Chapter 140: Bloodshadow Tiger

As soon as Mr. Bowen entered the cavern, his attention was caught by the faintly blood-red, translucent tiger. He was not a reckless man, however. He walked over to Song Nianqiang and the others, adjusted his glasses, and stared motionlessly at the translucent tiger.

“It really is the kind of tomb that appears only in legends. Even a Blood-Shadow Tiger, something seen only once in a thousand years, has appeared here. It seems that legendary Book of Prophecy must be inside.” Mr. Bowen stared at the tiger for a while before speaking in astonishment. The Blood-Shadow Tiger was a special kind of spirit entity. It had long since vanished, but a thousand years ago it had truly existed—though only briefly, like a flash of summer.

The Blood-Shadow Tiger was born alongside the Blood Tiger Stone. Wherever a Blood Tiger Stone appeared, a Blood-Shadow Tiger would certainly be found guarding it. Judging by the situation, the blood-red tiger head was the Blood Tiger Stone. Mr. Bowen knew only that the translucent creature before them was a Blood-Shadow Tiger; he had no idea how to deal with it. The ancient texts contained far too little information about the creature.

“If you want to enter through that black door, you must first destroy the Blood Tiger Stone. But before you can destroy the stone, you have to get rid of this Blood-Shadow Tiger. Don’t look at me—I don’t know how to eliminate it either. You’ll have to figure it out yourselves.”

Mr. Bowen was at least honest. If he did not know something, he would not say a word more than necessary.

With that, he found a spot toward the rear and plopped himself down. From the look of him, he intended to sit back and watch how everyone else dealt with the Blood-Shadow Tiger. Seeing his posture, Song Nianqiang felt a headache coming on. Apparently, even the people sent by the state could not all be relied upon.

“What do we do now? Should I go up and test it?” Song Nianqiang pointed toward the Blood-Shadow Tiger, which was glaring menacingly at them from beneath the Blood Tiger Stone.

Zhu Tianyi immediately shook his head. “Let our people try first. After all, you two are working for the state this time. Oh, right—I nearly forgot to tell you. The Premier said that if this mission is completed successfully, he will secretly reward you with one hundred million. You heard me—one hundred million!”

Zhu Tianyi had suddenly remembered the Premier’s words before he left.

“One hundred million? Holy—!” Song Nianqiang and Big Fatty were so shocked that they nearly leaped into the air at the same time.

“Damn! The state really is loaded!” Big Fatty finally managed to calm himself, though he still could not resist swearing. The Premier had originally planned to offer Song Nianqiang and Big Fatty some other benefits, but after thinking it over, he had decided that money would be more practical. After all, Song Nianqiang had another identity besides the one they knew.

“You two have really struck it lucky. If this mission goes smoothly, you’ll become billionaires. Ha-ha! When I’m broke, I’ll come borrow some money from you. Don’t leave me standing outside your door!” Li Runze was likewise stunned by the news. What exactly was inside this place that could make the state offer two people one hundred million as a reward?

“Get lost. You think this mission is going to be easy? One hundred million is no small sum. Whether we’ll still be alive to collect it is another question!” Song Nianqiang replied irritably.

And he was right. For the state to offer two people one hundred million as a reward, even if they had been the ones to discover this place, meant that entering safely and bringing out whatever lay inside would be a life-or-death struggle. One careless mistake, and they would be dead.

“I believe you two have what it takes to survive. Now let Second Brother go up and find out whether that thing is a tiger or a rat.”

Zhu Tianyi cut off Song Nianqiang’s complaints and waved Second Brother forward. Second Brother nodded and stepped ahead.

This tiger was, after all, something that existed only in legend. As a modern man, Second Brother could not help feeling a trace of psychological pressure, even though his speed was astonishing and his attacks extremely sharp.

“Whoosh!”

Second Brother moved. He was not as fast as Cannon Brother, Lin Dapao, but he was still the second-fastest person Song Nianqiang had ever seen. His figure blurred as he reached the Blood-Shadow Tiger’s side. Raising his fist, he slammed it toward the tiger’s forehead.

Yet it was as though he had punched empty air. The force nearly sent him staggering.

