White Tiger Entrusting its Orphan

"Roar!"

As Ye Tian hid behind the boulder, an angry roar filled the woods as two huge shapes tumbled out into the clearing.

Two gigantic wild beasts faced off. On one side was a huge, green python, fifteen meters long and as wide as a water barrel. On the other side stood an enormous, pure-white tiger, its limbs strong and burly. Elephant-tusk-sized fangs jutted out of its ferocious mouth, its sharp points gleaming coldly.

Even hidden in the distance, Ye Tian couldn't help but drip with sweat, and the intense Qi pooling around both of the powerful beasts seemed to almost suffocate him.

 "Powerful! These beasts are definitely Martial Master realm or higher!"

Ye Tian was astounded. He had seen the pinnacle Martial Artist Realm Village Chief fight before, and although the Chief had been powerful, he was nowhere near the level of these two wild beasts.

Clearly, these two beasts were of a higher realm than the Village Chief, and since the Chief was at the pinnacle of the Martial Artist realm, these two beasts had to be in the Martial Master realm or higher.

On Shen Zhou Continent, there were many realms on the path of the Martial Warrior, and the difference between realms was almost insurmountable, so much so that a higher-realm Martial Warrior could often destroy a lower-realm combatant instantly.

Both of the beasts that stood before him were each capable of single-handedly destroying the entire Ye Family Village.

Ye Tian was currently at the pinnacle of the Martial Apprentice realm. Above his realm was the Martial Artist realm, and the Village Chief stood at the pinnacle of the ten levels of the Martial Artist realm. In the White Cloud Town area, the Village Chief stood among the other pinnacle experts, and it was because of him that the Ye Family Village was widely known.

Higher than even the Martial Artist realm was the Martial Master realm; any being in that realm was incredible. Ye Tian had once heard the Village Chief say that a Martial Master realm expert could destroy a six-meter-tall stone house with a single punch and could defeat a horde of ten thousand.

The two beasts in front of him had that kind of terrifying power, and Ye Tian could only stare in shock as the two beasts fought, smashing apart the towering trees around him, knocking them down almost carelessly.

Even the ground shook…

Ye Tian hid behind the boulder, barely daring to breathe, afraid that the two beasts would notice him. A wild animal that had reached the Martial Master realm would've already developed consciousness, and that was truly terrifying.

Strange. How come I've never seen these two beasts before? Ye Tian thought to himself as he secretly watched the battle. There weren't many beasts in the Martial Master realm in the area around the Ye Family village, and the experts in the village had already long since investigated and identified three such leveled beasts in the area, drawing up their images and warning all the villagers to avoid these terrors.

But neither of these two powerful beasts were among those the hunters had warned about, and Ye Tian had no idea what these two beasts were.

Could they have come from outside?

Ye Tian's heart was filled with questions.

Even as Ye Tian was wondering to himself, the beast battle was slowly coming to an end. Although the white tiger was truly fierce, it still lost to the crafty, giant python, and the bites in its neck were soaked with blood.

What a shame, such a beautiful tiger! Ye Tian thought, forcing himself with great difficulty to watch the magnificent tiger's final moments of life. Compared to the slippery python, he admired the white tiger more, with its mighty and powerful demeanor and its extraordinary bearing. How impressive would it be if he could have a beast mount like this tiger?

Of course, Ye Tian was only dreaming. It wasn't that nobody had Martial Master realm beast mounts, but these individuals tended to be in an even higher realm — a little Martial Apprentice like him without even a Martial Spirit could only fantasize.

"Roar!"

Just as Ye Tian was fantasizing away, the situation before him changed. The dying white tiger suddenly burst forward, the sharp teeth in his mouth actually shooting outwards like numerous arrows, piercing into the python's body. The puncture wounds all over instantly began pouring out blood.

The python hissed loudly at its serious wounds, no longer possessing any desire to entangle with the white tiger. After a turning flick of its enormous body, it slithered away into the woods, very quickly disappearing from Ye Tian's view.

"Hong!"

After the python ran away, the giant tiger could no longer stand on its feet and fell heavily to the ground, its breath puffing in uneven shakes.

Ye Tian stealthily peered over and saw that the white tiger was close to death. The wound on its neck was fatal, and a constant flow of blood dripped out into its fur.

Its artery was bitten; even a Golden Immortal would have a hard time saving it now. Ye Tian sighed to himself. With his experience in the special forces, he could determine the severity of the white tiger's wound with a single glance.

"HU HU…."

The heavy sound of the tiger's breathing filled the air as it continued to struggle. Its weak limbs pushed upwards to bring it to its feet, but the beast could no longer manage this simple task, its deadly wounds having already brought it to its limits.

Ye Tian was filled with admiration for the white tiger's powerful will, but he still didn't dare to move. Who knew if this white tiger still possessed another burst of power? When facing a beast, especially a dying beast, one couldn't ever be too careful. His instincts from his life as a soldier in the special forces constantly kept him on his toes.

"Roar!"

Suddenly, the white tiger's limbs stopped struggling. Its head turned, its two huge, lantern-like eyes swiveling and locking onto Ye Xian's boulder.

At that moment, the pair of large eyes locked onto a smaller pair of eyes, the two staring at each other.

"Shit!"

Ye Tian was startled, but it was already too late to hide again. He could only jump up and run away from the boulder, eyes glancing back towards the white tiger, a seriousness falling over his whole demeanor.

But the crisis that he had imagined didn't appear, and the white tiger only watched as Ye Tian rushed away, no hint of hostility in its eyes. There only seemed to be a slight trace of happiness.

