When she heard Zhuang Sinan say there was a tiger in Qingmeng Mountain that was human shaped and stood two meters tall, Zhang Jin’s face turned green, and the corners of her eyes twitched uncontrollably.
We asked you to find the cause of the changes in Mulian Village, not to find a white tiger woman who sounds ten thousand times more troublesome than the giant catfish!
Even if she wasn’t a practitioner, she had watched enough TV shows and read enough novels to know that among monsters, the more human they looked, the more powerful they were!
Wasn’t the spiritual energy supposed to have just begun its resurgence?
Wasn’t everyone currently fighting over spiritual energy because it was so incredibly precious?
Then where did this human shaped white tiger come from??
Was this really not some kind of prank?!
Where was the local Forestry Bureau? Where were the animal protection organizations?
How could you people hide such a massive white tiger?!
The head of the Forestry Bureau also felt wronged.
Qingmeng Mountain was a natural reserve filled with miasma and many restricted areas, so wildlife protection work naturally wasn’t as thorough as it could be.
But as for this white tiger, forget about them—even the most experienced forest rangers had never seen it!
It was as if it had appeared out of thin air.
Ma Lanhua was also puzzled.
From childhood to adulthood, she had seen more animals than people. Animals capable of becoming demons were basically old monsters from before the founding of the country, and even if they had lived until now, they should be shriveled and wrinkled.
Forget about taking human form, they shouldn't even be able to use basic spells. At most, they could steal a few chickens, snatch a dog, or help people with minor spiritual matters; they couldn't do anything more than that.
Forget about her Ma family, even looking at all the other sects, aside from the bulldog guarding the gate for Master Zhang on Longhu Mountain, she had never heard of a second human shaped demon still alive.
Since it hadn't become a demon before the spiritual resurgence, then it must have happened in the last two years?
But how was that possible?
Demons cultivated much slower than humans and had to endure three calamities and five tribulations, getting struck by lightning every fifty years.
Furthermore, they didn't just automatically gain a human form after a certain amount of time. It depended on fate. It took decades of hard work just to refine the transverse bone in their throats so they could speak human language, and that was only the first step.
And even that seemingly simple step stopped countless little demons who lacked the necessary aptitude.
Taking ten thousand steps back, even if that white tiger had found some incredible opportunity and claimed an entire spiritual pulse for itself, it still shouldn't have been able to cultivate a human form in such a short time.
What happened? Did she eat some immortal pills to grow that fast??
“I don’t want to believe it either.”
Zhuang Sinan had two clumps of tissue stuffed in his nostrils as he pointed to himself:
“That is definitely a demon, and her cultivation is quite high. Ordinary people might not feel it, but I only took one look through the drone screen and she likely noticed me. She gave me a warning.”
A nosebleed and some internal injuries were considered light. His master had taught him that for a superior being, prying was an offense in itself.
But even with the spiritual resurgence, a human shaped demon shouldn't just pop up overnight, right?
It was as if everyone was standing at the same starting line. Some people, relying on their ancestors' legacy, started a few steps ahead. Others were naturally gifted and moved quite fast.
But a human shaped white tiger, a being that had almost completed its transformation, mixing in with this crowd was like racing against people while riding a Dongfeng missile.
Wasn't this a total dimensional reduction strike?
“Hiss...”
Ma Lanhua couldn't help but touch her cheek, patting his hand with lingering fear:
“Then you really dodged a bullet. Otherwise, since you weren't that far away, if she had truly been angry, she could have shattered your soul with a single vibration. Even if you didn't die, you’d have spent the rest of your life as an idiot.”
Truly, the ignorant are fearless. What was he thinking at the time?
Zhuang Sinan gave a bitter smile.
As for Yu Lan, after watching the scene of the hundred beasts paying homage, she sat alone in silence for ten minutes before regaining her remaining rationality. She forced herself to ask one question:
“Does that tiger... know the giant catfish?”
Though it sounded funny, everyone took the question very seriously.
That was right. They were both non human species. What if the tiger retaliated while they were capturing the catfish?
While they could theoretically bombard the area with missiles, the cost would be too high.
As everyone fell into deep thought, Zhuang Sinan’s eyes flickered, and he spoke tentatively:
“The other party noticed my spying but only gave a small warning, which means she probably isn't an evil demon. Since she has intelligence, it means we can communicate—”
If communication was possible...
