Chapter 226

226. Chapter 224 Humans, your Tiger Grandfather has arrived.

The Witch Mountain Gorge is deep and narrow; the gorge's moisture lingers without dispersing; vast clouds and mist gather here, it can be said to be myriad in form; sunlight falls on the mist, refracting into a strange light.

The mountain range should have been tranquil, but a golden meteorite falling from the sky shattered the original peace.

Media reporters from all directions, upon receiving the news, all rushed toward the Witch Mountain Range; in this era where traffic is supreme, many people have already gathered at the Mountain Base.

「Welcome to my live stream, this is the Witch Mountain Range, outdoor explorer Xiao Wang will bring you firsthand information, please follow and give a little heart. 」

「Hello everyone, we are currently on the outskirts of the Witch Mountain Range; from here, looking in this direction, you can see that some part of the mountain range above seems to have traces of being scorched by fire. 」

「For now, the situation inside the mountain is unclear; we are still waiting for instructions from the relevant authorities; the number of people here keeps increasing, and soon the authorities should take related measures. 」

The official reporters of Great Xia are fine; without clear orders from above, they dare not blindly enter the mountain range.

But those private and small-station reporters have far fewer scruples; for the sake of traffic and heat, they try every means to advance into the interior of the mountain range.

For these people, persuasion has basically no effect; after the relevant authorities issued a ban, it improved a little, but even so it cannot stop their curiosity-driven hearts; they linger in the outskirts, refusing to disperse.

Outside the Witch Mountain Range command center, there are also members of the scientific expedition team urgently established by the authorities who are in command; the head of the scientific expedition personnel is a middle-aged person, also affiliated with the Capital General Research Institute.

At this moment he stared intently at the instrument's screen, "What's going on? Why can't we capture the precise signal from that area?"

The staff member beside him kept operating on the control panel, finally shook his head, "It should be due to the meteorite landing; the magnetic field in that area has fallen into chaos, helicopters cannot be used, rashly approaching would pose great risk."

"What about the special forces members who applied from the military?"

"They are together with the scientific expedition team; they should soon reach the designated location."

The middle-aged man nodded, "Good, remember to let them be careful."

"What I worry about most now is whether people from other countries will also sneak in taking advantage of the chaos."

The Witch Mountain Range extends from the East Danning River of Witch Mountain County to the Official Ford of Badong County, stretching over 40 kilometers, connecting to the Great Ba Mountain to the north; its range is truly vast.

Even if the authorities wanted to impose a complete blockade, it would be fundamentally impossible, and moreover the mountain peaks are all interconnected; if someone were to slip in via a small path deep into the mountains, they would likely not notice.

Looking at the satellite-transmitted cloud map of the Wushan Mountains and recalling the warning sent from above, the middle-aged man's eyes filled with deep worry, and he couldn't help but sigh.

"Alas, if only Professor Song Ze were here at this critical moment; he is experienced and well-informed, and could handle any unexpected incident very well."

The forest is deep and secluded; everywhere one looks are towering ancient trees, blocking off the surroundings so tightly that not even wind can get through.

A well-trained unit moved through it, clearing the way ahead; they were tall and sturdy, equipped entirely with live firearms and nuclear weapons, their eyes revealing a firm, cold glint.

Behind them followed the scientific expedition team established by the authorities; the group cautiously traversed the forest, heading toward the meteorite's impact site.

The expedition team looked at their precision instruments, which were now useless; "No, we still can't use them, and the command headquarters isn't providing any useful clues either."

Because the magnetic field here is chaotic, the satellite cloud map cannot pinpoint the exact location; although they know the meteorite fell somewhere in the Wushan Mountains, the range is too broad, so they can only search slowly.

"Everyone be careful; electronic devices cannot be used here, likely due to the meteorite's influence. Everything about the deep mountains is unknown, so everyone must stay alert."

"Without an exact position, isn't this like looking for a needle in a haystack?"

"According to the meteorite's estimated trajectory, it should be toward the southeast; we might find some new clues there."

The expedition team and special forces continued searching, unaware that an archaeological team had already entered the tomb and even discovered the meteorite's existence.

