Big Tiger

Beside the dying campfire, with its last embers fading, Lu Ye feasted heartily on a giant snake. It was a full zhang long and as thick as an arm, its flesh tender and white, leaving a lingering fragrance on his lips and teeth.

Half a month had passed since he ran out of Spiritual Pills. Naturally, his cultivation progress during this time could not compare to before, but it was somewhat better than he had expected. At his current pace, he would be able to break through the barrier of his ninth Spiritual Aperture in another month.

The reason for this progress was mainly because he had discovered something.

Refining Essence into Qi was more efficient than drawing in and exhaling Spiritual Energy.

Where did essence come from? Without Qi and Blood Pills, he could only eat!

He had noticed it when he ate that wolf meat before. Later, after hunting other wild beasts, he found that the meat of creatures from the Spirit Stream Battlefield was highly nourishing. The larger the beast, the more pronounced the effect.

He was not good at drawing in and exhaling Spiritual Energy. Perhaps because his talent was too poor, he found it difficult to guide Spiritual Energy into his body. But the things he ate were different. As long as he could digest them, they could replenish his Qi and Blood Power. Then, by refining that Qi and Blood Power into Spiritual Power, he could likewise strengthen himself.

Thus, over the past half month, the nearby beasts had suffered a calamity. Lu Ye's appetite had already grown enormously after his Apertures Opened, and after focusing entirely on the path of Refining Essence into Qi, he ate even more than before.

This had actually left no trace of wild beasts within several li of the cave. Lu Ye had searched for quite a while today before finding this giant snake.

Halfway through his meal, the cave entrance darkened, and a fishy wind rushed toward him.

Lu Ye looked up and saw a huge figure standing at the entrance. A low growl came from its direction.

Lu Ye hurriedly rose to his feet and drew the longsword from his Storage Bag. He held the sword in one hand and pinched a Fire Serpent Talisman in the other, secretly urging his Spiritual Power.

He had lived here for a month without encountering other cultivators or any powerful beasts. He had thought this was a peaceful place, never expecting an uninvited guest to disturb him today.

Lu Ye had envisioned such a situation before, so though startled, he did not panic. He quickly made the right response.

The cave was narrow. If the other party dared charge in, the Fire Serpent Talisman in his hand would give it a rude awakening. If the Fire Serpent Talisman was not enough, he had other Spirit Talismans. And if that still was not enough, he could slap a Vajra Talisman onto himself. The longsword in his hand was no mere decoration either.

Only then did Lu Ye see clearly what this uninvited guest was. It was unmistakably a Big Tiger.

Its entire body was covered in snowy white fur, spotless as fresh snow. A huge character for king stood on its forehead, while its amber tiger eyes seized the soul and stole the spirit.

When Lu Ye's eyes met those tiger eyes, his mind involuntarily went blank for a moment. He knew he had encountered an extraordinary Fierce Beast.

He had killed many wild beasts during this period, some even larger than this tiger, but none had ever given him such an oppressive feeling as this Big Tiger.

One had to know that he was now a cultivator with Eight Apertures Opened.

This was no ordinary beast. It was likely a Monster Beast with some cultivation!

Monster Beasts and ordinary fierce beasts were different. Monster Beasts knew how to cultivate. It was said that if certain Monster Beasts opened some crucial Spiritual Apertures, they could transform into human form.

That was the origin of the saying spread throughout the Nine Provinces: demons cannot take form without opening their apertures, and humans cannot cultivate without opening theirs.

Many sects also accepted Demon Cultivator disciples, because most Demon Cultivators were robust and powerful, naturally gifted seedlings for the path of Body Cultivators.

Lu Ye did not know much about the Nine Provinces Cultivation World, so naturally he was unaware of this information.

He only knew that his current situation was rather troublesome. Trapped inside the cave with the Big Tiger blocking the entrance, he had no way out unless he fought his way through.

But he did not know how strong the Big Tiger was.

