53: Chapter 53 Fourth-Order Ferocious Beast

The evening wind whistled through the woods, where residual blood stained the thick layer of rotting leaves. A dense scent of gore mingled with the earthy smell of vegetation, slowly drifting through the forest.

Lin Qing stood with his blade in hand. Droplets of blood slid down the length of the blade and dripped into the pool of blood on the ground, creating tiny splashes. The pursuit team led by a Tier 4 Martial Artist had just been completely wiped out.

After dealing with the pursuers and looting their remains, Lin Qing did not linger. Instead, he turned back toward the path he had come from. He intended to take the initiative and find those who were hunting him.

If he continued deeper or left in another direction, the tragic state of this team would be discovered by others, and he feared they might give up the chase upon seeing it.

As the first pursuit team arrived, the subsequent teams followed one after another. After walking for only half an hour, he encountered the second team.

The configuration of the first teams to arrive was indeed high; this team was also led by a Tier 4 Martial Artist, with six Tier 3 Martial Artists under his command.

The group had just emerged from the bushes when they saw Lin Qing walking toward them. Fierce killing intent instantly burst from their eyes, and without a word, they raised their blades and surrounded him for the kill.

Unfortunately, in the eyes of Lin Qing, whose skills had reached the Transcendent level, a cultivation at the Tier 4 Early Stage was as weak and vulnerable as paper.

There was no prolonged struggle. His long blade left its scabbard, a cold light flashed, and it moved so fast that only an afterimage remained.

In a single exchange, the leading Tier 4 Martial Artist didn't even have time to activate his Blood Qi Long River before a hideous bloodline bloomed across his neck, and his life force was severed.

With their main force dead, the remaining Tier 3 Martial Artists fell into chaos. Their faces were filled with terror as they tried to turn and flee. However, before Lin Qing's Movement Technique, their flight appeared laughable, and they were caught and killed one by one.

In a matter of moments, the second team of pursuers was entirely executed.

Lin Qing remained expressionless as he leaned down to skillfully loot the group. He gathered everything useful, discarded the useless weapons and clothing, and then moved forward with his blade once more, continuing his active search for the next batch of pursuers.

From that point on, the slaughter was relentless.

For an entire day and night, Lin Qing rushed through the continuous mountain forests; whenever he met a team, he killed a team.

The leaders of the first few batches were all at the Tier 4 Early Stage, with strength that was barely passable. As time passed, the quality of the subsequent pursuers dropped significantly. Most of the leaders were only at Tier 3, people just looking to fish in troubled waters.

There was also a team led by a young man dressed in white. He had an upright posture and a refined aura, with the arrogant air of a Prodigy between his brows.

However, once Lin Qing easily slaughtered the men he brought, he completely lost his previous arrogance. He threw down his long blade and knelt with a thud, his face pale, his voice filled with extreme panic and pleading:

“Xie Chen, have mercy! I am from the Cold Crow Guild! The Guild Leader is my father. As long as you spare my life, my Cold Crow Guild will surely reward you handsomely.”

The Cold Crow Guild was quite strong, and its leader was at the Tier 4 Middle Stage. He believed Lin Qing would be wary upon hearing the name of the Cold Crow Guild.

Unfortunately, Lin Qing had never even heard of the Cold Crow Guild before this.

Since joining the Yaojin Guild, Lin Qing had devoted himself entirely to the Ronghuo Heart Pillar and knew nothing about the various guild powers in the city.

Since the other party dared to hunt him, they had to be prepared to lose their lives.

He even found a Tier 4 Cultivation Technique on the white-clad man. It was clearly something the man had recently acquired and hadn't fully mastered yet, so he carried it with him to study during his spare time.

Despite days of continuous fighting, his Qi and blood remained abundant and vigorous without the slightest sign of fatigue. He found an open space and prepared to take stock of his gains.

Just then, the sound of footsteps came from the jungle again. Four figures pushed aside layers of branches and slowly stepped out of the mountain forest.

Lin Qing's hand on his blade paused slightly, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

At the end of his vision, the four people who appeared were exactly those from the Yaojin Guild—Chu Lingxi, Shen Xingci, Song Shiye, and Su Lan.

The four of them looked travel-worn, their clothes stained with forest dust and their brows carrying the exhaustion of their journey.

