Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

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Once said, immediately done.

Shen Qing didn't hesitate at all. He whipped his horse and rushed home without stopping.

"Qingzi, you're back. What's happening outside? It's almost the New Year, why is it so chaotic?" Inside the house, his aunt was idly stitching a shoe with his elder sister Shen Fang, and casually asked when she saw Shen Qing suddenly rush back.

Shen Qing didn't have time to chat with them, so he casually replied, "It's nothing major, just some thieves in the city. It's better if you don't go out for the next few days."

"Ah, thieves?"

His aunt and elder sister Shen Fang were both somewhat alarmed.

They wanted to ask more, but saw Shen Qing had already slipped into his room, leaving them staring at each other.

Inside his room, Shen Qing rummaged through his cabinets, finding a pile of scattered talisman materials.

A Lang Brush, a stack of yellow lamination paper, and a handful of cinnabar.

Shen Qing casually pulled out a sheet from the yellow lamination paper and spread it on the table.

This type of talisman paper was usually made from processed mulberry bark, bamboo pulp, and other materials to form a resilient paper, tougher than regular white paper.

According to the "Annotations on Talismans," to make higher-grade talismans, one would use silk, but this yellow lamination paper was only suitable as a base for lower-grade talismans.

The Tracking Talisman's quality was not high, and using this yellow lamination paper was more than adequate.

Shen Qing exhaled a murky breath, closed his eyes, calmed his mind, slowly adjusted his breathing, and recalled some Meditation Techniques and rituals from the annotations.

Once his breathing was steady, he meticulously repeated the complex ritual three times as described in the book, and prepared the cinnabar and other tools.

When his mental state calmed completely and was as clear as an undisturbed lake, he took a deep breath, picked up the Lang Brush, lightly dipped it in the cinnabar, and began to draw on the yellow lamination paper.

Shen Qing's wrist turned lightly, and True Qi, like a fine thread, leaped out from the palm of his hand, falling on the tip of the Lang Brush.

His movements were extraordinarily smooth, as if he had already repeated this process thousands of times, appearing highly proficient and natural.

Just as he felt he was about to complete a Tracking Talisman, an unexpected event occurred!

"Boom!"

After a subtle explosion, a small flame unexpectedly leaped up from the center of the talisman paper.

Shen Qing, accustomed to such occurrences, casually pinched his fingers to extinguish the rising flame.

A wisp of blue smoke spiraled up from his fingers.

Shen Qing then discarded the failed talisman and unemotionally began his second attempt.

Having advanced his Talisman Making Skill to a skillful level, his success rate for crafting such simple Tracking Talismans was quite high.

After the first failure, his success rate sharply increased, successfully crafting two in a row.

Gazing at the two finished Tracking Talismans, Shen Qing fell into contemplation.

After pondering for a moment, he placed the two Tracking Talismans in his bosom and hurriedly left.

Zheng Yuanqiu's cultivation was powerful, and it would be somewhat risky to go alone.

It would be best to find some people to go along.

After all, the affair had been stirred up to such a degree that capturing and killing Zheng Yuanqiu was no longer just his personal matter.

With the stage set, he had to learn to leverage others' strength.

As he thought of this, Shen Qing didn't delay, immediately mounted his horse, and headed straight for the Military Department's meeting hall to explain his purpose to Huang Furo.

"Are you saying you can find Zheng Yuanqiu's whereabouts?" Huang Furo eyed Shen Qing up and down, somewhat skeptical.

"Yes," Shen Qing nodded and replied, "Although I can't directly locate Zheng Yuanqiu, I have two Tracking Talismans which might trace his movement. It's worth a try."

In the meeting hall, Huang Furo, with a few other officers, looked serious and said, "You also know the Talisman Making Skill?"

"A little."

After speaking, Shen Qing took a Tracking Talisman from his bosom and affixed it to the purse that Zheng Yuanqiu had once given him, lightly blowing on it.

Under his gaze, the talisman seemed to come alive, floating up and emitting a faint glow.

Huang Furo subconsciously glanced at Shen Qing.

If she remembered correctly, this officer before her wasn't local and his rank wasn't high.

She had heard about his feats in repeatedly slaying demons at the Guardian Martial Department.

