Chapter 29: The Chase Game

The first thing Ji Xinghuo thought about was not what she said but how pleasant your voice sounds!

Then he became wary.

“May I ask who you are?”

“Mr. Ji, don’t be suspicious.”

Her eyes blinked. Even hidden by a scarf, you could guess she was smiling infectiously. “My team is looking for a shooter, but we haven’t found the right person. I happened to see you a few times at the recruitment center, so I became interested.”

Ji Xinghuo was pleased inside but showed no change in expression. “Your team?”

He always felt this woman was not simple. The more beautiful a woman is, the more likely she is to deceive, although he couldn’t yet be sure whether she was actually beautiful.

“Yes, I am the captain of a hunting team. Our team is quite strong,” the woman modestly claimed.

Ji Xinghuo grew suspicious. “You should know I’m just a junior ranger. If your team is so strong, why are you interested in me?”

“Rank isn’t important. My requirements are different from other teams.”

The woman stood up and walked past him.

Ji Xinghuo smelled a refreshing scent, like a mix of peach, gardenia, and white orchid – unique, elegant, and so faint it was almost undetectable. Yet, memorable for a lifetime once smelled.

He was still dazed when she had already reached the restaurant door and turned to ask, “Mr. Ji, don’t you have confidence in yourself?”

“Here I come.”

Ji Xinghuo put down his half-finished dinner, wiped his mouth, and stood up to follow.

The two left the restaurant, walking on the street.

Ji Xinghuo walked beside her, remembering to ask, “May I know how to address you?”

“I’m Ren Mian,” she turned her head to reply, then as if afraid Ji Xinghuo didn’t catch her name, she explained, “Ren like wilful, Mian like cotton.”

“Shouldn’t the surname Ren be pronounced as rén?” Ji Xinghuo found it odd.

“In my case, it’s Ren as in wilful,” Ren Mian emphasized wilfully. “If you successfully join my team, you can call me Sister Ren.”

Wilful Sister?

Ji Xinghuo commented in his mind, but replied aloud, “Okay, Sister Ren.”

Afterward, neither spoke.

They walked hundreds of meters without stopping, prompting Ji Xinghuo to ask, “Sister Ren, where are we going?”

“You claim your skills exceed a mid-level ranger and that you have strong archery skills. I’ve not seen it, so I’m taking you to test that,” Ren Mian said calmly. “Although my requirements differ from other teams, a ranger’s basic skills must still pass muster.”

Ji Xinghuo nodded. “Thank you, Sister Ren, for this opportunity.”

“Don’t be too quick to thank me. Archery is just the first test. The harder challenges are still to come. Wait till you join my team.”

Ren Mian pointed ahead. “We’re here.”

It was an archery range at the street side. They entered, and Ren Mian directly requested a private indoor range where no one else could watch.

As the staff left, Ren Mian pointed to the furthest target.

“You have 10 seconds to prepare.”

“Between seconds 10 and 20, execute ten shots, each hitting the bullseye.” After speaking, she raised her wrist, pulled up her sleeve, revealing a mechanical watch, and started timing.

Without hesitation, Ji Xinghuo swiftly took his compound hunting bow from behind and adjusted his quiver diagonally on his right hip.

During this process, he also observed the target.

The target Ren Mian had chosen was a standard 80 cm diameter, but at a distance of 150 meters, far beyond the grasp of a junior ranger and challenging even for a mid-level ranger.

Though it was a fixed target, fulfilling the ten shots and ten bullseyes in ten seconds was a feat most senior rangers couldn’t achieve.

Most other junior rangers probably couldn’t even clearly see the bullseye on the target.

But Ji Xinghuo made no complaints.

Ren Mian kept time, and at the tenth second, she raised her right index finger as a signal.

Snap!

Ji Xinghuo almost simultaneously released the first arrow. The arrow became a black line that vanished in a blink. He didn’t look at the result. His adept hands were at their peak, placing the second arrow on the bow, pulling, and shooting again.

Snap snap snap snap snap!

Six arrows flew out in quick succession, their path forming an elevated parabola, each arrow unerringly headed for the bullseye.

This took about five seconds.

Ji Xinghuo used up the five arrows he had prepped in his palm. His gaze locked on the target, his posture unchanged, but his right hand reached into the quiver at his waist, skillfully drawing out four more arrows.

He nocked the seventh arrow.

Just as he was about to shoot, Ren Mian next to him snapped her fingers. Snap! The crystal light fixtures around them drew the light to her fingertips, dimming the range’s light almost to pitch black.

Ji Xinghuo still released the arrow, then turned to Ren Mian with a smile:

“Sister Ren, sneak attacks aren’t nice.”

As he spoke, he shot another arrow in the darkness, seemingly unaffected by the change in lighting.

