C12 White Tiger
"I get it. If there's nothing here for me, I'll head out first."
After Su Jiuming had listened to Lee Daoquan's account, he caught a glimpse of Bai Yifeng hastily making his exit after wrapping up his business. Su Jiuming expressed his gratitude and then rose to leave.
Lee Daoquan didn't ask him to stay. With a polite farewell, he returned to his tea, contentedly addressing the sect's internal matters.
"Did you hear that the chief has turned his chicken into a mount? Can that be true?"
"It's no lie; I saw it with my own eyes. That chicken is as tall as a person and carries the chief with such stability."
"For someone of the chief's stature, riding a chicken seems a bit... undignified."
It wasn't long after Su Jiuming had departed that the sect's disciples began to chatter, leaving Lee Daoquan feeling rather sheepish.
While Lee Daoquan was aware of the Jabberwocky's formidable nature, he preferred not to make a fuss. Yet, the sect's disciples were voicing their grievances, feeling that Su Jiuming's choice was tarnishing the sect's image.
The more he heard, the more restless he became. Setting his teacup aside, he stood up to go after Su Jiuming.
"Junior brother, are you actually riding the Jabberwocky?"
"The word's out among the disciples. The sect's chief riding a chicken... It seems somewhat improper."
Lee Daoquan, able to fly on his sword, was much quicker than Su Jiuming on his Jabberwocky. He caught up with Su Jiuming and began to counsel him.
The sect's chief could simply request any spirit animal from Fae Peak; there was no need to resort to riding a chicken...
"Let the disciples talk if they want. My role as chief is merely symbolic."
Su Jiuming was having the time of his life until Lee Daoquan's comments gave him pause. Though slightly uneasy, he didn't take it to heart.
"All is ephemeral," he muttered, echoing a phrase that had once been all the rage online, and continued on his way to Misty Peak astride the Jabberwocky.
At this moment, all Su Jiuming desired was to live a tranquil and serene life on the Starlight Continent. He was unconcerned with idle gossip; after all, he was but a mortal with less than a century to live, and he intended to spend it joyfully.
Reluctant to press the issue, Lee Daoquan simply watched Su Jiuming's stylish departure on the Jabberwocky, repeatedly murmuring Su Jiuming's recent words: "Everything is but a fleeting cloud."
Everything is but a fleeting cloud?
Indeed, the journey of cultivation is long, but in the presence of divine magic, all else is insignificant. Even the most gifted among us are merely clouds drifting across the vast sky, and all our earthly achievements are as ephemeral as clouds after death.
Lee Daoquan hadn't realized Su Jiuming's profound insight. His grasp of divine magic had far surpassed Lee Daoquan's own by several realms.
Lee Daoquan had an epiphany and made a mental note of this moment, finding the distant figure bouncing atop the chicken increasingly impressive.
The following morning, Su Jiuming, stifling a yawn, prepared the chicken feed for the Jabberwocky. Before he could offer it, a massive shape darkened the sky above him.
Upon closer inspection, Su Jiuming recognized a winged white tiger descending, with a man perched atop it signaling the creature to land. The man, looking down his nose at Su Jiuming with an air of superiority, was none other than his second senior brother, Qin Fengzhu.
With a thunderous thud, the white tiger landed, sending tremors through the surrounding earth.
Su Jiuming observed the majestic white tiger before him and then glanced at the Jabberwocky, eagerly eyeing the chicken feed in the coop. The contrast was stark.
Su Jiuming marveled inwardly at the wonders of the cultivation world, where even a white tiger could sprout wings and soar.
"Junior brother, you seem mesmerized by my mount. Isn't it discourteous to ignore your senior brother's greeting?" Qin Fengzhu remarked, noticing Su Jiuming's fixation on the white tiger and clearing his throat to assert his presence.
"It's understandable, though. I've heard you were raised in the countryside, so it's only natural you haven't encountered a white tiger before."
"My spirit animal, the White Tiger, carries the lineage of the divine White Tiger. Even as a cub, it possesses the cultivation of the Foundation Building stage, and its diet is far from ordinary."
Qin Fengzhu was beaming with pride as he lavished praise upon his white tiger. He glanced over at the Jabberwocky in the chicken coop and said, "I've heard that my junior brother also has a spirit animal, so I thought it would be interesting to have it match up against my senior brother's chicken for a friendly spar."
After speaking, Qin Fengzhu stroked the white tiger, looking quite pleased with himself.
This white tiger was his greatest prize from his recent journey. To acquire it, Qin Fengzhu had sacrificed two of his disciples.
But the tiger didn't act according to his wishes. It sniffed and, without waiting for Qin Fengzhu's command, bolted towards Su Jiuming.
More specifically, it was after the chicken feed in Su Jiuming's hands.
Su Jiuming, seeing this, lost all interest in admiring the white tiger. He tossed aside the bowl of feed and took off running.
The white tiger, engrossed in licking up the chicken feed, ignored Qin Fengzhu's calls and instead issued a protective growl.
Qin Fengzhu realized his white tiger was out of control. If he tried to intervene, he risked being bitten by the creature.
Yet the white tiger was too valuable to simply let be. Qin Fengzhu drew his sword, standing guard while frantically devising a strategy.
After only a few steps, Su Jiuming sensed something amiss. He watched the white tiger circling the chicken feed and called out to Qin Fengzhu, "Senior Brother, your white tiger seems to have quite the unique palate—it actually likes my chicken feed."
Embarrassed but pressed by the urgency of the situation, Qin Fengzhu ignored Su Jiuming's comment and continued to call out to the white tiger.
What happened next took both men completely by surprise, leaving them dumbfounded:
The Jabberwocky, seeing its feed being taken, squawked incessantly and slammed against the chicken coop's fence.
After several futile attempts, it spread its wings and flew out, heading straight for the white tiger with a peck.
Caught off guard, the white tiger was pecked several times and engaged in a scuffle with the Jabberwocky—a clash between a tiger and a chicken.
Before long, the white tiger was soundly defeated. Not only had it lost its former pride, but it also let out a pitiful howl and fled with its tail tucked between its legs.
After triumphing over the white tiger, the Jabberwocky hopped excitedly on the spot, flapping its wings with glee. It chirped incessantly as it pecked at the chicken feed with obvious delight.
It took a moment for Qin Fengzhu to snap out of his daze. He glanced at the spirited and adorable Jabberwocky before him, then at the white tiger that had scampered away, stripped of its majestic aura. He was at a loss for what to do next.
Three seconds later, Qin Fengzhu clenched his teeth and set off in pursuit of the white tiger, which had already made good its escape.
Though curious about how the Jabberwocky managed to best the white tiger, Qin Fengzhu knew that retrieving his own spirit animal took precedence.
Su Jiuming, too, regained his composure. He watched the Jabberwocky pecking away cheerfully, seeking praise, then his gaze shifted to the white tiger, now a mere speck in the distance, and finally to Qin Fengzhu, who was doggedly chasing after it. He couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Was this the white tiger with the might of a spirit animal?
Was this the so-called mount with the prowess of Foundation Building from its youth?
Is this all?
It couldn't even best my little Chicky!
With a smile, Su Jiuming stroked the Jabberwocky's fluffy head, turned back to his farming, and let go of any lingering thoughts about the white tiger.
A white tiger that fears a chicken is nothing more than a sickly cat, not nearly as endearing as my Jabberwocky.