White-Robed Chief

Chu Li felt that unless he began channeling at that very instant, his body might implode from all the spiritual energy seeping into him. As such, he was forced to channel his Cloud Slashing Power.

The surrounding dense and pure spiritual energy continued to surge into him as he continued to channel cycle after cycle of his Cloud Slashing Power. Even after his meridians were beginning to ache from all the pure spiritual energy, it still continued to flow into him. However, a change began to take place as the energies began to rejuvenate his meridians, becoming wisps of cool energy that flowed within the meridians instead.

Cycle after cycle, Chu Li continued to purify his Cloud Slashing Power and at long last, his Cloud Slashing Power had been purified to a crystal-clear state. It was like a clear body of water that was akin to the lake that he was in.

Chu Li felt as if his body had become a couple more pounds heavier, as the energy that now flowed through his veins was dense, like mercury.

Chu Li leaped upwards and stepped onto the surface of the water.

His Light-body Technique had been brought to a whole different level, and not only did his meridians grow larger, but his internal organs had also been reinforced by a few magnitudes. The lake water had indeed possessed mystical properties, as the benefits he gained this time had far surpassed his previous visit.

The two cranes let out piercing wails, and Chu Li responded by jumping onto one of the cranes’ back and gripped its neck.

The Spirit Crane soared upwards and a moment later, they were already among the clouds. They had left the turquoise lake behind, and its clear waters had become an afterthought.

Chu Li suddenly pressed his palms onto the Spirit Crane’s head and transferred the images in his mind to the Spirit Crane.

The Spirit Crane squawked, and so too did the other Spirit Crane. They made an abrupt turn, and suddenly, they were heading towards a gigantic mountain.

The two cranes circled around the mountain, and from above, Chu Li could see a Spirit Tiger lying on top of a boulder.

The Spirit Tiger that was several times larger than a normal tiger was lazily dozing off under the sunlight. At that moment, the impression it gave Chu Li was that it was no different from a giant cat that was unable to muster up any spirit.

Chu Li had once ridden the Spirit Cranes to visit the Spirit Tiger, but it was not as large as it was currently. He theorized that the one he encountered was actually a Minor Spirit Tiger.

Sensing that there was a disturbance among the clouds, the Spirit Tiger raised its head and spotted the two Spirit Cranes. Despite that, it did not budge. It was as if it knew that the Spirit Cranes would not disturb it. A distance away, a Minor Spirit Tiger could be seen playing around with a rock. It leaped and pounced as if it was practicing the actions for hunting.

Chu Li marveled at the sight, but suddenly a thunderous roar could be heard.

“ROAR…” The Spirit Tiger that had been sunbathing on the boulder earlier suddenly got to its feet and let loose a heaven-piercing roar. It startled the neighboring birds which lead to a sky filled with flocks of birds.

Seeing the Spirit Tiger’s sudden burst of energy had caused Chu Li’s lips to curl into a smile. This was what he had hoped to see.

Chu Li vanished from behind the Spirit Crane’s back in a flash and reappeared on Spirit Tiger Peak. He was standing on top of another boulder while examining the Spirit Tiger.

Even though they were a couple of thousand feet apart, the intimidating aura that the Spirit Tiger exuded was so strong that it could be felt physically. The pressure that it brought down on him had made it extremely difficult to breathe, but with the use of the Maha-Vairocana’s Immobility Scripture, the crushing pressure was quickly shed off.

The Spirit Tiger that had the size of an elephant suddenly leaped upwards. It was as if it had wings because, in a single leap, it had covered the distance between it and Chu Li.

Its snow-white fur fluctuated like sea waves which made it extremely difficult to look at under the blazing sun. Before the tiger had even reached Chu Li’s side, its immense power had already slammed into Chu Li and caused him to pant hard.

Chu Li shouted as he sent out a fist. It was a Divine Fist of Great Light that utilized Cloud Slashing Power of the purest quality. As such, it contained a massive amount of force to it.

However, with a lazy swipe of its claws, the Spirit Tiger shred through Chu Li’s Divine Fist of Great Light as if it was made from paper.

With the aid of his Omniscient Mirror, Chu Li could clearly distinguish the power level of his fist and its claws. As such, he could also tell that there was a mystical power to the tiger’s claws, and if he were to make contact with this power, it would be like a knife slicing through tofu. The consequences would be deadly.

Chu Li energetically dashed forward, seizing the time when the Spirit Tiger had just landed to make his move. This was the Spirit Tiger’s weakest moment, and as such, he put in all his energy into the tackle.

“Boom!” A heavy thud could be heard as Chu Li was sent flying backward.

Despite being flesh and blood, the Spirit Tiger’s body was as tough as a rock. Chu Li’s tackle had not even transferred a smidgen of force into the Spirit Tiger’s body, and instead, it had been completely diverted back to his own body.

Chu Li did a barrel roll under the boulder, narrowly escaping the Spirit Tiger’s massive claws by a hair.

“Bam!” Dust clouds filled the air as the Spirit Tiger’s claw demolished the boulder into a pile of dust.

