ps: It's the third watch of the night, and there hasn't been any movement on the monthly tickets. Please support me.

While listening to Murong Guang explain the scoring rules, Wang Guan slowly entered the mountain. Standing on a relatively steep slope, Wang Guan surveyed the area but found no prey.

Clearly, those pheasants and rabbits weren't fools; startled, they would have instantly hidden themselves away.

"This is the periphery," Murong Guang explained with a smile. "There's hardly any prey here. We need to go deeper, at least past one peak, until we can no longer hear the commotion. Only then will we likely see some game."

"Oh."

Wang Guan's gaze swept over the mountainside, which was teeming with participants. He nodded, understanding. The area was too crowded. Forget timid pheasants and rabbits; even a tiger would probably flee upon sensing the sheer number of people.

However, the participants were somewhat experienced, and since the mountain range was vast, everyone had tacitly spread out. After crossing two peaks, the hustle and bustle had indeed died down. Looking back, they could only see faint human silhouettes on the opposite mountain; the surrounding environment had suddenly become much quieter.

At this moment, a hint of surprise touched Yu Feibai's face, and he quietly cautioned, "Look over there, a rabbit!"

Wang Guan quickly looked. In the grass of a valley, a plump wild rabbit was grazing, but its long ears were pricked up, alertly taking in its surroundings. Due to the distance, however, the rabbit hadn't realized it had been exposed.

"I spotted it, don't you dare snatch it!" At the same time, Yu Feibai rubbed his hands together, drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and then carefully began to approach, hoping for a quick first kill.

"Snap!"

However, Yu Feibai was so focused on the rabbit that he failed to notice the ground, accidentally stepping on a patch of dry branches and leaves, creating a faint sound. Hearing this slight noise, the rabbit acted like a startled bird, instantly darting into the thick grass and vanishing without a second glance.

"Sigh."

Seeing this, Yu Feibai was greatly disappointed and kicked a dry leaf away.

"Calm yourself."

Murong Guang walked over and said with a smile, "You were too hasty. You should observe the terrain first before slowly closing the distance. Of course, if possible, you should have just shot the arrow when you had the chance. Shoot first, regardless of whether you hit it or not. You won't hit it initially, but with repeated attempts, your experience will increase, and you will certainly hit the target."

"Mmm."

Yu Feibai nodded slightly, realizing that what Murong Guang said was absolutely correct. Right now, whether his next arrow hit the prey was secondary; the most important thing was practice. In Murong Guang’s words, he was trying to "find the feel."

"For a novice, skill can be overlooked for now. Feeling is the most important thing. Once you have the feeling, luck will naturally be on your side," Murong Guang shared his experience without hesitation, unafraid of misleading the novice.

Just then, Wang Guan's gaze shifted. He gently raised a hand, signaling, "Look, a squirrel in the tree!"

"Hm?"

Murong Guang immediately fell silent. Yu Feibai, even more promptly, drew his bow and aimed directly at the spot Wang Guan indicated. Indeed, in a reasonably tall tree not far away, a squirrel was curled up on a branch, seemingly asleep.

"A good opportunity."

Seeing this, Murong Guang's eyes lit up, and he quickly whispered, "Hurry, let's all shoot at the same time, release together—the chances of hitting it will be higher."

Following Murong Guang's cue, Wang Guan also casually drew a long arrow, inhaled slightly, then drew back the bowstring and slowly prepared. It could be said that the three of them spread out their positions, aiming at the squirrel from different angles, all ready.

"One, two, three, release!"

In an instant, three long arrows shot out, tearing through the air with a faint whistle, startling the squirrel in the tree. With the animal's innate sense of danger, it leaped in a flash, diving towards a neighboring branch.

"Swish, swish, swish!"

All three arrows missed, passing harmlessly beside the branch. The three looked at each other and let out awkward laughs. The main issue was the severe deviation in arrow accuracy; even if the squirrel hadn't fled, it likely would have been unharmed.

Just as the three were feeling embarrassed and preparing to loose another shot, they suddenly heard movement from the bushes below. They quickly looked and saw a fist-sized sparrow fluttering wildly in the air. However, since an arrow was already stuck in its body, it could only twitch its wings erratically before tumbling down.

"Huh? Did we hit a bonus target?" Murong Guang was pleasantly surprised and astonished. "Who shot it?"

"The arrows have marks; we'll know when we check," Yu Feibai, being impatient, ignored the squirrel in the tree and hurried over to retrieve the sparrow. After looking at the arrowhead, he deflated instantly and called back crossly, "Wang Guan, your prey."

"Mine?" Wang Guan was somewhat surprised, with a hint of joy.

"Yes, it's your bird," Yu Feibai muttered. "Pure, dumb luck!"

"It really is luck."

Even Murong Guang felt a pang of jealousy now, as Wang Guan's situation was exactly like the anecdote Murong Guang had just shared about someone missing a squirrel but hitting a small bird.

