Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Battle with the Saber-Toothed Tiger (Part Two)

Ji Mo lashed the serrated tiger with her whip, wounding the beast. Delighted to discover that the White Jade Flood Dragon Whip could subdue it, she pressed her advantage and charged again. The serrated tiger, wary of the whip, might have slowly retreated had Ji Mo not attacked further. But her renewed assault provoked its ferocity, and it met her challenge head-on, refusing to back down.

This time, with caution born of pain, the beast deftly dodged Ji Mo’s strikes, circling and feinting in a deadly dance. Senior Brother Jiang and Senior Brother Chen, along with the others, wished to help, but Ji Mo called out quickly, “Please, brothers, don’t intervene for now. I lack real combat experience, and rare is the chance to practice against such a formidable opponent. Let me spar with it a while longer.”

The others could only stand by, stifling their frustration. Was this not too discouraging? Ji Mo, a newcomer of only six years, could fight a first-rank peak serrated tiger alone, leaving the rest of them feeling obsolete. But since she had spoken, they refrained from joining the fray, watching anxiously from the sidelines.

At first, Ji Mo’s newly learned whip technique was not yet fluid. Several times, she clashed head-on with the tiger, barely avoiding being swatted aside. In terms of raw strength and resilience, she was no match for the beast. The repeated direct confrontations left her blood surging and her organs churning as if about to burst; thin trickles of blood stained her lips, evidence of serious internal injuries. Yet when the others moved to assist, she still refused their help.

Nothing draws out one’s potential like battle. After a few minutes, Ji Mo’s whip technique grew more proficient, her mistakes fewer. The Demonic Tempering Technique surged within her, channeling spiritual power throughout her body, and her strength soared. The whip in her hand became a white dragon, twisting and darting through the air with a constant, echoing howl. Crack! Crack! Caught off guard, the serrated tiger took two blows, deep enough on the foreleg and back to reveal bone.

With a howl of pain, the tiger roared twice, the sound so fierce that Ji Mo’s ears rang and her whip faltered. Yet instead of seizing the chance to attack, the beast spun away, darted into the undergrowth, and vanished in the blink of an eye.

“Ji—Ji Junior Sister, did you really drive the serrated tiger away?” Senior Brother Chen stared at her in disbelief, as did Senior Brother Jiang, Wei Qiu, and Senior Sister Zhong. All looked at Ji Mo in utter astonishment.

“Just luck,” Ji Mo replied vaguely. She could hardly admit it was entirely thanks to the whip in her hand. The others, unaware of this, simply thought she was being modest.

“Senior Sister Zhong, if I’m not mistaken, when I faced the serrated tiger, you gave me a push from behind—did you not?” After answering Senior Brother Chen, Ji Mo took a couple of steadying breaths, waiting for her churning blood to calm. Then she fixed her gaze on Senior Sister Zhong, who stood dazed in the distance, and asked in a quiet voice.

“Ji Junior Sister, you’re mistaken. I merely bumped into you by accident, I didn’t push you,” Senior Sister Zhong stammered, startled but striving to keep her composure.

“Is that so? Senior Brother Chen, Senior Brother Jiang, Senior Brother Wei—what do you think?” Ji Mo did not respond to Zhong’s denial, but turned instead to the other three.

“Junior Sister Ji, we were standing a bit far off and didn’t see clearly. Still, as Senior Sister Zhong bears you no grudge and we’re all allies here, it’s possible she bumped you in haste, but I doubt she’d deliberately push you into danger,” Senior Brother Chen said after a moment’s thought.

He and the woman surnamed Zhong were both disciples of the same elder. Now that Ji Mo was unharmed, he could hardly back her accusation; to do so would brand Zhong as a traitor to her own.

Senior Brother Jiang opened his mouth but said nothing. Wei Qiu frowned, about to speak, when Senior Sister Zhong cut in, “Ji Mo, you may be the Peak Master’s disciple, but you cannot level baseless accusations at me. As Senior Brother Chen said, I hold no grudge against you, and we stand together as comrades. What possible reason would I have to harm you?”

Ji Mo’s answer was a sharp lash of her whip, landing with a crack on Zhong’s shoulder and leaving a deep, bloody welt.

“You—Ji Mo! Do you think being the Peak Master’s disciple gives you leave to strike your fellow disciples at will?” Senior Sister Zhong cried, outraged and frightened.

“I am not one for endless argument. Your surname is Zhong. If I am not mistaken, you are from the same clan as Zhong Yao of Spirit Sword Peak, am I right?” Ji Mo’s gaze was icy as she fixed it upon her.

“You... yes, I am from the same family as Zhong Yao. But what does that have to do with this?” Zhong wished to deny the connection, but clan records were kept by the sect—Ji Mo need only ask, and the truth would come out. Reluctantly, she admitted it.

“Ah, I remember now—just days ago, Junior Sister Ji fought Sister Zhong Yao on the dueling platform, and Zhong Yao was sent flying by a single punch. No wonder Senior Sister Zhong has been hostile ever since; she’s here to avenge her kinswoman,” Wei Qiu exclaimed, recalling the recent match.

“You’re talking nonsense! Zhong Yao and I may share a clan, but we’re not close. Why would I resent Junior Sister Ji for defeating her?” Zhong snapped, glaring fiercely at Wei Qiu. She might fear Ji Mo, but not Wei Qiu, who was junior to her in both seniority and cultivation.

“Whether it is nonsense, you know best. Today’s lash is merely interest—a warning. I may lack experience in dealing with people, but that doesn’t mean I’ll swallow injustice without protest. If this happens again, I will take your life. Senior Brothers Chen and Jiang, I can no longer remain in this group. Farewell,” Ji Mo said coldly, put away her White Jade Flood Dragon Whip, and strode away.

“Junior Sister Ji, wait! I’ll go with you,” Wei Qiu called, hurrying after her. Being a disciple of the Second Elder, while Chen and Zhong were of the Third and Jiang of the Fifth, he knew that after having exposed Zhong’s intentions, he would find no welcome in the group if he stayed.