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Chapter 202: The Shadow Tiger Pack
🕑 Added 2024-09-17 05:18:55 +0000 UTC"Battle Qi Seed? Yes, it's the Battle Qi Seed! Armando has actually become an apprentice knight..." The surprise on Tadel's face gradually faded, replaced by a smile. He thought to himself, not sure what kind of stimulus this kid had received to suddenly change like this.
The faint green Battle Qi fluctuations, though weak, continued to spread.
Tadel kept watching.
"Hmm? Wait." He suddenly recalled that Curls hadn't left yet, and while chatting with him, Unica seemed to be talking with Lawrence.
The direction Armando had been staring at… was towards those two...
Hiss
It seemed he had stumbled upon quite the secret.
Tadel looked at Armando with a gaze that turned odd and amused, mixed with a hint of sympathy...
He couldn't help but recall his own youthful days, thinking of some interesting memories.
Shaking his head with a sigh.
A few minutes later, the faint green mist gradually dissipated.
Armando panted, staring blankly at the ground. The surging Battle Qi within him had completely merged into his cells. Suddenly possessing a strength far beyond his previous capabilities left him feeling a bit unreal.
That sensation just now… it was so strange. Did he… break through? Had he become the apprentice knight he had longed to be?
A trace of barely perceptible joy flashed in his eyes, but it quickly faded as he remembered something, and his expression turned bleak again.
But what good would it do...
"Congratulations, Armando!"
A deep voice sounded from behind. Tadel walked up slowly, smiling as he said:
"After two years, you've become an apprentice knight. That speed is acceptable. Although not exceptional, with hard work, you can achieve great things in the future!"
"Thank you, Coach Tadel." Armando's mood was low, and the feelings of a young heart aren't so easily dispelled. Not wanting to talk more, he turned to leave.
Tadel watched Armando's departing figure, understanding well that the young man needed to process his emotions.
Halfway through leaving, Armando stopped and then turned back.
"Hmm? Is there something else?" Tadel asked curiously.
Armando looked up:
"Coach, I want to join the Ranger Squad."
"You want to join the Ranger Squad?"
Hearing this request, Tadel's brows furrowed involuntarily:
"Armando, I remember you once said you wanted to wield your sword to clear the path for the Lord. I never heard you mention wanting to become a ranger."
Seeing Armando remain silent, Tadel sighed, waving his hand somewhat helplessly:
"Fine, fine. It's your choice. Besides, it saves me from dealing with Flano complaining about stealing his people…"
Armando secretly sighed in relief, avoiding Tadel's gaze.
"After breakfast, head straight to Flano at the Dark Veined Hawk Branch." Tadel waved his hand dismissively, his interest waning.
"Thank you, Coach Tadel!" Armando cast a grateful glance before quickly leaving.
"Lord, good morning." As soon as Armando stepped outside, he saw Rhett strolling along the street and hurriedly greeted him in surprise.
Noticing the slight change in his mood, Rhett's expression remained unchanged as he smiled:
"Hehe, so that fluctuation earlier was caused by you. Looks like you've broken through to become an apprentice knight. Not bad!"
"Thank you for your praise, my lord." After a brief exchange, Armando headed west.
"Armando, where are you going? The secondary fort is this way." Rhett pointed to the left, reminding him.
Armando turned back, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly:
"My lord, I've decided to join Coach Flano's Ranger Squad, so I'm heading to the Dark Veined Hawk Branch to visit him..."
Rhett raised an eyebrow: "I see... Go ahead, then. I hope you become an outstanding ranger soon!"
"Yes, I won't disappoint your training, my lord!"
Not long after, Tadel also walked out of the training ground. Seeing Rhett, his face lit up, and he greeted him: "Good morning, my lord."
"Good morning, Tadel. So Armando has finally broken through. He mentioned joining the Ranger Squad?"
"That's right." Tadel smiled broadly, glancing around before stepping closer and lowering his voice:
"My lord, I just discovered something interesting."
"Oh? What could it be, to make it so mysterious?" Rhett's interest was piqued.
Tadel whispered, "It seems Armando likes Unica, and just now…"
Rhett listened intently, and by the end, there was a hint of understanding in his eyes.