Snap snap snap!

The remaining three arrows were shot.

Once the lights in the range came back, Ren Mian looked towards the target 150 meters away. Ten arrows were densely packed into the bullseye.

“Eight seconds.”

Ren Mian glanced at her mechanical watch, unable to hide her astonishment, and exclaimed, “Faster than I expected. With just this archery skill, teams in Olympia would fight over you.”

Not to mention, this was even with her interference.

Ji Xinghuo exhaled, seemingly releasing days of frustration. “They’d just find fault with me.”

“Hehe…” Ren Mian laughed softly. “Looks like I found a hidden gem.”

“Did I pass then?” Ji Xinghuo asked.

“You’ve passed the archery test,” Ren Mian nodded, the tassels of her hat moving like waves, hinting at deeper trials to come. “But the next tests are what I truly value. However, hitting a bullseye in the dark should be easy for you.”

“Please set the next challenge, Sister Ren,” Ji Xinghuo stated calmly.

“This test is for perception,” Ren Mian glanced at the arrow-filled target. “Go retrieve your arrows. Three minutes, don’t lose track of me.”

After speaking, she turned and walked away, leaving Ji Xinghuo alone.

Ji Xinghuo paused briefly.

But quickly ran over to pull out the arrows and put them back into his quiver, watching the time on a mechanical device, his face showing no sign of urgency.

He had already locked onto Ren Mian with magnetic sensing.

She left the archery range and suddenly picked up her pace, turning into an alley over two hundred meters away, then stood still.

It was a visual blind spot, difficult for most to notice.

But with magnetic sensing, it shone like a beacon in the night.

As soon as three minutes passed, Ji Xinghuo stepped out of the range, pretending to look around at the doorway before heading toward where Ren Mian was.

As they halved the distance between them, Ren Mian moved again.

She continued deeper into the alley she was hiding in, flipping over walls and weaving between buildings and eaves, changing directions occasionally.

Ji Xinghuo didn’t chase into the alley but quickened his pace slightly, keeping her within his magnetic sensing range.

Ren Mian, with her strong perception, evidently had means to grasp Ji Xinghuo’s location too.

So, she sped up even more.

Often, she would jump onto rooftops to take shortcuts, trying to shake off Ji Xinghuo’s trail, forcing him to also speed up.

But Ren Mian was clearly faster, and the distance between them gradually increased.

Minutes later, she moved beyond his magnetic sensing range.

Ji Xinghuo lost sight of Ren Mian but wasn’t flustered. He turned his head towards a corner invisible to all. His pupil flashed with light, fully activating the Wanxiang Star Pupils.

Instantly, countless imaginary lines and light flowed before his eyes, evolving into various futures.

Wanxiang Senluo!

Since the last critical moment when he activated the Wanxiang Star Pupils’ ability to foresee the future, Ji Xinghuo had experimented several times and finally mastered it, naming this ability “Wanxiang Senluo.”

Activating Wanxiang Senluo consumed star power and could last up to three seconds.

But he didn’t need that long now.

Ji Xinghuo activated it for just a blink, less than half a second, and received direction guidance, then immediately shut off Wanxiang Senluo.

He ran quickly in one direction. A few seconds later, Ren Mian reappeared within his magnetic sensing range.

Ren Mian stood at a street corner, seemingly unaware that she had been caught up.

When their distance narrowed to just a hundred meters, Ren Mian finally realized it.

She quickly moved away again.

Moments later.

Ji Xinghuo lost track of her again, not because his magnetic sensing failed, but because his pace couldn’t keep up. A junior ranger was still too forced in this aspect.

So, he reactivated Wanxiang Senluo for half a second and caught up with Ren Mian again.

This repeated three times.

After over an hour of chasing and being chased, they had crossed through half of the East Xia District.

Ji Xinghuo had never been here before. This district had fewer people, more strict patrols, and stronger individuals passing by, clearly a higher area of Olympia City.

Suddenly, Ren Mian’s movement trajectory changed.

She no longer became alert when he approached as before, opting for more advantageous directions to escape. Her movements became more random.

Ji Xinghuo thought about it and understood.

Ren Mian had lost the ability to sense his position. He sniffed his clothes, a smile appearing on his face. “So that’s how it is.”

Ji Xinghuo boldly closed the distance between him and Ren Mian, finding she had stopped moving.

When he approached, he discovered it was a bar.

Ren Mian stood at the bar’s entrance. When she saw Ji Xinghuo walking calmly from down the street, her beautiful eyes showed a mix of surprise, helplessness, and curiosity, but ultimately, she remained silent.

“Sister Ren.”

Ji Xinghuo called as he approached.

Ren Mian nodded slightly, extending her clean, delicate hand seriously. “Welcome to join my team.”