My words have become law; I truly have no desire to display my divine power before others.

The ghost lay on the ground, finally ceasing its pretense.

He raised his head, the pitiful look on his face completely gone, replaced by a ferocious resentment.

"How...how did you know?"

Ye Qingfeng looked at him:

"You just said that every time you lured someone away, you secretly led them in a different direction. But those two people—Dongzi and Lao Wu—you really don't know where they are?"

The ghost stopped talking.

Ye Qingfeng:

"They've already been eaten by the tiger demon. If you truly meant well, why didn't you warn them sooner? Why wait until they're dead before running back for help?"

The ghost gritted its teeth and remained silent.

Ye Qingfeng:

"You ran back not to save anyone, but to trick these hunters as well."

......

Just then, a deep tiger roar suddenly came from the nearby mountains and forests.

The whistling sound was short and muffled, like a warning or a question.

Upon hearing the tiger's roar, the ghost froze, its expression instantly changing.

He got up from the ground, took a few steps back, and looked at Ye Qingfeng. Fear was gradually replaced by something else.

"The mountain lord... the mountain lord is here..."

He muttered to himself, a hint of madness in his voice.

Then he laughed.

The smile became increasingly distorted and ferocious.

"Daoist Master," he pointed at Ye Qingfeng and shrieked, "you just said I should suffer the consequences. But now that the Mountain Lord is here, you should think about how you're going to suffer the consequences yourself!"

He became increasingly smug as he spoke, laughing arrogantly:

"The Mountain Lord is a tiger demon, having cultivated for over a hundred years! You, a Taoist priest, think you can scare it with a fire spear? Dream on!"

The hunters' expressions changed drastically; they grabbed their weapons and looked towards the dark forest.

The whistling sound grew closer and closer.

A rustling sound came from the grass, as if something huge was approaching.

Lu Yang's legs went weak, but he still managed to stand behind Ye Qingfeng.

Shen Zhaoyue drew her sword, the blade reflecting the firelight, its cold gleam flickering.

Ye Qingfeng remained standing in the same spot, still holding the flaming spear in his hand.

He looked at the rampant madman, then at the dark forest.

Then he moved.

Instead of turning to face the direction of the tiger's roar, it was—

He raised his hand and threw the spear.

The flaming spear transformed into a golden-red streak of light, piercing the demon's chest in the blink of an eye.

The ghost's laughter stopped abruptly.

He looked down at the burning hole in his chest, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"You...you..."

Ye Qingfeng looked at him, his tone still calm:

"You are now reaping the consequences of your actions."

The ghost opened its mouth, but said nothing. The entire ghost turned into a ball of fire and disappeared into the night wind.

Not even ashes remained.

The hunters stared wide-eyed at the scene, still reeling from the shock, when suddenly...

A furious tiger roar echoed from the dark forest.

The whistling sound was completely different from what I had heard before.

It was not a warning, not a declaration of territory, but a genuine, uncontrollable rage.

The tremors made the leaves rustle, made the campfire flicker, and made several hunters' legs go weak, almost causing them to sit down on the ground.

The young hunter's face turned deathly pale: "This...this is..."

The bearded man gripped his steel fork, his hands trembling: "It's that tiger! It's coming! Everyone, get your weapons ready!"

The bushes were suddenly shoved open, and a huge figure lunged out of the darkness!

That was a tiger.

It was twice the size of an ordinary tiger, with golden fur that shimmered like satin in the firelight.

The "王" character on its forehead was so black it shone, as if it had been drawn stroke by stroke with thick ink.

A pair of eyes glowed with a faint green light in the night, the pupils narrowed to slits, staring intently at the people around the campfire.

It landed beside the campfire, on all fours, making the ground tremble.

This scene terrified the hunters; this wasn't a tiger, it was clearly a spirit!

The tiger demon looked down at the spot where the ghost had vanished, where only a wisp of very faint blue smoke remained, drifting away in the night wind.

Then it raised its head and looked at Ye Qingfeng.

His eyes were filled with rage.

It opened its mouth, revealing gleaming white fangs, and could actually speak human language:

"You killed my accomplice."

The voice was deep, as if squeezed from the chest, carrying a fishy smell that made the campfire tilt to the side.

Ye Qingfeng stood still, his expression unchanged, simply watching it.

The tiger demon took a step forward.

With that step, the ground trembled once more.

"My accomplices are my things. I've raised them for three years and made them do things for me."

"You little Taoist priest who appeared out of nowhere, you've learned a few skills, and you dare to kill my subordinates?"

It took another step, and was now less than three zhang away from Ye Qingfeng.

"Do you know that in this back mountain, I am the king? Do you know that in this territory, my word is law?"

Its voice grew louder and louder, making the ears of several hunters ring.

"You killed my henchman, that's disrespecting me. Disrespecting me—"

It suddenly opened its blood-red maw and let out a deafening roar:

"That's just asking for death!"

As the last word fell, it exerted force with all four legs and pounced on Ye Qingfeng!

The speed was astonishing. A yellow shadow flashed by and it pounced in front of Ye Qingfeng, its two front paws slamming down with tremendous force!

In that instant, a blade of light slashed from the side!

It's Shen Zhaoyue.

She had somehow circled around to the tiger demon's side, drew her goose-feather blade, and slashed at the tiger demon's neck!

The tiger demon had to be distracted, changing the direction of its front paws and slapping the blade.

"clang--!"

The blade and claws clashed, producing a metallic clang.

Shen Zhaoyue was so shocked that she staggered back seven or eight steps.

But she didn't fall; she steadied herself and lunged forward again.

The blade flashed repeatedly!

She slashed again and again, each strike aimed at the tiger demon's vital points.

The tiger demon was enormous, but its movements were incredibly fast, dodging and counterattacking time and time again.

Shen Zhaoyue struggled to maintain her balance, but her sword movements became increasingly slow.

Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, and her face was even paler than before.

Lu Yang, watching from the side, was in his throat. He shouted, "Officer Shen!"

Shen Zhaoyue did not answer. She gritted her teeth and slashed out with her sword again.

The blade struck the tiger demon's foreleg, leaving a bloody gash.

The tiger demon roared in pain and slammed its claws onto her knife, sending her flying backward.

Fortunately, she kept releasing her strength, leaving seven or eight deep footprints on the ground, before finally giving in and kneeling down.

"Officer Shen!" Lu Yang ran over to help her up.

Shen Zhaoyue pushed him away, but her eyes were fixed on the tiger demon. She pointed the tip of her knife at the ground and braced herself to keep from falling.

The tiger demon glanced at her and snorted contemptuously:

"He has some skill, but it's not enough."

It turned to Ye Qingfeng:

"Your men are worn out, it's your turn."

Ye Qingfeng remained standing in the same spot, without moving an inch.

He looked at Shen Zhaoyue and nodded slightly, which was considered as approval.