Variegated Tiger King
After inquiring about the Thousand Spirit Fruit from Zi Yan, Lin Ming dispersed his Soul Power to keep an eye on the surrounding area.
Just now, as Lin Ming was about to eat his barbecue, he heard something unusual behind Zi Yan. In his haste to warn Zi Yan, Lin Ming threw away the barbecued leg he was holding.
As Lin Ming reminded her, a huge figure pounced out from behind Zi Yan, heading straight for Zi Yan.
With Lin Ming's warning, Zi Yan moved aside before the figure arrived. Lin Ming, who was in front of Zi Yan, also moved away immediately, so the figure completely missed its target.
"Roar~"
After its sneak attack failed, the giant beast opened its massive jaws and roared angrily.
The roaring Magical Beasts before them was a tiger-shaped Magical Beasts with spotted tiger stripes Magical Beasts Variegated Tiger.
This Variegated Tiger was over three zhang long. It roared with its huge mouth open, and the aura it exuded was that of a tiger king that could awe the Mountain Forest. Lin Ming knew that this striped tiger was Tier 5 Magical Beast and could be called the Striped Tiger King.
The appearance of this Variegated Tiger King has now explained Lin Ming's previous doubts.
According to Zi Yan, the Thousand Spirit Fruit only grows on a mountaintop, with no other dangerous terrain nearby. Under such circumstances, how could it not be guarded by Magical Beasts?
The appearance of this Variegated Tiger King must be because of the Thousand Spirit Fruit.
Zi Yan's trip to pick the Thousand Spirit Fruit was likely due to a chance encounter with the Variegated Tiger King being away, which allowed Zi Yan to seize the opportunity and successfully pick the Thousand Spirit Fruit without any trouble.
After the Variegated Tiger King returned, it sensed that the Thousand Spirit Fruit it was guarding had been picked by someone else, and the smell of Lin Ming's roasted meat was also coming from there, which prompted the Striped Variegated Tiger King to come and inspect. That's how the scene of the Variegated Tiger King's sneak attack just now occurred.
Looking at the roaring, Variegated Tiger King staring intently at him and Zi Yan, Lin Ming could only offer his silent condolences for three seconds.
Zi Yan was enjoying her barbecue when the Variegated Tiger King's sneak attack interrupted her, which greatly displeased Zi Yan. The Variegated Tiger King then opened its massive jaws and roared, its foul breath filling the air, making her delicious barbecue feel instantly contaminated.
It's like buying KFC's Crazy Thursday and, while you're enjoying your meal, a Big Man with dark feet sits down next to you, crosses his dark feet, and starts fiddling with them. Anyone would find that absolutely disgusting, and continuing to eat would be virtually impossible.
At this moment, Zi Yan was extremely angry. So before the Variegated Tiger King could launch another attack, Zi Yan charged towards it first.
"Roar!"
Seeing the tiny creature charging towards it, the Variegated Tiger King roared once more. This roar carried a mixture of mockery and excitement.
Seeing the Variegated Tiger King roar again, Zi Yan's already furious anger exploded. Her figure transformed into a streak of purple light and collided with the Variegated Tiger King.
"Boom!"
A streak of purple light, carrying a massive figure, crashed heavily into the area ahead, breaking several large trees before finally coming to a stop.
"Call!"
"I'll teach you to yell like that!"
"Go ahead and yell at me!"
With each punch Zi Yan landed, she spoke to the Variegated Tiger King who was being trampled beneath her.
Watching the Variegated Tiger King being brutally beaten by Zi Yan, Lin Ming could only conclude that it was destined to suffer this fate.
Heaven had been looking out for it, allowing it to venture out to forage for food, thus preventing it from encountering Zi Yan while she was picking the Thousand Spirit Fruit. This saved it from a fight with Zi Yan at that time.
Of course, fate wasn't kind to it either. After all, whether it was Magical Beasts or a human, if they discovered that the Spiritual Fruit they had painstakingly protected had been stolen while they were away from home, they would do everything in their power to find the thief.
If the Variegated Tiger King hadn't gone out and had instead encountered Zi Yan, his fate would likely have been much better.
The strength of the Variegated Tiger King is probably around the fifth or sixth level of the Dou Wang. Even with such strength, it wouldn't last more than a few rounds against Zi Yan before it was defeated.
When Zi Yan was in the Inner Academy, she would encounter people retrieving medicinal herbs or those guarded by Magical Beasts. If their strength was weaker than hers, Zi Yan would simply force them to retreat. Only when she encountered someone who was courting death would Zi Yan resort to force.
Given the strength of the Variegated Tiger King, after exchanging blows with Zi Yan, it would naturally realize the difference in their strength and retreat on its own. In that case, it would probably only suffer minor injuries. But now, Lin Ming could only shake his head.
Lin Ming had never felt the force of Zi Yan's punch in her rage, so he wasn't sure. However, in the original story, Zi Yan's cultivation level was about the same as it is now when she withstood the full force of the Vulture Protector. Back then, the Vulture Protector had already advanced to the High-Rank Dou Zong realm, yet Zi Yan was able to block such a punch.
Although Zi Yan likely paid a price for taking that attack from the Vulture Protector, and probably couldn't reach that level against the Variegated Tiger King now, the Variegated Tiger King is still far superior to the Vulture Protector. One is a High-Rank Dou Zong, and the other is equivalent to a mid-level Dou Wang; the difference between them is self-evident.
"Zi Yan, come back! I'll bake you another one." Lin Ming said when he saw the Variegated Tiger King, who was no longer recognizable as a tiger.
Having vented her anger to a great extent, Zi Yan stopped what she was doing and walked towards Lin Ming when Lin Ming called out to her.
Seeing Zi Yan approach, Lin Ming didn't hesitate. He took out the ingredients from his Storage Ring, quickly processed them, and immediately started grilling.
"Hiccup~"
An hour later, seeing Zi Yan burp, Lin Ming moved forward and came to the side of the Variegated Tiger King.
Under Zi Yan's relentless barrage of violent punches, the Variegated Tiger King had already ascended to paradise. Lin Ming's arrival, of course, was for the Variegated Tiger King's Magic Core.
As Tier 5 Magical Beast, the Variegated Tiger King is considered a rather high-level Magic Core in this Northwest Continent. Now that it has ascended to paradise in the west, Lin Ming is certainly not so generous as to abandon it.
Lin Ming took out the Star Dragon Saber, cleaved open the head of the Variegated Tiger King, wiped the Magic Core inside onto the Variegated Tiger King's fur, then took out a wooden box from his Storage Ring, placed it inside, and then put it back into his Storage Ring.
After collecting the Magic Core, thinking of Ya Fei waiting for him at home, Lin Ming once again wielded the Star Dragon Saber. In no time, a large tiger skin appeared in Lin Ming's hand.
Although the Variegated Tiger King was killed by Zi Yan without any resistance, this was because it was Zi Yan who made the move. If it were Lin Ming, he would have to use Trump Card to have a chance of killing the Variegated Tiger King.
The Variegated Tiger King, Tier 5 Magical Beast, has fur that, after processing, can at least withstand an attack from Da Dou Shi. For someone of Ya Fei's level, this is already extremely strong defense. Therefore, after taking off this piece of tiger skin, Lin Ming planned to have it processed into a protective vest for Ya Fei after returning to his clan.