Chapter 103: A Second Ascent, Heading to the Wind-Hunting Clan!

After calming his wildly pounding heart, Wang Chen began to assess his current situation.

He looked down and could already see the ground below. It turned out that during his fall, he had unknowingly come very close to the earth—only about ten meters remained before he would crash onto the surface. The thought made him break out in a cold sweat once more. Still, perhaps it was for the best; he should reach the ground and rest before making any decisions. After all, he’d been falling for some time now, and if the Dragon-Eating Vajra Eagle had gone mad and started a massacre, Su would have been killed a hundred times already—there was no use in returning now.

“I hope that kid listened to my advice and used Dago’s ability to escape,” Wang Chen sighed. The mission had reached a bottleneck, and it seemed progress would stall for the moment.

From his storage space, he took out a safety rope, set an anchor point on the cliff, and rested for a while, regaining his strength with the support of the rope. Then he secured a thick, sturdy cord and rappelled down the cliff. The dozen or so meters were traversed carefully and took only two or three minutes. Soon, Wang Chen stood on solid ground.

He found a patch of shade beneath the trees near the cliff and sat cross-legged. Retrieving food and water from his storage, he ate and drank, replenishing his energy. He also prepared to use his skills to heal the hidden wounds left on his body. As he lifted his torn shirt to inspect the gash on his shoulder, inflicted by the Dragon-Eating Vajra Eagle, he was stunned.

“It healed itself?” Wang Chen ran his hand across the transparent armor of the Tree of Life, feeling the smooth, unblemished skin underneath—not a trace of injury remained. Only the torn clothing and the rent in the Tree of Life armor, left by the Eagle’s claws, reminded him of the agony he had suffered.

“So the Tree of Life armor hasn’t repaired itself yet, but my wound has already healed,” Wang Chen marveled. Was this what the Elf Chief had meant by an overflow of vitality, granting his body a self-repair ability far beyond the norm?

Feeling light and unburdened, he took out a spare shirt from his storage and put it on, pondering his next move.

He was at a loss for what to do next. Judging by the Eagle’s berserk state, it had likely been triggered by the death of its chick. This surge of power wouldn’t last long; soon, it would become weakened. Sudden breakthroughs in battle were little more than jokes—no one gained several levels at once in the heat of the moment.

He should try to return to the peak. Now, with his body fully recovered, he could handle whatever strange events awaited him up there. With this in mind, Wang Chen looked up at the towering cliff and couldn’t help but feel troubled.

Was he really going to have to spend another hour or two climbing back up?

Just as he wore a look of worry, a tremor echoed from far behind him. Wang Chen immediately turned, alert. From the distant forest path, several gigantic figures came running.

Leading them was the one-eyed giant Wang Chen had seen before; behind him followed Yabo and several Wind Hunter tribesmen Wang Chen had not met. The giant paused, surprised to see Wang Chen, then spoke, “Human, why are you here?”

His tone was less than friendly, with an undercurrent of interrogation. Coupled with the thunderous voices of the Wind Hunter tribe, Wang Chen frowned.

Yabo quickly stepped forward to explain. This time, Wang Chen wore a translator, making his conversation with Yabo much smoother. He soon learned the giant’s name was Gang, Su’s uncle.

They had noticed Su purchasing materials and clamoring to hunt Wind, so they suspected Su was planning to act on his own. Upon returning to the tribe, they found Su missing. Gang questioned the tribe’s Wind Seekers, confirmed this high peak as the nesting ground of the great winds, and hurried over.

Wang Chen found it odd—if Su hadn’t signed for the materials in the box, how would he claim the Wind Hunter bow? After all, Gang and his companions didn’t know about Wang Chen’s involvement.

Yabo explained this was Gang’s deduction: if Su no longer needed the delivery, it meant he had obtained the materials elsewhere. Several young people had disappeared as well, likely following Su to hunt Wind.

Wang Chen looked at Gang, who wore a deep frown. He hadn’t expected this burly figure to be so meticulous and thoughtful.

Wang Chen didn’t hide anything and shared all the information he had with the giants.

Gang learned that Wang Chen had given Su the materials for the Wind Hunter bow, and that Su was now trapped on the peak, his fate uncertain. Gang’s face darkened further.

But with the situation urgent, Gang didn’t argue with Wang Chen, only ordered everyone to prepare to climb the peak.

He turned to Wang Chen and asked, “Are you certain Dago can travel through the earth?”

Wang Chen nodded with conviction.

Gang’s brow furrowed. He called Yabo over and instructed, “Return to the tribe and inform my father. Gather the Wind Hunter guard. Hurry—do not rest on the way. The tribe may soon face upheaval.”

Yabo seemed highly obedient to Gang. Upon hearing this, he tossed aside his climbing rope and ran off toward the path they had come.

Wang Chen asked curiously, “Why do you think something will happen to the tribe just because Dago has a special ability?”

Gang didn’t even look at him. “This isn’t the time for explanations. We need to reach the peak and save Su.”

Wang Chen was taken aback—hadn’t he said something similar to Su before? Now the roles were reversed.

Feeling conflicted, Wang Chen asked, “How do you plan to get up there? It took us an hour or two to climb with anchor points. By the time we reach the top, everything will be over.”

Gang offered no explanation, only demonstration.

He took the Wind Hunter bow from his back, and a tribesman handed him an arrow—with a small tail attached at the end. The tail was peculiar: first, a cold-glinting iron chain was fastened to the arrow’s end, then a thick rope was tied to the chain.

Gang’s Wind Hunter bow was much larger than Su’s, fitting his towering four-meter frame. The arrow was similarly oversized; to Wang Chen, it looked more like an oar than a shaft.

Gang nocked the giant arrow, arched his body, and drew the bowstring to its fullest, aiming skyward.

Wang Chen noticed a luminous glow flickering beneath the skin of Gang’s forehead as he took aim.

Like Su, Gang held his breath in preparation, but his breath was far longer and steadier. Nearly two minutes passed before his fingers released.

The thick bowstring vibrated, shooting the giant arrow skyward, dragging the rope along like a soaring dragon.

Wang Chen tried to follow the arrow’s flight with his eyes, but its meteoric speed defied tracking. Only the shrill whistle and the sound of a sonic boom reached his ears.

“Whoosh—boom!”

So Gang also used a two-stage arrow, Wang Chen thought.

“Whoosh—boom!”

A second sonic boom rang out, leaving Wang Chen dumbfounded. Was this a three-stage arrow?