The mother tiger was utterly enraged!
Its four limbs clawed at the ground, its thick tail sweeping across the earth like a steel whip, kicking up dust and grass.
The next moment, it lunged again.
This time, it wasn’t a simple pounce, but the most savage killing lunge of a predator going for the throat!
Its massive jaws gaped open, revealing bone-white fangs aimed straight for Yang Qi’s throat!
A foul-smelling wind rushed forward, chilling one to the bone.
Yang Qi’s gaze hardened. He stopped meeting force with force.
He unleashed the Spirit Crane Body Technique with all his might!
His figure seemed to transform into a true spirit crane, dodging and weaving within inches of space, graceful yet swift.
The tiger’s claws tore through the air, grazing the corner of his clothes.
Its fangs snapped shut, barely scraping his skin.
The heavy tiger’s body missed time and time again, crashing to the ground with dull thuds that made the earth tremble slightly.
Yang Qi was like a small boat in a raging storm; it looked perilous, but he always managed to evade the fatal attacks by a hair’s breadth.
His footwork grew increasingly fluid, his understanding of the Spirit Crane Body Technique improving rapidly under the pressure.
Occasionally, he would seize a gap in the mother tiger’s attacks, using simple fighting techniques—fists, palms, elbows, and shoulders—to strike non-lethal areas like its joints and soft underbelly. This didn’t cause serious injury but accumulated pain, drained its stamina, and chipped away at its ferocity.
For a time, the forest clearing turned into a gladiatorial arena for man and tiger.
The roars of the tiger and the whistling of fists echoed through the air.
Bai Wan and Leopard crouched low, tense, low growls rumbling in their throats. But remembering Yang Qi’s command, they held themselves back, refusing to advance.
Xiaojiu perched on a branch a short distance away, its pupils contracted to slits, its tail taut.
The two small tiger cubs had long since scrambled back into the hollow of the dead tree in fright. Only two pairs of terrified yet curious eyes peeked out at the battle outside.
The more the mother tiger fought, the more shocked and enraged it became.
It had never encountered "prey" like this!
He was incredibly fast, unbelievably agile, and surprisingly strong. The blows landing on its body weren’t fatal, but they really hurt!
Moreover, this "Two-legged Beast’s" eyes held no fear, no panic, not even any killing intent—only a calmness that unsettled it.
It swiped again with a powerful, heavy paw, but Yang Qi dodged it with a sideways step. Before it could follow up—
A sharp glint flashed in Yang Qi’s eyes. He seized the opportunity!
Stamping his foot, he shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, instantly cutting into the opening at the mother tiger’s side.
His right hand, fingers held together like a sword, jabbed like lightning toward a specific point on the mother tiger’s neck, where it connected to the shoulder blade.
It wasn’t a killing move, but a special technique infused with a trace of Magical Power, designed to stimulate the nerves, temporarily paralyze the local muscles, and make it lose its balance.
THWACK!
His fingertips struck true.
The mother tiger’s massive body suddenly stiffened. The paw it had swiped with fell limp, and its entire body lost balance, crashing sideways to the ground with a boom, sending up a cloud of dust.
It struggled, wanting to get up immediately, but the tingling numbness at the back of its neck made its movements sluggish for a moment.
And in that single moment—
Yang Qi didn’t press his advantage with a heavy blow.
Instead, he took two steps back, creating distance.
Then, under the gaze of the mother tiger—which was filled with a mixture of shock and anger as it struggled to rise—he slowly raised his hands, palms facing out, held flat and pointing downward.
At the same time, he activated the Basic Spirit Communication Technique and spoke calmly.
"I mean you no harm."
"I’m not here to hurt you, nor to steal your cubs."
"I just want to talk."
It was as if time froze in that instant.
In the mother tiger’s amber pupils, the ferocious light gradually gave way to a mixture of shock and uncertainty.
It stared intently at this strange, powerful "Two-legged Beast" that also radiated an aura of familiarity and safety it instinctively felt. A low, wary purr rumbled in its throat.
What do you want to talk about?
’This is more like it!’
Seeing the ferocious gleam in the mother tiger’s eyes fade, replaced by a wary uncertainty, Yang Qi thought to himself.
Maintaining his posture with palms spread and his aura gentle, he continued to speak.
"You must have sensed the recent changes in this mountain, haven’t you?"
The mother tiger’s huge body was still lying on its side, but it struggled less. A low purr rumbled in its throat, tinged with confusion.
There have been some changes. It’s quieter than before.
"I did that," Yang Qi admitted directly.
What?
The mother tiger was visibly startled. Its amber pupils contracted sharply as it stared intently at Yang Qi.
"I’m the one who caused the changes in this mountain."
Yang Qi repeated calmly, simultaneously releasing a gentle trace of aura that was of the same origin as the Array. "I’ve made it so this vast stretch of forest will primarily belong to animals, and Two-legged Beasts like me. Other, unfamiliar Two-legged Beasts will find it very difficult to barge in here anymore."
The mother tiger was completely stunned. It tilted its enormous head slightly, its eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
It couldn’t comprehend a concept like an "Array," but it could clearly sense that the aura emanating from Yang Qi was from the same source as the intangible changes in the forest.
’This Two-legged Beast... can he really influence this entire forest?’
Yang Qi struck while the iron was hot. "The food in this mountain is plentiful, the water is clean, and there are no other beasts of prey that can threaten you. If you stay here, you can raise your cubs better. I usually won’t come to this area, so you can rest easy and stay here."
These words struck a chord with the mother tiger.
Its original plan had indeed been to take its cubs and leave Cangshan.
According to its past experience and instincts, now that its den had been discovered by this powerful Two-legged Beast, this place was no longer safe. It had to migrate.
But migration was easier said than done.
For it to make a long journey with two cubs less than a month old and with extremely poor mobility was a massive risk.