Arrow's Shadow, Startling as a Swan
The morning light of Sumeru pierced through the mist of the rainforest, casting dappled shadows on the blue stone targets in the training ground. More than twenty Sumeru soldiers in vine armor nocked arrows to their bowstrings, while the knights from Fontaine, having traveled far, wore silver-scale armor, their fine steel composite bows glinting coldly.
"Word is Lü Bu's iron cavalry numbers three thousand. Our archery skills may not amount to much against them," the leader of the Sumeru soldiers wiped sweat from his brow, his gaze sweeping over the neatly lined Fontainian knights in the distance. "Can those pale-skinned nobles truly fight side by side with us?"
"Hmph. They should be the ones worrying," the Fontainian captain lifted his chin, golden curls fluttering in the wind. "The firearms of Fontaine can split the very sky. A mere bow and arrow is child's play."
As the two sides silently competed, the sound of a wooden cane tapping against stone came from the entrance of the training ground. Everyone turned. An elderly man with snow-white hair walked in leaning on his staff, his gray robe stained with mud, yet a simple sandalwood bow hung at his waist, and his quiver held several feathered arrows.
"Who is this old beggar? This is a military area!"
Amid the Sumeru soldier's scolding, Huang Zhong lifted his head. A faint smile flickered in his cloudy eyes.
"Hearing archery masters gather here, this old man has come to learn."
"Learn?" The Fontainian captain scoffed, drawing his fine steel bow. "Sir, this bow is forged from deep-sea black iron. Can you even hold it?"
He tossed the bow toward Huang Zhong.
Huang Zhong caught it steadily, then gently set it on the ground.
"Weapons hold no rank, nor do men. I shall use the tools this old bones carry."
He unslung the sandalwood bow from his waist, his movements slow yet filled with an indescribable calm.
"Look! That bow's bent like a crescent moon. Don't strain your back!"
Amid the soldiers' laughter, Huang Zhong had already drawn an arrow. With a clear, ringing hum of the bowstring, the arrow tore through the air, striking the bullseye a hundred paces away precisely — the feathered fletching still trembling.
Before anyone could react, Huang Zhong's left hand snatched three more arrows, his right spinning the bowstring like a wheel. Three arrows arced through the air, piercing the bullseye at the exact same moment, riddling the target with holes.
The training ground fell silent, broken only by birdsong in the woods. The Fontainian captain stared wide-eyed at the seemingly ordinary sandalwood bow in Huang Zhong's hands.
"This… how is this possible?"
"Shooting a willow leaf at a hundred paces — mere trivial skill," Huang Zhong said slowly, his gaze sweeping over their shocked faces. "Back at Mount Dingjun, I used this very bow to drive back Cao Cao's elite Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. The way of archery lies not in a fine bow, but in unity of heart and mind."
The Sumeru captain suddenly dropped to one knee. "Elder, please teach us!"
The Fontainian knights bowed one after another, their golden curls swaying like wheat waves in the morning light.
For the next half‑month, the training ground echoed day and night with the hum of drawn bows. Huang Zhong corrected the soldiers' stances hand by hand, teaching them the essentials of archery on the battlefield.
When Lü Bu's iron cavalry raised clouds of dust, the combined forces of Sumeru and Fontaine stood ready.
On the battlefield, Huang Zhong drew his bow once more, his white hair flapping fiercely in the wind. Gazing at the distant forest of enemy armor, he murmured:
"Today, let these younger ones see — an old soldier does not die easily. I can still fight!"
As his bowstring sang, the first arrow sliced through the sky like thunder. Behind him, countless arrows followed, darkening the sun like a swarm of locusts, surging toward the enemy.