Huang Big Tiger had died peacefully.

Crackle, crackle, crackle—

More and more arcs of electricity coursed over Huang Big Tiger's body, eventually forming armor around him. His expression grew increasingly savage, as if he were suppressing immense pain.

"Big brother!" Black Tiger roared repeatedly. "You can't!"

"Hah." Huang Big Tiger glanced back at him. "Silly little brother, my greatest regret is that I didn't unleash this move on the day your brothers died. That moment's hesitation became the greatest regret of my life. You have to get out of here alive today. As long as you survive, the glory of our Old Baldy Ditch Tiger Demon Lineage will never die! Hah—"

He seemed unable to hold back any longer. Countless Electric Dragons burst from his limbs and bones, eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. Their dazzling light turned him from a golden, striped tiger into a white tiger!

Their branch of tiger demons had only been around for two generations since their transformation from beasts. But after coming to the city, they had encountered a great deal of human civilization and become fundamentally different from those demon beasts driven only by the instinct to survive.

While studying human history in the basement, Huang Big Tiger had realized that humans were good at bringing different forces together through ideas like community and inheritance.

Back then, he had thought that if his branch of tiger demons continued to prosper, then in a thousand years, they might become a powerful demon clan, like the ancient royal families that had been passed down for millennia in the Demon Realm.

The first step toward passing down their legacy was knowing where they came from. So he had named their branch after the place where the brothers were born, just as humans had the "Li Clan of the Central Plains" and the "Yang Clan of Northland"...

One day, the Tiger Demon Clan of Old Baldy Ditch would be famous throughout the world!

Unfortunately, disaster had struck without warning, shattering his dream. Now, all he could think about was avenging his brothers, even if he never came back.

What he was using now was the ultimate killing move he had comprehended from the Thunder Tiger Shocks Heaven Fist.

"He's using the power of lightning to stimulate his blood vessels, meridians, muscles, and bones..." Zhao Xing'er recognized the trick behind the move, her expression tinged with surprise. "It lets him draw out even greater strength, but after the fight, his whole body will be nearly ruined... He really is ruthless."

"Hahaha!" Huang Big Tiger laughed loudly. "This is the secret art I figured out myself from the Thunder Tiger Shocks Heaven Fist. It lets me gain strength beyond my limits. You humans, with your frail bodies, could never imagine this level of electrical stimulation. This move belongs exclusively to my Old Baldy Ditch Tiger Demon Lineage. I gave it a name all my own—"

"Startling Thunder Sky Tiger Fist!"

"Did he really just rearrange someone else's name?" Big Rhinoceros Deer and Second Rhinoceros Deer exclaimed in amazement. "He's lived in a human city for more than ten years, and his cultural knowledge is terrifying!"

"You both just said he rearranged the name. How does that prove his cultural knowledge?" Zhao Xing'er said, at a loss for words. "Your fighting spirit is admirable, but it only makes me want to give it everything I've got."

Even as she said that, the Martial Spirit Red Light in Zhao Xing'er's eyes faded.

As a cultivator specializing in martial arts, she understood better than anyone the price Huang Big Tiger was paying by burning himself out like this. After the battle, even if he survived, his meridians would be nearly severed, leaving him a crippled tiger.

Such an enemy had earned her respect.

Boom—

As Huang Big Tiger's aura surged, he shouted at Black Tiger, "Little Black, go! Get out of here! Win or lose today, the bloodline of our clan will live on through you!"

"Big brother!" Black Tiger seemed reluctant.

"Go!" Huang Big Tiger shouted.

"Boss, it's time for us to join the fight too." Zhao Xing'er was about to ask Yue Wen to fight alongside her, but when she turned, she found that he had already vanished. "Huh?"

When she looked up again, she saw that Yue Wen had appeared behind Black Tiger at some point!

"Who just stands around watching an enemy power up?" Yue Wen shouted. With his Flying Sword in hand, he launched a surging sword attack at Black Tiger from behind.

His approach to combat hadn't changed. He still prioritized taking out the enemy's weakest fighter.

"Big brother, I'm not leaving, big brother..." Black Tiger had been lost in grief as his elder brother activated the Startling Thunder Sky Tiger Fist. Then he suddenly spotted a deadly sword behind him, and his wail immediately turned into, "Big brother, save me!"

Whoosh—

Just as Yue Wen's sword qi was about to strike, Huang Big Tiger, now glowing all over with white light, flashed into place above Black Tiger with near-instantaneous speed.

He clenched his fist and gathered his strength.

Boom, boom, boom—

As the punch flew, Yue Wen suddenly vanished again. But even though the punch missed, it unleashed a violent thunderclap in midair!

Feeling death's threat, Black Tiger immediately changed his tune. "Big brother, I'll go! Take care, everyone!"

With that, he turned and fled once more as a streak of black smoke.

Huang Big Tiger had no time to respond. In the next instant, he turned and threw a flying punch at Zhao Xing'er as she charged in! Whoosh—

"Just what I wanted!" Zhao Xing'er roared.

