Ling Tian encountered a group of poachers, led by Xie Laosi, who intended to silence him.
Two poachers simultaneously fired their crossbow bolts at Ling Tian. In their eyes, he was as good as dead.
In fact, at close range, the stopping power and penetration of a crossbow could even surpass that of a handgun.
However, something that made them rub their eyes in disbelief occurred. Ling Tian, without even turning his head, caught both crossbow bolts. Then, with a flick of his wrist, the two bolts flew back the way they came.
"Thwack!" "Thwack!"
"Ouch!" "Mama!"
The two attackers clutched their wrists, screaming in pain. It turned out that both crossbow bolts had precisely hit their wrists!
The pain caused the two attackers to drop their weapons, almost fainting from the agony.
Xie Laosi was going mad. In just a few dozen seconds, half of his men were dealt with. What was worse, they had initiated the attack!
"You... who exactly are you!" Xie Laosi demanded.
Ling Tian spread his hands and shrugged helplessly.
"I told you, I'm just an ordinary traveler.
But since you tried to ambush me, don't blame me for being impolite!"
"Friend, the Great Dao is vast, and we all walk our own paths. This is all a misunderstanding.
I apologize on behalf of my brothers! Let's part ways here and pretend nothing ever happened..."
"Heh!" Ling Tian let out a cold laugh.
"You ambushed me first, and now that you can't beat me, you want to part ways and act as if nothing happened. Do you think that's possible?"
"Then what do you want?"
"We are all adults. If we make a mistake, we should pay the price, shouldn't we?"
"What do you want? We can compensate you!" Xie Laosi calculated their respective strengths and decided to concede.
Zhu Tou Lin was the strongest among them, and he was instantly defeated. Xie Laosi felt they had no chance if they resorted to a direct confrontation.
Ling Tian's eyes darted, and an idea struck him. He pointed directly at the cage on the ground.
"My wife loves cute little animals. I think this panda is quite adorable. How about you give me this panda!"
"That's impossible!" Ling Tian's request struck a nerve with Xie Laosi!
These men had endured hardships and suffered greatly while living outdoors to capture this panda cub. If they handed over the cub, their earnings from this trip might not even cover the medical expenses for their injured subordinates!
"Little brother, please choose another condition. How about this, one million, I'll give you one million!"
Ling Tian looked at Xie Laosi with the gaze one reserves for the intellectually challenged.
"Do you really think one million can buy a panda?"
"Two million!" Xie Laosi said, biting his lip, his heart bleeding.
"Heh!" Ling Tian continued to look at him with pity.
"Five million!"
"Heh!"
"Kid, killing is one thing, but don't push your luck too far!" Xie Laosi roared.
"I am pushing my luck, so what!
Come on, fight! All three of you, attack me! I'm in a hurry!"
"Fine, you asked for it!"
With bloodshot eyes, Xie Laosi drew his dagger. The remaining two poachers also drew their weapons and surrounded Ling Tian.
"Die!" Xie Laosi plunged his knife towards Ling Tian's abdomen without a shred of mercy. However, before his knife could touch Ling Tian, Ling Tian grabbed his wrist.
Ling Tian flipped his wrist, and with a snap, Xie Laosi's arm hung limply.
Just then, Huang Shulang also charged forward, raising the steel fork he used for probing and thrusting it directly at Ling Tian.
Ling Tian reached out and caught the steel fork with a clang.
Huang Shulang froze and, using all his might, tried to stab the fork into Ling Tian's chest, but it couldn't penetrate at all.
In desperation, he tried to pull the steel fork out, but it remained as still as ever in his grip.
However, the next moment, Huang Shulang was dumbfounded. He felt an immense force transmitted through his hand. He desperately tried to hold onto the steel fork, only to see the tip of the fork being bent straight by Ling Tian!
"Holy crap, is this even human!"
Huang Shulang was almost scared out of his wits. He let go of the steel fork, dropped it, and turned to run!
Ling Tian grabbed the steel fork and threw it forward with immense force. Infused with a great deal of internal energy, the steel fork struck Huang Shulang directly in the lower back.
Huang Shulang cried out, collapsing to the ground. The searing pain in his lower back made him feel as if he couldn't move!
Meanwhile, the last remaining poacher had already turned and fled more than ten meters away.
A thought flashed through Ling Tian's mind, and a green brick appeared in his hand.
"Watch my Sky-Flipping Seal!"
"Whoosh..." The brick whistled through the air and directly hit the poacher's leg. He felt a sharp, piercing pain in his right leg and stumbled to the ground.
Ling Tian clapped his hands, looking at the six poachers lying on the ground. Although these six were fierce compared to ordinary people, they were no match for Ling Tian.
Ling Tian walked forward and stripped the clothes off the six poachers, leaving each with only their underwear.
Then, he tied them in pairs to a large tree and began to search for loot.
Ling Tian collected all the cash and valuables from these poachers. He took a piece of clothing, made a bundle, and filled it to the brim.
This included the insulated box containing the bear paw.
Next, Ling Tian walked over, opened the cage, and released the panda cub.
As soon as the little one came out, it felt a sense of familiarity from Ling Tian. It immediately hugged Ling Tian's thigh and began to squeal.
Ling Tian was delighted by the adorable creature. He picked up the cub and, carrying the large bundle, happily walked into the depths of the forest.
As for the poachers, they were tied to the trees, their fate left to chance.
After walking out of sight of the poachers, Ling Tian directly threw the spoils into his Spirit Realm space. The panda cub was also placed in the Beast Taming Garden within the Spirit Realm space.
This creature, known as the "iron-eating beast," required a large amount of bamboo daily, and Ling Tian didn't have the time to wait for it to eat. Fortunately, the Beast Taming Garden contained abundant spiritual energy from heaven and earth, which could nourish wild beasts and serve as their food.
As for the poachers, they were tied to the trees, some dejected, others grimacing from their injuries.