Su Mingyue thought: If she had committed some sin, then let her be sent straight to hell and judged by the King of the Underworld himself.
Why had she been thrown into this strange world just to suffer such misery?
She wanted to cry but had no tears. Now things were even worsenot only had her attempt to escape failed, but she was trapped between tigers above and wolves below. No matter which set of jaws she fell into, she was nothing more than a plump, sweet little suckling pig ready to be eaten!
“Hey, what is that thing lying on top of the tiger’s head?” someone in the crowd called out.
Su Mingyue ducked her head lower, frantically searching for any nook or cranny on the statue where she could hide. She grabbed onto a raised protrusion and tried to pull herself higheronly for disaster to strike.
Crack.
With just a tiny bit of her strength, the lump she was holding broke off in her hand?
Su Mingyue: …
Seriously, this was supposed to be a statue concealing enemy soldierscouldn’t the Wolf Clan have used better materials?
Staring at what she now held: a tiger’s whisker, she nearly burst into tears.
Pulling whiskers from a tiger’s head…
This time, she really was done for.
“You little morselyou certainly have some nerve!”
Hu Lingxuan had finally recognized the tiny figure, and his irritation flared even hotter. Seeing her yank a whisker right off the statue only made him want to jump up, drag her down, and give her a good spanking.
But just then, he noticed the little girl tremble violently the moment she heard his voice. The next second, she wobbled, lost her balance, and began to tumble off the statue.
Hu Lingxuan froze. Amidst the gasps of the crowd, he leaped into the air.
In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a massive golden tiger and bounded straight toward the falling figure.
The statue was no small thingit stood roughly three to four meters tall, the equivalent of at least two stories in her old world. Falling headfirst from that height would either kill her outright or leave her crippled.
Oh well, she thought in resignation. This whole transmigration had been nothing but bad luck from the start. If I die now, at least it will be over quickly.
As the ground rushed closer and the sky grew farther away, a flash of brilliant gold suddenly filled her vision. She stared for three whole seconds.
When she realized the golden blur soaring toward her was an enormous tiger, she didn’t even have time to screamshe simply fainted from fright.
Hu Lingxuan caught the tiny girl gently on his back. Almost immediately, a sharp, foul stench unique to the Wolf Clan drifted into his nostrils. He frowned sharply, and when he looked up, he saw that where the whisker had been broken off, hollow cracks now revealed the faces of hidden wolves inside.
“Danger! The Wolf Clan is lying in ambush!” he roared.
At his shout, Hu Lingze and Hu Lingye, standing beside the dais, instantly shifted into their beast forms and stepped forward to shield their father and mother.
None of the Tiger Clan’s warriors had yet touched the ceremonial wine; they were all fully alert and ready.
Dozens of golden tigers sprang from the stands in seconds. Before the wolves hidden inside the statue could even break out, they found themselves trapped and surroundedlike dogs caught inside a closed door.
Seeing their plot exposed, the disguised Wolf Clan priests abandoned their comrades, shifted into their wolf forms, and fled toward the dense Shapeshifter Forest as fast as their legs could carry them.
Hu Lingze made to give chase, but a deep, stern voice rang out from the dais.
“Let them go. Those treacherous curs will never amount to much. Let them run back and report what happened. If they know what is good for them, they will come and beg for mercy soon enoughotherwise, I will wipe their entire clan off the map!”
The Tiger Clan Chief, Hu Zhanxiao, was famously hot-tempered and always true to his word. If he said he would destroy the Wolf Clan, he meant it.
His people admired such strength and authority; all the great tigers present bowed low to show their obedience.
In mere moments, the disturbance was brought firmly under control by the Tiger Clan’s elite warriors.
Su Mingyue woke up to the sound of voices chattering all around her.
“This little oneshe’s our savior!”
“Indeed! If not for her, how would Third Young Master have caught the scent of wolves coming from that statue and uncovered their plan to ambush us?”
