Chapter 14
Sam and Lie returned from the outer trap area with the smell of blood still clinging faintly to the air behind them.
The shelter had not relaxed.
Uncle Wang and Uncle Ding stood on the watchtowers, hands resting near the mounted crossbows fixed toward the forest. The massive wooden frames creaked slightly as they adjusted aim angles, scanning the tree line carefully.
Uncle Ning remained near the gate mechanism, one hand on the release lever.
Aunt Luo stood just inside the entrance, staff in hand. A thin current of wind circled around her fingers, subtle but ready.
Xian and Yuner were near the inner clearing, bows lowered but arrows nocked.
No one spoke casually.
When Sam stepped fully into the clearing, Uncle Wang called down quietly,
“Is everything okay?”
“They retreated,” Lie replied. “But they will come again.”
No one lowered their guard yet.
Sam’s eyes moved once toward the forest.
—AIRS:
No hostile movement detected within current perimeter range.
Immediate threat level: Reduced.
“Stand down,” Sam said calmly.
The tension eased slightly, but no one dispersed.
Lie stepped forward.
“Gather.”
They formed a circle near the center around fire pit.
Lie began explaining.
“They were bandits. Organized. Not wandering thieves. They triggered the traps and lost many men before even seeing us.”
He paused briefly.
“They were sent.”Silence.... by “Uncle Mu,” he finished.
Uncle Ning exhaled sharply. “So he has chosen.”
Sam stepped forward, his voice calm and cold.
“The battle is now unavoidable.”
The words felt heavier than the air.
“So tell me now,” Sam continued, looking at each of them carefully, “if anyone is going to hesitate. If your hands will shake. If you will freeze.”
His eyes rested briefly on Xian and Yuner.
“Because if that is the case, I will change my strategy to defend the shelter.”
No one replied.
He asked again.
The wind brushed through the trees.
Xian stepped forward first.
“This shelter is our home.”
Yuner followed her.
“We won’t let anyone destroy our home,” she said firmly. “Or harm our family or friends.”
Uncle Wang nodded. “No one here will hesitate.”
Uncle Ding crossed his arms. “We’ve already lost enough once.”
Uncle Ning added quietly, “We won’t lose again.”
Sam watched them in silence for a few seconds.
“Good,” he replied. “I hope you don’t change your mind during the battle.”
No one looked away.
After a moment, Sam turned slightly.
“Resume training. Double vigilance rotations. No one moves alone.”
The shelter gradually shifted from alert to preparation.
Lie picked up his bow as they moved toward the training field.
He examined it with slight annoyance.
“I still think this is a cowardly weapon,” he said. “You can kill someone without them even knowing who killed them.”
Sam adjusted the string on his own bow.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“In a battlefield, no one cares about dignity or respect.”
Lie frowned. “So that’s it? Just survival?”
“The only goal in a battlefield should be to protect your people and survive.”
Lie glanced at him sideways.
“You’re talking like you have seen the battlefield many times.”
Sam did not look at him.
“No. I have not seen any.”
He placed an arrow on the string.
“But I have heard about it a lot.”
Release.
Bullseye.
“And I survived this forest using such tricks. Before becoming this strong.”
The others went silent.
They had struggled.
But compared to surviving alone in this forest—
Their suffering seemed smaller.
As Sam walked back toward his hut later, he said calmly,
“Always remember one thing. Battlefield doesn’t see dignity or respect.”
He paused slightly.
“What matters is kill or be killed.”
The words lingered long after he entered his hut.
Training continued harder than before.
Inside, Sam sat cross-legged and activated his mana.
“AIRS,” he said quietly, “have you completed my body analysis?”
There was a brief pause.
—AIRS:
Unknown energy detected.
Energy resonates with surrounding elemental particles.
Resonance pattern indicates multi-elemental compatibility.
Sam’s eyes sharpened slightly.
“Explain.”
—AIRS:
Affinity detected with wind, water, fire, earth, lightning, ice and derivatives.
Elemental compatibility across all primary spectrums.
A slow breath escaped him.
“Seems that I have affinity with all elements. That is great.”
—AIRS:
Warning.
Training all elements simultaneously is difficult.
Growth speed in magic will slow significantly.
Sam remained calm.
“But the power I will achieve will be beyond my imagination.”
Silence.
“So it is worth it,” he said quietly. “Even if it makes my growth in magic slow.”
—AIRS:
Decision acknowledged.
Long-term projection: High potential.
Short-term progression: Reduced efficiency.
Mana continued circulating through his body.
—AIRS:
Note: High-output techniques require recovery time.
Physical vessel limits absorption speed.
Sam opened his eyes.
“My body will adapt.”
He continued training.
The next morning, Sam, Lie, and the Uncle Trio trained by the river.
Mana coating practice resumed.
They had improved significantly.
Now they could maintain mana coating on their weapons for several minutes.
Uncle Wang’s coating was steady and disciplined.
Uncle Ding’s was powerful but slightly unstable.
