Legacy of Hatred-Chapter 168: Weapon

The Disciplinary Elder would have struggled to believe it if he hadn’t been present. Yet, the matter felt shockingly undeniable.

Liam had used the Black Bow’s abilities, meaning the binding had succeeded. He had even completed the test in record time, and his genuine confusion could only point to one conclusion.

It was impossible, but it seemed Liam hadn’t missed even once during the mental shooting test.

The Disciplinary Elder was an experienced cultivator, especially when it came to battles. He even had the honor of possessing a title related to the subject, so, despite the shock, the discovery immediately rearranged his understanding.

The Black Bow’s test didn’t involve talent, luck, or any other superfluous trait. It required pristine skill to overcome, something Liam clearly possessed.

Nevertheless, true skill wasn’t something inborn. Geniuses could exist, but not in that test. Its maker had ensured that.

If the Disciplinary Elder had to guess, Liam had dedicated over five years solely to archery, even a decade. Anything less wouldn’t have given him the mastery to achieve his latest feat.

Moreover, that guess, paired with the test’s harshness and Liam’s young age, stated that archery was his greatest skill, leading to troubling implications.

The Disciplinary Elder had initially believed Liam’s battle sense to be his top skill, but the math didn’t add up now. Liam had probably only focused on that later in life and for a shorter time.

What the Elder had deemed as impressive was merely a secondary skill for Liam, meaning that he could still grow stronger in that regard. He had already killed a rooting expert as a foundation expert, but his battle potential had yet to bloom fully.

In a different situation, even without the perfect nine spiritual roots, the Disciplinary Elder would have taken Liam as his personal disciple on the spot, making it his life mission to mold him into the greatest warrior in the world.

However, it was too late for that. Liam already had a Master, and a fitting one at that. That fateful opportunity was gone, limited to combat lessons.

Of course, the Disciplinary Elder hadn’t forgotten Liam’s request for weapon training, and it was with some shame that he realized that he looked forward to it. He shouldn’t play favorites, but he wanted to see what that potential would amount to.

"Disciples, disperse!" The Disciplinary Elder ordered, traces of suffocating heaviness in his tone. "Disciple Liam’s exemplary feat kept you entertained long enough! The combat lesson must start!"

The rooting experts by the rocky wall departed at that more unwavering order, but no one failed to throw an additional look at Liam, even adding occasional smiles.

As for Joel, he voiced an amused chuckle, followed by a short praise. "Junior Brother, you never cease to amaze me."

Naturally, Liam was quite lost. He hadn’t heard or faced the test’s most soul-crushing aspect because he had never missed a shot. He didn’t even see anything special with that, so the attention and compliment flew over his head.

Yet, Liam still had more information to go through, and that was as good a time as any. Successfully binding the bow had transferred something akin to its manual to his brain, similarly to how the green jades worked, and Liam explored it now.

The explosive ethereal arrow Liam had fired earlier was only one of the Black Bow’s abilities. The weapon could also shoot ordinary, material bolts, but that wasn’t where its true power lay.

The Black Bow was extremely flexible, both in the amount of Qi Liam could pour in each arrow and in its string’s weight. It had no fixed energy requirement like Maxwell’s did, far outclassing it even now.

Still, the weapon was a rank 2 magical item, meaning that only a rooting expert could wield its true power, and Liam understood why.

Liam could only imagine what his eventual superior, more plentiful Qi, and higher physical strength would be able to unleash with such a flexible weapon.

As for now, Liam was more than happy to have gotten a bow, one that made cool explosions at that, so he stored it on his left shoulder, heaving a sigh of relief at the return of that familiar weight.

Everyone but the Disciplinary Elder and Melissa had left by then, so Liam went to the headless dummy, believing the combat lessons would start, only for a question to interrupt him.

"Disciple Liam," The Disciplinary Elder called, "About the additional training you requested, which weapons did you have in mind?"

"Knife and needles," Liam revealed. He believed he was good at throwing stuff, but fighting with it was something else altogether, especially when paired with a proper combat style.

"That’s ...," The Disciplinary Elder muttered, seeing the value in that, but unable to hold back his opinion. "Wait here."

As usual, the Elder disappeared without leaving any trace. Liam didn’t really know what to think, but his gaze eventually fell to Melissa, searching for answers in her detached face.

Melissa was also looking at Liam, but not quite. She paid special attention to the bow on his shoulder, hiding something that he could swear was a trace of coldness.

Still, the Elder reappeared before any questions could fly, and a loud thud followed, accompanied by tremors caused by the heavy item he had dropped to the ground.

"Disciple Liam, try to lift it," The Disciplinary Elder ordered.

The new item inevitably claimed Liam’s attention. It was a slab of metal as tall as his shoulders that wanted to resemble a huge sword through its handle, despite not featuring sharp edges.

Liam complied, reaching for the handle, grunting at the effort it took him to lift the item with one hand. It was definitely heavy, but not unbearable.

"It is as I thought," The Disciplinary Elder sighed. "Disciple Liam, I understand your core’s nature makes you inclined to seek furtive, insidious methods, but I believe they would be a waste of your physical gifts." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Liam put a second hand on the handle, enduring the weight far better now, but his questioning gaze still went to the Elder.

"In my opinion," The Elder continued. "Your weapon of choice should be the greatsword."