As they faced each other, the Big Tiger let out a roar, making Lu Ye even more tense. He nearly activated the Fire Serpent Talisman in his hand!

"Boy, was it you slaughtering creatures all over the place?" A voice like muffled thunder rang through the cave, shaking loose dust and pebbles from the surrounding rock walls.

Lu Ye could not help freezing for a moment, staring at the Big Tiger in utter astonishment.

"I am the one speaking, you ignorant little brat!" As if sensing Lu Ye's confusion, the Big Tiger spoke again.

Lu Ye's heart sank to the bottom. This was bad. He seemed to have underestimated the Big Tiger's strength. This fellow could already speak human language. He did not know its cultivation level, but it appeared far stronger than himself.

"I asked you a question. Why aren't you answering?" The Big Tiger clearly had a bad temper. It barked again, a threatening growl rumbling in its throat.

Whether it was fortune or disaster, if it was disaster, he could not hide from it. Lu Ye could only brace himself and deny it outright. "Not me!"

The Big Tiger raised a paw and slammed it angrily into the ground, making the earth seem to tremble. "If not you, then who? Within thirty li, you are the only human!" It paced back and forth at the entrance, its tiger eyes never leaving Lu Ye. "This is my territory. Without my permission, you dared slaughter my food as you pleased. It seems you no longer wish to live!"

Lu Ye's scalp went numb, and he suddenly felt that life and death hung by a single thread.

Still, he understood why the Big Tiger had come looking for him. This area was its territory, and the wild beasts he had killed were all food within its domain. Lu Ye had killed too many over the past half month, drawing the Big Tiger's attention. It had followed the clues and tracked him here.

"Tell me, then. How do you intend to settle this matter?" the Big Tiger asked again.

By now, Lu Ye was less flustered than before. Though it felt strange for a Monster Beast to be negotiating terms with him, it was still better than having the other party charge in without a word and kill him.

He frowned. "They've already been eaten. How do you want to settle it?"

The Big Tiger stared fixedly at him and said, "Hand over your Spiritual Pills, and we will let the matter rest. If you dare say no, this place will be your burial ground today!"

"I have no Spiritual Pills left." Lu Ye shook his head. If he had Spiritual Pills, why would he need to hunt beasts and eat meat?

The Big Tiger said, "Spirit Stones will do as well!"

"I don't have any Spirit Stones either."

The Sect Master had not prepared any Spirit Stones for him. Perhaps he thought Lu Ye had no use for them yet?

"You have neither this nor that. I think you want to die!" The Big Tiger was clearly losing patience.

Lu Ye sighed. "I truly don't have any."

"Then what do you have in your Storage Bag?" the Big Tiger demanded.

"Some Spirit Talismans, and a bottle of Healing Pills," Lu Ye answered honestly.

"What a poor bastard!" The Big Tiger could not help sneering in disdain. "Give me the Healing Pills, and we'll call this matter settled."

"What do you want Healing Pills for?" Lu Ye's expression turned somewhat strange.

"What business is it of yours? Hand them over!"

"Fine..." Lu Ye replied reluctantly. He took the bottle of Healing Pills from his Storage Bag, hesitated briefly, then slowly set it on the ground.

"Throw it over here!" the Big Tiger ordered.

Lu Ye looked at it. "Why don't you come get it yourself?"

"I told you to throw it over!" Lu Ye's attitude had clearly enraged the Big Tiger, and it suddenly roared.

"Fine." Lu Ye lifted his foot and kicked the bottle on the ground outward. At the same time, he urged the Fire Serpent Talisman in his hand. As Spiritual Energy surged through his body, the talisman turned into a streak of red light, shooting at the Big Tiger like a Fire Serpent.

That was not all. He stamped his foot, his body moving like thunder and lightning as he charged forward with sword in hand.

I deleted a lot of words from the previous chapter and posted the two chapters together.

The next chapter will be up after midnight. Monday is another push for the rankings, so brothers who are online, please lend me your firepower.