Chapter 18: Archery Club
Chapter 18: Archery Club
Without eating breakfast, Lan Mu packed some food and hurried back home with Su Yue.
He was already in a bad mood, and seeing the soup dumplings also made him feel nauseous.
The food he used to love so much now looked incredibly ugly to him for some reason.
The smell of meat filled him with an indescribable disgust.
In the end, Lan Mu ate none of it, only drinking some milk.
“Since when do elves become picky eaters!”
Lan Mu figured he wasn’t hungry anyway, so he might as well not eat. This elf body had never eaten human food before; if he forced it down his throat, it might cause nausea, and then he’d only be suffering.
Considering the elf’s reverence for nature, they probably didn’t eat meat at all. Maybe drinking dew and eating fruit was their diet…
But there was no fruit at home. Remembering how he had gone hungry for six days during the White-maned Lion experience, he absolutely could not hide at home and starve this time.
“I just don’t believe it! I finally managed to transform into a humanoid form; what’s there to be afraid of going outside?”
Lan Mu left home again. This time, he didn’t bring Su Yue, because it was just too embarrassing for a man to get hit on.
Going out with a beauty, only to be the one getting teased—the bitterness was hard to describe.
“Even though Su Yue can’t see my appearance, she’s probably already imagining in her mind that I’m a cross-dresser, right? Oh my god!”
Lan Mu felt like crying but had no tears. Anyway, Su Yue hadn’t mentioned anything, and he certainly would never bring it up either.
Originally, he planned to buy a computer today, but he changed his mind. Considering Su Yue’s presence, he thought he should first rent a bigger place.
Also, because of the sudden transformation into an elf—which might last at least a forced seven days—his entire plan was disrupted, so he wanted to wait until the Enforced Period was over before dealing with the studio matters.
So, after thinking it over, he somehow found himself walking into a physical store specializing in archery equipment. On the way, he casually bought two pounds of apples.
This archery equipment store called Metropolis Forest was very large. It seemed to be the only one in the entire Metropolis; at least, his phone search only showed this one store selling bows and arrows.
It wasn’t just selling equipment; inside, there was also a training ground. The second floor was an archery club, with all sorts of bows densely hanging on the walls, along with various cool-looking crossbows.
Compound bows, recurve bows, traditional bows—they had everything. Before this, Lan Mu never knew there were so many types of bows. Just the compound bows alone had no less than thirty models.
Since this was also a club, the staff were extremely professional, dazzling Lan Mu, a complete novice, with their introductions.
Lan Mu didn’t understand any of this. For him, the only way to know if a bow was good was to try it.
The reason he ended up here was because he wanted to test how strong his innate talent for archery was now.
After all, once the Enforced Period ended, he wasn’t sure if the White-maned Lion transformation would be overridden. At least for a while, protecting himself would rely on the elf’s abilities.
At least the White-maned Lion was a born Predator; under its hunt, no one could escape.
But what about the elf? If he encountered any trouble, without a suitable weapon, and with strength that might not even surpass human limits, how could he protect himself?
Instead of spending the next seven days muddling through at home, it was better to prepare early for his elf transformation and get more familiar with it.
After listening to the staff’s long spiel, Lan Mu grew more and more astonished. Most of the bows here cost over ten thousand, and the cheapest was over two thousand.
Lan Mu clearly looked like a complete novice. The staff member, figuring he wouldn’t buy a professional high-end bow, recommended a stylish-looking compound bow. This compound bow had upper and lower pulley systems, a complex bow structure, and was painted all over with wine-red flame stripes. Its biggest feature was that it looked cool.
“Miss, look, this Fire Nitrate is this year’s new model. It can achieve up to 350 FPS speed reduction, with 75% let-off…”
Before the staff could finish, Lan Mu immediately interrupted him, annoyed. “Which eye of yours sees a miss?”
“Uh…” This staff member was quite sharp. Realizing Lan Mu was a man, he quickly rolled his eyes and said, “I’m sorry, sir, I misunderstood.”
What the hell did you misunderstand? Lan Mu was speechless, but it was better not to press the issue. The less said, the better.
So Lan Mu said directly, “Not this bow! It’s too flashy. I want something more practical.”
Actually, this bow was practical too, but the staff didn’t argue. Instead, he introduced a few other popular compound bows.
“These two models are almost out of stock. Many archery enthusiasts like them. They’re great for both hunting and collecting.”
Lan Mu looked and saw two more compound bows. At first glance, they looked particularly complex, with lots of accessories. Even shooting required a bow press. This type of bow wasn’t suitable for rapid shooting; just the bow press alone would seriously affect his hand speed.
“Don’t recommend compound bows. I heard if the accessories are even slightly off, the bow’s accuracy drops a lot. I also don’t have time to maintain such delicate bows.”
“Uh…” The staff had no choice but to recommend a recurve bow.
“This hunting recurve bow is very popular in our club. Nicknamed Shark, its arrow rest and bow sight can adapt to various shooting styles. No matter your shooting method, this bow can handle it.”
Lan Mu thought this Shark looked pretty good. He gripped the bow handle, and the feel was excellent.
He pulled the bowstring; it offered quite some resistance, but he still managed to draw it to full draw.