Everyone’s gaze turned toward Ma Lanhua. She understood what they meant and nodded:
“That’s fine. My spirit guardians have a few members who are quite prestigious and well spoken. If this tiger is reasonable, we can find a Great Immortal to act as a mediator and talk things over. It might just work.
However, my spirit guardians didn't come with me this time. If you want them to come, you’ll have to send someone to my home to invite them. Then, have a high ranking official write a memo. The higher the rank, the better. Ideally, it should have a red seal on the back.”
Seeing the confusion on everyone's faces, Ma Lanhua thought for a moment and used an example to explain:
“Have you all watched 《Justice Bao》? There’s an episode where a dead person tries to file a complaint with Bao Zheng, but the door gods block him from entering the yamen. In the end, Bao Zheng had to write a memo for him to get in.
It’s the same for my spirit guardians. We originally agreed not to cross the Shanhai Pass, and now you’ve already crossed the Qinling Mountains. Without a memo, my spirit guardians might get held up and won't be able to make it over.”
Someone raised a question: “...Shouldn't immortals be able to fly here themselves, or use some kind of earth escape technique to travel a thousand miles a day?”
“You’ve watched too much TV. Of course the Great Immortals have to take a plane to get here. It’s not like the old days. Traveling a thousand miles a day or flying through the sky requires a high level of dharma power.”
Ma Lanhua looked strangely at the person who asked, adding:
“If you weren't reimbursing the plane tickets, the old immortals probably wouldn't even splurge on a hard seat on a train; they’d just hitch a ride on a freight truck.”
The expressions of everyone present became somewhat subtle.
What... what down to earth immortals.
Your old immortals are quite frugal.
Zhang Jin agreed immediately.
It was just signing a document. No matter how troublesome that was, could it be more troublesome than a human shaped white tiger and a giant catfish?
Thinking about the report she would have to write later, she even felt a bit numb inside.
Yu Lan quickly made a decision:
“Even though the situation has changed and needs to be reported, the rescue cannot be delayed. We must make preparations on two fronts.
On one hand, we will attempt to communicate with the non human species in the mountains, the white tiger woman, while using heavy firepower to isolate a blockade zone to ensure she does not interfere with our plans. On the other hand, we will continue with the original plan to lure the monster fish into Stone River for capture, but we must try to avoid opening fire.”
At this point, she pursed her lips and said solemnly to everyone:
“If an anomaly occurs in the mountains, I will personally lead my team to stop the white tiger. Even if we have to bleed our last drop of blood, my comrades and I will use our bodies as a wall to keep it within the blockade zone.”
Not a single person present doubted the truth of her words.
Because they understood, they fell silent.
All the plans just now were based on the assumption that the white tiger could be reasoned with and held goodwill toward humans.
What if they were wrong?
What if the white tiger, like the catfish, saw humans as food that could run and jump?
A catfish hidden at the bottom of a lake had already caused so many deaths.
What about a more powerful, more troublesome human shaped white tiger?
How strong was her power?
Would she harm humans?
What was her attitude toward humanity?
Would the tragedies of demon massacres from cultivation novels happen in reality?
No one could guarantee it.
No one dared to guarantee it.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be the first to go when the time comes. I am a Party member, and Xixiang belongs to the people of Xixiang. We won't give it up to anyone else, whether it’s a tiger demon or a fish monster.”
Zhang Jin smiled and patted Yu Lan’s shoulder, her eyes full of encouragement:
“Just focus on completing the task the organization gave you. We’ll find a way to handle the rest.”
They couldn't retreat.
Of course they couldn't retreat.
Behind them were residential areas and hundreds of thousands of ordinary citizens.
A man eating giant monster lurked in the lake, and a human shaped demon that only appeared in myths was in the mountains, but not a single person in the operations room suggested a retreat.
Fear?
How could they not be afraid.
But their wives, children, lovers, and parents were all behind them. Where would they retreat to?
This was their Xixiang. Why should they retreat?
Even if things truly reached an unavoidable point, it would only be after the sons and daughters of Xixiang had shed their last drop of blood.
This was the grit of the people of Xixiang; this was the backbone of the people of Great Xia.
Yu Lan slowly raised her hand and gave a salute.
Rate on N.U.