In her eyes, he was a capable official.

Yet, she had never imagined he possessed such skill.

"Sir, shall we perhaps give it a try to see if we can find something?" Shen Qing earnestly said.

"Sure," Huang Furo nodded and said, "There's no time to waste, activate the talisman."

"Alright."

Shen Qing quickly formed a seal with his fingers and muttered incantations.

Moments later, the Tracking Talisman suddenly transformed into a streak of light, shooting through the window and disappearing from everyone's sight.

"Sir, let's go."

Seeing this, Huang Furo swiftly ordered, "You few accompany Shen Chasi and me. Chief Wang, you inform the Lord Commander. We will leave markers along the way for you and the Lord Commander to follow for assistance. Without delay, move out."

"Understood!"

They all replied in unison.

Huang Furo's figure flickered as she chased after Shen Qing's silhouette.

Although the others still had doubts in their hearts, seeing Shen Qing so confident, they hesitated but then followed under Huang Furo's orders.

...

Outside Yongzhou City.

The wind and snow subsided gradually, and silence reigned.

The world was a vast expanse of white, with nothing in sight except for the snow-covered ground and mountains, seemingly untouched by dust.

Deep in the scenery, a seemingly ordinary forest hid a wooden house.

Inside, the fireplace was blazing bright, and a slightly stout man sat cross-legged on the ground, leisurely sipping tea with a contented expression.

This man was none other than Zheng Yuanqiu, who had escaped from Yongzhou City ahead of time.

When Xu Changle had failed to report back for a long time, he acutely sensed a whiff of danger.

Without any hesitation, he quickly returned to pack his valuables and, without alarming anyone, quietly left the city and came to this place.

This small house was one of several bases he had prepared outside Yongzhou City.

Though not large, it was equipped with all necessary living tools, enough to sustain him for a month or two.

Judging by the information that had been returned from the True Master earlier, it seemed that Yongzhou would have significant Spirit Mechanism activity in the coming days.

This was a rare opportunity for him.

Although his identity was now exposed, he still had many cards hidden in the city, providing a chance to seize such an opportunity.

The only loss was his identity as Chief Officer of the Guardian Martial Department, unable to live as freely as before.

Thinking of this, Zheng Yuanqiu's eyes turned fierce, and anger welled up in him.

"It's all Shen Qing's fault. If it weren't for him, how would I have ended up like this?"

"Since you showed no mercy, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"I'm curious to see your expression when you watch your loved ones die one by one in front of you."

Zheng Yuanqiu tightened his right fist, the knuckles turning pale from the force.

Just then, there came a subtle yet strange sound of something breaking through the air outside the house.

With a crack.

It sounded like something had hit the door.

Zheng Yuanqiu squinted suspiciously, sensing for any abnormalities, but found nothing amiss outside.

He placed his teacup gently on the table, stood up, walked to the door, and cautiously opened a narrow crack.

Peering through the gap, he saw nothing outside.

Strange.

Did I hear wrong?

Just as Zheng Yuanqiu was about to close the door, his eyes inadvertently swept over the ground by the entrance, spotting an inexplicable yellow talisman.

The talisman sparkled with radiant colors.

Zheng Yuanqiu's head suddenly snapped up, a flicker of surprise and alertness on his face.

His eyes widened with determination, and he abruptly threw open the wooden door, with no hesitation, preparing to dash into the forest like an arrow released from a bowstring.

But just as he turned, an unparalleled sharpness pierced the sky, tearing the air with a deafening roar and endless wind and snow, aiming directly at his back.

Zheng Yuanqiu felt an overwhelming aura of destruction, blaring alarms in his mind.

Spiritual Power within him surged instantly, forcing his body to twist in the air at an inconceivable angle, turning around.

Then, gathering brilliant light in his palm, he unleashed it with a thunderous blow, directly confronting the incoming arrow head-on.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion erupted, the arrow shattered in the air, scattering into bits of cold brilliance, stirring a circle of visible ripples in the snow.

Riding the momentum, Zheng Yuanqiu's figure soared higher, spotting a figure in the distance holding a bow, his complexion horrified.
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"So it's you, brat!!!"

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