The tiger pounced, a rank wind rushing into his face.
Su Yan used Monkey Leap Step to dodge sideways.
With its back to Su Yan, the savage tiger swept its tail like a steel whip to keep him from closing in, then turned to charge him again.
Like an old ape, Su Yan avoided the steel-whip tail and leaped above the savage tiger.
Old Ape Strikes the Crown!
Su Yan brought Old Ape Strikes the Crown crashing down on the tiger's head.
Hundreds of pounds of force converged on a single point, like a heavy hammer, making the savage tiger stagger.
The tiger heaved its body to throw Su Yan off, then twisted around with a heavy swipe of its paw.
Su Yan flipped to the side, held both hands before him, and braced his arms. Rooted like a pine in his ape stance, he firmly blocked it with Old Ape Supports the Mountain.
Having reached the beginner level of skin refining, his skin was as tough as an ox's hide. With the tiger's paw caught on his guard, it could do nothing to him beyond leaving bloody marks.
Its attack had run its course, and a tiger had little variety in its moves to begin with.
Su Yan closed in with Monkey Leap Step. Before the tiger could react, he drove Golden Monkey Plucks the Heart straight into its belly.
His eyes seemed to blaze with ferocity as he strode forward, rushing right up to the tiger.
Ignoring the tiger's wounded frenzy, he planted his feet with force and hammered down on its head.
His arms swung like those of a long-armed ape, with the momentum to topple trees and shake mountains.
Punch followed punch. The tiger tried to throw Su Yan off, but could not shake him loose.
Gradually, Su Yan's sinews and bones sprang into action, his skin swelling taut as his blood and qi surged through him.
Power rushed into his arms, as though his strength had suddenly doubled or tripled.
With a crack, one blow of Old Ape Strikes the Crown shattered the tiger's skull.
Blood flowed from its mouth, nose, ears, and eyes. Its struggles gradually weakened, while Su Yan slumped onto its back, exhausted, as though all his strength had been spent.
He panted heavily, his skin bright red, yet strength kept welling up and replenishing itself.
He took a five- or six-year-old ginseng root from the Insect Realm Space, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it up, and swallowed it.
He gently practiced his stance training to digest its medicinal potency. Only then did the warm current spread throughout his body, filling that sense of depletion.
"It actually worked!"
[First-Rank Insect Master: 9/100] [Insect Realm: 1 cubic meter] [Body Tempering Realm: skin refining 1/200 (minor mastery)] [Golden Ape Stance Art: 34/200 (minor mastery)] [Monkey Fist: minor mastery (1/200)] [Mountain Trekking: 94/200 (minor mastery)] [Basic Archery: 151/200 (minor mastery)] [Herb Identification: 57/200 (minor mastery)] [Darkwater Centipede: 103/200 (Growth Stage)]
With Monkey Fist at minor mastery, his moves had grown increasingly practiced. Exerting force and executing techniques had become instinctive, as natural as an ape's movements.
During the fight, his surging blood and qi and the unity of his body and intent had also pushed his skin refining beyond the beginner level, bringing it straight into minor mastery.
"A thousand pounds of force should be no problem. With an explosive burst, I might be even stronger. Those bloody claw marks have faded a little, too. This skin..."
Su Yan curled his hands like tiger claws and raked them across his own skin. He immediately felt the resistance of a tough membrane. With such resilience, ordinary weapons might not leave much of a wound unless there was some force behind them.
"But I still need to be careful. More defense doesn't mean I can't die. It might only reduce the damage."
Only a fool would think his defenses were unrivaled under heaven and deliberately pit his "shield" against a "spear." What if it broke through?
So defense was only insurance. If he could kill someone with three punches, he should never let them touch him.
"The Darkwater Centipede, archery, mountain trekking, and herb identification have all improved. If I find more poisonous substances, I can try to push the Darkwater Centipede to major mastery. Then its insect essence won't just be stronger—it should also have strength close to the sinew and bone realm. Just right for protecting me."
"But first, I need to deal with this tiger."
