The Wheel of Karma Turns

The Fire Cloud Leopard was completely subdued by that blow.

Its berserk state could no longer be sustained.

Its scarlet eyes returned to normal, its body regained its original sleek lines, and the bulging veins receded.

"See? I told you not to be so arrogant. You wouldn't listen. Are you still going to chase me?"

Xiao Bai was feeling incredibly smug now, carrying himself with the unshakable composure of a mountain pressing down on his head.

After all, he had taken down an opponent several levels stronger than himself. Even if his methods had not been particularly honorable, none of that mattered. History was written by the victors.

This incident was well worth spreading around, too. It would let future generations learn how their predecessors faced the strong and admire his brilliance.

Of course, as the victor writing down this great achievement, he would need to make a few adjustments and add a touch of legend to it so it would not sound too stiff. It did not need to be wildly fantastical, but it had to roll off the tongue, be polished, and sound convincing.

That would require plenty of long-term effort later!

Xiao Bai had no time for that now. He had more important things to do.

"Little leopard, here I come. Heh heh heh..."

Smiling, Xiao Bai rubbed his hands together as he walked toward the Fire Cloud Leopard. There was an unmistakably lecherous edge to his laughter.

The Fire Cloud Leopard's eyes widened. Its tail, which had been raised high moments ago, immediately tucked tightly behind its rear the instant Xiao Bai approached. It even let out a series of whimpers, looking utterly wronged.

Xiao Bai was displeased when he saw that.

What did this Fire Cloud Leopard mean? Did it think I was that kind of person? It was looking down on me too much!

No, it was thinking too highly of itself.

Pah! I'm not that kind of person!

As the human drew closer and closer, the Fire Cloud Leopard's fear rapidly grew until it filled its heart.

With the pain in its back, even standing was difficult. Escape was utterly impossible. As for fighting desperately, it would need the strength to do that first!

Watching the human approach, the hesitation in its heart instantly turned into resolve, and it began making strange cries.

Xiao Bai merely paused at those odd sounds and paid them no further attention, since he did not understand beast language anyway.

He had already reached the Fire Cloud Leopard. A dagger appeared in his hand, gleaming with a cold light and carrying a chilling aura, as though it could slice everything before it in two.

Xiao Bai swung his hands once, and the dagger cut through the air with a sharp hiss.

Then he turned his head toward the Fire Cloud Leopard, his meaning obvious without words.

At that moment, before he could make another move, an enraged beast roar filled with pressure came from not far away. The powerful aura within it brought Xiao Bai immense pressure.

At the same time, he saw a black shadow streak across the distant sky, charging toward him at incredible speed.

Xiao Bai's expression changed drastically. He was not an idiot.

Thinking of the Fire Cloud Leopard's earlier abnormal behavior and its strange cries, then turning to see the delight in its eyes and its expression that seemed to say, just you wait, Xiao Bai thought of a possibility.

No! Rather, he had confirmed something.

Damn it, it's even more shameless than I am. It actually called its parent!

Xiao Bai cursed inwardly. Feeling the pressure carried by that roar from the horizon, he knew for certain that this was not a leopard he could handle.

Without further hesitation, he turned and ran.

The black shadow noticed Xiao Bai's movement as well, and a massive fireball hurtled toward him at even greater speed.

Pfft~

Unable to dodge in time, Xiao Bai was blasted away. While still in midair, he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"So strong. A rushed attack already had this much power. If I faced it head-on, I would definitely die!"

He did not dare think further. Borrowing the force of the blast, he flew away at an even faster speed and vanished into the dense forest.

"Roar!"

Seeing Xiao Bai flee, the black shadow was furious, but there was nothing it could do. That had been the limit of its attack under those circumstances. It could only roar in rage, startling flocks of birds into flight.

Then it appeared beside the Fire Cloud Leopard from earlier and began examining its injuries.

Meanwhile, Xiao Bai kept running forward, occasionally looking back to see whether any leopard was pursuing him, just in case.

After running for some distance, the rear remained quiet, and Xiao Bai finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The deeper the love, the deeper the hurt. And at that moment, he finally felt just how deep that leopard's love for him was.

"Hiss~ It hurts!"

Xiao Bai sucked in a breath of cold air. His clothes had brushed against the wound on his back.

This time, he had truly bitten off more than he could chew.

The ancients had not deceived him. Villains always died on the road to showing off.

So, after this incident, Xiao Bai summed up a principle: Brother Bai was ruthless and a man of few words!

I'm an assassin. I have no feelings. Don't complicate simple matters. Just kill them outright!

When traveling through a dangerous place like the Monster Mountain Range, commonly used medicines were essential. Xiao Bai had prepared those long ago.

He took off his shirt and awkwardly treated his wound with one hand behind his back, stopping the bleeding. Since the injury was on his back, it was indeed inconvenient to tend to it properly himself, so he could only make do for now.

After dealing with that, Xiao Bai recalled what had just happened. He felt both lingering fear and excitement.

After doing something nerve-racking, fear could also give rise to excitement. That was only natural for humans.

At that thought, Xiao Bai's resentment toward the weaker Fire Cloud Leopard multiplied.

"Have magical beasts become so cunning nowadays? It actually knew to call its parent when it couldn't win and let its parent handle the problem. How treacherous and shameless!"

Xiao Bai felt that thinking about it would not ease his discomfort, so he started cursing outright. That made him feel much better.

As for that old leopard, sorry, he could not beat it for the time being. But that was only temporary.

A man could be embarrassed, but he could not lose face.

So Xiao Bai added a heavy mark to his little notebook.

He decided that once he became strong enough, he would definitely reclaim this dignity.

After all, when making a living out in the world, face was what mattered most.

Thinking about it, it was rather amusing.

Earlier, Xiao Bai had bullied the weaker Fire Cloud Leopard so badly that it might have suffered a mental breakdown. But afterward, the tables had turned. The older Fire Cloud Leopard had beaten him so thoroughly that he could not even hold his head up, and he had briefly thought he was going to die.

This was probably the turning wheel of karma. Who could escape Heaven's judgment?

One link after another, tightly interlocked.

After this blow, Xiao Bai realized that his strength was still insufficient for him to run rampant around the outskirts of the Monster Mountain Range. Moreover, the Wolf Head Mercenary Group was waiting for him outside, and they had already sent people to sweep the area.

No matter how well he hid, he would eventually be found under their carpet-style search.

Thinking of the enemies he would face—Mu She, a Two Star Dou Zhe, and an unknown but powerful magical beast native to the Monster Mountain Range—Xiao Bai no longer hesitated. Increasing his strength was the most important thing right now.

Pick on the weak persimmons first. Xiao Bai had an idea.