"Something's coming!"
Li Chen startled and hurriedly notified the others through his Message-Transmitting Ring.
"Perfect timing!"
Huang Yuan'an's slightly excited voice came back through the ring.
"Everyone, get your weapons ready and follow my command-loose!"
Click, clack!
Amid the clatter of mechanisms, several ghostlike figures pounced swiftly, pinning the Mechanism Automatons known as Wooden Soldiers beside the campfire from behind in the blink of an eye.
In an instant, blades danced and arrows flew, turning the entire campsite into a terrifying killing ground.
The Wooden Soldier puppets, which should have been utterly helpless, suddenly thrust out their arms as well. Wrist Blades slid from their palms and stabbed at the figures pinning them down.
"Roar!"
A terrifying roar shook the mountain forest. Under a savage swipe, one puppet flew bodily into a nearby tree trunk, snapping several joints in its arms and legs. A huge paw print was clearly visible where the blow had struck its chest.
In the glow of the campfire, several striped tigers loomed with fearsome menace, as though ready to pick their victims and devour them.
But immediately, several more Mechanism Puppets leaped down from the trees and engaged them at close quarters.
Before long, the tigers had all been shot full of arrows like hedgehogs. Then the various Combat Puppets swarmed them and finished them off.
The outcome of this battle had never been in doubt. The people Huang Yuan'an had gathered were all capable to begin with, and with the advantage of an ambush, the hunt went even more smoothly.
"Hmm? There are only eight tigers here?" While Huang Yuan'an led the others down to inspect their kills, Li Chen noticed a problem and hurriedly pointed it out.
"Their leader doesn't have to hunt for its own daily meals. It only comes out when another Demon Beast or a powerful enemy appears," You An explained, patting Li Chen's shoulder. "We don't need to worry about that. Just listen to Boss Huang and keep an eye on our surroundings."
"So that's how it is." Li Chen had actually heard his father in this world recount some of his experiences on his travels, but only firsthand experience could bring that knowledge to life. That was also why he had joined the hunt.
Killing eight tigers that had become spirits in one fell swoop immediately lightened the mood of the party. Although their tally revealed that three Wooden Soldiers and one Armored Warrior had been damaged, they could always be repaired as long as their cores remained intact. And if they sold all these spirits, the proceeds would undoubtedly be more than enough.
"All that's left now is the Tiger Demon Chief. It's a big brute that's been a spirit for years. It won't be easy to handle!" After taking stock, Old Lou looked at Huang Yuan'an.
"Don't worry," Huang Yuan'an said. "Now that all its hunters have come out, it won't be long before it shows itself too."
The others climbed back into the trees and began waiting patiently.
As it turned out, that wait lasted more than two days.
Li Chen ate and slept in the trees along with Huang Yuan'an and the others, and practically felt as though he had become a monkey.
But they had no choice. They had to stay constantly alert to the dangers of the mountain forest and guard against a surprise attack from the Tiger Demon Chief.
Most tiger spirits possessed protective coloration and could use minor Divine Abilities to move silently.
This was genuine supernatural power. One moment of carelessness, and a tiger could spring out from only a few dozen feet away and bite through your throat before you even had time to react.
Only people like Huang Yuan'an, who had personally experienced tiger attacks, understood just how terrifying it was to truly face one.
Huang Yuan'an insisted that everyone remain in the trees. Even when someone climbed down to relieve themselves, the whole party watched intently, with at least five Stake-Mounted Repeating Crossbows aimed at the surrounding area. If an attack came, they had to evade strictly along the routes agreed upon beforehand, or they were sure to be shot into hedgehogs themselves.
At first, Li Chen found these almost perversely strict rules difficult to adjust to, but since the others could manage, he gritted his teeth and persevered as well.
This was the beginning of his journey as a Rogue Cultivator. Through both their words and their actions, Huang Yuan'an and the others were passing valuable experience on to him. At the very least, he needed to temper his patience.
Perhaps effort truly did reward the persistent. As dusk approached, Li Chen suddenly caught a flicker of red in the distant mountain forest through the Flying Disc's heat-sensing Eye Crystal.
"Something's happening at the top of the eastern cliff!" Li Chen hurriedly warned them, inwardly wiping away cold sweat.
They really had to thank their luck that tiger spirits knew no methods of concealing their presence. If they cultivated like intelligent beings, the supernatural powers of this world would make it easy for them to hide far more thoroughly.
Alerted by Li Chen, the others carefully observed through the various mechanisms deployed in the nearby forest. At last, they discovered a huge, fierce-looking tiger demon, nearly twenty feet long and with white markings on its forehead, creeping toward them as stealthily as a cat.
Despite its immense size, its movements were exceptionally light. As it crouched and bounded, it even deftly timed its movements with gusts stirring the grass, preventing any unusual disturbance from alerting its prey.
Watching the enormous creature draw closer and slip into the nearby bushes with scarcely a sound, everyone felt a chill crawl down their spines.
"It's incredible!"
"This tiger demon is much bigger than the others, and it's even better at sneaking around. If we hadn't prepared beforehand and it ambushed us in the forest, we might not even realize what had happened before we died!"
Huang Yuan'an remained silent. Crouching to one side, he lightly crooked his fingers, controlling the Wooden Soldier Mechanism Automatons sitting in the false campsite below so that their backs faced the Tiger Demon Chief. The others cooperated, making their own puppets bend over and act as though they were cutting up beast meat without a care in the world.
"This roast meat smells amazing..."
"It sure does. Have some more..."
Human voices even drifted from the campsite.
These, too, came from mechanisms. A device containing prerecorded human voices selectively played them back, making the puppets seem more like real people.
Anyone unaware of the truth who approached from elsewhere and saw them from a distance would have thought a group of people really was camping there.
In the blink of an eye, the Tiger Demon Chief suddenly charged like lightning, crossing the Stake-Mounted Repeating Crossbows' field of fire in an instant.
"Damn it, loose now!"
Alarmed, Huang Yuan'an hurriedly roared the command. Arrows rained toward the Tiger Demon Chief, and almost at the same moment it knocked down a wooden Mechanism Automaton beside the campfire, several metallic clashes rang out.
Clang, clang, clang, clang!
Sparks flew from the Tiger Demon Chief's body. The others looked closely and were horrified.
The Stake-Mounted Repeating Crossbow should have been far more powerful than ordinary hand crossbows or bows, yet even its arrows could not penetrate the Tiger Demon Chief's defenses.
Fortunately, Huang Yuan'an had anticipated this and mixed in Armor-Piercing Arrows forged from black iron. Among the arrows that struck the Tiger Demon Chief, they could just make out two that had done their job and pierced its hide.
But there were only two.
"Roar!"
Wounded, the Tiger Demon Chief let out an enraged roar, turned, and pounced toward Huang Yuan'an's hiding place!