"Do you hear that?" asked Wu Xingyu.
In the depths of the forest echoed the plaintive cries of a creature, its voice clearly shivering with fear and desperation. The rustle of leaves and twigs accompanied the calls, as though the creature was trapped and struggling within a thicket or deeply condensed shrubbery.
Song Yehai and Wu Xingyu trekked with their lightness skill to cover large distances in leaps, travelling for nearly half a day to leave the desert and arrive at this dense, emerald labyrinth of towering trees, their trunks thick and rough. Its canopy was so thick that sunlight struggled to penetrate, casting dappled shadows on the forest floor that was overrun by a patchwork of moss, ferns, roots, vines and wildflowers.
"Sounds like a deer," Song Yehai determined.
The air was rich with the scent of earth, wood and decaying leaves. As the deer's cries reverberated through the forest, Wu Xingyu couldn't help but shiver with some sympathy.
"It's probably trapped somewhere," added Song Yehai. "Let's go find it."
Following the bleating cries they found a light brown doe trapped in a net that hung from a robust branch that could carry her weight without any signs of snapping or straining, but it did shake as she thrashed her hooves frantically about. Seeing the two grandmasters heightened her fears for the worst, prompting her to writhe even faster and bellow even louder as she dangled helplessly in the air.
Song Yehai used a nearby stone to step on and launch himself high enough to cut the net with his sword. Wu Xingyu used his sash to tie around the severed ropes and lower her slowly. The doe's worries seemed assuaged as she was gently placed on the forest floor. She stood up, shook the net off her body and then galloped off without going too far away.
As the grandmasters continued their journey, Wu Xingyu asked, "How long does she plan on following us?"
"She thought we were the hunters coming to claim our catch when she first saw us, but now that she knows we're her saviour, she would want to stick around for a while. Let her be. There's no harm in that."
"She has no family? No herd that she can return to?"
Song Yehai shrugged his shoulders.
"Should we see if we can shake her off?" Wu Xingyu suggested.
Song Yehai thought about it for a moment before agreeing.
They ran up a trunk and then leapt from branch to branch. Leaves disconnected from their twigs and floated with the winds. Wu Xingyu stepped on them as though they were airborne stepping stones, propelling himself forward effortlessly. Riding the winds, he glided like a falcon, his bends, turns and spins elegant, swift and streamlined.
Song Yehai's ability in this area of martial art could not compare to Wu Xingyu's in terms of speed and skill, but he had enough stamina to keep up. He stayed on the branches while Wu Xingyu continued using just the leaves. To his surprise, Wu Xingyu came to a halt at a running stream.
The doe galloped after them across the forest floor, evading the trees and leaping across ravines as she tailed them closely. Stopping by the stream, and seemingly realising that Wu Xingyu and Song Yehai have come to a stop, she drank some of the water, quenching her thirst.
Wu Xingyu landed next to Song Yehai. "She really is just going to keep following us, isn't she?"
Looking down, Song Yehai nodded. "She's quite smart. And she emits a bit of holy energy as well."
"Are you saying her father was a Golden Antlered Deer?"
"That's a possibility."
They jumped down, landing right next to the doe. Song Yehai took out a bottle and filled it from the stream before drinking the water. He then passed it Wu Xingyu, who also drank a few mouthfuls.
"If we just let her follow us, we'll end up taking her back to the East Seas with us."
Song Yehai sized up the doe. "Looks like we'll have to."
Surprised by Song Yehai's response, Wu Xingyu looked at him. "Are you thinking of starting a herd?"
"Depends if Han Lu fancies her or not."
Wu Xingyu chuckled. "Or if she fancies Han Lu or not."
They headed deeper into the forest until they came across a dirt pathway with faint shoe prints on the surface. The pathway meandered across the uneven terrains, snaking around trees and rocks until it disappeared from sight. Song Yehai and Wu Xingyu allowed the doe to walk beside them as they trekked on it.
"This will lead us to the Tiger Mountain Sect?" asked Wu Xingyu.
"I think that's right," answered Song Yehai.
"You've been to that sect before?"
"Once."
Song Yehai told what he knew of the sect.
