Bamboo Case Chapter 28 Drawing the Bow and Shooting the Arrow

"I’m fully booked here. If you want something forged, go somewhere else."

A dwarf with a white beard, pounding a crimson-hot iron block with a stone hammer much larger than himself, didn't even look up at the large and small figures in conical hats who had suddenly appeared in his room.

"And another thing, breaking into someone's home uninvited is very rude in these parts."

"Do the demon clans of the Barbaric World even know what politeness is?"

Dong Sangeng lifted his hat, his face slightly pale. "Old Guo, long time no see."

"Dong Sangeng?!"

The dwarf froze in place, then immediately snapped to his senses, scurrying to the door to peer cautiously through the crack.

"Don't worry, no one found us." Dong Sangeng found a spot to sit. "I need a favor. Build me something."

"First it was Zui-Cui City, then Qianjing City—how did you manage to stir up such a massive commotion, and why haven't you returned to the Great Wall of Sword Qi yet?!"

Slamming the door shut, the dwarf known as Old Guo ignored Dong Sangeng, his voice trembling with agitation. "Are you staying here waiting to die?!"

Dong Sangeng chuckled. "I have to kill a Great Demon of the Ascension Realm before I go back."

Old Guo jumped up, pointing at Dong Sangeng and cursing roundly. "Stop acting so tough! You've reached the Ascension Realm, isn't that enough? Staying in the Barbaric World is just asking for death!"

"Enough with the scolding," Dong Sangeng said. "Time is short. You have about a day. Make me a bow, and make sure it can handle some heavy use."

"Is someone hunting you?" Old Guo asked, slamming his hammer down to flatten the iron block he had been working on.

"Yes, but not a Throne-level Great Demon," Dong Sangeng said, his mouth twitching. "It’s just a mangy dog."

To think that a Great Demon of the Ascension Realm would choose to hunt him in the form of a dog—it was truly... Dong Sangeng had to swallow his pride for now.

"They're here."

Lu Yun, still wearing his conical hat, spoke suddenly. "Just outside the city. I'll go take a look."

Dong Sangeng nodded. Once the boy disappeared, he cupped his face in his hands and sighed. "This debt of gratitude just keeps getting bigger."

Old Guo snorted. "You travel the world; how can you not owe people favors? The boy isn't very old, is he? He’s full of killing intent. Why is he so willing to follow you?"

"I don't know. Maybe I'm just too handsome?" Dong Sangeng rubbed his face.

Old Guo didn't answer, just kept swinging his massive hammer. It was truly heavy.

...

Lu Yun stepped outside the city, a long sword in his hand.

"Hehehe, you can't run away."

The Old Dog bared his teeth and laughed. "The Old Blind Man doesn't provide food, so I have to find a way to get a snack for myself."

Lu Yun remained silent, simply lowering his long sword.

In the next moment, the Old Dog realized his surroundings had become empty. He looked down and found himself staring at his own reflection. The water and sky merged into one, with a bright moon hanging high above. As the boy’s sword descended, the moon crashed down with it.

"Interesting, interesting! For a Sixth Realm cultivator, you actually have such ability!" The Old Dog was exceptionally excited even as he was being ground down by the moonlight. "It’s been a long time since I encountered something this fun. I’m going to eat both you and that sword cultivator called Dong Sangeng in one gulp!"

Lu Yun remained expressionless.

Shengge, dressed in a white gown, appeared beside him. "Still no sign of your sister's aura. Either someone has deliberately hidden it, or..."

Lu Yun closed his eyes. "I know."

...

Near dusk, in a tavern, the boy in the conical hat found a seat.

A storyteller in the tavern slapped his table and chanted loudly: "Picking up where we left off, Dong Sangeng, having just entered the Barbaric World, was but a small Golden Core cultivator. While that wasn't much in the Barbaric World, in our parts, he was already a figure who could prop up the sky. Fortunately, the first stop on his travels was our Stone City. Back then, this place was still very desolate..."

"Enough of that! We want to hear the story of Dong Sangeng killing the Great Demon!"

"That's right, storyteller! Tell it well, and the master will tip you!"

Some ordinary demons gathered together and heckled.

This place was truly strange. The demon clans of the Barbaric World actually enjoyed listening to stories of sword immortals killing demons, and the demons in the city weren't murderous; every family forged iron, and in their spare time, they would sit in a tavern to listen to stories. Lu Yun could guess that the one who brought such change to Stone City must have been Dong Sangeng.

The boy thought of his sister again. If she were here, she would surely have taken a few sweet fruits from her bamboo crate and handed them to him with a smile.

*The bamboo crate.*

The one Lu Yun had been carrying was now being used by Dong Sangeng to hold Yuan Feng’s head. Lu Yun never would have guessed that Yuan Feng's true form was a green crucian carp.

"Guest, here is your wine." The waiter smiled and placed a jug in front of Lu Yun.

The red cloth stopper was pulled out, and a fragrance instantly filled the air. Lu Yun poured a bowl and downed it in one breath. It was spicy, but not unpleasant.

"The bow is ready."

Dong Sangeng's voice appeared in Lu Yun's ear. Lu Yun looked at the wine he had barely started and felt a pang of regret.

...

In the Peach Pavilion of the Barbaric World, no one had remembered this Great Demon for a long time. People only knew that in some year, a guard dog had appeared in the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

Peach Pavilion looked out toward the city called Stone and suddenly remembered that Dong Sangeng seemed to have some history with it.

"Fled here, are you? Hoping to rely on that damaged Immortal Weapon?"

Suddenly, Peach Pavilion saw a boy climb onto the parapets of Stone City. The boy was holding an exaggeratedly large iron bow.

"Not that Immortal Weapon. Hmph, posturing—do you really think you're something special?"

Ignoring the boy who was drawing the bow and nocking an arrow, Peach Pavilion charged straight toward the city gate.

On the wall, the boy held his breath, his arms trembling slightly. Given his current physique and cultivation, using this bow was still too much of a strain. Furthermore, the arrow had been infused with a streak of Dong Sangeng’s sword qi.

"I don't need to kill him; just holding him off for a day or two should be enough."

Lu Yun stared fixedly at the moving figure of Peach Pavilion. Finally, at a certain moment, the boy released the string. The arrow flew like a shooting star toward Peach Pavilion.

Peach Pavilion felt no fear, assuming it was just a desperate struggle by the boy, and raised a claw to swat it away. But as the arrow reached him, he suddenly felt that something was wrong.

*This aura?!*

*How is this possible? Could it be that Dong Sangeng has already reached the Immortal Realm?!*

From afar, the shooting-star arrow carried Peach Pavilion backward for dozens of miles. Peach Pavilion stood upright, two feet on the ground and two feet clutching the arrow—a truly ridiculous sight. Yellow sand filled the sky, and Peach Pavilion choked on a mouthful of it, but the arrow did not stop.

Peach Pavilion was in agony. *Is an Immortal Realm sword cultivator really this terrifying even when wounded?!*

This arrow was a deliberate move by Dong Sangeng and Lu Yun. The goal was simple: just hold Peach Pavilion back. Clearly, they had succeeded.

...

"Let's go. We're close to the Great Wall of Sword Qi now," Dong Sangeng said upon reaching the wall.

Lu Yun nodded, looking at the bow in his hand, lost in thought.

"Keep it," Dong Sangeng smiled. "Making that guy bleed is no easy feat."