“Su Lan? Why are you guys here?” Lin Qing sheathed his blade and turned slightly to ask.

Seeing Lin Qing safe and sound, Su Lan let out a long sigh of relief and stepped forward quickly, her tone carrying a bit of annoyance and lingering fear:

“To save you, of course! Those people are so hateful; they actually misled us on purpose, making us take many detours for nothing. Otherwise, we would have arrived long ago!”

After speaking, she carefully sized Lin Qing up from head to toe. Seeing that his clothes were neat, his breathing steady, and there was not a single mark of injury, she finally felt completely at ease and asked softly:

“Are you really okay? I heard many people were hunting you, but we hardly saw any signs of fighting along the way. Did you hide?”

Lin Qing shook his head slightly and said calmly, “It’s fine. They’ve all been dealt with.”

He didn't say much about his battle record of taking the initiative to intercept and kill several pursuit teams. As for the bodies, they were naturally still deep in the jungle; they hadn't walked that far yet.

Seeing that he was unwilling to elaborate, the group assumed he was lucky and had avoided the pursuit by hiding. They stopped asking and prepared to head back to Yanguī City together.

But just as everyone turned around, a tiger's roar that shook the mountain forest suddenly exploded!

The roar was powerful and domineering, carrying a biting, malevolent aura that shook the forest leaves down and sent birds scattering in fear.

Everyone's expressions suddenly froze. They abruptly raised their heads toward the sound, looking at a towering small hill to the side.

At the peak of the hill, a massive black beast shadow stood tall, looking down upon the people below from its height.

It was a giant tiger, completely pitch-black and nearly two zhang long. Its limbs were as thick as ancient wooden pillars, and its black fur stood up like steel needles, glinting with a cold metallic luster under the setting sun. A snow-white marking ran through its forehead, shaped like the character for 'King,' adding a touch of regal majesty.

Most terrifying were its beastly pupils—dark and deep, filled with ultimate disdain and brutality, as if viewing the people below as mere ants. A vigorous and majestic power of Qi and blood, like a surging river, vibrated faintly around its body, causing the air to warp slightly.

A Blood Qi Long River—the Tier 4 Vicious Beast, Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger!

Chu Lingxi's entire aura tightened instantly. Gravity and wariness appeared in her eyes, and without the slightest hesitation, she shouted sharply:

“Not good! It's a Tier 4 Overlord-class tiger Vicious Beast! All of you retreat immediately and leave at full speed! I'll hold it back!”

As her voice fell, her figure suddenly charged forward. Her Qi and blood erupted violently as she unleashed her full strength as the third on the hidden dragon list, blocking the path in front of everyone.

At this moment, everyone's hearts were shaken, and their faces turned pale.

Within the same tier, it was already difficult for human Martial Artists to defeat Vicious Beasts that grew through slaughter. And tiger-type Vicious Beasts were overlords even among their peers; they were fierce in combat, with killing instincts far exceeding ordinary beasts, and their combat power was horrifying.

More importantly, the vast majority of young Prodigies focused their energy on refining their techniques and raising their Realm, rarely putting in hard work toward actual martial combat skills.

Chu Lingxi had spent years hunting Vicious Beasts deep in the mountains, so her practical combat experience far exceeded other Prodigies of her age, which was how she secured her position as third on the hidden dragon list.

But even for her, facing an adult Tier 4 tiger Vicious Beast, there wasn't the slightest chance of victory.

She stared intently at the giant tiger poised on the hill, fine beads of cold sweat breaking out on her forehead and her back already soaked. Her only hope was to use her combat power to barely stall the beast for a moment, buying enough time for the others to escape.

Just as Chu Lingxi tightened her mind and prepared for a fight to the death, a calm voice suddenly rang out from behind her.

“Let me do it.”

Lin Qing saw Chu Lingxi's tension and knew she had no confidence in handling it, so he stepped out from the group.

Before the stunned crowd could stop him, his foot slammed into the ground, and his figure shot out like an arrow from a bow. His long blade trailed against the ground, creating a piercing metallic scraping sound as he charged straight at the Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger!

“Xie Chen! Don't be impulsive!”

“Come back! That's a Tier 4 Vicious Beast! It's not something you can contend with!”

