Chapter 273

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Chapter 273: Blurry Tracks
After a short silence, the white tiger surprisingly nodded slightly in agreement to Zhang Mu’s terms.
“Five hundred first-stage mutant beasts, plus one exchange in the future, in return for one Essence Crystal of The Source of Wood.”
After the white tiger’s voice rang out slowly, Zhang Mu felt a wave of joy, surprised by the tiger’s straightforwardness.
Actually, he didn’t know the real reason for the tiger’s compromise, because it had already noticed something unique about Zhang Mu, or rather, his aura.
Everyone has an aura, and in the tiger’s keen eyes, under the backdrop of the rising sun, Zhang Mu’s aura appeared like a coiled golden dragon, dormant yet constantly absorbing the luck of the heavens into himself.
The white tiger’s interest was now solely focused on the essence of Zhang Mu’s being.
As you sow, so shall you reap. The connection made today with a person like Zhang Mu, who gathers the atmospheric luck of the world, will bring rewards in the future.
The world had changed drastically, and the identity of the White Tiger was very mysterious. It had to be careful and plan everything thoroughly, not missing any possibility to avoid the outcome it dreaded.
Now, this era had just started the path of evolution.
The true era of reckoning in the Great Darkness had not yet arrived. When that time came, lives would be in chaos. Neither humans nor beasts could escape their destined fate.
As it remembered the foretold era of reckoning in the Great Darkness, a hint of fear flashed in the White Tiger’s eyes.
Although it had not experienced it, that innate fear felt like a dark cloud hanging over its heart. That’s why it was so urgent to collect The Source of Wood.
However, when it suddenly had the idea to carefully observe Zhang Mu, it was surprised to find that it couldn’t capture his fate.
Can’t see through!
This meant that this person’s fortune had not been captured by the current river of fate.
Whether Zhang Mu escaped from a great fortune or gained strength from it, he had to create good karma with him. Just like the saying goes, “birds of a feather flock together.” Being close to someone with good luck will naturally bring a share of that luck too.
If everyone around you is having bad luck, you might get affected even if you are not experiencing any misfortune yourself.
The big secret cannot be revealed openly, not even hinted at, as there will be severe consequences if it is disclosed prematurely.
It must remain unsaid, it cannot be mentioned.
After leaking the big secret, not only Zhang Mu but even it (the secret) will face consequences, most likely getting dragged back into the river of fate with no benefits at all.
This is different from the minor prophecy of Long Er’s playful predictions – this is the big secret, a major prophecy. The White Tiger can only have a rough idea of the future, unable to control its own fate. Upon reaching the second rank, its further awakening allows its spirit to slowly resurface, knowing it must gather the essence of life.
The only essence discovered exists in Zhang Mu, as everything is fate. Only someone like Zhang Mu, with great luck, can obtain The Source of Wood without being overwhelmed or harmed by the powerful original aura.
Despite The Source of Wood being tainted by darkness, it has not been truly corrupted yet. But following Zhang Mu’s current lack of understanding, the essence of The Source of Wood will continue to deteriorate.
The White Tiger cannot forcibly take The Source from Zhang Mu nor reveal the key aspects to him. It can only let events unfold, hoping that Zhang Mu’s luck will protect him from harm.
Seeing the White Tiger lost in thought, Zhang Mu believed it was contemplating the gains and losses of their deal, urging, “You agreed so readily earlier. Are you having regrets now?”
The white tiger was about to speak, but suddenly felt uneasy, thinking it was time to stop interacting with Zhang Mu and not interfere too much. So, it stayed silent, moved away, and turned to look down at the group of animals beside it.
The mutated animals under its command were all lying on the ground. Since the king hadn’t spoken for a long time, they dared not move.
The white tiger scanned around and noticed the hyena clan nearby that seemed guilty of plotting something against it from time to time. It felt angry instantly, realizing that its only mistake in confronting Zhang Mu was related to this clan.
Anger surged up, and the tiger’s paw shook. It roared loudly towards the hyena clan.
This time, when talking to Zhang Mu, the white tiger’s voice seemed to carry extra power. As the sound waves spread, it knocked over the mutated animals around it first.
The tiger’s roar was already intimidating, preventing any thoughts of rebellion in the animals.
The hyena clan, as the main target of the attack, was directly blasted away.
However, the white tiger’s roar lasted for a long time, and the hyena clan seemed to be especially oppressed by the tiger, unable to get up. As for the other mutated animals, they had already fled the scene of disaster.
A sound of stomping feet rang out as all the mobile mutated animals ran for their lives to a distance where the sound waves couldn’t harm them. Those who couldn’t move and were too close to the white tiger and the hyena clan were now forever left behind, all bleeding from their seven orifices, dying from the white tiger’s roar.
“You count, there are four hundred hyenas in the clan, plus other Beastmen on the ground. By killing in this way, the loss of blood food should be minimized.”
For some reason, the white tiger started to become silent and stopped speaking.
Zhang Mu was a bit confused, but since he had fulfilled Zhang Mu’s conditions, he couldn’t delay. With mental strength, he urged Blood Lotus to quickly bring out the Essence Crystal.
A somewhat ethereal Blood Lotus Seed was reluctantly ejected from the main body of the Blood Lotus and fell into Zhang Mu’s hand. He carefully observed this tiny lotus seed in his hand, which looked somewhat similar to the first time he saw a Blood Lotus Seed, except that the blood color of this seed was not as rich as the main body.
Indeed, just as Blood Lotus had told Zhang Mu, extracting the Essence Crystal would greatly hurt one’s vitality. Zhang Mu clearly felt the Blood Lotus suddenly wither, and there was a deadness in his left arm.
Zhang Mu casually tossed the Essence Crystal towards the direction of the white tiger, then leaped down from the back of the Obsidian Beetle to find the bodies of mutant beasts nearby for Blood Lotus to absorb and recover.
The strength and speed of the vine that Blood Lotus extended suddenly decreased, the vine even appeared somewhat withered, as it probed into the bodies of several mutant beasts to absorb, gradually becoming more plump.
With a side glance, Zhang Mu noticed that the Essence Crystal had fallen into the white tiger’s paw, already starting to spread, aiming to take root and parasitize in the white tiger’s body. This was also the nature of Blood Lotus, as its Essence Crystal was like its child.
However, what happened next left Zhang Mu dumbfounded.
That white tiger actually swallowed the budding Blood Lotus seedling directly into its belly.