CLEAVER OF SIN Chapter 725: A Thousand Arrows [Castle Bonus - ]

Alarms blared in Asher’s mind. Prior to commencing this obstacle course training, he had meticulously conditioned his senses to perceive every single incoming attack as a life-threatening danger. Even if an assault couldn't genuinely harm him, evasion was always the wisest course; after all, one could never be certain when Instructor Sane might introduce an unpredictable variation into something that appeared predictable.

He had failed to detect the tripwire. Normally, such a wire would have reflected the faint moonlight, making it visible to someone with his heightened perception. He had already identified and expertly bypassed several tripwires earlier. Yet now, he had finally succumbed to one, as if an invisible or specially designed wire had been crafted precisely to ensnare slippery prodigies like him when they least expected it.

Truly, Instructor Sane was devious, despite his earlier assurances of safety. Verily, Crymora was not a realm where anything, or even words, should ever be taken at face value.

With this realization dawning, an immense explosion erupted with cataclysmic force, a ruinous crescendo shattering the surroundings. A ravine violently tore open, the earth fracturing as trees were snapped backward and wrenched from their roots. Sand and soil were propelled into the atmosphere as a devastating shockwave tore through everything within a hundred-meter radius, reducing it to utter devastation. Thick, obscuring smoke enveloped the entire scene, concealing the aftermath as the destruction remained hidden from external view.

As for Asher... his form flickered into existence along the vertical surface of a tree, momentarily suspended as he stood parallel to the ground, defying natural orientation. He observed the explosion for a brief instance, his gaze unwavering, before gravity finally reasserted its claim over him. His body detached from the tree, and he dropped, landing with effortless grace upon the ground below.

Asher lightly shook his head with a quiet exhalation. He had narrowly escaped that disaster; had it not been for his acute senses and swift agility, he would have been engulfed by the explosion. While he wouldn't have sustained actual injury, he would still have been coated in blackened soot, a minor inconvenience, yet an inconvenience nonetheless.

Without pause, he resumed his movement. Asher couldn't help but ponder how less capable students were expected to endure such overwhelming explosive power. They would undoubtedly suffer the loss of limbs, if not their very lives. However, after a fleeting moment of reflection, he dismissed the thought. If the Instructor had implemented such a mechanism, he must have possessed confidence in his ability to prevent fatalities.

Furthermore, a Crownstar Life Ranker would undoubtedly possess speed exceeding that of the explosion itself, enabling them to intervene and rescue a student before being consumed by it, even if they weren't particularly in close proximity.

Ten minutes elapsed as Asher continued his progress, and during that interval, nothing occurred. Absolutely nothing. Not a single trap was activated, nor did any attack attempt to catch him off guard. Yet Asher remained unfooled. He recognized this tactic all too well; Instructor Sane was merely attempting to lull the students into a false sense of security, to make them lower their guard... if they were foolish enough to do so.

Asher could discern screams echoing from various directions, students crying out with all their might as they endured the wicked torment inflicted by the enveloping darkness of the night. It wasn't solely the screams; there were also the distant sounds of explosions reaching his ears, the sharp aroma of burning wood permeating the air, and the choking density of smoke lingering all around. Beneath it all, faint but unmistakable, he could even detect the scent of blood.

This rigorous training made the obstacle course at the Wargrave First Training Ground appear like child's play in comparison.

Asher could only release a sigh as he offered a silent prayer for all involved, hoping he wouldn't find himself in the same predicament as them. Moreover, he was confident that many students were already counting their blessings that these extreme training conditions would only persist for a month. If Cindralis had commenced earlier, as they had initially hoped and desired, many of them might not have survived.

'To imagine enduring all of this, and in the end, only one individual will earn the honor of representing the entire Empire,' Asher mused quietly to himself.

Although his thoughts seemed somewhat unfocused, his senses remained exceptionally keen. Having fallen prey to that initial tripwire, which had been flawlessly concealed, Asher resolved not to repeat the same error. He had already identified several more, each meticulously hidden, and had bypassed them with precise effectiveness.

A minute passed.

Suddenly, without any forewarning, Asher registered the piercing sound of countless projectiles tearing through the air from every imaginable direction. He didn't need to turn his head; fleeting glimpses of their trajectory were already visible in his peripheral vision. More converged from behind, from the sides, and from above—arrows, hundreds upon hundreds of them, all aiming at him from literally every angle.

Asher immediately came to a complete stop.

He comprehended the implication of this situation.

There was no simple way to evade this. No straightforward method of escape. Merely dodging wouldn't be enough… unless he employed a Technique. However, he had already made his decision; he would not resort to using Techniques unless it became absolutely unavoidable.

'Who would launch over a thousand arrows at a single student?' Asher pondered as he focused on steadying his breathing. 'Moreover... these arrows seem to possess some sort of homing capability, locking onto their intended target.'

His senses heightened further as he pushed them to their absolute extremes. He assumed a martial stance, his body positioned with grounded precision. If anyone had witnessed him at that precise moment, they might have assumed he intended to deflect the incoming arrows using only his bare hands.

And then... the arrows arrived... and Asher moved.

His body became an instantaneous blur, his movements mirroring that of a predatory jungle cat on the prowl. His wrist met the head of the very first arrow head-on, shattering it instantly. He did not hesitate. His other hand shot out like the strike of a viper, intercepting another arrow and reducing it to splinters. His momentum never wavered; his feet lifted off the ground as his legs swiftly moved, his ankles impacting multiple arrows simultaneously, disintegrating them into fragments while they were still in mid-flight.

His entire being transformed into a seamless flow of martial prowess, a demonstration of peak precision, efficiency, and lethality. Every step was meticulously calculated, every movement flawlessly executed, every action refined to its ultimate limit.

Arrows continued to impact his body, striking his back, his chest, and even his knees, but the instant they made contact, they spontaneously shattered, completely incapable of breaching his formidable durability. Asher exhibited no reaction to these impacts, as if he hadn't even registered them.

Yet, it wasn't that he failed to notice them.

The reality of the situation was far more straightforward... Asher was simply too monstrously powerful.

With over a thousand arrows relentlessly pursuing him, Asher had arrived at a critical decision in that very instant. Given the constraints imposed upon him, his diminished reaction speed, and his altered center of gravity, he couldn't possibly block every single incoming projectile. But as he had already determined, this particular training was not about sheer speed; it was fundamentally about efficiency. Precision.

Therefore, Asher adapted.

His senses recalibrated their focus, abandoning the notion of treating every single attack as a potentially lethal threat. Instead, they concentrated exclusively on discerning and identifying the arrows that truly posed a significant danger. Only those capable of inflicting injury upon him were given priority.

And as for the method by which he managed to block such perilous attacks without the use of any conventional weapon?

The answer was remarkably simple.

The bracelets adorning his wrists had become his chosen weapons.

With impeccable timing, he utilized them to intercept and shatter every single arrow that possessed sufficient force to pierce his resilient skin. Each motion was deliberate and purposeful, each strike delivered with perfect execution. As for the less potent arrows interspersed within the overwhelming barrage, he completely disregarded them, allowing them to strike his body harmlessly without consequence.

Once again, Asher showcased his unparalleled combat intellect and his terrifyingly effective efficiency.

Indeed... he was a true monster concealed within human form.

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