Volume 1, Chapter 15 — Heavenly White Tiger
"Tan Hao, come on, attack!"
Hearing that, Yu Ha dashed at full speed toward Tan Hao and began attacking with her spear.
Tan Hao found it a bit difficult to dodge the flurry of blows, but thanks to his Heavenly Eyes, he could foresee his opponent's attacks and avoid them.
"Why is it so hard to land a hit on him?!" Yu Ha growled.
"Fine! You asked for it! First spirit skill — Great Spear Strike!"
She charged at Tan Hao with countless spear attacks.
"This is an illusion. Only one of those spears is real. I just need to predict which one will hit," Tan Hao thought.
After thinking that, he started dodging — in most cases just moving directly toward Yu Ha. She noticed.
"He figured out that most of my attacks are illusions… Incredible kid."
"Brother!" Xiu Li said anxiously.
"Hua Li, is he going to be okay?"
"Don't worry, Xiu Li. Tan Hao will win. Even if he's a level lower, he can do it."
"I hope so…" Xiu Li muttered.
"Tan Hao is fighting for me… and for my spirit ring," Chen Lin thought to himself with sorrow. "How useless I am…"
Meanwhile, Tan Hao had pinpointed the real spear.
"First spirit skill — Vine Strike!"
Vines burst forth, rushing toward Yu Ha. She jumped back, but it didn't help.
"Second spirit skill — Mana Parasite!"
From Yu Ha's body, vines began to sprout and wrap around her. She was stunned.
"Incredible… He activated two spirit skills in a second! If I'm not mistaken, this boy has a triple core. If that's true, he won't lose much mana even using multiple skills!"
Seeing her frozen, Tan Hao activated the technique Heavenly Step. With incredible speed, he dashed forward, placing a knife to her neck.
Realizing she had lost, Yu Ha gritted her teeth.
"…I surrender."
Bo Lin stepped forward:
"Well then, Madam Yu, as you can see — my student has won. I trust you'll give us the spirit ring?"
"Tch… Fine. Take it. Ha, let's go," she said, then glanced back at Tan Hao before leaving.
Bo Lin came up to Tan Hao and patted him on the shoulder.
"You did great."
"Thank you," Chen Lin said.
"No need to thank me. We're a team," Tan Hao replied. "Now go absorb the ring."
"Right."
Chen Lin walked over and finished off the beast. A purple spirit ring appeared.
"How old is that beast?" Hao Bu asked.
"About 1,200 years old. Perfect for Chen Lin," Tan Hao answered.
"You did great," said Liu Yao.
Over five hours passed. Chen Lin successfully absorbed the spirit ring. Hao Bu walked up.
"Hey, so what's your third spirit skill?"
"Heh… thanks to this new ability, I can fly!"
"Whoa, not bad," Liu Yao said.
"How long can you fly?" asked Bo Lin.
"Five minutes."
"…That's it?" Hao Bu said, puzzled.
"That's kind of weak," Hua Li added.
"I haven't finished!" Chen Lin smirked. "I can fly at the speed of that butterfly."
Tan Hao's eyes widened.
"That's insanely fast… I'd say you fly like you're teleporting."
"Yep," Chen Lin nodded.
"Excellent. Let's move out," Bo Lin ordered.
---
Ten kilometers from the group, under the moonlight, a monster appeared. It was enormous, with two long fangs protruding from its lower jaw. Its form was that of a tiger, and its glowing red eyes shimmered in the night. Opening its mouth, it let out a thunderous roar, and as it walked, trees shattered in its path.
At that moment, the group had begun moving.
"Everyone, about three kilometers left. Let's hurry," said Bo Lin. But when he turned around, he was suddenly struck by a wave of dread.
Looking up, Bo Lin saw glowing red eyes staring down at him.
Suddenly, the massive tiger roared. The shockwave from its roar made it impossible for the students to stand still.
Seeing Lu Hin, Chen Lin ran over and shielded her with his body.
Liu Yao activated his second spirit skill and protected Hua Li.
Meanwhile, Hao Bu flew around chaotically, shouting:
"Help me!!!"
Tan Hao grabbed Xiu Li and protected her with his body.
The roar stopped. Bo Lin, standing closest to the beast, said:
"…The king of the forest. Heavenly White Tiger."
The tiger moved with terrifying speed, blowing past Bo Lin. The resulting shockwave sent him flying, crashing through five trees with his body.
The tiger appeared beside Xiu Li, knocked Tan Hao away, and grabbed her. Then, in an instant, it vanished.
Tan Hao, unable to react in time, crashed onto his back in pain.
Looking at Xiu Li one last time, he rasped:
"…Xiu… Li…"