The Tiger Mountain Sect was renowned for the style of their martial arts being untamed and belligerent, akin to a real tiger. Residing at the highest peak of Tiger Mountain, they were quite reclusive but sill active in the cultivation world. The current sect leader succeeded to the position after the former sect leader was killed by the Demon Lord no long before his martial older brother Song Yefeng became the Sect Leader of the Sea Dragon Sect.
"Several years ago they were said to be hunting tigers and bears to liquefy their organs into all kinds of medicine."
"I've never heard that tiger and bear organs could be made into medicine," said Wu Xingyu doubtfully.
"They mostly used the stomaches, kidneys and livers. The time I went to their sect I was denied entrance to their laboratory where they made the medicine, but I was given a bottle of liquefied tiger kidney that was said to cure boils, sores, bruisings and sprains."
"Did you test it out?"
Song Yehai nodded his head.
"And did it work?"
"Yes."
The answer surprised Wu Xingyu.
"But only to an extent," Song Yehai quickly continued. "And there were sometimes side effects of rashes and redness, especially to those who never used that medicine before."
The doe made a turn, walked towards a tree and stood on her hind legs. Reaching a great height, she bit onto a vine and tore a string of it from the trunk. Holding it in her mouth, she brought it to Song Yehai and Wu Xingyu. Under the the leaves was a bunch of purple grapes. Wu Xingyu took the bunch from her and tore the leaves off while Song Yehai stroked her head.
"Here," Wu Xingyu passed the bunch to Song Yehai and fed the leaves to the doe.
"The medicine also gave off a pretty bad smell," added Song Yehai as he popped a grape into his mouth. It was soft and the juice was sweet and delicious. "But they did contain some anti-inflammatory properties."
A century ago, there was a wandering cultivator whose background remained a mystery to this day. His martial prowess and spiritual powers were so great he could defeat every demon and cultivator he came across. The lack of competition and desire for a challenge compelled him to travel to Tiger Mountain.
The villagers said that they called it Tiger Mountain because it was said to be home of the most dangerous and ferocious tigers one could ever encounter. The wandering cultivator spent around ten years subduing every tiger and living creature of the mountain, and in doing so created new a new style of martial arts that birthed the Tiger Mountain Sect.
Wu Xingyu listened with great interest. "A cultivator who's always seeking a challenge. I know someone who's like that."
"It was his son who eventually surpassed him and took over as the sect leader."
"He's the one who was killed by the Demon Lord, right?"
Song Yehai, popping another grape in his mouth, nodded.
"So far we haven't come across any tigers yet," observed Wu Xingyu before coming to thought that made him hesitantly ask, "Have they… all been…?"
Song Yehai, knowing what Wu Xingyu was about to ask, showed a look of concern. "I don't think so. The Tiger Mountain Sect would not seek to exterminate every single tiger of these mountains. It's part of their training to defeat a tiger."
"But they're hunted for their organs. Who knows how many they've killed to make a profit."
A sudden tremor interrupted their conversation. A low rumble, as though the earth was growling with angry lava brewing close to surface, ran with the quake.
The doe began to panic and cry. The trees trembled, seeming to share her fears. Wu Xingyu and Song Yehai stood their ground, staring at mountains where the tremor originated. Rocks loosened from the peaks and tumbled down as the ground buckled beneath them.
An incoming boulder bulldozed down multiple trees, flattening them under it as it rolled over them. With a single punch Song Yehai shattered it into tiny rocks.
The forest was chaos. Saplings toppled, and a rotten log shattered nearby, flinging up insects and splinters. Flocks of birds took flight, troubled by the earthquakes that grew increasingly unsteady. A distant, thunderous roar signalled a landslide somewhere above, hidden by dense foliage. The quake lasted maybe twenty seconds before it started to vanish and stabilise.
Wu Xingyu faced the higher altitudes. "Something coming out of the mountains."
The doe suddenly grabbed the ends of Wu Xingyu's robes with her teeth and tried to pull him back with all her strength.
"Hey, hey, what's wrong?"
She yanked harder, tugging him back stubbornly.
"Let go!" Wu Xingyu grabbed his robe and pulled back.
