Chapter 73 - Into Tiger’s den
Chapter 73 – Into Tiger’s den
Translated by Bloodfalcon
So with that last attack, that big tiger is already exhausted but Lu Bu, the one who reign over tiger, is still standing strongly.
Seeing that its life will be extinguished by Lu Bu’s hand. Suddenly the big tiger jumped again to attack, as if like a cornered general. Its mouth roared furiously and shook its body to escape from Lu Bu’s pinning hands.
“Um?!” Lu Bu brow wrinkles. He contemplates whether to press the tiger further or letting it loose, but finally he let it loose.
“ROAARRRR!” The big tiger is gazing at Lu Bu quite long before it jumping into the thick patch of grass, leaving the battlefield.
“PURSUE IT!” Said Gao Shun. Tiger’s organ is very useful to one who practice martial arts especially for the present Liu Mang. The tiger bone can be boiled to make medicinal soup. For a person who practice martial arts, it is the top booster than any animal bones soup.
“Yes!” Cheng Yu who have brought back his weapon also prepared to rush with his horse.
“Stop the pursuit!” Lu Bu waved his arm to stop their people.
“Milord, what are you?!” Said Gao Shun with doubts. He does not believe Lu Bu do not know about tiger’s organs value. This thing can boost up Liu Mang’s skill to the next level. Moreover all other parts of tiger is extremely good for health also for example tiger’s meat, tiger’s bone and if it is male, tiger’s dick.
“Now, we do not pursuit!” Lu Bu continues to said that while wearing his upper-half of his armor. Lu Bu continued his explanation ”Right now that beast’s consciousness is a cornered beast, fighting for his life! If all of you pursue now, that beast will absolutely fight will all of its might, when that happens all of you will be in great danger!!!”
Lu Bu do not know the reason behind that tiger sudden leap, he just know that this tiger must have a reason to go back to its den. The present tiger did not recognize anything due to its wound. It only want to escape, once people prevent him, it will fight like a cornered fox which is more dangerous than a jackal. Although it can be killed but the cost will be a lot of men injured.
TL: Sorry brothers, I just tempted to put Gray Fox’s awesome quote here, because the literal translation is “It will fight with all its might”
Lu Bu who has put on the armor, goes more relaxed and said “Come on! We can pursue now!” then Lu Bu takes the lead. They are following the blood trails on the ground that beast left as a clue. They are following it step by step.
Walking beside Lu Bu is Liu Mang, Cheng Yu and Gao Shun both following from behind. Gao Shun did not speak at all and those two pretty ladies are also following them because of curiosity and fear for staying in wilderness alone.
“You have a very good luck, hunting this time!” Lu Bu opened his mouth. These pair of father-in-law and son-in-law already walked a few distance without saying a word finally broke the silence.
“Good luck?!” Liu Mang is smiling on one side of his mouth. It is really a luck certainly, do not know whether it is a good one or bad one. The bad one is he encountered tiger unexpectedly. Although the environment of Three Kingdoms’era is very good and bountiful, but the amount of king of the forest is very little, so the probability encountering it very low. His bad luck really began when that tiger targeted him and played him to almost dead. If not for those two pretty ladies, how can he got a very bad luck now? Thought Liu Mang while seeing those two pretty ladies.
Lu Bu also noticed Liu Mang’s gaze toward those two pretty ladies, they are wearing clothes like a hagoromo, although running here and there making those two’s clothes dirty still cannot hide their beauty. Lu Bu who everyday looks at his wives who are also the most beautiful women in all Three Kingdoms cannot help to also gaze at those two pretty ladies.
"Who are they?!" Asked Lu Bu.
“They are sisters from He clan from Wancheng city, they are on the way to Shucheng County to visit their old relatives, the tiger brought them to meet us!” Replied Liu Mang in detail. The way Liu Mang answered Lu Bu’s question is like a son answering his father question.
“Sisters from He clan of Wancheng City? They come out from the city to visit old relatives? With only these two alone?!” Lu Bu asked Gao Shun the same question. These two women are like lilies and roses, even if not chaos times they will be a subject for people to fight for their hands. Now is the chaos times, wherever people goes, it is engulfed with flames of war, and these pretty sisters actually dare to visit their old relatives alone??? Unbelievable.
“Originally they have several male servants come with her, but they were bitten to death by tiger!” Liu Mang added the information.
“Only male servant?!” Lu Bu deeply looking at these two pretty ladies. These two beauty is really a top notch, how can they are accompanied by so little bodyguard? And moreover they are male servant!!! Without the protection of bodyguard, it is very difficult to go on a journey. The one who believe such half-assed lie maybe only Liu Mang! Lu Bu’s first deduction is these two sisters, definitely not sisters of He clan from Wancheng City. Although Lu Bu still cannot guess their surname, but he decided to take along these sisters go back to Wancheng city, afterall what harm can these two sisters bring to Lu Bu army!