"Can't be helped; when luck comes, even a wall can't stop it."

Wang Guan was in a good mood. He picked up the sparrow, weighing it, feeling that lunch was sorted.

"Hmph, don't get smug."

Yu Feibai pouted. "Just watch; I'll shoot an eagle next to show you what I can do."

The very next second, a sharp cry echoed down from the sky, causing the three to instinctively look up. They saw a large bird circling overhead. Judging by its thick, coarse, black wings, it looked very much like a goshawk.

"Eh?"

Yu Feibai was momentarily stunned, muttering to himself, "When did my words become so prophetic? I should say a few more things—guaranteeing great fortune this year, picking up a few big windfalls, and doubling my bank savings..."

"Stop daydreaming," Wang Guan couldn't help but chuckle, smiling slyly. "Didn't you say you were going to hunt an eagle? The eagle is here; why aren't you quickly drawing your bow to shoot that big bird?"

"Hunt it then, I’m not afraid of it!" Yu Feibai's pride flared up. He immediately picked up his bow and ran toward the mountain, intending to shoot from the summit to potentially increase his hit rate by a few percentage points.

Murong Guang originally wanted to advise Yu Feibai not to waste his effort, but seeing him already halfway up the slope, he could only shake his head helplessly, signaling Wang Guan to follow and enjoy the spectacle.

A moment later, the three climbed onto a nearby peak. The eagle was still soaring overhead, completely unaware of the approaching danger—or perhaps it didn't fear such trivial threats. As a large bird, the eagle had its own pride; in the absence of massive eagles or vultures, it was the king of the skies, unmatched by any.

Well, provided it didn't venture near human settlements, otherwise even the mightiest king would turn to ashes.

But at this moment, soaring amidst the rugged mountains, the eagle truly seemed like the sovereign of this domain, patrolling its territory and looking for prey. After all, the sudden appearance of so many wild rabbits in the hills naturally attracted the eagle's attention. It was like a gourmet being presented with a feast—it couldn't help but drool.

"Say, did goshawks ever show up during the hunts in previous years?" Wang Guan asked curiously, handing over the heavy bow as requested by Yu Feibai.

"I really didn't pay attention to that," Murong Guang frowned. "Maybe they did, but in previous years, my focus was entirely on pheasants and rabbits; I rarely looked at the sky."

"Who cares if they did or not."

At this moment, Yu Feibai was full of confidence. "Watch me shoot it down with one arrow."

It was unclear where he got such confidence, but protected by the finger tab, he managed to draw the heavy bow into a full moon. It would have been even better if his arm could have remained steady, without shaking or trembling.

Regardless, having drawn the hard bow, Yu Feibai immediately aimed at the circling eagle. However, for a novice who might not even hit a stationary target, shooting a constantly moving eagle presented a challenge far beyond the ordinary.

"Whoosh!"

After a short while, Yu Feibai could no longer sustain the tension and cleanly released the string. Instantly, the long arrow shot out like lightning, slicing into the air, carrying a sharp whistling sound as it furiously stabbed toward the sky. It was aimed "at the sky" mainly because the arrow missed by an enormous margin, at least twenty or thirty meters away from the eagle.

Although this outcome was expected, seeing it made Wang Guan and Murong Guang suppress their smiles, showing expressions that were somewhere between a smile and a sneer.

"Laugh if you want to, just don't hold it in until you burst," Yu Feibai retorted irritably. "People miss sometimes; it's normal."

"This is your second miss now," Wang Guan laughed. Just then, an eagle's cry sounded—the eagle overhead seemed to have sensed that the little creatures below might have ill intentions...

To the eagle circling high above, the humans on the ground could indeed be considered little creatures. Perhaps noticing the descending arrow, the eagle belatedly realized the danger and immediately flapped its wings, flying toward the deep mountains.

"Chase!"

Whether to divert Wang Guan and Murong Guang's attention from mocking him, or because he genuinely felt affronted and wanted to prove himself by hunting the eagle, Yu Feibai charged after the direction the eagle flew without hesitation.

Seeing this, the other two had no choice but to follow suit, accompanying him on this desperate chase. They crossed several peaks and actually managed to catch up.

At this point, the three could clearly see the eagle circling above a village.

"A village?"

Wang Guan surveyed the area. The village was not large, perhaps twenty or so households, scattered unevenly within a mountain hollow. Dense forest flanked both sides, giving the settlement a very secluded, almost isolated feel.

"Brother Mu, do you know this mountain village?" Wang Guan looked up at the eagle in the sky, a thought suddenly striking him. "Have you noticed? This eagle seems to be a trained one."

"What?"

Yu Feibai and Murong Guang were taken aback and immediately narrowed their eyes to observe. The eagle was now circling at a low altitude, and upon closer inspection, the two could faintly make out a section of chain near the bird's talons...