Song Yehai rushed to the doe's side and grabbed onto the snout. He gave her a gentle squeeze, coaxing her into loosening her grip. The fabric was a little torn but the doe released before it fully separated from Wu Xingyu.
"What's gotten into her?"
"She must be warning us not to go up to the mountains," surmised Song Yehai.
"There's demonic energy coming out of the mountains," said Wu Xingyu. "It'll stop us before we could get out of this forest."
Song Yehai gestured for the doe to leave. "We'll be fine. Go for now. Find somewhere safe."
The doe did not budge. She snorted through her nose and tapped her hooves on the earth before gripping onto the ends of Song Yehai's.
"Hey, let go," Wu Xingyu was about to grab her snout when Song Yehai gestured that it was fine. He petted her head, gently encouraging her to let go. The doe did and, after some reluctance, sprang off.
Song Yehai turned to Wu Xingyu. "Let's go."
They headed towards the mountains, leaping up every ledge they could find
Standing at the base of the towering mountain, Song Yehai and Wu Xingyu's eyes locked on the peak above. With a synchronised nod, they launched themselves into the air, their bodies coiled springs unleashing explosive power. Using every ledge that they could find they ascended effortlessly up the uneven terrains, their footsteps a blur of speed and precision as they left faint impressions in the stones.
As they neared the summit, the wind howled and buffeted them with cold gusts, but they stood firm, their balance unshakeable. With one final leap, they reached the peak, standing victorious against the backdrop of the sky. For a moment, they stood in silence, their chests heaving with exertion.
It was only when they had arrived at the peak did they realise they were not at the top of the mountain yet. They were standing on elevated grounds and at the mouth of a large cave tunnelling into the mountain.
"There's writings here," Song Yehai pointed at the inner wall of the cave right at the entrance.
The inscriptions on the dirt-brown rock were quite large but overrun with massive claw marks that nearly scratched them out, and worn from weather and time. Moss bloomed at the bottom but did not climb further than knee-height. Wu Xingyu peered more carefully to get a good view of what was written in cursive, feathery characters.
"I may not be reading this correctly, but I think the first line says, 'I strayed from the flame to follow the Tiger's trails, abandoning the demon way for the way of beast.'"
The second line was almost etched out, leaving nothing but thick, white lines. He read the part of the line that remained intact. "'No mercy. To falter is to die.'"
Wu Xingyu touched the rough, somewhat powdery surface. "These claw marks are quite recent." He then reached for the engravings of the first line. "These are much older, around… around about a hundred years, I think."
"So whoever wrote it was a demon from a hundred years ago?"
He moved on to the next lines. "'Abandon weakness when striking, discard hesitation when attacking. And know that, in exchange, the mind is freed of fear and the body will know no limits. This is the aggression of the Tiger Way. I thank the beast who.'"
The words were cut off there, overridden by more claw marks.
"A demon encountered a beast that prompted him to emulate it?" suggested Wu Xingyu. "What a weird guy."
Before he could read any further a low, bestial rumble buzzed ominously from the depths of the cave. It seemed to bounce off the walls, creating an echoing effect. "What on earth?"
The rumble grew louder just as another bellowed with it. The mountain began to tremble, followed by a shockwave of immense demonic energy blasting out from the darkness. The cave awakened into a monstrous entity and, just as the rumbles faded, released a devastating roar suddenly, deafeningly and powerfully. Song Yehai and Wu Xingyu blocked their ears as they took a few steps back. The mountain shook furiously as though it was trying to throw them off.
They jumped off the edge and landed back in the forest. An avalanche of rocks cascaded, demolishing vast areas of the forest. The mountain crumbled, losing a fifth of its height and enduring cataclysmic fissures that threatened to rip it apart. They ran as fast as they could from the mountain, shattering any boulders that came close to them.
"It's coming," said Song Yehai, gripping the handle of his whip.
Something fell right in front of him and Wu Xingyu, creating a brief dust storm. What blocked them and forced them to stop their flight was larger than normal wild animals and armed with dagger-like teeth and claws. Growls of unrestrained savagery came from their mouths.
"A tiger and a bear demon?"