Chapter Seven: The White Tiger Clan

Realizing that the beast currently holding him captive possessed overwhelming strength, Zhou Tian began to hatch schemes in his mind while quietly sizing up his captor.

How to describe it? If he hadn’t just witnessed this creature interacting with the two white tigers, Zhou Tian would never have considered it a magical beast. It had long, snow-white hair, wore a suit of silver armor, and though its features were not particularly handsome, there was a radiant vigor about it. Its muscles rivaled those of a terminator, and if it were astride a white horse, eight or nine out of ten people would surely mistake him for a knight.

Of course, those were not the main points. Upon seeing its appearance, Zhou Tian’s first reaction was surprise. But after he processed it, he was immediately shaken by the implications of such a form and lowered his gaze in fear.

High-level magical beasts possessed some intelligence, but to match humans in intellect, one needed at least the strength of a top-tier beast. As for transforming into a humanoid form, ordinary sacred beasts could not accomplish this; aside from ingesting rare treasures or devouring special magical beasts, only the most elite sacred beasts or divine beasts could hope to achieve it.

Whether his captor was a powerful sacred beast or a divine beast hardly mattered; Zhou Tian only needed to know that, before becoming a dragon, his own strength was no match for such a creature.

Given all this, Zhou Tian realized he couldn’t simply resign himself to obediently becoming a pet. Though his lips curled in a bitter smile, a covert sense of delight also stirred in his heart.

Being a pet wasn’t a glorious status, but it had undeniable advantages. As long as a pet could please its master, the rewards were substantial. Consider those pets on Earth worth tens of thousands—even hundreds of thousands—how enviable their lives were! Aside from the unflattering title, they likely lived better than ninety-nine percent of people.

Imagining countless magic cores streaming towards him, envisioning endless high-level beasts tied up and awaiting his slaughter, Zhou Tian couldn’t help but drool.

Just as Zhou Tian indulged in fantasies of his future bliss, he suddenly felt his tail squeezed tight—and then realized that the unknown, powerful beast had hoisted him upside down.

“Forget it. Since you might be my future meal ticket, I’ll forgive you this time.” After reflecting on the disparity in strength between himself and his captor, Zhou Tian consoled himself and resignedly closed his eyes.

Dragged along for some time, Zhou Tian only cautiously observed his surroundings when he sensed the beast had halted.

“So this is a tiger’s den!” After a quick glance around, Zhou Tian was startled. He had seen two white tigers before, but never imagined he’d be brought to a whole clan.

From what he could see, there were hundreds of white tigers here. Although many were still cubs, incapable of fighting, the number of fully grown, formidable tigers exceeded a hundred.

Over a hundred white tigers, none weaker than intermediate magical beasts—considering the strength of this tribe, Zhou Tian couldn’t help but feel a chill.

As he marveled at the might of the white tiger clan, the beast suspected of being the Tiger King unceremoniously tossed him toward a small white tiger.

“Anna, here’s the pet you wanted. Is it suitable? If not, just eat it.”

Hearing the Tiger King’s words, Zhou Tian broke out in a cold sweat. With such strength, the Tiger King had no need to intimidate him; those words were clearly a genuine reflection of its thoughts.

To be so casually disregarded by the Tiger King—Zhou Tian couldn’t help but feel resentment. Yet he knew, given the Tiger King’s power, he wouldn’t stand a chance if it really wanted him for dinner. So rather than plotting escape or resistance, it was better to focus on pleasing the little white tiger named Anna. As long as Anna wanted him as her pet snake, the Tiger King would likely leave him alone.

Though he lacked experience in charming young tigers, Zhou Tian was confident, thanks to memories from his previous life, that he could win Anna’s favor.

But despite Zhou Tian’s confidence, Anna gave him no chance. With a swipe of her paw, before he could even open his mouth, she smacked him aside.

“I want a cute pet, like a fluffy rabbit, not this stinky snake!” Without a trace of guilt for inflicting harm, Anna complained to the Tiger King after batting Zhou Tian away.

“Is that so?” Puzzled by his daughter’s grievance, the Tiger King scratched his head and replied casually, “I don’t see much difference between this snake and a fluffy rabbit. You just want a pet, right? Why can the elder rabbit be a pet, but not this snake?”

“They’re not the same! Elder Rabbit is adorable. Look at this snake—it’s hideous! I don’t want such an ugly pet.”

Seeing Anna’s angry expression, the Tiger King could only acquiesce, “Fine, fine! Fluffy rabbit it is. Next time I go out, I’ll catch you one.”

Listening to the father-daughter exchange, Zhou Tian dared not interrupt. When their conversation ended, though anxious about his failed attempt to become Anna’s pet, he relaxed a little upon realizing the Tiger King had lost interest in him and began to quietly plot his escape.

But just as Zhou Tian tried to slip out of the tigers’ sight, a rather corpulent white tiger pressed him firmly to the ground.

“King, since the princess doesn’t want this snake, why not let me have it for dinner?”

“You glutton! Always thinking about food. There’s so little meat on this snake. Why can’t you hunt for yourself?” Hearing the request, Anna didn’t wait for the Tiger King’s response and scolded the fat tiger, more annoyed by its laziness than concerned for Zhou Tian’s fate.

Though she condemned the fat tiger’s intent, it was clear her tone was motivated by displeasure at its refusal to hunt rather than any objection to Zhou Tian being eaten.

The fat tiger seemed indifferent to the princess’s reproach, perhaps accustomed to it. Seeing no explicit objection from the Tiger King, it eagerly grabbed Zhou Tian and prepared to drag him away for a meal.

Though Zhou Tian knew what sort of beings he faced, when death stared him in the face, he instinctively resisted the fat tiger’s threat without thinking.

Perhaps the tiger was careless, or maybe it never expected Zhou Tian would dare to fight back. Unprepared, it allowed Zhou Tian to sink his fangs into its leg.

As his teeth met flesh, Zhou Tian immediately regretted it. Not because he felt remorse for attacking the fat tiger; life in the magical beast forest had long since hardened him to such acts. He felt no guilt dealing with creatures that meant him harm.

His regret was due to the fact that he wasn’t just facing the fat tiger—there was the Tiger King alone, who could easily end his life. Zhou Tian didn’t believe the white tigers would let a snake that dared attack one of their tribe live.

“If only I’d waited until after leaving the tiger clan to make my move,” he lamented internally, regretful he hadn’t held back until he had a chance at escape. Believing his life was over, Zhou Tian closed his eyes and awaited his fate.

Yet, as he lay there waiting for death, seconds passed with no movement. Curiosity compelled him to open his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the fat white tiger he had bitten...