Dual Cultivation God Returns Chapter 1037: Why him?

The two heirs assumed shooting stances a good distance apart from one another, then launched into their contest, arrows flying toward Demonic Beasts lurking in the canyon beneath.

They avoided firing wildly at whatever Demonic Beasts caught their eye; rather, Steward Lee chose the marks, favoring pairs of identical species boasting matching or nearly matching cultivation bases, and he pinpointed the exact body part—or organ later—to strike.

Steward Lee kicked off with straightforward quarry: targets at modest range, bulky in build and sluggish in motion, weak in cultivation with scant natural protection, the full expansive head set as the bullseye—a plush zone for getting loosened up.

A beginner Archery Cultivator could nail those, yet the pair of youths were demanded to strike flawlessly on technique, precision, killing power, and draw-to-release speed. Naturally, bonus marks awaited for flair or cunning technique deployment, alongside sparing the prized beast parts.

As Steward Lee steadily cranked up the challenge, the rivals had to stay in stride until one slipped.

Sourcing ideal matches dragged the duel into a drawn-out battle.

Two squads were dispatched to harvest the fallen beasts, handling the arrows with utmost care during retrieval since it factored into the judging too.

The opening four volleys at the simplest marks—even amid creeping escalation—tied dead even, but once Steward Lee wrapped the warmup to his liking and spiked the hardship sharply for the ensuing three, a gap emerged. Perfect execution held for both, though the elder sibling now labored harder while Jian Yu stayed mostly composed.

The following trio laid bare even more: midway through them on the second, Jian Yu invested real effort at last, as Jian Hao threw nearly his full arsenal into it with obvious strain. Come the tenth strike total, Jian Hao paused a beat before unleashing; on the eleventh, he loosed promptly yet veered slightly astray in aim.

Right then, difficulty vaulted skyward, pitting them against low-level 1st-tier Profound-Grade Demonic Beasts slimmer-framed than before—still vastly outsizing humans—with Steward Lee naming vital innards as the kill zones.

Each felled their target regardless, Jian Hao via solitary shaft while Jian Yu unleashed a brace in swift tandem, impacts blending into near unison.

"Hahaha! I won!", Jian Hao whipped around to Steward Lee and his junior with victorious glee, easing his bow down while masking every hint of his total-commitment takedown, feigning utter nonchalance.

Against his hopes, Jian Yu showed no dismay. Instead, a grin lit his face, "You seem confused, Brother. The competition is still going on."

"W-what are you talking about?", Jian Hao creased his brow, "I took it down in one shot, you shot twice!"

"Consecutively, so it counts as one attack. Young Master Yu used that tactic to greatly conserve Spiritual Qi and reduce mental fatigue, in other words to conserve strength. It might affect the score when the prey is brought back, but is not conclusive evidence of a win, not to mention it could be counted as use of shooting technique and tactics," the middle-aged man near Jian Yu chuckled.

"Wha-... bu-...", Jian Hao’s face darkened upon grasping it wasn’t finished. He’d banked on this as the clincher, pouring everything—technique, Spiritual Qi outlay, focus, and do-or-die mentality—into solely this kill, lacking faith for tougher ones ahead. His eyes darted to his two clad retainers.

One piped up in protest sans any cue from his Young Master, "Hah! What a farce! Young Master Yu wasn’t confident in killing the Demonic Beast, so he made a split-second decision to send a second arrow! And you call that tactics?"

The second joined right in, "The prey is collected only to confirm whether the competition was valid, that score is just in case there is no clear winner! The real competition is for whoever can keep up with the task! And Young Master Hao clearly was superior in this one!"

"You said it yourself, the competition is for whoever can keep up with the task," Jian Yu’s supporter squinted, "The task is to kill the prey, both of them managed to do it."

"You!"

With a deep sigh, Steward Lee declared, "Enough." He continued, "Both targets got shot down, which means they both pass this round. We can move to the next without any hassle. I've already picked the new targets."

Jian Hao's face twisted in intense worry and fury upon hearing that, his gaze shifting to his younger brother's smug, assured grin with narrowed eyes, before he swiftly prepared his bow, mimicking the other's action.

The decisive moment had arrived, for both unleashed two arrows this time. Jian Yu fired them in a single motion just like before, but Jian Hao merely wounded his Demonic Beast on the first shot after a slight miss, forcing him to loose a second.

Even as a dispute erupted—with Jian Yu's supporters proclaiming triumph—Steward Lee simply chose the next targets, insisting on a definitive victor.

On this attempt, Jian Hao missed entirely, as the target Demonic Beast moved with blinding speed.

He let out a curse, whipping his head toward his brother's side, only to freeze in place with eyes bulging wide. Members of the Crimson Arrow Manor stared in the same direction as well.

Jian Yu remained poised with his bow drawn, arrow nocked but still held back. His gaze turned distant and vacant, enveloped by an eerie tranquil aura. Distant thunder suddenly boomed across the heavens, where phantom clouds materialized and lightning crackled through them, followed by another peal that birthed a tiny radiant speck hovering three meters over Jian Yu's head.

A mere glance at it infused every cultivator with tranquility and deep enlightenment.

"T-the S-seed of the Dao is descending...", Jian Hao whispered in total shock, his stunned eyes soon brimming with envy, loathing, fury, and burning avarice. "T-this can't be... w-why him? This filthy little shit doesn't deserve it..."

Such greed flickered not just in his gaze, but in those of many others too—including the two figures in opulent robes lingering behind him, and even certain Crimson Arrow Manor guards.