Inside the deep, spacious tomb chamber, Professor Zhang and the others marveled at the mystery of this golden meteorite, almost forgetting their original purpose.

Pale golden mist intertwined, resembling auspicious clouds enveloping them, with goldfish leaping from the water; their bodies also filled with an inexplicable warmth, a tingling sensation all over.

These past days they have been searching the Wushan Mountains for the tomb's location, climbing mountains and crossing rivers, their bodies already utterly exhausted.

Now that fatigue has vanished completely, their condition has returned to its peak; they feel as if they have inexhaustible energy, even running a kilometer now would be no problem.

Professor Zhang's face showed astonishment: "It's truly amazing; could this be the energy emanating from the meteorite?"

"Professor Zhang, why don't we take this meteorite with us?"

Everyone present studies historical relics; they never imagined they would one day become interested in an extraterrestrial stone, and this golden meteorite seemed to possess a special charm that firmly drew everyone's attention.

The meteorite is not large; after Sun Min put on gloves and tried to pick it up, the next second his eyes widened as he felt it was as heavy as a thousand jin, utterly unmoving.

"This meteorite is too heavy; I can't move it."

The other members of the archaeological team wore bewildered expressions, looking at the small golden meteorite on the ground and then at Sun Min, suspecting he was joking.

"How could that be? It's just the size of an ordinary rock; how could it be immovable?"

Seeing that no one believed him, Sun Min gasped heavily and said, "You guys try."

The archaeological team members went over half-believing, half-doubting, tried to lift the stone, only to see their faces turn red, a fine layer of sweat beading on their foreheads, and none could lift the meteorite.

The tiny meteorite seemed to contain enormous energy, as if glued to the ground, impossible to pick up; in an instant the expressions of the archaeological team and others were as if they had seen a ghost.

"Really spooky; such a small meteorite, yet we can't lift it."

"Let's all try together; I don't believe we can't lift this stone!"

Everyone fetched a professional rope, looped it around the meteorite and tied a dead knot, while others took the other end, hoping to drag and move it that way.

The archaeological team rolled up their sleeves; altogether there were over a dozen people, and with that effort they could lift an elephant, yet they had no way to move that golden meteorite.

Everyone's veins bulged on their hands, the rope biting into their palms leaving red marks; as they exerted all their strength, the meteorite finally inched forward a few inches.

"Crack—"

Hearing the faint sound, everyone cheered, as if seeing a glimmer of hope: "It finally moved!"

However, before they could celebrate for even a few seconds, their hands were about to smoke from pulling, the meteorite gave no further movement, and at that moment everyone was exhausted and collapsed to the ground.

"Really uncanny; this meteorite is just too heavy."

Looking at the golden meteorite before them, everyone wore expressions of utter disbelief; although it wasn't large, they simply couldn't lift it.

As everyone pondered countermeasures, Professor Zhang's gaze fell upon the deep tomb chamber; he made a silencing gesture, lowered his voice, and said, "Listen, there seems to be movement over there."

"Pat-pat-pat—"

From the dark, deep tomb came a faint, barely-there footstep sound, rapidly approaching them.

"It sounds like someone is coming."

"Who is it?"

"Could it be the authorities?"

If it's official, then everyone actually doesn't need to worry; if it's tomb robbers, then it's probably not advisable to confront them directly — we are these regular troops, facing outside wild‑tactics, we probably don't have much chance of winning, what if they even have guns?

Professor Zhang glanced at the side tomb chamber and said, "To be safe, let's hide first and talk later; being careful is never harmful."

The archaeological team members hurriedly hid in the side tomb chamber; the stone door was half‑open, revealing a gap that just allowed them to clearly see the outside scene.

Not long after Professor Zhang and the others hid away, the footsteps became clear, orderly and steady, as if they were well‑trained.

Soon a large shadow walked in from outside.

After seeing these figures clearly, Professor Zhang and the others' pupils suddenly contracted; they instinctively held their breath, not even daring to exhale.

Outside stood more than a dozen fully armed special forces soldiers; they wore camouflage, their blond hair and blue eyes were especially conspicuous in the dark tomb, they held machine guns, and their eyes were full of killing intent.

