White Tiger Mount

The Wolf King lay on the ground, howling without cease, none of its earlier ferocity remaining.

A trace of curiosity appeared in Shen Qing's eyes.

"Oh? You're not dead yet?"

With that, he raised his foot and stomped down on the Wolf King's head with even greater force.

With one stomp, the Wolf King's skull began to deform. Its mouthful of sharp fangs were crushed to pieces, yet it still clung to its last breath.

Seeing their king beaten into a toy, the surrounding wolves howled mournfully. They had no thought of resistance whatsoever, tucked their tails, and tried to flee.

The Imperial Guards hiding in the trees hurriedly leaped down and began pursuing the wolves.

Just then, an earth-shaking tiger roar rang out, making the wolves' legs tremble.

The next instant, a three-meter-tall White Tiger sprang out from the dark woods. With one swipe of its paw, it sent a wolf flying, then opened its blood-filled maw, clamped down on another wolf, and tore at it without pause.

The Imperial Guards who had been about to give chase all stopped. That tiger roar had made their ears ring violently.

They looked at the White Tiger as if facing a great enemy, while recalling that River God Li Yu had indeed mentioned hearing a tiger's roar.

Shen Qing looked somewhat displeased. "Damn it, are you stealing my kills?"

The next moment, he raised his foot and crushed the Wolf King's head into pulp.

[Congratulations on killing a Xiantian Realm ferocious beast. Plundered trait: Head and Horns (Blue)]

He had no time to inspect it closely. He merely muttered that it was no wonder the creature's head had been so hard, then charged into the wolf pack.

Every punch and kick sent a wolf's flesh and blood flying. Within only a few breaths, several wolves had been torn apart beneath Shen Qing's hands. Blood dyed his clothes red, making him look exceptionally sinister.

Gradually, confusion appeared in the White Tiger's savage eyes.

Am I the king of beasts, or is he the king of beasts?

How are his methods even crueler than mine?

Before long, the wolf pack had become mangled corpses strewn across the ground.

The White Tiger stood frozen for a moment, then looked toward Shen Qing and the Imperial Guards.

Scholar and the others immediately faced it as though confronting a great enemy, raising the blades in their hands.

Shen Qing, however, watched the White Tiger with great interest. He could sense no hostility from it, and it was clearly an intelligent beast.

Its target should have been this wolf pack. That also explained why only four wolves had crossed the Red Date River tonight.

Because this wolf pack had been targeted by the White Tiger.

In a roundabout way, it had saved the common people as well.

The White Tiger's enormous pupils focused on Shen Qing. It could not sense Shen Qing's aura and had no way to guess how strong he truly was.

Yet it always felt that Shen Qing carried the aura of a ferocious beast as well.

And Shen Qing kept watching it with a smiling face. It always felt Shen Qing harbored ill intent, making its fur stand on end.

In any case, retreating was the best course.

Shen Qing suddenly spoke. "Hey, how about becoming my mount?"

The White Tiger abruptly turned around, crouching low to the ground and baring its sharp fangs. Its tiger eyes locked tightly onto Shen Qing as killing intent overflowed.

Although it could not speak, it was an intelligent ferocious beast and understood what a mount meant.

Come on, it was the king of beasts.

How could it suffer the humiliation of being ridden beneath another's crotch?

Shen Qing was serious, though.

After all, as his cultivation rose, the horses issued by the Pacification Bureau had thoroughly failed to keep up. He could not possibly rely on his own legs wherever he went in the future, could he? That would be far too lacking in style.

The Great Wu Dynasty's Myriad Beast Mountain did breed mount-type ferocious beasts, but Yongning Commandery was simply too remote. There was no way to get one here.

Besides, Shen Qing rather liked this White Tiger.

Among the Four Divine Beasts, the Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise were all patchworks of various animals. Only this White Tiger fellow had nothing added and nothing changed. It simply sat in the west and insisted it was a divine beast.

And yet neither people nor beasts could do a thing about it.

Scholar felt a little uneasy. "Boss, are you really going to make it your mount?"

Shen Qing removed Qing He and tossed it to Scholar. "Don't panic. Watch me tame it."

Then a surge of true qi burst forth, pushing Scholar and the others to a safe spot.

Shen Qing slowly walked toward the White Tiger, his voice calm.

"Knock me down, and you can leave. Use any method you like."

The White Tiger let out a thunderous roar before charging fiercely at Shen Qing. Every step it took made the earth tremble faintly.

The distance of dozens of meters vanished in an instant. The White Tiger raised its paw and swatted sideways, intending to end the fight with one strike. Yet Shen Qing showed no intention of dodging, and Scholar's group all broke into a cold sweat.

Just as the tiger paw was about to fall upon Shen Qing, he moved.

Shen Qing's gaze was exceptionally calm as he slowly raised an arm and extended one finger.

The White Tiger's expression became increasingly savage.

This human had been provoking it all along.

He actually dared use one finger to block its tiger paw. He was bullying a tiger beyond all measure!

The next instant, a scene of overwhelming visual impact stunned every Imperial Guard.

That enormous tiger paw, terrifying and brimming with strength, was actually held back by one of Shen Qing's fingers.

