Zhang San took out a bean from his pocket, used the Wood Series Spell to split the bean into two halves, handed one half to Xu, and kept the other for himself.
As long as his own Qi was sufficient, he could communicate with Xu through the bean.
Then, Zhang San walked to the left.
Along the way, the scenery was beautiful, and the mountain breeze was refreshing.
Zhang San felt that it would be even better if he could bring a few good friends here for an outing, with some fruits and drinks.
Big Head Wang would carry the food, Sister Ling would call a few beautiful girlfriends, and Wang Ziteng...
He would sponsor it!
Then he'd invite Xu and Wei, and Officer Bai was a nice guy—if he agreed to give everyone time off, reluctantly letting him freeload food and drink was not out of the question.
After walking for a while, sure enough, there was a waterfall ahead.
Zhang San had never understood what was so great about waterfalls that so many travelers insisted on visiting them at famous mountains and rivers.
Didn't they have faucets at home?
Wasn't it just that the faucets here were a bit larger?
However, sitting on a stump beside it, taking out the fruit he carried with him to nibble on, and watching the rainbow that appeared in front of the waterfall under the sunlight was quite pleasant.
The work at the Town Martial Office was really not bad.
If he could figure out who was targeting his predecessor and eradicate the crisis hanging over his head, that would be even better.
But for now, it seemed like the people around him were all good, even Wang Ziteng just simply disliked him instead of truly wanting to harm him, so who exactly wanted to harm him?
Suddenly, a golden huge tiger leaped down from atop the waterfall, landing neatly on a large blue stone not far away.
"Young man, aren't you afraid of being eaten coming up the mountain alone?"
Zhang San glanced at the tiger. Unlike the typical colorful fierce tigers he remembered, this one's fur was entirely golden, shining under the sunlight, and even lacked the black fur on the forehead that forms the character "King."
Clearly, this must be the Tiger Demon of Mingzhi Mountain from the legends.
Zhang San gave the Tiger Demon a slight smile. Although he had secretly activated Swift Wind Technique and was ready to cast Phantom Skill and Three Steps Xun Flash at any moment,
As for attacking, Zhang San wasn't sure of the Tiger Demon's realm and whether he could defeat it.
But if Zhang San wanted to run away, he was confident the tiger wouldn't even be able to touch his tail.
"I'm not afraid."
The Zhang San who said these two words had a calm face, even leisurely eating the apple in his hand as if completely unconcerned.
Though Zhang San was on edge, with his skills in deceit, his acting at this moment was definitely of an award-winning level.
The tiger gave Zhang San a glance, apparently not discerning any lies.
Then the tiger lay on the blue stone, half-closed eyes, and began to chat with Zhang San.
"Back then, that hunter was sitting on that stump as well. On that day, a lot of hunters came together to hunt, but after seeing me, they all ran away except for him... he was different."
Zhang San sensed that the hunter mentioned by the Tiger Demon must be the deceased Yu Daoning, and quickly asked, "How was he different?"
"The others turned tail and ran, but he just sat there on the stump, legs gone soft from fear. I could tell, he was an honest man, surely abandoned by the other humans, since by eating him, the other hunters could take the chance to escape. Thus, no companions came to his aid."
Zhang San continued to ask curiously, "So Tiger Brother, did you eat him?"
The Tiger Demon opened its eyes wide, glaring at Zhang San.
"Mind your words, what's your relationship with me to call me Tiger Brother? But, I saw the hunter was indeed an honest man, so I let him keep me company for a chat, and later even let him groom me."
"He! Abandoned by his companions, he was bullied by his wife at home, often groomed her hair, so he was very adept at grooming my fur."
"To thank him, I caught him some little deer, little leopards, little wolves, and such, and gave them to him."
Zhang San had not expected such a turn of events.
Normally, when demons encounter humans, they either gobble them up or toy with them all night before gobbling them up—that's the regular script for demons and humans, right?
Why wasn't this Tiger Demon following the routine?
"Then afterward... did you eat him?"
The Tiger Demon heaved a deep sigh.
"Later, his brother saw him often picking up prey in the mountains and growing more prosperous at home, so he grew envious and lured him to the mountain. By the time I arrived, he had already died. Speaking of which, he died right by that stump. Heh..."
Zhang San also didn't expect that a hunter, instead of being eaten by a Tiger Demon, would be killed by his own younger brother.
Ironically, the very reason for his death was the Tiger Demon's act of kindness, which had given him too many and too fine prey.
Once a place where the Tiger Demon spared a life, now a site where a brother suffered a tragic death.
"I gathered his bones, kept them in my cave in a coffin."
"Now his soul is using my Tiger's Might to seek justice at the county government office with the County Magistrate. You came up the mountain for this matter as well, didn't you?"
Zhang San nodded repeatedly, then suddenly realized that the Tiger Demon had no ill intent towards him from the beginning and even seemed to want to help him.
Even if I, Zhang San, have the protagonist's halo, it's not like I could just randomly meet a demon who's this nice to me, right?
"How can I trust you?"
The Tiger Demon pursed its lips.
Humans are complex.
You're not a tigress, what do I have to gain from deceiving you!
"It's your sweetheart who pleaded with me to help you. I'm only reluctantly helping you, so don't be ungrateful!"
Zhang San was startled, "My sweetheart?"
"Just a little fox, snow-white.
Zhang San grinned, you could've just said white. What's the deal with snow-white—it's made a mess of the image in my head.
The Tiger Demon saw the look in Zhang San's eyes, realizing he had remembered who he was talking about, and then asked, "What do you plan to do next?"
Zhang San thought for a moment, then asked back, "After a Fox Demon transforms, they must be pretty and have a good figure, right?"
The Tiger Demon got so angry that it stood up on the blue stone and roared, "I'm asking how you plan to handle Yu Daoning's death!"
Typical of the lowly human race that's in heat all four seasons of the year, pah!
If it weren't for my niece sincerely begging me, I, a devoted and simple-minded Tiger Demon, wouldn't even bother talking to you!