To Be Safe
The snow was stained and mottled with blood.
The Forest Rock Tiger, with crossbow bolts piercing its forelegs and new and old wounds overlapping its lower back and ribs, lay prone in the snow. Its heavy breathing grew weaker and weaker, its chest heaving rapidly and brokenly, each breath accompanied by a bloody, whistling sound.
But it wasn't completely dead.
The most dangerous beasts are those on the verge of death. Their remaining wildness clings to the last vestige of ferocity, their claws occasionally digging into the snow, their heads trembling slightly, still ready to unleash a desperate counterattack at any moment.
Lu Heng stood a few meters away, breathing heavily, his muscles still taut to the extreme.
He did not step forward to finish off the enemy with the knife.
The Bronze Hunting Blade was too risky to engage in close combat. As long as the tiger had a breath left, getting close was a gamble with his life. After fighting for so long, he was extremely exhausted. His shoulder injury was throbbing, and his arms were sore and numb. He had no intention of taking any further risks of being ambushed by a dying beast.
Being cautious is always more important than taking chances.
Compared to close combat, Hand Crossbow is the safest way to finish off the enemy at this moment.
The tiger's head is large and conspicuous, with an unobstructed field of vision, making it the best sniping target. Lu Heng raised his hand and calmly retrieved a brand-new crossbow bolt from his Wristband Space. He nocked the bolt with one hand and strung it, his movements smooth and steady, without the slightest panic.
He deliberately avoided the hard, heavy tiger skull.
The skull is the hardest part of a wild beast, and a crossbow bolt hitting it head-on would most likely slip or jam, and might not be fatal. Lu Heng aimed at the soft tissue around the tiger's eyes, where the skin and flesh are thin and the skull cavity is directly exposed. Without the obstruction of hard bone, the penetrating power was enough to instantly destroy any chance of survival.
Release your fingertips.
The crossbow bolt suddenly pierced the air, its sharp whooshing sound breaking the deathly silence of the snow-covered ground.
The arrow precisely pierced the tiger's eye socket, then penetrated the soft tissue and deeply embedded itself inside the skull.
In a sudden, deafening roar, the massive body of the Forest Rock Tiger convulsed violently, its limbs tensing and stiffening abruptly, before its entire body crashed heavily onto the snow. Its head drooped completely, and a large amount of warm blood gushed from its mouth and nose, staining the white snow in front of it red.
But Lu Heng's gaze did not relax in the slightest.
Experience told him that large beasts have resilient cranial nerves; even if an arrow pierces through them, they may still retain some life force. A moment of carelessness could lead to a fatal accident.
Without hesitation, he drew a second crossbow bolt, raised his hand, aimed, and fired in one smooth motion.
The second arrow precisely replicated its trajectory, penetrating the same wound once again and completely piercing all the nerve centers deep within the cranial cavity.
This time, the tiger completely ceased all movement.
His limbs stopped twitching, his chest completely calmed down, and even the slightest tremor in his ears disappeared. His tiger eyes, which had been filled with violent killing intent, became completely dull and cloudy, and all life force was gone.
Only after confirming that he was completely dead and had no chance of retaliating did Lu Heng's tense nerves suddenly relax.
He raised his Hand Crossbow and remaining arrows in his Wristband Space, the burden lifted, and his aching arms finally felt relieved. Gripping the Bronze Hunting Blade, he slowly walked forward.
The long and arduous battle in the snow has finally come to a true end.
Looking at the enormous tiger carcass before him, Lu Heng felt a surge of inexplicable anger.
He had simply returned to his Stone Cave Shelter from the wild to rest and recuperate. But this Forest Rock Tiger, with its fierce nature and the confidence of a long-time tyrant of the area, had been following and spying on him for days, relentlessly pursuing him and forcing him into a desperate battle in the freezing cold.
Abrasions all over the body, muscle soreness, and recurring old injuries—all of which wasted a lot of physical and mental energy.
With this thought in mind, Lu Heng raised his foot and kicked Tiger Head twice, releasing the pent-up frustration from the entanglement.
Just then, the Survival Bracelet on my wrist suddenly lit up with a pale blue light, and a cold system notification sounded directly into my mind.
[System Notification: Survivor detected killing the dominant monster of the middle layer of Frost Forest - the Forest Rock Tiger]
[Achieve the achievement of defeating the regional overlord]
[Reward: Bronze-Tier Treasure Chest x1]
A blue light flowed around it, and a Bronze Treasure Chest with ancient patterns and a heavy texture floated steadily in the Wristband Space.
Lu Heng's pupils brightened slightly, and a surge of elation and joy welled up in his heart.
I made a profit.
That's a huge profit!
Risking life and death in this battle, bearing the risk of being killed by a ferocious beast's counterattack, all the fatigue, pain, and exhaustion are worthwhile at this moment. Not to mention that the Bronze Treasure Chest given by the system is extremely valuable, the complete overlord-level tiger corpse in front of us is itself a huge resource.