The White Tiger's pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints.

Hey, hey, hey.

How is this possible?!

Shen Qing raised his head and smiled brightly. A domineering surge of true qi erupted from him, directly blasting the White Tiger away.

The White Tiger howled continuously in midair. The next moment, Shen Qing appeared above it, and a fist carrying the sound of dragons and elephants smashed directly into its face.

Bang!

The White Tiger slammed into the ground, smashing out a massive crater.

Intense pain drilled straight into the White Tiger's heart, and its pupils shook violently.

The damage is wrong!

Shen Qing would not give it much time to think. The next instant, he appeared atop the White Tiger again, his voice calm.

"Becoming Shen Qing's mount won't be a loss for you."

With that, he swung his fists and began raining blows upon the White Tiger.

After two consecutive punches, the ferocity and confusion in the White Tiger's eyes vanished completely, leaving them clear.

Images even flashed through its mind like a lantern carousel. It seemed as though a huge White Tiger was leading it on a hunt.

Soon, it came back to its senses, because if it did not, it would be beaten to death.

Seeing Shen Qing's fist about to descend upon its head, it hurriedly covered its head with its paws and let out a whimper.

Shen Qing's fist stopped an inch from its head.

"Convinced?"

The White Tiger whimpered again. Shen Qing withdrew his fist and jumped off its body.

Only after quite some time did the White Tiger recover. It slowly rose to its feet, but when it looked at Shen Qing again, all ferocity was gone. There was only fear and submission.

"Come here. Lie down."

The White Tiger immediately walked over and lay before Shen Qing. Shen Qing leaped directly onto its back. The White Tiger's fur was exceptionally soft, and sitting on it felt like sitting on a sofa.

Shen Qing patted the White Tiger's back in satisfaction.

"Come on, run a few laps."

The White Tiger immediately began running outside the osmanthus grove, constantly obeying Shen Qing's commands.

"Jump."

"Hard brake."

"Now do a backflip."

The Imperial Guards watched Shen Qing train the White Tiger like a dog and were all dumbfounded.

"Th-this... it's tamed just like that? What even is this?"

Scholar muttered gloomily from the side.

"Three punches shattered the beast king's soul. Commander, I'm yours."

Outside the osmanthus grove, Shen Qing rode the White Tiger around for quite a while before finally stopping. Though the White Tiger was enormous, it had lost none of a feline's agility.

What young man had not dreamed of a White Tiger? Whether the majestic kind, or the other kind.

Scholar hurried forward. "Boss, with this White Tiger, it's like receiving divine aid."

"It is indeed pretty good. It just can't speak and looks a little slow." Shen Qing gently patted the White Tiger's head. "When we get back, learn how to speak for me. Hear that?"

The White Tiger immediately nodded its head like a chicken pecking grain.

"My lord, what should we do with these people?"

Turning their gazes, they saw that Liu Hui and the other two were still hanging from the trees.

Liu Wen lay completely still, dead beyond doubt. Lin Lian'er's chest still rose and fell faintly, so she was alive. As for Liu Hui, she had not attacked anyone and had even saved Pang Xiyuan's life, so no one had laid a hand on her during the torture.

Shen Qing walked closer and quietly looked at Liu Hui.

"Qingshan Sect's Liu Hui, right?"

Scholar stepped forward and removed the rag stuffed in Liu Hui's mouth, but she did not dare look at Shen Qing. She merely lowered her head deeply.

"Yes..."

Shen Qing continued.

"You know what crime it is to ambush and kill Imperial Guards, and what punishment it carries, don't you?"

Liu Hui lowered her head even further, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Shen Qing sneered.

"Qingshan Sect, how interesting. Instead of guarding your own little patch of land, you insist on taking jobs that get heads chopped off."

Liu Hui trembled even more violently and raised her head. "Lord Shen, it was my fault, but it has nothing to do with the sect. I am willing to serve you as a slave or maid. Please give Qingshan Sect a..."

Before she could finish, Shen Qing interrupted her directly.

"Shut your mouth. You're making it sound like I'm some villain."

"Let me tell you, whether there's a connection or not isn't something you can clear up by opening and closing your mouth."

"Still, Qingshan Sect is lucky. There's someone like you beside those two idiots. Go back and tell your sect master."

"Within ten days, every Xiantian Realm cultivator in Qingshan Sect, every last one, must appear at the Hundred Households Office. Otherwise..."

Shen Qing did not finish his sentence, but those who understood, understood.

Years ago, a martial sect had tested it once. The Imperial Guards were ambushed in the morning, the sect's gates were surrounded by the army at noon, and the entire sect was wiped out in the afternoon. As for a banquet? The whole sect had been exterminated—who was there to lay out a banquet for them?

Liu Hui raised her head in confusion, but Shen Qing had already turned away and pointed at Lin Lian'er hanging from the tree.

"Drag that one who's still breathing along. Let's head back to the city and drink."

Only after Shen Qing and the others had gone far away did Liu Hui break free of the ropes and drop to the ground.

The ropes were ordinary ropes. They could not have restrained a Houtian Realm peak expert like her.

But she had not dared to break free.