Chapter 22 – Learning Boundaries
The arrow that had nearly pierced Li Chen's thigh still quivered where it had struck the stone behind him.
For a moment, the hall fell silent again.
Li Chen pushed himself up slowly, one hand brushing against his thigh where the arrow had grazed him earlier. The wound wasn't deep, but the sting reminded him just how close that shot had been.
His gaze lifted.
The figure that had fired the arrow was still standing in the same spot as before.
It hadn't moved since the first attack.
It simply stood there quietly, bow in hand, as if time itself had stopped around it.
Now that Li Chen was no longer panicking, he finally took the chance to observe it properly.
The guardian was tall, easily a head taller than him, its body wrapped in dark armor that looked more like carved stone than metal. Thin purple lines ran across the armor plates, glowing faintly like veins carrying energy.
Its helmet covered the entire face.
There were no eyes, no mouth, no visible expression.
Only a narrow vertical slit in the center of the helmet glowed with dim purple light.
In its left hand rested a long black bow.
The bowstring was already drawn slightly, as if the guardian could fire another arrow at any moment.
For a few seconds, neither of them moved.
Then Li Chen narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Inspect."
A faint blue panel appeared before him.
---
[Inspect Activated]
Name: Hall Guardian
Cultivation Plane: ??
Strength: ??
Agility: ??
Endurance: ??
Intelligence: 27
Health: 100/ 100
Skills: ??
---
Li Chen stared at the panel.
Almost everything was blurred out.
Large sections of the information were covered by flickering distortion.
Another line appeared beneath it.
---
[User's Inspect Skill Level is insufficient to view this information.]
---
Li Chen clicked his tongue softly.
"Well… that's helpful."
He couldn't help but feel a little annoyed.
If he had used the Inspect skill more frequently since obtaining it, it probably would have leveled up by now.
Maybe then he could have seen something useful.
But after thinking about it for a moment, he shook his head.
Even if the skill had been stronger, there was a good chance the result wouldn't be very different.
The aura coming from that guardian was simply too deep.
It didn't feel like something his current level should be able to analyze easily.
Li Chen exhaled slowly and forced himself to calm down.
Panicking wouldn't help.
As he stood there thinking, he suddenly noticed something strange.
The guardian still hadn't attacked again.
It hadn't moved at all.
That arrow earlier had come out of nowhere, but now it simply stood there silently.
Watching.
Waiting.
Li Chen frowned slightly.
Then a small thought appeared in his mind.
"…Let's test something."
He cautiously stepped forward.
Nothing happened.
Another step.
Still nothing.
Li Chen kept his eyes fixed on the guardian.
Then he took a third step.
The reaction came instantly.
The guardian moved.
Its arm lifted smoothly, pulling an arrow from the quiver at its waist in a single motion. The bowstring stretched back.
The next moment—
THWANG !!.
The arrow shot forward like a streak of light.
This time Li Chen was ready.
The moment the guardian's arm moved, he twisted his body sideways and pushed off the ground.
The arrow cut through the air beside him.
He landed a few steps back and immediately retreated further.
The guardian stopped moving again.
Just like before.
It returned to its silent stance.
Li Chen's eyes narrowed as he looked down at the floor.
That was when he noticed it.
A faint purple line ran across the stone ground.
It stretched from one side of the hall to the other, almost invisible unless you looked closely.
And Li Chen was now standing just behind it.
For a moment, he simply stared.
Then the pieces slowly clicked together.
"…Ah."
A grin slowly spread across his face.
"So that's the rule."
The guardian hadn't attacked randomly.
It had only fired when he crossed that line.
Which meant the purpose of this thing was obvious.
It wasn't meant to chase him.
It wasn't meant to hunt him down.
Its only purpose was to guard the glowing orb that was behind it.
Li Chen scratched the back of his head.
"Well… at least now I know."
Instead of rushing forward again, he did something completely unexpected.
He walked a few steps away from the line.
Then he sat down.
Right there on the floor.
Cross-legged.
The previous fights in the first layer had drained quite a bit of his Qi. Even though his body had grown stronger under the pressure chamber, his energy still needed time to recover.
So he closed his eyes.
Slowly, he began circulating the Azure Cloud Flow Art.
The Qi within his body started moving again, flowing through his meridians like a quiet stream. The familiar warmth spread through his limbs, easing the tension in his muscles.
Outside his body, the surrounding spiritual energy gradually gathered and seeped into him.
Time passed quietly.
The guardian didn't react.
It remained standing beyond the purple line like an unmoving statue.
After some time, Li Chen opened his eyes again.
The fatigue from earlier had mostly faded.
He stretched his arms slightly and rolled his shoulders.
He then decided to look up his stats.
Then a panel appeared before him.
---
Name: Li Chen
Level: [6]
Total XP: 25 /300
Strength: [8]
Agility: [7]
Endurance: [10]
Intelligence: [3]
HP : 74/100
Skills :
Inspect ( non-combat skill ): Level 2
Shadow Step ( combat skill) : Level 2
Crushing Palm ( combat skill) Level 1
Available Stat Points: 4
---
Li Chen looked at the panel thoughtfully.
Then his gaze slowly moved toward the guardian again.
That arrow earlier had been ridiculously fast.
Even when he was expecting it, he had barely dodged it.
Which meant one thing.
Speed would decide this fight.
He didn't hesitate.
He swiftly assigned all points to agility
The panel flickered.
---
Agility: 7→11
---
A subtle sensation spread through his body immediately.
His muscles felt lighter.
His movements felt slightly sharper.
It wasn't a dramatic change, but Li Chen could clearly tell his body had improved.
He stood up again.
Then flexed his fingers.
"Alright…"
Just as he prepared to step toward the purple line again, another panel suddenly appeared.
---
[New Mission Detected]
Trial Objective: Defeat the Hall Guardian
Reward: 300 XP
6 Skill points
Penalty for Failure: Death
---
Li Chen stared at the message for a moment.
Then he looked back toward the guardian.
A small smirk appeared on his face.
"So that's what you wanted all along."
He walked forward again and stopped right before the purple line.
His breathing slowed.
The Qi inside his body began circulating faster.
Across from him, the guardian stood silently with its bow ready.
Li Chen cracked his neck slightly.
Then he smiled.
"Thought you'd never ask."