“And earlier, out in the forest, she was the one who drew the wolves out into the open. When Lingze told me about it, I already felt something was off about this visit from the Spirit Beast Clan. It all traces back to this tiny girl.”
She recognized that voiceit belonged to the Tiger Clan Chief who had spoken to the disguised priests earlier.
Were they talking about her?
She kept her eyes closed but pricked up her ears, not daring to make a sound.
“A useless little thing stuck in a child’s bodynothing more than a bite to eat. She’s just a little morsel I brought back. You people are ridiculous, giving her credit for everything!”
That sharp, complaining tone she knew all too well.
Hu Lingxuan.
Just as she’d thoughttheir fates were clearly never meant to align!
“Lingxuan! Watch your tongue! If not for her, our entire clan might have been destroyed tonight. How dare you speak so rudely?”
This was a woman’s voicepowerful and commanding, yet carrying a soft warmth. It sounded like it belonged to someone truly beautiful.
This must be the eldest daughter mentioned in the story. If she remembered correctly, after the Tiger Clan fell, it was she who stepped forward to lead the survivors. The clan did not follow the rule of male supremacy; the original heir was the eldest, Hu Lingye.
When the Chief and his wife were killed, she had made the swift decision to order a retreat, protecting her two younger brothers and saving many loyal warriors. She then led them away from their home to a safe place where they slowly rebuilt their strength.
In the novel, she was only a supporting characterbut Su Mingyue’s absolute favorite.
For the first time since arriving in this world, she felt something good had finally happened. Not only had she met the character she admired most, but this very person seemed to think highly of her as well!
“Elder Sister! What are you saying? We are the mighty Tiger Claneven without her, those wolves would never have harmed a single hair on our heads! Giving credit to this weak little snack is absurdI refuse to accept it!” Hu Lingxuan protested.
With Hu Lingye speaking up for her, Su Mingyue felt much safer now. She slowly opened her eyes and scanned the crowd of handsome faces surrounding her. Spotting the most striking and beautiful one, she didn’t hesitateshe scrambled forward and threw herself straight into those arms.
“Big Sister!” she called out sweetly.
Hu Lingye watched the fluffy little creature leap into their mother’s embrace and froze for a moment. Then she burst out laughing.
“Mother, look at this clever little thing! Your three tiger cubs are all fully grown, yet she calls you her sister!”
Su Mingyue: …?
What?
“Ha ha ha! You see, my dear wife? I told you I never liethis little one speaks the truth! She thinks you are still her sister!”
The Chief strode over. Though his sharp, angular brows usually looked fierce and intimidating, his expression now softened completely as he looked down at Su Mingyue, his eyes filled with obvious affection and approval.
At last, the heavy weight in Su Mingyue’s chest began to lift.
Even though she’d mistaken their mother for someone else, it seemed… the outcome wasn’t bad at all!
She recalled how the novel described the Tiger Clan: Unmatched in beauty, rarely seen anywhere else, and the royal family among them were the finest of all, with no one else in the clan able to compare.
Those words were no exaggeration! If this family were in her old world, they could have debuted as a group and become instant celebrities!
“It seems this is truly our little lucky star,” the beautiful woman holding Su Mingyue said, blushing faintly as she smiled. Her golden eyes shone with warmth. She leaned down and gently pressed a kiss to Su Mingyue’s forehead.
“Little one, from today onward, you are a member of the Tiger Clanour fourth child. Anyone who dares to bully you will have to answer to me, Hu Zhiyue. Tomorrow, during the official ceremony, we shall announce your new place among us!”
The Chief had always been utterly devoted to his wife. Hearing her words, he could only grin and nod. “Whatever you say, my dearwe will do exactly as you wish!”
The eldest sister was already fond of Su Mingyue and was delighted by the decision.
Only Hu Lingxuan looked thoroughly displeased. Hu Lingze noticed his younger brother’s sour expression and walked over to pat his shoulder, whispering, “Come nowthis is a good thing. Why look so glum?”