Hu Lingze had barely finished speaking when Hu Zhanxiao strode in, accompanied by Hu Feng and Bai Xichen and her father Bai Mingshan.
“Insolent!” Hu Zhanxiao roared. “Speaking so rudely in front of your own mother! With such a reckless temperament, how can you ever be worthy of the title Third Young Master of the Tiger Clan?”
“Hmph,” Hu Lingxuan replied, chin raised defiantly. “Better that than being a chief who cannot tell friend from foe and lets others manipulate him. If the most honored clan on the Magical Beast Continent cannot even protect its own food, then there is no point in being Third Young Master at all!”
He looked utterly arrogant. From the moment Bai Xichen entered the room, he had not spared her a single glance. Ever since he learned she had claimed credit for the entire night he and Little Si spent searching through the scrolls, he had found this white tiger utterly repulsive.
“Hu Lingxuan! What do you mean by that?”
Hu Zhanxiao stepped closer, towering over his son and speaking in a cold, stern voice.
Beside him, Hu Feng and Bai Mingshan quickly tried to calm things down. “Chief, please restrain your anger… please…”
“Hu Lingxuan, I will give you one last chance! Today, your mother, your elder sister, and I all of us make these difficult choices only for the future and prosperity of our people. If you still refuse to see reason, if you continue to defy us again and again…”
“I am only the Third Young Master neither heir nor next chief. I just want to do what I believe is right. From the start, I never thought my little food was our clan’s savior. But now, neither do I believe she is our Calamity Maiden. I”
Before Hu Lingxuan could finish, a thunderous roar erupted from Hu Zhanxiao’s throat.
The sound struck like a gong, and Hu Zhiyue and Hulingye turned pale instantly. Even Bai Xichen stood frozen in shock.
“Chief! You cannot do this!”
Everyone fell to their knees, begging him to stop.
“A duel to the death! The Third Young Master is still too young he will never survive such a trial!”
A duel to the death was the most serious form of combat among beastfolk. If one member of the same clan issued the challenge, the other had only two choices: accept or yield.
To accept meant answering with the same call and for the Tiger Clan, that call was a roar.
To yield meant transforming into beast form and bowing in submission, surrendering all right to fight back. It was defeat without a single blow.
When two unrelated members of the same clan issued such a challenge, most would choose to fight. But between father and son, it was sometimes used as a harsh lesson. Even if the son yielded, it was not considered shameful.
But seeing her son stand so stubbornly for Little Si, Hu Zhiyue could not help but tremble with worry.
“Xuan, do not fight your father. Bow your head, show him you will obey… This is partly my fault too. I promise you I will make sure Little Si stays alive… After all, I have grown fond of her as well. She is such a clever child, and I do not believe for a moment that she brings disaster!”
As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes.
Hu Lingxuan looked between his father and mother, then fell silent for a long moment.
“I am sorry, Mother…” he said softly.
“A duel to the death means if you lose, you will be banished from the Tiger Clan forever!” Hulingye urged anxiously. “Xuan, do not be impulsive!”
“Elder Sister, staying here is your duty not mine. If our clan faced true danger, I would gladly stay and fight for my family. But if they are so eager to sacrifice others just to feel safe, then I would rather go and see just how vast the world of the Magical Beast Continent truly is. And as for this Calamity Maiden… I want to see for myself just how much disaster she can bring!”
At that moment, Bai Xichen’s eyes were completely fixed on Hu Lingxuan.
A true son of the Tiger Clan should possess the spirit of a great beast bold, fierce, and unrivaled. Before her stood a young man dressed in a black robe and cloak of dark fur, with striking golden hair falling around his face, sharp brows, and eyes blazing with confidence. The gem set in his forehead glinted brightly, radiating an air of dominance that made him seem above all others.
Bai Xichen felt her breath catch, and her skin grew warm simply from watching him.
Among all the young men of the clan, only he was worthy of her. Hu Lingxuan she wanted him. If she could step forward now and save him from his father’s wrath, would he finally look at her with favor?
BOOM!
With a deafening crash, the heavy iron gates of the dungeon were shattered open by Qian Wei in his beast form.
Night had fallen, and the moon had just risen above the treetops. Having absorbed every last bit of energy from the tree crystals Su Mingyue had given him, his strength had reached a peak he had not felt in years. Combined with the power of the moonlight, he now possessed enough might to rival even the chief of the Tiger Clan.
And perched on his back as he burst free was a tiny figure.
Su Mingyue gripped the horn-like growths on Qian Wei’s head, trying to sit tall and proud, but her face was as white as paper. She babbled nervously the whole time.