He immediately reached out and touched the Wristband interface to activate the body analysis and material segmentation functions.
A pale blue light instantly enveloped the entire tiger corpse, and the system began a deep scan.
The next second, a special notification popped up on the Wristband.
[Rare Origin Crystal Detected Inside the Skull of a Dominator-Level Monster]
[Special items are prioritized for removal and are not included in the decomposition of ordinary body materials]
The light and shadow slightly converged at the tiger's head, and a Crystal that was completely transparent and had a faint blood-red glow was the first to emerge from the depths of the skull, floating steadily in the light screen.
[Special Item: Forest Rock Tiger Overlord Core Crystal]
Description: A rare crystal exclusive to the overlords of the middle layer of the Frost Forest. It condenses the essence of Goblin absorbed by wild beasts throughout their lives, as well as the Origin Energy energy of their bodies. It is extremely pure and its energy is highly refined, far surpassing that of ordinary wild beast cores.
Lu Heng reached out, his fingertips touching the cool, smooth surface of the Crystal, its delicate and translucent texture immediately apparent.
He stared at the blood-red Crystal, his mind instantly caught in a dilemma.
His first thought was of the Energy Device in the Stone Cave Shelter.
He always used the core Crystal of ordinary wild beasts directly to power the devices, maintaining the Shelter's heating, dim lighting, and basic equipment operation, so it wasn't a waste.
But this one is different.
This is the core of the hegemon.
Its refinement, purity, and energy density completely surpass all the ordinary Crystal obtained before; they are not even in the same league.
If it's just a matter of simply throwing it into a device to burn for energy, in exchange for a little heating and lighting...
That's a huge loss.
That's such a waste!
Lu Heng held the Crystal in his hand, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.
This high-purity, overlord-level core has far more advanced uses than just power supply. Whether it's physical enhancement, item forging, or unlocking special processes later, its value is countless times greater than simply burning crystals for power.
He suppressed the urge to use it immediately and carefully stored the Overlord Core Crystal in his Wristband Space, classifying it separately.
After processing the rare and special items, the system proceeded to the regular Body Decomposition.
As the subtle interplay of light and shadow unfolds, the massive body begins to rapidly peel away, decompose, and categorize itself. Standardized, ordinary materials are successively entered into the Wristband Space, with detailed information and usage notes popping up simultaneously.
[Black Iron Tier - Thick Tiger Skin]
Description: This is the fur of the Frost Forest Overlord, the Fierce Tiger. The leather is dense and thick, with abundant down. It is extremely cold-resistant, resilient, tear-resistant, and abrasion-resistant.
Uses: It can be used to make cold-weather clothing, windproof shawls, and protective uniforms. It can also be spliced together to reinforce snow-blocking layers in Shelter, making it a high-quality defensive material for snow survival.
[Black Iron Tier - Tiger Bone]
Description: The main skeleton of an adult predator tiger is made of hard, dense bone, with a toughness far exceeding that of ordinary wild animal bones, making it resistant to breakage.
Applications: Can be used to make high-end arrows, trap spikes, and short dagger bone blades; can be used as a reinforced weapon frame and tool support material; compatible with most Beginner forging processes.
[Black Iron Tier - Sharp Fangs]
Description: A natural, hard, sharp weapon with a complete bite structure and a blade that inherently possesses piercing and killing power.
Uses: Can be inlaid into weapons to enhance armor penetration, can be used to make trap kill parts, personal self-defense pendants, and can be polished into a small cutting tool.
[Black Iron Tier - Tiger's Gall]
Description: Organs formed from the concentrated qi of ferocious beasts; stable in nature, easy to store, and not easily perishable.
Uses: It can be combined with wild herbs to prepare simple calming and anti-fatigue medicines, which can relieve physical exhaustion and calm mental anxiety, and has basic medicinal value.
[Black Iron Tier - Tiger Flesh and Blood Essence]
Description: This is an essence condensed from the blood, energy, and nutrients of the entire body of the Forest Rock Tiger.
Uses: After taking it, it can slightly repair muscle strain, heal minor skin abrasions, soothe muscles and tendons, permanently improve basic physical condition, and relieve physical depletion after high-intensity combat.
All conventional materials were categorized and sealed, with clear annotations and practical uses, without any exaggeration or embellishment; they were all practically useful for survival in the apocalypse.
Lu Heng straightened up and looked at the safe and secure Stone Cave Shelter not far away. His tense mind, which had been on edge for many days, finally settled down completely.
After a bloody battle, the price of being covered in wounds was a large amount of high-level survival resources, a precious Bronze Treasure Chest, and a hegemon core Crystal with unknown potential.
This deal is a sure thing, you can't lose money.