At this moment Professor Zhang couldn't help feeling relieved about his earlier action; otherwise the whole team would likely be separated head from body.

"How could there be special forces from another country here!"

Although we don't know which country, this hair and eye color are obviously not from Great Xia.

Someone in the team spoke extremely softly, but was immediately had their mouth covered.

After all, this special forces unit isn't to be trifled with; if discovered, they'd all have to answer for it here.

The special forces' attention was also drawn to the golden meteorite, so they didn't notice that there were still people hidden in the side tomb chamber.

"Heavens, God, this beautiful creation ought to belong to us."

"Lord Jesus, come quickly and look — I've never seen such a beautiful meteorite; this must be the most perfect masterpiece of heaven."

"This meteorite has a kind of magic; I feel my wounds healing, and a warm sensation, as if I were sunbathing in Florida right now."

Looking at the golden meteorite in the main tomb chamber, the special forces' gazes were drawn to it, their eyes full of excitement and delight.

"This trip we indeed didn't come in vain; this meteorite is extraordinary — taking it back for research will surely yield many breakthroughs and discoveries."

"I feel the power of Jesus on this meteorite; it ought to be our nation's treasure, yet somehow it fell into the territory of Great Xia."

"We will welcome the treasure and return home!"

The excited discussion of the special forces clearly reached Professor Zhang and the others' ears; for a moment the archaeological team members couldn't help clenching their fists.

From their exchange, it turned out this special forces unit came from M Country.

Recently, Great Xia has experienced frequent anomalous phenomena, which not only sparked widespread discussion domestically but also attracted the attention of some countries internationally.

Adding to the earlier incidents at the British Museum, people suspect those genetically mutated animals might be related to Great Xia, and whether they are conducting some kind of mutant‑animal experiment.

Therefore M Country sent special forces to infiltrate and patrol these deep mountains.

Because they had local agents meeting them and had never appeared in urban areas, only roaming the mountains, they have so far escaped notice by the Great Xia authorities.

Who would have thought that during their reconnaissance they happened to encounter the meteorite's fall, and thus were drawn here as well.

Upon hearing the M Country special forces' talk, Professor Zhang and the others felt their teeth itch with anger.

It's utterly shameless!

If it weren't for the huge disparity in strength between the sides, they would probably want to rush out right now and give those special forces a taste of their own medicine.

Seeing the indignant expressions on everyone's faces, Professor Zhang shook his head.

A little forbearance spoils great plans.

They had no weapons at all, just an ordinary archaeological team; facing these real‑knife‑real‑gun, well‑trained special forces, there was simply no chance of winning.

The archaeological team members could only grit their teeth, hatefully watching the outside scene, cursing those M Country special forces hundreds of times in their hearts.

The M Country special forces wanted to pick up the meteorite, but they soon ran into the same problem as Professor Zhang and the others.

The meteorite looked small, yet it was extraordinarily heavy; for a moment the special forces couldn't help staring wide‑eyed.

"God, this meteorite is way too heavy!"

The weight, disproportionate to its size, further proved the meteorite's special nature, making the M Country special forces ever more excited.

Although they are numerous and exceptionally skilled, even if they could barely lift it, trying to carry the meteorite out of the Wushan Mountain Range would be utterly impossible — too inconvenient to move.

The special forces' eyes revealed excitement and a determined glow; they quickly decided that since they couldn't take it away, they couldn't leave it all for Great Xia to obtain.

Hiding in the dark, the archaeological team watched the special forces' actions, their eyes almost bursting with fury, barely able to restrain themselves.

That special forces unit actually produced miniature explosives!

Since they can't carry the whole meteorite away, they might as well blow it up — at least they can bring back some fragments; anything is better than leaving the intact stone for Great Xia.

For a moment, Professor Zhang and the others were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.

If we let them detonate the explosives, the surrounding tombs will certainly be affected; the worst fear is that a violent blast could cause the tomb to collapse, even damaging the mountain itself!

These M Country special forces naturally wouldn't care — after all, they're in Great Xia territory, not their own country, and they'd even be happy to cause trouble for Great Xia.

"Professor Zhang, what should we do now?"

The archaeological team members all panicked, and meanwhile the communication device in the tomb had failed, so they couldn't contact the outside world at all.