Su Yan tidied up the tiger a little, wiped away the blood that kept dripping, then put on his back basket.
Applying the force-exertion techniques of his stance training through his feet, he hoisted the tiger's carcass onto his shoulder.
It weighed a full seven or eight hundred pounds. Su Yan merely swayed, steadied himself, and strode down the mountain.
With the foundation laid by insect essence, his sturdy body, and minor mastery of skin refining, he had enough strength to carry the great tiger steadily.
After descending the mountain, Su Yan did not head toward Yunqian Village. Instead, he made straight for the Mountain Market.
A tiger was no ordinary prey. Its price might even exceed that of an ordinary treasure plant.
Every part of a tiger was a treasure. Its flesh, hide, sinews, and bones were all valuable.
But he could not afford to delay.
Su Yan hurried along with long, steady strides. Once out of the Cloudridge Mountains, he reached the main road.
"What a huge tiger!"
He had traveled only a mile or two when he encountered some mountain villagers also heading to the market, giving them quite a fright.
The villagers looked closely and saw that beneath the great, striped tiger was a boy of fifteen or sixteen.
His steps were steady and his eyes bright. He carried an even more imposing air than the tiger.
"Is that young Yan from Yunqian Village?"
Someone recognized Su Yan. He nodded. "Please make some room, everyone. This tiger's rather heavy, and I'm walking fast. I don't want to bump into any of you."
The groups of mountain villagers hurriedly cleared the way, their faces a mixture of surprise, excitement, and all manner of other expressions.
"Young Yan from Yunqian Village has killed a tiger!"
"A young tiger slayer! What skill!"
For a mountain villager to kill a tiger was a major event. Even if he was not from their village, it was still something worth joining the excitement over.
Su Yan strode toward the Mountain Market, while the villagers crowded around and hurried after him, constantly talking to him and looking the tiger up and down to estimate its size.
Some hurried ahead to the Mountain Market to spread the news, stirring up quite a commotion.
By the time Su Yan reached the Mountain Market, its entrance was already packed with villagers eager to watch.
"Good heavens, what a huge tiger! Did he really kill it?"
Some looked doubtful, but there were people from Yunqian Village in the crowd as well.
"Bullshit! Don't you see that seven- or eight-hundred-pound tiger? Young Yan hasn't even wavered half a step. Could you do that?"
"Our young Yan joined the Golden Ape Martial Hall ages ago to study martial arts. He's really made something of it!"
The onlookers all wore expressions of disbelief.
Among the villages scattered around Cloudridge Mountain, there were plenty of people who had gritted their teeth and scraped together everything they could to send their children to learn martial arts.
But almost none had made anything of themselves. At most, they developed sturdy bodies and later became hunters or found work in Cloudcang Town.
In the end, they were still poor folk.
But judging by Su Yan now, he truly had risen above that.
Su Yan carried the tiger through the market, and the crowd parted to let him pass.
"Young Yan, Butcher Yang from the Pan Family Restaurant is in the shop today."
Su Yan raised an eyebrow, then nodded. "Thank you."
He strode toward the Pan Family Restaurant's shop with the tiger's carcass on his shoulder. Quite a few people had already gathered there.
A big, burly, bare-chested man was already waiting.
"Young man, you really did hunt down a great tiger. Let the Pan Family Restaurant handle it, and we won't charge you for skinning and deboning. How does that sound?"
With a thud, Su Yan set the tiger down on the hardwood chopping block.
"Sorry for the trouble, Butcher Yang. I'll sell all its flesh, sinews, and bones to the Pan Family Restaurant. I only want the hide, the four tiger kneecaps, and the spine."
Butcher Yang stroked his beard and looked at Su Yan in surprise. "Of all tiger bones, the kneecaps are the most valuable, followed by the spine. Are you sure you won't sell them?"
"I have a use for them. If there's a next time, I'll sell everything to the Pan Family Restaurant."
"You've got ambition."
Yang Sandao would not have believed those words from anyone else, but this boy was not merely talking.
This tiger had been beaten to death with bare hands.
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