"I actually only ranked third."
Ji Xinghuo was somewhat surprised; the difficulty of these three rounds of shooting had already been very high, yet someone had scored 143, securing the top spot.
The score of the second place was also two points higher than his.
Fang Yinpeng also advanced, scoring 138, tied for fifth place.
Ji Xinghuo turned his head to check the weather. Outdoor shooting was easily affected by climate, especially wind. A small mistake could lead to missing the target.
With these uncertain factors present, no one could confidently claim they would definitely win the championship. It all depended on performance at the moment.
The top ten all had a chance.
At that moment, a broadcast rang through the valley, playing repeatedly, "The 32 advancing competitors, please gather at Target Field No. 9, the seventh round will start in fifteen minutes."
Ji Xinghuo hurried over.
Not only the advancing competitors, but even those who had been eliminated had not left. They had become spectators, eager to witness the final results.
Target Field No. 9 was situated on a 100-meter-high cliff, but the slope of the cliff was gradual and handrails were installed, so there was no danger.
A flat area and stands had been developed near the edge of the cliff, capable of accommodating thousands of spectators.
The remaining four rounds would all take place here.
When Ji Xinghuo arrived, most of the stands were already filled, Yang Tianqing and a few other hall directors were also present, sitting on the side chatting.
"Please come forward."
A chief judge stood on a platform jutting out from the cliff. Shooting marks were drawn on the ground, and 32 competitors stood a few meters away, maintaining distance.
The chief judge quickly went over the rules.
Outside the cliff, in mid-air within a specified area, dozens of drone targets were distributed, flying continuously at varying speeds and trajectories. Once the competitors were in position, one drone would light up prominently with a red light, lasting one second, within which the competitors must complete their shot.
Ji Xinghuo had watched videos beforehand, but being on-site was still quite different from the videos.
With so many people watching, it was inevitable to feel nervous.
"Number 76, Ji Xinghuo!"
At this round, the order of appearance was determined by the number assigned at registration. Ji Xinghuo's number was the smallest among the top 32, so he was the first to perform.
Ji Xinghuo walked a few meters forward, stepping into the shooting area.
All eyes focused on him.
Ji Xinghuo held the composite bow in his left hand, placed an arrow on it with his right hand, and took a deep breath.
Suddenly, the slight nervousness in his heart subsided, his mind became calm yet focused, and his eyes looked towards the area between fifty and seventy meters from the edge of the cliff. Inside his right eye, a tiny flash occurred, the Wanxiang Star Pupil mapped out every dynamic within that zone inside his brain with clarity.
The flow of the wind, the fierce sunlight, and those ceaselessly flying drones, everything appeared in Ji Xinghuo's mind like a vivid painting.
"Please get ready," shouted the chief judge.
Ji Xinghuo glanced at the ten-second countdown with the corner of his eye, and the buzzer sounded as soon as time was up.
Ji Xinghuo exerted strength to draw the bowstring, maintaining his bow drawing posture, and scanned the dozens of swiftly moving drones like a school of fish.
Suddenly, one of the drones lit up.
An arrow shot out almost simultaneously, turning into a black streak, and hit the target.
Ji Xinghuo did not check the result of this arrow, his right hand clutched another four arrows, the Thousand Spirit Skillful Hand exerted its function, moving as nimbly and rapidly as a passing butterfly, and he placed another arrow on the bow, his thumb hooking the string, ready for the next shot.
Another drone lit up, located almost seventy meters away, but lower than the platform of the cliff.
Ji Xinghuo immediately adjusted his angle and shot downward.
He immediately set up the third arrow, maintaining his rhythm, shot as the third drone lit up, followed by the fourth and fifth arrows, completing that round of shots.
All five arrows scored ten points!
Sitting in the stands, hundreds of spectators were stunned, and it took a few seconds before a burst of exclamations broke out.
Surprise showed on the faces of several directors.
Yang Tianqing noticed the archery hall's label on Ji Xinghuo's clothes, giving it a few more glances, also puzzled—when had his archery hall acquired such an impressive archer?
Shooting sequential ten-points on random targets between fifty and seventy meters was extremely difficult.
The competitors following Ji Xinghuo made mistakes to various extents. It was not until Fang Yinpeng performed that another score of 50 appeared.
When all 32 top competitors had finished, a total of five individuals achieved full scores.
This round eliminated half of the competitors with lower scores, and the top 16 competitors moved into the eighth round, shooting at random targets from the same position, but the distance increased to seventy to one hundred meters.
Ji Xinghuo was still the first to go.
Ten arrows were shot.
Once again, he achieved a perfect score of five tens!
By now, everyone knew that this unknown archer was definitely the top contender for today's championship; the other skilled and well-known competitors were not in as good a form as him, nor were they as terrifyingly consistent.
Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo became the focus of everyone at the scene.
He noticed that Yang Tianqing called over a coach from his own archery hall and spoke in a low voice for a few moments.
Entering the ninth round, only eight competitors remained. By this round, each of the top eight could receive a sum of prize money, so they were all quite happy.
The shooting distance for the ninth round was increased to a hundred meters to a hundred and twenty meters.
Generally, for shooters below the level of Super Mutant, when the target distance exceeds a hundred meters, the hit rate would drastically decrease.