Chương 20: "Only Living People Can Brag!”

Ch 20 "Only Living People Can Brag!"

"Come out, now!" Amber yelled, her voice growling under the effects of Saint Tiger Qi. The disembodied glowing eyes stared at her as tension filled the moment. The pounding of rain and the flickering fire were the only sounds that could be heard. Amber Fang wasn't sure what to do. She had to start moving soon or the Saint Tiger Qi would back up and destroy her body. She couldn't be careless with her next action however, as the girl was already caught off guard.

Amber side eyed her spear carefully and measured the distance needed to reach it. The girl snapped out of her thoughts as the glowing eyes rose into the air. The eyes were… levitating? Something was coming straight out of the ground! Amber Fang released a gasp and felt a cold surge of terror as her mind raced to wonder what could glide out of the ground like a ghost without disturbing the stone. It was simply unthinkable!

She rolled and dived for her spear, pointing it aggressively in a lunging stance as she grabbed it. Suddenly, through the darkness, she recognized the form that stepped out. The girl's eyes widened.

"Little tiger!" She shouted in excitement, placing the spear down and running to hug the feline. The cub let out a small sound as the girl embraced it tightly. The two shared a moment as the pattering rain filled the silence.

"I didn't know if you were dead or alive!" Her tears started falling immediately. The little tiger cub began licking the teardrops off of her face as the girl smiled with affection.

"Wait…." She paused and drew back as she realized that the Saint Tiger Qi within her felt…. strangely controlled. Shouldn't she be about to explode right now? Her golden eyes shimmered with wonder as she traced the Qi flow.

"Don't tell me you're…" she trailed off as she realized the little tiger was absorbing the excess Saint Tiger Qi! Amber's mind put it all together. She squatted down and looked directly at the small animal.

"You little thing! I met you when I first used the blood, then I saw you again when I used a drop to fight that mean ugly bastard, and now here you are again when I'm using it! Am I just your meal cart?"" Meow," c ame the little cub's response. At least it was close enough to a meow, albeit a bit guttural. Amber threw her head back in laughter as she wiped away the last of her tears.

"I guess we've been through life and death together already. Drink up!" The girl couldn't contain her happiness at seeing the little cub. She scooped the Tiger into her lap and sat down, focusing in on trying to move the Saint Tiger Qi the way the stances had taught her. It was much more difficult without the physical movement, but she was getting the hang of it, in part thanks to the Qi Vitality Elixir she suspected.

Amber was better than before at keeping the Saint Tiger Qi within her, but the troublesome excess was devoured into the little tiger's body. The little feline purred and nestled into her lap, seeming very comfortable. Seeing the cub cultivate was still no less surprising then the first time she saw it. The two cultivated in peace and silence as the cave air gently swirled with orange Qi. After a time, Amber's eyes snapped open as she spoke up.

"Fat tiger! You're so little, why is your appetite so big? You're taking so much!"" Meow." It was nice to have the painful edge of the blood drop taken off by the little cub, but the Saint Tiger Qi was depleting much quicker. Amber wondered briefly if she should try a second drop. Suddenly, the tiger's head snapped towards the entrance of the cave. The little feline made a sharp hissing sound. Amber's ears perked up as well as she realized she heard the voices of approaching men! But…

There was no way she should be able to hear that far, especially through the pounding rain. What was going on? The tiger sprinted off of her lap and into the woods.

"Little tiger!" she called in a panic. Her eyes grew sad, but she didn't give chase as she realized it was better that the cub remained safe rather than stay here with her. Suddenly, she saw a group moving together in the darkness of the stormy forest. Six men in the forest crept up on the cave in all black clothes, including the masks that covered everything but their scheming eyes. Amber Fang rubbed her eyes. How was she seeing this? She was inside of the cave with no one in front of her!

Not to mention, the blackness of the night seemed much lighter than before. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. She suddenly felt disoriented as she saw herself run up a tree and perch onto a branch over the invaders. The girl grew instantly nauseous as she stumbled from seeing two perspectives at once, even falling on her butt. Amber Fang finally realized what was happening. She was seeing through the little tiger's vision! How is this happening?

she wondered. Did they have some kind of bond? The girl suspected that maybe cultivating the Saint Tiger Qi together had produced some kind of unexpected effect. Through the tiger's enhanced hearing she could start to make out words through the pouring rain.

"Do you see the light? That direction. No, you idiot! That direction! The little bitch must be over there!" Amber froze. She recognized the voice even before her palm started burning. It was Mud. That sniveling bald bastard who had tried to rob her and Lulu, then went running to the Jadehand family when it didn't work. She looked down at the pattern on her hand as it blazed into existence, the black inky pattern rising to the surface of her skin like it had always been there.

"That has to be her!" The voice rang in her head as if her own ears had heard it. They must have been following her since Golden Sea City, waiting for their chance to strike. Surely she had removed all the Blood Qi, she thought. So how did they track her? Damn, is that Jadehand bastard really so petty over a few thugs? She clenched her fist. Well, she supposed she did de-trouser him in public, too. Her palm burned hotter as she realized they must be almost upon her. How did the demon even find her?

Were his companions demons as well? She doubted that she would make it out unnoticed if she ran for it at this point. Best case scenario, she could maybe outpace them, and bring a bunch of demons back to the sleeping caravan. If that didn't get her fired, abandoning her post to sneak off in the middle of the night just might. Without the little tiger there to soak up the excess Saint Tiger Qi, its intensity was spiking yet again.