So it turns out the force behind Armando's breakthrough was love? No, more accurately… it was the power of jealousy... Rhett clicked his tongue:
"Tsk tsk, so it seems Unica has become a little goddess of the training ground?"
Tadel mused, "It seems that way. Thinking back, there have always been some young knights who would sneak glances at her during breaks in training..."
Ah, the inevitability of young love… Rhett chuckled softly and asked, knowingly:
"So, does Unica have a favorite knight?"
"She probably… does. She seems quite close with Lawrence."
"I see..."
Rhett nodded lightly, making no further comment or showing any reaction, and quietly walked off elsewhere.
Tadel, deep in thought, headed to the secondary fort alone.
As a lord, Rhett looked at things from a broader perspective. He was pleased to see his extraordinary subordinates pairing up, as it increased the chances of producing gifted offspring. In the long run, this was undoubtedly beneficial for the territory.
However, he hoped that the passions of youth wouldn't lead to any tragedies...
Fortunately, with the simulation, it wasn't something he truly worried about.
After a brief inspection of Dark Eagle City, Rhett returned to Deep Rock Fortress.
Sitting at his desk, he pulled out a notebook from the stack in the top left corner. When he opened it, the pages were blank.
He pondered: "It's time to release more of Coiling Dragon. But not too much, another 500,000 words should be just right…"
As he thought about it, he recalled the next plot: "It should be the auction of Linley's stone sculpture, and after that, he returns home to find that his father has been killed by the king's brother, which sets him on the path of revenge."
With that, he began writing on the first page:
"Yun Ling, the reason Linley sought Yun Ling was actually to refine Blood Dissolving Poison Powder, and the purpose of that poison was to deal with Clyde…"
Time quietly passed over the course of a month.
During this time, Rhett primarily focused on meditation and magical training, only occasionally taking time to transcribe more of Coiling Dragon.
It took him an entire month to finish writing the second part of Coiling Dragon, totaling 500,000 words.
One morning, Rhett finished the last sentence and closed the book.
He gazed out the window at the falling snow, the howling wind, and the swaying branches, truly feeling the wrath of winter.
He then walked over to a mirror by the door, straightened his clothes, and opened the door to leave the room.
Leisurely stepping down the black stone staircase, he found his family already seated neatly at the dining table, waiting for him.
"Good morning, Father."
The sound of greetings filled his ears, and Rhett smiled as he took his seat at the head of the table.
"Father, what’s that you're holding?" Tucker asked curiously, eyeing the notebook in Rhett's hand.
"Oh, it's nothing, just a novel." Rhett handed Coiling Dragon to Riley. "Riley, would you mind taking this to Thales later?"
Riley smiled elegantly, "It would be my pleasure."
Holding the cool cover, Riley asked, "May I take a look, Father?"
"Of course, it's just a regular fantasy novel." Rhett shrugged.
At that moment, Maru, the cook, led a group of maids who pushed a cart through the hallway, each maid placing a dish on the table while announcing in crisp voices:
"Master/Madam/Young Master, please enjoy your meal."
Rhett first sipped some hot milk before cutting into his steak with a knife and fork.
Meanwhile, Riley, flipping through the pages, became engrossed in the content. After a while, he exclaimed in amazement:
"Incredible. Although I don't usually read novels, this one tells an exciting story."
He looked up at Rhett and asked, "Father, are you also an excellent novelist?"
I'm just an excellent plagiarist… Rhett remained calm, skewering a piece of steak and putting it in his mouth as he replied slowly, "Hmm, perhaps I have a bit of talent."
"Unbelievable."
Riley murmured, clearly taken with the book, and after reading a few more pages, he finally closed it.
"Wanessa, here, have some fruit salad." Tucker, uninterested in books—even novels—gently stroked Wanessa's swollen belly and served her some fruit salad.
Rhett glanced over, "Tucker, have you thought of a name for my granddaughter yet? This time, I'm not going to help you with that. You should come up with one yourself."
Tucker frowned, "Huh? I thought Father had already decided on one for me!"
