiang Pengji glanced at this student’s score and frowned.
As the lowest scorer, this student performed poorly again in the Three Shots, only scoring eleven points in the first two items.
When it came to the third item, shockingly, three out of five arrows missed their targets.
The rest figured it out.
What did they discover?
There was a rare academic underachiever amidst all the geniuses at Golden Scales Academy!
With two items scoring full marks, only managing eleven points? This third item failure was setting them up for a spectacular fail!
Jiang Pengji frowned tightly as she lightly tapped her fingers on her knee.
“What’s wrong with this student?”
Jiang Pengji casually asked, and the examiner approached her, “We inquired earlier; it seems they had a bad breakfast.”
The onlookers sighed, likening it to being sick during college entrance exams—bad luck.
As the conversation went on, the student shot two more arrows, one missing entirely, while the other hit the target but did not strike the scarecrow’s vital point.
Desperation seemed to set in as sweat trickled down their brow, messing up their calm demeanor. It was rare to see an underachiever in Golden Scales Academy; a group of distinguished individuals coldly watched the spectacle, applying immense pressure on the student.
“Eh? Is he attempting a triple shot with the Three Linked technique to recover his score?”
A scholar noticed the student’s movements as they retrieved three arrows from the quiver.
Their peer scoffed, “Hah, he couldn’t even hit the target before, and he wants to try a triple shot? What a joke!”
Just then, the student suddenly urged their horse onward, the steed in pain galloping forward.
In the heat of the moment, the student tightened their bow, pulled the string back, and slightly bent forward…
Everyone thought he was ready to go all out, but suddenly, he changed his target, aiming directly at Jiang Pengji’s face, throat, and heart!
This unexpected turn of events happened too quickly.
Jiang Nongqin, ready to protect, saw the student close in on Jiang Pengji from a distance, the drawn arrow flying.
As the arrow flew through the air, a cold smirk danced on Jiang Pengji’s lips.
She knew this student was putting on an act; even if he managed to fool everyone else into believing he was underperforming, Jiang Pengji wouldn’t be deceived.
“Protect the Lord!!!”
The moment the arrow shot forth, panic gripped Wei Ci’s heart, and his cry of “Protect the Lord!” broke into a strangled sound.
Jiang Pengji swiftly dodged; two arrows missed and hit her sleeve, but the third arrow that shot towards her heart struck true! All around her witnessed Jiang Pengji dodge to the side, gripping the arrow while bending to the ground, blood staining her clothes.
