Chapter 32: No Sense of Honor, Resorting to a Sneak Attack!

"You..." Zong Shichang was just about to summon a lightning strike to blast his opponent away when he suddenly lost his target.

It was not that Zhao Xing was moving too fast; rather, a multitude of straw figures had suddenly risen from the ground around him.

The yellowish straw figures blended in perfectly with the earth, and with Zhao Xing having covered them with a layer of soil, they were impossible to detect! This rascal had actually buried them underground like a "camper" in a game!

"What is the use of weaving so many straw figures? Hmph, the Art of Straw Figures is nothing more than a minor trick!" Zong Shichang sneered. "I can destroy them with ease!"

Zong Shichang channeled his energy to summon lightning. "Boom!" A bolt of lightning descended from the clouds, striking a straw figure with pinpoint accuracy.

But the result left Zong Shichang stunned! He discovered that the golden straw figure only had a charred spot on its chest; it did not smoke or catch fire as he had expected.

"What is going on? Can straw figures withstand heavenly thunder?" Zong Shichang found it absurd. He was not skilled in the Art of Straw Figures and had always looked down upon such techniques, finding the weaving process tedious and overly complex—a delicate task he, the young master of the Zong family, had no patience for. Yet, the figures Zhao Xing had crafted were completely different from anything he had ever seen!

"Boom! Boom!" Several more lightning bolts crashed down. It took Zong Shichang a great deal of effort to finally disable just one of them.

"How much heavenly thunder can you summon?" Zhao Xing remained under the cover of the straw figures, watching Zong Shichang with a faint, mocking smile. These were merely the crude, low-level warning figures he had placed at the edge of his territory; they didn't even reach the first tier of strength. The twenty "Vajra Warriors" that had just emerged from the bamboo forest, however, were his true bodyguards.

"Give the young master a real challenge."

The twenty Vajra Warriors swarmed forward.

"What? There are this many?!" Zong Shichang was startled. These twenty figures were clearly in a different league from the previous ones. They were gleaming with a golden luster rather than the dull yellow of dried grass, and they were robust, possessing a distinct, lifelike spirit. Watching them, Zong Shichang noted that each jump covered three or four meters—was this the kind of mobility a straw figure should have?!

"Wind, come!"

Zong Shichang could no longer afford to focus on attacking; he had to fend off these Vajra Warriors first. Although he was a fourth-rank Origin Gatherer with vigorous vitality and significant strength, he dared not let these figures surround him. A Farmer’s melee capability was relatively weak, and besides, who would engage in hand-to-hand combat like a warrior when they were meant to be spellcasters?

"Whoosh!" A powerful gust of westerly wind blew toward the Vajra Warriors. Zong Shichang’s wind-control skills were decent; he kicked up sand and gravel from the ground without wasting energy by blowing the wind too low.

"Clang, clang, clang!" The sand and gravel struck the bodies of the straw figures, producing the sound of metal clashing against metal. It did indeed hinder them slightly, but the effect was far from what Zong Shichang had anticipated. Instead, the swirling dust obscured his own vision, and he failed to notice two straw figures quietly slipping behind him.

"Rustle, rustle..." A strange sound emerged from within the wind.

"What on earth?!" Zong Shichang glanced over and saw two vines slithering along the ground like spirit snakes! It was the "Entangling Straw Figures," crafted from green vines, which could extend their reach to bind enemies.

"Snap!" A vine lashed out at Zong Shichang’s right arm. Although he dodged, a red welt appeared on his skin.

"What kind of straw figure is this again?!" Zong Shichang leaped away, but before he could ponder it, a second and third vine whipped toward him. He dodged once or twice, but eventually, he could not evade the onslaught.

Zong Shichang’s hands were bound, pulled taut to the left and right. He could no longer cast spells, and the wind and thunder dissipated. He tried to break free, but it was useless; the green vines were astonishingly resilient, reinforced with triple-layer toughness!

The next moment, his legs were also bound and pulled apart. "Aaaargh..." The young master was forced into a split, suspended in mid-air, before crashing heavily onto the ground.

"Hiss..." Every man knows that pain. Zong Shichang was in such agony he couldn't even speak. The Vajra Warriors rushed over and, without a word, delivered a punch.

"I surr—" Before he could finish, he was flattened.

"I surrender!" Zong Shichang shouted at the top of his lungs, terrified that Zhao Xing hadn't heard him. He knew that straw figures followed their master's commands and wouldn't stop until the objective was met. Fortunately, once he hit the ground, the Vajra Warriors stopped.

The dust settled, and the straw figures parted to reveal Zhao Xing standing there leisurely.

"Brother Zong, how was it?"

"You played dirty, sneaking up on me." Zong Shichang maintained a facade of indifference. "I still have many secret arts I haven't deployed. I just accidentally fell for your trap. Besides, what kind of skill is it to use straw figures? When have Farmers ever engaged in melee combat?"

Even while sprawled on the ground in a "five-horse dismemberment" pose, Zong Shichang remained stubborn. Zhao Xing retorted, "You were the one who said there were no restrictions, so where does the 'sneaking' come from? Furthermore, is the Art of Straw Figures not a Farmer’s technique?"

"I..." Zong Shichang was left speechless. No matter how much he looked down on the technique, he couldn't deny its legitimacy without appearing petty.

*Snap!* Zhao Xing clicked his fingers, signaling the straw figures to release Zong Shichang, before turning to walk back toward his territory. "If you haven't had enough, Brother Zong, we can fight another day. I'll be waiting for you to break my straw figure formation."

As Zhao Xing turned away, Zong Shichang’s facade crumbled completely. He winced, clutching his crotch and checking for damage. "Whew, thank goodness it's just a scrape, no permanent harm done..."

The duel between Zong Shichang and Zhao Xing began and ended quickly. With the flying sand and rising dust, only a few people had seen clearly what happened.

"How are his straw figures so fierce?" Wen Nanxing sat on the sidelines, watching. "Zong Shichang didn't even last two rounds; he only managed to use his lightning and wind spells before being defeated. It seems I must re-evaluate the Art of Straw Figures."

Wen Nanxing had also overlooked the technique. Over the years, the number of straw figure methods passed down by the Imperial Court had dwindled; there used to be dozens, but now only a few remained. Seeing Zhao Xing’s performance, however, his perception changed drastically.

"Interesting. He is actually quite adept at using straw figures." Xiao Ze’s eyes flashed with curiosity. "The Vajra Warriors are mentioned in the 'Eighty-One Methods of Liu Chuan,' but I never expected him to know how to use them... Should I ask him for guidance?" Xiao Ze was tempted; he also enjoyed using straw figure techniques, but his teacher only knew a few. He had spent a long time learning just three. Seeing this, he couldn't help but want to ask Zhao Xing to teach him.

"Forget it, I'll wait until the assessment is over." Xiao Ze restrained himself. Not everyone was as reckless as Zong Shichang; the most important thing right now was to secure a high ranking in the Autumn Assessment.

On the invigilator’s platform, Gao Linong’s face darkened as he watched Zong Shichang limping away. A moment ago, he had been gloating about how Wen Nanxing and Xiao Ze had their energy depleted by Zhao Xing, never expecting his own disciple to be the one humiliated next. And to make matters worse, it happened right under everyone's noses. His prized student couldn't even beat a bunch of straw figures—how embarrassing! He wondered what those two old rascals, Tang Wanchun and Pang Yuan, were thinking; he sneaked a glance and, sure enough, saw that their smiles were harder to suppress than a waterwheel.