He knew this might reveal his hand,
drawing others' attention to him.
But there was no choice!
He had to become a Yin Chai.
Only then could he rise through the ranks
and travel to the Eighteenth Level of Hell
to return the Human and Animal realms
to Empress Houtu.
After all, only a Yin Chai could enter
the Eighteenth Level of Hell.
Silently,
Chen Nan unleashed his spatial domain,
though its coverage was only ten meters,
enveloping only Ma Jun.
He feared that a wider coverage might alert Duan Kun,
so he had to be cautious.
Having done this,
Chen Nan drew his bow and shot.
This was his last arrow.
The arrow cleaved through the air,
instantly hitting a moving scarecrow two hundred meters away.
The distant crowd felt despair.
Even if Chen Nan hit all the scarecrows,
he couldn't overtake Ma Jun for first place.
Unless...
Ma Jun made a mistake.
But,
was that possible?
Ma Jun possessed the cultivation of the fifth layer of the Yin Gathering realm.
That was considerable strength.
Hitting a moving target two hundred meters away
was hardly difficult for him.
He wouldn't make a mistake.
Just then,
Ma Jun also drew his bow,
and an arrow shot through the air.
Under the despairing gazes of everyone,
it flew towards the moving scarecrows in the distance.
However,
they witnessed something astonishing.
For some unknown reason,
the arrow,
after flying only a few dozen meters,
slowed down.
It drew an arc in the air,
and with a clang,
it oddly fell to the ground.
???
Everyone was dumbfounded.
They hadn't expected such a thing to happen.
Ma Jun was also wide-eyed.
I poured all my strength into it,
drew the bow,
why did the arrow fall from the sky?
This made no sense!
Chen Nan continued to shoot,
ignoring Ma Jun.
The onlookers, however,
erupted in laughter,
mocking Ma Jun for being all show and no substance.
Han Zongyuan's eyes welled up with tears of excitement.
Fifth Brother, oh Fifth Brother!
After all these years!
You've finally grasped the law of space.
If only you had grasped it ten thousand years ago,
would our Anti-Heaven Cult have been unable to overthrow
the rule of Emperor Fengdu?
But,
it's not too late to grasp it now.
We brothers are still here,
we will definitely assist you
and make you the new Emperor Fengdu.
"Don't get distracted, give it your all,"
Duan Kun transmitted telepathically to Ma Jun.
He knew something was strange,
but for him,
it was no big deal.
Hearing Duan Kun's telepathic message,
Ma Jun became instantly invigorated.
He nocked an arrow and drew his bow.
*Whoosh!*
An arrow shot through the air.
After flying more than fifty meters,
it began to wobble slightly,
giving the impression it was about to fall.
"Fall, fall, fall!"
Countless people silently cried out.
Because everyone knew,
if this arrow fell,
Chen Nan would have truly surpassed him.
Even if the Ma family cheated,
it couldn't negate Chen Nan's achievement today.
The spot of Yin Chai would fall to him.
Ma Jun also felt a surge of intense unease.
Chen Nan had finished shooting.
He had achieved a perfect score in the archery round.
Combined with his previous accumulated points,
he had temporarily surpassed Ma Jun.
If...
if his arrow were to fall as before,
even if he hit all his remaining ten-plus arrows,
it would only tie the score.
Therefore,
this shot was crucial.
As he grew increasingly uneasy,
the arrow,
as if losing its propulsion,
began to descend towards the ground.
The onlookers clenched their fists,
cheering with excitement.
The outcome of this competition
had been decided.
There was no suspense.
"Heaven has eyes, Heaven has eyes!"
"Officer Chen has always been dedicated to the people,
risking his life several times to save Tongcheng.
I willingly accept him as Yin Chai."
"Me too!"
The crowd cheered with exhilaration,
genuinely happy from the bottom of their hearts.
But then,
something that made their scalps tingle
and their blood run cold happened.
The arrow,
which had been falling towards the ground,
slowly floated back into the air.
As if it had come alive,
under the incredulous gazes of everyone,
it struck a scarecrow.
"Heaven's eyes are blind!"
"What in the world is going on?"
"This is so rigged!"
The surrounding crowd was furious.
They might be ordinary people,
but they weren't fools.
This situation could only mean one thing:
a powerful cultivator had interfered.
Otherwise,
an arrow that was falling
would not have suddenly flown up again.
This was unreasonable.
Chen Nan was also enraged.
This was even more absurd than bullets bending in the living world.
It was an insult to their intelligence.
So brazen.
If that's the case!
Then he would see this through.
At the same time,
Ma Jun,
his face twisted in a triumphant grin,
drew his bow again.
Three arrows shot through the air simultaneously.
Chen Nan decisively unleashed his spatial domain,
intending to interfere.
However,
the speed of the three arrows
suddenly accelerated to a terrifying degree.
Even for Chen Nan,
it was too late to intervene.
Ultimately,
the three arrows hit the scarecrows.
At this point,
Ma Jun still had seven arrows left.
He looked provocatively at Chen Nan,
"Brother Chen, I apologize, but the first place in this competition is mine."
He then drew his bow.
But before he could shoot,
he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen,
as if something were piercing him,
causing him to release the bowstring.
*Whoosh!*
The arrow,
originally aimed southwest,
had no power.
But as its speed slowed and it was about to fall,
it suddenly accelerated,
curved in the air towards the south,
and hit a scarecrow.
Is this ever going to end?
Do they have to humiliate everyone's intelligence this way?
An old man said with feigned admiration,
"Good shot, good shot! Young Master Ma, you truly have a good shot!"
"You aimed southwest,
yet hit a scarecrow in the south. Truly a good shot."
"If Ma Jun were not born, archery would be plunged into eternal darkness!"
"Young Master Ma's archery is unparalleled throughout history."
Countless people showered him with flattery,
their eyes filled with reverence.
Under normal circumstances,
Ma Jun,
with his inflated vanity,
would have been delighted.
He loved being praised.
But now,
he felt his face burn with shame.
He wasn't an idiot.
How could he not know they were indirectly mocking him?
However,
he remained silent,
channeling his shame into strength,
and shot the remaining arrows.
And all of them hit the distant scarecrows.
"My apologies, I won!"
Ma Jun casually threw his bow on the ground,
and let out a loud laugh.
Chen Nan's face turned ashen.
He couldn't win.
He truly couldn't compete with these despicable individuals!
They cheated so brazenly and openly.
Even with his spatial domain,
he was no match for them!
Duan Kun looked at Han Zongyuan with a playful expression and said,
"Lord Han, can we announce the final results of the competition?"
Han Zongyuan looked at the disappointed crowd below.
"I announce that the first place in this assessment goes to Ma Jun."
He paused here,
then grinned,
"Let us congratulate Chen Nan, who placed second,
on becoming the Yin Chai of Tongcheng."
The crowd was utterly bewildered.
What was going on?