The staff member watching from the side twitched at the corner of his mouth and couldn’t help saying, “Sir, don’t pull it like that. You might damage the bow.”
Although Lan Mu’s technique was very unprofessional, damaging the bow wasn’t likely.
“How much is this bow?”
“Just the bow is 6,900 yuan.”
“Oh?” Lan Mu raised an eyebrow. That flashy Fire Nitrate was only 5,800, yet this Shark cost 6,900. But he really liked this bow. Just as he was about to decide to buy it, the staff added.
“That’s just the bow for 6,900. The full set is about ten thousand.”
Lan Mu saw the set the staff brought out: matching arrows, a matching quiver, a matching bow case, matching maintenance products, etc.
“A few arrows, a quiver, and a bow case cost three thousand more?”
The staff explained again. With his smooth talking, from raw materials to club member reviews, he left Lan Mu with nothing to say.
“Let me shoot a few arrows first to try it. I heard you have a training ground here.”
“Yes, but there are already members using it. If you really want to try, you’ll need to wait in line for a bit,” the staff said apologetically.
“Members?” Lan Mu asked.
The staff smiled slightly and magically produced a brochure. Lan Mu saw it clearly listed the benefits of various membership levels.
“Basic VIP… annual fee 480, free maintenance, 10% off non-latest model archery equipment, free use of training ground…”
“Intermediate VIP… annual fee 1,000, free maintenance, 20% off all archery equipment, can use small training ground and VIP training ground anytime.”
“Premium VIP… annual fee 3,000, free maintenance, 30% off all archery equipment, can enjoy professional coaching delivered to your door, can receive guidance from experts in the VIP training ground, and can participate in Forest Club’s outdoor activities and indoor gatherings.”
Looking at these VIP tiers, Lan Mu shook his head and smiled wryly.
“What’s with copying this? Couldn’t you learn something else?”
“What about your club? Any requirements to join?”
This time, the staff didn’t have a brochure. He explained verbally, “The Metropolis Forest Club is the largest archery club in Metropolis. The club has ninety-seven members. Club membership is different from our store membership. The annual fee is at least one hundred thousand yuan. Not only do you enjoy all our store’s VIP services, but you can also participate in club competitions. We have dedicated leagues and competitive athletes.”
“As long as you’re a club member, you get 30% off all products in our store. You can also custom-order any equipment you want. Even if you’re a beginner, joining the club guarantees training until you’re proficient. As long as you’re willing to learn, we’ll train you to become an expert.”
“The club often organizes gatherings and outdoor activities. Four months ago, the Forest Club even went abroad, hunting in the snowy wilderness of Canada.”
Lan Mu had no interest in this club. No matter how grandly the staff described it, as soon as he heard the annual fee was one hundred thousand, he completely lost interest.
“So you mean, as an ordinary customer like me, I have to wait behind all the members until they’re done playing before I can have a turn?”
“Yes.”
Lan Mu sighed. He considered just buying the equipment and going back to practice in some park.
But with something like a bow and arrow, if he didn’t try shooting it himself, how would he know if it was good? What if he spent ten thousand to buy it and found it unsuitable for elf use?
“Fine, I’ll wait. Oh, can I go take a look?”
“Absolutely, please follow me.”
The staff led Lan Mu to the back of the store. This was the area for assembly, adjustment, and maintenance, where two staff members were doing maintenance work.
Next to this room was a small door. Pushing it open revealed a small training ground.
The training ground wasn’t big, about the size of two basketball courts. Five people were already shooting. Their postures looked very standard: shoulders level, legs staggered front and back shoulder-width apart, body turned sideways, bow drawn with an arrow nocked.
“This is it. You can sit in the chairs and rest first.”
Lan Mu nodded and sat in a designated resting area. He ate an apple while watching these people shoot.
All five were using compound bows, their postures impeccably standard. They aimed for a long time before someone finally released an arrow.
The arrow shot straight out, hitting the bullseye on the target fifteen meters away.
After that person hit, the other four also released their arrows. They were all shooting at the fifteen-meter target, and without exception, all hit the bullseye.
The five smiled slightly, nocked another arrow, and aimed at the twenty-five-meter target.
The range had fifteen-meter, twenty-five-meter, and fifty-meter targets. The fifteen-meter target was level with the person. The twenty-five-meter one was much higher. As for the fifty-meter target, it was already suspended from the ceiling, requiring shooting at an upward angle.
At first, Lan Mu watched with interest, but later, he became utterly bored.
He didn’t know what was up with these people. Shooting at such close targets, they had to aim for ages, hesitating and preparing for over ten seconds before releasing an arrow.
The scene was silent, making archery seem extremely serious and solemn. It wasn’t like tea tasting; why such long preparation for just a few dozen meters?
About two minutes later, they finally hit the bullseye on the fifty-meter target.
They were all sweating slightly. Even though compound bows are easier to draw, holding the draw steadily without trembling is still tiring.
After finishing the three targets, the training ground replaced them with three targets in different positions. They once again drew their bows, held their breath, and remained motionless.
Lan Mu had already finished one apple. Seeing this, he had no choice but to eat another apple.
Just then, a young man carrying a bow case walked in.
He smiled at Lan Mu and also sat down on a chair.