48 Hours a Day

Zhang Heng ran into the dormitory building and looked at the lifts. Only one of the two available elevators were operating during the holidays, and it was now on the ninth floor. Considering it might stop on other floors on its way down, Zhang Heng decided to take the safer option on the other side, the stairs. Having no idea how much longer Shen Xixi and the imposter could last, every second counted. It took him only 47 seconds to climb to the 11th floor where his room was located.

When he pushed the door open, a sweat-soaked Ma Wei was sitting at his desk, a blank look plastered on his face as he held onto a wallet. He mumbled, “How could this be? I remember very clearly that I brought it with me when I left. I even bought two buns in the afternoon. How could it have returned before I did?!

This was the most baffling thing he had ever experienced in his entire life. After his tutoring session ended, and he was about to go home, he realized that his wallet and bicycle were missing. He had frantically searched nearby, and yet, found nothing. Now, he was dizzy and confused.

Then, when he returned to the dormitory, his old bicycle had magically parked itself downstairs, and his missing wallet was already on his desk. Not only was the money still in there, but there was also even an extra forty yuan in it. Ma Wei felt his emotions heaving like a wild roller-coaster ride. Surprised and thrilled, he was at the same time bemused at the inexplicable happenstance. In his stupor, he didn’t even notice Zhang Heng entering the room. By the time he looked up, Zhang Heng was already rushing out the door. From the corner of his eye, Ma Wei spotted him holding the SF recurve bow. “Are you going to practice archery? But it’s so late…”

Zhang Heng picked up his bow, arrow, and telescope from his wardrobe, and instead of greeting his roommate, he hurried into the bathroom next door. With the telescope, he searched for Shen Xixi and the imposter through the tiny ventilation window and saw that they were running from the lake toward the parking lot.

He chose a small photocopy shop located between the parking lot and the man-made lake. It was also the closest location to the male dormitory. Making his way there as quickly as he could, he climbed up the sycamore tree next to the shop, the perfect spot for an ambush. At this point, Shen Xixi and imposter weren’t too far away from him.

However, the two girls didn’t notice Zhang Heng. All they cared was to run for their lives, focused on avoiding the black liquid that was quickly advancing on them. Zhang Heng took in a deep breath and pulled out the Paris Arrow from his quiver. The imposter had mentioned before that most supernatural beasts had a so-called Achilles’ heel. As long as they figured what it was, they could kill even the most powerful and invincible of monsters.

The Paris Arrow was also a legendary item associated with the Achilles Heel. Zhang Heng had returned to the dormitory just to retrieve it. Although it wasn’t his first time using this game item, he had only employed before it as an enhanced arrow with automatic angle correction. This was the first time he was using it against a supernatural creature and had no idea how effective it would be.

Zhang Heng armed the bow with the Paris Arrow. With his Lv. 2 archery skills, he swiftly locked on to the target without much difficulty. It wasn’t until Shen Xixi, and the imposter ran past him that he released his finger.

However, something unexpected happened. Not only did the arrow not find the black liquid’s weakness, but it also missed its target entirely.

Zhang Heng had been practicing archery for the longest time now, and practiced within a ten-meter range, even if it was a moving target, he could at least hit the eighth ring. In fact, there was no chance he would miss such an easy target. On top of that, the black liquid was a lot larger than his regular bullseye targets, and it was technically impossible for him to miss his mark. Judging by his extensive experience, he knew that it was a good shot the moment the arrow left the bow. Ironically, it was as if an invisible force had shifted the arrow’s flight path. Zhang Heng saw with his own eyes as the Paris Arrow deviated, flying past the creature before disappearing into the darkness. Except for Zhang Heng, the shooter, the other two people, and the creature didn’t even notice the existence of the arrow.

Zhang Heng’s frown deepened as he looked at a fleeing Shen Xixi in the distance. Even if he caught up to them, chances were that he could do nothing against the creature. It appeared that it was immune to physical damage. So, after giving it some thought, Zhang Heng decided to find the Paris Arrow. He remembered that it had deviated in a southwesterly direction. Zhang Heng leaped off the tree and headed there. After around a hundred meters, he found his arrow sticking out of the ground.

Zhang Heng felt a little flummoxed. That creature’s weak spot couldn’t have been the dirt on the ground. Even if it was, there was a lot of soil under the tree back there; the Paris Arrow had no reason to fly all the way here. There could only be one explanation for this — before the Paris Arrow could hit the monster’s weak spot, it had already used up all its kinetic energy. However, Zhang Heng was somewhat of an archery veteran, and he could accurately shoot up to two hundred meters. Even if there was wind resistance, there was no way it would only go as far as a hundred. On top of that, the angle the arrow penetrated the ground at a bizarre angle. It was at that moment that something suddenly clicked in his mind, and he looked up at a structure not too far away.

It was the school library, a seven floored concrete building. If the arrow’s target were the building, then it would all make sense. It had suffered a loss of kinetic energy as it converted into gravitational potential energy. Still, it wasn’t enough to send the arrow to the target, so it fell midway and plunged into the ground.

Nonetheless, it had completed its mission in a way, pointing Zhang Heng in a particular direction. Although he didn’t know why that creature’s weak spot was in the school library, he knew that the answer to tonight’s crisis could be hidden within it.

Zhang Heng pulled the arrow out of the ground, replaced it on the bowstring, then carefully treaded to the dark library ahead of him.