If they went out now to stop the M Country special forces, it would be like using an egg against a stone — besides dying pointlessly, it would achieve nothing; are they really just supposed to watch helplessly as the M Country special forces blow up the tomb?

If they keep hiding here, they might also be caught in the blast.

At this moment, Professor Zhang and the others can be said to be caught between a rock and a hard place — going out now means death, staying hidden also means death.

The archaeological team all broke out in a cold sweat.

At this critical moment, sudden changes arose!

A huge black shadow appeared outside the tomb chamber at some unknown time; like a ghost in the dark night, it slipped in silently, unnoticed by anyone.

The two special forces soldiers guarding the front of the tomb chamber heard heavy breathing behind them and abruptly turned their heads.

"Who's there?"

"Stop right now! Otherwise don't blame us for being rude."

They quickly raised their guns; the deep, dark passageway resembled a man‑eating beast lurking within, its end unseen, and in an instant their nerves were stretched to the limit, their eyes locked dead‑ahead.

The commotion here also drew the attention of the other special forces inside the tomb chamber; those who had been preparing to set up explosives all stopped what they were doing and stared at the black shadow like they were facing a formidable enemy.

Not far away there was a faint green light; at first they didn't know what it was.

As the black shadow approached, the green light grew ever more evident; in the endless darkness, a pair of eerie green eyes actually appeared!

Like two balls of ghost fire drifting in midair, they carried an indescribable chill and killing intent, continually approaching them as if an abyss had descended.

The special forces exchanged glances, their expressions somewhat shocked and bewildered, even breaking out in cold sweat on their backs, "God, what the hell is this?!"

"All units, on alert!"

Seeing the two balls of ghost fire drawing nearer, the special forces decisively pulled the triggers, giving that black shadow no chance to react.

"Bang!"

Accompanied by several gunshots, the members of the M-country special forces unit all raised their guns, the black muzzles in their hands emitting a deafening roar.

In an instant, a barrage of fire like snakes covered the area, shooting out like meteors; a hail of bullets poured down, and under such overwhelming firepower, that black shadow was about to be riddled like a sieve.

In the blink of an eye, a bright yellow light burst from the dark tomb passage, swift as wind and lightning, leaving trails of afterimages in the air, and it swiftly struck the two special forces nearest the tomb chamber entrance.

"Ah!"

Accompanied by a heart-rending scream, blood mist instantly filled the air, and two shattered corpses were blown straight through the doorway.

Like two torn sacks, they flew dozens of meters away, the immense force undiminished, slamming them violently into the wall.

Instantly dust flew up, accompanied by splattering bits of blurred flesh and blood; many special forces had blood on their faces, some even nearly splattering onto Professor Zhang, who instinctively shrank back.

The archaeological team and others hiding in the dark, having never seen such a scene, were stunned for a moment, staring at the inhuman shape in the distance, trembling and unable to speak.

"This power is truly too fierce!"

"However, the M-country special forces' actions are truly hateful; meeting such a fate is wholly deserved."

The archaeological team quickly reacted, "Great, could it be that government personnel have arrived? Then we might be saved too."

"\"Nice shot! Give those M-country folks a taste of their own medicine! \"

Although this method didn't seem like something the government would do, Professor Zhang and the others didn't dwell on it; the predicament before them finally turned around.

"\"Thud—\""

As the black shadow entered the tomb chamber, the archaeological team hurriedly looked over, but once they saw it clearly, they froze in place, almost crying out, only to be reminded by a nearby companion to quickly cover their mouths.

Not only them, but even the special forces who had been firing their guns were dumbstruck, their expressions blank for a moment.

"\"SHIT! What the hell is this? \""

"\"God, am I hallucinating? \""

"\"No, this is absolutely impossible! \""

Its hulking, mountain-like body exerted immense pressure; its brownish-yellow fur seemed to glow, its sharp bared fangs exhaled a chilling aura, and its copper-bell-sized eyes almost made one's blood run cold.

The entire hall fell silent; no one had expected the sudden intruder to look like this.

"Because it isn't human at all!"

"But a gigantic tiger standing upright on two legs!"