The more Lu Bu and co walking, the more bloodstain on the ground. Its den much be very near from here. Before entering tiger’s den, Lu Bu gives his very rare praise toward Liu Mang, “You did a very good job today!”
“Eh?!” Liu Mang surprised, Lu Bu praising him? Did actually Lu Bu praise himself? He have not done anything today. Today he goes for hunting, meet a tiger, fight a tiger to almost dead, how can those feats counted as doing a good job?
The truth that Liu Mang do not know is when an average person encounter a tiger, it can be said that basically that person is a dead meat. Even a fully armed soldier will need a one team of soldiers to surround the tiger. If they want to kill the tiger, they will need at least a hundred people to do it. Now Liu Mang can hold out such a long time facing tiger, one can say that Liu Mang’s skill in wushu have raised one level.
Getting to Cheng Yu’s and Gao Shun level in martial arts.
Practicing martial arts goes through 3 phases. First, building up body for defense, then hammering your bone for stamina and refining strength which is divided by three-class. An average person took at least ten years to build the foundation of his/her martial arts skill, a talented person also need to take at least five years to build it. But Lu Bu noticed due to Liu Mang’s diligence and perseverance, he can see that Liu Mang’s body is changing day-by-day. Like a moment ago, with the injury received by that tiger, even a general must rest for several days. But Liu Mang now did not feel too much pain at all. This is the quality of his body now.
Hammering bone is to build up stamina to practice martial arts to certain extend. This phase is needed for those who just entering a general position, pushing the threshold of a mere warrior has. Cheng Yu himself just entered hammering bone stage, while Gao Shun is of a higher class than Cheng Yu, he is has entered strength refining and his prowess now is second-class general.
Refining strength is the one who divide between first-class generals and second-class generals
Zhang Liao is a person who has entered the phase of refining strength. His prowess is slightly below of first-class generals. Lu Bu also already entered refining strength. But due to his prowess higher than others, he is in his own class which is pinnacle of super generals. The one who reached this degree are Lu Bu only. Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, Dian Wei, Xu Chu, Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, Huang Zhong, etc, these people prowess can be considered one level below pinnacle of super generals. They belong to a class called super generals with strength a bit more than first-class generals.
Lu Bu also watching Liu Mang’s effort. Building up one’s body as a foundation requires medicine like herbs etc, even if today no tiger appeared. But since a tiger appear today, Lu Bu want to seek that tiger to take its bone for Liu Mang’s medicine soup.
“You wait me here, I’ll go in!” It is a cave, although the cave entrance is big enough for all of them to come in, but there is no light at all, it is pitch dark. It is a very unadvisable thing to enter tiger’s den without proper equipment like torch for example. Lu Bu can just waltz in because he have confidence in his skills, but other people did not have the same skill as he have, that is why Lu Bu asked them to stay outside.
Not waiting for Lu Bu’s order, everyone are already waiting outside the cave.
Inside the cave, there are a very foul stench emanating from everywhere. Lu Bu brow wrinkled again but immediately restored. Because in Wuyuan County, where he lived before, the stench is more worse than this place.
TL: Wuyuan County, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wuyuan_County,_Inner_Mongolia, birthplace of Lu Bu
“ROARRR!” The tiger in cave also felt that some people is approaching, it roared. But it can only send out weak roar as it has used up every strength in its body.
Not long, the whole picture appeared in front of Lu Bu, making Lu Bu stunned up and kept looking straight.
Time has passed, one hour, two hour. Lu Bu who enter the cave looked like has dropped into endless pit, like no one has ever gone inside there.
“General Gao Shun, I wonder what happened to Honorable Father-in-law?!” Lu Bu who did not send news at all making Liu Mang and co really worried. Inside the cave only have a roaring sound but it is already two hours ago, Lu Bu have not been slaughtered right?
If there are slaughtered sound, it can make people relieved at this time, because at least they know what happened. This type of silence is the most uncomfortable.
“Let’s wait a little longer!” Gao Shun also impatient but he also has comply with his lord’s order.
But a few hours has passed.
“Waiting here no good, I need to go have a look!” Liu Mang really worried and started to walk toward the entrance, Cheng Yu also followed behind him, Gao Shun who did not stop them also followed them in.
“Big sister, do we also go in?!” Said the younger sister, while seeing that pitch black entrance, putting up little fear in her heart.
That pitch-black cave as if inviting fear on human is actually a good choice because outside is also not good! This forest already leave a bad impressions on these two sisters, if staying outside and bump into another predator, then what to do? They do not have strength to defend themselves.
“We also go in!” Said elder sister while biting her teeth. Although that pitch-black cave is very scary, but it has Liu Mang and co to protect them. At the outside, nobody can help them. So they cannot help it but go into that cave.