Chapter 21

A sharp howl suddenly came from the bushes, and a fierce beast charged through the forest, knocking down many small trees that were as tall as a person, causing the bushes to shake violently in a straight line pointing towards the wild boar's den at the tree stump.

"Don't let the purple-striped boar get away!"

"There it is, quick, chase it!"

Seven or eight young men, about the same age as Yang Junshan, emerged from behind the bushes in the valley, shouting and chasing the purple-striped boar from a distance of twenty to thirty feet. The one leading the group had a shimmering light under his feet, and as he ran, a thread of green spiritual light trailed behind him, pulling him several feet ahead of his companions. Clearly, he was using a spell to enhance his speed. This person was Zhang Yueming, the genius cultivator from Mengyu County.

Zhang Yueming held a ball of spiritual light in his hand. He threw it, and the ball of light suddenly sprouted a pair of wings in mid-air, transforming into a vivid spiritual light bird that chirped and flew through the air, diving down to peck at the back of the fleeing purple-striped boar. The bird then burst into a shower of spiritual light, which returned to Zhang Yueming's hand and reformed into a ball.

"Is that a spell talisman?"

Su Baozhang's eyes flashed with surprise as he asked in a low voice.

"Yes, it's a spell talisman, and it's a reusable spiritual jade spell talisman!"

Su Baozhang's voice carried a hint of envy as he said, "How much must the Heaven-Shaking Sect value him!"

Unlike ordinary spell talismans made of paper, which carry the spellcaster's spiritual energy and the spell array, and once activated, release the sealed power through the paper, causing it to turn to ash, a spiritual jade spell talisman uses jade as its medium. Jade itself contains rich spiritual energy and is more durable than paper. If the sealed power does not exceed the jade's capacity and is released in an orderly manner, the jade talisman can recover on its own or with the help of the user's spiritual energy, allowing for multiple uses.

Of course, multiple uses do not mean infinite use. At least, the spiritual jade talisman in Zhang Yueming's hand, after multiple uses, was already covered in cracks and could shatter at any moment.

The purple-striped boar, after being pecked by the spiritual light bird, spurted a gush of blood from its back. The boar let out a painful howl and increased its speed, perhaps because it was nearing its den. Using the familiar terrain, the boar darted left and right through the bushes, temporarily escaping Zhang Yueming and the others' sight.

After shaking off the pursuit, the boar slowed its pace but moved silently. The young men still searching for the boar in the bushes had no idea that the purple-striped boar had already left the bushes and was sprinting down the hill towards its den.

However, the boar now looked extremely pitiful, with at least five or six similar wounds on its blood-soaked back. Some wounds were still bleeding, while others were slowly clotting. These wounds were clearly inflicted by the spiritual light bird that Zhang Yueming had thrown.

Yang Junshan and his companion, observing from a higher vantage point, never lost sight of the boar. As the boar moved further away from the bushes, its speed slowed, and they could see its breathing becoming more labored, clearly exhausted from the pursuit by the young men.

The purple-striped boar, stretching over five feet in length, was a large creature with two large, white, curved tusks like crescent moons hanging from its mouth. Its deep purple fur was adorned with cloud patterns, and the deeper and denser the patterns, the higher the quality of the purple cloud skin it could produce.

Despite this, Yang Junshan and his companion did not dare to make any sudden moves. Not only were they still some distance from the boar, but also, just a few dozen feet ahead, a giant bear was lurking in a patch of low bushes, preventing them from acting rashly.

Moreover, if Yang Junshan's guess was correct, there was another fierce beast hiding in the grass behind a nearby mound of earth, waiting to attack the boar.

The boar, unaware of the imminent danger, continued along the familiar path, gradually increasing the distance between itself and the pursuing young men. As it neared its den, the boar suddenly stopped, its momentum causing the ground to be plowed into several furrows.

The giant tree that had once stood above its den was now broken, leaving only a few feet of stump. The boar instinctively sensed the danger and turned to flee down the hill through a ditch.

Roar!

A deafening roar erupted above the boar, not only terrifying the boar to its core but also shaking the hearts of Yang Junshan and his companion, who were hiding a mile away.