Ye Tian had studied animals in his previous life, but it was the first time that he had ever seen such an unmistakably human expression cross an animal's face, and he couldn't have mistaken the utterly human emotion that gleamed from the white tiger's eyes.

No wonder people say that beasts that have reached the Martial Master realm have developed consciousness, truly… Ye Tian marveled to himself.

 "Roar!"

The white tiger called out lightly in Ye Xian's direction, fixing an imploring gaze onto him. It turned its eyes towards its belly where a small house-cat-sized little white tiger could now be seen, climbing mischievously around its mother's big tail before falling against the big white tiger's fur and falling asleep.

When he saw the tiger's actions, Ye Tian immediately understood the beast's meaning — it was entrusting its baby to him! For a beast to act with such sacrifice! Ye Tian couldn't help but be moved by the white tiger's maternal love.

 "You can rest easy, I will take care of it well." Ye Tian didn't know whether the tiger could understand him but he spoke to it nevertheless, his eyes filled with sincerity.

 "Roar!" The white tiger called out again, its eyes filled with happiness, and it was then that Ye Tian realized he had still underestimated the white tiger's intelligence.

Just as Ye Tian had moved forward and was reaching to take the white tiger child away, the mother white tiger suddenly lifted its head.

 "En?" Ye Tian immediately turned, filled with caution as he hurriedly dodged and jumped away, his face filled with anger as he turned back to look at the white tiger.

"Roar!"

The white tiger roared again, spitting out a shining object from its mouth. The object traced a brilliant curve through the air before landing at Ye Tian's feet, and when Ye Tian looked down, he saw an ancient sheep-skin scroll.

So it was giving me a gift. Ye Tian thought, bending down to pick up the scroll. He had misunderstood the white tiger and turned apologetically towards the beast.

The white tiger had finally used up all its strength. Its enormous head fell to the ground, its large, lantern eyes reflecting the little white tiger's sleeping form as they slowly closed.

"Hu!"

After the white tiger breathed out its final breath, Ye Tian inhaled deeply and moved to pick up the little white tiger. The little fellow kneaded with its fluffy paws, wriggling somewhat in Ye Tian's arms before turning, flipping its snow-white little belly up into the air, still asleep despite the disturbance.

 "You can't even open your eyes? Were you just born?"

Ye Tian looked at the little tiger, his brow's furrowed as he sank into thought. He turned to look at the white tiger's dead body, his eyes filled with admiration.

Clearly, the mother tiger had just given birth to her baby a short while ago when the giant python had attacked her, and while protecting her child with her tail, she had become entangled with and fought off the python.

What a remarkable tiger. If she hadn't just given birth and wasn't carry this little burden, then the python might not have stood a chance against her. Ye Tian thought to himself, realizing that the white tiger was probably more powerful than he had imagined.

It was often the case that beasts entered a weakened state after giving birth, and this white tiger was probably in just such a period, but she was still able to severely injure the python. If this white tiger had been in her prime, the python would've had no chance at winning.

 "Rest peacefully. I will watch your babe grow to adulthood," Ye Tian said, sighing quietly to himself as he placed the little tiger on the ground and used all his strength to carry the white tiger's body and throw it into the waterfall.

Even though the white tiger's entire body was a treasure, Ye Tian was filled with admiration for her spirit and didn't want to desecrate her corpse. Since he was also worried that other beasts would come and disturb her, he threw the body into the waterfall.

After dealing with the white tiger's corpse, Ye Tian picked up the little white tiger. He looked around at the disturbed trees and the blood pooled on the ground and frowned. "There was so much noise here and now the heavy tang of blood is filling the air; other strong beasts will come soon. I should quickly leave."

After he had made his decision, Ye Tian jumped forward, dashing through the forest like a spry monkey, quickly rushing towards the Ye Family Village.

Roar roar!

Soon after Ye Tian had left, several vicious beasts appeared at the scene of the fight, but other than the blood staining the ground, there was nothing to find.

The gathered beasts could only helplessly leave.

…

An hour later, Ye Tian could see the Ye Family Village in the distance and let out a sigh of relief.

This dangerous world was one in which beasts could appear anywhere and at anytime, and it was only after he was within the borders of the village that Ye Tian would feel any real safety. After watching the chaotic beast battle, he had a newfound appreciation for the peace and tranquility of the village.

"Ye Tian!"

Just as Ye Tian entered the village, a familiar voice called out to him. He looked up and saw a familiar figure rushing towards him.

 "Big Ox, what are you doing? Has something happened?" Ye Tian looked over and called out a question.

The figure before him was that of a strong, two-meter-tall man, rippling muscles all over. He was Ye Niu, Ye Tian's playmate and follower since his "childhood" days.

"Quickly, Tingting's older sister is here. You have to go back right now," Ye Niu said, breathing heavily. Clearly, he had run all the way to find Ye Tian.

 "Older Sister Xue? What happened? You're in such a rush!" Ye Tian asked, a smile in his voice.

 "It's Lin Jiao, Tingting's eldest sister!" Ye Niu said deeply.

Ye Tian's smile froze on his face and he took a deep breath, his eyes turning cold as he replied: "Why is she here?"

"I don't know for sure, but it looks like it has to do with your engagement to Tingting. Uncle Meng wanted you to come back as soon as you could," Ye Niu answered, shaking his head.

"Engagement? Could it be—"

When Ye Tian heard the news, a thought flew through his mind and his face darkened.