She felt the bubbling fury grow as she again bore the full brunt of the energy being continuously released from the drop in her body. She squeezed her burning palm as her slit pupils grew angry, thinking about how she was once again being tracked and hunted like prey. Wild Hog had done that to her. And now them? Nobody was allowed to do that to her again. All who tried were now dead, and they would be no different.

Majestic orange Qi flared from Amber and hugged her body as rain pelted the area surrounding the cave mouth. She observed them from the little black cub's point of view. The sights and sounds were so sharp through the darkness and rain! The leader signaled to one man using hand signs. One man walked forward a bit before signing back nervously. The leader narrowed his eyes and threw an aggressive hand signal back. She didn't know what the hand signs meant, but she knew that they were communicating.

Amber watched their movements intently through the lens of the little tiger. His subordinate realized that resisting was futile, and his eyes betrayed his nervousness as he followed his superior's orders. He crept forward and slightly parted the bushes. He would just take a liiiitle peek and see what was going on and go right back to report. The danger should be - Thunder clapped and rang like a heavenly gong. Before he finished his thought, the bushes in front of him exploded!

A blurred spear came streaking faster than his eyes could track, nailing him to the tree behind him. He screamed and screamed as blood filled his gurgling mouth. The last thing he saw was a snarling young girl with golden orange glowing eyes walking towards him. Amber Fang reached the dead man and pulled the spear out of the tree trunk and out of his corpse, leaving his lifeless body to collapse in a heap. The sound of his body falling in the puddle of his own blood made an unsettling gush.

"Baldie! You brought more men for me to kill, fantastic!" she yelled into the night as starry orange Qi embraced her figure. A man in all black stepped out of the shadows. He pulled the rag from his face, revealing a bald head that gleamed in the Moonlight. A fierce dragon tattoo peaked above his neck menacingly.

"Impressive. How did you know it was me?" The bald man was smiling awful big for someone who had just lost a man.

"Did you think slinging a rag over your face made you less ugly?" She smiled wickedly and pointed a finger to the ground as orange Qi swirled around her.

"Come here and apologize to your mother!"

"Hmmm. I wonder if you'll be talking as big when you find out what you're up against," his smile curled upward.

"What I'm up against? You mean, the petty thief that ran away from me? Or has the Jadehand family sent someone else to get embarrassed by their own stupidity?" Amber pointed the gleaming tip of her spear at the man. Her emotions were spurred on by the rabid Saint Tiger Qi, and the girl felt brimming with power at the moment.

"The Jadehand family is just a stepping stone for us… They'll regret providing us with elixirs eventually," he smiled.

"And my name is Mud! Not baldie, or thief!" Amber felt a sudden discomfort in her chest as she watched Mud's eyes turn coal black.

"I couldn't reveal my power in the city, but today, I'll let you witness it! Consider yourself lucky, girl."

"If I was lucky, I wouldn't have to put up with such ugly men following me!" She spoke frivolously, giving the little tiger cub time to circle around and find the location of every man there as she tried to make sense of their new shared perspective.

"Boss! I can't stand the mouth on this little bunny. Let me play with her!" A man stepped out of the bushes, his fabric mask unable to hide the smirk underneath.

"Hmm. Do it properly then! Let her suffer a bit," the bald man crossed his arms and smiled.

"It's been too long since I got to play with such a feisty bitch," the masked man said, cracking his knuckles with pops that cut through the rain.

"I'm afraid you might not be able to handle this game," Amber smiled. She confirmed through the tiger's vision that no one else was making a move. Good, s he thought. They'll regret not coming at me at once!

"You'll see how well I can play," he snorted maniacally as he pulled his mask back a bit. He dumped a glass vial of black liquid down his throat. Amber's palm grew even hotter as she saw a swirl of dark Qi around the man. So there were more demons among them! But what exactly was the liquid? Did he step up because he was the only other demon? Maybe the others were too weak? There were too many questions, but if she took any more time she would lose the initiative. Her mother killed demons, and so would she!

"Only living people can brag!" she shouted as she leaped forward, Qi plunging to her legs and moving her faster than she had ever gone before. The startled man quickly took a leap back, giving himself the space to intercept the girl's surprisingly fast charge. He caught her spear tip between his fingers!

"Hehehe what a rude bitch, you didn't even let me finish my drink!" He grinned evilly as she struggled to push the tip past his stupid fingers. The strength of a demon was frightening! Amber quickly relinquished her captive spear, spinning her body and crashing her bare heel into his surprised face. The man dropped on his back with a bloody yelp as Amber caught her spear before it hit the ground. The Qi cloaked girl landed gracefully and quickly opened his throat with a low spear slash.

Her precision needed a bit of work, as she hit bone and bounced the tip off of its clean trajectory by a bit. Instead of dying instantly, he gurgled while his vision faded.

"I didn't give you permission to drink!" were the last words he heard as he choked on his blood until his body gave up. The swirls of dark energy were dissipating quickly. He seemed to be a normal man as he died. What exactly was that black elixir?

"Men!" the Mud yelled as his face grew dark, "Drink up!" Suddenly, the demonic energy around her surged. The skin of her palm felt like it was on fire. While Amber Fang herself could not see the rest of them in the dark and stormy forest, her shared vision from the tiger revealed the men all drinking the contents of a glass vial. She gripped her spear tighter as thunder clapped. All I have to do is kill them first, she thought.