Chen Tang held onto his horse, not in a hurry to leave the town.

Instead, he first went to an inn to buy some cooked meat and a bottle of good wine.

The horse was still feeling a bit melancholic after leaving its original home. But upon seeing Chen Tang with wine and meat, its eyes brightened instantly, filled with more spirit.

To be honest, Chen Tang was somewhat skeptical about the horse being able to eat meat and drink wine.

He took a piece of cooked meat and placed it near the ugly horse's mouth.

The ugly horse didn't even sniff it, turning its head away and refusing to eat, only sneaking glances at the wine bottle in Chen Tang's hand.

What's the meaning of this?

It has to drink some wine first?

Chen Tang took a large bowl and poured it full of wine, bringing it to the ugly horse's mouth.

The ugly horse immediately perked up, shoved its muzzle into the bowl, and after a few slurps, drained the large bowl of wine.

Without waiting for Chen Tang to feed it, the ugly horse grabbed the cooked meat from Chen Tang's hand and leisurely chewed it, squinting slightly as if the whole world had become beautiful.

"You sure know how to enjoy,"

Chen Tang laughed, patting the horse's neck, and said, "Your previous owner is dead, and staying in that home would be like a pearl cast before swine. Following me may not make you famous, but I will not mistreat you. As long as I have wine, you'll not go without it."

The ugly horse seemed to understand Chen Tang's words, deliberately raising its head.

Chen Tang said, "I don't know what you were called before, but how about I call you Thunder Leopard from now on?"

After saying that, Chen Tang poured it another bowl of wine.

The ugly horse drank down the large bowl, snorted loudly, unclear whether it agreed or not.

The bottle of wine was soon emptied.

But Thunder Leopard wasn't satisfied and tried to bite at the wine gourd on Chen Tang's waist.

Chen Tang slapped it away, jokingly scolding, "You little devil, you still have your eye on my Monkey Wine."

"I can't let you drink anymore today, or you'll cause trouble from too much alcohol."

Chen Tang led Thunder Leopard toward the East Gate, attracting the attention of many onlookers along the way.

"Isn't that the horse from Old Ma's house?"

"Looks like it's been sold, that's tough."

"Old Ma finally found an out-of-towner to swindle, haha."

Several guards at the city gate recognized Thunder Leopard immediately, sharing a few idle laughs.

After all, this horse's appearance was truly unique and hard to forget.

One guard laughed and asked, "Young man, where are you heading out of town for?"

Chen Tang replied, "Just going to practice my riding skills nearby; I'll be back soon."

Another guard advised, "Without a saddle on that horse, be careful if you're new to this, or you might get thrown off."

Chen Tang vaguely agreed and led Thunder Leopard out of the city.

After exiting the city, Chen Tang leaped onto the horse's back, clamping his legs around the horse's belly, tapping his heels lightly, and shaking the reins.

Thunder Leopard broke into a run along the main road.

It was tied with lead weights, yet despite carrying nearly four hundred pounds, Thunder Leopard ran swiftly!

Though Chen Tang had never ridden a horse before, he'd been practicing martial arts for three months, had a solid foundation, and quickly mastered the technique.

A few miles down the road, Chen Tang stopped, left the main road, and headed toward a dense forest in the distance.

While running on the main road, the challenge wasn't apparent,

but off the road, Thunder Leopard's ability to trek through snow, navigate complex terrains on either side, and climb hills showed its extraordinary prowess!

Before he knew it, they arrived at the dense forest.

By this time, the sky was getting dark, and the city gates were about to close.

Chen Tang dismounted, tied the reins to a large tree, and instructed, "Wait for me here; I'll come for you in about one or two hours, okay?"

He had to return to Wu'an County so the guards could see him return to the city.

After giving these instructions, Chen Tang was about to leave.

But as he lifted his foot, Thunder Leopard suddenly bit his clothing with a pitiful look in its eyes, showing a hint of grievance.

Chen Tang immediately understood, lightly patting its neck and soothing it, "I'm not going to abandon you, I'll come find you later. Then, you can accompany me to do something important!"

This time, Thunder Leopard seemed to understand and released Chen Tang's clothes.

Chen Tang turned and headed back to Wu'an County.

...

"Look quickly, isn't that the young man who just left the city?"

Several guards at the East Gate looked up to see a dispirited Chen Tang walking back.

One of the guards stifled a laugh and asked, "Young man, where's your horse?"

Chen Tang remained silent.

"Did you get thrown off? We did tell you to be careful."

"The horse is gone too? No need to worry, the city gates are about to close; when they open in the morning, the horse will likely have returned. Just keep an eye out."

The guards saw snow on Chen Tang and guessed what had happened.

Chen Tang said nothing, cupped his hands in greeting, and entered the city.

"He's probably feeling stifled from being thrown off, harboring a stomach full of resentment, haha!"

The guards joked a bit more.

After entering the city, Chen Tang returned to the inn, exchanged greetings with Mei Yingxue and a few others, then went to his room to rest, his mind reviewing tonight's plan while quietly waiting for nightfall.

After about an hour, night approached.

Chen Tang removed the lead weights and changed into black clothing, fastening a long knife to his waist before heading out.

There was still some activity on the streets given the curfew hadn't started yet. Behaving too cautiously would attract suspicion.

Chen Tang made his way to the East Market.

Without the lead weights, he felt incredibly light, practically flying on foot!

Chen Tang did not head directly to the city wall but took a winding route, slowly approaching the East Market Training Ground.

By this time, the training ground was closed; guards stood at the entrance, and patrolling soldiers were around.

Chen Tang took a face mask from his pocket and put it on. Seizing the moment after a squad of soldiers had passed, he quietly approached the wall at the side of the training ground, with his palm against the wall, as though exerting a massive force of suction.

With a twist of his body, he climbed over the wall in a few moves, entering the grounds inside.

Inside, it was silent, with no one in sight.

Chen Tang walked to a lineup of powerful bows, first picking up the Three-Stone Bow. Using a bit of strength, he easily pulled it back.

He then put it down and went straight to the Five-Stone Bow, taking a deep breath, he spread his feet slightly apart, aligning his shoulders, exerting force in his arms, shoulders, and chest muscles simultaneously!

In an instant, all his muscles bulged, shining with a bronze glow!

The Five-Stone Bow too was gradually pulled open to a full moon!

At least in terms of strength, he had met the requirements of the Ninth Grade Extreme Realm!

Only the layer of copper skin on his flesh had yet to shed.

Chen Tang wasn't there out of curiosity to test it; his main purpose was to steal the bow!

For him, a One-Stone Bow was enough.

But for the task tonight, nothing could go wrong; Chen Tang decided to use a more powerful bow!

Chen Tang experimented by securing the Three-Stone Bow on his back.

Typically, even martial artists of the Ninth and Eighth Grades, although they might have the strength to draw a Five-Stone or Six-Stone Bow, would actually just use a One-Stone Bow.

It's similar to how many people can lift one or two hundred pounds, but the weapons they use tend to weigh only a few pounds.

Anything over ten pounds becomes unwieldy for most, difficult to maneuver as if it were part of one's body.

Chen Tang didn't need to shoot many arrows.

One shot, at most two shots.

But that one shot had to be lethal, with no room for mistakes!

He could just barely draw the Five-Stone Bow, but shooting from it was impossible.

The Three-Stone Bow was just right.

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