His attack having missed, Second Brother quickly retreated. But he had underestimated the Blood-Shadow Tiger’s speed. The tiger’s figure flashed, leaving behind a pale-red afterimage. In the next instant, it appeared behind him, one of its claws turning dark red as it struck viciously into the small of his back.

Fortunately, Second Brother had retreated quickly enough to escape the Blood-Shadow Tiger’s effective range. Otherwise, that blow would have crippled him completely. Even so, the flesh over his back was smashed into a bloody mess.

With a muffled groan, Second Brother landed on the ground, but he continued forward for nearly three meters before finally stopping.

“Second Brother, are you all right?” concerned voices rang out at once.

The four brothers had been together for nearly five years and were exceptionally close. Seeing Second Brother struck by the tiger’s claw, they hurriedly called out to him.

Second Brother shook his head. “I’m fine. It just hurts a little.”

People like them had suffered so many injuries in the past that they had long since lost count. A wound like this was hardly worth mentioning.

“Second Brother, don’t force yourself if you can’t manage it. I brought you all here, so I have to take responsibility for bringing you back,” Zhu Tianyi said, hurrying over when he saw Second Brother preparing to fight to the death.

“I’m fine. I won’t fall before the second and third teams arrive.”

Second Brother gave a bitter smile and shook his head. Seeing him like this, Zhu Tianyi nearly charged forward himself and hacked the little tiger apart. But before coming here, the old man had personally warned them that they absolutely must not fight before reaching the main hall.

The moment they attacked, the tomb would record them and analyze their techniques in perfect detail. By then, dealing with the final old monster would become far more difficult.

This time, however, Second Brother was not in a hurry. He moved toward the Blood-Shadow Tiger inch by inch. As long as the tiger did not move, he would not attack. Although he had been facing away from it when it struck him, he now understood clearly that the Blood-Shadow Tiger was far faster than he was—by more than just a little.

Slowly, he pulled a pair of gloves from his waist and put them on. Blue sparks suddenly crackled across their surface.

Electricity—high-voltage current of several thousand volts. This was Second Brother’s weapon.

Under several thousand volts of electricity, even spirits like ghosts could undergo a drastic transformation. Unless they were particularly powerful entities, ordinary ghosts would vanish into smoke the moment he struck them.

Perhaps the Blood-Shadow Tiger sensed the threat posed by the gloves. It immediately arched its body and let out a low growl.

Second Brother paid no attention to the warning. He continued advancing one step at a time.

After another three steps, he finally crossed the tiger’s boundary.

The Blood-Shadow Tiger sprang into the air and pounced straight at him. Seeing it clearly, Second Brother tightened his fist and punched toward the tiger just as it was about to reach him.

But once again, something strange happened.

His fist passed straight through the Blood-Shadow Tiger.

Second Brother had failed to hit it, but that did not mean it had failed to hit him. One of the tiger’s claws instantly turned dark red and swept toward his head.

Fortunately, Second Brother was fast enough. He dodged to one side, but the claw still tore away a large chunk of flesh from his shoulder. Blood immediately soaked through his snow-white shirt.

“Damn it!”

Second Brother cried out in pain and hurriedly threw another punch. The result was exactly the same. His fist passed through the tiger’s head as if the creature were nothing more than an illusion.

The intense pain in his shoulder forced him to retreat.

“How are we supposed to hit it?”

After Second Brother withdrew, Third Brother immediately took out a piece of gauze and wrapped it around his shoulder. Strangely, the wound had been pouring blood only moments earlier, but the bleeding stopped the instant the gauze was applied.

Apparently, this was another secret of the state.

Song Nianqiang cursed inwardly. If they had something this useful, why did they not make it available to ordinary people? Why hide it away like some priceless treasure?

In truth, Song Nianqiang was completely mistaken in blaming the state. It was not that the state did not want to share the technology; the technology was simply too advanced. Moreover, the gauze was outrageously expensive. Though it appeared to be nothing more than a small piece of cloth, manufacturing it cost at least one million.

Using one million to produce a single piece of gauze was something that, in this world, perhaps only the state—a lunatic with bottomless resources—could do.