"Little brother, you finally returned! I thought you had encountered some mishap!"
As Li Qing just returned to the campfire, he heard Old An's voice. The campfire was still blazing, and Old An had made himself a hammock using vines between two trees, looking quite comfortable and at ease.
"I explored the surroundings and found nothing; it was relatively peaceful," Li Qing replied calmly.
"That's good. Let's take turns keeping watch through the night. We must be cautious in this old forest," Old An advised.
Li Qing nodded in agreement. If both of them fell asleep, their ability to respond to risks would be too low. If a venomous snake or ferocious beast attacked, it would be disastrous.
As the fire crackled with the sound of burning dry wood, Li Qing sat cross-legged and began practicing the Golden Body Technique and the Ancient Hammer Technique.
While cultivating, his perception of the outside world remained sharp; any rustle of leaves or gust of wind did not escape his ears.
Thus, Li Qing and Old An took turns keeping watch through the night until dawn finally broke.
Drip!
A drop of dew fell from a leaf onto Li Qing's brow, and he opened his eyes.
This time, they had brought enough provisions and jerky for their journey up the mountain. After a simple meal, they began searching for the traces of the ferocious tiger once more.
As they explored the forest, Old An seemed to have discovered some useful clues. Following some barely perceptible tracks, he left the hollow where the tomb was located.
Finally, he stopped beneath a tree trunk.
The base of the trunk was marked with numerous scratches made by sharp claws, indicating that a fierce beast had made its home here.
"It’s either a bear or a tiger. Little brother, you must be careful from here on," Old An warned solemnly.
Li Qing's expression also turned serious; he certainly did not dare to let his guard down.
Whether it was a bear or a tiger, both were formidable opponents.
It was spring now, and the bear had just awakened from hibernation, making it extremely hungry and aggressive.
As for the tiger, there was no need to elaborate. In the forest, it could effectively conceal itself, and even seasoned hunters might not detect it immediately.
If they were caught unprepared and ambushed, it could lead to fatal consequences.
The two began to cautiously explore the forest, taking extreme care with each step to assess their surroundings.
Li Qing's hand rested on his waist at all times; should anything happen, he could swiftly draw his wide-bladed knife or retrieve his Bone-Piercing Nails to respond.
Old An's weapon was merely a wooden bow, and he had brought only a few arrows. He was well aware that his task was to scout, not to hunt.
"Wait!"
Old An raised his hand and bent down to examine a pile of feces concealed by bushes.
"This is from a tiger; there is definitely a tiger lurking around!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a piercing roar echoed from deep within the forest.
"Roar!"
Hearing this sound, even if Li Qing was not skilled in hunting, he knew it was the roar of a tiger!
"Go!"
Li Qing made a decisive move, rushing toward the source of the sound, holding his wide-bladed knife in one hand and two Bone-Piercing Nails in the other.
Seeing Li Qing so resolute, Old An's expression turned slightly pale, but he still followed closely behind.
In his youth, he had indeed hunted a tiger, but that was merely a young tiger caught in a trap, inexperienced and not yet a fully grown beast.
Generally speaking, hunters would never consider a ferocious tiger as prey.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!" The tiger's roar continued to shake the entire forest, startling the birds in the treetops into flight, showcasing the might of the king of the mountain!
As the roar grew louder, Li Qing and Old An slowed their pace.
The closer they got, the more their hearts raced; this was undoubtedly a fierce tiger in its prime, terrifying and ferocious.
Pushing aside a thicket of dense branches, the long-awaited tiger finally appeared before them.
It was a tiger's den made of piled stones, and when the two saw the scene inside, their scalps nearly exploded.
Inside the den, a fierce tiger was confronting a giant python.
Beneath the giant python lay several tiger cubs, already lifeless.
No wonder the tiger's roar was so mournful and furious; it turned out to be a mother tiger mourning her lost cubs.
Clearly, this ferocious tiger, exuding a fierce aura, had no intention of letting the giant python escape and was determined to fight it to the death.
The giant python was also quite massive, its body as thick as a barrel, with half of it hidden behind the tiger's den, only its head visible.
"Wait!" Li Qing immediately made a decision, wanting to play the role of a profit-seeking fisherman.
He would wait until the two ferocious beasts settled their battle before stepping in to clean up the aftermath.
As an external strength level martial artist, he was not yet an internal strength master. It was somewhat unrealistic to deal with two fierce beasts at once; he could only wait for the right opportunity.
"Roar!"
The grieving mother tiger was the first to move. In a few leaps, it sprang high from the rocky ground and pounced at the giant python.
This was a green-scaled giant python, its bizarre patterns sending shivers down one’s spine.
It coiled backward, evading the tiger's attack. Despite its massive size, it moved swiftly through the forest, crushing bushes in its path, able to ignore most terrain obstacles.
However, no matter how fast the giant python was, it could not outrun the tiger.
The fierce tiger lunged at the giant python, its powerful claws striking down hard on the python's body.
With a whoosh, many scales fell off, and several white marks suddenly appeared on the python's body.
With no retreat left, the giant python immediately coiled its body, attempting to wrap around the tiger.
But the tiger was incredibly agile; with a leap, it dodged the python's coils and charged forward again, viciously biting into the giant python's body.
Whoosh!
The python swiftly lashed out with its tail, creating a whistling sound as it struck the tiger, sending it sprawling backward.
The two beasts created some distance between them and began to confront each other again.
The python flicked its tongue, slowly retreating, its body marked with numerous wounds torn by the tiger.
However, the tiger seemed unwilling to let the python escape easily, viewing it as a serious threat. It advanced step by step, baring its fangs and approaching the python.
Hidden in the forest, Li Qing was witnessing a wild tiger for the first time in his life.
Having practiced the True Intent of the Fierce Tiger, he found his understanding of this martial art deepening after observing the tiger's battle.
Taking advantage of the moment when the tiger and giant python were entangled again, Li Qing took a deep breath, suddenly put down his wide-bladed knife, and began to mimic some of the tiger's movements with slight body sways.
After watching for a while, Li Qing gained insights into more techniques from the True Intent of the Fierce Tiger, things he had never developed during his previous training.
After a long while, the battle between the tiger and the python finally reached a conclusion.
The massive python was ultimately worn down and killed by the tiger, its body riddled with wounds, and scales scattered everywhere.
The tiger was not in much better shape; it was covered in injuries, and in the final moments of killing the python, it had been coiled by the python, resulting in a broken leg.
Now was the best opportunity to hunt the tiger!
(End of Chapter)