Thunder-Patterned Sacred Tiger

"?"

Li An's face went deathly pale.

He immediately recalled what the two had said earlier. After a brief moment of panic, he came to his senses.

Fake.

It had to be fake.

Perhaps it was that snake's ability.

Truly dangerous.

Sweat beaded on Li An's forehead. He was glad he was not one of those useless fools and had seen through the illusion.

He turned to look at Zhao Qinghe and the others. They had already been covered by the swarm of snakes, yet showed no reaction at all.

Hmph, it had to be fake.

His second soul skill allowed him to temporarily boost all his attributes by sucking blood. The degree of enhancement depended on the strength of the blood's owner.

Only Zhao Jingxing was somewhat strong. The other two were so weak that they would hardly be of any use.

Still, it was better than nothing.

Li An's gaze sharpened as he activated his third soul skill, Bat Transformation.

His body doubled in size, tearing through his clothes. Black fur sprouted from his skin, fangs grew from his mouth, gray membrane wings emerged beneath his arms with faint veins visible within them, and bony spikes grew from his feet to aid his grip.

An eagle's cry rang out. Li An bent his legs and shot toward Zhao Qinghe and the other two in a curved trajectory.

He had to avoid any Soul Beast that might attack.

When he was about ten steps away from them, a shadow descended from above. A fist wreathed in fierce flames radiated a terrifying heat.

"This is..."

Li An's expression turned horrified as the fire reflected in his eyes rapidly expanded.

Splat!

A one-hundred-percent increase in strength and speed, stacked with the consumption of all his Soul Power, unleashed his strongest attack—

Explosive Flame Slash!

It descended from the sky, pierced his black skin, shattered his hardened spinal bones, and tore straight through his chest!

"No..."

Why was there another human?!

Using the recoil from striking the ground, Lu Shi pulled out his arm and darted backward, ensuring that no blood splashed onto him. His arm had been protected by flames; only the back of his elbow was stained with a little black blood.

Li An died instantly. His eyes remained frozen in their final expression, filled with fear, horror, and disbelief.

Lu Shi glanced at the three of them. They were unharmed.

Then he turned and left without hesitation.

The Mandala Snake crawled out from the shadows, incomparably docile, while the Flame Spirit Eagle circled him in flight overhead.

It displayed the same submissive posture.

There were no Soul Beasts nearby. Even if there were any with keen senses of smell, they would surely detect the scents of the two Soul Beasts and not dare approach.

The forest fell quiet, with only the sound of the wind remaining.

After being battered again and again, the two girls had long since lost all their strength and could only slump onto the grass.

Yet their gazes were drawn to that retreating figure.

Zhao Qinghe and Shen Qingqing stared blankly, their bright eyes forever remembering this moment.

Like a prince from a dream, the young man had saved them.

"It's settled."

Zhu Zhuqing walked over, with the Mandala Snake beside her. The fleeing defense-type Soul Master had been dealt with by the two of them.

She secretly glanced at the Mandala Snake. Even though she knew it was Lu Shi's Soul Beast and would not attack her, she still did not dare get too close.

"Hiss hiss!!"

The Mandala Snake coiled around Lu Shi's upper body as though seeking praise, rubbing its face against his affectionately.

Its scales were cool and silky, with a texture as smooth and warm as jade. The sensation was so good that nothing could replace it.

The Flame Spirit Eagle also rubbed its face against him from the side.

"The way those two girls looked at you just now wasn't quite right."

Zhu Zhuqing pouted slightly, her voice soft and sweet as she said it for no apparent reason.

Lu Shi's expression changed.

Even someone as dull as him could hear the jealousy in her words. He immediately sent the Mandala Snake and Flame Spirit Eagle back into the Small World, then grabbed her slender hand. "What are you talking about!"

He pinched her soft cheek between two fingers. "Zhuqing, don't you know me by now? I'm upright and kindhearted. There's no one else in my heart but you."

"If you say something like that again, I'll punish you by making you massage me for a week."

With that, he pulled the girl into his arms, stroking her smooth, flat lower abdomen as his hand wandered restlessly.

Zhu Zhuqing's face flushed. She gave two soft hums; she had merely wanted to add a little spice and had not meant to start an argument.

She obediently nestled against Lu Shi, her faint fragrance teasing his senses.

Zhu Zhuqing might seem cold and aloof, but once she set her heart on someone, she became a clingy little cat.

Gentle, tolerant, and jealous—yet only toward that one person. Before everyone else, she became distant again, keeping strangers at arm's length.