As expected of you, not even paying attention to your own child… Rhett's face darkened. "Hmph, I've already warned you. There's still time. I hope you won't disappoint me…"
Wanessa swallowed a cherry tomato wrapped in salad and smiled gently:
"Father, I actually… have a name in mind."
Rhett's face lit up with a smile:
"Wanessa, what name do you have in mind?"
"Tracy Green. How does that sound?"
"Good, that's a nice name." Tucker's eyes lit up, and he echoed his wife’s sentiment as soon as she finished speaking.
"Hmm, not bad, but a name lasts a lifetime, so there's still time to think about it before the birth." Rhett didn't express his opinion but instead offered some advice.
After enjoying a hearty breakfast, Rhett called for Firegrip.
Despite the heavy snowfall, Firegrip remained fiery and vibrant. The snowflakes melted as soon as they got close.
When Rhett sat on Firegrip's back, it was soft and warm. Gently stroking its neck, he said:
"Firegrip, let's head to the Dark Veined Hawk Branch."
"Chirp!"
Like a rocket, a streak of light shot into the sky, quickly carrying Rhett to the branch.
He hadn't forgotten that today, a Tier 5 Shadow Tiger, along with a pack of beasts, would be roaming near the Dark Veined Hawk Branch. In the entire territory, only he had the strength to deal with it, and any delay could be disastrous.
Whether it was the Ranger Squad, subordinates on mountain missions, or the civilians and extraordinary individuals in Dark Eagle City, they could all be moving through the branch.
A Tier 5 Shadow Tiger carried a significant threat!
The howling wind blew past his ears as Rhett looked down, scanning the fast-moving forest and land for signs of the beast pack.
The snow-covered landscape made it easy to spot any sizable group of beasts.
However, after an hour of searching from high above, Rhett had found nothing.
He only encountered some Tier 4 magical beasts deep within the branch, the usual residents of the area.
Rhett didn’t plan on disturbing any magical beasts below Tier 5 in the branch. One reason was to maintain the population of magical beasts, and the other was to discourage extraordinary individuals from Dark Eagle City from entering the mountains too casually.
During his search, he also checked on the Dark Veined Eagles on the lone peak.
It's worth noting that, thanks to Master Aesard's aphrodisiac potion, after a few months, two female eagles were already pregnant, with one even laying an egg and beginning to incubate it.
After leaving the lone peak, Rhett patiently rode Firegrip to the northern area of the Dark Veined Hawk Branch, which bordered the White Rat Branch. If the magical beasts were to cross over, they would most likely come from this direction.
The forest, dressed in a blanket of snow, gradually quieted down by noon as the blizzard's fury subsided, leaving only gentle flurries like floating willow seeds.
Small animals in the forest began to emerge, scurrying between the trees in search of food.
Rhett, however, was feeling a bit bored.
Firegrip turned its head and chirped, conveying that it was hungry.
Rhett smiled warmly.
"Just a bit longer. Soon, we'll have a feast…"
Suddenly, a flash of light crossed his eyes as he stared in surprise to the left:
"They've finally arrived. It wasn't in vain to wait so long…"
On the snow-covered ground, a "black spot" appeared.
Lowering his perspective, he saw over a hundred Shadow Tigers moving in formation, their powerful strides cutting through the snow.
Most of them ranged between three to five meters in length, but the leading Shadow Tiger was over seven meters long. Its bones were dense, muscles bulging, and its gray-black fur formed thick stripes, with hair as sharp as needles. A pair of crimson eyes glinted with cold indifference.
It looked up at the approaching Firefeather Eagle and human, and its pupils filled with intense killing intent! A low, deep growl rumbled from its throat...
Rhett, however, gazed coolly at the Shadow Tiger, patting Firegrip’s back before leaping off, letting Firegrip fly away.
After all, Firegrip was too weak now. If it got too close, Rhett had no doubt it would be easily crushed into pulp.
Enveloped in green wind elements, Rhett gently landed on the ground.
Seeing the unfamiliar human, the nearly hundred Shadow Tigers roared in fury.
"Roar!" "Roar!" "Roar!"...
The tigers' roars echoed through the mountains!
The intense sound waves scattered the snowflakes, creating a brief vacuum on the ground.
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