Eternal Life: I Have the Favor System

Chapter 534: Chapter 227: First in the Imperial Examination, Three Views Shattered

Past the grasslands, a canyon appeared ahead. It was roughly a third of a mile long, a distance the great black horse could cover in an instant with the boost from his Wind and Wave Power.

But the canyon before him looked like a low hill that had been split open, a fissure formed over countless years of geological shifts and crustal movement.

Although he could see to the other end at a glance,

it gave off a powerful, devouring aura.

Chu Lingguang recalled that there were three types of Demon Beasts set to intercept them in the Hunting Ground.

First were the beginner-level Demon Beasts, the Silver Moon Wolves. They moved in packs and excelled at surrounding and trapping their prey. Once caught in their encirclement, even with superior strength, it would take a significant amount of time to break free.

Second were the intermediate-level Demon Beasts, the Iron-Armored Bulls. They also lived in herds, and their horns could release a special, sawtooth-like energy wave. When enough of them gathered, even a True Martial Realm expert might not be able to withstand their combined assault. Chu Lingguang himself had relied on his Black Tortoise Divine Power to break through their encirclement, and only with great difficulty.

Third was the advanced-level Demon Beast, the Greedy Tiger. The Hunting Ground briefing had warned that an adult Greedy Tiger could shred a six-layered Dharma Aspect with a single paw swipe. It was three times faster than a Silver Moon Wolf, specialized in ambushes, and rarely failed to kill its target.

If the Greedy Tiger was lying in ambush inside the canyon, Chu Lingguang, charging ahead on his horse, would be its one and only target.

But the die was cast.

Chu Lingguang never considered going around the canyon. Like Qin Yu, Yan Zhen, and the others, he chose to charge bravely down the main path.

He urged the great black horse onward, charging straight into the canyon.

He unleashed his powerful Perception Power and Spiritual Sense, trying to envelop the entire canyon. The distance was still too great, making his senses fuzzy; he couldn’t detect any sign of the Greedy Tiger yet.

But that devouring aura grew stronger and stronger.

"Hmm."

After a stretch of furious galloping, Chu Lingguang finally entered the canyon. Shadows blanketed the gorge, and a cold, sinister aura permeated the air.

Chu Lingguang pushed his Perception Power to its absolute limit.

’The Greedy Tiger is an advanced Demon Beast, so it probably isn’t a social creature. If I only have to face one, I should be able to shake it off quickly.’

CLATTER! CLATTER! CLATTER!

The sound of hooves echoed through the canyon.

Other than the oppressive atmosphere, Chu Lingguang detected nothing unusual.

The third of a mile passed in an instant.

And just like that, Chu Lingguang passed safely through the canyon. He charged on, into the light, feeling that something was off. It seemed unreal that there had been nothing unusual in the canyon.

’If the Greedy Tiger had ambushed me in the canyon, shaking it off wouldn’t have been so simple, given the terrain.’

"Not good."

However, before Chu Lingguang could even breathe a sigh of relief, an overwhelming sense of danger suddenly struck him.

"A trap!"

Only then did he realize that the canyon was merely a decoy. The Greedy Tiger had been waiting in ambush at the exit.

’As expected of an advanced Demon Beast. Its intelligence is on another level.’

’It obviously knew that anyone entering the canyon would be on high alert. But after exiting, they would breathe a sigh of relief, thinking the danger had passed, and lower their guard.’

’And that would be the perfect moment for it to strike.’

All Chu Lingguang saw was a figure blending into the bright sunlight at the canyon’s exit. It was taking advantage of that split second when one would be briefly blinded by the light upon charging out.

Too bad for the tiger. The sunlight might have blinded Chu Lingguang’s eyes, but it couldn’t block his Perception Power or the immense power of his Sea of Consciousness.

HUMMM!

In that instant, Chu Lingguang unleashed a Spear Intent Fluctuation.

Facing a Demon Beast like the Greedy Tiger, he didn’t dare hold anything back.

The powerful Spear Intent Fragments materialized into a solid barrier.

SMACK!

A pair of sharp black claws slammed against the Spear Intent Fluctuation, sending a shower of metallic sparks into the air.

THUD!

A massive body landed on the ground. It was a feline creature over six meters long, its entire body a dark brown covered in flame-like markings. This was the advanced Demon Beast of the Hunting Ground: the Greedy Tiger.

Fiery patterns burned within its eyes.

Its powerful, oppressive aura alone was enough to send ordinary Demon Beasts fleeing in terror. If not for Chu Lingguang’s Consciousness Manipulation, the great black horse he rode would have already been scared witless.

"ROAR!"

Without pausing for even a moment after landing, the Greedy Tiger pounced toward Chu Lingguang on horseback once more.

Chu Lingguang braced himself for the attack.

His Long Spear swirled with Wind and Wave Power, enhanced by a threefold Potential Energy Superposition, as its tip clashed with the Greedy Tiger’s claws.

BANG!

The Greedy Tiger landed on the ground once more. Chu Lingguang was nearly thrown from the saddle, and the great black horse staggered back several steps.

"ROAR!"

The Greedy Tiger blurred into an afterimage, swiping a claw at the great black horse’s neck.

Chu Lingguang used his Consciousness Manipulation to make the great black horse evade, thrusting his spear at the same time.

This time, he deployed his Potential Power: "Slow."

The Greedy Tiger’s claw missed its mark, and a trace of Confusion appeared in its eyes. It opened its blood-red maw, about to blast Chu Lingguang with a mighty roar. At that exact moment, Chu Lingguang’s spear shot forward again.

The tip of the spear was still several meters away from the Greedy Tiger.

The Greedy Tiger was seized by Confusion. ’Can his spear erupt with some powerful energy projection and hurt me from a distance?’

Yet, it saw no blast of energy shoot from the spear’s tip.

Instead, it felt a strange fluctuation wash over it. A sharp pain lanced through its head, and its chest convulsed violently.

Its body, which had been coiled to pounce, went limp, and it began to writhe uncontrollably on the ground.

The unnatural light in the eyes of Chu Lingguang’s great black horse suddenly vanished. The moment it saw the Greedy Tiger writhing on the ground, the horse was terrified, shivering uncontrollably as it tried to turn and bolt.

Meanwhile, within Chu Lingguang’s Dantian, the spectral image of the great black horse had transformed into the likeness of the Greedy Tiger. But this illusion only lasted a moment before it reverted to the image of the horse.

That same unnatural light reappeared in the great black horse’s dark, rolling eyes, and it carried Chu Lingguang in a swift gallop toward the north.