Yang Junshan steadied his mind and looked up. Amidst the rustling branches and leaves, a large, agile figure leaped out, its white fangs gleaming in the sunlight as it lunged for the boar's neck.

Shaken by the roar, the boar finally reacted, the purple cloud patterns on its body flowing as if coming to life. The boar leaped forward, narrowly avoiding the beast's bite but was slashed by a massive paw, creating deep gashes on its side, causing it to scream in pain.

"It's a mountain tiger!"

The white, yellow, and black-striped fur made it difficult to spot the mountain tiger in the forest. Nearly ten feet long, it had a patterned tail like a steel whip and a large, fearsome face with three black stripes forming a faint "Wang" character, symbolizing its status as a king of the mountains.

The boar, already weakened from the pursuit by the young men and now ambushed by the mountain tiger near its den, seemed to realize that escape was impossible. Instead, it unleashed its innate ferocity, charging at the mountain tiger, a king of the Hundred Sparrow Mountains.

The purple cloud patterns on its fur shimmered, and the boar lowered its head, its curved tusks like daggers, charging at the mountain tiger.

The mountain tiger, caught off guard by the boar's ferocity, saw the boar about to collide with its belly. If the boar used the momentum to strike upward, even the mountain tiger would be gutted by its tusks!

The mountain tiger's massive body twisted, narrowly avoiding the collision. A sharp cry followed, and the boar's left cheek was struck by the tiger's tail, leaving it bloodied and mangled. The boar's charge was deflected, missing the tiger's vital areas but slicing two deep wounds on its left hind leg.

The mountain tiger roared in anger, never expecting the boar to counterattack so fiercely. As the boar's tusks sliced two wounds on its hind leg, the tiger's front paw struck the boar's side, sending the boar rolling on the ground.

The mountain tiger roared again, pouncing on the boar. The two beasts, now bleeding, rolled on the ground, but the mountain tiger quickly gained the upper hand, while the boar fought with its last ounce of strength.

A dense sound of footsteps and shouts came from the nearby forest as Zhang Yueming and the young men, having lost the boar's trail, followed the sounds of the beasts' struggle.

The appearance of the mountain tiger was clearly unexpected by the young men, and its fearsome reputation made them wary and even fearful.

Zhang Yueming tightly clutched something in his hand. His initial desire for the boar's spiritual essence had changed the moment he saw the mountain tiger, not out of fear but excitement!

With the mountain tiger, who would want the boar!

Of course, having both would be ideal, and this seemed to be the best opportunity. The struggle between the boar and the tiger was like a fight between a clam and a sandpiper, and he could not miss this chance to benefit.

"Brother Ming, what should we do?"

"Brother Ming, let's retreat. That's a mountain tiger, we can't fight it!"

They were all cowards, relying on the Heaven-Shaking Sect for protection. Such a mindset would not guarantee their entry into the sect, even if they had the innate talent.

However, he needed their help, and now was the time to steady their nerves and boost their courage.

"What are you afraid of? The mantis catches the cicada, but the oriole is behind. This is the perfect opportunity for us to join forces and take down both beasts. Think about it, these are two high-grade fierce beasts, especially the mountain tiger, which may have high-grade spiritual tiger bones, a treasure even better than the purple-striped boar's skin!"

With that, Zhang Yueming revealed the object in his hand and patted the long sword hanging from his waist. "Besides the spiritual jade spell talisman, I have a firebird spell talisman. Although it's made of paper and can only be used once, it's powerful enough to deal with high-level human realm cultivators. I also have a Heaven-Shaking Sect immortal's personally bestowed emerald light sword, which, though not as powerful as the firebird talisman, can be used multiple times and is even more powerful than the spiritual jade talisman. With all of you helping, can we not take down two injured beasts?"

Zhang Yueming paused and revealed his final trump card. "Don't forget, these two high-grade fierce beasts may have other spiritual essences. I, Zhang Yueming, only want the purple-striped boar's skin and the mountain tiger's bones. The rest, including everything on these beasts, will be yours. What do you say?"