Monsters on a Rainy Night

It had been sunny for a long time. On this night, the weather suddenly changed. Dark clouds gathered in large patches and finally it was going to rain.

Li Shiyin was soaking in the bathtub. Outside was the rumbling of thunder, but she was soaking in a warm and comfortable herbal bath, feeling utterly relaxed. She leaned back comfortably with her toes spread out, listening to the thunder as if it were a wonderful piece of music, and hummed along softly.

The herbal soup no longer had a pungent medicinal smell. When making it, Master had added some fragrant herbs, and now the bath gave off a pleasant aroma. After soaking in it, her body would also become fragrant.

The bathtub had been modified by Master to have a hollow to rest her head and a soft cushion to support her back and waist, allowing her to sleep while bathing without worrying about slipping into the water and drowning.

The room was also fitted with a warming spell formation, so the water wouldn't cool over time. Soaking in this herbal bath was like soaking in a hot spring.

In short, bathing in this herbal soup was pure enjoyment for her.

The heat carried the effects of the medicine into her body, massaging her muscles and soothing the soreness from digging the lake during the day. At the same time, the medicinal essence was absorbed by her muscles, strengthening her body.

For a bucket of herbal soup like this, Li Shiyin would sometimes contemplate how much it cost, but she couldn't even remember or understand how many types of medicine Master Qin Ran used, let alone know the value of the prescription. But she could be certain of one thing - this herbal bath was expensive.

She could only say, her Master really doted on his dumb disciple.

The thunder outside gradually diminished, and rain began to fall. The rain came from very far away. At first it was just a few drops - drip, drip, drip. After a moment, it became a pouring rain.

The sound of rain came in through the window. Soaking in the steaming hot herbal bath, Li Shiyin soon fell into a doze.

But just as she began to fall asleep...

Boom! A huge thunderclap suddenly woke her up.

She opened her eyes and looked outside, just in time to see a bolt of lightning split the sky, followed by a loud crack. The intense flash of light pierced the closed window, leaving her momentarily blinded, as if the lightning was right before her eyes.

"Phew..." She let out a breath, patting her chest to calm herself from the shock.

"Roar!"

Suddenly another roar rang out, this time the roar of a tiger.

The roar that penetrated the soul frightened her all over again. It took her some time to recover her composure.

Heavy rain, late night, thunder, tiger's roar...

Li Shiyin frowned. It seemed something was happening outside.

Thinking this, she got out of the tub, dried herself off, wrapped up in a robe and went out to the porch.

The night was very dark, and the rain was heavy. The darkness oppressed the light, which barely illuminated the wooden house's porch. But farther out, nothing could be seen.

Against this backdrop, Li Shiyin looked up into the distance, peering below the cloud layer. Lightning split the darkness, illuminating two enormous shadows facing off against each other.

One shadow was in the shape of an ox, with a single horn on its head containing divine thunder. Its four hooves stood upon the lightning. The other was a tiger-shaped shadow, standing amidst the darkness, head raised and roaring - one could imagine the tiger's roar from before came from it.

"This is..." Li Shiyin's eyes widened, "A battle between Demon Kings?!"

"That ox is called the Thunder Unicorn Ox, and that tiger should be the Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger," Master Qin Ran's gentle voice suddenly sounded from the side. Li Shiyin looked over to see Master leaning against the door frame of his room, arms crossed, also watching that direction. "The heavy rain tonight was brought by the two of them."

Master really does know everything! Li Shiyin thought to herself in admiration. She then asked, "Why are they fighting?"

"Tiger and ox, why do you think they would fight?" Qin Ran glanced at his disciple, seeing her wearing just a thin robe barely concealing her body, and quickly looked away toward the distant battle. "Predator and prey... For them to fight all the way to the front door of a human sect, it really is rare. Both are demonic beasts above the Yuan Ying stage, they should know to avoid human power."

"Is the tiger trying to eat the ox?" Li Shiyin's focus was different however. Pointing at the relative positions of the two demon kings, she said, "But why does it seem the tiger can't beat the ox? Is it on the defensive?"

"Who said the tiger can definitely beat the ox? The relationship between hunter and hunted is never absolute," Qin Ran said. "Also, the Thunder Unicorn Ox feeds on lightning and thunder, it can control lightning and summon lightning. See how its four hooves stand on lightning? And its horn can also shoot divine thunder. In what way is it weaker than the Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger?"

"Oh!" Li Shiyin nodded.

As they were speaking, the battle between the Thunder Unicorn Ox and the Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger began again beneath the clouds. Roars and bellows continuously sounded as the vague shape of the huge tiger writhed amongst the chaotic flashes of lightning...

This scene was truly frightening. Li Shiyin subconsciously raised her hand to shield herself, but still felt it was useless. So she edged closer to Qin Ran and couldn't help asking, "They won't fight their way here, will they Master?!"

"No!" Seeing Li Shiyin move closer, along with her feminine fragrance, Qin Ran's entire body tensed up uncomfortably. He kept his eyes fixed on the distant battle and shook his head reassuringly, "It looks close, but actually they are very far away. Besides, the Elder Taishangs of Dao Sword Sect must be watching them, as well as the mountain protecting grand formation..."

"Damn it!" However, before he could even finish speaking, a piercing flash of lightning suddenly lit up over there as the Thunder Unicorn Ox unleashed its divine thunder through its horn.

Then the shadow of the Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger suddenly vanished, immediately followed by the roar of the tiger and agonized cry of the ox sounding out together.

At the same time, a thin bolt of lightning shot out from that direction toward them.

From the Thunder Unicorn Ox attacking, to the Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger disappearing, to the ox's miserable scream, to the bolt of lightning shooting their way, it all happened in a flash, almost simultaneously.

Before Qin Ran could even finish his sentence, the divine thunder was right before their eyes. He couldn't help but curse, "Fuck!"

At the same time his hands formed seals, summoning out a water shield technique. A membrane of water spread out, protecting himself and his foolish disciple beside him.

The water membrane had just finished forming when, with a crack, the lightning bolt struck it. The water shield then shattered into a mist, dispersing the lightning.

This water shield technique was truly miraculous.

Qin Ran cultivated the alchemy path, determined to pursue immortality to the end. His mastery of concealment arts and shielding arts was extremely high, possibly even better than his alchemy skills.

An ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator really might not have blocked that bit of divine lightning...

Alright, Qin Ran actually hadn't completely blocked it either, and some of the lightning still leaked through and struck him.

This sudden shock left him dazed for quite a while.

"Master? Master!" Li Shiyin called out worriedly. She reached out to support Qin Ran, but was immediately zapped by the residual divine lightning on him, forcing her to pull back her hand. She didn't dare try to touch him again, only standing by anxiously shouting.

Qin Ran slowly regained his senses, still frightened. "I... I'm fine..." he said breathlessly.

He then reached into his robe and pulled out a charred talisman.

His lifesaving ace, used up. One less left.

"What a disaster out of nowhere!" He couldn't help but curse. "Just my luck!"

"Mas... Master!" At this moment, Li Shiyin next to him suddenly spoke up. "It also seems... not completely out of nowhere..."

Qin Ran glanced over, wondering what nonsense his foolish disciple was spewing now. He followed her pointing finger, looking over to a spot on the ground below. There, something was glowing faintly.

Taking a closer look, he saw it was a small cat-sized... tiger cub!

"A Profound Underworld Spirit Tiger... cub?!"