Seeing the atmosphere grow heady, Lu Shi prepared to let his hand explore new territory.

Just as he gradually tested the waters and Zhu Zhuqing half resisted and half yielded,

A tiger's roar shot into the sky, piercing the forest and shattering the mood once more.

"..."

Lu Shi's teeth itched with irritation. Why did none of them have any sense of timing?!

Just let me catch you, and I'll skin you alive!

Mm, wait...

He frowned and looked in that direction. It seemed to be where those three were.

Lu Shi and Zhu Zhuqing exchanged a grave look and immediately rushed over.

The smell of blood must have attracted a Soul Beast. It was not even afraid of the Flame Spirit Eagle's and Mandala Snake's auras, so it was probably no ordinary Soul Beast.

Could it be...

Lu Shi's heart began to race.

When they arrived, it had indeed been drawn in by the blood.

A massive tiger stood there, as tall as an adult just on all fours. Its entire body was snow-white, golden lightning-patterned markings ran across its back, its mane rolled like thunderclouds, and its pupils were split like bolts of lightning—

A Thunder-Patterned Sacred Tiger!

Lu Shi recognized this Soul Beast. It possessed the lightning attribute and was exceedingly rare!

Looking down from above, absolute majesty gleamed in its golden eyes, as though an emperor were delivering judgment.

Under that gaze, Zhao Qinghe and Shen Qingqing's legs trembled uncontrollably. It was only natural. The four-ringed Soul Master on the ground had not even recovered from the effects of the medicine, while the two of them had only one ring each and were support-type Soul Masters. They had no way to face such a powerful Thousand-Year Soul Beast.

"Roar!"

The deep, soul-shaking tiger roar pierced the hearts of the three of them.

The Thunder-Patterned Sacred Tiger roared and pounced, carrying immense lightning-infused force.

"Ah...!"

Zhao Qinghe blankly watched the gaping maw rushing toward her. Time suddenly slowed, and everything around her went silent. There seemed to be screams, yet they also seemed far away. She could clearly see the dark-red tongue and four enormous fangs drawing closer and closer, but she could not evade them.

Memories of the past flashed through her mind like a revolving lantern. She saw herself when she had first awakened her Martial Soul, saw the first Soul Ring she had acquired, and the Soul Beast she had obtained it from...

She slowly closed her eyes and awaited the final moment.

Whoosh—boom!

It felt as though a gust of wind had blown past.

After a muffled impact came an enraged tiger's roar.

I'm not dead...?

When Zhao Qinghe opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was a familiar back, like a wall. His shoulders were broad, dependable, and reassuring. Looking upward, she saw the sharply defined contours of his face.

He turned his deep eyes back toward her, as if checking whether she had been injured.

Directly ahead, the striped tiger had been knocked back. A low, threatening growl rumbled from its throat, while electricity crackled through its fur and arcs of lightning surged.

After confirming that she was safe, two Purple Soul Rings behind the young man lit up brilliantly. Flames rose from his left hand as he met the striped tiger's lightning-wreathed giant paw head-on.

"Roar!!"

Lightning spread like a spiderweb. In an instant, a flash of white light engulfed everyone.

"Roar!"

After the tiger's roar, Zhao Qinghe opened her eyes. The white tiger had vanished, leaving only charred black ground with white smoke rising everywhere—from the dead branches and fallen leaves to the trunks and treetops...

Half the sleeve on the young man's left arm had been blasted away by lightning, revealing an arm that was slightly blackened and trembling.

He gave her one final look before turning away.

"W-Wait."

Zhao Qinghe gathered her courage, her voice as clear and ethereal as a mountain spring.

But she was too late. The young man's back had already disappeared into the forest.

She stared dazedly at the direction where he had vanished.

Zhao Jingxing, lying on the ground, was also staring in the direction Lu Shi had left. But his gaze held more confusion and curiosity. That white tiger had to be at least close to two thousand years old.

He could not understand how Lu Shi had done it.

What were those two Purple Soul Rings? How old was he, and how strong was he?

Then he thought of the two Soul Beasts that had submitted to Lu Shi earlier...

Zhao Jingxing was certain the white tiger had not been controlled by Lu Shi. Unless someone had rocks for brains, no one would put on an act that could be so easily seen through.

His fixed way of thinking made it impossible for him to imagine, even on his deathbed, that a Soul Master could tame Soul Beasts.

In the end, having reached a complete dead end, he could only give up thinking about it.