It was during this tackle that Chu Li realized how massive the Spirit Tiger actually was. Chu Li was only as tall as the Spirit Tiger’s legs, and he needed to jump in order to even make contact with the Spirit Tiger’s belly. On the other hand, the Spirit Tiger’s claws were as big as banana-leaf fans. To it, disposing Chu Li was no different from disposing ants.

“ROAR…” The Spirit Tiger roared. Its roar was like a thunderclap, and it had disrupted Chu Li’s mental state.

Chu Li hurriedly flashed away, and by the time the Spirit Tiger slammed down its paw at Chu Li’s original location, a huge crater formed on the boulder, and veils of dust drifted within the air.

“ROAR…” The Spirit Tiger let loose another roar and pounced towards Chu Li.

Chu Li thrust his fist into the belly of the Spirit Tiger, but much to Chu Li’s chagrin, the Spirit Tiger was unfazed. It shook its fur and made waves along its skin, radiating a blinding white light and getting rid of the momentum from the fist. Chu Li’s fist had been stopped, and the Spirit Tiger’s deadly claws were inches away from Chu Li’s head.

Once again, Chu Li flashed away from his original spot.

“ROAR…” The Spirit Tiger instantly flew into a fit of rage. After being kited around by a mere insect multiple times, it was now boiling with rage, and its murderous aura had grown even denser.

Chu Li’s vision went blank as the roar had directly affected his mind.

A clear shriek could be heard, and Chu Li instantly regained consciousness. His sight had now been restored.

Chu Li could sense the Spirit Tiger’s claws being inches away from his face, and in that crucial moment, Chu Li hastily evaded. In a flash, he returned to the Spirit Crane’s back.

The two Spirit Cranes took off into the sky, ignoring the furious howls of the Spirit Tiger behind them.

The cranes had now grown up, and they were no longer afraid of the Spirit Tiger’s roars.

Chu Li placed his hand across his face. There was a sharp sting upon doing so, and when he brought away his hand, he noticed that it was covered with fresh blood.

Even though the claws had not even made contact, Chu Li had already been injured. The Spirit Tiger was a powerful force to be reckoned with, and while Chu Li had experienced this lesson before, the experience was even more vivid this time around.

The conceptual image of the Spirit Tiger that the White Tiger Sect passed down was a far cry from the actual Spirit Tiger. It was like comparing a full-fledged tiger to a sickly cat.

After all, the Spirit Beasts were now treated like objects of myths. The number of people that had never seen them was growing, and as such, it was hard for them to grasp the Spirit Beasts’ true power.

The Spirit Cranes gradually touched down and placed Chu Li right before Xiao Qi.

Xiao Qi slowly opened her eyes and inspected him. “Has your martial arts been restored?”

Chu Li nodded with a smile. “Yep, I’ve recovered my martial arts!”

Xiao Qi’s lips curled into a smile. “The Hundred-Thousand Hills truly is astounding!”

Chu Li added, “I’ll need to suppress my martial arts when we return and pretend like I still haven’t recovered. Otherwise, I would look extremely suspicious.”

Xiao Qi gently nodded.

Chu Li hesitated for a moment before saying, “Actually, you can already leave as I’m now able to protect myself!”

Xiao Qi raised an eyebrow at him. “You want me to leave?”

Chu Li smiled. “Of course not.”

“Then we’ll just let it be.” Xiao Qi added, “I never take back my words.”

Chu Li looked closely at her. “I hope you won’t regret this decision!”

Xiao Qi glared at him.

Chu Li a radiant smile hung on his face. While he was fairly certain that Xiao Qi would not leave him based on her personality, he still needed to make sure, as her decision was really part of the spur of the moment.

However, now that he had heard her reply, he could finally lay his worries to rest.

“What happened to your face though?” Xiao Qi stared closely at Chu Li’s face.

Chu Li shook his head. “I had a brush with the Spirit Tiger. We’ll head back for now and return tomorrow!”

“Alright.” Xiao Qi nodded.

With that, the two returned to their homes to rest.

On the second day, Chu Li returned to Spirit Tiger Peak. He exchanged blows with the Spirit Tiger, but all he managed to do was weave around the Spirit Tiger. He did not really gain a grasp of the Spirit Tiger’s abilities.

Even the powerful Divine Fist of Great Light was like a flea bite to the Spirit Tiger. Had Chu Li not possessed Imminent Skyline and his Divine Power, he would have already been turned into mincemeat ages ago.

Furthermore, the Spirit Tiger’s roar was also a force to be reckoned with. Despite having no divine power, the Spirit Tiger was unbelievably fast, and it had adult-level intellect. Moreover, it had a proud personality, and as such, it could not contain the rage of having Chu Li escape from its claws several times. Due to this, it would always chase Chu Li whenever he appeared.

With that, the human and the tiger played a game of cat and mice for three consecutive days. With the aid of the Spirit Cranes, Chu Li was always able to escape in the nick-of-time, and on the third day, Chu Li had even picked up a huge sack of tiger bones.