Chapter 61: The Tiger King

"Stop—"

Alyssa, walking ahead, suddenly raised her hand, signaling Li Mochen behind her to halt.

Then she bent down, studying a beast's footprint with focused attention.

"Finally found something. This should be at least a level eleven blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger."

After speaking, Alyssa suddenly moved south like a civet cat, continuing forward. Most of the time, she relied on various clues found along the way, such as fallen fur or footprints, and occasionally on scent.

After they had walked about three li through the dense forest, Alyssa excitedly examined a pile of droppings under a tree.

"It's still warm. It's nearby!"

As she said this, Alyssa had already climbed a giant tree, pulled out a night-vision telescope from her backpack, and began scanning around.

Just a moment later, Alyssa slid down from the tree: "I found it! About fifteen hundred meters from here. But Amo, are you sure? It's not too late to back out now. Once I fire this shot, it's a fight to the death. Blue-eyed saber-toothed tigers are incredibly fast; we probably won't be able to escape. Give me an answer now, yes or no? I don't want to waste materials."

Li Mochen looked helpless: "Yes, Alyssa, you really are long-winded. Your former companions must have told you that, right?"

He just hoped the woman would speed up and say less nonsense.

Li Mochen had already released the safeties on his Alloy Warhammer and Alloy Roar, summoned his Deep Cold Princess, and looked into the depths of the forest with some anticipation.

If it was an eleventh-level blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger, it would be very valuable. Saber-toothed tigers and the various magical populations derived from them had gone extinct in America. But in the Dark World, this clan remained powerful, dominating the area near Ghost City.

The blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger was one of the stronger types among saber-toothed tigers. Their blue eyes contained the power of wind and ice, and their saber-like fangs were excellent materials for making magical weapons.

Li Mochen thought that this was the value of a magical hunter. If it were him, he would have to use himself as bait and rely on luck in this Mystic Forest.

After all, he was no longer in the Primordial Sky Realm, where he could sense everything within a dozen miles in minute detail.

Alyssa puffed out her cheeks but finally began setting up without a word. What Li Mochen said was true, leaving her no room to argue. She liked chatting with people, especially in the sunless environment of the Dark World.

In the few hunting groups she had joined before, there had indeed been people who expressed dislike.

Alyssa's setup mainly involved traps. Magical professionals never fight unprepared battles. High-lethality hidden traps were their greatest reliance.

After setting everything up, she climbed another giant tree with a better angle and took off her Butler heavy magical sniper rifle.

About a minute later, having calculated the distance, wind speed, and trajectory, Alyssa hesitated for a few seconds, then finally pulled the trigger.

Due to the silencer, Li Mochen below only heard a soft 'puff' and saw a flash of flame from Alyssa's muzzle.

Then, a kilometer away, a furious tiger roar erupted. Moments later, a gust of wind swept wildly in all directions, and the ground began to be covered with ice.

The ferocious aura made even Alyssa on the tree slightly pale: "Correction, this is probably a thirteenth-level Blue-Eyed King."

She already regretted it; this was undoubtedly her oversight. But Alyssa knew that regret was useless now, so she fired a second shot without hesitation.

However, the blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger opposite had clearly taken precautions. Its figure moved at high speed through the dense forest, shifting left and right, constantly changing positions. Sometimes it even used the trees to cover its body, causing Alyssa's second shot to miss completely.

By now, the distance between them had shrunk to less than eight hundred meters.

Cold sweat broke out on the cowgirl's forehead, and her breathing became rapid. But she didn't fire hastily; instead, she kept adjusting her breath, tracking the tiger's movements, looking for the right angle. Only when she felt absolutely certain did Alyssa pull the trigger for the third time. Then she saw through the scope a burst of blood on the tiger's chest! The sniper bullet, at nearly Mach 30, arrived almost instantly, leaving no room for evasion.

But Alyssa didn't have time to confirm her kill; she quickly loaded another bullet.

As expected, when the distance closed to about 200 meters, the tiger triggered her carefully laid anti-personnel minefield. Its entire body was covered in pellets, and the blast wave lifted it off the ground, sending it tumbling uncontrollably through the air.

Taking advantage, Alyssa fired another shot, hitting the blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger's neck. Then she dropped her 'Butler' and drew two heavy pistols.

Because at this distance, she didn't have time for a fourth shot. Next came close combat, which made her most anxious.

She wondered if the man below had enough ability to fight this thirteenth-level blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger.

Below the tree, Li Mochen had already put on his 'Divine Will' mask and entered the state of Heavenly Spirit Illumination. He could see the giant tiger looming in the dense forest.

This dark creature was about the size of ten adults, weighing over five hundred kilograms. Its fur was silver-white, and the two saber-like fangs protruding from its mouth gleamed with a chilling light.

At this moment, the massive beast looked quite battered. Besides the shattered carotid artery from Alyssa's shot, there was also a large hole in its chest. But these seemingly terrible wounds had been frozen by the cold, with no blood seeping out. For this 'Blue-Eyed King,' these were clearly not fatal injuries.

It was worth noting that the tiger's right leg had also been severely damaged by Alyssa, nearly breaking the joint. Yet this didn't affect its movement at all. With the help of the wind, the blue-eyed saber-toothed tiger, even on three legs, could run at a speed of nearly 240 kilometers per hour.

In addition, its entire body was covered in fine blood spots, the result of the anti-personnel mines. They looked terrifying but caused little damage, especially for a highly intelligent dark creature that wielded ice power.

Li Mochen stood still, a look of disdain in his eyes. At his command, two ice shields materialized in front of him. One was his own, the other from the Deep Cold Princess.

The barrel of the 'Alloy Warhammer' was also coated with the Deep Cold Princess's 'Blessing of Ice.' This was an intermediate-level spell, far more powerful than the Dragon Vein's 'Blessing of Fire.'

When the distance closed to about 150 meters, Li Mochen fired his first shot.

As a hunter with various magical firearms, Alyssa had a large stock of magical bullets. So Li Mochen didn't stint on ammunition. His first shot was an intermediate freezing bullet, hitting the tiger precisely in the chest.

For a dark creature that could control wind and ice spells and was almost flying through the air, the ice magical bullet had little effect in stopping it, merely creating a layer of ice armor.

But Li Mochen had a purpose. After just three shots, the saber-toothed tiger was encased in a thick layer of ice, greatly increasing its weight and causing its speed to drop precipitously.