With a flick of her hand, she produced a copper staff as tall as her brow and battled Huang Big Tiger, whose whole body blazed white!

A staff was the best weapon for fighting tigers.

Bang, crack, boom, boom, boom!

The close-quarters battle began in an instant. Both fighters moved as fast as lightning, too quick for the naked eye to follow. Every clash set off twin explosions of vital energy and lightning, creating a dazzling spectacle.

To think they could create such a world-shaking battle with nothing but the power of their martial bodies—it was hard to believe that cultivators of the Lower Three Realms could do it.

Meanwhile, seeing that Huang Big Tiger had tied up Zhao Xing'er, the two Rhinoceros Demons came together and charged toward Yue Wen!

Yue Wen had just used a shadow talisman to sneak up on Black Tiger. He'd planned to quietly take out one of the back-line fighters first, but Huang Big Tiger had reacted far too quickly. Luckily, Yue Wen had swiftly sent the shadow talisman back to its original spot, allowing him to teleport back as well.

He could transform into a shadow and come and go as he pleased.

The only pity was that Black Tiger had escaped. The fight hadn't even started, and one Demon Suppressing Coin had already slipped away.

Big Rhinoceros Deer and Second Rhinoceros Deer used the most straightforward tactic imaginable. Each gripped a wrench and a sledgehammer, one on either side, then leaped up together and came crashing down with a battle cry.

Yue Wen used the Sword Control Art to stab at the more badly injured Second Rhinoceros Deer, the sword qi blasting him back. At the same time, Yue Wen flicked his hand and sent a purple-black shadow talisman flying toward Big Rhinoceros Deer, who smashed it away with a wrench.

Then Big Rhinoceros Deer brought the wrench down hard. One blow would leave Yue Wen dead or crippled!

Yue Wen flashed away again, appearing with a whoosh where the shadow talisman had been knocked.

He hadn't had the technique for long, but he had already mastered it. He had also trained with it many times using the Visualization Diagram, and had become quite proficient. That was why he dared to use it in a real fight.

If he'd been even a little rusty, he could have ended up in two places at once. He wouldn't have dared to bring it out otherwise.

But he realized that this move wasn't foolproof. This was only his second time using it, and before he could even make a move, Big Rhinoceros Deer had already predicted where he would land in midair and swung its hammer at him!

"Right here!"

The Rhinoceros Demons might not be bright, but their battle sense was second to none, as if it came naturally to them. By sensing his killing intent, Big Rhinoceros Deer had still picked up on Yue Wen's location right away.

Thud!

Yue Wen didn't have time to dodge again. He used the shadow talisman to block the blow, but the enormous force still sent him flying. He crashed heavily into the ground more than ten meters away, carving a deep furrow in the earth.

Almost at the same time, Zhao Xing'er was also sent flying by a punch from the rampaging Huang Big Tiger, crashing down beside Yue Wen.

Whoosh—

Dust billowed into the air. Lying on the ground, Zhao Xing'er said, "His life-burning secret art really is powerful."

Yue Wen stared into her clear eyes and shouted, "How are you supposed to fight when you're so kindhearted? Where's your anger? Where's your Martial Spirit Red Light?"

"But..." Zhao Xing'er sounded a little troubled. "I'm not angry right now."

Seeing Huang Big Tiger fight as if he were ready to burn up his life, she really couldn't bring herself to feel angry.

Getting angry was sometimes just like having a child. Not wanting to have one and not being able to have one were both difficult.

Some people didn't want a child, but one trip to the bathroom was all it took. Others wanted one desperately, but couldn't have one no matter what.

"I'm telling you, if you can't beat him today, I won't pay you a single cent from this livestream!" Yue Wen waved a hand. "And next month, I'll cut your base salary in half!"

"Hey, you scoundrel!" Red light instantly flared in Zhao Xing'er's eyes. "I earned that money with my own labor! What gives you the right to withhold it?"

"Hah." Yue Wen sneered. "Our contract says that if you don't complete your regular work duties, your performance pay won't be settled as usual. This is your job, so get to it!"

"Think about it: which would be easier to win, a lawsuit against the tiger demon or a labor arbitration case?"

The dust had just cleared when Yue Wen shoved Zhao Xing'er forward.

Huang Big Tiger, charging through the air, suddenly found himself facing Zhao Xing'er, blazing with red light as she soared skyward! A huge scarlet phantom rose behind her, crowned with a golden band and radiating ferocious power.

With that same staff, in the blink of an eye she seemed to have transformed from the pilgrim who excelled at beating tigers into the pilgrim who excelled at beating up the Jade Emperor.

Was this right?

The next second, Zhao Xing'er had vanished from his sight. All he could see was an endless sea of red light. He faintly heard someone shout, "Damn capitalist, die!"

The sky turned scarlet as a staff shot toward the heavens!

Boom—