“B-Brother-in-law… handsome brother-in-law… s-slow down, please… slow… AHHHH!”
High above the Tiger Clan’s territory, under the silvery glow of the moon, a massive black beast soared through the night sky.
Su Mingyue had always been afraid of heights, and the times Hu Lingxuan had leaped from high places had already terrified her half to death. Now she squeezed her eyes shut, too frightened to look down.
Until Qian Wei spoke casually: “How interesting… a duel to the death between the chief and his son something we haven’t seen in a hundred years. That little tiger has more courage than I expected.”
Hearing him call Hu Lingxuan “little tiger,” Su Mingyue snapped her eyes open. Sure enough, down below, a golden tiger covered in wounds was crouching low, poised in a defensive stance.
Opposite him stood another golden tiger, twice his size, with three gleaming golden rings piercing his lower lip the mark of the Tiger Clan chief, and the sign of Hu Lingxuan’s father.
What on earth was happening? Father and son fighting to the death?
“Handsome brother-in-law… what does a duel to the death actually mean?”
Qian Wei was the type who minded his own business unless there was something to be gained. If Su Mingyue had not offered him future knowledge in exchange, he would never have taken her out of the dungeon. Even though he had known Hu Lingxuan for years, without a fair trade, the boy was nothing more than a stranger to him.
“Duel to the death? It means exactly what it says one lives, the other dies. Unless one yields, they will keep fighting until one falls.”
Su Mingyue stared in disbelief. “But that’s his own father! Surely it won’t go that far?”
Qian Wei snorted coldly. “Have you ever known a tiger to act like a human? Throughout history, more often than not, the deadliest fights happen between those closest to each other brothers, sisters, even parents and children. To secure their position as chief, some beasts deliberately challenge their own young when they are still small, taking advantage of their size and strength to eliminate any future threat before it can grow.”
Su Mingyue fell silent, her heart sinking.
“Little one, we are leaving the Tiger Clan now…”
“I’ve changed my mind, handsome brother-in-law.”
“…What?”
“I’m taking him with us!” she declared firmly.
Qian Wei could not help but laugh. “You can barely save yourself, and now you want to rescue a full-grown tiger?”
But Su Mingyue did not waver. Glancing down, she saw Hu Zhanxiao suddenly lunge forward, sinking his teeth deep into Hu Lingxuan’s back. Her heart tightened. If this went on and Hu Lingxuan refused to surrender, he would be killed for sure.
Yet Hu Lingxuan… she remembered the night they had searched the scrolls together, the proud and determined look in his eyes, his golden hair shining like sunlight. She also remembered the long chapters in the novel describing him as the fierce, unyielding young antagonist. She knew him better than anyone.
Hu Lingxuan would never beg for mercy not even from his own father.
Her chest ached. She gripped Qian Wei’s head fur tighter.
“Hey! That hurts!” Qian Wei growled, baring his teeth. “You really have a death wish, don’t you?”
Seeing that he still showed no intention of going down to help, Su Mingyue’s mind raced. She suddenly smiled coldly.
“Handsome brother-in-law… I think it’s because you’re embarrassed to face my elder sister down there, isn’t it? That’s why you won’t save Hu Lingxuan. I never realized you were so shy around your ex-mate!”
Qian Wei’s expression froze.
“You’re just too cowardly to face Hulingye again! A big man who can’t let go of the past! If you’re too scared to help, then you’ll always be a coward who hides from his former mate even if you call yourself a divine beast, you’re nothing but a wimp!”
She did not hold back. Below, Hu Lingxuan’s wounds were multiplying. If they waited any longer, it would be too late.
“And another thing! If you don’t go save him, I will never call you handsome again! You’ll be ugly ugly forever!”
“SHUT UP!!!” Qian Wei roared.
With a flick of his paws, a cloud of mist seemed to form beneath his feet. He turned sharply and dove straight toward the ground where Hu Lingxuan was fighting.
Down below, Hu Zhanxiao was already blinded by rage, his eyes red with bloodlust. He lunged once more, jaws wide open, ready to strike the final blow.
Hu Lingxuan had already exhausted all his strength. For someone his age to hold out against the chief for nearly three hours was nothing short of miraculous. But once the feral instinct of a beast was unleashed, even blood ties could not stop the killing urge.
That was exactly the state Hu Zhanxiao was in now he could no longer hold back. And Hu Lingxuan had no strength left to run or defend himself.
It was a matter of life and death.
Then, suddenly, a thick white mist descended from above, wrapping everyone in its cool, swirling embrace…