The air was thick with the smell of blood; two special forces lay on the ground lifeless, their flowing blood nearly able to gather into a small stream.

The M-country special forces were completely bewildered.

"What on earth is going on?"

"How could such a huge tiger appear inside the tomb chamber?"

"This tiger is extraordinarily robust; when standing upright it reaches about three to four meters tall! Its tail behind sways like an iron hammer."

"Even the tall, burly special forces seemed puny beside it."

"The main tomb's chamber is already spacious, and being the grave of royalty and nobility, its scale is naturally incomparable; yet the tiger here still has to slightly hunch its back and bend its spine, otherwise it would hit the ceiling."

"Those beastly eyes flashed with a cold light; the murderous aura emanating from its whole body was almost tangible, making even well-trained, combat-experienced special forces shudder involuntarily."

"This fear stems from its bloodline and innate nature!"

"What's most astonishing is that this tiger wears an apron around its waist!"

"The apron is covered in oil stains, likely from splatters while cooking; some spots are dark, indicating it has been there a long time."

"Some spots look as if they were just splashed, giving the impression that the tiger had just rushed over from the stove."

"It's utterly absurd."

Professor Zhang rubbed his eyes, even feeling a bit dizzy, and couldn't help muttering to himself.

"\"Am I hallucinating? Why would there be a tiger that stands like a human, wearing an apron? \""

The other team members wore similar expressions, doubting whether they were seeing things.

The tiger wearing an apron forms a stark contrast with its ferocious aura.

The scene was bizarre to the extreme, yet oddly somewhat comical in an indescribable way.

Everyone's expression bore an unimaginable shock; compared to the archaeological team lost in astonishment, the M-country special forces' faces gradually turned grim.

Catching sight of his comrade's corpse nearby, he instantly flared with rage, raised his weapon, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Before he could act, the tiger seemed to sense his movement, and its body became even swifter.

A gust of wind swept by; all that could be seen was a yellow afterimage swinging a massive beastly claw.

The next second, the special forces member who had just raised his gun, like tofu, had his upper body smashed to pieces.

Red and white mingled together; even his brains were blown out, accompanied by a sky‑flood of flesh, blood, and bones scattering across the ground like some irregular pattern.

The whole event happened too fast—just a few seconds—and nobody had time to react.

Having done all that, the Northeast tiger extended its paw and made a famous international gesture.

Professor Zhang and the others lurking in the dark suffered another mental blackout.

"\"Did I see right? Is this tiger giving the middle finger? \""

"\"Damn, raising the middle finger—this tiger must be provoking us; could it have actually become a spirit? \""

The archaeological team never imagined they'd see a tiger flip the bird in their lifetime; those who didn't know still thought the figure before them was a person.

The air fell into a deathly silence!

After a brief silence, the other M Country special forces finally came to their senses, seeing the tiger's provocative action and another corpse that had hatched on the ground, they all roared in anger.

Fire!

All-out fire!

Kill this tiger!

All the special forces raised their weapons and fired wildly at the tiger, yet they did not see the mocking flash in the beast's eyes.

If it were the previous Northeastern tiger, it might have feared this firepower, but now it has survived the heavenly tribulation and transformed into a demon, its body already reborn, so it naturally fears none of these bullets.

Bright yellow Spiritual Power gathered together, flowing toward it, soon enveloping its entire body in an impenetrable shroud.

The human eye naturally cannot see the spiritual shield; they only saw countless bullets striking the tiger's body, yet it remained unscathed!

Not to mention bleeding, not even a Dao mark was left behind.

How could this be?!

Is this tiger capable of magic?!

The special forces' eyes almost popped out, unable to believe the scene before them; amidst the flying sparks, that tiger was completely unharmed.

However, the next second, something even more unbelievable happened.

"Are you guys just scratching an itch for Lord Tiger?"

Hearing this rough, mighty voice, even the special forces who had seen many storms momentarily went blank.

"Holy Mother Mary above! This tiger can actually speak?"

The scene before them was so shocking that the tiger not only wore an apron, but also gave the middle finger, and could even speak human words.

Not to mention the special forces, Professor Zhang hiding in the dark was completely dumbfounded. (End of chapter)