34: Chapter 34 Shadow Demon Tiger

The third day of the ability college entrance exam was also the final battle of this trial. The morning mist in the depths of the dense forest had not yet dispersed, bringing a bone-chilling cold. The branches and leaves of the towering ancient trees intertwined overhead, cutting the sky into fragmented spots of light.

Zhang Wen stretched, his bones emitting a light "crackling" sound. He gazed at the mist-filled mountain hollow ahead, his fingertips unconsciously brushing over the storage bracelet on his wrist: "Let's go. Hopefully, that Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger hasn't moved yet; it'll be perfect to use its beast core to wrap up our college entrance exam."

Ding Siyi followed in response, her fair fingertips wreathed in a faint, elusive pink-gold flame; that was the appearance of the Crimson Pearl Immortal Fire before it was fully unleashed.

Both of them simultaneously restrained their aura. The Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder within Zhang Wen was like a slumbering flood Dragon, locking all its violent electric power deep within his Meridians.

Ding Siyi's immortal fire also hid its temperature, leaving only a faint halo circulating at her fingertips.

Like two gusts of wind merging into the shadows, they stepped on the thick, decaying leaves and crept silently toward their target.

The closer they got to that rocky beach, the more stagnant the air became. The chirping of birds in the forest had vanished more than a hundred meters away, and even the wind seemed to be throttled by an invisible hand, leaving only the sound of the two's deliberately softened breathing.

Zhang Wen suddenly raised his hand and pressed it onto Ding Siyi's shoulder. She immediately stopped and looked in the direction he indicated—in the center of the pile of rocks, a jet-black tiger was crouching under a cliff. Its fur shimmered with a dark purple phosphorescence, and its body was wreathed in elusive black mist. It was indeed the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger.

It appeared to be dozing with its eyes closed, yet its thick tail was uneasily sweeping the ground, clearly highly sensitive to the movements around it.

"We're here. Adjust your state." Zhang Wen's voice was kept extremely low, barely a breath from his throat. His gaze was locked onto that slightly dull patch of fur on the back of the demonic tiger's neck—that was the weak point where its energy circulated. "It's gathering momentum; striking now will catch it off guard."

Ding Siyi took a deep breath, the temperature of the Crimson Pearl Immortal Fire quietly rising, and the pink-gold flame at her fingertips solidified a bit more. She tilted her head and asked: "Tactics?"

Zhang Wen curled his lips, a flash of craftiness in his eyes: "In a moment, I'll count three, two, one. When you hear 'one', run to that arrow bamboo forest on the right, and then..."

"And then what? Tell me quickly!" Ding Siyi was so anxious she clenched her fists, and the flame at her fingertips even trembled. At this critical juncture, how could he afford to play coy?

"And then—" Zhang Wen suddenly lowered his voice and laughed, his eyes flashing with eager anticipation, "You just stand in the bamboo forest and watch. Watch how I draw the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder to strike it until it reveals its true form, and let this big black cat know who the true overlord is!"

"Pah, who wants to watch you show off." Ding Siyi's cheeks flushed slightly, and she turned her face away, deliberately puffing out her cheeks and huffing, "I'm ignoring you, you're so annoying (¯^¯)", but her slightly tense shoulder line relaxed—she had actually long been accustomed to his habit of cracking jokes before a battle.

"Alright, alright, enough joking." Zhang Wen reined in his playful expression, his gaze instantly becoming as sharp as a knife. "Seriously, in a moment, I will first invoke the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder to force it to rise with the power of thunder. Its Shadow Fiend mist can devour energy, but it fears the most Yang and rigid lightning the most."

After you get to the bamboo forest, you don't need to get close. Just wait for the right moment and use the Crimson Pearl Immortal Fire to scorch its black mist. That flame can suppress its shadow energy. As long as you disperse its mist barrier, I will be able to find an opportunity to land a lethal blow.

Remember, absolutely do not let its shadow touch you. That thing can absorb abilities."

