Chapter 9: The Violet Bow (Part 1)

  "Yes." Maori walked over and sat down on the other side of Shangguan Bing'er.

  Zhou Weiqing watched with a cold eye, he found that the captain of the Moultrie squadron seemed to be very unimpressed by the handsome young man, not even looking at him once, sitting in his own position with an expressionless face.

  Shangguan Fei'er and Zhou Weiqing exchanged a glance, Zhou Weiqing's eyebrows jumped slightly towards her, this small movement looked very natural, others wouldn't pay much attention to it, but Shangguan Fei'er being a Tianzhu master and an archer, how good was her eyesight? Plus her familiarity with Zhou Weiqing, a hint of hatred flashed in her beautiful eyes. Sometimes, she really hated this guy so much that she wanted to beat him up thoroughly.

  "Zhou Xiaopang, stand behind me. From today on, you are the first personal bodyguard of the Camp Commander." Shangguan Bing'er gave Zhou Weiqing a stern glance before issuing her order in an extremely calm tone.

  "Yes." Zhou Weiqing responded with a single word, then went to stand behind Dugu Bo. Being her personal guard was great, not only would it be more convenient for him to learn the knowledge of the Heaven's Expanse Palace, but also being able to spend his days and nights by her side made Zhou Weiqing extremely satisfied. Fortunately, in front of so many people, he managed to restrain himself a bit, only revealing a hint of smugness in his eyes.

  "Wait a minute." Just then, an unpleasant voice suddenly appeared. Zhou Weiqing couldn't help but admit that the sound of Qing Yue's voice was quite good. The one speaking was none other than the handsome captain.

  "What's wrong? Does Captain Xiao have a problem?" Shangguan Bing'er turned her head to look at the handsome young man, and the hatred in her eyes instantly disappeared, replaced by a calm and even gentle gaze.

  The handsome young man known as Xiao Dui Zhang nodded slightly, not hiding the eager gaze he had for Shangguan Bing Er, and said: "Camp Chief, with your identity, it is only natural to have a personal soldier. However, as your personal soldier, one must not only be able to handle some simple daily tasks for you but also take on the responsibility of protecting you and following you. Zhou Xiao Pang is just a new recruit, I'm afraid he's not up to the task?"

  Shangguan Bing'er wouldn't easily lose her composure unless she was facing Zhou Weiqing, a faint smile on her face as she said, "Commander Xiao thinks I need the protection of my personal guards? Do you have any recommended candidates?"

  Zhou Weiqing stopped in his tracks as soon as Xiao Que's voice fell, his vigilance increasing greatly. He was afraid that anyone could clearly see the emotions in Xiao Que's eyes towards Shangguan Xue'er. Zhou Weiqing couldn't help but take a few more glances at him, secretly thinking to himself: How did this guy grow such a deceitful face? They say that those with pretty faces are not good-hearted, and one look is enough to tell he's not a good thing.

  Originally, he didn't have any great expectations for Shangguan Fei'er, but after he himself became a Heaven's Chosen, our Zhou Weiqing and Zhou Xiaobian had already magnanimously taken Shangguan Fei'er as his own possession. Of course, that calculating mind which shouldn't appear on a thirteen-year-old youth wouldn't let him directly show it.

  Upon hearing Shangguan Yuer's retort, Xiao Duozhi solemnly said: "With the company commander's abilities, it is naturally not necessary to have a small personal guard for protection. However, whether this new recruit can shoot an arrow or not is a problem. Following the company commander out would be losing your face, wouldn't it? Moreover, even if you don't need a personal guard's protection, the personal guard must keep up with your pace on the battlefield. I, Xiao Se, am willing to resign as deputy company commander and follow the company commander closely, vowing to protect the company commander with my life."

  This Captain Xiao's words were righteous and resounding, his appearance as calm as if he was about to die, even Zhou Weiqing almost got moved by him. In his heart, he cursed: Can't you just not pretend for once?

  Shangguan Bing'er smiled and said, "Thank you, Commander Xiao, for your kind intentions. However, you are the backbone of our three battalions. How could I let you take on this small task of being my personal bodyguard? As for Zhou Xiaopang, although he is a new recruit, after my testing over the past few days, he has shown to be a promising talent. He also had some experience with archery before, so he should be able to handle the task of being my personal bodyguard."

  Xiao Se's eyebrows slightly furrowed, and he said: "Camp Commander, I think it would be better this way. Let that new recruit called Zhou Xiaopang demonstrate his abilities on the spot, so we can also feel at ease."

  Shangguan Bing'er still had an unenthusiastic expression, facing Xiao Se's relentless questioning she didn't show any superior strength, "Alright, let's do as Captain Xiao says. But I wonder how Captain Xiao plans to test my personal soldier?" On the surface, she seemed calm and collected, but in her heart, she was thinking differently. In this third battalion, although she was the battalion commander, Xiao Se's influence was much greater than hers. Even their noble titles were not below hers, and behind him, there was a power that Shangguan Bing'er had to be wary of.

  Xiao Se stood up, lifted his hand casually, and picked up a longbow from beside the seat. This longbow of his was similar to Shangguan Bing'er's one, with both bows having purple bodies. Zhou Weiqing was very familiar with this material.

  The Tian Gong Empire's Star Forest produces starwood that can be used to make longbows after ten years, but generally speaking, the military uses at least thirty-year-old starwood. Only then is the starwood tough enough. The purple longbow used by Xiao Se and Shangguan Yinger was also made from starwood, except it was over a hundred years old.

  The Xīng Chén Mù itself is dark red in color, turning deep purple after growing for a hundred years. The surface presents fine lines like cow hair, and if you look closely, you can also see dense golden light spots. This is also one of the origins of the name Xīng Chén Mù, and this characteristic of hundred-year-old Xīng Chén Mù is called "Cow Hair Golden Star".

  The Starlight Tree grows for over a hundred years, and its quality will naturally undergo a qualitative leap, with a significant increase in strength. The Starlight Bow made from the hundred-year-old Starlight Tree has a pulling force of at least three times that of an ordinary Starlight Bow, requiring more than 100 kilograms of pulling force to open it. Similarly, its range is also much farther, with an effective attack distance of up to 500 meters, and if driven by heavenly power, it can be even farther. Therefore, it is also known as the Purple Star Bow, and each Purple Star Bow is worth at least over 100 gold coins, with prices varying according to quality. This thing is not something that an ordinary mid-level commander can use, and even in a country like the Heavenly Bow Empire, which is famous for its bows, only a commander of this level can be equipped with it.

  Xiao Xi walked up to Zhou Weiqing with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, holding his own Purple Heaven Bow. "So you're the famous Zhou Little Fatty," he said. "If you can draw my Purple Heaven Bow, then you'll have proven yourself worthy of being a personal guard for our company commander. Give it a try, use all your might, but don't overexert yourself, or you might just end up pissing your pants."

  Xiao Se's words instantly made those bald team leaders burst into laughter. Especially the ten team leaders who were sitting below him, they laughed so hard that they fell forward and backward, not putting Shangguan Yuer in their eyes at all.

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  To make it more enjoyable for everyone, I'll release two updates in the morning, which will also enhance the sense of continuity, hehe.

  Xiao San has always been kind-hearted, and book friends are even more so. Your clicks, recommendations, and collections are very important to Xiao San, please don't forget.

  Also, there's something I always forget to mention, when everyone is voting for the next chapter, please try to vote for either 3000 or 6000 words. Nine thousand, twelve thousand, Xiao San wants to eat but can't even get a bite, can only look on anxiously, haha.

  The third one will probably be released around 5 pm tonight, thank you everyone.