Uncle Ning struggled with focus.
“Focus,” Sam reminded.
“I am focused,” Ning replied.
—AIRS:
Focus level: 64%.
Sam exhaled quietly.
Lie’s progress was the most impressive.
He coated his sword.
Then gradually coated part of his forearm.
A faint shimmer covered his skin.
Uncle Ding stared. “When did you learn that?”
Lie grinned. “Maybe I’m just talented.”
But after less than a minute, the coating shattered.
Lie dropped to one knee.
“Still can’t maintain it long,” he muttered.
—AIRS:
Lie’s mana core capacity limited.
Recovery requires meditation.
Sam, however, continued absorbing mana quietly.
Even while observing.
Even while speaking.
Because he had two consciousnesses.
His own and AIRS.
—AIRS:
Background mana absorption active.
Still, if he released too much at once, recovery slowed.
His body was not yet strong enough to sustain extreme absorption rate.
Xian and Yuner improved greatly as well.
They could now change the direction of their arrows mid-air by several degrees.
Xian released.
The arrow curved and struck near center.
Yuner followed.
Her control smoother than before.
Uncle Wang nodded in approval.
Their hesitation from before had faded.
One afternoon, after several exhausting days, Aunt Luo prepared a dish that looked and smelled magnificent.
She placed it at the center table.
“We need something lighter,” she said. “Archery competition.”
Lie immediately straightened.
“Now this is serious.”
Sam gave him a flat look.
Participants took position: Sam, Lie, Xian, Yuner, Uncle Wang, Uncle Ding, and Uncle Ning.
Aunt Luo stood aside, using wind magic to suspend the target.
First round.
Target resting mid-air.
“Ready,” Aunt Luo said.
Release.
Thud.
Bullseye.
Every single one of them hit the center.
Second round.
Target moving in mid-air.
Uncle Ding released.
Slightly off center.
Uncle Ning missed the bullseye.
“Wind shifted,” Ning said.
“It didn’t,” Aunt Luo replied calmly.
The others struck center.
Third round.
Target placed behind a tree.
Clearly favoring Xian and Yuner.
Xian curved her arrow.
Hit slightly away from center.
Yuner did the same.
Also slightly off.
Lie shot.
Missed completely.
Uncle Wang missed as well.
Then Sam stepped forward.
He coated his bow and then the arrow with mana.
Mana condensed thickly.
He released.
The arrow pierced through the tree in front of the target, through the center of the target itself, and continued piercing through multiple trees behind it until the mana coating depleted.
Silence fell.
Everyone stared.
Sam’s knees touched the ground briefly.
—AIRS:
Mana depletion significant.
Recovery required.
Inside his mind, he calculated calmly.
Two… perhaps three such strikes… if controlled better.
Xian crossed her arms.
“That’s cheating. His bow is stronger than ours.”
Uncle Wang shook his head.
“No. It’s the same.”
He explained how Sam amplified the release using mana coating.
Lie then stepped forward. He lifted his wooden sword.
Coated it with mana.
Single strike.
The tree split cleanly.
Yuner’s eyes widened.
The Uncle Trio demonstrated their mana-coated strikes proudly.
They exchanged amazed dialogue, half in disbelief, half in pride.
Then—
When no one was looking—
Sam quietly rushed to the dining table, grabbed the dish with the bowl, and ran toward his hut.
He closed the door.
There was a moment of silence.
Then laughter burst across the clearing.
Lie bent over laughing.
“The great strategist steals food!”
Even Xian laughed freely.
For the first time since the attack, the shelter felt warm again.
Meanwhile, in Uncle Mu’s tribe, the bandits had recovered.
They began making trouble.
They made crude remarks toward the tribe’s women.
They drank excessively.
Uncle Mu had expected this the moment he allowed them inside.
He summoned the Bandit Leader.
“You did not mention the traps,” the Bandit Leader said coldly.
“We never reached their walls,” Uncle Mu replied. “You lost men before seeing their faces.”
The Bandit Leader’s eyes hardened.
“This time we advance carefully. Probe the traps. Slow progression.”
Uncle Mu nodded.
“They are stronger than you think.”
The Bandit Leader smiled faintly.
“Good.”
Back at the shelter, training continued.
The crops were nearly ready for harvest.
Several days passed peacefully.
During this time, Sam rebuilt some traps in the outer area.
He knew they would not work again.
So he constructed new traps in the inner area, leaving a gap between outer and inner zones.
Lie noticed.
“Why leave this space empty?”
“So when they cross the outer area and see no traps,” Sam replied calmly, “they will lower their guard.”
“And then?”
“The inner traps will activate.”
—AIRS:
Psychological misdirection integrated.
Enemy guard reduction probability: 71%.
Hidden nets.
Swinging logs.
Pressure-triggered spikes.
False retreat paths.
Sam prepared quietly.
Days passed peacefully.
But the peace felt fragile.
The forest was waiting.
And so were they.
End of Chapter 14
To Be Continued…
