Chapter 36: The Giant Tiger (2)

With both front paws broken, the giant tiger struggled to escape, but it was impossible. Su Lun leaped several times, arriving in front of the beast. The tiger looked utterly miserable, its huge head bruised and swollen after the beating.

Seeing the giant tiger in such agony, Su Lun felt a pang of pity. He then thrust his spear hard, ending its pain.

“I am truly merciful,” Su Lun thought contentedly, pleased to see it return peacefully to the heavens.

[Ding! Giant Tiger killed. Mission complete! Calculating rewards…]

[Giant Tiger killed. You gained twenty thousand Experience Points. Congratulations, host. Your level has increased. You received two Free Attribute Points. You received two Skill Points. Congratulations, host, you obtained one Golden Treasure Chest.]

[Territory dungeon mission completed. Reward: 5000 Experience Points, All Attributes +1. You killed the Giant Tiger. Popular Support for your Territory increased by 10, Stability increased by 10.]

[You obtained one Military Token—Archer.]

[You obtained one Self-Created Hero Template!]

“Self-Created Hero Template?” After hearing the System’s prompt, Su Lun’s attention immediately focused on the Self-Created Hero Template. He opened his Storage Space and saw a sphere about the size of a baby’s fist, glowing with faint light.

Su Lun focused his will and took it out from the Storage Space. It felt cool in his hand. The sphere was incredibly light, almost weightless, with a slightly cool touch.

[Self-Created Hero Template: When used, it can make an ordinary person a System-recognized Hero. Physical fitness won’t change upon use, but they can earn Experience Points to level up after joining the host’s faction. Upon use, they gain one innate skill and one innate trait. Their original skills and traits remain unchanged.]

Seeing the properties of the Self-Created Hero Template, Su Lun was clearly delighted. This kind of template also existed in the game. Besides the basic NPC heroes, players could create heroes according to their own ideas. He hadn’t expected this function to remain after arriving in this world.

Although the Self-Created Hero Template didn’t seem powerful based on its properties, it had a major advantage: as long as the Experience Points met the leveling requirement, the character’s level could keep rising without encountering bottlenecks.

He knew that while there were many supernatural abilities in this world, achieving them depended heavily on talent. Most people stagnated at low or mid-levels their whole lives; only a rare few could break through to high or even Legendary levels. But now, with this Self-Created Hero Template, one could ascend unimpeded all the way to the limit.

Of course, it wasn’t without drawbacks. Once recognized as a Hero by the System, the Experience Points needed for each subsequent level became significantly higher than the last. By the later stages, the XP requirement became astronomically high. So, even as a Hero, reaching the Legendary level would take a very long time.

Still, even if it took time, it was better than clinging to vague, hopeless possibilities. He stored the template safely and took out another token-shaped object.

It was a black military token. One side depicted a bow and arrow, the other bore the character ‘弓’ (gōng – bow). The token felt warm and smooth like jade, resembling a well-handled antique. Its material was unknown.

[Military Token—Archer: Using this grants the ability to recruit, train, and command Archer soldiers. Increases commandable troop types to include Archer units.]

Su Lun chose to use it immediately. The token in his hand dissolved into specks of light, vanishing into the air. Then, in the ‘Command’ section of his stats panel, an entry for Archer soldiers appeared.

He stored his spear, now severely bent and deformed. It was completely ruined, its only value now being melted down for scrap. Reaching out, Su Lun lifted the giant tiger beside him. This eight-meter-long giant tiger was practically a treasure trove.

Magical Beast meat was not only a delicious delicacy but also contained special magical energy. Eating it enhanced one’s strength. If the corpse of this giant Magical Beast tiger appeared at an auction, nobles would scramble frantically for it. Of course, the strength-boosting effect from the tiger meat had its limits.

Besides the meat, its blood was excellent for making magic ink or potions. The pelt could be crafted into enchanted Leather Armor or used for Magic Scrolls. The bones were valuable as spell components or for crafting auxiliary materials. And definitely, there was one thing that was a favorite among male Nobles.

Ordinary tiger genitals fetched a high price. Those from a high-tier Magical Beast like this were bound to be far more potent and exorbitantly expensive. Could it be sold? Don’t doubt a Noble’s willingness to pursue this. For men, the pursuit of such things surpassed even women’s obsession with cosmetics.

Being so huge, the tiger was naturally incredibly heavy. Su Lun estimated its weight to be at least three to four tons. Even accounting for bones, internal organs, and skin, at least half would be usable meat.

Dragging the giant tiger’s corpse out of the woods, he spotted several Barbarian Warriors in the distance. They immediately ran towards him when they saw his figure finally appearing. Upon seeing what Su Lun was dragging, their jaws dropped in shock.

“Lord… Lord! Is that…?”

The Barbarians’ faces flushed deeply, and their voices trembled. “That Ragewind Magic Tiger… Did you kill it?” They couldn’t help but be stunned.

“Hmm.” Su Lun casually dropped the corpse and dusted off his clothes. “I was patrolling and found this big cat eating one of my cows. Killed it in passing.”

“In passing?!”

“Enough chatter. Send someone back to bring a cart from the Territory to haul this thing back.” His flat tone made it sound like he’d killed a mere ant, not a high-level Magical Beast.

The Barbarian Warriors’ looks of admiration intensified. One quickly rushed back to carry the message. The others jointly lifted the giant corpse and started the trek back towards the camp.

Soon, that Barbarian Warrior returned with several horse-drawn wagons. Even though they knew Su Lun had slain a Ragewind Magic Tiger, the sheer size of the beast still shocked everyone who laid eyes on it. Amid the gasps sounded loudly.

As they loaded the tiger onto a cart, seeing the wounds covering the beast elevated their worship of Su Lun to another level. This reverence peaked back at the camp compound. The Kobolds and Goblins forced into labor trembled uncontrollably as they saw the monster, a bone-deep fear etched into their very beings.

The Mercenaries and other Barbarians in the Territory felt immensely proud that their Lord had slain such a powerful Magical Beast. In the Northern Lands, a strong Lord was vital for protecting the Territory. At that moment, Su Lun’s standing among his people soared to new heights.