Three urgent cries rang out behind him instantly. Song Shiye, Su Lan, and Shen Xingci's faces were deathly pale, their pupils shrinking.

They had come all this way assuming Lin Qing had luckily avoided the pursuit; they had never seen his true combat power. In their eyes, Xie Chen rushing toward a Tier 4 Overlord beast right now was no different from seeking death.

Chu Lingxi was also anxious and was about to reach out to pull him back, only to see that Lin Qing had already charged dozens of zhang away.

The Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger was instantly enraged by this scene. This mere ant not only didn't run but actually dared to charge at it.

Its massive body suddenly leaped into the air, its heavy physique bringing a whistling gale that uprooted several small nearby trees with its sheer force.

A giant tiger claw, carrying immense weight and the sound of tearing air, slammed down fiercely toward Lin Qing's head. It was savage and domineering, intending to crush the human into a pulp in one strike!

Lin Qing's body suddenly leaned back, and the whistling wind brushed past the tip of his nose, sending his hair flying. In the next second, using the momentum of his charge, his body sank and he slid rapidly under the Profound Tiger's massive belly.

At the same time, he held his long blade high, and a brilliant blade light cut across the sky.

Squelch—!

The sharp blade instantly tore through the Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger's incredibly tough hide, muscle, and bone!

A massive gash extending from the neck to the lower abdomen appeared. Warm beast blood gushed out, and internal organs and intestines spilled onto the ground with a wet thud.

Before the Profound Tiger's massive body could even hit the ground, its life force was completely severed.

The heavy tiger corpse slammed into the earth, kicking up clouds of dust. Its limbs twitched a few times before it went completely still.

One move.

In just a single moment of exchange, the fearsome Tier 4 Vicious Beast tiger that reigned supreme among its peers was killed instantly by Lin Qing's blade!

The gale subsided, and the forest fell into a deathly silence.

The cries of the people behind him still lingered in the air, but the battle was already over.

The four guild members froze in place, their eyes wide. The panic on their faces vanished, replaced by shock and disbelief, their expressions strange to the extreme.

They had just been full of worry, yet in the blink of an eye, the Tier 4 Overlord beast that made everyone wary had died on the spot?

Song Shiye reacted the fastest, rushing to Lin Qing's side. He looked the Profound Tiger's corpse up and down, then at the steady Lin Qing, his voice carrying an unmaskable tremor and suspicion:

“Xie Chen... Have you... have you already broken through to Tier 4?!”

It was no wonder he would guess this.

The martial arts of the Great Xia had no secret methods for probing cultivation. Martial Artists usually judged an opponent's Realm based on Qi and blood phenomena and combat prowess.

Just now, facing the Profound Tiger, Lin Qing had held nothing back. The surging Blood Qi Long River around him vibrated relentlessly, his aura vast and majestic.

Seeing such a scene, the others naturally assumed Lin Qing had already broken through to Tier 4.

Lin Qing's eyes flickered upon hearing this, but he did not speak to deny it.

Should he tell them he was only at Tier 3 and had only recently broken through?

Better not. A Tier 3 Martial Artist instantly killing a Tier 4 Vicious Beast was even more outrageous than breaking through to Tier 4.

Seeing his silence as admission, the shock in everyone's hearts grew even deeper.

For the next three days, the group did not go deeper into the forest. They rested on the spot and processed the Profound Tiger's body.

Three days later, at the break of dawn.

The group walked out of the jungle, carrying the massive and heavy corpse of the Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger, and appeared outside the North Gate of Yanguī City.

The two-zhang-long tiger corpse was visually striking. Its black body was covered in fine dust, and its residual malevolent aura still struck fear into people's hearts.

The various Martial Artists passing through the North Gate stopped in their tracks at the sight, and a wave of clamor rose one after another.

“My God! Those are people from the Yaojin Guild!”

“What they're carrying... is that a Tier 4 Vicious Beast, the Black-patterned Mysterious Tiger?”

“This is too exaggerated! Such a large Profound Tiger was actually hunted by them? Has the Yaojin Guild produced another top-tier expert?”

Countless exclamations and discussions intertwined, spreading across the entire city gate. Everyone's eyes were fixed intently on that shocking Tier 4 tiger corpse.