Hunting Demon Tigers

The Sand-Howl Tiger was charging straight at Mo Fan's group, who had just ventured into this Demon-Beast territory. Its eyes were wide open, blazing with a sickly green light visible from a great distance — not even the drifting haze of yellow sand could dim that murderous glare.

Back in the Dongting Lake region, at least the first things they'd encountered had been the dim-witted Lizard-Skull Giant Demons, all Servant-class creatures. But things were genuinely alarming here in Dunhuang. They had barely stepped beyond the edge of the Safe Zone when a Battle-General-class creature was already upon them.

*If Battle-General-class beasts are this densely packed, how do any Servant-class creatures even survive out here?*

"It's starving and furious — almost impossible to calm down. But there's an injury somewhere on its body. It's in pain." Xinxia sat on the Swift Star Wolf's back, watching the Sand-Howl Tiger with wary eyes.

After what had happened in Bo City, Xinxia had rarely come face-to-face with Demon-Beasts. Her expression lacked the composure the others wore — though her secondary studies in Mind Element meant that steadying one's inner state was likely something she would master faster than anyone else.

"So we can't slip past it — then let's get to work!" Mo Fan's temper flared.

*This is the first time I've taken Xinxia on a proper trip. Might as well give her a look at what I can do.*

As it turned out, Zhang Xiaohou was even more impulsive than Mo Fan. He possessed dual-displacement abilities, and he launched himself forward without hesitation, apparently keen to test himself against this infamous member of the Sand Tiger clan.

"What the hell — where'd they find this guy? He's got some nerve!" Zhao Manyan muttered.

Any other Mage who laid eyes on a Battle-General-class Demon-Beast would have their legs turning to jelly. He had never seen anyone charge at one the way Zhang Xiaohou just had, and for his own part, Zhao Manyan had absolutely no intention of doing anything of the sort.

"Do as you like — but watch for this: when the Sand-Howl Tiger is hard-pressed in a fight, it will start to sweat blood. That's the sign it's about to go berserk. Don't let it make a desperate all-or-nothing charge and get someone killed." Lingling warned the group.

Zhang Xiaohou was the textbook definition of reckless impatience. Mo Fan's personality had clearly rubbed off on him — he feared nothing, quick enough with clever tricks but short on broader judgment.

He charged toward the Sand-Howl Tiger with a battle cry, closing the gap to barely fifty meters.

The beast's eyes were savage. It was roughly four meters long, its shoulder blades jutting high, as though they might split through the skin at any moment.

Its limbs were far more powerful than the Swift Star Wolf's, its claws sharper and more lethal. The massive head, thick with sand-colored fur, tilted slightly forward.

The Sand-Howl Tiger fixed its stare on Zhang Xiaohou, and amid the murderous gleam in those eyes, something flickered — confusion?

This creature had terrorized the region for years and had presumably never once seen a human being charge toward it looking more thrilled than terrified. Weren't humans supposed to run for their lives?

The Sand-Howl Tiger was no mindless beast. The moment it registered that this human felt no fear — that he dared challenge the dignity of the tiger-kin — fury overtook it. With a roar, it lunged at the skinny fool who had come running to his own death.

*Not much meat on him, but he'd make a satisfying chew.*

The Sand-Howl Tiger's burst speed was staggering. The instant its legs snapped open, a wall of sand surged backward across the dune — and before that sand could rise even to knee height, the beast was already on top of Zhang Xiaohou.

Its entire body became a furious red blur, hurtling at him with full force.

All color drained from Zhang Xiaohou's face. He had always heard that Sand-Howl Tigers were among the most ferocious creatures in this desert, but he had never imagined their explosive speed could reach this level.

Fifty meters was his standard safe buffer against Battle-General-class creatures — enough time to react and deploy his skills. In all his military training, no Battle-General-class Demon-Beast had ever breached that gap.

But this Sand-Howl Tiger was far faster than anything he had faced before. Fortunately, he was a highly trained Military Mage. Countless near-death missions had forged in him the ability to stay calm precisely when his life was most at risk.

Wind Track and Earth Wave activated simultaneously. A fierce, traceable gust carved a clear wind corridor through the swirling sand, and that corridor swept Zhang Xiaohou rapidly to the left. Simultaneously, the sand beneath his feet responded to his control, surging beneath him to amplify his speed — propelling him swiftly to his target position.

Ferocious as the Sand-Howl Tiger was, its straight-line speed notwithstanding, it clearly lacked the Swift Star Wolf's nimbleness in changing direction. After lunging at empty air, it skidded a long distance before it could wheel itself around — by which point Zhang Xiaohou was fifty meters away again.

It coiled its power and charged at the same blinding speed. But as it ran, it never noticed that the sand beneath its paws had changed color.

The sand had turned a dark brown and grown sticky. The dune itself showed a clear, unmistakable sag — the surface rippling as though being drawn toward some deep unseen pit.

Gradually the dune flattened and shrank, and a quicksand pit appeared between Zhang Xiaohou and the Sand-Howl Tiger, its territory expanding fast.

Once the dry sand turned viscous, every ounce of force the Sand-Howl Tiger drove into it pulled the beast deeper. It was running with the same explosive power as before, yet crossing those fifty meters now took three times as long.

The adhesion was visibly bleeding the creature's speed. And as the dune kept collapsing inward, the quicksand pit stopped merely slowing the Sand-Howl Tiger — it began dragging the beast toward its churning center.

"I thought he was just charging in recklessly," Zhao Manyan said with a grin. "Turns out he'd been setting the quicksand trap the whole time, baiting the Sand-Howl Tiger to run right into it."

The most terrifying thing about the Sand-Howl Tiger was precisely that explosive burst — an impact so sudden that no one could prepare for it, and even with mental readiness, the body simply could not evade its furious charge.

Zhang Xiaohou had used himself as bait, drawing the Sand-Howl Tiger directly into the quicksand. Even if the trap couldn't bury it alive, it had drastically stripped away the creature's most dangerous quality.

With Zhang Xiaohou holding the front line, Mo Fan and Chenying quickly joined the fight.

Chenying, who wielded Earth Element, showed real cleverness. She cast Stone Wall in the direction the Sand-Howl Tiger was straining toward as it tried to claw its way out. The wall rose like a sheer cliff face, driving the beast back into the churning heart of the quicksand.