The instant Yang Bin teleported away, a massive tiger slammed down on the exact spot he'd been standing.
Its powerful front claws cratered the highway like it was wet clay.
Yang Bin swallowed hard.
Thank god his reflexes were fast. One second slower and he'd be dead-or close to it.
The others finally got a clear look at the mutant tiger. Every single one of them went wide-eyed.
This thing was bigger than an elephant. Forget everything else-its weight alone had to be several tons.
The moment it appeared, a crushing pressure settled over them all. Even breathing felt harder.
No wonder the boss had been so wary. One look at this beast and you knew-it was not something you fucked with.
The remaining Tier-5 Zombies took one look at the tiger and quietly retreated into the tunnel.
Only the Tier 3 and Tier 4 zombies remained, still mindlessly executing the dead Tier-6 zombie's final commands.
Seeing the tiger coil to pounce again, Zhong Yuansen and the others-who'd been conserving their strength this entire time-moved without hesitation.
An earthen spike erupted from the ground, driving straight toward the tiger's belly.
But the beast's reflexes were terrifying. It leapt aside the instant the spike broke the surface.
Then it lunged at Fang Sijie-the closest target.
Fang Sijie didn't panic. He gritted his teeth against the surrounding zombie attacks and charged straight into the horde.
The moment the tiger pounced, he threw himself into a ground roll, dodging cleanly. The tiger's momentum carried it crashing into the mass of zombies instead.
Zombies didn't discriminate between human and beast. Something lunged at them, they attacked it. Simple as that.
Fang Sijie seized the opening and sprinted back to the group.
"Brother Bin, fall back. Leave the rest to us!" Chen Hao and the others stepped forward, forming a wall between Yang Bin's group and the tiger.
"Yeah. Be careful out there-we'll rest up and join you soon." Yang Bin nodded. No argument.
The others lifted Old Hei and retreated quickly.
Yang Bin's decision about who to hold in reserve had been deliberate.
Zhong Yuansen's Earth Armor had the strongest defense on the team. He was the only one who could take a hit from this tiger and survive.
Chen Hao's Sharp Edge was the sharpest weapon they had. Against the Tier-7 Mutant Tiger's hide, probably only his dagger could break through.
Lin Yifei's Absolute Freeze was their strongest crowd control. The tiger was too fast-without locking it down, they'd never land a clean hit.
As for Skinny Monkey, Yang Bin wanted to test whether his Beast Taming ability could work on a creature this powerful.
Even if it couldn't fully control the tiger, it might disrupt it. And Skinny Monkey's Wind Blade packed decent damage on top of that.
These four were the best matchup against the mutant tiger.
Everyone else-Yang Bin included-wouldn't contribute much against it directly.
Compared to the others, he didn't actually have a particularly powerful offensive option.
Telekinesis looked impressive, but it was only as good as the object it moved.
His current Tang Saber probably couldn't even pierce this tiger's skin.
So Yang Bin chose to handle the remaining zombies instead.
His raw strength was still well above the others, though. He was already at Tier-6 Peak, and the daily star-gazing gave him twenty extra kilograms of force compared to everyone else.
That number sounded small, but compounded over time, it added up significantly.
Right now, the others were running on fumes. He still had fight left in him.
But he didn't stay with Chen Hao's group. This side needed a protector too. If the tiger abandoned Chen Hao and came this way, Zhao Kun and the others would be defenseless.
The mutant tiger versus the remaining Third and Tier 4 zombies wasn't even a fight. It was a massacre.
One casual swipe of its claws and a cluster of zombie skulls burst like overripe fruit.
A flick of its tail sent another row of heads flying from their shoulders. The technique was practiced-this beast had been killing zombies long before today.
Nothing the zombies had-claws, teeth, numbers-could scratch it.
It tore through the horde without slowing. Within moments, the remaining few hundred zombies were gone.
Watching this, everyone swallowed hard.
This thing was genuinely terrifying.
With the zombies cleared, the mutant tiger turned its gaze back to the squad. No hesitation. It launched itself straight at Chen Hao's group.
Zhong Yuansen encased his entire body in Earth Armor and planted himself in front of the others.
Chen Hao had already vanished-Invisibility active, circling for position.
Skinny Monkey and Lin Yifei braced themselves.
BOOM-
The tiger was too fast. Zhong Yuansen couldn't even shift his stance before a massive paw hammered into his chest.
His Earth Armor shattered on impact. His body launched backward, skidding several meters across the asphalt. Blood sprayed from his mouth. His eyes were wide with disbelief.
The others flinched.
They'd expected it to be strong. They hadn't expected this. If even Zhong Yuansen couldn't tank a single hit-
But there was no time to process it.
The instant Zhong Yuansen went flying, Lin Yifei activated her freeze.
Ice encased the tiger's body in a crystalline shell.
It lasted barely a heartbeat. The tiger flexed, and the ice exploded off it in shards.
But that heartbeat was enough.
A dagger wreathed in black Sharp Edge materialized behind the tiger and plunged into its neck.
"ROAAAR-!"
The tiger screamed. Its tail whipped around in a vicious arc, catching Chen Hao mid-retreat and slamming into him full force.
Blood burst from his lips. He hit the ground hard and tumbled several meters.
The enraged tiger abandoned all other targets and lunged for Chen Hao.
A Wind Blade slashed across its flank-but only carved a shallow bloody line. Barely a scratch.
"Hey, ugly! Over here!"
Skinny Monkey bellowed, locking eyes with the beast.
The tiger glanced at him.
That glance was all it took. The tiger's body froze mid-stride.
Two seconds. That was all Skinny Monkey could hold it.
The tiger shook free-and when it looked back toward Chen Hao's position, he was gone.
"ROAAAR-!"
The tiger roared in fury and hurled itself at Skinny Monkey instead.
"Holy shit, this ability is unreliable as hell-"
Skinny Monkey cursed and threw himself sideways.
But the tiger had locked onto him now. It missed once and immediately pounced again.
Nowhere left to dodge.
Then a body slammed into the tiger from the side-just enough force to knock its trajectory off by a fraction. Skinny Monkey rolled clear of the claws by inches.
He scrambled to his feet and gave a quick nod to the empty air beside him. He knew. Chen Hao had just saved his life. Without that hit, he'd be paste.
Every face was grim now. This tiger had a dagger buried in its neck and it was still fighting at full power. Still fast. Still lethal.
"What do we do?" Skinny Monkey's voice was tight.
"Get behind me. I can take one more."
Zhong Yuansen was back on his feet, planting himself at the front again.
"Ah Sen tanks. Beauty Fei freezes. I ambush." Chen Hao's low voice drifted from thin air.
"Monkey-hit the wound I opened. Focus your Wind Blades there."
"Got it." They all nodded.