Ding Siyi nodded heavily, the pink-gold flame at her fingertips suddenly brightening a bit: "Don't worry, I will be careful."

As soon as she finished speaking, the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger seemed to sense something and abruptly raised its head. Those eyes, burning with ghostly purple flames, precisely locked onto the direction where the two were hiding.

Zhang Wen and Ding Siyi exchanged a glance and simultaneously gripped their ready-to-unleash abilities—the final battle had begun.

"Indestructible Thunder Body, activate!"

Zhang Wen's shout shook the forest. Purple-gold Lightning Radiance suddenly erupted from within his body, coiling around him like a swimming Dragon, outlining layers of thunder patterns on his robes. He grasped with his right hand, and the divine resonance piercing thunder spear appeared in response. The lightning snakes coiling around the spear body crackled, and the Lightning Radiance at the spear tip was almost about to pierce through the morning mist.

"Stupid cat, take a spear from your Grandpa Zhang!"

He flipped his wrist, and the piercing thunder spear left his hand with a sharp whistle that tore through the air. The Thunder Power exploded along its path, and the gravel on the ground was shaken into the air. The entire forest trembled violently with the might of this strike, as if heaven and earth were humming for this violent power.

Ding Siyi's figure had long since moved like a butterfly weaving through flowers; with a light tap of her toes, she had already skimmed to the edge of the arrow bamboo forest.

She did not move far away; instead, she turned and stood firm, her hands quickly forming seals. Three fireballs condensed from the pink-gold Crimson Pearl Immortal Fire flew out with scorching heat waves, accurately smashing into the ground beside the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger. The exploding sparks forced the demonic tiger to tilt its head slightly.

The ghostly light in the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger's eyes surged. Facing the surprise attack of the piercing thunder spear, it suddenly raised its claw and swiped. Its jet-black beast claw, wrapped in shadow energy as thick as ink, actually forced the thunder spear to fly off at an angle, "clanging" as it pinned into a tree trunk in the distance, the tail of the spear still humming and trembling.

Immediately after, its figure turned into a blurry black shadow, crossing over ten meters in an instant—it was the "Shadow Devouring Assault"!

"Awoo—!"

A tiger roar suddenly exploded. Within the ghostly purple sound waves were mixed countless shadow fragments, piercing straight into the depths of the Divine Soul. "It's the Nether Tiger Roar, it can damage the Soul!" Ding Siyi shouted anxiously, raising both hands, and over a dozen Crimson Pearl Immortal Fire wove into a fire net, attempting to intercept those sinister sound waves.

Zhang Wen's Sea of Consciousness stirred slightly, and he just smiled faintly, but he was not panicked. The Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder within his body surged rapidly. As he pressed his left hand into the air, deep purple Lightning Radiance suddenly condensed in front of him—not a thick barrier, but countless slender threads of lightning! "Thousand Mechanisms of Purple Lightning Transformation!"

This skill was a reward from the System previously. He had always felt that brute force attacks were more convenient, so he had set it aside and hadn't learned it, until he was tangled in a fight with the Hundred-Foot Centipede last time, when he realized the brilliance of this move.

At this moment, under the drive of his consciousness, the lightning threads instantly transformed. Sometimes they turned into rotating thunder wheels to shred the incoming sound waves, sometimes they condensed into a dense thunder net to scoop up the scattered shadow fragments, and in an instant, they turned into several thunder whips, whipping toward the pouncing Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger with crackling sounds, forcing it to temporarily slow its offensive.

"This transformation..." Ding Siyi's heart jumped as she watched. She saw that Lightning Radiance swirling indeterminately in front of Zhang Wen, hiding a counterattack within its defense, so agile that it didn't look like what thunder should be at all.

The Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger was struck on its flank by the thunder whip and let out a low growl in pain. The fierce light in its eyes grew even stronger, and it turned into a black shadow again to pounce. And the Lightning Radiance in front of Zhang Wen had quietly transformed into dozens of thunder arrows ready to be fired.